Roanoke Weddings, Urban or Rural, and Which is Best
If you’re getting married in the Roanoke Valley, you have a couple of choices to pick a wedding venue, downtown Roanoke or out in the county.
There are advantages and disadvantages to both urban and rural wedding venues and today we’re going to go over some of the highlights to help you make the best decision possible.
City Wedding Venues
Wedding venues in the city of Roanoke, Salem and Vinton all tend to have a couple things in common.
Years ago, they were meant for more of the higher end couples here in our region, places such as the Hotel Roanoke, the Patrick Henry and the Corinthian Ballroom all were at their prime during the 1990’s and into the early 2000’s.
Over the years other venues have popped up like Charter Hall above the city’s market building, the Penthouse at Center in the Square, the Taubman Museum of Art and Bent Oak Manor have popped up offering a more promising alternative to those venues of former glory.
Today’s couples want a venue that has a lot of personality and not so much a grandiose vibe to them.
We’ve seen many couples opt for smaller venues in downtown Roanoke although their budgets have remained about the same, above average for the region.
Chances are if you are wanting to get married in downtown, you’re going to use some of the inner circle vendors within the Roanoke Wedding Network, a closed, tight-nit group of vendors that mainly support each other.
Pro’s of a City Wedding Venue
With downtown Roanoke, you’ll have easy access to everything you need for the wedding day and most vendors that will work the wedding will have an easy time working the venue.
The views in the evening of downtown Roanoke are truly awesome and inspiring and there are some great places for wedding pictures after the ceremony too.
Con’s of a City Wedding Venue
Parking for guests can be a bit of a pain during select times of the year, although you have several places and parking garages to park downtown during the weekend.
The other issue with a wedding in the city, the mountain views.
Sure, you can see some of them of in the distance, but if you’re wanting a true mountain view experience, the city may not be suited for your wedding day.
Rural Wedding Venues
These are mostly going to consist of barn style venues as well as older mansions within the lying regions of the commonwealth that have been converted into venues.
Here, you’re going to find the more natural wonders such as better mountain views, creeks, woods and the like too.
You’ll have lots of land to take images and video, lots of space for people to mingle, dance and just celebrate the day.
There is a great selection of wedding venues in Roanoke’s surrounding valley and plenty of price ranges to choose from too.
Our sister company, Wedding Photography and Films, recently provided you a ultimate guide to venues in the Roanoke Valley as well as the Ultimate Guide to Weddings in Roanoke for some of the regions best information about the wedding industry.
From $200 to nearly $20,000, the average price point tends to be somewhere in the $4,600 range among wedding venues and what couples choose.
For less than $200 you can choose one of the Roanoke County Parks to have your small ceremony and on the extreme scale, The Seclusion in Lexington averages $17,000+ for your wedding day.
What are some of the most popular wedding venues in Roanoke?
While there are many to choose from on the wedding circuit, some are more popular than others.
Silver Hearth Lodge, Wisteria Ridge, The Kyle House, The Barn at Back Creek Farm, The Pavilion at Blackwater Junction and Triple J Farms just to name a few.
These are great venues that offer wonderful views, great client customer services and ones that are able to keep up with couples demands of more amenities.
Pro’s of a Rural Wedding Venue
The number one reason why coupes choose a rural venue is because of the Blue Ridge Mountains, they’re simply beautiful to use as a backdrop with wedding photos and video.
Second, there is much more space to roam, mingle and park at a rural venue than in the city of Roanoke. You’re not locked into a select space per say
You can crank up the DJ tunes. If you love music, then having rural wedding means you can turn up the volume a bit louder and you’ll have a more relaxed atmosphere too.
Cons of a Rural Wedding Venue
The biggest con of a rural venue is that it’s located far out, you’ll have a bit of a drive. That’s not always a bad thing, just know that you may have to drive 30+ minutes to get to the venue.
While parking will be abundant at a rural venue, it’s possible parking may not be a parking lot, but rather a grass field, just something to be aware of when thinking about a rural venue too.
What wedding venue types do couples prefer in Roanoke?
We surveyed 112 couples on Facebook and asked them that very question.
“Nearly 77% said they would prefer to get married in a rural setting rather than downtown Roanoke.”