What To Watch Out for When Looking at a Wedding Venue

Selecting a wedding venue is a big decision! The venue is the place where your life will begin as a couple. It’s the place where you will capture the memories that will last a lifetime. Whatever venue you select, it’s worth spending the time to select a place that not only reflects you as a couple, but you feel comfortable with the venue and the way it conducts its business. Here are ten items to watch out for.

⚠️ Next To Highways Or Other Public Roads

⚠️ Excluded features

⚠️ Outdoor-only venues

⚠️ Lack of shade

⚠️ Loogistics

🚩 Contracts that forbid negative reviews

🚩 “Secret” Venues

🚩 Catfishing

🚩 Accurate Amenities

⚠️ Next to highways or other public roads

Sometimes the beautiful pictures don’t tell the whole story. Make sure to pay attention to where the ceremony or reception might be held: is it right next a railroad track or a highway? Not only will the noise from cars and trucks (or trains!) passing by be distracting, but think about the exhaust fumes everyone will be experiencing as well. All aspects of The Highlands Estate are set back from the roadway by nearly 1,000 feet, providing a private and immersive experience with the natural surroundings.

⚠️ Excluded features

Market lights, drapes, arbors and even get ready rooms can appear to be included items as they are featured in most pictures. But in reality, these are often costly add-ons. Make sure there is a clear understanding and costs of included and excluded items.

⚠️ Outdoor-only venues

Everyone wants the weather to be the perfect temperature on their wedding day, but the reality is weather is unpredictable. There may be days with uncomfortable heat or cold, direct sun exposure and rain may also be a possibility. Make sure your wedding venue has shade and conditioned indoor space to alleviate any of these situations.

⚠️ Logistics

Think about the flow for your guests for the various spaces: are there awkward and time-consuming distances from one space to another? Are vehicles needed to get guests from one location to another? How much time will it take to get guests from one location to another? Are vendors able to efficiently do their jobs? Is catering prep near to where your guests will be served? A catering area that is far away means your guests may receive cold plates by the time the food gets to them; additionally, as there is more time to get back and forth to where the food is being prepared, additional staff (and cost) will need to be on hand to deliver the food in a timely manner.

🚩 Contracts that forbid negative reviews

Surprising, but that’s exactly what a venue has been doing. If a contract has a clause forbidding negative reviews, obviously something is horribly wrong.

🚩 ““Secret” Venues

Venues that have no website, have an Instagram that is “private” or are only being promoted by a planner or separate company are doing so not to be “exclusive” but because they simply don’t have the business licenses and permits to host weddings. Those wedding venues can be shut down at any time, and deposits will be lost. If a company or planner is promoting a secret venue, make sure that they will refund any money you have spent should the venue be closed down.

🚩 Catfishing

Catfishing – while typically applied to a person luring someone by pretending to be something they aren’t – this might be the term for a website luring couples by creating misleading or half-truth web pages. Or perhaps “bait and switch” could apply; either way, if entering a Google search for “northern California vineyard and barn wedding venue” yields a result for a venue that has neither, that venue is gaming the system. This is done by creating page after page of blog posts or articles (sometimes hidden) that all include the words “barn” and “vineyards.” One venue produced multiple blog posts about “ocean sunset views,” yet was hundreds of miles from any ocean.

Tip: an easy way to find a list of a websites “hidden” pages is to type in the following after .com of their website address: /post-sitemap.xml  If you see tons of pages with ridiculous URLs and titles, you are being had. Avoid a venue that is trying to be something they aren’t.

🚩 Accurate amenities

Barns: Many wine country venues discuss a barn as part of their property. While this may be true, is the barn available for dinner and dancing inside? Can it be used for a ceremony should there be rain? Make sure the venue is honest regarding the usage of the barn and is in line with your vision.

Vineyards: The beauty of vineyards is expected when looking for a wine country venue. However, not all venues located in wine country have vineyards or are involved in the wine business. Old tractors, pickup trucks with wine barrels strapped to the back and more wine barrels placed around are sometimes placed on the property to provide the “feel” of a winery and vineyards. Make sure that if you’re looking for a vineyard location, it’s not what amounts to a movie set, but an authentic wine country venue with a vineyard.

Lodging: There are only a few wedding venues that offer on-premises lodging. The Two-Day and Weekend Buyout options at The Highlands Estate allow for up to fourteen people to stay at the Estate relaxing and enjoying each other’s company. If a venue is promoting lodging, check to make sure the accommodations are their lodging, and they are not using information from a local Airbnb that’s not affiliated with the venue.

Stock Photos: In searching for a wedding venue it’s all about getting an accurate idea of how the venue looks and what photos have been taken there. Stock photos (generic photos that can be purchased online), are sometimes used to give the impression that other settings are part of the venue, when in fact they are not. Check if a photo is authentic by copying it and pasting into Google Image search: if the image comes up on multiple unrelated websites, most likely it’s a stock photo and doesn’t accurately represent the venue.

Some of the great features of The Highlands Estate:

• Acres of beautiful vineyards

• Vistas of hills and vineyards that extend for miles

• Ceremony sites naturally shaded by old-growth oak trees

• Modern yet rustic barn with heating and air-conditioning