Things to Discuss With Your Partner & Family Before Booking the Venue

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Planning a wedding is a multifaceted task and one that is hectic if not done the right way and of course using the best wedding planning apps. Now a wedding planning includes a lot of people - not only are we pointing at the different service providers who will make your wedding dreams come true but also a lot of family members, the in-laws, friends and of course well-wishers with experience of having hosted a wedding. This is a common scenario that almost all Indian weddings will witness - irrespective of the fact whether it is a big fat wedding or an intimate one.

Now while there are a lot of opinions that will be served while you start wedding planning, there are some opinions that are significant and should be prioritised accordingly - opinions of your partner and family members. No matter what, to make your wedding planning hassle-free, make sure you are all on the same page!

So you have already said yes and the wedding date has been picked, the very next step is to pick a wedding venue. There are a lot of factors that can affect your decision of choosing a wedding venue and there are a lot of things that you need to discuss with your partner and family. To help you steer through these factors smoothly and in one boat, we have listed some things that you must discuss with your partner and your family before you book the venue. Read on to know in details.

Also Read: The Wedding Calendar for 2021 is Out!

What is the wedding budget?

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Before even you pick the engagement ring or plan the guest list, it is very important to plan a budget. There are pro tools available like the WeddingWire India Budget Tool. You need to ask your partner what is the wedding budget that you want to agree upon. In Indian weddings, parents start saving for your wedding way before you have even thought of tying the knot and therefore the wedding budget is heavily influenced by the parents (families) of both bride and groom.

In such cases, you must all sit down and discuss the plan thoroughly about what will be the budget for your wedding. Once the budget is decided, the budget tool allows you to segregate the amount accordingly or you can do the math and figure out what amount from the budget do you want to allot to the wedding venue. This creates or disposes of the possibilities of venues that you can pick from. 

Also Read: Things to Consider Before Planning Your Wedding Expenses Checklist

What is our vision of the wedding?

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The second very important discussion that you must have with your partner is their vision of the wedding. Do you both want a small wedding in your backyard or would you want to go all out by picking a palace wedding venue? With some of the COVID-19 guidelines still in place, you might have to reconsider a destination wedding, but you can always pick the time of your wedding according to the vision of your wedding. There are amazing destination wedding venues within the country too. It is very important to be on the same page when it comes to discussing the vision of your wedding with your partner. 

While family members might also have their opinions because we know how excited Indian parents can be about their children getting married and they might have it all planned in their heads already. Make sure to include their opinion in the matter and in fact in case of any confusion or disagreement, you never know the family's opinion might be the tie-breaker and for good!

Where do we want the wedding to be?

The list that includes the types of venues available out there for you to pick from is an endless one. While you are all set with the budget and your vision of the wedding, you must have by now figured out what kind of wedding you want - intimate or big. It is now time for you to discuss what kind of environment and backdrop do you want for your wedding. The outdoor wedding venues are indeed a natural aesthetic pleasure but the regal indoor wedding decor is a breathtaking view altogether. 

The time has finally come for you to discuss whether you want an open-air venue or an indoor type of wedding venue for the big day. You could pick a palace or a vineyard or even a banquet and you will notice almost all of these spaces will provide you with indoor as well as outdoor options. Consider your families' opinion here and discuss it with them too. Once you, your partner and the families have come to a conclusion, you can shortlist the venues that provide for the option you have picked. 

How many people to include in our guest list?

Guestlist is a very important deciding factor. You might have always wanted a backyard boho wedding ceremony in a farmhouse but your guest list might require otherwise. Over the years the relationships that you nurture and friendships that you harbour result in a long guest list for your wedding. So with time, the dream backyard wedding might evolve to a ranch wedding or a boutique hotel/resort wedding too. This is why it is very important to have the guest list ready before you pick the venue and to get to that you will need to discuss the people you want to include in your guest list with your partner and both of your families.

Now reducing a guest list can be stressful and we suggest go de-stress and get back on it. Your parents and in-laws play a very significant role in drafting the guest list because in most Indian weddings it is still conventional for the parents to send out the wedding invitations on behalf of you and your partner. There will be a long list of relatives from both sides plus friends and colleagues who you hold dear whose names will pop-up in the first draft. Make wise decisions and consider the opinions of your family and partner before finalising a guest list - added tip, consider most RSVPs to be a yes for a better headcount. Once that is sorted, you can move on to shortlisting the venues that have the capacity to host that many guests. 

What kind of space requirements do we keep for each ceremony?

Indian weddings are a carnival and this big festival includes a handful of pre-wedding and post-wedding ceremonies too. Most families these days prefer to hold the pre-wedding ceremonies at the venue and together with the other family. While some of you millennials would still want to host the Haldi ceremony and the magical mehndi ceremony at your respective homes like the good old days, some of you (especially the ones who picked a destination wedding) might need the event space for hosting these ceremonies. 

This is why it is of utmost importance to discuss what kind of space would you require for hosting your ceremonies apart from the wedding. If you think the answer is the wedding venue, then you will have to filter out the ones that are not available for hosting pre-wedding ceremonies due to prior bookings or space crunch or other guidelines that the venue might have of its own. We have also known of couples who went all out and picked different spaces for different occasions especially for the weddings that happen in Jaipur and Udaipur with different palaces that are located just a stone's throw away from each other. 

Will the venue match our wedding theme?

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Most millennials these days prefer to keep a wedding theme. The wedding industry has seen vintage theme weddings, whimsical theme weddings, red and white themed wedding and so on. While planning your wedding, you must have a clear picture painted in your head of how you want your wedding to be and if not that you at least know how you want your wedding to look after all. 

For instance, if your partner has always wanted a palatial themed red wedding, after discussing and agreeing to it, the other types of venues apart from palaces will automatically get a strike off from the list. If you want a beach destination wedding with blue as the theme, all the other venues apart from the ones by the beach will be disposed of. This is why you must discuss if the theme of your wedding will match the venue or vice versa. This helps you narrow down the options even further and thus making the choice much easier than the time you first started thinking of picking a venue. 

Do we opt for a venue with amenities or barebone space?

Another very relevant question is whether you want to pick a venue that has a lot of facilities to offer or book one that just offers the space. There are venues like some hotels and even banquets that offer a lot of conveniences apart from the space like catering services, in-house wedding decorators and so on. However, there are some venues that just provide you with the space for the ceremonies and the rest has to be appointed and managed by you. This is the perfect time for you to discuss with your partner and your respective families about how much time and sweat would you want to invest in planning your wedding.

While wedding planning is a hectic task, hiring a professional planner will ease out your tasks and replace them with her planner responsibilities but the call is yours to take - whether you want to do all the work from scrap or otherwise take it easy by giving it to a professional. Similarly, you need to decide if you, your partner and your families can make time to visit the venue while it gets decorated, or make a trip to the caterer and discuss the seating ideas for the venue. It might take a few more round trips to the venue, but you'll have it all easy-breezy and in one place if you are using the WeddingWire India app or the website to manage the planning and vendors. Discuss the kind of space you are looking to hire with the partner and your fam before finalising it because it takes teamwork to make it flawless.  

What about our Guests' Comfort?

Though it is YOUR wedding day and above everything that matters is how YOU and of course your partner wants it to be, we would still suggest you consider the convenience and comfort of your guests. The guestlist often included great grandparents or grandparent or cousins with young kids and so on and their presence is something that you might not want to compromise with. In such cases, discuss the comfort of their travel and how comfortable will they be at the venue or what can be done to arrange for their comfort before you finalise a venue.

Family members are the pillars of every home and to get married while all your pillars are with you, you might at times have to put them first and for good. This is why we suggest that you discuss with your family members as well as with your partner and the in-laws if there are any special arrangements they look forward to or they need to be comfortable at the venue. You might want to check if the venue is wheelchair friendly (has elevated planks or elevators) or has enough heaters in case of a December wedding.

It is time you tell "We need to talk" to your partner and the concerned family members. These are some of the significant key points that you must discuss with your partner and your family before booking the wedding venue.

If you are looking for the best venues that the country has to offer, check out the options on our portal and let out experts help you enjoy a flawless experience.