Re: Would you not pick a reception location because it is too far????

My only advice would be to maybe consider something closer esp. if you are looking for January.. *just incase* of a snow storm you are going to have alot of no shows. - JMHO

Re: Would you not pick a reception location because it is too far????

too far from what?

the requirement for my reception place was that it had to be within a 30-45 drive from the church. 1/2 our guests are OOT and the other 1/2 are from the tri-state area. only one couple actually lives on LI (and it's not us )

Re: Would you not pick a reception location because it is too far????

We are going to a wedding at East Wind next month, it's over an hour from us so all my friends are getting rooms. So don't worry everyone will make it there even if it's far. But be prepared for people to leave early if they are not staying over and have a long drive.

Re: Would you not pick a reception location because it is too far????

I had the same problem. I didn't want to travel all over LI from my house to the church to the reception, etc. Since you are having the ceremony and reception at the same place if the people want to be there they will come. The only thing you may want to take into consideration is possible snow.

Re: Would you not pick a reception location because it is too far????

To us it really mattered. We didn't book a place though we loved it, because it was just too far. Since most of our guests are from Brooklyn, we didn't want them to drive for long, with traffic and leaving early because they still have a long ride home.

Re: Would you not pick a reception location because it is too far????

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Posted by jam1223
But be prepared for people to leave early if they are not staying over and have a long drive.

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this is true... the way we picked our time was so it wasn't too early for tri-state people to wake up at the crack of dawn (ceremony starts at 2:00), and not so late so they can be back home and in bed by 12:00 (reception over at 9:00). the far away OOTers will be taking rooms or staying with friends and family in the area. hopefully people will stick around for a bit, a lot of these people haven't seen each other in a while...

Re: Would you not pick a reception location because it is too far????

i knew i couldn't please everyone BUT.....it was a factor for me because i wnated to be considerate....

the people that want to be there will be there but just remember January is not a good time to travel long distances ESPECIALLY since they are predicting such a horrible winter
BUT...if you want it there and absolutely love it then nothing should stop you because it is YOUR day!!

Re: Would you not pick a reception location because it is too far????

i also had a january wedding and the weather made me decide not to look further then nassau for the reception. i had guests coming from as far away as albany and i was afraid if there was snow or ice it would be too dangerous for them to drive especially after they had a few cocktails .

ets: that people will come regardless of where your wedding is but sometimes the weather cant be helped. my friend got married during one of the snowstorms last winter we were able to get there because it wasnt that far from where we lived but lots of people traveling a distance didnt make it.

Re: Would you not pick a reception location because it is too far????

We didn't book Vineyard Caterers because of the trip. It took over an hour from Port Jefferson. It would have been longer from W. Islip (FILs). (And then I also fell in love with my hall )

Re: Would you not pick a reception location because it is too far????

in my opinion location should have a huge impact on your decision, espcially einter months with weather conditions. you dont want your guests do constantly worry about drinking and gettting home in a far distance with weather worries

Re: Would you not pick a reception location because it is too far????

I was worried that my location would be too far, but since most of our families are out of town anyway, we're just going to block hotels that are close to the Swan club, so there shouldn't be any complaints. My Nana complained that it was far, but she's not driving anyway, so whatever

Re: Would you not pick a reception location because it is too far????

I dont know if I wouldnt pick my perfect place because of the drive but I have to say that my family did complain a little because my sisters wedding was about 45 minutes away.

Re: Would you not pick a reception location because it is too far????

In answer to your question, No, distance or location would not dissuade me from picking a place. No one in my family or FH's family is from LI. We found the place we love and booked it. EVERY person we have spoken with has said how beautiful, wonderful, etc. every affair they have ever been to at our hall has been. THAT is why we chose it. My family is from Rockland County and FH's family is from Brooklyn. Our wedding is just under 3 months away and we have 50 rooms already booked for that night. Most people are just making a weekend out of it and it is only in Cedarhurst! With that said, I think the weather is really going to be your biggest consideration. Is there any way you could look at a month other than January? If you haven't decided on a hall then maybe you can be a little flexible on the date. Keep n mind that there is always going to be a group of people that will have to travel from SOMEWHERE so don't worry about that. Just block rooms at a hotel nearby and make a nice weekend out of it.
Good luck with your decision!

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Re: Would you not pick a reception location because it is too far????

To me it made a huge difference because I knew I wanted to stop somewhere for pictures. Time, traffic, and travel becomes a huge concern when this is involved. Since you are in January, I'm guessing you won't be stopping for pics at a park, but you might want to think about the possibility of a snowstorm, or just having snow on the ground that time of year.

Good luck!

Re: Would you not pick a reception location because it is too far????

For us the distance was an issue. We live in queens so alot of the halls were out of range for us. We had guests coming from staten island and since we were having a night wedding it would not have been fair.

For ex. Mya parents have a wedding at the Swan club coming up and they considered cnacelling becuase its at nigth and they didnt want to drive out there.

But once again it is your day and as long as you have a back up plan and dont have a ridiculous guarantee to meet..it should be fine.

Re: Would you not pick a reception location because it is too far????

I don't know. I'd pick a place far away (in fact most of the palce I like are in eastern suffolk and I live in queens and FH is from brooklyn) because it'll keep the number of guests down and only the people who really matter will come. On the other hand it can be sad, too. We had my sister's shower in wading river and it was wonderful., but only about haf of the uest list was able to come. At the same time, that can be a good thing, because the people whoa re there really wanted to be there.

Re: Would you not pick a reception location because it is too far????

We thought the same thing. I also met a girl last night that thought the same thing too (she works at Lillette's) and I say go for it! I absolutely LOVE Giorgio's...DUH! I think your guests would love it too. And you could make arrangements for a hotel also!


FM me if you want to talk more, because FH & I went through the same thing!


Good Luck!

Re: Would you not pick a reception location because it is too far????

I kept my search within Nassau. I heard so many good things about places like Lands En and Flowerfields, but they were a bit too far for me.

If you have your heart set on a place and it's in your budget and you don't mind the distance, then go for it.

Re: Would you not pick a reception location because it is too far????

Nope!! We did not care. No offense to anyone invited We knew we would have the ceremony near my FI in Malverne and then once we saw Flowerfield, the distance never even was a thought. We knew this is what we wanted and both of our parents were in agreement. The people that matter will be there. That's how we look at it