One question belongs in every vendor conversation. What is the total, with every fee and tax in it? The rental rate is the smallest number on the contract. In Ontario, HST is 13%, and a vendor under the federal $30,000 small-supplier threshold does not have to charge it at all, so two quotes can differ by 13% before anyone has done anything different.
The rest is sorted by vendor. Print it. Bring it to every call, and write the answers down while you are still on the phone, because a quote you heard and did not write down is a quote you will argue about later.
Key Takeaways
- Ask every vendor for an all-in total in writing: Ontario HST is 13%, and suppliers under the $30,000 federal threshold may not charge it.
- A wedding with alcohol at an unlicensed Ontario venue needs an AGCO Special Occasion Permit: $50 a day for free drinks, $150 a day for sold drinks, applied for at least 10 days ahead.
- Some Northumberland County, Ontario sites need insurance and long notice: the Ganaraska Forest asks for special event applications three months ahead with a liability insurance certificate.
- Ontario publishes its list of registered marriage officiants as open data, refreshed weekly, so an officiant's registration takes minutes to check.
- Ask who will be there on the day by name. The person you meet is not always the person who shows up.
Questions for every vendor, before you sign
These apply to all of them, from the venue to the cake:
- What is the total with HST, service charges and gratuity included?
- How much is the deposit, is it refundable, and when is each payment due?
- What happens if we postpone, cancel or change the guest count?
- Who will be there on the day? Can you name them?
- What is your plan if that person is sick?
- What time do you arrive, and how long do you need to set up and pack out?
- Do you carry liability insurance, and can you send the certificate if the venue asks?
- Will everything we have discussed be written into the contract?
Number four is the easiest to skip. A studio may send its owner to the meeting and an associate to the wedding, which is fine if you know and have seen the associate's work. Ask for the name, then ask for it in writing.
Number eight protects you from your own inbox. If the florist offered in an email three months ago to move the ceremony arch to the reception, that sentence belongs in the contract, where nobody has to search for it during the wedding week.
If you would rather have someone else run these calls, The Signature Bloom includes vendor sourcing and recommendations. Book a consultation and we can go through your shortlist together.
Questions for the venue
The venue sets your date, your capacity and often your caterer, so it gets the longest list. Ask these on the first call and you can rule a place in or out before spending a Saturday touring it:
- Is our date open, and how long will you hold it?
- What is the seated capacity with a dance floor, not the standing number?
- Is catering in-house, from an approved list, or open? Is there a fee for outside vendors?
- Is the venue licensed for alcohol, or will we need a permit?
- What is the latest end time, and when must everything be out?
- What does the rental include: tables, chairs, linens, staff, cleanup?
- What is the rain plan, and is it included in the price or an extra rental?
- Do you require event liability insurance?
- Is there parking, accessible entry and an accessible washroom?
- Are there sound limits or a curfew for amplified music?
The alcohol question has real money behind it. If the venue is not licensed, the wedding needs a Special Occasion Permit from the AGCO, which costs $50 a day when drinks are free and $150 a day when guests pay. The AGCO asks for the application at least 10 days before, and outdoor sites can require municipal notice 30 to 60 days ahead. Find out who applies for it, you or the venue. Then put that in the contract.
Insurance and notice matter more at outdoor and conservation sites than at banquet halls. The Ganaraska Forest north of Port Hope, Ontario, for example, asks for special event applications at least three months ahead, with a certificate showing liability coverage and a map of the trails you plan to use. Ask every outdoor site what its version of that list is.
Questions for the caterer and bar
Catering is quoted per person, and the per-person number is where extras hide. Ask:
- Is the per-person price for food only, or does it include staff, rentals and cake cutting?
- Are HST and gratuity added on top, and at what rates?
- When is the tasting, and is it included?
- How do you handle allergies and dietary needs, and how are those plates marked?
- How many servers for our guest count, and for how many hours?
- Who serves the bar, and are they Smart Serve certified?
- Do you feed the vendors, and at what price per meal?
Vendor meals are easy to miss. Your photographer, planner and band are working through dinner, and many contracts ask you to feed them, so read yours for the clause. Count them in your numbers from the start and the final bill holds no surprise.
For how that line fits the whole budget, see my guide to building a realistic wedding budget.
Questions for the photographer and videographer
- How many hours are included, and what does an extra hour cost?
- Is a second shooter included?
- How many edited images should we expect, and when will we get them?
- Do we get a print release, and who holds the copyright?
- How do you back up the files on the day?
- Have you worked at our venue? If not, will you visit or scout it before?
Ask that last one kindly. A photographer new to a venue can still do beautiful work, but they need time to find the light, so book a scouting visit or add half an hour before portraits.
Questions for the officiant
Your officiant is the one vendor with a legal role. Ask:
- Are you registered to perform marriages in Ontario? You can confirm it yourself on the province's list of registered marriage officiants, which is refreshed weekly.
- Will you attend the rehearsal, and is that included in the fee?
- Can we write our own vows, and do you need to see them first?
- Who sends the signed licence to ServiceOntario after the ceremony?
- Do you charge travel to our venue?
The right answer to the fourth question is the officiant. They send the signed licence to ServiceOntario so the marriage can be registered. If you are booking a civil ceremony at a municipal office instead, the rules come from that office. Cobourg, for instance, holds Friday afternoon ceremonies for $400 and needs your licence at least 10 days before.
Questions for the florist, music and rentals
Florist: What is in season for our date, and what are the substitutes if a flower is unavailable? Can ceremony pieces move to the reception, and who moves them? Is delivery, setup and pickup included?
DJ or band: Do you bring your own sound and microphones for the ceremony and speeches? How much power do you need, and how far from an outlet can you set up? Will you play from our do-not-play list?
Rentals: When do you drop off and pick up, and does anyone need to be on site? What is the damage and cleaning policy? Is a tent permit or a site visit needed?
Questions for a planner or day-of coordinator
A planner should answer these as plainly as any other vendor:
- What is included, in writing, and what is extra?
- How many hours on the day, and how many planning meetings before it?
- Will you visit the venue before the wedding?
- Who else will be on site with you?
- How do you handle vendor payments: through you, or directly from us?
For comparison, here is how Ali Rose Events Co. answers the first few. The Rosebud, our day-of coordination package, covers up to 10 hours on the day and includes a venue walk-through and timeline review. The Signature Bloom adds vendor sourcing, budget tracking, a custom event timeline and three planning meetings. Couples pay their vendors directly. The full list is on our services page, and my post on what a day-of coordinator does explains where that role starts and stops.
These questions belong early, before you are attached to anyone. My guide to how far in advance to book wedding vendors shows when each call should happen, and my wedding timeline shows where the answers land on the calendar. If you want someone beside you when you ask them, tell me about your date.
