Is it unreasonable to have a half-hour drive between the church and the reception hall?

Question

Okay, here's the deal. My fiance and I are embarking on our wedding planning adventure. We're planning to get married in the mid-Michigan/Lansing area.

The church is in a very small town with limited reception choices. I have two "top" banquet halls that I'm looking at reserving. However, one is about twenty minutes south of the church while the other is a half hour west of the church.

The closer banquet hall doesn't have any hotels within a 10-mile radius. However, it can hold about 300 people and it has very flexible alcohol and catering policies. This hall is slightly more expensive.

The banquet hall west of the church is more of a hike and only holds about 180 people. It has about 5-6 hotels just about a mile down the road, which is super-nice for out-of-town guests. It's also about $400 cheaper to reserve and includes a Friday night into Sunday morning rental. It has an open catering policy but a restricted alcohol policy.

Which one makes more sense to book?

Answer 1

a half hour drive isn't unreasonable....

Answer 2

Stop right now. Make a list of the five most important things about your wedding day. If the groom doesn't make the list, quit lol. Now make a list of the five most important things about your reception. This day is about you. Do you picture your reception a slosh fest where everyone gets drop drunk or not? (not a judgement just you need to decide). The point is alcohol restrictions may not be as big a factor as you think. I would think the biggest factor would be the number of guests and amenities at the hall (is the food good, bathrooms clean, dancefloor good size and music able to be directed at the dance floor so that you can still talk if you are seated (myself I dont like the dance floor in the middle of room like some halls). there is a huge difference between 180 guests and 300....have you set up your list? how many can you afford? if you put 150 or so guests in a hall for 300 will it seem empty? (thats what we ran into....we found a hall that had a patio, grove, banquet room, lounge and fireplace room....and realized the bride m ight just feel alone lol. The 30 min drive is not a big inconvenience. You will probably go for pictures after the ceremony and have some lag time between the wedding and the reception anyhow. My mother in law was nice enough to open her home for hospitality. Now I am the mother of the bride and we are arranging for the hospitality room at the hotel to be opened during the time between the wedding and reception. My mom was a huge help to me in planning my daughters wedding...maybe her advice will help you. She said,

The guests want a good meal and to see that you and your husband are more happy than they imagined...thats it. They dont care if there is a theme, a waterfall or anything else. She was right. Further she said, anything more than that (the food and a happy glowing bride) is really about the bride and making her happy. So do what you want, but remember its only for your own memories.... stick to your top five...keep it simple so that you have time to actually enjoy your wedding... Have FUN!!! and God Bless

Answer 3

OK these other people are obviously not from this area you act as if you have a lot of choice what towns are you actually talking about? My wedding is going to be at a little country church in Charlotte and my reception is going to be about 10 miles away at the Bellevue Conservation Club its about a 15 or 20 minute drive but very close considering that its all out in the country and then the guests would have to come back into Charlotte to stay at anyone of the 3 hotels in town. If you give me specifics I could give you a better suggestion.

Answer 4

You need to pick which reception hall works best for you, the bride and groom. You didn't mention how many people you were having at the wedding. If you are having closer to 150 or so, you may want to opt for the place that allows 300 because you won't feel like your reception is being crammed into a tiny, small space.

It depends on your needs and peferences. Which one did you like better? Which one is more like the vision that you and your fiance dreamed your special day will be? A 1/2 hour drive to a hotel is not far at all; especially since the area you described seems like a place where not a lot is offered. Your guests may already expect that they will have to drive a further distance for overnight accommodations.

Do what works for you, first. Asking your guests to drive a 1/2 hours isn't asking al ot, so don't' worry.

Answer 5

A 30 minute drive from the ceremony to the reception is not that unreasonable, especially when you have limited choices. I would book the banquet hall (if it's size can accommodate all of your invited guests) that is west of the church since it has hotels nearby so after guests drive from the ceremony to the reception out of town guests can easily get back to their hotel once the reception is over. Some of your family members may even choose to stay at the hotel near the reception hall as well for the convenience. You might also consider having your ceremony at one of the hotels or reception hall so everything is close (they can be decorated very nicely for ceremonies) if you don't mind not having your wedding at the church.

Answer 6

Well I don't know what kind of wedding you want. Are you wanting to invite 300 people then the place that fits 180 won't work. Are ou going to have alot of out of town guests that need hotels? Are you doing the decorating and clean up or is the hall? If you aren't doing those things then the longer rental doesn't matter either. All of that is questions you need to ask yourself. But as for the main question... no a 30 minute drive is NOT too much to ask at all!! It will give them soemthing to do inbetween while you do your pictures AND it will give you a nice ride in between the two gatherings. Have fun!

Answer 7

Book the one you like best. To me the one a bit closer sounds better. How many guests are you expecting? I know that when we went to a reception just a couple of months ago, the room was too small. We were all crammed together. The place was beautiful, the grounds, atmosphere, everything, but we were just about sitting on top of each other. People expect to drive a little for wedding receptions. They are usually very receptive. Just make sure you provide directions to the place you decide on. BTW, if I'm going a ways for a wedding, then I do enjoy seeing the local scenery. Good luck.

Answer 8

I think 30 minutes of alone time with your new hubby on the way to the reception is going to be wonderful. Hey savor the moment together before sharing it with the whole world. It is enough time to have your first champagne toast together and get your drink on before you get to the restricted alcohol policy. It is perfectly located near hotels for your out of towners. It seems that they are going to have ot make the hike eventually whether from the Church or the reception hall. Let them do the driving before the reception. People have a way of finding a way around the restricted alcohol policy at a wedding. Does restricted mean no alcohol? Congrats on your marriage.

Answer 9

if there are not other reception sites then it's pretty reasonable to have it 30 min. away especially if ther hotels are closer to this one!
althought the word 'hike' puts up a red flag for me. - will people actually hike? or is it just longer distance. the only reason i ask is if there are elders that may need someone to help them.
do the banquet hall west of the church- alcohol isn't too important if it's saving a lot of hassle finding hotels and $400 dollars.

Answer 10

I would go with the one you feel happiest when you walk into. If that doesn't get you an answer, go with the hotel option. If people are that much into drinking, they can go find a bar at the end of the night. Out of town guests shouldn't have to drive over a half hour to get to their hotel after the reception.

Answer 11

First of all, the drive means nothing. I'm in a city of 240,000 and it takes a half hour to cross the city, which we had to do for a recent wedding, so it's no biggie.
About the venue, it depends on the number of people you will be having, and what type of caterer you want. Depends also on what that one place means by a "restricted" alcohol policy. Make a list about the pros and cons of each site and compare...