all right hello
and welcome back to Destination Wedding Planning
made easy I am your host
Mario Lopez and you're here with the team
from Destination Weddings Expert
we have Nikki Sanders and Prissi Powell
hello ladies
how are you hi
hi alright
so today
we want to talk a little bit about
on site versus off site venues
I think one of the things that we
you know we get to consider
when we're looking at
where we want to hold and host our wedding
is do we want to do it at the property
that we have our room block at
or do we want to do it off site
somewhere that you know
maybe gives you something a little more specific
to what you're looking for
and what are the pros and cons
and what are the challenges
and what are some of the things
that you should be considering
along the way
when you're thinking about on site versus off site
so I think one of the most important things
this is a very operational thing
this is something that you know
I think our couples probably don't think of right away
it's just an Assumption that they have
but I think one of the most important things
that you want to consider
when you're looking at a offsite venue
is who is running that venue
how is it ran how long has it been around
if it's a brand new venue
first of all
they might not have worked out all the kinks right away
right that's
there's things that you know
logistically we just gotta figure out along the way
we won't know when we open it until we know right
um but more importantly
when you look at the staff
you know that's if they're employees versus contracted
at some of these properties
there are some offsite venues that are out there
that have employees of that venue
and in my opinion
I think that's probably the better way to go
because we want to make sure that those employees
are trained by the venue are familiar with the venue
are up you know
understand what the service standard is for that venue
you know you don't want someone just coming in
that works five other venues
you know
cause they're contracted and they can go wherever they
you know wherever they're needed
but then you don't know you know
they don't know the service standard of that property
they don't know you know
the quickest way from point a to point B
and you know how to be efficient on the property
that's so I think that the employees being
or the the staff being
employees of the property
is probably a very important consideration
that people don't think about right away
right
um the next thing I think
consideration lies you know
what we want to consider is
does it fit your needs
and your vision for your ceremony
Chrissy can you talk about that a little bit
sure um
couples need to go in understanding
like what their vision is
but they also need to look at what the group looks like
like do you have a large group
is it a lot of elderly people
is it a lot of people who may have mobility issues
because all of those things will
should go into whether you have it on site
whether you have it off site
just because all of it plays a part
yep absolutely
I think you know this
you also have to consider the size of your group
a lot of these venues have limited capacity right
and so if your group is pushing
let's say the venue only holds 130 people
if your group is pushing that
you know 60
65 room block you might not be able to fit everyone
comfortably in the venue
and if you've been out to some of these venues
and visit them even that hundred and thirty capacity
might feel a little tight
you know for your group to actually be there
and not be bumping each other
when they're pulling their chairs out and
you know things like that
those those capacities exist for a reason
and I feel like it's almost a little more restrictive
at some of the offsite venues so
you know a larger group
a big safety thing too
like you know you
all the extra people all the extra vendors
like anything could go wrong
so now it's an even bigger cluster for you
yep absolutely
and I think you know
then one of the things that you might want to consider
is the the needs of your ceremony
you know if you want to be toes in sand
and your venue has toes in sand
great awesome
but you wanna make sure that it has
you know the vision that you are looking for
before you commit to anything
a lot of the times these venues will have
you know brochures and things like that
that you can take a look at
that helps visualize it
sometimes with the offset venues
you might even wanna go on a site visit
before you commit to anything
and make sure that it is what you want it to be right
um so let's kind of talk about now
the specifics of on site versus off site benefits
you know things like that
that's once we've decided which way we wanna go
what are some of the pros
and cons to to considering it
I wanna start with on site
because on site
in my experience
in our experience from the groups that we have
the groups that we work with
we probably do more on site groups than we do off site
right um
and that's because there's a lot of benefits to
to doing it that way
so one of the biggest things and kind of
I think the one of the most obvious things that
that's out there for the benefits of doing the on site
is you don't have any transportation needs right
there's a lot of transportation considerations
that need to go into making sure that everyone can get
from your hotel where your room block is hosted
over to the
the offsite venue if you decide to do offsite
Nikki talk to us a little bit about
some of the considerations
for guests when we're talking transportation
well
for guests even if the
even if your resort is right next door
it is not running over to your neighbor's
to borrow something and coming back
you are exiting one secure property
and going into another and if your group has
like I
if you have a lot of children in your group
you probably don't want to do an off site
they can't run back to the room
and get the other pair of shoes or
or now you know
little Evan needs to change his shorts
you know like
you have them off site for a long time
when you are on site you know what
they might be able to stay with the babysitter
and you can feel good about that
cause you're still on site as well
and this it's not just the children
older people it's a lot easier for your older guests
and nervous travelers they don't have to
you know be ready at
you know 3:30
4:00 to get in a van to go
you know even just three miles away
and then wait till your reception is over
at whatever time you're comfortable ending to get back
they can they can dip out when they're ready and never
no one has to know or be bothered um
with taking them back yeah
so you know there's
there's a lot of considerations with just
just the logistics of moving your guests from
from one spot to the other
um
you know it's it's
it's it's a long day for
for a lot of people I think a lot of times too
we oversimplify moving people
and if you've never been a group leader
or been a part of a large group
like having everyone meet at a designated
a designated time
is the hardest thing to do in the entire world
oh my gosh
and then the couple that say
I know my people we gotta tell them 20 minutes early
it is a science so then you tell them 20 minutes early
and then they're still 40 minutes late
and then the person who was on time it
it becomes a thing it's annoying
and it's also like some people
once they are annoyed there's no coming back right
you're going to hear about that for the entire ceremony
so just yeah
in theory it's very easy to move 40 people
but have you met the 40 people
like it's not
it's not always that simple
and they're dressed up and hot
yeah and that
so that's another thing when you're talking about going
you know to an offsite that's
and we're right next door is
is you know what I hear often
when we're looking at resort choices
yeah that's true
except your guests are in heels or in
you know the guys are wearing dress shoes if
if I'm black tie wearing tuck shoes you
you won't catch me dead walking across
you know this you're not
when you're walking next door
it's not like you're walking like
directly next door you're walking through woods like
hahaha yeah
it's not or to the gate and then around
you have to check in it it
it's not and it
imagine having a faja on and it's 80 degrees Mario
do you know what a faja is
it's a girl I know what a faja is
it's a very fancy girdle but like it
it's a lot like
it could be a lot yeah
and and the vans
you know the best ones might be comfortable
but doesn't mean you're gonna get the best one
you might get the the little you don't know
you don't know the first band on the island
and yeah yeah
there's a lot of considerations
when it comes to legit logistics
so you don't have to worry about that with an on site
you have you know
you don't have to worry about rounding up the troops if
you know so and so
Auntie so and so is late for the ceremony
that's on her
but she was close enough that she could have been there
like that's hahaha
you know so I'm not gonna name names though
but you remember
we were at an event and they took us to an offsite
and while it was beautiful
it was such a waste right
you you spent probably like
you got into the groove of being at the event
it was time to go like
it was just like why do we do this
like it was exhausting
it was exhausting
I couldn't even tell you what city we were in
when we went to that
that's I
I would never be able to find it again
but it's
it that's an exact thing
and then we had it logistically
someone at the end of the night
who didn't end up on the bus
and now
we have an entire bus of people either being held back
or going back trying to find a person
it is it is like wrangling cats
like that's
your guests are not as organized as you think they are
they're not as well trained as you think they are
that's and especially after a couple cocktails
it gets more difficult and a hot day
and a hot day yeah yeah
it's obviously
they're happy to they're happy to stay on property
they've you know they've
they've spent money on on coming to this resort
um
the convenience of okay
well I just go over there
but okay
if I need to go back to my room and get some Advil
at some point I can't like
I can't and change or cool off for anything
you have that option oh
sometimes they do change for the reason yeah
we've seen that happen my mom did it
when the party gets going yeah
I'm done with this yeah yeah exactly
that's um
that's and by the way
as we get into this guys that's
I know you know
we're having conversations about it
we are gonna play devil's advocate as well
we're gonna tell you about why off sites are good
and why they should be considered
but
these are some of the things that you need to consider
when you're looking at doing off site or on site
what are the benefits and what are the
the cons right
it's so I
you know another thing is just when we're talking about
like preferred vendors
right looking at preferred vendors on
on on
site venues those preferred vendors
know that property inside and out
they work at that property all the time
they know how to get the good shots
they know you know
that's the the
you know hair and makeup knows where they need to be
when they need to be and where that is on the property
so they're not delaying the process for vendors
on the outside
you're melting by the time you make it to that location
like they
they know that distance right
or they know or they know you will be melting
it's a little double up on that
you know
that little mist
right
that's why yeah
so I think you know
preferred vendors on some of these properties
it just kind of makes it a little bit easier
if the vendor that you have knows the property
it's going to make everything run smoother
that can be argued both ways
on off site you know
on site off site venues also have vendors that know
you know some of these properties very well um
and make that process easy
but it's it's something to consider
I do think one of the big benefits to an on site
is going to be
the number of venues that you have to choose from
right so when we're looking at an on site venue
typically these properties have
more than a few venues to look at
and they're looking at more than a few beach choices
more than a few garden or terrace choices
you know maybe
usually only one rooftop sometimes two
mostly one um
and then you know
usually a ballroom or something like that
so you have a larger breadth of
of choices to choose from
uh Nikki
you made a good point before about um
you know backup plans
right that's a some
some of these properties you know
if the rain happens
some of the off sites don't have as many backup plans
that you know
in case something happens um
whereas a on site is going to usually
typically have a ballroom or a restaurant or something
that they can put you in um
that they will you know
move around to make it work um
in the event of rain or wind or
you know whatever it is
it it
go back to our weather episode from last week
like that's hahaha yeah
when when the weather doesn't cooperate
the onsite venues
are gonna have a lot of options to choose from
not to mention just when everything is going right
a lot more options and venues that you can choose from
for your group and
and what you're gonna be looking at
now let's talk negatives for an onsite
right so the negatives for the onsite
in my experience and
you know depending on which property you're at
things will be a little bit different
but I think there's a lot more strict rules
at an on site venue most of these on site properties
are gonna go one of two ways
either it's a corporate venue
and those corporate venues have a lot of rules
that just come along with it that
you know has to start at this time
you only have these two times
that are available for wedding
and if it's not those two times
then you can't do it
I have a property that I'm working with right now
that's you know
giving us that nonsense
that there's no reason I can't start for
but okay um
this hahaha
they said so run yeah
this is so some of them have to follow corporate rule
or it's the other side of it
where it's not a corporate company
it's a boutique hotel and now you're looking at
well this
we have to do it this way
cause we only have the staff to be able to do this
or we only have the locations to be able to do this
and so this do they always have reasons for it
yeah they usually have a reason
for why things need to be a certain way
but I think those rules can be bent a little bit more
at an offsite venue
an offsite venue can be a little bit more accommodating
to you know
to be able to help you out with hey
I wanna do this but I wanna do it this way
that's right now I have a bride who wants the um
the cocktail table she wants it to be
bustles not the right word
cause it's you're almost using
like a rubber band but it's
it's like brought up a little bit and
and bunched in some you know
looks really pretty mm hmm
we're doing an on site wedding with her
and the the on site decor company is saying oh
we can't really do that
unless we charge $100 more per table in order to do it
because they're gonna order new tablecloths
they're gonna order new tablecloths to do it
yeah whereas an off site venue
I can almost guarantee you would be like
oh yeah we'll
we'll bust them up let's make it look like this
it is what it is that's
they're not gonna overcharge for something like that
mm hmm yeah
plus off site
you might be
you're gonna be the only wedding and reception yes
there might not be three other brides yes
and grooms or grooms and grooms
or brides and brides that same day
and welcome party and something else
you're gonna be the the festivities so
mm hmm absolutely yeah
it's almost guaranteed that if you're in at an offsite
you're probably the only people that are there
it's your people and and what not
now we'll talk about
you know
the cons to that in a little bit when we talk off site
but for the most part you'll be the only people there
that's when you do an on site
there's a lot of these venues that are like
especially the gardens and the terraces
that are right smack dab in the center of the resort
so you've got everyone in their rooms
up on their balconies
in their underwear and their swimsuits
in their robe in their robe
like watching your wedding
you have all the people walking around
there's people in the pools
this and so
you have to be very conscious of the venue
that you choose in the
on site if you want something that's very private
cause if you want something that's very private
cause if you want something that's very private
if you want something that's very private
if you want something that's very private
if you want something that's very private
if you want something that's very private
if you want something that's very private
if you want something that's very private
if you want something that's very private
if you want something that's very private
if you want something that's very private
yelling at their kids in the background
yeah yeah
the Speedo guy oh
the Speedo guy there's always one not him
I I was about to quote Gilmore Girls
but I will I will restrain myself
um that's hahaha
um but yes
so there's there's
you know those things to consider
I won't name the hotel but
there is one of our hotels that we love to work with
but their beach venue if you turn around
you've got all the drunk people in the pool
it's watching cheering you on your ceremony
yeah yeah
so it's it's something to consider cause
yeah right
you have to walk
you have to walk by there to get a towel
mm hmm I have to go
it was annoying yeah it's
I know so it
these are the things that you want to consider
and that's why sometimes a site visit
whether it's off site or on site
is a good idea because then
then you can go on and take a look
and see how all that operationally works
um because yes
the photos will always look great
any marketing photos that you're gonna see out there
of course
are not gonna show any people in the background that's
you know that's
they're all photoshopped out
or it was done at 7 o'clock in the morning
when no one was actually in there
first light they do though
that first light
yeah so it's
that is something to consider and
and something that really uh
you know is gonna help influence your decision
also on site venues and
I think this is probably one of the largest ones
for me cause
when I'm speaking to our couples about their budget
and how they wanna manage things and
you know what they're trying to do
no one wants to overpay for anything
whether you've got a fifteen thousand dollar budget
or you've got a hundred thousand dollar budget
you don't wanna overpay for anything
that's an outside vendor fees on
on outside vendor fees
and on site venues are really getting out of control
um yes yeah
and they're about to get worse
by the way that taxes just went up in Dr
and so that's those those fees are gonna go up again
um but I think you need to be considerate
of what those outside vendor fees are gonna be
especially if you know that you are very particular
about your photography and your videography
or your hair and makeup
two things that I think are very personal
it's any decor team
I think is be able to execute a decor vision
I most floral teams are gonna be able to execute floral
food you don't really have a choice
it has to be the the onsite food because
you know for liability purposes
but
um when it comes to hair and makeup and photo and video
those are two of the most common ones
and some of these fees $50
$2,000 for outside vendor fees
part of it is the hotel charging a fee
part of it is the local government
making it hard for them to bring on outside vendors
and so they they have to build these fees into uh
into their fees and their structure
so it's
these on site venues are charging a lot higher fees
and it makes the budget hard to stick to
if you are going to be specific about
your hair and makeup and your photo and video
which to be honest
ninety five percent of my couples are
they're very particular about
you know
who's gonna be handling their hair or handling their
their photos so um
definitely something to consider with on sites
is there anything on site that we wanna touch base on
before we kind of move over to our off site venues
and pros and cons there well sometimes
you know you're with your contract and your wedding
your your wedding contract
you get more back when you have an on site wedding
versus an off site wedding
that is a really good point Mickey
you get your concessions
you might get your free room nights up on the back end
you you get the welcome party off site
you know they're like yeah
we'll give you a little something
that's OK yeah congratulations
that's you bye
yeah that's a super valid point
cause that's when we sign these room block contracts
it is a different contract that we're signing
if you have an on site wedding
we have different terms that we get versus
you know what they consider a social group
you're basically just a social group
yes you're
you know that's
we know you're hosting your wedding there
they actually know that you know
you're hosting your wedding
you know as
as a wedding group but it's just a social group
as far as their operations team is concerned
and so that's when it comes to that
your terms are different your event
you know comps are different
that's super valid point Mickey
I think it's also easier like
to keep your group together in those on sites
like when you do a off site
people are like well
we can stay anywhere we can do anything
which again impacts those contracts
impacts those concessions
yep yes that
that that too and
and we're gonna touch on that a little bit more Percy
but you're right when you're looking at your comps
and the money that you're getting back afterwards which
not that you want to be counting on
on those funds cause the group can go anyway right
but it is a benefit if you know
your entire group stays within the room block
and you get these comps it's a huge help
and it helps with the budget and it helps
you know overall
so it's definitely something that you want to consider
so I guess on that same note
then let's talk about offsite venues
cause we have a lot of you know
we have a lot of groups that do offsite venues
we enjoy working with our offsite vendors
from the planning side of things
it makes my job a hell of a lot easier
that's cause that you know
any offsite venue is gonna automatically have a
a coordinator that's gonna
actually not even want me involved
it's they just
I will take care of it I'll do it
yeah yeah
it's so let's talk about those
those offsite venues uh
one of the biggest benefits
I think in my experience
might not be everyone's experience
but I do this on a pretty regular basis
is gonna be the budget for an offsite venue
typically those offsite venues
first of all that budget's gonna be lower anyways
it's not gonna cost quite as much
right um
but then also
they have a little bit more flexibility in there right
a lot of the times the offsite venues
it's their decor that they're using
I already have it so yeah
so they're bringing in you know
their linens their
you know their silverware
it's their chairs things like that
when they do stuff like that
they have more flexibility in what they can charge
right so hey
you know it's
your total budget on your group of
of this size is $25,000 oh
but I can only spend 20,000
okay well
we can adjust this in the little
and make it work right
when whereas
when we're working with an on site venue
that's when they're talking about chairs and silverware
and tables and linens and things like that
it's still a technically
another company that's coming in and doing it for them
right that's
some of these corporate companies that we work with
they have one company that works for all of them
in the area that's because they have that contract
right
and so it's not as easy for them to negotiate prices
or to adjust pricing or what not
it's might have better packages on the front end
for the wedding package
but for them to be able to adjust it
and make it work within your budget
I feel like it's easier to stick to a budget
at an offsite venue
especially if you're working with a limited budget
that you you know it
it can only go so far
you're probably gonna have a easier time
negotiating those things at a offsite
um the venue privatization right
so it's there's
this is a double edged sword
it's you know
because the property itself
usually like we mentioned before
when you're hosting your group at an offsite venue
typically your group is the only one there
your people are the only one walking
you know only ones walking around
your group is the only ones
that are using the facilities
the bathrooms the
you know things like that that's
and so that piece of it is more private
you do have to make sure that you ask about
like if you're doing it on a beach
if you're doing it on a beach in Dr
guess what that beach is still public right so
yeah yeah yeah
so this typically that
that beach is still gonna be public
so even though it is private for your group
you might have people in your pictures that need to be
you know photoshopped out or or
or taken out cigar guy standing out there right
yeah yeah
the hit guy with the the pile of
hit jet ski guy out there
yeah yeah
well and not to mention
you know that's some of the
some of the venues yeah
you might have you know
this beautiful beach and beautiful water
but there's also a whole bunch of boats
that are docked out there that
you know that's if
if you like the look great awesome
but just so you know it
you know might be a possibility
it's um
so that that privatization
outside vendors now again
this kind of goes back to our budget conversation right
yes
the budget is gonna be a little bit easier to manage
at these at these venues
but that also means outside vendors are usually
typically more welcome at the outside venues
um and when they are
or even if there is an outside vendor fee
because sometimes you know
the government is involved
and things need to be charged
that fee isn't nearly as high
so when we're trying to stick to a budget
when we're really trying to hit a specific number
it's gonna be easier for an offsite venue to say
oh well
we can charge less on that
and make sure that you know
it works within the budget
just as long as they're covering their fees
and the expenses that they get charged
I you know
it doesn't necessarily need to be as
much of an issue there
it's also when we're talking about I
I've typically not been naming names on this one
right but I will name this one
when you're talking about an on site venue
such as Casa de Campo
that's
they specifically want you to use their on site venue
vendors not only because of
you know expenses and things like that
but also you need to know that property inside and out
if you don't know that property
and you're taking you know
you're the photographer and you're there
you're wasting time moving the group around
trying to figure it out you're wasting time
the right angles and an on site vendor
is going to know those angles better
and be more efficient at it
right so super
super important to when you're considering those things
when you're at an offsite venue
there's typically less of that angle
you know game
that you need to be working at
because again
there's less venues there's less square footage
it's you know
if you've been there you know it
um
decor choices that's
so again
I think our offsite partners
I don't know that's
you know if you guys have experienced this as much
but our offsite partners I think
have more flexibility with their decor choices
and that goes back to our point from before
with offsite vendors
if they need to bring in another decor company
to do something
they usually have another decor company that can
handle it some of these larger corporate on site ones
they have this decor company
this is who we're gonna work with
and if you wanna use someone else
it's this insane vendor fee to do it
you know
that's if you have a very specific vision in mind
I think the offsite venue
gives you a little bit more flexibility
in those situations right
if you're they do for
they do for like
if you want those specialty things
like I want a churro cart
yes not every
not everyone gets to let it
let the churro cart in the gate
if you want a certain musician or band
they're not always allowed on site on some resorts yes
sometimes but you know there
there's little specific things that are your vision
that may not fit at the resort you wanna stay at
I think one of the most important things is
when you're speaking to to your
you know destination
destination weddings expert
and you're talking to them
about where you want to host your wedding
and we're looking at options
one of the most important things
are those non negotiables
that you just talked about Nikki
if you absolutely want a churro cart
or you absolutely want a drone
or you you know what
any of those things that you know
I don't care what
you're a beer donkey I want my damn beer donkey
it's a hahaha
for those of you that haven't heard the story
I had a beer donkey at my wedding
it was in Riviera Maya at El Dorado Casitas
it was amazing and such a huge hit
I've been trying to get that beer donkey at another uh
another wedding it's just not happening
no one will allow it it's driving me crazy
they won't allow it they can't
they can't have livestock
yeah some right
but an offsite venue
is gonna have an easier time with things like that
right it's
you know not to
not now that you said Livestock
Nikki that's something too
if you need a horse at your wedding
if you need an elephant at your wedding
if you need a donkey at your wedding
that's there's the
a lot of those
offsite venues are gonna be less restrictive about it
because we're only dealing with your group there
from a liability perspective
we're not dealing with all the other guests
that are on the property
and you know what that looks like right
they might be allergic to donkeys
they might be allergic to donkeys and elephants
I gotta share that I gotta find a digital copy of that
that donkey picture because it was amazing
but I think these are good points
to share with your coordinator
or early on right
just so everybody's on the same page
everybody knows what we're looking for
we know the questions to ask
whether it's on site whether it's off site
you don't want to get in the fourth inning
and then it's like oh yeah
I want a donkey like right right
wait like
yes
um the and
and that was the key there
Chrissy is early on
it's the earlier that you mention that to us
the better choices that we can make
when we're making recommendations on
you know which venue to send you to
we have worked with what the liquor
a lot of people absolutely want a certain amount
like I want these liquors
I want these beers
some resorts don't have it
they don't have it so if
if these are things that are in your mind
for your vision
share them share them right away
we actually have a super cool couple
that we're working with right now
that did come to us very early with
we want a tarot card
and we want to make sure that there's Aperol on
on property um
and luckily that's we the
the venue that we chose for them had
we knew already knew it had Aperol
cause I drink a spritz there every time I'm there
that's and then
and then we knew we were able to get the
the tarot card because we knew to ask about that
before we even confirmed anything
because I had that information
I was able to put them at a property
that I knew would be able to accommodate
and there were definitely properties
that I would have recommended
if they didn't want those things
that wouldn't have worked out
it wouldn't have ended up being
you know a good fit
so it's I think that was great on their part
that they came to us early on and
you know asked us about these things
and now we can work on negotiating the details
but we know it can get done
uh huh and
um okay
so now that actually
we've talked about decor and what not
but let's talk a little bit about entertainment
it's now
any property that we we're gonna put you at
is going to have entertainment options
you know usually it's some sort of sort
sort of some sort of
or a local it's
you know it's a
the Dominican dance to the White Party or the robot
the tequila robot or the the water drums or
you know there's a ton of different options out there
but if you have something very specific in mind
we had one couple that was looking for
they wanted a traditional Mayan ceremony in their
you know as part of their entertainment for
for the evening you know
someone to come in and do a
a Mayan blessing in the middle of it
that's awesome it's fantastic
not every property
is going to be able to accommodate that
and they might be able to
but they're going to charge you an outside vendor fee
as an offsite venue typically
is going to be a little bit more open
to allowing those vendors on
site with little or no outside vendor fee
and making sure that they can accommodate for it
right that's so
especially if you have something unique in mind
something that is gonna be different than
than you know
the norm different than
some of the things that you see on TikTok
and Instagram like
you might wanna consider asking about that
very early on so that you're able to
to uh
make sure that we put you at a place that can kind of
accommodate that
alright now
there are some negatives to off sites
I feel like we've talked about a lot of these already
but let's just kind of cover them
since we're talking about the negatives right
prissy you had mentioned before
about keeping the group staying together
talk to us a little bit
about the logistics of the group staying together and
and why we want them all at the same place
especially for off site
it's easier if your transportation company
only has to stop at one hotel
right if
if the group is between two to three hotels
that is building more time into
moving guests from the hotel to the venue
it's easier to pick up people from one location
take them to another um
but because the wedding is off site
the guests know
they are not required to stay at Hotel a
so you're gonna have a lot of
you're gonna have a lot of chatter in the group chat
just
because Auntie Linda found this cute little casa de
whatever she's staying here
it's $32 cheaper than where you want your group to stay
and so now it's like it's all of this chatter and
you know
you're gonna have people doing all sorts of things
so definitely
and the people that do those all sorts of things
don't have
for $32 they don't have
necessarily have their own travel advisors
so they're gonna be contacting the couple
how do I get from here to there
what do I do I can't get in my Airbnb now
so who's gonna help them right right
and then where are you right
like you know
the roads in some of these country
they're not all paved they're not all
you know
large buses can't get down
some of them small vehicles can't even get down
so it just creates a lot of
lot more time that you need within your day
to get people from point a to point B
also you kind of want the group to stay together
you want the groom you know
each side of the family
to be able to connect and make new friends
and learn each other very hard to do
when we are scattered across the country
also what city are these people in
pultokana is vast right
you know everything is not next door so
that's something you need to consider
if we're going on site off site
like where are people gonna be right
absolutely absolutely
it's it I
my biggest thing with you know
people staying elsewhere is just the cost
the logistics it's
if they want to be at the welcome event
guess what now you're paying a day pass
that's if you can even get a day pass
you might not even be able to come to the event
that's you you know
anything that they want to be involved in
it's gonna cost extra money
them getting to your venue
them getting from the airport them
you know all these things
all these things that they didn't think of
because they were trying to save that $32
and when you said that I died
that we had people make that decision over $32
yeah
I think too just
transportation between different places
can be expensive I took a hundred dollar taxi when
when we were in the Dr
because I wanted to go check out a venue
because my client wanted Hennessy
I'm like I don't know
but I paid a hundred dollars
to go from one resort to another resort
one way
so your guest may have to pay those costs as well
right so that $32 ends up being what
68 or something like right
yeah yeah
it can end up being a lot more
yeah it can be
end up being a lot more overall
and I think you know
when everyone stays on site for a wedding um
it's a shared experience it's
it's sharing the experience
it's you you know
you've brought everybody away from home um
and they just get more time to relax and enjoy
and meet new people instead of going okay
I gotta be here we gotta go there
we gotta go here and go here
so um
you know it
it depends on know your group
know your group
that's what it comes down to
that's and it's I
you know that's the perfect way to say it Nikki
is
you put all this effort into
bringing everyone into one spot
that you wanted everyone to be together
we wanted you know the
the reason to do a destination wedding is cause
you don't want one day of just people coming in
cause they feel like they have to go to a wedding
you want them to come down
and enjoy their family vacation
and spend some time together
and get to know the in laws
and you know that's it's
it's a great bonding experience
and for the guest that push so hard
because they want to save their $32
and stay at another property it
that's they're missing the point
they're not understanding
why we did a destination wedding um
and that
hopefully gets to be a learning experience for them
um
you know it is what it is
it's um
you know our off sites
I think are there's some amazing options out there
I think there is a uh
a lot of off sites that do a phenomenal job
some of the coordinators that
that we work with at the off sites are just fantastic
and so efficient at their jobs
um there's also a lot of benefits to doing an on site
and so this I think we wanted to get on today
and just kind of talk about the pros and the cons
and talk about what that looks like
because there's things that need to be considered
that maybe as
you know
a couple with fresh eyes that are looking at it as
I just love this venue and the way it looks
okay let's talk about the other things
that you need to consider
other than you know
the venue working for you that
you know it helps to make everything run smooth day of
and helps to make it a good experience for everyone
and hopefully helps to save you a little bit of money
mm hmm right
uh ladies
anything else you want to cover while we're
while we're talking about on site and off site
nope nope
perfect thank you so much for joining us today
we hope you got something out of it
and we will talk to you all soon
bye bye
