First and foremost - envision what size of a wedding you will have. Small and intimate, just close friends and family, or all friends and family because the more the merrier? 

There is no point in deciding theme first - and then all your perfect venues have an 80 guest max and you currently have a 200 guest list.

You need to get the rough draft of your guest list together first.

Now you have a ballpark on size, you can start thinking about what venue suits your guest count and theme. Do you want a traditional wedding? Do you want an outdoor reception? Rustic and natural? Grandeur? Destination wedding? Do you want a venue with onsite accommodation?

You have to envision what you want before you start researching or viewing venues. Obviously, it would be very difficult to find a venue with absolutely every detail you would like. And even though not every venue will have exactly everything you want - each venue will offer details that you love and didn’t think of, and it is then an added bonus.

Once you have your guest count and theme - you will have narrowed it down much more than you realise, and you can now contact venues to check capacity and get photos of the venue from previous events, before scheduling any site visits.

When deciding you also have to think about the amount of time and effort you are willing to put into your venue to get it to where you want. If you don’t have a wedding planner and you are doing it all yourself - then this is so important. Some venues are made for weddings, and need little décor to enhance it to the most perfect venue to suit you, whereas others can literally be an empty room with a blank four walls. Both suit different couples. The majority of venues I worked in in California were a blank canvas. Couples preferred this to transform it into their own style, and most people have wedding planners so this is the norm and an easy transformation. But if you are relying on you and your family to transfer an empty room, just make sure you have the time and patience for it.