which one of these weddings would you choose?

shelovestobuystuff

I am still deliberating over 2 final choices.I though I had settled on the castle but when you look at the cost of the small close family only castle wedding with 15 people its not any cheaper than the big affair with about 100 guests.
So which one of these would you go for.Both cost the same £7k
option 1/
tiny private castle in perthshire in a beautiful highland glen 1 week hire costs £3,500(just us and the kids for 4/7 days then the rest of the family for 3 days)
self catering all week including the wedding feast but with staff to serve it costs £1,500
clothing etc costs £500 all in
celebrant and fees costs £500
string quartet costs £500
all else,fireworks,stationery,cake,photos,flowers are mainly DIY and cost £500

OR
option 2/[IMG]http://aolsearch.aol.co.uk/aol/redir?src=image&clickedItemURN=http://www.visitgla.com/FileAccess.aspx?id=153&moduleId=image_details.jsp.M&clickedItemDescription=Image Details[/IMG]
hire of the beautiful winter gardens in Glasgow for 1 day costs £800
catering 3 courses and basic drinks package and full service,tables,decos etc included costs £35 a head for 100 so £3,500
clothing still £500
celebrant and fees £400(no travelling expenses)
string quartet £450(less travelling expenses)
celigh band for later £500
cake free because we could invite aunty who would bake it
cars free borrowed from hubbies boss
all else,fireworks,stationery,flowers and photos DIY and £500

sooz

The first one sounds wonderful, except for the self catering part. But, by the sounds of it includes honeymoon too as you are there for a week.

The second one sounds lovely too, except for the number of people. I personally prefer a smaller wedding. Catering including drinks & staff & decorations sounds very cheap- is this figure right?

Does it have to be 15 or 100?

skintchick

Big wedding for me. Picture looks nicer too.

Krystaltips

It depends how you feel about it all... I personally would prefer option 2 but mainly because I have a panic about forgeting things and would much rather be at home on the morning of the wedding. Plus there wouldn't be much decoration needed in a beautiful venue like the winter gardens... and there would be no need to wittle the guest list down... and you wouldn't have to do all the cooking yourself!

Tigsteroonie

Oh, that castle is SOOOOOO cute!

Can you afford a separate honeymoon? You've allowed for some time in the castle, but haven't costed a honeymoon onto the winter gardens option.

But you're not going to have any peace at the castle either, not with the kids and then the family there. Can you split the week differently? Arrive day 1 with kids, get married day 3 with family, send everybody away on day 5 (get the family to take the kids) - then you get a couple of days of "alone" time at the very end!

shelovestobuystuff

The castle would be just for the wedding,sounds so extravagant saying that.We would have a honeymoon the following weekend just for the two of us in a cabin by the loch.We would hope to get the £300-400 to cover the cost of that as wedding presents from everyone,thats what we will ask for anyway, just a little towards the honeymoon.Its through Hoseasons so they could do vocuhers rather than cash,I know my mum would worry we may just spend the cash on a bill or a repair or something boring.

Krystaltips

There you go then... Option 2 = more guests = more contributions to the honeymoon

shelovestobuystuff

sooz wrote: »

The first one sounds wonderful, except for the self catering part. But, by the sounds of it includes honeymoon too as you are there for a week.

The second one sounds lovely too, except for the number of people. I personally prefer a smaller wedding. Catering including drinks & staff & decorations sounds very cheap- is this figure right?

Does it have to be 15 or 100?

I am not pleased about the self catering for the castle either,its a necessity rather than a choice as the chef for the castle would charge over £100 a head for our chosen menu:eek: plus either his very expensive wines or corkage @£5 a bottle,and hire of plates and cutlery too.The entire budget for the week would be more than gone just for the one meal.

15 is the number we would have at the castle,it only sleeps 12 and we can fit a maximum of 16 into the chapel and then great hall for formal dining.The 100 is just a pulled out of a hat figure,50 for his family and colleagues and 50 for mine.If we let his mum have her way we would easily have 100 just from her suggestions:rolleyes:.

shelovestobuystuff

skintchick wrote: »

Big wedding for me. Picture looks nicer too.

The castle is gorgeous inside and has its own little whitewashed private chapel too.It has a great hall with a medieval painted ceiling and all the bedrooms have roll top baths in them.So luxurious.
The winter gardens are gorgeous and tropical though and it would be like a summer garden wedding in the middle of winter.I wouldnt have to worry about fur wraps or anything.

shelovestobuystuff

Tigsteroonie wrote: »

Oh, that castle is SOOOOOO cute!

Can you afford a separate honeymoon? You've allowed for some time in the castle, but haven't costed a honeymoon onto the winter gardens option.

But you're not going to have any peace at the castle either, not with the kids and then the family there. Can you split the week differently? Arrive day 1 with kids, get married day 3 with family, send everybody away on day 5 (get the family to take the kids) - then you get a couple of days of "alone" time at the very end!

We may be able to get the final night alone in the castle if we send a child home with each grandma.Brilliant idea.:T

loulabelle44_2

Wow, the two are so different.

I like option 2, but that's what suits my taste rather than yours. It really depends what you are looking for.

I plan to have 75 for breakfast and 100 total. A small wedding wouldn't be for me. I want everyone to celebrate the day with us.

But we went to a wedding of about 16 a couple of years ago, and the groom said he loved it because he got to spend quality time with every person at the wedding.

It's totally dependant on what you want from your day.