Where to get married in Denver {Part 2}

In a big city like Denver figuring out what are the best Denver wedding venues, best Denver vintage wedding veues and where to get married in Denver can be a bit of a challenge. I know I’ve heard a lot of people say in planning a wedding they are busy every Saturday looking at venues, interviewing vendors and well their lives are consumed with wedding planning. So, in my goal to help couples plan their wedding by posting ideas and vendor interviews, I’ve decided to include a couple of posts about the best Denver wedding venues and where to get marred in the Denver area. Last week I talked about vintage wedding venues that I’ve photographed before (which you can read here) but today I want to share with you denver wedding venues that I haven’t photographed before but believe would be fitting for you, my current or future client, who loves all things vintage, creative and romantic.

All of these Denver wedding venues I’ve personally visited and meet the coordinator or owner. I am sharing these places with the fair warning that I honestly do not know how well these venues work under pressure of an actual wedding day but saying that the people working there seemed professional and the venues is in my opinion are one of the best denver wedding venues.

I haven’t visited EVERY venue in the Denver area, but did spend time researching a lot; looking for places that would fit your style and places that I would love to photograph one day. I believe these Denver wedding venues are a place to get married in the Denver area.

At first Cheeseman Park was not  first on my “Best Denver Wedding Venues” list, but after visiting the area and thinking more photographically I feel in love. This Denver wedding venue is absolutely amazing. It has a great outdoor space yet the most beautiful covered area in the Denver area.

The architecture is STUNNING!!! I mean where else can you get these columns! The area around the pavilion in summer blooms beautifully and would make for some spectacular vintage photos. Not to mention you have the entire park to go take photos in later. There are also some remarkable trees around. I can only image how astonishing this space is during the summer.

Cheeseman Park is definitely a vintage Denver wedding venue, hands down. I don’t think I can fully express how much I love this area for a wedding. I seriously think if I were to do a vow-renwal in the summer or fall I’d hands down pick this outdoor wedding venue because it is so unique.

I wasn’t able to interview anyone for this Denver wedding venue because it is city property, but as with all other city properties it probably isn’t expensive, and you can bring in your own caterer. Since I do have venue info here is a link to where you can get more info: http://www.denvergov.org/parksandrecreation/DenverParksandRecreation/RentalsPermits/tabid/443649/Default.aspx

The Highlands Ranch Mansion made second on my best Denver wedding venues and where to get married in Denver because it isn’t as affordable as Cheeseman Park, but is definitely as beautiful and amazing. So much so, that when I toured the venue I decided it truly needs its own post. So, for now here is a photo of Highlands Ranch Mansion. But keep posted for more next monday April 1st, 2013!

Third on my list of the best Denver wedding venues and where to get married in Denver is The Studio at Overland Crossing. The whole buidling was built in the late 1800’s and is actually owned by artists who use a seperate part for a studio. The middle of the building is the wedding venue area. When I visited a handful of place this made the top of this because it is stunning! The lighting inside the space is gorgeous and the building has exposed brick and that rustic, vintage, modern mix that works so well together. The event coordinator Kimberly can tell you all the unique was to convert the space to accommodate your style and needs. This wedding venue can truly be transformed in so many ways to fit you.

Some of my other favorite parts about the venue is that your guest could all use the light rail to get to the venue. Also, you can use the parking lot or back court yard that faces rail road tracks as an outdoor lounge. Another great perk is you can bring in your own caterer. There is also this cute court yard entrance that you could utilize as a unique entrance for you guests. Yet, another perk is that they are a single wedding venue, meaning two weddings aren’t happening at the same time. You can have plenty of time before to set up, which is great to get all those amazing detail shots of your wedding before your guests arrive! 😉

In interviewing all the different venues I first asked a few question to help you out. So here are the answer for this wedding venue, The Studio at Overland.

• How many guests can you have? 165 cocktail party style.
• What is the price range for the wedding venue? $2,500-$3,000
• Are there “off” days? Sunday-Thursday
• Can we bring in our own food or caterer? Yes, but you or your caterer are responsible for all clean up and load out.

Like I mentioned before I haven’t photographed a wedding at this venue but I have visited it, so here are a few photos from my visit at the wedding venue, The Studio at Overland Crossing

 I have to be completely honest, I am a bit hesitant to put The Manor House on my best Denver wedding venues list because it is VERY expensive on a Saturday. But, if you have the budget it would be a fabulous venue. I cannot say how well the service is because in the 5 minutes I meet with the venue contact she wasn’t the most friendly person in the world, but that could be because I’m a photographer and not a bride. So, just keep that in mind, I will not back their service because I haven’t experienced it.

All of that aside, the views around The Manor House are phenomenal. You are truly in the heart of the foothills, and having photos taken during sunset in this area would be mind-blowing. Not to mention the lovely charm this old mansion has. It really does look like something right out of the heart of the south, with amazing mountains surrounding. I do love the columns in the front porch, but if that is all you love I’d say go to Cheeseman Park, but if you want an actual house with places to get ready and hang out with your party, then this would be it.

• How many guests can you have? The even tent (pictured on the left) holds up to 200 but as of March 2014 they will have a new structure which will seat 300 guests.
• What is the price range for this wedding venue? $$2,000-$9,000
• Are there “off” days? Yes, Sunday-Thursday
• Does the venue come with an event coordinator? Yes
• Can we bring in our own food or caterer? No

I love that from the bar area you can see the foothills.

Next on my wedding venue list for the best Denver wedding venues and where to get married in Denver is Wash Park Studio. This space is small but intimate. The owner is actually a commercial photographer who uses the space for his studio work, but on the weekends it is converted to a wedding venue. I really love this Denver wedding venue because it is intimate, a little rustic vintage, and a bit modern. The Wash Park Studio is a blank canvas, so you could really make the space into anything you’d like. Another great part about this wedding venue is that it is a couple blocks from Wash Park, so you could still get amazing photos outside or have your ceremony outside and then come to a fully enclosed spaced for a reception. The only down fall of this venue is that parking kinda stinks; in that it is street parking, free but not plentiful. But for the price you pay, it could totally be worth having your guests walk a couple of blocks. A good alternative to this is hire a valet service for your guests.

• How many guests can you have? 80 sit down style; 120 cocktail style
• What is the minium for this wedding venue? $1400
• Are there “off” days? no
• Can we bring in our own food or caterer? Yes, but you or your caterer are responsible for all clean up and load out.

When I visited the studio the owner had just finished some commercial work so it wasn’t cleaned up, so I didn’t take any photos, but I did snag a few from the wedding venue website so you can see the space.

Next up is Mile High Station. This made the best Denver wedding venues because it has SO much character. This building has exposed brick everywhere, a balcony and is ridiculously big so it can hold a lot of people! Mile High Station is a great Denver wedding venue because it does have that vintage, rustic, romantic feel to it. It is a space that could be converted into whatever your heart desires. It also has its own parking lot which is nice, but it is a bit challenging to access.

In going to tour the Mile High Station, I had the address in my apple maps and it had me do some crazy u-turns and I ended up on the on ramp to I-25 south bound when it proclaimed I had arrived. hahah oh Apple, why did you ever let google maps go!

Anyway, this wedding venue is very beautiful and has a lot of personality to it. It could be a bit challenging photographically and will not get those super bright and sunny photographs that you could get at The Studio at Overland Crossing or Wash Park Studio, but you can have a very romantically lit wedding at Mile High Station.

• How many guests can you have? 600+
• What is the price range for this wedding venue? $1,200-$7,000
• Are there “off” days? Yes, Sunday-Thursday
• Can we bring in our own food or caterer? Yes, but you or your caterer are responsible for all clean up and load out.

Parkside Mansion is also another great Denver wedding venue. It is right across from City Park and is real old mansion. The venue definitely has that old time vintage feel but has been renovated to be stylish and accommodate a decent amount of people. The wedding venue has a parking lot and can use their neighbors parking lot when they aren’t open. You can have a full outdoor wedding upstairs on the balcony or you can use the inside ballroom for an indoor wedding. This venue is truly unique in being one of the few actual mansion venues in the heart of Denver.

The reasons why I’ve added this to the list of best Denver wedding venues and where to get married in Denver is because it is an old mansion that has the vintage feel already set. It has space  for a lot of people and is in the heart of Denver with access to go take photos outside in City Park.

• How many guests can you have? 100-150 seated; 350 cocktail style
• What is the price range for this wedding venue? $850-$3200
• Are there “off” hours, days, seasons? Yes, 9-4 is off hours, Monday-Thursday is off days and January-March and November is off season

When I visited this venue I was  a bit of a dummy and didn’t bring my camera. I visited this venue before I planned to write these blog posts and was just networking with venues. But I did snag this photo from their website.

Boettcher Mansion made this best Denver wedding Venues list because it has that rustic mountain feel with a bit of character. The Boettcher Mansion was built in 1917 by a German entrepreneur, thus the german name and architecture! The great part about this venue is it at the top of Lookout Mountain so you can get the “in the mountain” wedding venue feel without be too far from Denver. The coordinator shared with me that they can have outdoor weddings year round here because they have heated walk-ways; which I really appreciate because I adore winter weddings, and there aren’t very many alternatives to outdoor winter weddings outside of ski resorts.

• How many guests can you have? 120 inside and an additional 80 outside on our patio connected to the main room.
• What is the price range for this wedding venue? $250-$800 per hour
• Do you have a minimum? Yes, 4 hours which includes 1.5hrs of free prep time, we supply and set up all the tables and chairs.
• Are there “off” days? Yes, Monday-Thursday
• Does the venue come with an event coordinator? Yes, for planning purposes. We do have staff the day of the even from start to finish. They are here to make sure the vent goes well and help your guests and vendors with any questions or needs they may have.
• Can we bring in our own food or caterer? Yes, but you or your caterer are responsible for all clean up and load out.

I was a little bummed that this venue didn’t have better views from it, but if you walk 3 minutes outside the grounds you can get this view.

Phew, I hope this helps you in deciding your perfect fit for your budget and wedding. And if you need a Denver wedding photographer, we’d love to chat!