Once you’ve drawn up a shortlist of wedding venues, 
the next stage is to go and take a look at them. Visiting wedding venues can be great fun if you are well prepared and approach it as a day out with your fiancée. If you are rushing from one to the next however, it can be confusing and frustrating. Here are five top tips on getting the most from your wedding venue visits.
Always make an appointment
Visiting a potential wedding venue on spec doesn’t usually work very well. It may be there is nobody available to show you around, or if there is they may not be the person with the most knowledge about functions at that venue.
Most wedding venues will either have a dedicated wedding planner, or at least an events co-ordinator, and that is the person you need to arrange to see. Make an appointment with them well in advance and they will plan plenty of time to give you a tour and talk through wedding possibilities with you over a cup of coffee.
Don’t try to fit too much in
If you and your fiancée are busy people, you may be tempted to cram as many venue visits as possible into one weekend just to get it over with. If you are having a destination wedding, or marrying far from home, this may be necessary, but if you are choosing a local venue, try to just book one appointment per day so you can really relax and soak up your surroundings. If you book six visits in one weekend, the final two will just be a blur in your memory.
Visit at the right time of day
Where possible try to time your visit to coincide with the day and time of your ceremony or reception. If you are having a Saturday morning wedding, book an appointment on a Saturday morning and if you are getting married in the afternoon on Sunday wait until after Sunday lunch. To a certain extent this will give you a good idea of the light in the rooms, as well as what else is happening at your venue during the hours of the day when your ceremony will take place.
If you are planning your wedding well in advance, you may also be able to visit during the same season as your wedding, which will give you an idea how the grounds look and what the vegetation is doing. If this isn’t possible ask if you can see photos of the venue and its surroundings during your chosen wedding season.
Have a list of questions prepared
Most couples will have discussed the factors that are important to them when choosing a wedding venue, and might think they will know which questions to ask. However, it is very easy to get swept away by a stunning view, or atmospheric location, and forget all the things that you wanted to find out. It’s not uncommon for a bride’s mind to go completely blank when the wedding coordinator asks if they have any questions, so making a list of questions beforehand, and writing down the answers for each venue when you are there, will ensure that you stay on track.
Take a camera
If you are visiting several venues, it is a good idea to have a camera with you so that you can take pictures of the reception rooms, and anything else that is significant to you, such as great photo locations or beautiful views. This will help you to remember what the facilities were like at each venue.
Photographs can also stop your mind playing tricks on you. Rooms have a habit of changing size and shape in our memories, and when you are looking for your ideal wedding venue it’s very easy to imagine objects that aren’t there, or subconsciously to ignore elements that you don’t like.