BEST SOUTH FLORIDA WEDDING VENUES
[dropcap]I[/dropcap] was in a conversation the other day with a client about the Best South Florida Wedding Venues, and they wanted to know my thoughts because they were from out of town and planning their wedding to take place here in the fall. The very first thing that came to my mind is that “best” is a meaningless overused, subjective term that just needs to die away. So rather then talking about “what do I think the Best South Florida Wedding Venues are?” I am going to speak to what I think is “best” based on the realities that I face behind the scenes day in, and day out on the wedding day. This then becomes a much more objective take on the topic, and offers points and advice that is —actually— worth listening too.
When brides / clients start thinking about what are the “Best South Florida Wedding Venues”, they generally are going to be looking at things for as they appear. For example.. they may be forming emotional attachment with the “look” or “beauty” of the venue. Or, they lust after a location based on the “impressiveness” of the brand, reputation, etc. In some cases it can be as simple as they like the way a ballroom looks, or that the food is really good.
All of that line of thinking is good, and perfectly understandable. It’s kinda like when you go car shopping. If you have some money to spend on a nice car, you are likely going to first go to the cars in which you are attracted too the most within (sometimes outside of your budget) LOL. You look at the color, the style, the interior, and the brand, and logo etc.. and it all starts to get you excited. But… what about whats under the hood? The things that you DONT see, and happen “behind the scenes”. If you knew that your new BMW would be in for service x10 times more often then the comparable Lexus.. would you still get it? From experience, I can tell you that I would not! 🙂
So, let’s pull this back in and tie in my point about “Best South Florida Wedding Venues”. [perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””] I have stood there, on the wedding day looking at my bride in the lobby of a Ritz Carlton hotel with tears in her eyes because the hotel staff would not allow us to take styled shots of her in the main lobby area.[/perfectpullquote]
The entire reason she booked this hotel was for shots like that, and they said “no, we’r sorry.. you can’t take images in any of the common areas at this location“. On another occasion (different hotel), I have been in a position on the wedding day where we were looking for a clear space inside of the hotel to take images, and could not find one that was not so busy with people everywhere! Obviously the bride did not consider how busy the hotel gets when she booked it, and further had expectations of us on the type of images she wanted.. which, now became impossible. Another real world example at the “W” hotel in South Beach.. beautiful.. sure! Is it a good choice for getting ready before a ceremony that takes place off site? NO! Why? Guess how long it took to get our (and the entire bridal party’s) car from the Valet? 56min! We were almost late to the church as a result of this. This is a major problem, and something that we always try and account for, but in reality can severally damage the wedding day. So, if you knew this stuff in advance would you still book this venue and take the chance? Probably not.. hindsight is always 20/20.
The reality is that clients just don’t have the same level of “insider experience” as I do. The venue is not going to tell you any of this stuff. Your friend that just got married may or may not even understand any of this either.. and just because she maybe happy with something, she also may not know what “could have been”, and how much better results should have been.
I could go on, and on and on.. as I have truly “seen it all”. This is why when someone talks about, or asks me about the Best South Florida Wedding Venues, I have an opinion that is based on logistic, reality, and most important… client expectation. Now there are in fact many places that I love working in, and shooting.. but, for now I wanted to talk about one specifically. The Hyatt Regency in Coral Gables, FL.
To be clear.. I have NOT been paid, or anything else to say any of this. I truly want to help clients make informed choices, and more to the point I just want to share MY experience and thoughts as it relates to my own clients expectations. It’s a no brainer that I would want my clients to book hotels, and venues in which I know very well, and offer things that are truly a cut above the rest.. and will keep you out of the all too common pitfalls that I often speak about. To me, this is what “Best South Florida Wedding Venues” is all about and should be 🙂
So without further talking and typing.. please enjoy this little video that I made to illustrate all of what I am speaking about!
Lastly, a huge shout out to the team at W&W Flowers and Events for all the setups in this video! Thank You!
Here is the 60 Second version of the full video below: