You’re looking for the perfect venue for your wedding. Congratulations: that means he or she has proposed!
You have or will begin your search. So listen to your reason, but let your heart speak!
We’ve put together a few tips to help you decide between a village hall and a wedding venue in Provence.

Wedding domain in Provence: criteria to take into account

This will depend on a number of factors. Both configurations have their advantages and disadvantages. So you need to ask yourself the right questions to be able to prospect and find the place of your dreams for the happiest day of your life.

1 – Space and setting

Unless you’ve found a special party room in an old building, most party rooms are built in simple, geometric and sometimes cold styles. To make a party room warm and inviting, you’ll need to work hard on decoration. On the other hand, some recent or completely renovated multi-purpose halls are particularly welcoming and well-equipped.
Some of the rarest village halls benefit from a beautiful natural setting, on the edge of a park or lake.
The majority, unfortunately, are located in the heart of towns and villages, with little or no outdoor space.

A wedding domain in Provence will generally be located in a more “natural” setting. The exteriors are generally natural, with parkland, gardens and even vineyards…
The arrival of the guests and the bride and groom at the domain takes on an air you won’t get with a village hall. You can even plan an arrival in a classic car or limousine… the setting lends itself to this!

2 – Sharing the place

In some larger towns, you may find a party hall with multiple spaces. Domains can also offer several halls.
Make sure you have exclusive use of the venue. There’s nothing more unpleasant than finding out on the day of the ceremony that you’re going to be sharing the venue with another party, perhaps even another bride and groom.
Even if the venues are fantastic, even if the rooms are quite distinct, sharing them with others breaks all the intimacy of the wedding.

3 – The weather forecast

Weddings are usually held during the mildest time of the year, between spring and summer. However, you can never be sure that the weather will be optimal for the big day. You need to factor this into your selection criteria, and consider the possibility of wet and/or cold weather.
If you’re planning an early evening vin d’honneur to be held outside, you should always have a plan B in case of rain. This is often the case with wedding domains Provence.
On the other hand, village halls are not expandable. You’ll be setting the dinner table and may not have a comfortable alternative.

4 – Accommodation

At weddings, many guests come from afar and need to be accommodated.
If you’re renting a wedding hall or a domain, you’ll need to find a hotel nearby, or host the far-flung travelers in a guesthouse.
When the wedding domain in Provence offers accommodation, guests coming from too far away, those who prefer not to take the car at the end of the evening and the bride and groom themselves can spend the night in the rooms on site.
Another advantage of having rooms and spaces on the domain is that the bride – among others – has the space to change her clothes, make-up and hair. In a village hall, there are only shared toilets!

Factors to consider:

Services, neighborhood, size, children

5 – Services

When you rent a party room, it’s “bare”: no decorations, no services, no stewardship. The advantage is that you can create a totally personalized decor.
In a domain, you are in direct contact with the owner or manager. The owner or manager himself can offer you certain services, with teams who are regulars on the premises.
In this way, you can probably relieve yourself of some of the organizational burden, and let him take care of tasks such as parking management, catering, lighting…
He may also be able to offer you extraordinary services, such as a secular ceremony in the gardens…
I invite you to check whether service providers such as DJs, caterers, photographers, etc. are suggested or imposed!

6 – The neighborhood

Depending on where your party hall is located, be sure to ask about the times when you’re allowed to make noise, and check the intensity.
Normally, you won’t have any problems in areas where you can dance the night away without worrying about the neighbors, but for party halls, especially if they’re located in the middle of residential areas, you may be in for a surprise.
Some venues have a curfew after a certain hour.
It’s hard to imagine “closing the box” and kicking everyone out at a specific time.
A wedding party should have no time limits.
On the other hand, when it comes to sound volume, some venues are now equipped with systems that record the number of decibels emitted and short-circuit beyond a certain threshold.
So make sure you can set up your venue as you wish, provided you comply with current standards.
If you want to dance outside, beware: sound carries a long way, and even in the countryside, there are certainly restrictions.

7 – Guest numbers

Whichever venue you decide on, it needs to match the number of guests.
To help you make the right choice, ask the venue’s owner how many people the building is designed to accommodate. You’ll find multi-purpose halls with a wide range of capacities.
A word of advice: don’t go for a huge venue if you don’t have many guests. If you’re planning a small-scale wedding, choose a suitable venue, and if you really want an domain , find one as small as possible.
The risk with a venue that’s too big is that you’ll miss out on your party altogether. It’s extremely difficult to create a warm atmosphere when a very small group is lost in the middle of too large a space.

8 – The kids

There are almost always children among the guests at a wedding, and you need to think about them when renting the venue for your wedding.
You’ll be able to set aside a separate area for the children to dine, or offer them their own special entertainment.
There should be no room at the table with the adults, otherwise there will be gaps in the evening.
As far as child supervision is concerned, you need to make sure that the outside area is well enclosed and secure, so that the children don’t get lost or go onto a road.
Of course, you’ll need to be extra cautious if the grounds include natural or artificial pools.
Beyond a few little ones, using the services of baby-sitters remains an excellent choice to ensure that parents can spend a peaceful evening.

Things to consider:

Cleaning, housekeeping & conclusion

9 – Cleaning and stewardship

You’ll be more involved when you rent a village hall. You carry out an inventory of fixtures on entering and leaving.
This obliges you to leave the party room impeccably cleaned and tidy.
Sometimes, however, you can take out a cleaning package with the rental so you don’t have to, but this is far from the majority of cases.

In a wedding domain in Provence, the staff is included in your rental or with the caterer, and you can behave like a guest yourself.
You don’t have to worry about the aftermath, because you don’t have to come back the next day to clean up.

10 – Conclusion: wedding domain in Provence

On the whole, an estate is better than a village hall if you want to organize a quality wedding.
On the other hand, you’ll be more at home in a small village hall if you want a small, intimate wedding.