Tips for Choosing a Wedding Reception Venue

The venue you choose for your wedding reception is a big decision! It's the place where the partying will start, the speeches will be spoken, and all your guests and family will eat, drink and - all going to plan - will have a fantastic evening full of fun and laughter. But it can also be the place where the night can quietly fall flat! The wedding reception won't make or break your wedding day, but the last few hours of a wedding celebration can leave you and your guests with a feeling from the whole day: if it all goes well and you have a wonderful reception it really is the icing on the cake!

Making a decision on what venue to book isn't easy, so we've tried to compile some essential things to consider when choosing a wedding reception venue. Thankfully Sydney has an amazing range of high quality restaurants and venues, so you are spoilt for choice!

Start early!

If you have your heart set on a particular venue or you want something special you'll need to get organized and book as early as possible. The best reception venues in Sydney are often booked 12-18 months in advance, especially for Saturdays and in the high season for weddings October to April. The reception is often one of the first items to book, so start early and focus as much attention and time on this before looking too closely at other items (eg photographer, flowers, dress, make up etc).

Ask your friends

One of your best resources is people you know who have recently been married. Word of mouth in Sydney is extremely important, so ask around, and find out what venue your friends or family used for their wedding, and whether the experience they had with their reception was a positive one. You might like to check wedding forums, and read magazines on 'real weddings' that outline the venues.

Wedding expos

Wedding expos are a great place to find all things wedding related under one roof, and reception venues are no different. Whilst you cant physically see the venue, it is a good starting place to see what's available and begin to determine pricing. Another popular option is to attend an expo at the venue itself, as a lot of places will host their own mini-expo once or twice a year. These tend to be smaller and they may not have many or limited other service providers on site so it can be best to only go to the venues that you are seriously considering.

Check the business

Look for accreditations, awards, memberships and other forms of industry association. A good business will be a member of one or more of these. Industry associations like the ABIA are a good sign your reception venue is a well run and trustworthy business.