Why do venues cost so much?

Mine is about $6,600 for both ceremony and reception space rentals. Tré expensive. But they provide linens, chairs, tables, silverware, glassware, plates, napkins, a day of coordinator, and an "in" with a lot of different vendors in the area. So, I suppose we get a lot but it's still super expensive. I feel your pain.

No, Sue is wrong. You may feel these things are expensive, but they aren't gouging you just because it's a wedding. They're expensive because ANY event as nice as a wedding is expensive.

I have to rent everything that comes with a venue - table, chairs, everything, and its costing me $13,000.00. So, 3k for a venue is chump change.

Thank you Sue; I know I can always count on you to pull the "vendors screw us because it's a wedding" card.

Back yard weddings sound like an ideal free idea until you talk to anyone who has done it. They'll tell you, like m, that every single thing needs to be brought in. It's rarely cheaper to go that route, especially if you need a tent. And portable toilets. And possibly valet parking.

I can't even think of a venue in my area rents for under 2500.00

I don't think they are too expensive but I do think you need to very carefully comb through your contract because of " hidden fees" as I call them. A lot of times what looked like a good deal in the beginning actually was not when I looked further into what is included what wasn't included and I certainly do believe that they could be more forthcoming on that aspect.

The venues listed on WW tend to be traditional venues and so charge more. My advice? Find a wedding planner who does hourly rates. It will probably take him/her 2 or 3 hours to find you several venues that fit your wedding style and are within your venue budget - and you won't even have to LOOK at anything that might be over budget.

That's what I'm doing, and after all is said and done it will probably be $120 for the planner (she charges $40/hr for military couples, and is located in Washington, D.C.)

Have you tried an alternate day? My venue fee was cut in half because I did a Friday evening

If the subject comes up, most of our brides say, "We're paying for the wedding ourselves". Ask any vendor and they'll tell you the same thing.

To be fair, most vendors realize that couples have no frame of reference as to what the various elements of a wedding cost. Unless you frequent message boards, you may be surprised by the price tags connected to things you believe you need for your dream wedding. There is even the common refrain (not coming from the majority on this forum) that if the word "wedding" is attached to an inquiry, you're going to get gouged. The prices for weddings and other events vary for one overriding reason -- a wedding includes a bride, regular events do not. They may have a guest of honor, but that guest isn't a bride and that honored guest has not been dreaming about a fiftieth birthday party, an anniversary party, or a retirement dinner since they were a child. Wedding vendors are trying to flesh out a dream, not merely an event.

Once a bride figures out what she wants (and she can take quite a bit of time to work out that vision with a vendor), she is typically very particular about the way in which her vision is executed -- from the gown to the processional to the shade of peonies in her bouquet to the color of the linen napkins on the table to the cake cutting set she's using (and recently, one bride posted that she asked the venue to show her what their silverware looked like because she wanted to be sure it matched her theme). There's a lot that goes into pleasing a bride -- regardless of the vendor servicing her. And then there's the wedding itself -- the once in a lifetime event that isn't going to be redone next year. This entire site is geared towards brides, and the amount of daily threads and comments prove that brides are very focused on the details of their wedding. If this site was called Event Wire instead of Wedding Wire, it wouldn't have a quarter of the traffic it does on a daily basis. So, merely addressing the level of service, attention, and perfection a bride requires figures into the cost.

As far as venues are concerned, you are purchasing the right to host a very large party under their roof for five or six hours. Everything is clean, functional, climate controlled, equipped with tables, chairs, linens, dinnerware, and glassware. There is a full staff that spends several hours setting up your space before your party even begins. Visit any reception space a few hours before a wedding and you'll see a troop of people moving quickly and efficiently to turn the room into your wedding reception. They have to be paid for their prep work and their service during the reception. That's a lot of hours and a lot of manpower. Food has been purchased, prepped, cooked, plated, served, and then someone has to handle the clean-up in the kitchen and the reception area. During your wedding, the venue's electric meter is spinning as lights are on and the DJ does his thing. There are other utility costs that have to be payed (gas, water, etc.). Add to that the venue is responsible for the safety of all of your guests when they're on the venue property, and that can be difficult when the alcohol is flowing (hence the high insurance premiums they pay). The issues of potential liability are huge if an inebriated individual slips, falls, and seriously hurts himself. I could go on and on, but you get it. Bottom line, you're not just renting a space when you rent a venue, you're buying your reception and that's why it's typically the biggest expenditure.

I actually did speak with a venue (a community center) that gave me the regular rental rate and then literally quadrupled it when I told them it was a wedding - for the exact same space and amenities. So yes, price gouging does exist. However, you can find some nice venues if you think outside of the box or choose an alternate day like a Friday or Sunday. Daytime weddings will save you a ton, too. We're getting married at a very nice country club that is not charging us for rental - just for food and beverage - and has all of the basics (tables, chairs, staff, etc) already built into the price. We never saw ourselves getting married at one, but we couldn't pass up the savings. Good luck to you! Hope you find a space that suits your needs.

I would suggest trying to find a banquet hall that has a ceremony site and also does its own catering. That may be the least expensive option for you. The prices do seem extremely expensive, and it does annoy me that that it costs more for a wedding than for another function like a large birthday party or something. Yeah, you're paying for the higher quality, but I think it should be an option to go with 'other' party pricing if you are willing to accept that it might not be the same white glove treatment.

You might find a venue that will waive a rental fee and have a food and beverage minimum spend instead, that's what ours is. If you meet the F/B minimum there is no fee for the space, staffing, glassware, dinnerware, linens, tables, etc

Then Lauren, I would have flat out asked them why.

I did, Celia. They had no answer for me other than 'because it's a wedding.' They basically made up the pricing on the spot and they didn't even have anything in writing that they were willing to send me. Luckily, I wasn't in love with the place, so I was able to move on fairly quickly.

That's crap; probably not even legal. It sounds like you dodged a bullet.

I could understand if they had some reasonable logic; it's longer, you need the room earlier to decorate, the group is bigger, there's alcohol, but that's ridiculous.

Try community centers in your area, cut the guest list as well. I'm sure you can do it! Good luck!

One of the reasons specific wedding venues cost so much is that they tend to get used only on weekends (primarily Saturdays), so the costs associated with running them (all the ones that Nancy T mentioned) are divided among fewer people than would be the case if they were rented all week. You may well find less expensive alternatives if you look at places that have other functions that generate money during the week--restaurants, church social halls, community centers, firehouses, museums, zoos, historical sites.

This is one of the reasons I went with the community center in my town. Lol only 250 to rent. They provide the tables and chairs and the kitchen. You have to provide everything else but we get to pick what food and what drinks. A lot of the venues around me were asking close to 4k for just the venue then you had to bring in everything else and choose from their select catering and liquor. Top me a wedding is one day, I can't justify spending that kind of money.

Keep contacting vendors here on WW. We are having a small (40-60 people), all-inclusive ceremony and reception at a bed and breakfast for $****, depending on the final headcount. Parks are a good free option, but will take a lot of work to set up. Good luck finding something you love!

Thank you for all the helpful information! The main reason I was getting so upset was I noticed the venues hosting several weddings on the same day, which came off to me as just trying to get as much money as possible instead of focusing on the bride's special day. I realize there are costs involved in maintaining a building but $3000 for one day? Just seemed outrageous. Plus paying staff all came out of the 22% tax they tack on. I also noticed that the price to host a different kind of party that wasn't a wedding (that was still catered and required setup and tear down) was much cheaper, that's where I felt gouged.

Anyway, I think we have found a lovely golf course on a Sunday that waived the reception rental fee when we chose to have our ceremony there too. It is still more expensive than we planned but should be very nice. I have a very large family so it was nearly impossible to cut my guest list without feeling a large amount of guilt, so deciding to have the wedding on a Sunday helped a lot. It is the Sunday of labor day weekend so guests still have the Monday off of work if they are traveling. I highly recommend the date if you are looking to save money.

Again, those of you who gave helpful and un-sarcastic info and opinions, thank you!

@Celia There's a reason why most venues who host weddings are more expensive during the summer months, and on specific days. It's because of market demand. It wasn't an attack on wedding vendors, it's fact.