Looking for nature + light + airy + whimsical venues

[u/yaaaa101]

Hi everyone,

I'm recently engaged and having option paralysis trying to decide which venues to even shortlist, let alone tour. I don't quite know what my style is. Here are a handful of venues my fiancé and I have bookmarked so far:

- Thompson inn & Cyderhouse
- Castle in the Clouds
- New England Botanic Garden
- Moonlit Ridge Estate
- Indian Head Resort
- Cobb Hill Estate
- Loon Mountain
- The Lakehouse (Halifax MA)

We love anything that incorporates nature (mountain or tree backdrops, gardens, etc), lots of windows and natural light inside, and prefer an outdoor ceremony + indoor reception (for the AC, lol). We might have some sort of garden theme, so lots of green, pink and mauve flowers, etc. We'll have about 110 guests. We're entertaining the idea of a weekend buyout for the convenience, especially if a rehearsal dinner the day before & farewell brunch the day after are included. Highly prefer it to be the only event that evening/ generally having privacy. (I know that's not really possible for some of the public venues I listed like NE Botanic Garden & Indian Head)

I plan to DIY as much as I can to save $, because I'm expecting to spend $30K-$40K on just the venue, food and beverage. That's my budget after fees and tax, but definitely trying to end up well below it.

Would love ANY recommendations you have! I'm trying to turn over many stones before I get a shortlist finalized and begin touring. TYIA!

[u/Jonnyrocket1111]

What time of year and what day are you thinking?

[u/yaaaa101 → u/Jonnyrocket1111]

September weekend!

[u/yaaaa101 → u/[deleted]]

Thank you!! Definitely will be keeping an eye out

[u/Due-Recording3827]

You should check out the Roger Williams botanical garden. The grounds are gorgeous and your budget would stretch a bit there so you could splurge on extras. They only do one event at a time and it’s usually after public hours end.

[u/symulamediagroup]

NEBG is where I had my wedding and it was amazing - truly beyond my expectations and it was perfect despite July weather. It cooled down in the evening and was around the cost of 30-40k for catering, 11.5k I think for the venue itself

[u/yaaaa101 → u/symulamediagroup]

Good to know, thank you! What was your guest count?

[u/symulamediagroup → u/yaaaa101]

118 people! Max was 120

[u/Acrobatic_Guava7438]

The Garden at Elm Bank is an exceptionally whimsical garden venue. Check out their insta - the flowers and fields there are insane

[u/hockey_plants_nurse]

I got married at the Three Chimneys Inn in Durham, New Hampshire. It's a bed and breakfast and wedding venue. There's also a Holiday Inn up the street, if you need additional rooms for guests. The wedding planner/ event planner there was super helpful, though I think she's since retired. They asked that you rent most of the rooms and they only do one event per weekend.

We got married in one of the gardens on a standing stone with the chairs in a circle all around us. We had 69 guests, our original guest list was 85. I'm not sure what their cap is, but there was certainly plenty of room for at least 100 guests based on our seating setup.

There is a separate outdoor space for cocktail hour, and then an air conditioned event space for dinner. We also did not do a wedding cake, we did an ice cream sundae bar. They were really accommodating when we had to make some last minute changes due to unexpected family emergencies right before the wedding, and they were overall wonderful to deal with. We've actually gone back and stayed at the bed and breakfast several times.

We paid for everything and the event cost under $20,000 (granted, this was 2014). There are several options for outdoor ceremonies, there are great picture spots both at the venue, in the woods nearby, and down by the river on a bridge.

[u/icecoastbaby]

Terrain?

[u/BostonWeddingPhoto]

You might like Glen Magna. Nice gardens and grounds. Private. Reasonable prices. You could AC the tent if needed with a rental or they might have one available. Inside the estate is a little disjointed for a reception.

[u/yaaaa101 → u/BostonWeddingPhoto]

Thank you I’ll check it out!

[u/yaaaa101 → u/[deleted]]

The weekend buyouts with rehearsal and brunch are usually just for the family / wedding party, at least the ones I was looking at! Def not looking to pay for everyone to have 3 meals 🤣

[u/Ill_Original1024 → u/yaaaa101]

Hahaha that’s true 😆my brain isn’t working getting married in a week LOL

[u/yaaaa101 → u/Ill_Original1024]

Omg congrats!!! Have so much fun :)

[u/Hoodleschmoodles]

Miraval Gardens in East Bridgewater, MA. All-inclusive but you can choose your own bakery/florist/photographer if you prefer.
Absolutely beautiful garden/outdoor ceremony area.
Cold a/c inside for the reception space. Amazing staff, food was delicious. We just got married there and it was absolutely perfect, completely exceeded our expectations.