There are so many things to consider when selecting your wedding venue. Lavender on the Lake, a Central Florida wedding venue, has 20 essential tips to help!
1. Define your vision.
Figure out what it is that you imagine for your wedding- do you envision a rustic barn or a sleek, modern atmosphere? Central Florida offers a variety of wedding venues from gardens, ballrooms, beach front, barns, and historic site. Lavender on the Lake is a blend of a waterfront meets garden with our luxury barn; it leaves you with a well lit, blank slate to create your vision.
2. Set a realistic budget.
Determine what your overall budget is for your wedding and allocate the amount specifically needed for the venue. Be sure that the venues that you are looking at don’t have hidden costs such as services fees and add ons that you felt were included.
3. Consider your guest list and the venue capacity.
It is important to know if your wedding venue can even accommodate the amount of guests that you are hoping to have for your wedding. You want to be sure that there is enough room for a dance floor along with other things that you would like such as a photo booth. Lavender on the Lake has a 6,000 square foot reception space so there is plenty of space to hold 300 guests by incorporating 62” round tables with our 20 farmhouse wooden tables.
4. Accessibility and Accommodations
Likely you will have a lot of people coming from near and far to celebrate you. It’s a good idea to consider where the nearest accommodations are so that your guests don’t have to worry. In addition, it’s no fun being in the middle of nowhere! We recommend several hotels in the Lake Nona area near Boxi Park for our Lavender on the Lake couples. There are many great restaurants and coffee shops near there which is fantastic! If you want more ideas on things to do near there, you can read here for more information.
5. Check availability
It is a good idea to check the availability prior to touring specific wedding venues. We have had couples come out with a date that is not flexible only to find out that their date is not available at Lavender on the Lake. The popular dates and peak season can book 12-18 months in advance. Our most popular months are November and March, so if you are hoping for a date in one of those months, be sure to ask for our availability!
6. Packages/ All Inclusive and amenities
Be sure to ask the wedding venue if there is an all inclusive package which can solidify your planning. We do not currently have an all inclusive package, but we hope to have one in the near future. Inquire about what is included. Here at LOTL we provide 20 farmhouse tables and 200 chairs used for ceremony and for reception. We offer a choice of white, black or cream table runners along with glass vases in variety of sizes for our flameless floating candles. In addition, we also have 200 antique votives and flameless tea lights. Also, Lavender has 10 high top cocktail tables with black linens, 4 buffet tables plus linens and a choice of ceremonial arches.
7. Venue Restrictions
Inquiring about restrictions is helpful. Does the venue have any noise ordinances? What are the event hours? Are you able to throw rose petals at the end of the ceremony? Can you use spark boxes or sparklers for formal send off? It’s good to ask these questions up front so that there are no surprises. We do allow sparklers, FYI. However, we require the guests to place them in a sand-filled bucket afterwards. I cannot tell you how many tractor blades we have had to change because of those little metal sticks!!
8. Weather Contingencies
Ask the venue what their back up plan is for a rainy day. I truly cannot imagine having a venue that does not have a good rainy day plan; living in Florida, the weather just does what it wants! I would be SO stressed out. We have an excellent indoor option. Here are a few images from or indoor weddings.
9. Read the Reviews
Take a look at the reviews of the venue. I will be honest with you; used to terrify me. I was in an agritourism conference and a wedding expert said-“ It is not if you get a bad review, it is WHEN you get a bad review. They are coming.” I let that sit for me and it honestly changed my entire outlook. If you read the reviews, you will see a story. How the venue responds to a bad review is just as telling as reading a glowing review. We cannot make everyone happy, and unfortunately in today’s society there are many people who seek the negative. I am not one of those people.
10. Meet the Coordinator/ Venue Contact Person
Ask to meet the coordinator or your point of contact for the venue. If you come for a tour here at LOTL you will likely meet Jason and I as we love to show our baby off. Yes, I do think of her as our baby as we dreamed Lavender into being and we take great pride in the work that we have done here. Having said that, I will be your point of contact all throughout your process.
11. Assess the Parking Options
It is a good idea to ask about how your guests will park. We are 10 acres total from the water and we have 5 acres dedicated for parking. There are signs up directing your guests and usually Jason is out there helping people to park. (Mainly because he loves to chat people up!)
12. Find out about the Cancellation Policy
It’s helpful to ask about the venue’s cancellation policy. Life happens. Things change and sometimes an event needs to get cancelled. Be sure you know what that looks like so that you aren’t surprised by the venue policy.
13. Ask about Set Up and Tear Down
I have to laugh at this one because for one of our winter weddings we had a family in from across the United States. They were a super sweet, hands on family. At the end of the night, the mother of the groom says to me, “Where do you want us to put the chairs?” I looked at her and I said, “Oh, no! You don’t need to move the chairs. Just pack up your things and do what you need to do.” She said, “Ok, well, where is something to wipe the tables off?” And I said- “You are not wiping the tables off. That’s what I do. You are not cleaning after the wedding.”
She looked at me and said- “That’s really weird.” And we both laughed so hard. I love that she was calling me weird for not making the family clean up the venue at the end of the wedding. Here at Lavender, you are in charge of getting your things out by the event end and nothing more.
14. Ask about the Vendors
Every venue does things differently when it comes to vendors. It’s essential to know how your venue handles vendors. And let me just tell you- no two vendors are alike! AND your vendors literally make or break the day. If you want to get a better understanding of why we strongly suggest that you use our recommended vendors you can read here.
We have a vetting fee if you are hoping to use a planner and/or caterer who is not on our preferred vendor list. Those two vendor categories are imperative for the continuity of the day. I cannot say it enough. All other vendors just must be licensed and insured and must sign our vendor agreement form so that they understand our policies and procedures.
I love how you can see the photographer in the back taking this photo.
15. Venue Alcohol Policies
If you are planning to have alcohol, it is smart to understand what the venue’s policies are regarding alcohol. Lavender on the Lake does not have a liquor license so we allow our couples to bring in their own alcohol as long as they have a licensed and insured bartender serving the alcohol.
16. Payment Schedules
Find out what the payment schedule is and what types of payments are acceptable. It’s good to know what to expect. We like to let our couples know that there are no hidden fees; the price is what you see along with sales tax and a $500 fully refundable damage deposit. Event liability insurance is also required closer to the event.
17. Unique Venue Features
Seek a venue that has distinctive features that sets it apart. Lavender on the Lake has many little photo worthy nooks. The sunset lake view set an obvious ambiance. Additionally, we have our outdoor cocktail areas under a large live oak tree that is lit during the dark hours. Our flower farm has season floral varieties depending on the time of year. We sit on 10 acres and our plan is to continue to create special photo area gems.
18. Cultural and Religious Needs
Ensure that the venue can accommodate specific cultural and religious practices and needs.
19. Sound and Acoustics
Find out if your venue includes a speaker system for your DJ or whether they will need to bring their own equipment. Consider the sound within the venue; Lavender is a big wide open wedding venue and therefore our DJs do not need to play their music at crazy loud decibels. Sometimes less is more.
Finally, and most importantly…
Trust your Instincts
This is YOUR special day to celebrate your commitment to one another with all of the people that you love in 1 spot. It is imperative for your wedding venue to reflect who you are and what your vision is, so listen to your gut. If it does not feel right for you, then it isn’t. I always tell our prospective couples that it is paramount to feel confident and happy with your venue; if Lavender isn’t the right place for you, you certainly will find the best place.
For me. It’s Lavender.
Photo Credit ||
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XO
Shelley