This is going to be a lengthy review of this wedding venue. I was the matron of honor at my sister's wedding and this is my personal experience. I will start with communication. My sister did not block rooms for the venue at the participating hotel due to lack of interest at the time. As the wedding approached, several, including myself, wanted to get a room at the hotel. The bride, my sister, was told by Barbara Ann, the owner, that a discount would be given to anyone that still wanted a room. I wanted to get a room for myself and my sister (as a gift to her and her husband for their wedding night since they could not afford a honeymoon). I tried to no avail. Barbara Ann would not return phone calls and when she did get back to the bride, would not call the hotel on our behalf.
Venue/barn: It is an old pre-existing barn that was actually used as a barn and turned into a place to hold weddings. There are bird droppings on all the ceiling beams. It smells like a barn - moldy and old. When the ceiling fan was turned on for the reception, feathers and bird droppings flew off of the fan blades (as observed by several guests). There are two toilets (which had not been cleaned) and one sink with no hot water.
Rehearsal: We wanted to get through at least two practice runs of the rehearsal. That did not happen because Barbara Ann would not stop talking about herself and how wonderful she was, etc. We asked about the ceremony vs reception seating since alter on one end and the bridal tables on the other. We were concerned about family members not being up front for both the ceremony and then the toasts/cake cutting, etc. Barbara Ann assured us that she would make sure to keep tables reserved on both ends and she would physically get the family members moved. We barely made it through rehearsal before she was rushing us out the door but not before she had to make sure to continue to boast about herself while doing so. She hyped herself and the venue up so much that we thought to ourselves "ok, she's overbearing but she will be there for us when we need her".
Wedding morning decorating: We were scheduled to arrive at the venue at 10am to decorate but my sister wanted a little extra time so requested 9am. She was charged extra to be there early! My sister and I arrived to the bridesmaids folding napkins (provided by the venue at which there was not enough as promised so we had to use two different colors) and Barbara Ann setting up the tables. We proceeded to decorate all the while listening to Barbara Ann's life stories (so much so that it was hard to get stuff done). We had reserved tables for family during ceremony as well as reserved tables for the reception. When we finished decorating, we ate lunch that I catered in from a local restaurant. I put the cold leftovers in the fridge and rest of the food in the catering bag and set it on the counter to take home later.
Bridal Suite/Grooms suite: We made our way the bridal suite. There is a lower and upper floor. It was very small. There was hardly enough room for the bridal party let alone a makeup artist, hairdresser and photographer. The upstairs had a bed (which is entirely unnecessary) that takes up most of the space in the upstairs and there was not a place to hang my sisters beautiful wedding gown. No hooks or anything to display it for pictures, to steam it, etc. There was only a small closet. We had to end up hanging her dress from the curtain rod! The groom's room had a pool table, etc for the guys to keep busy. That is the ONLY plus. There was not a mirror in the room, no hot water, no shower and the bathroom was unfinished. The entry to both of these suites was unkempt. There was not a nice walkway to the venue. Golf carts are available to take the bridal party; however, sitting down would wrinkle our dresses so we had to walk in the grass and dirt to get to the venue. Landscaping was lacking and there was a dirty cat roaming about that kept trying to get in.
The wedding was scheduled to start at 4pm. Barbara Ann had told my sister that schedules never happen when they are supposed to so be flexible. Well, at around 3:30, Barbara Ann had told my sister that schedules never happen when they are supposed to so be flexible. Well, at around 3:30, Barbara Ann rushed into the both suites and proceeded to tell everyone to finish up and get out. My sister and I were still upstairs. The bridal party began frantically looking for bouquets, boutonnieres, etc. and since they were rushed, did not properly get them to the right person. The guys were rushed to the venue first and were told their items would be moved to the venue. The bridal party was then rushed out to get the venue. I had to run back to the bridal suite sometime after this to get something read more