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I got an inquiry about hosting a wedding at my house for 150 people in July. There was a wedding held there ONCE—my parents. 
I suppose I could consider it, but would charge way more, need more parking info and many other things. 150 is a lot of people.
Has anyone else done this? (I’ve reviewed the other threads about wedding parties, etc. )
Hmmm Insurance? Parking? Toilet situation- can the system cope? Wear and tear? Vomiting guests? Electrical system cope with the extra load?
My first response- no!
Holding an event at your place is a huge undertaking.
You might need to hire a generator, you would certainly need mobile toilets, to worry about parking, impact of noise on any neighbours, damage to your property.
And how would catering work?
You would also need specialist events insurance.
If you are going to do it you would need to charge substantially more for your venue. And factor in your additional time.
I’ve organised lots of events as part of my day job, (for up to 500 people) but would not recommend hosting a large scale event at a listing.
I wouldn’t. A small wedding maybe but 150 is on the large side and is a huge headache. I’d decline,
Only for our own, and that was stressful enough, but we only had ourselves to blame if something went wrong, and neighbours cleared up for us the following day. I really wouldn’t touch it with a barge pole, and it does seem a very odd request. Ours cost about £15K (25 years ago)with marquee hire and outside catering etc. But when you factor in time sprucing up the garden (I had my Mother-in-Law in my mind’s eye. Constantly.), watering in a heat wave to keep it thriving, dead heading daily. I could go on… Decline!
Nah! Don’t do it!
'Way too much expense, 'way too much mess, 'way too much damage to your property. They be bringing in the porta-potties, furniture and tablesetings, electrical generator, shade tents, dumpster, etc (you aren’t going to pay for/provide any of that!) Think of the damage that 25 tables and 150+ chairs will do to your lawn. Not to mention the catering setup.
I cater small weddings, and have done 100-200 guest weddings. They leave a HUGE mess behind…
Thanks for your replies. I decided to decline. I’m a remote host and although I’ll be there a few days leading up to this proposed event, I think it will take too much planning and effort and wear and tear, not to mention parking, restrooms, neighbors, etc. etc.
Good choice! As a recently retired wedding photographer, I’ve been to many home weddings. If you’ve never done it, there’s so much to consider. A wedding is a very special occasion, hopefully once in a lifetime. That bears a huge responsibility on you. I’ve seen many things go wrong. One example most wouldn’t think of; the power demand was too large and they kept blowing out the circuits, killing lights and music repeatedly, which was very disruptive.
Hi Helsi! I am about to plan an event for 200 people for the first time and was wondering if you have good resources for finding unique venues to host this group? We are location agnostic at this time (as long as it’s in the US + territories or Canada).
Any help would be much appreciated!
You don’t say how far in the future you are planning this event for, but I can tell you that an event for 200 people is presently illegal anywhere in Canada and many places in the US due to COVID restrictions.
Ahh, yes I forgot to mention this is for December or early 2022