We were still considering VA or NY - VA is now out

Okay, we went to visit two places in VA that I would consider.

The Chrysler Museum - rental fee $3,000 and we would have to use Cuisine and Company caterers. No other caterer is allowed. Not only does the fee not include alcohol but we would need to rent linen, flatware, glassware and china. All in all it came out to $55pp plus the site fee. The caterer said we can bring our own liquor and they can supply bartenders for an additional fee. I had known of this place but not visited before today. with liquor, I figure at least another $15 - $20 per person so about $75pp.

We went to the Norfolk Botanical Gardens and saw the Rose Garden Hall. It holds about 240 people and we could have the ceremony on site. The fee is $3750 for a Saturday 3 p.m. to midnight in prime season. The fee for a ceremony is $600. The site fee is a little cheaper ($3500) for October - the date we want is 10/10/05.

For some reason I expected VA to be cheaper although I had briefly investigated this in September. Most people tend to have church weddings and then have receptions in the church hall or at a recreation center or hotel.

Looks like we are doing NYC.