WORST VENUE EVER! Do NOT book your wedding here, unless you want to be severely saddened and disappointed with the outcome! Janet, single-handedly, ruined many aspects of our big day due to her severe negligence and lack of care for her job! It is extremely obvious that she has zero interest in good hospitality, and cares more about making a quick buck. She should get out of this business as soon as possible as she is not cut-out for hosting events, especially weddings! I should have listened to my gut, and all the negative reviews online, however I was so deadest on the appeal/esthetics of the venue. There are MULTIPLE bad reviews online about Janet/the ranch, but I ignored them, thinking those were just 'one offs'... Nope! That's how she operates!
It has been extremely difficult dealing with her right from the very start! From attempting to arrange a venue visit, to her constantly changing her demands, there was no way to make her happy! She gave us a giant list of rules and expectations, all of which we abided by 110%, however none of the expectations applied to her/her staff. She will charge you for absolutely everything. You want water for your guests on your dinner tables? That's an extra $75. You want salt & pepper on the tables? Yup, you guessed it... Add $75! If you want to bring your own, she will try to charge you for that too!
If that weren't bad enough... on the day of, she ran around on a rampage snapping at vendors and guests! She even had the audacity to jump in front of my wedding photographer right in the MIDDLE of the JOP pronouncing us Husband and Wife, and caused the photographer to completely miss our first kiss.
She was rude and abrasive with all of my vendors; even so much as trying to tell my DJ to change the music because she didn't like it (however all radio edits were being used). The working conditions that my coordinator had to work in, and subsequently all my guests endured was completely unacceptable, and embarrassing! She failed to provide services that were promised to us, causing much embarrassment and financial loss on our end as a fall-out. She was informed of our issues after the wedding, and did not even offer so much as an acknowledgement or even an apology for what happened or her contributions. Do NOT support the Kananaskis Guest Ranch or their Golf Course in any capacity!
It had snowed the night before my wedding. Temperatures on day of the wedding hovered around 2 degrees Celsius. Janet assured us the interior would be comfortable inside for our guests and had promised to start the log fire at 9:00 am if it was cold outside. She didn't ignite it until 2:00 pm, an hour before guests started to arrive. The fire had not burned long enough to build up enough heat to radiate out any distance from the fire-pit - it was freezing inside ALL NIGHT! Two woefully-inadequate heaters were placed along one side of the building perimeter adding nothing to raising the interior temperature and the perimeter temperature hovered around 4 - 5 degrees Celsius for the entire event.
The smoke generated by the soaking wet wood that was tossed onto the fire was nauseating and thick and some guests left before dinner because the cold and smoke was making them ill. Our guests were uncomfortably cold and wore their coats throughout the duration of the ceremony, cocktail hour, dinner and dance. The smoke was so heavy and pungent inside the tent that it was absorbed into everything...gifts, floral décor, signs, purses, projection screen, tablecloths, runners, clothes, shoes, etc. I have lost thousands of dollars thanks to her extreme neglect!
Janet has been holding functions in the donut tent for years and there is no excuse for not accommodating for a drop in the temperature and for not using dry wood. It is just being cheap not starting the fire earlier as promised and not having sufficient perimeter heaters. No written or verbal apology was offered. A small refund of 16% of the contracted service was given only after I outlined the circumstances that were upsetting to all of us.
Weather can be inclement and unusually cold in spring, summer & fall in Alberta. Future customers: AVOID AT ALL COSTS! You WILL be deeply saddened and disappointed if you hold an event here! read more