In my previous post, we discussed the different places to have the wedding ceremony.  This segways into where to have the wedding reception.  In addition – will your wedding reception follow immediately after the ceremony?  Or will it be held on a different day?  It may be strange, but I have heard of wedding receptions that happen on a separate day from the actual wedding day.  I’m not sure why, though.

In any case, where your wedding reception will be held, will largely depend on a couple of things, the first being whether the location your wedding ceremony was held at has the facilities for wedding receptions.  If they have such an option, then next you would need to know what their package prices are.  Do they offer a big bundle package where you pay one discounted price for having both the wedding ceremony and the wedding reception at their location?  If so, this may be a way to save money with the added bonus that you and your guests would not have to drive to another location for the wedding reception.

If the site does not have the ability to host your wedding reception, whether they simply do not have the facilities for it, or perhaps the rooms are in use for another function, then you will need to look for off-site locations.  There are many places that rent out banquet halls just for this purpose, so shop around to find the best deal for the number of people you expect to attend your wedding reception.  Resorts, restaurants, and even churches are great places to hold your wedding reception if they have facilities available for your event, and the price is right.

Of course – and you probably guessed this was coming – if you had a back yard wedding ceremony, then it would only be fitting to also have a back yard wedding reception.  Think about it – you’ll already have everything set up before hand and would not need to worry about coordinating the decorating between two different sites, making sure your DJ – assuming you’re using the same person for both the ceremony and the wedding reception – gets to the site before your guests do, etc., etc..  And depending on the size of the yard, you’d probably have to walk maybe 30 to 50 feet and viola!  You’d be at your wedding reception!  And, just like having your ceremony in the back yard, having your wedding reception in the back yard will also save you loads of money if you don’t have to rent a banquet hall!