So you got your wedding date fixed for the monsoon month. How does it go from here? How do you want your wedding to be? Will the monsoons allow for your wedding to turn out like everything you envisioned it to be? Well, if you love the rains, no problem there. If you had dreamt of a bright spring day for an outdoor wedding, we will have to work around that. Either way, there are a few things to keep in mind when booking your  wedding venue during the monsoons.

1.    Outdoor Venues anyone?

Try and avoid an outdoor wedding venue. There are chances things could wrong as nature is always unpredictable. If you are sure you want an outdoor venue, be prepared to increase your budget a bit as it involves some preparation with respect to waterproofing and safety and comfort of the guests. Protection of the electronic equipment, lights, and wires that are used in weddings and avoiding short circuits is a major responsibility. Take care to see that your musicians and DJ are not at the mercy of the elements. Provide adequate cover. Wedding lawns and grounds need to be double checked for evenness and potholes where water can collect. Preferably construct a raised wooden floor to keep you and your guests dry. Options for outdoor venue could include a large gazebo and waterproof tent.

2.    Indoor venue

Choose a banquet hall or wedding venue which is large enough to accommodate all your guests. At the entry point make provision for the guests to dry up before they enter the hall, such as towels and doormats. They would appreciate you for this gesture. Also, you wouldn’t have a trail of water running into your wedding hall courtesy of wet footwear. Ensure the air conditioners in the banquet hall are functioning properly. Although the weather is cool, it can get quite stuffy in an indoor venue in this season. If you want a bit of the outdoors in your wedding, choose a venue that has large glass windows with a view of the beautiful nature outside. When it begins to rain, all can enjoy the scenic view.

3.    Pre-wedding venue

To take advantage of the weather and enjoy the rains, you can book an open-air poolside venue for your pre-wedding function. Cover the venue only partially to allow your guests to choose between dancing in the rain and staying dry and enjoying watching the others dance. You could have a transparent tent put up to heighten the experience of the monsoon even for those who wish to stay dry. It would be great if your venue provides in-house catering and serves a steady stream of hot snacks and drinks throughout your party.

4.    Water logging

A common problem during the monsoons is water logging. Ensure that the road leading up to your wedding hall is not prone to waterlogging. Visit the venue and check this aspect before you book it. You need to take care so that your guests can reach your venue without hassles.

5.    Menu at the Venue

Find out if your venue provides catering facility. Along with the monsoons come a lot of illness like allergies and stomach troubles. Most of these are water borne. Try to ensure the best quality fresh food for your guests. Insist with your caterer on the quality of the ingredients. Holding your wedding in a 5-star banquet hall in Mumbai makes sense during this season as they provide the best catering facilities in house.

6.    Accessibility of the venue

Travelling during the monsoons is a hassle for all. When your guests are all decked up in fine attire and jewellery you wouldn’t want them to face inconvenience in getting to your wedding venue. So many cancellations happen due to this reason. In order to make it convenient for your guests to reach the venue, find and book one which is easily accessible to you and most of your guests. Also, try and ensure that the walkway from the car to the entrance of the venue is covered to keep your guests dry. Else have valets with large umbrellas to escort your guests to and from the wedding venue and their vehicle.

7.    Parking Space

Before you book your venue, look for the parking space available there. Ensure that ample parking is available for your guests. This is a necessary step that will make your guests comfortable as they will not have to battle the rains to get to your wedding venue. Alternatively, arrange to provide transportation facility to your guests.

8.    Power Supply

Wedding in darkness is a total No! It is common for power cuts to happen during bad weather. Make sure your venue has backup arrangements in place. Talk to your wedding planner to ensure the provision of a generator or inverter at the wedding venue. Some monsoon weddings have been known to have taken place solely on power supplied by a generator. It is always better to be prepared as a power cut can put a damper on your wedding.

9.    Avoid Fresh Flower Decor

Flowers may be the popular choice for wedding decor, but not during the rainy season as they attract unwanted visitors- insects and bugs. You wouldn’t want to be restricted within your chosen indoors venue with those creepy crawlies. Opt instead for innovative paper decors like origami flowers, attractive bright drapes, lights, candles, umbrellas, crystals, colored glassware, lamps, and lanterns. Monsoon themed weddings are a great idea. Incorporate fountains, umbrellas and rainbow colors into your theme.

Some of the advantages of having a monsoon wedding are the easy availability of venues, wedding planners, caterers, and other vendors. Rates are slashed and event planners are of the opinion that the entire wedding cost can down by about 30%. You can get better bargains for your honeymoon packages as well. Where the venue is concerned, you can expect good discounts. Just bearing in mind the above pointers will help you organize a great memorable wedding for you and your guests.