I was lucky enough to attend a beautiful wedding here over the weekend. Both the ceremony and the…read morereception were hosted in the space. Upon arrival, parking was widely available and easily marked. The venue itself is comparable to a greenhouse overlooking a wooded landscape with a pond and large deck overlooking the water. You couldn't ask for a better space. Natural light pours in and there were tons of plants making it a cozy and natural atmosphere. With the lighting features and design of the space, you can easily customize it to make it your own with flowers, color additions, bars in different spaces and a variety of table layouts. All of the staff that we encountered were friendly and on top of it. I can only speak for the space as an attendee versus the actual event planner. In summary, this place is a beaut and probably one of my favorite venues I've encountered in the Circle City.

Great Venue! Quiet Location! Amazing Building! Spectacular Deck! I was an event planner for a…read morewedding here and it was a gorgeous venue! The glass and black beams at night make you feel like you're amongst the stars. I figured I would let the pictures I took speak for my review!

From the first visit to the end of the event, there was never a doubt that this venue was the right…read morechoice. Everyone I worked with was amazing! The communication and helpfulness is everything you'd expect and want from working with a venue and they were so open and welcoming. I hosted a conference for the non profit I volunteer for and it was such a beautiful space. I would book another event in a heartbeat! It was an all women event and they even have a sign to put over the men's restroom sign to have more restrooms for women! They have thought of everything!!

Allison Mansion is, at least in my opinion, deceptively ordinary on the outside. Oh sure, it's a…read moremansion and you can tell it's a mansion. However, looking on the outside can't begin to prepare you for the wonder of what's on the inside of this former residence that now serves as the Office of the President for Indy's Marian University. The mansion was first built by James Allison, co-founder of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Indianapolis 500. The ceiling's Tiffany stained glass windows allow the sun to shine brightly inside. The mansion's most impressive room was, in fact, originally designed as a marble aviary by Allison to contain his wife's exotic bird collection. The 2-story, red-brick arts and craft style home continues to have an expensive chandelier imported from Germany, a sunken conservatory, and a 2-story pipe organ. Seriously. The property itself is remarkable. Atop a cliff that overlooks a wetland, the property includes greenhouses, ponds, and orchards. Seriously, I would become Marian University's president just to spend time in the office. Allison passed away in 1928 and the property remained unsettled until it was acquired by the Sisters of St. Francis - the founders of Marian University. At one point, public tours were offered but this is no longer the case. You can, however, rent it for events (which is how I've been inside, though it's definitely not wheelchair friendly in any real sense).

Circle City Tours took a roll through private Catholic Marian University and my eyes feasted upon…read morethe beautiful Craftsman Allison Mansion. One reviewer stated "The Allison Mansion remains perfectly restored and beautiful to an almost eerie degree." Eerie alright--there is a disquiet about the Mansion: it is said to be haunted! Builder James Allison was a wealthy man and founder of the Indianapolis Speedway and Allison Engineering Company. The mansion was built between 1911 and 1914 and is now on the National Register of Historic Places. Allison died young from pneumonia at age 56. The mansion was later sold to what is now Marian University,. However, many locals and visitors feel that Allison never really left the building! Most stories claim Allison still haunts the mansion, rearranging books in the library and furniture as he sees fit. But there are other ghostly goings-on here: the spirit of a little girl who drowned in the basement pool still lingers around the mansion. "Visitors claim to have seen the ghost of a little girl and even heard shrill screams and heartbreaking cries from the basement. Voices in the attic have also been reported," said www.onlyinyourstate.com. I can understand the ghost of Allison hanging around: this place is plush! No expense was spared while building the two-story, red-brick, arts-and-crafts-style Mansion. The exquisite marble aviary was built for Allison's first wife's exotic bird collection, Also impressive: the expensive chandelier imported from Germany, a sunken conservatory, and a magnificent music room with a two-story pipe organ. Outdoors, enjoy lush gardens, manicured lawns, greenhouses, ponds, and orchards that overlook a wetland now restored and maintained by Marian University. Upon Allison's death, there was some concern about the historic property's fate. Bless the Catholics: Allison Mansion was eventually acquired by the Sisters of Saint Francis, who also founded Marian University. Allison Mansion is still part of the university. It is open for public tours and can also be rented for private events. The Mansion is a feature on annual Halloween Ghost Tours. 5 YELP STARS for spooky spectacular!

Great property. Nice and clean and comfortable and friendly staff. Very close to the Indy Motor…read morespeedway.

The hotel is very clean, and the rooms are spacious and comfortable, with a nice size bathroom. I…read morewould definitely stay here again if I were in the Speedway area. It is easily accessible from the 465 interstate and would be a great hotel choice for the Indianapolis 500 race weekend. A special shout out to Maria who helped me check into my room an hour earlier to attend a wedding 15 minutes away. I love the Chat function on the Hilton app that allowed me to converse with the front desk and state my request ahead of time. That is another reason why I am a Gold member with Hilton! I also like the bar and lounge area in this Hampton. It was much larger than I expected with a wraparound bar and big screen TVs. I want to give a shout out to the bartender, Shakeata, who was a pleasure to talk with and who makes a great cocktail! There is also a nice fitness facility and a free breakfast, with good options. Parking is also free. Overall, everything was great. The only issue I had was the shower and the lack of adequate hot water right away from the shower head. It took a FULL MINUTE for the warm/hot water to come on (around 11am). Considering it was 20 degrees outside at the time, it was initially concerning that I may have to contact the front desk to determine if the hot water system was working properly. I was on the 6th floor (top floor) and maybe it takes that long for the hot water to reach that level, but this might be something the management may want to look into at this facility.

Wow!! What a transformation!! I haven't seen this building since it was Jonathan Byrd's restaurant…read more The exterior is now black and white which is very classic and understated. The Nest Event Center is located in Greenwood just off I-65 at Main Street. The parking lot is quite large and will accommodate a large event. The interior is amazing and you'd never know it was a former restaurant. The lobby area is very attractive, decorated in beiges and cream, and I could see using this for cocktails, a reception line plus so much more. It worked well tonight for purchasing tickets plus an area to sit and relax while enjoying the fireplace. The versatile ballroom is quite large and can handle everything from a wedding, conference to special events. One of those special events is the Holiday Craft Show tonight. The Event Center has a neutral color scheme and can accomadate most bridal or conference color schemes. This proved to be true with all the colors associated with the Holiday Craft Show. Tonight all different color schemes were used and all the crafts looked wonderful. With this neutral backdrop any decor theme would work nicely allowing brides or companies a great deal of flexibility and creativity. The Holiday Craft Show was a huge draw. Many different types of vendors filled the ballroom carrying Christmas decor, wreaths, jewelry, clothing, wool mittens, woodworking projects, signs, candles, crocheted items, lap blankets, floral arrangements and much more. There truly was something for most anyone's interest and many gift ideas. In the future I would like to take an official tour and checkout pricing for a yearly event I'm involved with. This is a beautiful venue with endless potential.

This is an absolutely amazing event center. It is an absolutely stunning location and the staff are…read moresecond to none! They are so helpful and nice and go above and beyond in making your event absolutely perfect! The location is absolutely perfect for any event you might have, weddings, birthdays, anniversary's, literally anything. There is only one issue that I have with the nest. I had never believed in the supernatural before... but this place is indisputably haunted. There is absolutely no question about it! But don't let that deter you! The haunting spirits just add to the charm and fun of this event center. I hope you have an amazing event!