There is such a wide variety of wedding venues in France, so where do you start and how do you compare them all? How do you decide which format is the best one for your needs? We have pulled together a list of pros and cons as to what you can expect, and although there are exceptions, in general, there are three main types of venue available for weddings and event in France:
Privately owned houses with accommodation onsite
Advantages:
- Call it your own ‘home away from home’, for the duration of your stay
- Flexibility to create your day, your way
- No imposed packages – typically the property is rented as the backdrop to your wedding only and all suppliers are hired direct
- Some venues may offer lists of suppliers – check with your venue
- Stay for as long as you like (or book for) and host events on more than one day
Disadvantages:
- Often limited onsite services or facilities specifically for weddings
- Couples are responsible for organizing everything and all suppliers for the day. This not only includes key suppliers but may also include furniture, utilities and infrastructure as well as the installation and dismantling of equipment and cleaning
- Many of these properties rent to the holiday market as their primary market, thus flexibility for weekend rental may, but not always, be restricted in high season (June/July/August).
Chateaux/ Manor houses
Advantages:
- Flexibility to create your day, your way
- Many venues offer an onsite organizer/some suppliers and/or lists of suppliers
- Usually comes with a catering kitchen and high capacity reception rooms
- Often includes some supplies such as furniture, linens, cutlery in the hire charge
- Some venues offer onsite accommodation – this may be just for the bride and groom or could be for 100+ guests for the night of the event
Disadvantages:
- If offered, onsite accommodation is usually just for the wedding night unless otherwise agreed
- Access times are usually quite strict – usually 24 hour’s rental is from 09h00 on day of event to 09h00 following day when facility has to be returned cleaned
Hotels
Advantages:
- Flexibility on length of stay for all guests
- Reception room hire included in the catering costs
- Can be small enough to still hire in exclusivity
- Guests can pay individually for their accommodation although a deposit may be required
Disadvantages:
- Usually offered as a package that can be quite fixed in format
- They may require you to choose suppliers from a list of nominated partners
- May share venue with other guests
We hope that you have found this overview useful, however, every venue is different and may have its own particularities. Do check our directory for many venues across France