Okay. Sonoma Psers... have you heard about or been to THIS place.

[Gypsy]

http://www.markwestlodge.com/

Hummingbird Gardens are Mark West Lodge. The coordinator has been just... WOW. And while they are a little far, we''re going to go and take a look on Saturday.

Have you been here? Seen it? Heard anything... ???

 

[zoebartlett]

Hi Gypsy!

I haven''t been out to that area of CA so I can''t comment on the venue but it looks beautiful! I clicked around the site a bit and noticed all the pics in the wedding section. They''re all beautiful but I especially love the last pic - the stained glass windows with the grape vines and flowers. They''re gorgeous!

How far would it be for you and your guests? I wouldn''t let that, alone, determine whether to go with this place or not.

 

[Gypsy]

It stated seating capacity fits everyone but I haven''t seen the space. Looks lovely from the pics. And is VERY reasonable. Crossing my fingers. Hoping it''s nice, and presents itself well, and that I like it, and John likes it.

 

[cara]

OK Gypsy, you are running closer to my venue and price range so I thought I'd throw it out there:

hans fahden vineyards

The pictures on the website don't really do it justice. Maybe search for bios on the knot. It is a lovely English-style garden with a pond, and has a cave for dinner with a room for dancing. They also have some great vendors they work with regularly that will compare well with that package from Hummingbird. If you are interested and driving up that far. I think they put together packages for smaller weddings so you could talk to them about setting something up, and I used several of their go-to vendors and had good experiences...

I haven't been to hummingbird itself but the area is lovely.

ETA: Not that you need more choices!! But if you are driving up already...

 

[Gypsy]

Looks beautiful! Thank you for the recommendation, I just emailed them.

Honestly, I need more choices not less. I''m feeling trapped by the whole Wente or Garre thing... I want to say NEITHER.

I like Hummingbird because while the package is inclusive, they let you opt out of two of their vendors of your choice and subtract that amount from your total to them. Which is great, because there are somethings I''m just not that invested in. I asked for a package that opts out of the photography, because I have my photographer and the price was very good for all that it includes based on 80 people. And if I like the place when we go see it and book it, I''ll wait for the tastings of the cake and food, and for a talk with their florist before I decide if I want to opt out of one of them, or just go with what they offer.

So it''s a lovely area? It looks lovely from the pics, so I''ve got a little bit of hope going.

 

[goldenstar]

One thing I do when thinking about venues and other vendors is look them up on yelp.com. You type in the city, then the name of the site/vendor/etc. Its a website full of reviews. I take them with a grain of salt though, because one person can have a bad experience while others have really great experiences. But the reviews do give you a heads up on any issues and such.

 

[Gypsy]

Hi Goldenstar, that was VERY helpful! It gives me a tool in what feels like a battle! LOL. Where did you end up booking BTW?

 

[goldenstar]

Oh man, don''t get me started. I had a previous thread about the place that wanted me to book 8 months out and no earlier. Well, I got them to agree to booking 12 months out. We have not been there yet, but it looks really really promising. Our site visit is not until March. The date we want is April 25, 2009. I would totally tell you the venue but I feel like its a hidden treasure (not that I''m hiding it from you, its everyone else I''m worried about). I''ll tell all if we get our date. If we visit it and don''t like it, then we''ll probably choose from our second and third picks (formerly #''s 1 and 2).

 

[Gypsy]

No problem hon. I thought maybe you''d booked, and I''d missed the post.

We''ll go and see the hummingbird place... wiser now for the negative review of the place. I''m worried about the whole ''lodge'' thing. I''m not a lodge type of gal, generally speaking. But, hey... it''s worth a look, right? Plus if cara''s site''s pricing is in range, I might be able to swing a visit to both.

If you we have a GTG soon, maybe you can divulge your ''jewel'' to me?

That sounds like motivation for a GTG soon (although we keep saying that).

 

[goldenstar]

Date: 1/30/2008 2:23:06 AM
Author: Gypsy

If you we have a GTG soon, maybe you can divulge your 'jewel' to me?

That sounds like motivation for a GTG soon (although we keep saying that).

Yes, I'd tell you.

Just for a frame of reference, the website says that the site fee ranges from $1,000 to $3,000 depending on the space chosen. Meals range from $50- $200. That's a huge range but since you are planning a smaller, daytime wedding you'd be at the lower end I would think.

It's a hotel/resort though, and I know you don't like hotels. But I think this is different enough to satisfy you. However, you seem to like more romantic garden-y settings. The place I'm liking is really contemporary. Not sure if that's the aesthetic you were going for.

 

[violet02]

Gypsy, did you ever try Nestledown for wedding venues? I''m not sure if you mentioned them or not.... my friend''s sis just had her wedding there and it''s supposed to be gorgeous.

 

[Gypsy]

Goldenstar... I do want a romantic feel. But my own personal style is very contemporary most of the time, so I have to fight it when I''m looking at venues, dresses, cakes.... But the contemporary thing is something I''ve acquired, I put it on sometime in law school and just didn''t take it off until it became a part of me. So for the wedding I''m TRYING very hard to stay true to the romantic, flowy dress, garden loving me I am deep down. Which is why I''m generally trying to stay away from hotels. Because it becomes a slippery slope and the next thing I know, I''m booked at Villa Ragusa... a place with a good reputation, good food, a lot of stress free aspects... but ultimately, not ''me'' and definitely not John.

Violet... Nestldown looks beautiful and just amazing. It''s very much John''s ideal location. And I think it''s beautiful too and it would be a definite contender. I have asked them for pricing information, but the reason I haven''t moved on them is 1) I think I''d need to shuttle the guests up there and 2) It doesn''t look very handicap friendly and I''m going to have my grandfather on a scooter... and my mom will just be recovering from her third surgery on her back (scheduled for March). So I was greatly concerned about that. Every place that we are considering is generally handicap friendly. Scooters and wheelchair accessible anyway. But I will follow up with them on that, because it really is a lovely location.

 

[violet02]

Date: 1/30/2008 1:50:32 PM
Author: Gypsy
Violet... Nestldown looks beautiful and just amazing. It's very much John's ideal location. And I think it's beautiful too and it would be a definite contender. I have asked them for pricing information, but the reason I haven't moved on them is 1) I think I'd need to shuttle the guests up there and 2) It doesn't look very handicap friendly and I'm going to have my grandfather on a scooter... and my mom will just be recovering from her third surgery on her back (scheduled for March). So I was greatly concerned about that. Every place that we are considering is generally handicap friendly. Scooters and wheelchair accessible anyway. But I will follow up with them on that, because it really is a lovely location.

I actually contacted them at one point. They charge $9900 base fee for up to 150 guests from May-Oct of this year on saturdays (differnet pricing for other days of the week). There is a $2500 damage deposit, and fees for any additional overages you may have. If you contact them they send you a pretty extensive list of information. They're pretty booked up for Saturdays this year. They have other days available too.

Here's what they say about accesibility:

Access to Events Area. Transportation will be available to carry physically challenged guests
from the parking area to the Barn and is included in the rental fee. Most areas of the property are
wheelchair accessible.
Should the renter desire to offer transportation to ALL guests attending the event,
arrangements for a rented golf cart with driver may be made for an additional fee. Please discuss
details with the Events Manager for pricing and confirmation.

 

[Gypsy]

9900 BASE fee? No............ darn it. I was getting excited about Nestldown. That''s just out of my budget, unfortunately. WAY out of budget. Still, will wait for the wedding packet for further information. Thank you Violet!