Why Your Venue Choice Determines 80% of Your Event Budget

Before you lock in your 2026 event plans, it’s worth taking a closer look at one of the most influential budget decisions you’ll make: your venue choice.

Many clients assume food and beverage will be the largest line item — and in some cases, it is. But what often goes unnoticed is how the venue itself limits or expands your options for catering, rentals, staffing, and production.

The venue you select doesn’t just set the scene. It determines:

• How food and beverage can be served

• Which vendors you’re allowed to use

• How much labor is required

• How efficiently your event can be executed

Long before menus or décor are finalized, the venue is already shaping your total spend.

Photo by Stephanie Jenkins Photography

How venues influence catering costs

Where you book can have a major impact on your overall catering budget. Some venues come with restrictions that aren’t immediately obvious — limited menus, required in-house catering, or fees for bringing in outside teams.

Before signing a venue agreement, it’s critical to understand:

• Whether outside catering is allowed

• Any additional fees associated with outside vendors

• Minimums, service charges, and staffing requirements

What looks like a flexible option on the surface can quickly become costly once these factors are accounted for.

What venues dictate about rentals & production

Venues also play a major role in how your event is produced — and how much effort (and cost) it takes to execute smoothly.

If your venue only allows access two to three hours before the event, every vendor — AV, lighting, catering, décor, and experiential elements — is working within a compressed timeline. Add limited loading docks or restricted driveways, and those challenges multiply.

It’s equally important to ask about rental limitations:

• Are you restricted to a preferred vendor list?

• Are certain items included — or excluded — from the rental?

• What does teardown look like, and how tight is load-out?

Rental costs often exceed client expectations once labor, delivery, setup, and teardown are factored in — and limited access times can significantly increase those costs.

Photo by Madi Garcia, Professional Storytelling

Guest flow, staffing, and labor implications

A venue should be viewed as a portal to the guest experience, not just a room.

Walking paths, restroom capacity, entry points, and back-of-house access all influence how many staff members are needed to move guests smoothly from arrival to the main experience.

Some venues provide staffing support; others require you to bring in outside teams — sometimes including union labor or security.

For example, at a recent event at the Colorado Convention Center in Denver, we coordinated:

• Venue guest services

• Local labor union teams for load-in

• Dedicated security staff

• Over 30 food, beverage, coat check, and check-in staff

These staffing needs weren’t optional — they were dictated by the venue itself.

Hidden venue costs clients don’t expect

Beyond the room rental fee, venues often include additional costs such as:

• Parking or valet services

• Trash and electricity fees

• Wi-Fi and internet access

• Fees for outside vendors (if allowed)

• Required venue staff, security, or union labor

• Charges for venue-owned items like linens or tables

These costs can significantly impact your final budget if they aren’t identified early.

Photo by JamieLee Photography

When a higher venue fee actually saves money

In some cases, a higher venue fee can reduce overall spend.

Venues like Dover Hall in Richmond, VA, include tables, standard linens, streamlined load-in and load-out, and in-house technology support as part of the rental. While the upfront cost may be higher, the reduction in rentals, labor, and production complexity often results in a more efficient — and sometimes more cost-effective — event.

How planners evaluate venues differently

From a planner’s perspective, the goal is always to stay as close to budget as possible — knowing that some categories may come in over while others come in under.

When evaluating venues, we look for red flags such as:

• Rigid load-in and load-out windows

• Restrictive preferred vendor lists

• Complicated logistics for staffing and access

These factors don’t just affect execution — they directly influence cost.

Planning an event and weighing venue options?

This is where strategic event planning support pays for itself.

What we’re using to map out 2026 events

Planning tools matter, especially when managing multiple timelines and budgets. Check out our choice for a 2026 Annual Planner.