For Better for Worse: Wedding venues for Wedding ceremony services and receptions in the UK

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Don't mortgage yourself for your dream wedding

For many couples, celebrating their special day in elegant and beautiful surroundings is high on the list of priorities. And even if you are on a budget, with a little flexibility and by making some smart choices, you won't have to mortgage yourself for your perfect day.

With weddings joining house prices in an ever-increasing upward spiral, many young couples may be looking forward to, but also worrying about, the final cost of their special day. And with the rash of celebrity weddings this year, all vying for the top prize of most extravagant event, ordinary couples are feeling the pressure to 'live the dream'.

Of course, celebrities can afford to be overly extravagant on the most ordinary of days, but with the average cost of a wedding now standing at £16,000, the rest of us have to be a little more careful with our budget. We have to balance our desire for the dream wedding with that budget.

A significant proportion of any wedding budget is usually the venue and it also one of the areas that is key to a successful day. A beautiful venue provides the perfect backdrop to any wedding and the photos that are a lasting memory. But a premier venue, with fantastic scenery, does come at a premium price. Or does it?

If you know how, the venue is one area where significant savings can be made and you can have your wedding cake and eat it! You don't have to give up your dream of a Scottish or an English stately home. Simply by opting for an 'out of season' or midweek wedding couples-to-be can save anywhere from 25% to 65% on the venue cost.

Loseley Park is one of those premier venues that offers large discounts to couples who want the elegance of a stately home, are flexible and want to be a little different, so that they don't end up mortgaging their lives together for one day, no matter how special.

David & Kathryn Loup, Kingston-upon-Thames, Surrey
Wedding Day: Monday 24th September 2007

David proposed to Kathryn last year on 25th September and the couple wanted to get married as close to that date as possible this year. Although not on a particular budget, getting married on a Saturday would have meant some cutbacks in their plans. "We could have organised the wedding on a Saturday, but we would have had to lower our standards for several other services and features. Putting all of our money in the venue, as wonderful as Loseley Park is, wasn't what we wanted to do" said David.

He added, "Not spending too much on the venue allowed us to have a wedding with everything we wanted: live music, vintage car for hire, buying the dress for Kathryn rather than renting it. We were even able to spend a bit more on some things, like the cake and the wine and champagne." In fact it turned out that Loseley Park was ideal for David and Kathryn for a number of other reasons: "Both Kathryn and I had some ideas about our wedding venues even before we met. We wanted it to be a castle, although that proved in the end to be a bit pompous and over-the-top. Stately homes like Loseley offer a great alternative, still having the historical charm and beauty, while not having this "bigger than life" look. Finally, Loseley Park was local to us as we live in Surrey and it was easy enough to reach for our friends living in London.
"The day itself was absolutely fantastic. The weather was quite capricious, but in the end we didn't get more than a few drops of rain. We still could enjoy fully the gardens as well as the Tithe Barn. All the people there were extremely helpful and we really had the feeling they were reacting to how events were going instead of being rigid and following an established plan. The venue itself looked even better on our wedding day than it did when we visited it previously, benefiting from the very specific atmosphere created by the event.
"We would most definitely recommend Loseley as a venue. All members of staff were friendly and helpful, from the first appointment with Mr More-Molyneux to Nicky's assistance on the day itself. The building had a wonderful 'wow' effect on every guest and the gorgeous gardens left space for everyone to wander and enjoy the day and relax."

Putting aside the obvious requirements and factors for what sounds like a dream wedding, David and Kathryn had some practical benefits from choosing to have a week-day wedding. "In terms of having the event on a week-day, it meant that the venue was more private, not being open to the public that day and also that suppliers were more readily available. ÊOur guests were happy to take a day off work if need be, as they wanted to be there to share the day with us. ÊOne comment we had was: No one wants to go back to work on a Monday, I would much prefer to go to a wedding!"

Laura & Mark Parris, Farnham, Surrey
Wedding Day: Saturday 20th January 2007

Laura and Mark liked the idea of a winter wedding and knew that a venue like Loseley would already be fully booked for the summer and they didn't want to wait.

"We knew that the summer would be busy and that we probably couldn't afford a place like Loseley then anyway" says Laura "so having a New Year wedding there was the best choice and the saving we made meant that we didn't have to cut back elsewhere. We had everything we wanted on the day and more."
Choosing to have their wedding in January, they thought that the house at Loseley would look stunning in their wedding photos and it did. "It was a lovely sunny, winter afternoon Ð it was perfect. The house looked great in the sunshine.
"I had done a 10k run for Cancer Research at Loseley and knew what a lovely location it was and the fact that it is a family owned venue and not a big corporate venture, was also a factor in our decision. The staff, service and food on the day were amazing and we were very impressed, so were our guests."
Laura and Mark have recently celebrated the birth of beautiful daughter, Lucy, who arrived in the world almost exactly 9 months to the day after their wedding at Loseley. Laura says, "It must be a good luck charm as well as a wonderful venue!"

Theresa & Nick Becker, Ealing, London
Wedding Day: Thursday 24th August 2007

Theresa and Nick booked their midweek wedding at Loseley on a Thursday, with only 6 month's advance planning time. "We knew that with such a short amount of time before the wedding that we wouldn't be able to book anywhere on a Saturday" says Theresa.
Nick added, "We had a look at a few places, but Loseley was ideal. Our day was very special with friendly service, excellent food and the deciding factor: a chapel on site where we had our blessing. Loseley is owned by a Christian family and that was important to us too. The fact that their midweek rate was very competitive was a real bonus."

So you can have the dream wedding and the perfect start to your new life together, with a little flexibility and some smart decisions. This will probably do more for a long-lived partnership and happy life, than an extravagant day and mortgaging yourself to afford it.

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