Choosing The Date for Your Nashville Wedding - Fri or Sun? Holiday Weekend? Plus Dates to Avoid
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
There are many factors that determine your wedding date - time of year, other people's weddings, life occurences, and the biggest one - whether or not the venue of your dreams is available. While it's typical for weddings to fall on a Saturday, it's not unusual for brides and grooms to say "I do" on a Friday or a Sunday or even a weekday!
Popular Nashville Events
Nashville is host to lots of events through the year that fall on or over a weekend. The increase in hotel room reservations could mean higher room rates and a limit on room blocks for your guests.
Photo by Jonathon Campbell Photography
To learn about which dates might impact hotel rooms for your out of town guests, we reached out to Kristen of Aloft Hotel who provided us with these popular dates you may want to be aware of or avoid. During these Nashville events, it is nearly impossible to get rooms downtown or even in the suburbs of Nashville. Your guests will pay a premium if they do get a room and they may be scattered across the city. Traffic downtown could also be a nightmare, meaning that parking will cost more too. All of these things could impact the cost and experience for them and you.
- Country Music Marathon: April 28
- CMA Music Festival: June 7 - 10
- CMA Awards: November 9
Fun, Numerical Dates Might be Popular
More and more couples are choosing fun wedding dates, maybe to help their groom remember their anniversary for years to come. Sarah Willard of Music City Events predicts the following Saturdays to be very popular this year:
- Cinco de Mayo: 5/5/12
- 5/12/12
- 7/7/12
ABG notes: Don't forget about....
Steeplechase on May 12th
Vanderbilt's Commencement weekend starting May 9 - 11 and it usually spills into the weekend!
Wedding weekends or Friday and Sunday weddings might be an option, especially for destination Nashville weddings.
Linda Wright, owner of Cedarwood, also knows a thing or two about weddings on weekdays and even Fridays and Sundays. Linda: "Contrary to popular belief, Friday or Sunday weddings are preferred by many couples planning a 'destination' wedding, or who have a considerable number of guests flying from other cities."
Photo from CedarwoodWeddings.com
She went on to explain the advantages of a non-Saturday wedding:
"You get to offer guests a 'wedding weekend' of activities, not just one day. A popular wedding weekend itinerary is Friday wedding, Saturday night downtown dance party, Sunday morning farewell brunch. Friday wedding dates allow couples to 'reverse' the traditional rehearsal dinner with a fun second gathering on Saturday night. At Cedarwood, rehearsals are done the day of the wedding, so a rehearsal dinner is purely a social gathering for the wedding party and family. Having this gathering the day after the wedding ensures that the wedding celebration will not be upstaged by too much fun the night before! An after event can be as casual as designating a location such as Roberts Western World or Wildhorse Saloon for guests to gather (and pay their own way) or as structured as renting out a location with open bar or a private room for a post wedding celebration dinner."
If you're trying to bring your guest list down to a manageable size, maybe a Friday or Sunday wedding is for you. Linda tells us it's a great way to trim that list and "it is much better to have the wedding of your dreams and fewer guests, than spending your budget on lots of guests that you may not know that well. Those who really want to be there will be regardless of the day you select."
Holiday Wedding Weekends
Another popular date for weddings is the weekend preceding a national holiday like Memorial Day in May or Labor Day in September. This long weekend gives guests flexibility with travel and they can stay longer.
Linda Wright: "Everyone who flies to Nashville will want to experience the action of our famous and fun city! It's a popular town with lots to do. Even guests coming for a Saturday night wedding are inclined to stay over a night or two for a mini-vacation. Give your guests an excuse for a long weekend and they will love you for it."
ABG notes: While some like holiday wedding weekends, do note that 1) sometimes they are a little more challenging as venues may be taken, rental inventory may be lower because you are competing with other parties/events, and 2) some guests may balk at you taking their holiday vacation time for your wedding. Hey - you'd be surprised. Just something to consider.
Specials for Friday or Sunday Weddings
We're often asked by brides if venues are cheaper on alternate days (not Saturdays). While not every venue offers deals, here are a few that do!
Front Porch Farms will take $1500 off the venue cost when you book your Friday or Sunday wedding before January 30, 2012.
Photo by The Collection
Houston Station gives you 15% off the venue fee if you book your Friday or Sunday wedding date before February 28, 2012.
Photo by Jonathon Campbell Photography
Cedarwood offers double discounts for weddings on Mondays through Thursdays (great if you want your wedding to fall on a particular date of significance instead of a weekend). Before you balk at the idea of not having your wedding on a typical Saturday, Linda of Cedarwood brings up something to definitely keep in mind: "We feel that couples automatically assume Saturdays are the only day they can consider, but it is much more important to get the LOCATION, season, setting and style of wedding you want than it is the day of the week." As for Sunday weddings, Cedarwood takes an additional $500 (so $1000 total) off the price of venue rental for all Sunday weddings in 2012.
So definitely weigh the pros and cons and most definitely your priorities - do you have a special date that means a lot to both of you? Or a guest list that's getting out of hand that you just need to rein in? There's a lot to think about but remember, regardless of whether you pick a Tuesday or a Saturday, there's no wrong day for a wedding. Happy planning!
About the Author:
Tabitha
Blogging is something I’ve enjoyed doing for years. My interests lie mostly in lifestyle related topics like fashion, style, design, food and weddings. When I heard Ashley was looking to bring on new members to the ABG team, I jumped at the opportunity - I can’t think of a better way to stay involved in weddings than to write about them and to stay in touch with the trends and new ideas. Lucky for me, Ashley likes my blog and trusts my experience to bring me on and so far, it’s been a blast.
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Posted on January 4, 2012 |
Filed under: Advice & Planning, Engagements & Proposals
