How To Save Money On a Wedding Reception

So Lindsey and I have come to the sobering realization that weddings are very, very expensive. It absolutely amazes me how much you have to account for in the planning. From the moment she said “I do” we’ve been in wedding planning mode. I’m getting a little stressed trying to fit this sucker into our budget, but so far its been a dream.

Now THIS is what I call a wedding reception.

By far the most expensive part of a wedding is a reception. Here in Saint Louis, you can expect to pay anywhere from $30 to $100+ for each person to eat and drink at your reception. That price doesn’t even consider the space rental, DJ or the other fun stuff at wedding receptions. That price is just food and booze. Sigh.

We have learned some ways to save some money on a wedding reception, and being the kind to lend some friendly advice, I’m going to share our tips here. If you know of any other good ways to shave a few dollars off the wedding reception, then please share with us!

Save Money On a Wedding Reception

• Go for a cocktail reception instead of the sit down dinner. Just be sure to put on your correspondence with people that it isn’t a sit down.
• Have the thing on a Friday instead of a Saturday. A good buddy of mine did this last year and I initially thought it was odd, however, I really got into it once it actually happened. It’s a nice change of pace. Also, the reception facilities will give you a fat discount on the rental fee. I have discovered that the minimum spend can decrease dramatically by doing it on a Friday.
• Bring in your own centerpieces. Event spaces will slaughter you on renting these suckers.
• Go with a wine and beer bar rather than a full bar. The way I look at it, full bars are cool but not that many people are liquor only.

Expect a lot of posts from me about saving money on wedding receptions. It has become my mission in life to make sure my lovely bride-to-be and I have the most amazing wedding reception our $7500 budget can allow.