Newly engaged and overwhelmed!

Hello,

My boyfriend and I got engaged recently and we have already been inundated with questions, opinions, suggestions and comments. I know it's all coming from good places and people that care about us, but it's a bit overwhelming.

So, any advice on where to begin planning? We know we will invite between 150-175 ppl. We're planning for early/mid-Spring next year. We want to get married in a Catholic church. Would prefer a more low key venue, maybe something on the water. Old Field Club and Bay View House are Captain Bills to get an idea.

Any venue suggestions or ideas would be greatly appreciated. I am not really sure where to begin, do I just call places and ask for their starting per person bid? And then start to weed out places based on price? Any help or advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Re: Newly engaged and overwhelmed!

I just wanted to say congratulations! I am in the same boat as you are, very overwhelmed. I am sure you will find many suggestions and helpful tips on this site. Good luck!

Re: Newly engaged and overwhelmed!

congrats and welcome!! sorry im not much help with rh's in suffolk

Re: Newly engaged and overwhelmed!

Congrats and welcome!!!!!!!! Don't be overwhelmed. You have plenty of time. Take all the advise with a 'grain of salt' everyone has an opinion but the only one that matters is yours and your FH!! Good luck and happy planning!!!

Re: Newly engaged and overwhelmed!

In Suffolk, I looked at/considered Vanderbilt at Dowling, Venetian Yacht Club, Bellport Country Club, Timber Point Country Club, and East Wind. Let me know if you have questions about any of these... We went with East Wind. Something nice about East Wind is hotel on site, convenient for out of town guests.

Re: Newly engaged and overwhelmed!

Hello =)

Welcome & Congrats!!

First you want to make a list of RH's that you're interested in. There's a Reception Planning Guide on this site, or you could google Long island Reception Halls and go from there. Although, I would recommend using this site or getting a magazine planning guide.

Then you want to call and make sure they can accomodate your amount of people. Also, you would want to make sure that you could guarantee enough people if you wanted a certain night. For example, if you're dead set on a Saturday night and they want a guarantee of 200, and you don't want that many people, that would be something you'd want to know before going there and visiting.

You can also ask prices over the phone, most places will give you some sort of quote, some will not give quotes over the phone. Even if the place is a bit out of your range, I'd suggest visiting. Everything is negotiable.

Some places you might want to check out: (Either I've been there or heard good things) Sunset Harbour, Majestic Gardens, East Wind, Larkfield Manor, Atlantis Marine World, Fox Hollow, Crest Hollow, Captain Bills, The Snapper Inn, for example.

Good luck in your search! Let us know how it goes.

Re: Newly engaged and overwhelmed!

welcome and congrats!! just take one thing at a time

Re: Newly engaged and overwhelmed!

Congratulations to you!! I can definitely recommend some venues on the water in Suffolk county. We had similiar ideas for what we were looking for. We booked Chateau La Mer in Lindenhurst. It is on the water and the main room requires a minimum of 150 ppl. A few other really nice locations are Land's End, Venetian Yacht Club, Atlantica, and Lombardi's on the Sound. I would suggest calling for a price range and then if it seems reasonable...follow through with an appointment. At the appt, they will talk to you about what is included in each package and what the cost is based on the day and time of the year. This is such a fun part in the planning process :o)Good luck to you!

Re: Newly engaged and overwhelmed!

Congrats and Welcome!!! Take things one at a time, and I definitely think you are on the right track... get the church and reception hall booked and everything else will follow. GOOD LUCK!

Re: Newly engaged and overwhelmed!

Congrats and welcome!! Don't worry, like the other brides said, just take one thing at a time....as far as venues, here are a few to check out: Lands End (I'm biased lol!!), Windows on the Lake, Thatched Cottage, Chateau La Mer, the Riviera, and Huntington Harbor Club Try not to book the first day you go because you want to think about it and make sure and also compare to toher RHs so you can 'bargain' a little bit to get the most for your money After your RH book your church to make sure you get your date; then work on photography (the most important vendor acc to a lot of brides-they are recording your memories ). GL and happy planning!

Re: Newly engaged and overwhelmed!

Congrats and welcome!

I would say since you are getting married in a church, visit them for a few available dates in your preferred time frame. Then figure out what you want in a RH (one at a time event, marble, wood, garden, golf course, beach, other water, mansion). Then come up with a budget pp. Figure in tax and 20% gratuity. Decide if you're flexible with Fri, Sat, & Sun afternoon and evening. Prices are significantly less any day but Saturday. Then you can do a search on here for RH quotes or a search for particular RH like Old Field Club. There are threads on here too for certain RHs...read them if you're interested. And visit the Brides Review board to find out how venues and vendors really come through on the big day.

Don't be overwhelmed... you'll be fine. Take your time...baby steps. Church dates, RH budget, RHs then your major vendors. You've got plenty of time.

Good Luck!
Christina

Re: Newly engaged and overwhelmed!

Congrats! The RH we looked at on the water were

Thatched Cottage
Harbor Club
Swan Club
Chateau La Mer
Captain Bills
Bridgeview Yacht Club
Sunset Harbour
Venetian Yacht Club

I am probably biased, but I love the Thatched Cottage, and I think it is relatively low key. Our second choice was the Harbor Club. Besides these 2, the other 'low key' ones, are Swan Club, Chateau La Mer, Sunset Harbour and Capt Bills.

Good luck!! If you have any questions about these, feel free to ask!

Re: Newly engaged and overwhelmed!

Congrats!!!

Some places we looked at on the water are...

Danfors
Sunset Harbor
Smithtown Landing
Snapper Inn
Venetian Yatch Club
Timberpoint Country Club
The Bourn Mansion
Coinder Hall
Bridgeview Yatch Club
Atlantica
Thatched Cottage
hmmm there are probally more...we had no clue what we were doing haha

If you have questions about any of these places let me know :)

Also the one thing I wish that I knew when I was starting to look at RH halls was to ask for min guarente and price range over the phone...once I figured that out I was able to skip looking at some places

Re: Newly engaged and overwhelmed!

Congrats!!!! Know how you feel! Start with the RH thats the major part.

Re: Newly engaged and overwhelmed!

Thank you so much everyone! I really appreciate all of the good wishes and suggestions. I think we're going to make some calls this week and do what everyone suggested, make a (hopefully) short list and start visiting. It is a really exciting time, I think we were both just overwhelmed by our big family at Easter. Thanks again!

Re: Newly engaged and overwhelmed!

I would say that Hamlet Willow Creek is a more low key venue and Barbara is the best! Good Luck!

Re: Newly engaged and overwhelmed!

Congratulations on your engagement. Sorry, I don't know much about RH's in your area. But I can offer advice. I would suggest you make appointments with your possible RH's and when you go to see the venue's then discuss price per person. They may be more willing to adjust the price in person than on the phone.

Re: Newly engaged and overwhelmed!

Congrats!!! Just breathe, everything will come together. The opinions will continue coming your way but don't let them get to you. Take your time and do it one step at a time!

Re: Newly engaged and overwhelmed!

congrats and enjoy the planning process! i got married at the harbor club last october. it is very low key and on the water. i can't say enough good things about them! reasonably priced and the room would definitely hold that amount of people very comfortably! check them out

Re: Newly engaged and overwhelmed!

Congrats!!!!