Outdoor Weddings

My sister and her fiance plan to get married sometime in the summer of 2010. They are wanting to find a place in the Louisville area for a wedding of around 180 people that is outside. They also want the wedding and the reception at the same location.

She and my mom have checked out a number of places, many of which are too small or don't have a good outdoor spot (too close to the parking lot, etc.) or too small a reception area. Places turned down include Whitehall, Garden Court, Locust Grove, the winery off Seatonville (too windy of a road!), and Ginger Woods.

They have two places in mind that may work. The first is Hurstbourne Country Club, which has a nice outdoor area by an interesting (fake) burned out Civil War era chapel. They have their own catering, but it is connected to Sullivan so you can't go too wrong with that! The other location is a prospective outdoor wedding site at E. P. Tom Sawyer Park, but with the economy, we are afraid those plans might fall through.

Anyone know of any other outdoors wedding spots that are near a good sized reception facility? We also are wanting something at a decent price, so nothing extravagant!

Anyone know of any other outdoors wedding spots that are near a good sized reception facility? We also are wanting something at a decent price, so nothing extravagant!

Marie, I can't vouch for the price but some very down-to-earth people I know got married at Yew Dell Gardens and loved it. You can choose your own caterer and there is an on-site alcohol license, plus loads of outdoor atmosphere.

I attended a wedding & reception at the Farmington Historic Plantation a couple of years ago and it was wonderful. I've also heard that Whitehall is even better, a couple of friends have been contemplating that. The only problem with both is that for the number of people mentioned the reception would have to be outdoors (my friends did that option and it was very nice), they have huge tents that can be rented for just that type of purpose. Here's a link that will show both: http://www.historichomes.org/index.html

I got married in the courtyard of Kye's then had the reception indoors in Kye's I. For 180 people you would probably have to have the reception in Kye's II. The courtyard is between Kye's I and Kye's II and permanently tented. It was very nice. After the wedding we were able to go down to the river and take pictures in the park and with the Louisville skyline. I highly recommend it.

I performed a wedding service at Farmington's last year and it was really nice. As mentioned, the reception would have to be outdoors, but this particular couple put up a tent with dance floor and everything else. It was a really nice location.

Kris

Old Capital Golf Club

Very affordable and easy to work with. Indoor and outdoor areas for the reception. The outdoor areas consist of a large concrete patio and a deck overlooking the golf course. The indoor areas consist of a dining area, bar area, and a "sunroom" overlooking the golf course.



http://www.oldcapitalgolf.com/catering_wedding.php

Here's a second vote for Yew Dell Gardens. They have a refurbished ... well, it's a barn but it's so much more than a barn. The building has been updated by the architectural firm of De Leon and Primmer. It's beautiful and worth a look see before she settles on someplace else. The only other building I've seen as impressive for a wedding - other than a church- was the out door chapel at Pebble Beach.

If you're still looking... I'm getting married in 3 weeks at the Garden at Ray Eden. Mark Cain is great to work with, the gardens are gorgeous, and the price is a fraction of what you'll pay at Whitehall and Yew Dell. PM me if you'd like more info or google it; it should come up.