sight unseen
Booking without viewing sounds like a crazy idea right? Who would do that?! Well, when you live on the other side of the world (literally) and you cannot travel before the wedding, you might not have a choice. We’ve had this happen a number of times with couples who book us but live either in NZ or Oz or the States – they can’t get to see us in person so they book without doing that. Sometimes they send an advance party to visit us, parents or maybe bridesmaids, someone they trust to see it in person and report back.
Kiley and Martin were just such a couple. Although Martin is British and Kiley hails from the States, they live in Australia. Dream life. They wanted to get married here but didn’t have the time to visit before the wedding. They planned to send someone to look for them but in the end that didn’t work out so they booked it without seeing it.
We’ve never had anyone who’s done that be disappointed. They’ve all loved the venue when they’ve arrived, mostly the day before the actual wedding!
booking without viewing – how it works
Kiley and Martin emailed me last night now they’re back to daily life in Oz and told me how it felt for them to book their venue without seeing it, what it was like to plan a wedding from the other side of the world, see the venue for the first time the day before the wedding and how the big day itself was for them…
“Wow, I am not even sure where to start with our review of Ever After a Dartmoor Wedding! Absolutely everything was incredible!
Firstly we had the awful task of locating a venue without the opportunity to see it first hand as we both were out of the country for almost a year before our wedding. Making everything much harder than it already was. After looking at dozens of venues online up and down the country we came across this beautiful venue on google and then checked out their Instagram page too! The pictures looked incredible, such a beautiful location and such a beautiful venue.
We both fell in love with the look and feel of the venue over pictures alone, but not being too naive we also wanted to have some sort of look around the place. This is where Nicola came in, we contacted her and she was so lovely. She made arrangements for us to have an online Skype viewing where she took us around the venue and explained the different areas. She took us through a general run through of what most couples do on their day but let us know they were very open to any creative ideas we had to make things a little different for our day. She really put our minds at rest and we knew even though we hadn’t seen the venue it was definitely the right place for us.
During all the months leading up to the wedding we were in contact with mostly with Nicola’s assistant Bethany who was also amazing. We obviously had so many questions and requests through not being able to be there physically, but she was there to quickly respond to all our emails and give helpful friendly advice for everything.
When we actually got to see the venue (the day before the wedding!) we were absolutely blown away! Even the most beautiful pictures still don’t seem to do justice for how beautiful of a location it is. The whole place just has a magical feeling to it, The Barn, The Orchard, The Lawn areas….and the beautiful river behind! How incredible to be able to hear the river flowing in the background! They have two cottages which are beautiful. The honeymoon cottage is just beautiful, such a lovely place for the bride to get ready with her bridesmaids and for the couple to stay the night of their wedding.
People often ask us what was the best part about our wedding day and for both of us the best part about the day was that we didn’t worry about anything. Nicola and Bethany work very closely with the vendors they recommend and for good reason. Their operation is smooth and slick, the co-ordination they have with their staff and vendors is amazing and we have both worked in the hospitality industry for over 10 years. It was an incredible feeling to know that we could relax and enjoy our day knowing everything was going smoothly and our guests were all enjoying themselves. We never had to keep track of time, Bethany was there making sure everything was running smoothly and on time.
If we had any advice to couples looking to plan their wedding (for the first time!) I think we would both advise that preparation goes such a long way. Always listen to the advice the venue has to offer, they will know best! They’ve seen many weddings so they know what will work and what may not come off as well as you’re thinking. Ever After gave us so many recommendations and we’re so glad we took them!
We highly recommend Ever After, Nicola, and all her staff! From the start they worked with us to accommodate our unconventional circumstances. Everything felt so personal and dedicated to us, devoted to making our day as incredible as it could be. They worked with us to create something that fit into our budget, giving us multiple options and never pressured into something we felt uncomfortable with.
I think what makes Ever After such an incredible place is how personal everything is. From the moment we first made contact with Nicola, through to leaving the day after our wedding everything was a joy. The venue is stunning and so incredibly peaceful! We truly experienced a fairy-tale wedding at Ever After!
Thank you Nicola and Bethany, you made our day the most special day of our lives.”
Well you can’t say fairer than that! Happy couples, that’s what we love. And as you can see from these photos by the fabulous Naomi Kenton, Kiley and Martin had a super romantic, outdoor wedding with dreamy flowers by the lovely Deborah of Dartmoor Flowers. They got married in the orchard in a non-legal humanist ceremony. The photos you see here are just a preview provided by Naomi, the rest are still being edited and those ceremony pics will knock your socks off, I know it. Stay tuned!
booking from abroad
If you’re looking to book your wedding from abroad and you don’t have time to see it before your wedding – don’t worry, we’ll help you as much as you need to navigate arranging a wedding long distance. You can arrange for people you trust to come and visit on your behalf or you can ask us for a Skype tour like we did for Kiley & Martin. As you can see, booking without viewing doesn’t have to sound like a wild and crazy idea.
Go on, get in touch today and let me know your plans – I know we can help. [email protected] and let’s talk weddings!
