What to look for when choosing a great Wedding venue

Look for a venue with a quick and easy back-up plan. The last thing you want to be doing on the leadup to your wedding is worrying about what the weather is doing! With Auckland weather it can be down to making a call on the day of the wedding, because the weather is so changeable.

Remember, it’s as much about the wind as it is the rain. It doesn’t look great when the bride has 50 knot winds to contend with, hair or veil being blown everywhere and fighting to keep dresses from blowing up. Make sure that your venue has an alternative place to have the ceremony, that you can easily swap to if need be.

Having a shelter of some sort is also a lovely touch for the older guests, to have a place they can sit in the shade or out of the breeze while waiting for the ceremony to start or to mix and mingle afterward. Having comfortable chairs and chatting areas is important because there’s a lot of catching up to do with relatives seldom seen.

Choose a place where your guests won’t get bored with the surroundings or find it hard to spend the next 9 hours (a wedding is a long day). Are there appropriate clean and tidy toilets nearby? Can the women stand comfortably in high heels without sinking into the grass? Are there any bugs around? Is there any inappropriate noise? This can come from vehicles, stock, people or even aircraft? Can you be seen by the public? Consider where the sun will be during the ceremony and afterward. You don’t want to be staring into the sun before it sets.

Of course, the next most important part of the wedding is the reception. Outdoor weddings are absolutely beautiful, but always remember that you have to set up the ceremony space, the area to eat (tables, chairs that don’t wobble), the lighting, power, bathrooms, the ambience & decorations, food, beverage, crockery, cutlery & glassware and people to serve. Self-catering can be very time consuming, logistically troublesome and more expensive than first considered when taking into account all the items that need to be hired. The break down is also something that takes time and effort, just when you really want to be having fun with friends and family who’ve made it a long way for the occasion. 

Why choose a venue like The Boat House at The Riverhead?

The Boat House has a 100-year-old Oak tree on a cliff top, overlooking the water of upper reaches of the Waitemata. The large lawn offers plenty of room for all your guests to mix and mingle before the ceremony. The large marquee is permanent and always opened to allow for your guests, family and friends to catch-up, reacquaint themselves before the formalities begin. This also provides older guests the chance to sit and chat in the shade.

The Boat House is yours to decorate from 10am in the morning with it exclusive from 2.30pm until 1am the following morning. It has bathrooms concealed behind a wall of greenery available for before the ceremony. The hard-packed lawn means that women can stand comfortably in high heels. There aren’t any bugs as we are near to sea water. There is a long high fence that reduces traffic noise and it is completely private and away from the public. Best of all, the sun rises behind the oak tree, so by 3 o clock, the summer sun is behind you and as it sets, we get lovely shades of pink over the estuary. Consider where the sun will be during the ceremony and afterward. You don’t want to be staring into the sun before it sets.

At The Riverhead’s Boat House we’ve had the bridal party arriving by motorbike, vintage cars, hotrods, horse, boat, horse drawn carriage or helicopter.

Couples want to be able to include ‘the whole family’ including pets. We have had numerous dogs and on one occasion a goat.

Leaving the venue to have photos taken is becoming less common, although nearby Riverhead Forest is a convenient location. At The Boat House we have numerous spots that offer the ideal photo opportunity including down on the dock.

It provides the best of both worlds. The chance to have a stress-less outdoor venue, given that we have a permanent marquee as backup in-case of bad weather, a ‘garden party’ like area to have canapes and bubbles after the ceremony, then a climate controlled, stunningly decorated venue for your reception and dance. It’s rather like a progressive wedding day, with your guests moving from one experience to another throughout the day. With the decks surrounding the building overlooking the water and the 2nd clear marquee outside the dance floor, it gives plenty of room for people to talk quietly and catchup.

The Boat House at The Riverhead is only 20 minutes from Auckland in a semi-rural area. You’re right on Auckland’s doorstep, but it feels a million miles away.

With a fully equipped catering kitchen, trained chefs and front of house functions team, you are in professional hands and you don’t need to lift a finger. Plus our food is regularly raved about (see our reviews).