What to Do Next? A Quick Checklist of Tasks to Complete After Booking Your Wedding Venue

2018.11.30 published

First hurdle cleared! The wedding venue is decided!

The first thing that a couple officially engaged does in preparing for their wedding is searching for a venue. From the countless venues available, it's a major task to pick a few that seem to match their vibe and schedule visits during their days off.

Some couples spend several months searching for their wedding venue.

Once the wedding venue is finally decided, they can breathe a sigh of relief. Initial meetings usually start 3 to 4 months prior to the big day at every venue.

@mi.8877

But…

It’s dangerous to let your guard down too much and think, “Finally decided! I can take a break for about six months now!”

As the wedding date approaches, preparations become busier. Many couples find themselves regretting, “Why was I just sitting around until now?” due to having too many tasks to complete at the last minute.

To stay mentally and physically healthy through the wedding preparation period, it’s important to get off to a good start.

In this article, I’ve compiled a list of items to tackle once the wedding venue is decided. I’ve summarized the things you should advance before the initial meeting, so for those who have secured a venue, please use this as a reference.

@ikik_wd_0428

What to do once the wedding venue is decided ① Create a guest list and contact them

Once the wedding venue is decided, the first thing to do is create a guest list. Many venues will suggest deciding the number of guests before the first meeting, which is about 3 to 4 months prior to the wedding, but it’s best to solidify this immediately after signing the contract.

There are two reasons for this.

The first reason is that you might find that the number of people is unexpectedly high or low when you list them out. If you catch this early on, you may still have the option to change the reception venue. By 3 to 4 months before the event, other venues may be fully booked, making changes difficult. So it's better to understand the numbers early.

@keny.wedd

The second reason is that finalizing the guest list early allows you to secure guests' schedules in advance.

Particularly for those planning a wedding during long holidays or three-day weekends, guests might start planning overseas trips six months ahead. It's a good idea to say, “It’s still a while away, but we’re having our wedding on (date), so please keep it open!”

Furthermore, as wedding dates that are considered lucky can often be double-booked, make sure to reach out to the guests you want to attend as soon as possible!

@moca_wd503

What to do once the wedding venue is decided ② Check the outside vendor fees

One of the myths about wedding estimates increasing dramatically is due to outside vendor fees. There are charges for bringing in dresses or items that are not from the venue’s affiliated shops.

However, most couples probably do not ask all about the outside vendor fees when visiting venues. (It’s hard to think of that at the time.)

For dresses, the fee for bringing in one can be as high as 100,000 yen. If you bring in two dresses and a tuxedo, it could cost you nearly 300,000 yen just for those fees.

Before starting to visit dress and item shops, I recommend checking what specific items will incur what fees in advance. You don’t want to spend a lot of time comparing and then end up using an affiliated shop because of high outside vendor fees.

What to do once the wedding venue is decided ③ Confirm transportation expenses for guests

Although transportation expenses for guests are not included in the wedding estimate, they can incur significant costs. This includes transportation and accommodation for guests coming from afar, as well as thank-you gifts for guests who may help with the reception.

Many people seem to cover at least one-way costs for guests. (Of course, covering the full amount is appreciated the most.)

For example, if you have 10 guests coming from Osaka to Tokyo, the one-way Shinkansen fare is 14,450 yen. For 10 guests, that totals 150,000 yen.

If you don’t calculate these transportation expenses from the beginning, you might find yourself facing significant unexpected costs later on.

Knowing the transportation expenses allows you to say, “The transportation cost is XX yen, so let’s keep the venue costs to XX yen.”

@kaoooru0921

What to do once the wedding venue is decided ⑤ Decide on a theme

A crucial part of progressing with wedding preparations is deciding on a theme. If you start choosing dresses or invitations without a core theme, you’ll get lost.

However, you don’t need to create a deep story or forcefully choose specific words.

Just deciding on a theme color or motifs you would like to use is sufficient.

Start by looking at various wedding examples on Marry, gathering images and ideas that you find wonderful. ♡ Eventually, you’ll discover what you "like."

@aririn_wedding

No time to relax!? Let’s proceed with a plan ♩

I’ve introduced tasks to tackle once the wedding venue is decided. Some might feel overwhelmed by the surprisingly large number of tasks. However, with six months, there’s plenty of time for wedding preparations. If you proceed in a planned manner, you shouldn’t find yourself sleep-deprived later on.

Ensure that you handle the necessary tasks during the time before the first meeting, and then you can enjoy later on! ♩

@gift_wd0922