What did your DC wedding cost?
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Anonymous
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We got married in Maryland on the bay. So not in DC but in the area.
70k approximately for 200 people. And while certainly it was a very nice wedding it wasn't insanely over the top. It just adds up. That's everything including honeymoon. Venue+catering+full open bar was 45k. When we did that I thought it was basically done. But flowers, photographer, DJ, paper products etc. |
Anonymous
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It is a mistake to benchmark like this.
Imagine a triangle where the points are your budget, the #of guests you want and the event you want. Some people the triangle is fine from go but most people have to squish it one way or the other to make it work. I’m in the industry and I can tell you that the two worst things to do are: - make the budget bigger than is genuinely comfortable - stretch your budget to the limit with “deals” or DIY or volunteers (DIYs of your real skills like singing etc are allowed) Both will make you cranky and unhappy no matter what happens on the day. Much better to spend less and/or pare back a little. While I am giving tips the most important thing is that there are always plenty of (dry) places to sit and the second most important thing is booze and the third most important thing is quantity of food. People often fuss over flowers, music and quality of food but those are much further down the list. Below available quiet outdoor space imo. And I really love flowers but for sure. |
Anonymous
| $12k for 60 guests 5 years ago. We had a brunch reception, so that cut the price probably in half from what a dinner would've been. Admittedly, $5k of that was just on my gown and jewelry and we also had a fully open bar that increased the cost. But it was worth every dime! |
Anonymous
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2012, about $30-35k for 105 guests.
Venue was local synagogue where we were members, flowers and floral supplies bought at warehouse near Forest Glen and arranged by a family friend, catering by Mr. Omelette (it was a brunch wedding), wine (for mimosas) from Calvert Woodley, cupcakes from Baked & Wired, dresses from David's bridal, rehearsal dinner at pizzeria, DJ and bartender and a shuttle service from hotel to site, photos through George Street photos. Favors, ketubah, and invitations from Etsy. I think in the spectrum of weddings I've attended it was pretty middle-of-the-road. |
Anonymous
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Your money doesn’t go very far. We were planning our August 2018 wedding, comparing California (my hometown) and DC (where we live and DW’s hometown).
Our money stretched sooooooo much further in California (Los Angeles Area). For $22K, we had our ceremony and reception at a museum on a cliff overlooking the Pacific Ocean for 75 people (fully custom menu, open bar), DJ, photographer, decor, tax & gratuity. For the same price, we basically would get a cordoned off outdoor section of a restaurant in DC and terrible August weather. It’s absurd how much more our money stretched in Los Angeles. There’s just so many more venues you can rent out. We planned our wedding kind of late and basically got the venue fee 75% off because there was no chance they would rent the date (it was on a Sunday). Now, DC is definitely cheaper than NYC. But I’d recommend going pretty much anywhere else if you have family elsewhere. Not worth the money to do a wedding in DC. |
Anonymous
| Married at DC hotel in 2000. 240 guests, black tie, evening, open bar, was $38,000 (does not include rehearsal dinner - picked up by DHs parents, brunch the next morning - picked up by my grandmother, or our honeymoon - paid for by us. We paid for $28,000 of the wedding ourselves). |
Anonymous
| I’m celebrating my 15th anniversary this week, and this thread makes me thankful that I got married in 2004. Prices are crazy... |
Anonymous
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Saturday evening events in DC are more expensive than other times and locations.
$50k for 100 guests DC hotel 2004 |
Anonymous
They were crazy then too |
Anonymous
| 10 yrs ago. 145 people. Local country club. $50K |
Anonymous
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2010, 30k, 110 people. We DIYed everything and it was a shoestring budget. The venue was $7500 and food was 15k so that was the majority.
Most of my friends now pay 50-75k for 150 guests. |
Anonymous
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About $25-30k for 70ish guests 6 years ago – though that includes my dress, makeup, and the photographer. So $20-$25k for the ceremony and reception (venues, officiant, drinks, food, flowers, favors, and music). We had a church wedding and then a Saturday evening reception in a separate venue in Virginia. The reception venue rental was fairly affordable – say $2-3k to rent for the day – but we also had to buy alcohol through the venue, which was probably more expensive than other options. We rented chairs, tables, linens through the caterer.
We really didn’t go over the top for anything, and I remember being shocked at how quickly all of the costs added up. (especially was shocked at how expensive the chair rental was). I thought that the per person prices at restaurants and hotels were high, but it turns out that was on par with (and maybe cheaper than) bringing a caterer and renting items to bring into an existing venue. It definitely would have been cheaper to hold the wedding outside of DC or to have the reception be a brunch at an existing restaurant. However, those weren’t appealing options for us, for a variety of reasons. No regrets – it really was one of the best days of my life. |
Anonymous
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I don't know how useful my information is. 2004. Baltimore. 80 guests. 17K.
Waste of money was the terrible photographer. I think he was 1500. I think we did well. We had a good jazz band and an open bar and quite tasty catering. Sit down dinner but buffet style. Just remember the wedding will be over much more quickly than you can even begin to realize. Is it worth spending tens and tens of thousands for a few hours? |
Anonymous
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Ronald Reagan Building, 2011,175 guests
Including rehearsal dinner and brunch the day after, all in was 80K (but that included band, flowers, etc.) Venue cost was around 40K of that. |
Anonymous
| 2008 - married in Arlington just across the bridge at a venue called Top of the Town where there were views of all the DC monuments. about 75 guests. I think we spent about 25k. |