WedStay Guides
Wedding Planning Guides
Plain guides to finding a wedding venue, pricing it and planning the weekend around it, plus the WedStay data behind them.
Finding a venue
How to Find a Wedding Venue
Where to search, how to compare venues on the same basis, and the questions to ask before you tour and sign.
Best Wedding Venue Websites Compared
The Knot, WeddingWire, Peerspace, Airbnb, VRBO, Zola and WedStay compared by lodging, pricing and best use case.
Wedding Venues With Lodging
How venues with onsite lodging work, what they cost, and how to choose one for your guest list.
Airbnb and VRBO Wedding Venue Alternatives
The real risks of a wedding at a short-term rental, including event bans, and the event-ready private estates couples choose instead.
How to Book a Mansion Wedding
The steps to book a mansion wedding, from finding properties to finalizing the contract.
Mansion Wedding vs Traditional Venue
A private mansion and a traditional venue compared side by side on cost and guest experience.
Costs and data
Wedding Venue Cost Index
Median venue base prices for the minimum stay by US state, venue type and country, in USD, refreshed weekly from live WedStay listings.
Wedding Weekend Report
How far ahead couples book, the most popular months, guest counts, lodging and demand by state, from real WedStay booking requests.
Wedding Venue Cost by Guest Count
Median venue and lodging quote and cost per guest for six guest-count bands, from under 40 to 150 or more guests, from priced WedStay quote requests.
Wedding Budget Breakdown
How a wedding budget splits by category, with state-by-state pricing and ways to save.
Wedding Data and Reports
Every free WedStay dataset in one place, with a CSV download for each.
Planning the weekend
Multi-Day Wedding Guide
How one private venue with onsite lodging hosts a whole wedding weekend, with real costs and a sample timeline.
Wedding Weekend Planning: 3-Day Timeline
A day-by-day plan for a three day wedding weekend: Friday welcome, Saturday ceremony, Sunday brunch.
Multi-Day vs Single-Day Weddings Compared
A weekend wedding and a single day wedding compared on timeline, guest experience and cost.
Wedding Vendor Selection Guide
How to choose vendors for an estate wedding across 12 categories, with the questions to ask and the red flags to watch for.
Tools, checklists and websites
Best Wedding Planning Tools Compared
The main wedding planning platforms compared side by side on price model and features, and which one fits which job.
Best Wedding Website Builders Compared
Wedding website builders compared on price, custom URLs, RSVPs and designs, including which ones suit a multi-day wedding.
Wedding Planning Tools Worth Having
The short list of add-ons WedStay recommends: digital seating charts, event insurance, prenups and bouquet preservation.
Wedding Checklist and Timeline Planner
A free interactive checklist that sorts your planning tasks by category and timeline.
DIY Wedding Checklist
A free do-it-yourself checklist with tasks, categories and a timeline you can customize.
Ready to compare venues?
Swipe through WedStay venues and save the ones you love, then estimate what a stay costs.