Looking for a new venue - gutted!

Wurly

Hi all,

Hoping you can help me out. We had our heart set on the Four Seasons in Carlingford. Got shown the room and around the hotel. We loved the place. The packages were good too but a little on the pricey side with not much room for manoeuvre on the menus. But we were willing to work around that.

But now, they've come back with all sorts of mad charges on other things. €120 for guests rooms, even though our wedding is on a Wednesday. €30 for a child's breakfast, €8.50 corkage per bottle of wine.

We want to get married outside as we have a celebrant sorted. Does anyone know of some reasonably priced venues who offer this that don't have a host of hidden charges? We want to stay in Leinster and we would like the venue to be coastal.

Any help hugely appreciated. I can feel the stress starting to build!!

Pistachios & cream

Thats such a pity but at least you are seeing these charges now and not later on when you would possibly have to put up with them.

A quick google gave me the waterside hotel in donabate. http://www.watersidehousehotel.ie/weddings/civil-ceremonies

goldenhoarde

Hang in there and don't get stressed.

Check out http://www.hitched.ie/wedding-venues/leinster.htm for a listing of venues (probably not all that are about) and I'm sure you'll get some more suggestions here. I've none to recommend as a lot of the weddings I've attended have been in the West.

Ring any you like to make sure that indeed your planned date is available before you view.

Best of luck

Pistachios & cream

And portmarnock http://www.portmarnock.com/wedding-hotels-dublin.html

whiskeyman

Wurly wrote: »

But now, they've come back with all sorts of mad charges on other things. €120 for guests rooms, even though our wedding is on a Wednesday. €30 for a child's breakfast, €8.50 corkage per bottle of wine.

I just checked rate for next Wednesday and it's around €98?
Be firm with them saying to match that rate or you'll happily look elsewhere.
For a Wednesday wedding, they should be grabbing the busienss. What time of the year are you planning it for?

€8.50 corkage is about the level to be honest.
€30 for a childs breakfast is crazy. Do you mean a childs meal at the wedding?
If they come back with further crazy stuff, you're best to walk away.
They are other hotels out there willing to really work within your budget.

Other possible options:
Royal Marine Hotel in Dun L.
Marine Hotel Sutton.
http://tulfarrishotel.com/ (not on coast, but on Blessington lakes)

Wurly

Ah guys, you are brilliant. I'll check those out. Thank you so much. If anyone else has a suggestion, please let me know.

Thanks. I'd be lost without this forum!! xx

goldenhoarde

whiskeyman wrote: »

I just checked rate for next Wednesday and it's around €98?
Be firm with them saying to match that rate or you'll happily look elsewhere.
For a Wednesday wedding, they should be grabbing the busienss. What time of the year are you planning it for?

€8.50 corkage is about the level to be honest.
€30 for a childs breakfast is crazy. Do you mean a childs meal at the wedding?
If they come back with further crazy stuff, you're best to walk away.
They are other hotels out there willing to really work within your budget.

As per whiskeyman's post maybe a firm negotiation is required on all things. Oh and get everything in writing or via email so there can be no room for confusion.

stinkle

Sorry to hear that about your venue. There's some great advice there about haggling with them still.

I had a venue in mind too and thought it was perfect til they started asking for silly prices for things too. I did have my heart srt on it but we looked elsewhere and found an even better place! Theres lots out there who'd love your business.

sibersha

Not sure about prices but the Ballymac is decent/better venue nearby.

Milly33

Sorry I don't know of any places in Leinster.. But feeling your pain, it is such a dose trying to find a great spot!! Just breath though and do not panic, it seems to be the done thing that panic sets in about the venue.. But don't worry you will find one..

You should make out a list of things to ask the hotels though that you are visiting just to have all the cards on the table. They can be very sneaky so they can. A few that we had on the list were

Hotel Room Rates for guests?
How many rooms can the bridal party have ?
Corkage or course on both wine and champers ?
Price of drink for guests?
Is there a bar extension included?
If no bar extension is there can you close the bad where ye are having the wedding and use the residents bar?
Is there a charge for holding the ceremony there, normally there is and tis mad for putting up a few chairs and a table?

There were just a few bits on the list as we found a lot of the hotels had all these surprises for you after getting the first price.

Best of luck finding a spot

TomTom12

PM sent Wurly

pooch90

Station House Kilmessan gorgeous grounds, 20 mins from Dublin.

Dee01

The marine hotel in sutton is lovely and has really nice grounds for an outdoor ceremony. Elina is the wedding planner there.

If I were you I would haggle more and be firm re additional prices. Don't be afraid to let them know your party Will very spending a lot at the bar/booking out the hotel etc. Use anything that Will let them see they want your party more then you want their hotel. Using this tact tho, you have to be willing to walk away if they don't bite. I was there for an outdoor wedding last month and it was lovely. Best of luck op.

Toots

If you're having your wedding outdoors I'd be careful with the Royal Marine, it's got a lovely garden out the front, but there's a big building site beside it at the minute. I was at a wedding there a few months ago (the wedding was indoors) and the room is beautiful, they had the wedding in the main room and everyone sat at the tables like they would for the meal, and it was really lovely. I think they did most of the photos inside also, but the inside of the hotel is gorgeous so the photos turned out great. If your wedding is a year or so away, you might be grand, but I'd make 100% sure building work will be finished by then, especially if your wedding is on a weekday.

magicmushroom

I got married here in 2012 on a Thursday.

Rooms were €99, and as we only had a small wedding (40 people for the meal) they let us have the menu from the main restaurant which had 4 main course choices, for only €25 per head.

I do remember they wouldn't budge on corkage though - in the end we just bought the wine from them, I think they gave a slight reduction and it worked out basically the same as supplying our own plus the corkage.

It's a really nice venue, so try and put some pressure on them to get the room rates down, Carlingford is such a lovely place for a wedding

usher1890

Glasson Hotel in Athlone is a stunning location by the lakes! Prices from €55 pp

almorris

+1 Ballymac

Berty

pooch90 wrote: »

Station House Kilmessan gorgeous grounds, 20 mins from Dublin.

Only if you don't mind your guests offsetting the costs. It's the most expensive venue I've been a guest at, overpriced attic rooms above the dancefloor, drink prices changed as the evening progressed and its a tiny bar in the main hotel so when your guests arrived they are really cramped.

whomitconcerns

I think you must have misheard. I am sure it's not specifically 30 for a child's breakfast. 8.50 for corkage is normal. As for the room costs...I would talk to them about that. But they v can charge what they like. Have you checked the area, is tehre something else on that would push up prices? Anyway people can stay elsewhere, its not a change the venue issue imho.

Wurly wrote: »

Hi all,

Hoping you can help me out. We had our heart set on the Four Seasons in Carlingford. Got shown the room and around the hotel. We loved the place. The packages were good too but a little on the pricey side with not much room for manoeuvre on the menus. But we were willing to work around that.

But now, they've come back with all sorts of mad charges on other things. €120 for guests rooms, even though our wedding is on a Wednesday. €30 for a child's breakfast, €8.50 corkage per bottle of wine.

We want to get married outside as we have a celebrant sorted. Does anyone know of some reasonably priced venues who offer this that don't have a host of hidden charges? We want to stay in Leinster and we would like the venue to be coastal.

Any help hugely appreciated. I can feel the stress starting to build!!

cletus van damme

whomitconcerns wrote: »

I think you must have misheard. I am sure it's not specifically 30 for a child's breakfast. 8.50 for corkage is normal. As for the room costs...I would talk to them about that. But they v can charge what they like. Have you checked the area, is tehre something else on that would push up prices? Anyway people can stay elsewhere, its not a change the venue issue imho.

in your opinion?
However staying elsewhere is a pain in the hole , it's a lot more convienient to stay on site unless you live nearby.

It's also lousy to offer a decent deal to the couple and shaft their guests with over priced room - and we've all seen the expensive bar prices etc..
It sours the experience for all.

I went to a wedding in dunboyne castle - stifed us 150e for the room which was average enough . expensive bar prices all day plus the lunch we bought was dear too (I can't go from ceremony to dinner without food!)
Anyway it soured my memory of the wedding and I wont be going back there either,.

whomitconcerns

cletus van damme wrote: »

in your opinion?
However staying elsewhere is a pain in the hole , it's a lot more convienient to stay on site unless you live nearby.

It's also lousy to offer a decent deal to the couple and shaft their guests with over priced room - and we've all seen the expensive bar prices etc..
It sours the experience for all.

I went to a wedding in dunboyne castle - stifed us 150e for the room which was average enough . expensive bar prices all day plus the lunch we bought was dear too (I can't go from ceremony to dinner without food!)
Anyway it soured my memory of the wedding and I wont be going back there either,.

well yes...in my opinion as i said...I went to a weddiing in sligo recently where it was 150 for the night to stay there (was 60/70 for B&B but my preference and we paid for barfood (my choice to have). Bar was expensive (again my choice)

The way I look at it, the B&G can get married in the Ritz/Castlemartyr/Shelbourne/etc if thats their choice, however, its my choice if i attend, where I stay, how much I pay (within reason), what I eat and what I drink.

So while they should try be accomodating..ultimately its the B&Gs wedding, not mine. So cost of rooms would not be a deal breaker, again in my opinion...

Third_Echelon

Ballymac is a good spot as well... I was at a wedding there are few years ago and it was a nice venue.

+1 for Tulfarris on Blessington Lakes though. We have booked there for August 2015 and they are great to deal with. Everything is included in the price. There are no additional prices for seat covers and all that rubbish that hotels try to pull. Very nice wedding co-ordinators there and a beautiful venue.... Decent priced packages too. Well worth checking out.

lukesmom

Trim castle hotel is fab, it's 5 years since we got married there but I remember they were very good with prices and getting the best deal. We got married on a Thursday.