You're charging me how much for a folding table?

February 6, 2009 10:51 AM

Help me find a location where I can get married in Vancouver. Difficulty: must be scenic and cheap.

Getting married this summer in Vancouver. It's a wedding complicated by the fact that we're a) poor students & b) living on the East coast.

Fortunately, family in Vancouver are helping with the planning, but we're working hard to keep costs low.

We're looking to host the ceremony on Kitsalano Beach.

This leaves me needing two things:

1) a backup rain location
2) someplace to host a small reception (20-30 people).

It seems like all the places that host weddings and receptions charge thousands of dollars, require event insurance, and bilk newlyweds for any spare change in their pockets.

So I'm turning to the collective wisdom of MeFi.

Please provide your recommendations.

Note: Posted anonymously in respect of my fiance's desire for online privacy.

posted by anonymous to human relations (8 comments total)

My relative had a non-sanctioned wedding on some fancy grounds that he had scoped out. Instead of hassling with getting permission, they had a small group of friends gather together, one of whom was licensed to marry folks, and snuck onto the grounds, had a quick ceremony, and snuck out. They were all crazy kids of a sort, who were willing to run if necessary (which would require suitable shoes and all that).

As for a reception area for that small of a group - don't limit yourself to places that bill themselves as fit for wedding events. Depending on what you want to do with / for food, you can probably get any sort of group gathering / meeting room. If necessary, leave out the fact that you're a wedding party, but do disclose what sort of food services you'll be including. Sorry for the lack of specific pointers.
posted by filthy light thief at 11:09 AM on February 6

Unless you do it on a weekday morning, Kits Beach is an absolute zoo in the summer. You won't find a spot anywhere on the beach, and you won't be able to book any of the surrounding facilities or restaurants.

The best shoe-string budget wedding I've attended was on the Sunshine Coast, with a standing-only ceremony in a provincial park and the reception at a B&B. I think the total bill came to less than $1000. The only hassle is that getting to/from the Sunshine Coast is an all-day affair.
posted by randomstriker at 11:26 AM on February 6

Some friends of mine got married at Trout Lake in the East side of Vancouver, and it was really nice. It's a short walk from Commercial Drive Skytrain station. I'm pretty sure you don't have to pay anyone if you want to have a ceremony on the grounds, and you can reserve a gazebo (back up rain plan?) for a nominal fee.
posted by vodkaboots at 12:48 PM on February 6

I would just reserve a section of a nice restaurant you/your family like. Have a normal dinner, pay for what you eat. This avoids all the bilking. If they ask when reserving, it's a birthday party or some such.
posted by Meatbomb at 1:01 PM on February 6

The Garden Pavilion at the UBC Botanical Garden runs $400 for a wedding reception and is good for up to 40 people. No insurance, but there is a damage deposit. If you're there past 6 p.m., there's a $25 security/lock-up fee. Any catering must be handled by UBC food services only if you're serving liquor. Otherwise, you can handle your own food arrangements.
posted by ten pounds of inedita at 2:24 PM on February 6

I am doing this very thing in a few weeks time - The ceremony's going to be at Locarno Beach, and the reception at Radha - they don't charge for bookings of 30+, but they do charge an automatic 18% gratuity. Still, the food is great if you like veggie/vegan, and it's reasonably priced. It's a nice space, too, though you would be sharing with the regular restaurant goers. I think they partition the space a bit, however. That said, their clientele are easygoing and friendly. Locarno Beach /Spanish Banks / Jericho are a bit less crowded than Kits in the summer. Good luck!
posted by Jon Mitchell at 3:03 PM on February 6

My wife and I chartered a boat from Granville Island (we used Blue Eyed Charters but there are a number of choices). They have different sized boats for different size groups. We got married on the boat at the pier (with a marriage commissioner), then went for a 2 hour cruise as the reception. If the weather is nice, you get amazing views. If not (it rained for our wedding), you still get a less common wedding experience. You never need to worry about crowds. We had a really good time. I was under-employed at the time, and my wife wasn't working then, and we still managed to pay for it without too much stress. I think it was in the $30-$50 dollar per person range, although this was a decade ago (you could chose to have an open bar or limits on alcohol, etc). We got the flowers from the market on Granville Island, and the wedding cake from the bakery that's also in the market (two chocolate cheese cakes - YUMMY).
posted by birdsquared at 11:30 PM on February 6

A couple of thoughts:

* The Shebeen at the Irish Heather in Gastown has a really cool, heritage building vibe, and would be nice and cozy for a small reception.
* Another possibility might be the pavilion in Queen Elizabeth Park. Because it's operated by the city, the mark-up might not be quite as absurd as other places.

No offense to Birdsquared's suggestion, but I'd issue a strong vote against a cruise. I've found every dinner cruise that I've ever been on tremendously unpleasant.
posted by dbarefoot at 7:10 PM on February 7