Our day-of coordinator was wonderful, and the venue itself is beautiful. Unfortunately, we…read moreexperienced far too many issues with the venue and its vendors to feel comfortable recommending it.
The venue is advertised as all-inclusive, but there are very limited options when it came to things like dinnerware and decor. Our wedding colors were ivory, gold, and various greens, yet the disposable dinnerware was black with silver plasticware, and the china was white. We had to purchase our own plates, bowls, gold plasticware, and 80 goblets to match our tablescape.
After the wedding, we were told all of our unused items had been placed in a box for us. Instead, we received one dirty plate, bowls, and spoons. There were no goblets and no clean dinner or cake plates. We had a guest count of around 60, we purchased 80 of each thing. We should have had 20 extra of each plate, and 20 extra goblets, and none were to be found. After contacting them, they eventually shipped some items back. Including two plates, two goblets, our napkins, and one fork. Yes, you heard that right. They individually wrapped a plastic fork. Very petty if you ask me.
The DJ experience was also extremely disappointing. We had multiple meetings where we clearly communicated that we wanted an upbeat, energetic wedding with guest engagement. During the ceremony, my entrance song ended while I was still walking down the aisle, the officiants' microphones repeatedly cut out, and our exit music was barely audible. The DJ and coordinator had different entrance orders, causing confusion. During dinner, the DJ played techno when we had specifically requested swing music and she even told my mom she didn't know what swing music was. During dancing, there was little to no engagement with the guests, and we were later told this was the DJ's first wedding (by the Dj herself)
We also discovered food, wine, ink stains and rips on multiple linens while steaming them ourselves before the wedding day. (Yes, they don't steam their linens. They are creased horribly) Thankfully, we caught them before the wedding began and they were replaced.
Our decor options were also very limited. We were told that if we wanted to incorporate calla lilies (our wedding flower) we would have to donate them to the venue. We did so, only to have them mixed into other flowers where they were barely noticeable. We ended up decorating our own head table to make it better fit our wedding.
The bridal and groom suites also did not have private bathrooms, and those bathrooms only had air dryers, which could cause spotting with satin dresses.
Approximately a week after the wedding, my parents were contacted and told that the final payment check they had already provided (a month before the wedding) was missing, supposedly lost by the bank. Having to deal with a missing payment after the wedding was over was another unnecessary stress.
Finally, the venue is directly next to the family's mortuary. We were completely unprepared to see our wedding names displayed on the outdoor screen as "Congrats! Jonah & Kaitlynn. Jones Family Mortuary." That was an incredibly uncomfortable surprise that we absolutely would have wanted to know about before booking.
We understand that no wedding is perfect, and we are not expecting perfection. What we did expect was professionalism, communication, attention to detail and honesty. And upon explaining all of these issues to Olivia and Tricia, we were told that they got told completely different things. Showing that there are dishonest people working for them.
Unfortunately, there were too many issues before, during, and after our wedding for us to recommend this venue based on our experience. Our wedding was still beautiful because of our family, friends, and the memories we made together. But if we could choose our venue again knowing what we know now, we would make a different choice.
