It’s one of the first questions couples ask us, and it’s a fair one. Most venue websites don’t post a price. They ask you to inquire, and then two couples can tour the same barn and leave with quotes that are thousands of dollars apart. We’re Rex and Gina Younger, and we host weddings on our sixth-generation family cattle ranch, established in 1914, near Colorado Springs. Our prices are posted, so here is an honest look at what a wedding venue costs, how the venue fee fits into the total cost of a wedding, and what to ask before you sign anything.
The short answer
There isn’t one number for the Colorado Springs area, and we won’t pretend there is. A “wedding venue” can mean a few hours at a ceremony site, a full day on a private ranch, or a hotel ballroom where the room is bundled with dinner, and each prices the day differently.
What we can give you is a real, published example: our own. At Younger Ranch, the Venue Only rental is $6,000 to $8,500 depending on the day of the week, for up to 150 guests and 12 hours of exclusive use. That’s our price, not an average for the area. Other venues will be higher or lower, and the only way to know is to get each one’s price in writing and compare what it actually includes.
Venue fee vs. total wedding cost
This is the part that trips up the most couples. The venue fee and the cost of your wedding are two different numbers.
The venue fee is what you pay for the place itself: the property, the buildings and a block of hours. At some venues that’s nearly all you get. At others it’s bundled with food and service.
The total wedding cost is everything it takes to actually hold the day. Beyond the venue fee, that usually includes:
- Food and the bar
- Rentals such as linens, china and glassware
- A coordinator or planner
- Event insurance
- Any service charges and sales tax the venue or vendors add
- Your photographer, florist, music, attire and everything else you choose
Here’s our own example. A Saturday at Younger Ranch is $8,500 for the venue. Your caterer, bar, rentals, coordinator and insurance are separate contracts on top of that, and so are the vendors you pick yourself. So an $8,500 Saturday on a ranch is not an $8,500 wedding, and we’d rather you hear that from us on day one. Compare the total each venue leads to, not just the first number on the page.
Two ways venues price a wedding day
Before you compare quotes, figure out which kind of venue you’re looking at.
Site-fee (venue-only) venues
You pay for the property and a block of hours. Tables and chairs may be included. Food, the bar, linens, a coordinator and rentals usually are not. That’s how we work.
Package and all-inclusive venues
Hotels, resorts, many clubs and all-inclusive venues often charge a smaller site fee, or none at all, and price the day per person instead. Dinner, service and sometimes the cake are bundled in, often with a food-and-beverage minimum and a service charge on the bill. You’ll have fewer contracts to manage and less choice of caterer.
Neither model is automatically better or cheaper. What matters is what you actually get, what you’re required to buy, and what the final number looks like when you add everything together.
What Younger Ranch costs
| Saturday: | $8,500 |
| Friday: | $8,000 |
| Sunday: | $7,500 |
| Monday through Thursday: | $6,000 |
Every wedding gets the same 12 hours of exclusive use for up to 150 guests. Planning a smaller, more intimate wedding? You’re just as welcome, and the whole ranch is still yours for the day. There’s no service charge on the site fee. Your venue price is the price.
We do require an $800 refundable damage deposit. It’s separate from the venue rental price and isn’t part of the rates above.
Our optional add-ons and the rest of the details are on our Wedding Packages & Pricing page.
What’s included in our Venue Only rental
“Tables and chairs included” is not the same sentence as “the wedding is included.” Here’s our itemized list.
- Access to the property for up to 150 guests, with exclusive use of the venue for 12 hours
- The ceremony site with wood benches
- The reception barn with tables and chairs
- The hay barn for cocktail hour, with bistro lighting, wine barrels and a wagon
- The patio with bistro lighting and a propane fire pit
- The Bride Barn for getting ready, and the Groom’s Tipi
- Rehearsal time of one hour the day before
- An on-site ranch manager for the duration of your wedding day
- Men’s and ladies’ restrooms, and an inverter generator for ceremony site sound
- Engagement pictures on the ranch
Your vendor team, paid separately
A few vendors come from our trusted list so your day runs smoothly. Everything else is your choice.
- Coordinator: hire one from our list of professionals. We require one. They guide you through planning and run your wedding day.
- Food: choose from our list of caterers.
- Alcohol: Peak Beverage, with all alcohol served by a TIPS-trained bartender from Peak. We don’t hold a liquor license.
- Rentals: Event Rents or Colorado Party Rentals.
- Event insurance: required, to protect you from liability for property damage, bodily injury and alcohol-related accidents.
Florists, DJs, photographers and the rest are up to you. Get a written list like this from every venue you tour.
What changes the total cost of your wedding
The venue sets the floor under your budget, but it’s rarely the only big line by the end. These are the things that move the total most.
The day of the week
Saturdays tend to book first and cost the most. Fridays and Sundays often come in lower, and weekdays lower still. At our ranch, a Monday through Thursday wedding is $2,500 less than a Saturday for the same 12 hours and the same property. If your date is flexible, ask any venue for its weekday rate first.
Your guest count
A venue-only site fee usually doesn’t change with your guest count. Catering, bar, rentals and favors do, because they’re priced per person. Trimming the guest list can save more than switching days. With a food-and-beverage minimum, a smaller list may not lower the bill.
The season
Some venues discount the colder months. Some ranches, including ours, simply don’t host weddings outside May through October.
Hours and overtime
Check how many hours are included, whether set-up and clean-up count toward them, and what an extra hour costs. Ask before you book, not on the night.
Weather plans
Outdoor ceremonies need a real backup, and a tent you have to rent is a cost. Ask whether the indoor space holds your whole guest list. We have Plan B and Plan C options for inclement weather that can be put into action on the day of your wedding.
Questions to ask any venue before you sign
Take these on every tour and write the answers down. If the answer is “we’ll put it in the contract,” wait for the contract.
- What exactly does the site fee include? Ask for the inventory: hours, buildings, tables, chairs, restrooms, rehearsal, set-up and clean-up.
- What isn’t included, and what does each of those things cost?
- Are the caterer, bar and coordinator open, preferred or required? If they’re required, ask for their rates before you hold the date.
- Is there a service charge or administrative fee? What does it apply to, and is gratuity separate?
- What’s the combined sales tax rate, and which lines does it apply to?
- How many hours do we get, does that include set-up and clean-up, and what does overtime cost?
- What’s the plan if the weather turns, and who makes that call?
- What insurance do you require, and is there a damage deposit? Is it refundable?
- How many weddings do you host on the same day or weekend, and who from your team is on site during ours?
Before You Tour Another Wedding Venue, Take This With You
We’ve put together a free guide showing real published Colorado wedding venue prices, the fees that don’t always appear in the first quote, and a printable worksheet you can use to compare venues side by side.
It’s called The 2027 Colorado Wedding Venue Price Guide.
Because the cheapest-looking venue isn’t always the least expensive wedding. And we’d rather you figure that out before signing a contract.
Come see the ranch
Numbers only tell part of it. The best way to know if Younger Ranch is right for your wedding is to walk the ceremony site, step into the barns and see the 25-mile view of Pikes Peak for yourself. Tours are free and private, and we’ll answer every pricing question you bring.