Wedding planning takes time and effort. Even with a wedding coordinator, the details for a bride can become overwhelming when dealing with the dress alone. Far too often the wedding reception cost takes a huge portion of the allotted budget due to poor wedding planning. In order to avoid this unsavory side dish it is necessary to manage wedding reception cost carefully.

The first step to planning a wedding reception is to get a general idea of the date of the wedding and how many people will attend the wedding and reception. Once a general guest list is attained and the date of the wedding is assigned, it then falls down to a few fundamental choices that must be made. Where will the reception be held? Will the reception be a sit down meal or a finger food event? Will there be available seating for unexpected guests? If the wedding reception is geared towards a finger food buffet, keep in mind the time of day the wedding is held. Guests typically expect a sit down, full meal reception if the wedding is scheduled between 5:00-8:00 p.m. whereas if the wedding is held during the afternoon, a finger food buffet is a great alternative. The wedding reception cost will decrease significantly if there is no need for wait staff or a kitchen to prepare the meal.