Absolutely, under any circumstance do not go with Orcas Events and subject yourself to dealing with Veronica. My wedding was cancelled due to Covid and even though there was a Force Majeure clause and also on her website it said I could get my deposit refunded within 30 days of the event she still refused to give it back. It took over a month and a half to get this answer with 4-5 days in-between e-mail exchanges with a laundry list of excuses. I wish I would have read the reviews before going with them because it sounds like many people had similar experiences. *EDIT: below is a photo with a time stamped picture of her website deposit return policy that she claims I found "confusing". The cancellation was within 30 days the items rented were not on the exclusion list. She took the policies down when I asked for my deposit back which just goes to show how dishonest this company is. read more

Orcas Weddings & Events - Wedding Planning Near Me - Eastsound, Washington

Run. Run as far as you can from this place. Run from Veronica's fake happiness and excitement. Rent from Friday Harbor. Rent from Anacortes. Rent from Seattle if you have to, but DO NOT rent from Orcas Events. I got married on Orcas Island a couple of weeks ago. My now-husband grew up on the island and we got married in his parent's backyard. It was the most amazing, spectacular day of my life. The only thing that soured it was Veronica at Orcas Events. From the beginning, my husband and I had concerns with Veronica. We first met with her 11 months before the wedding, and she seemed fake and a little rude, but we also didn't know anyone else on the island who did rentals. We went home to Los Angeles and I had intended on researching other places in Anacortes and Friday Harbor, but I'm a bit of a procrastinator, so we figured we'd just go with Veronica. We started emailing with her. Well, actually AT her. Because she was very slow to respond. And when she did, she would only answer one of our three or four questions. We've never planned a wedding before. We were looking for advice for how much to rent for an 80 person wedding. *Crickets* We did our best to figure it out ourselves. Flash forward to 6 weeks before the wedding. Our number had gone down to 70 and according to our contract we had to notify her of any changes 4 weeks in advance. I changed around the invoice, but it's like she didn't even take the time to look at the thing. She sent it back incorrect and took 2 or 3 times for her to finally get it right. But on a positive note, the day of the wedding, everything we ordered was delivered and nothing was forgotten. Oh and by the way, her contract says "We reserve the right to make changes to our policies and procedures without notice." So then what's the point of having a contract? The absolute WORST part was Veronica's unprofessionalism. The day of the drop-off, she was upset that we didn't have a tent to cover her outdoor dance floor that we rented. I explained that even if we did have a tent, it wouldn't have walls. She claimed that it would keep the dance floor from getting wet from dew. I don't know how long she's lived on Orcas Island but I've only been there 5 or 6 times and even I know a dance floor is gonna get wet from dew if it's not indoors. A tent without walls isn't gonna do shit. Which is why we rented the OUTDOOR dance floor. In any case, we promised to keep the floor covered by a tarp at night. She delivered us 4 outdoor heaters. One didn't work and when guests tried to turn it on, it cracked. She claimed we broke it. Even though her guys working for her took no care taking it out of the pick-up truck and were banging it all over when they were moving it. She finally relented and apologized for the heater but she only gave us a $25 equipment discount when she should have refunded us the full $100. After the wedding, she tried to charge us for a mandap that we didn't order (I didn't even know what that was until now) and in general tried to squeeze as much money as she possibly could out of us. Veronica is greedy, manipulative, and a horrible business woman. I'm not sure how she stays in business. It's not through referrals so it must just be for all the one-off clients that plan a destination wedding on Orcas. If you can't find anyone else, and I mean absolutely anyone else in the entire world that fits in your budget, be really really careful and do not expect an easy transaction. read more

I do not normally write poor business reviews, but I thought it necessary to help others avoid finding themselves in a similar situation as me and my fiance. Our May 2020 wedding on Orcas Island was unfortunately canceled due to COVID and Governor Inslee's proclamation restricting events of this nature. We had booked Orcas Events to provide the tents, chairs, etc. for the event. There was a Force Majeure clause in the contract that stated "performance by either party is subject to governmental regulation or other emergencies that make it illegal or impossible to provide rental equipment to the clients' event." After consulting with a lawyer in the state of Washington, it was the opinion of the lawyer that this situation surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic certainly applied. Veronica with Orcas Events has refused to return our deposit claiming that several items on the invoice are nonrefundable due to them being custom tailored to our wedding, however, all items chosen for our wedding were chosen directly off of her website and non-personalized and she has given no evidence or details as to what those specific items are, despite numerous attempts asking her to do so. We believe that she should keep a small portion for her time in creating the invoice, but there was literally no other work done that would warrant her keeping thousands of dollars. Most of the other vendors that we had worked with for this event were more than fair, but Veronica and Orcas Events have been far from it. Unless you want to find yourself in a similar situation for reasons similar to ours or as a result of other circumstances, I would avoid working with a company that conducts themselves in this way. There are other off-island companies that will provide similar services on Orcas Island. read more

Time has passed and I am now able to write a review for this company without emotion. When everything first happened a few years ago I was a wreck and all attempts to write a review were just not going to be helpful. Wedding can be so stressful and so I waited. But, now I can and so I shall. I had the misfortune of working with Veronica when trying to plan my wedding at Rosario (when she was still the wedding planner for Rosario). I ended up canceling the wedding with her and relocating it to another venue. I had many reasons for canceling my wedding and changing all our plans, but the main, over ridding issue is that Veronica just seems to not give a hoot about her clients' big day. A wedding is a BIG deal for the bride, groom and their families. You want someone who can help you and views your wedding as a priority. I never got the feeling from her that that was the case. There was a lot of misinformation, misleading representation of services and general incompetence which made me VERY nervous. Overall, I'd stay far away from this company for anything other than the most basic rentals. read more

We had hired Orcas Events/Veronica San Martin both for our rentals and as our day-of wedding coordinator. The rentals were extremely overpriced, and I consistently felt like she was trying to squeeze another dollar out of us for unnecessary items. She also only picked up the rentals 5 days after the event itself (which took place at a residence). This rentals, though, were unmemorable. What was memorable was the terrible experience we had with the day-of-coordination. Leading up to the event, Veronica was less than responsive, often did not respond to emails or calls, and lacked attention to detail. On the day preceding the event, she refused to collaborate at all with the caterer, even when the caterer was standing several feet away from her, and forced us to position ourselves as mediators when trying to negotiate who was going to do what. On the day of the event, she was nowhere to be found halfway through the reception, we had to manage on our own the timing of events, and she simply made our lives more stressful. These are just a couple of examples of a really disappointing service provider. I am not one to write reviews, but we just had such a terrible experience that we felt we should warn people to not waste their money on her services. read more

I should have listened to all of you!!! Veronica was deceptive in her charging, extremely rude and unprofessional, and an overall nightmare to deal with. She tacked on false charges and was horrible! I want everyone to know that you are much better off doing ANYTHING other than using her services. She was really the very worst part of a wonderful event! read more

I rented some wedding supplies (folding chairs) from Orcas Events and Rentals, and had a great experience with Veronica and her staff. She was quite responsive in the months leading up to the wedding. All of my correspondence with her was over email, and it was always professional and timely - I never had to wait too long to hear back. Yes, the prices were slightly higher than off-island, but they delivered and picked up without a hassle, and the stress it saved me was worth it. The staff member who delivered the chairs to the event was very nice and helpful. Also, I ended up hiring Orcas Events staff through Veronica as a "strike team" the day after the event to come in and break down all of my decorations, chairs, etc. for an additional - very reasonable - fee. However, the day after the event, her staff was nowhere to be found. My parents ended up having to collect all the table centerpieces and decor, which wasn't a big deal but hadn't been part of the plan. I contacted Veronica about this, and she very kindly explained the mix-up in scheduling and promptly sent me a refund check for the services. In my experience, Veronica and Orcas Events have been great to deal with - very professional. They are local on the island, which helps when coordinating with other local vendors, as most everyone seems to know everyone else - at least in the wedding business on Orcas Island. Of course, having a wedding on Orcas Island obviously makes it a little bit more of a laid-back event, as there are no 4-star resorts on the island. That should go without saying. Timeliness and communication can be a little bit different, but I had a fabulous experience, as did all of our guests. read more

I have used Orcas Events rental tents for two events and want to give them two thumbs up. Super friendly and professional, their team quickly set up the equipment perfectly and it was exactly what we needed. Thank you Orcas Events! read more

If you are using Orcas Events I'm assuming that your wedding is either on Orcas Island or in the San Juans. Orcas Events has been around for a very long time and is the most experienced game in town when it comes to weddings decorations. I was a little apprehensive going with them because of all of the negative reviews I read, but in the end, it is always better going with local venders (aka ferry is a nightmare) and you will probably save yourself a considerable amount of money. That being said, I don't really feel like my wedding decorations were executed to the vision I dreamed up. First of all I hate pipe and drape, UGH hate it. I wanted it used sparingly on parts of the room that were rather unsightly. When I walked in the entire room was covered with it. Ok. Another thing - when I tried to hire them for my wedding they didn't get back to me for 4 months and when they did, they said that they didn't have the one thing I wanted the most for my wedding - string lights to go back and forth across the ceiling. I was really frustrated. Needless to say, after several communications back and forth between Veronica from Orcas Events and my wedding planner, they made the café lights happen. I will say that Veronica and her team worked their butts off late into the night to get everything set up for the wedding. There were some last minute additions that cost an extra four hundred dollars. I was pretty happy with the lights until late at night, when no one was eating anymore and the lights were way too bright for the dance floor, also they got very hot and people had to go outside. It would have been ideal if the lighting could have changed for the various stages of the reception or if they at least had dimmers. If you are having your wedding on Orcas you should probably go with Orcas Events, but be VERY specific about what you want and think of all the fine details because otherwise they will be overlooked. Also you will have to be very persistent. read more

Fiancé emailed them, no response. I called approximately a week later, it took a day or two to get a phone call back. The representative informed me that they had to consult with their colleague about the rental equipment. Therefore, a representative with no answers called me. However, they promised me to call me back with an answer. It's been 7 days and I'm still waiting, even after calling and leaving them a message again yesterday. read more

I honestly have to say that I didn't even want to give one star to Orcas Events/Veronica San Martin. Planning a wedding from afar is not easy and her lack of communication did not help. I agree with Beth G and Chelsea W and Tom F. Her lack of communication, not responding emails or voice mails, etc. I also felt that she was trying to squeeze every single $ from me. During the ceremony, the lights were not working and she said she would work on it, but instead she blamed our dj for it. After trying to resolve matters with her after the wedding, she still has not responded emails or voicemail. If it wasn't because I loved the ceremony site so much, I would pay someone twice as much than to pay her again. Very very unpleasant and displeased with her service (or rather disservice). read more

I've been trying to reserve a tent for the last two months, emailing and calling. Veronica keeps promising to give me a quote "by end of business day" and then she fails to respond at all. read more

Veronica and her crew were excellent!! Very professional. Always staying in contact with us be it phone or Email. Thanks to her the wedding went off without a hitch! We kept changing our minds about how many guest were coming, how big of a tent we needed . Lots of challenges but all Veronica kept saying is "No Problem! " A couple of problems can up during the wedding, a chair had broke and we needed more plates and silverware and Veronia herself quickly came out to the wedding before the ceremony had even finished she made sure we had everything we needed. I highly recommend "ORCAS EVENTS". We had 200 + guests and they handled it like we had 50. Amazing! read more

Veronica was very helpful in the early planning stages of coordinating rental equipment for our wedding - we received very timely responses to emails or phone calls, which were much appreciated! Our guest count fluctuated as our the event grew near and we were in contact with her often due to these changes - I had to carefully review our list a few times to ensure everything was accurate but if there was an error, she was quick to fix it. The team who set up/broke down our tent and delivered chairs and linens were professional and friendly. read more

Veronica and her team were great! Everyone on her team was very great to talk to to while they were setting up. We tested the lights and we saw that 3 were out. They replaced them the next day! It made our big day come together. read more

My family and I were on the island this month and needed some very last minute equipment. I was about to spend hundreds of dollars on a generator until I found Orcas Events, it was $60 and variable! I could have kissed them I was so happy. Our pick up/drop off schedule was all over the place and they were very flexible with us. We lucked out, thank you! read more

Same here! One star might be too much. Veronica's staff and Veronica herself provided contradictory information to me that resulted in a service charge after our event. Because she was so rude and unpleasant, I just paid the fee rather than argue about $75 and create an unpleasant memory from our wedding. She was also abrupt with my friend who served as our day-of-wedding coordinator. Get your linens, glassware through your caterer and save yourself the hassle! read more

Being the only event rental business on the island, appears to have resulted in Veronica being able to get away with terrible customer service. Our rentals were scheduled to be delivered to our venue 2 days before our event. Instead, they were delivered piecemeal over the 3 days, all the way up to an hour before our wedding! The last delivery was done without anyone confirming receipt or inspecting it for accuracy. Several weeks after our wedding, we received an invoice from Veronica, charging us for 2 "missing" crates of glassware, including the crates. When we insisted there had to be a mistake, Veronica insisted that our wedding planner had signed for the delivery. This was a lie, confirmed so by our planner, who was with the bridal party at the time. In fact, nobody remembers seeing these glasses, including the catering staff. When we refused to reimburse her for glassware that never existed, she resulted to gossip, upsetting friends and family until we agreed to send her money. This is Not a woman you want to deal with. She is unorganized and incredibly dishonest. Please save yourself the heartache and rent off island. read more

Veronica was great for the rentals for our wedding. We did shop around and didn't do ALL of our rentals from them to avoid "island prices", but we did do all of our large rental items through them. Table cloths, plates, etc. In my opinion, it was worth the few extra dollars to avoid the hassle of taking them back to Seattle. She dropped the items off at the time we had chosen and picked up the dirty items the next day. We had curry and Indian food and it is never an easy clean up, but she didn't charge us for the inconvenience. I highly recommend Orcas Events. read more

We found Veronica and her crew to be very helpful, responsive and easy to work with. We had our wedding at Pebble Cove Farm so we needed all of our supplies brought in and we were doing everything via email. Veronica was extremely timely in her response and because she knew the island and the owners of the farm we felt very relaxed and confident in knowing she had done this before. Communication was great and we were able to get the tent set up early and exactly as we wanted it for the weekend. She was willing and able to hear how we wanted things to be and accommodated any and all of our special needs. We had many changes throughout the planning and she was always easy going and relaxed about it. Her crew was professional, timely and fun to work with. When we hired them they were in the process of updating and buying new supplies so we were able to say what we wanted and it happened. Weddings are a lot of work and if you want someone to hold your hand and do all the work for you I do not suggest getting married on the island. Reading other reviews I feel these people should have just stayed in their big cities and left the fun, relaxing, organic beauty of the island and its pace to those who can appreciate it and are able to think and do things for themselves. Uptight people suck and they should just stay home. We loved getting married on the island and all the people we got to work with. Our goal was to support the island and those working on it and we were very pleased with everyone and the work they did to make our wedding truly amazing. read more