As the wedding limousine pulls into the church or ceremony site, the moment becomes a surreal moment, it's like trumpets announcing the bride's arrival, and later the wedding couple's departure from the ceremony and again the arrival to the wedding reception. And even later, there may be the ride to the airport to set the newly married couple on their way to the honeymoon. Also there may be rides needed to shuttle out of town guests in a place they are not familiar with and in some cases there may need to be the ride on a party bus to keep the bridal party together and in good spirits if a little traveling is needed.
On your wedding day you need to be sure, you have dependable transportation, and image is important, to be sure everything runs perfectly you need to ask the right questions of your transportation company, you don't want your wedding day to be left in a lurch. You want your wedding limousine, to look like a wedding limousine, you want to be sure the limousine is less than 3 years old and it's in good working condition. After 3 years of age limousines start piling up the mileage, and the higher chances of a breakdown, you want almost zero chance of a breakdown. You need to ask the right questions to insure your special day goes off without a hitch.
You want to know exactly what vehicle you are having for your wedding, you want to inspect it the week before your wedding, you want it to be sure it's in great shape for your wedding. You also want to meet the chauffeur in person, someone who behaves like a chauffeur is expected to behave, is prompt, who knows how to follow directions and is a good driver.
You also want to leave your transportation company a map on how it's best to get to your wedding venues, how to get from the bride's house to the ceremony site, how to get from the ceremony site to the photo shoot, how to get from the photo shoot to the wedding reception, then how to get to the wedding reception to the hotel, bed & breakfast, or to the airport. The wedding couple should insure the transportation knows the directions and the times and should send a map of how to get from one place to another and get confirmation of the time. The bride and groom should keep a map and time on their person for the wedding day, this is for backup purposes, some limousine companies are notorious on changing schedules for drivers, if you should get a driver you aren't expecting, and does not have directions, your directions may have just saved your wedding day.
The only time you should allow transportation that is less than three years be allowed for your wedding, if it's a classic or antique car or a classic trolley. If it's one these cars you are using for your transportation needs for your wedding day, the week before your wedding, you should inspect the car thoroughly and insure that it's in good operating order and you get confirmation that the vehicle has been inspected and tuned up recently.
Interview Questions for your Wedding Limousine
1-If the company has a brochure, flyer, or a business card grab it, what is the limousine's company name, address, phone number, also Toll Free phone number, and website address?
2-What is the limousine's contact person's name and phone number?
3-What is the owner's person's name and phone number?
4-Is the limousine company properly insured?
5-Does the limousine company belong to any industry associations such as the National Limousine Association?
6-Does the limousine provide 24 hour coverage 7 days a week or other coverage? if no, what is the other coverage?
7-How many years has the limousine company been in operation?
8-What type of limousines does your company have? can you describe them?
9-How many vehicles does your company have in total?
10-How many people will fit comfortably in each of your vehicles? (remember you may need additional space for the wedding dress and possibly other bridesmaid's clothing)
11-What colors are available for each vehicle?
12-What is the year, make, and model of each vehicle? (remember you only want vehicles that are 3 years age or less unless it's an antique, classic, or trolley)
13-What happens should the vehicle break down?
14-Does your company offer any special wedding packages?
15-What is the price of each package and each vehicle offered?
16-How many hours are included with a package?
17-Is there a minimum number of hours required for the vehicles?
18-Do any of the vehicles have to be returned in time for another appointment?
19-If we get a package, what is the additional price per hour if we choose to keep the vehicle longer?
20-What color is the inside of the vehicle desired?
21-What amenities are included with the package? red carpet? champagne? glasses? just married sign? bottled water? snacks? decorations?
22-Does each vehicle have television? a CD or DVD player? air conditioning/heating system?
23-Are we allowed to drink alcohol or eat food in the vehicle?
24-Can we inspect the limousine in person at the time of booking and again the week before the wedding?
25-Can we get a record of the last inspection and tuneup of the limousine desired?
26-Can we get a picture of the limousines we will be using for the day of our wedding by mail or email?
27-How many limo chauffeur driver's do you have in your company fleet?
28-Can we meet in person, the chauffeur(s) assigned for our wedding?
29-What would be our wedding driver(s) name(s) and phone number(s)?
30-How many years of experience do each of our driver's have driving for the transportation company?
31-How many weddings has each of our driver's covered? in the past year?
32-What would our chauffeur(s) be wearing?
33-Is our chauffeur's gratuity included in the quoted price? if not, what should be added for the chauffer's gratuity? (standard practice is 15% - 20%)
34-Are there any additional charges? (tax, tolls, parking, fuel surcharge, etc.)
35-Are there special discounts offered by the transportation company?
36-Are there discounts if any additional vehicles are booked? (limousine for bridal party, party bus, shuttle or limousine to the airport)
37-Does your company have or get your hands on antique cars? describe them?
38-Does your company have or get your hands on classic cars? describe them? (BMW, Mercedes Benz, etc.)
39-Does your company have buses or trolleys? describe them?
40-Does your company have party buses? what amenities are included? lounges? full electronic wet bar? special leather seating? televisions? audio/video systems? CD/DVD player? Satellite system? coffee maker/coffee bar? refrigerator/freezer? party bus camcorder? party bus internet? party bus gaming system?GPS navigation system? microwave? utility tables? restroom?
41-Is the bridal party allowed to bring their own champagne? wine? bottle water?
42-How many guests could fit on the party buses? buses? or trolleys?
43-Are we sure to get the driver(s) specified in the contract?
44-Might our chauffeurs coming from another appointment the day of our wedding, such as taking or dropping somebody off or from the airport?
45-What do the chauffeur's do while waiting between destinations? (during wedding ceremony, during wedding reception)
46-For each person handling your wedding, ask, describe the worst wedding situation you have had? how did you handle the situation?
47-Is the chauffeur familiar with the areas being covered?
48-What type of outfit will you be wearing?
49-How far in advance do we need to book the wedding for our wedding date?
50-How much deposit is required and when is final payment due?
51-How can payments be made? (credit card, debit card, certified check, personal check, Paypal, cash. other)
52-Can you offer sedan or van airport transportation from the hotel/venue and back for wedding guests?
53-Can your company offer our wedding guests transportation from their residence to the airport in other cities?
54-Can we take an unsigned contract with us to look over for review?
55-Can we get a signed contract stipulating the date, time, all locations, prices, type of vehicle, including year, make, model, color, name of our driver(s), phone number, payment, deposit, and cancellation policy?
56-What is the cancellation policy? what is the fee for the cancellation policy?
57-Can we get 3 referrals? (should check with at least 2)
The interview questions are a guide to help you lay out questions for your transportation company. Re lay out the interview questions to fit your particular needs.
After your interview, you should interview at least 3 transportation companies before booking. Choose the company that you feel gives you the most for your money and in which you feel comfortable with the drivers. It is better to choose a company that is focused on weddings, some companies are more geared to business executives and to airport travel. Sometimes these companies are notorious for the wedding limousine sometimes may be diverted to catch an incoming flight leaving you stranded without a wedding limousine and they will leave you with some lame excuse.
Make sure you inspect the limousines and the chauffeurs beforehand, let there be no surprises. It's a good idea to bring along a friend for your appointments and make sure all that is discussed is in the contract, no contract no deal, you need protection in the event the company messes up. A limousine should not be asking for the full amount up front, they have no major expense to pay out of pocket beforehand. Get the transportation needs you can afford, look for discounts, at least arrive to your wedding and reception in a special vehicle.
Make sure maps are prepared and sent to the transportation company beforehand, and have a map on your person, in the groom's pocket and in the bride's bridal emergency kit, you never know the transportation company might send another driver, with no directions. GPS is pretty good, but not always accurate, on your wedding day, you can't take chances.
Make sure you include the magic moment in your wedding day transportation!
See you on the other side!
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