After months of planning, countless venue tours, a few disagreements, and plenty of emotions, we finally found our dream wedding venue! After visiting 10 Bay Area wedding venues, we chose Brownstone Gardens and couldn’t be more excited for our big day next year. The team at Brownstone has been incredibly helpful, and we’re thrilled to share our journey to help other couples navigate their own wedding planning process. Here are some valuable tips we learned along the way!
The Venue Search: It’s a Journey, Not a Sprint
We’ll admit it—we thought finding our dream wedding venue would be a breeze. A few tours, a little research, and we’d have "the one" locked in. But after visiting 10 venues across the Bay Area, we quickly learned that choosing the perfect setting takes time. Each venue had its own charm, but none felt like the perfect match—until we finally found the one.
Whether you're exploring Bay Area garden venues, elegant hotel ballrooms, or scenic Napa Valley wineries, don’t rush the process. Touring different venues helped us refine our vision, from size and style to location and budget.
Key Questions to Ask When Touring Wedding Venues
Asking the right questions during our wedding venue search helped us narrow down our options and decide whether or not the venue was right for us. Here are the top questions to ask your wedding venue:
Is the date we want available? Before getting too attached to a venue, check if your desired date is available. The last thing you want is to fall in love with a wedding venue only to find out it's already booked on your wedding day. Pro tip: Keeping a flexible wedding date can give you more options and increase your chances of securing the perfect Bay Area wedding venue.
What’s the capacity? Ensure the venue can comfortably accommodate your guest list. We initially underestimated this, which led to some unexpected challenges during our search.
What’s included in the venue rental fee? Some venues provide tables, chairs, linens, and other essentials, while others charge separately for these items. Be sure to clarify what’s included in the price and what requires an additional rental. It’s also crucial to understand which venues assist in sourcing these items and which leave the responsibility entirely up to you.
Do you have any restrictions? Each venue comes with its own set of policies, including restrictions on music, alcohol, catering, and décor. Be sure to ask about these in advance to avoid any unexpected surprises down the line.
What is the backup plan for outdoor weddings? If you’re looking at an outdoor Bay Area wedding venue, this is a crucial question to ask. We dreamt of an outdoor ceremony, so knowing we have discussed the wedding venue rain plan gave us peace of mind.
Do you offer in-house catering or allow outside vendors? Some wedding venues provide in-house catering, while others offer the flexibility to bring in your own. If you have a specific caterer in mind or a specialized cuisine for your event, be sure to confirm the venue’s catering policy.
How You Know When to Stop Looking
There were times when we were tempted to sign a contract on the spot, but something just didn’t feel right. After touring 10 venues, talking with our family, and reflecting on what truly mattered to us, we realized that choosing a Bay Area wedding venue isn’t just about checking boxes—it’s about finding a place that feels right. Here’s how we knew it was time to stop searching for our Bay Area Wedding Venue:
You’re excited and confident. When we toured our wedding venue, we both felt a wave of excitement and relief. We could easily picture our ceremony there, imagining the guests mingling in the garden, the soft lighting of the reception, and the relaxed atmosphere of the space. It felt right, and that feeling sealed the deal for us.
You stop comparing. After visiting many venues, we found ourselves constantly comparing them to one another. Once we found the right one, there was no need to compare. It just felt like the place where we were meant to be.
You trust the venue staff. During our venue tours, we met with several coordinators. While some were friendly, we didn’t always feel that personal connection. But when we visited our wedding venue, the team was different. The staff was not only incredibly helpful, but also answered all our questions thoughtfully and without any pressure. Their experience and passion for weddings were evident, and we quickly realized that this level of care made all the difference. We hadn’t anticipated that the venue staff would be such a key factor in our decision, but it was the team at Brownstone Gardens that truly put us at ease about our wedding.
How to Know When a Venue Isn’t the Right Fit
After touring so many venues, we quickly learned how to recognize when a venue wasn’t the right fit for us. Here are the signs that told us “this isn’t the one”:
It doesn’t align with your vision. If the venue doesn’t match the style or vibe you want for your wedding, it’s not the right place. We were looking for something that felt elegant but relaxed, with an outdoor garden element, and some venues just didn’t capture that essence. Other venues were beautiful, but they were part of hotels or wineries, and they did not provide the privacy and intimate experience we were looking for!
The budget doesn’t add up. One of the main reasons we crossed off several venues was that their pricing wasn’t transparent, or they had hidden fees. We knew we had to stay within a budget, and any venue that made that hard to achieve was immediately off the list. It was also important for us to find a venue with natural beauty, so we wouldn’t need to bring in too many extra elements that would drive up our costs. We wanted the space to shine on its own, without compromising our overall budget.
It feels too impersonal or “cookie-cutter.” Some venues were beautiful but didn’t have that personal touch or multiple event spaces. For us, it was important to feel that the space would be ours to personalize. A place that felt too commercial or where we didn’t have much creative control didn’t feel like the right fit.
We hope these tips help you feel more confident as you search for your venue. Remember, it’s all about finding a place that reflects your vision, meets your needs, and makes you feel right at home. When you find the perfect venue, you'll just know
xo A Brownstone Bride
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