Choosing & Budgeting Your Wedding Venue in Singapore

I think one of the most stressful things about a wedding is securing your ideal wedding venue. It's the biggest cost of all your wedding expenses, it needs to be done long in advanced and any mistake will cause you to lose thousands of dollars in deposit.

PARK HOTEL Clarke Quay - Poolside Ceremony venue

PARK HOTEL Clarke Quay - Van Kleef Room

At the start of the year, my significant other and I decided on Park Hotel Clarke Quay. I was in love with it... solemnisation in the sunset, and then dinner glassed indoors. We viewed the site twice, and it wasn't until like months after deciding on it that we realised we had too big a guestlist for this venue. It could only accomodate 60 in a western menu setting.

Thankfully we hadn't paid the deposit yet! But we still wasted a lot of time and effort. Lesson learnt. DO NOT start shortlisting wedding venues until you've decided approximately how many guests you're inviting.

RAFFLES HOTEL- East India Room

RAFFLES HOTEL - Lawn

So, draft out your guestlist together, and then start shortlisting venues that will accommodate this number comfortably. This needs to be done at least 9 months to a year in advance especially if you have chosen a popular wedding date or prefer popular wedding venues.

CHIJMES

FULLERTON Straits Room

What if your perfect venue exceeds your budget? First thing is, to be realistic- by how much does it exceed your budget? Can I find a way to pay for this excess comfortably?

Then ask yourself -How badly do we want it? Will I be resentful and regret for the rest of my life if I don’t get this location? 

This allows you to have a reality check as well as open your options to other choices available. 

Ask your wedding director about the deposit and when the balance is due. Usually, all the deposits can be paid using credit card, except for the last payment on the day itself.

MöVENPICK HERITAGE HOTEL

For example, a few months ago, we confirmed Mövenpick Heritage Hotel on Sentosa as our wedding venue. We paid the first deposit using the OCBC Cashflo card, so we enjoy interest free installments. The initial $3k deposit, has already been paid off at $1k a month for 3 months. 

We still have to pay another deposit on 26th October, the third deposit 1 month before the wedding, and the final remaining payment (in cash) on the day itself. We will definitely pay the next 2 deposits using the OCBC Cashflo card. It’s a good way to free up our cash flow now and chalk up bonus points and rebates at the same time.

Remember the OCBC Cashflo contest I ran on my blog last month where readers can comment on how they would use the OCBC Cashflo card to finance a wedding? Well, here are the lucky 5 winners with the best answers:

-          Sherlyn

-          Lynn

-          Juliana Woo

-          Rene Yap

-          Amy Dazzling Allure

Congratulations! You have each won $100 Robinsons Shopping vouchers ! You will be emailed shortly.