9 Extravagant Wedding Venues of the 1%
The average wedding costs $26,522, which is a lot—but there’s a whole other echelon of weddings you may not be aware of. People without royal blood have been wedding like kings and queens all over the globe, from ultra luxurious resorts, grand estates, ancient castles, even taking over entire private islands -- and with a lavish enough budget, almost anywhere can become a wedding venue.
So what does the highest end of wedding venues look like in the United States? We asked the team at the venue-planning comparison site Wedding Spot. The following are not the priciest venues bar none; rather, these are the highest priced among the thousands of venues detailed on Wedding Spot, across a dozen regions (San Francisco, Napa Valley and other California areas, plus Hawaii, Miami, New York, and Boston) -- and most of them top six figures.
Museum of Science
Average wedding cost: $84,050 peak, Saturday wedding, 100 guests
Weddings at the Museum of Science can be held on the top floor, with views of Cambridge and the Back Bay, or among dinosaurs and other exhibits in the Blue Wing, or there’s the option of a pavilion on the Charles River.
Included in this rate is the ceremony rental charge, an on-site wedding day manager, a three-course plated menu, an open bar with premium liquor, a cocktail hour with hors d’oeuvres, and the reception with dance floor.
Gurney's Montauk Resort and Seawater Spa
Average wedding cost: $95,000 peak, Saturday wedding, 100 guests
This resort and spa in the Hamptons, which began as an inn 90 years ago, overlooks a private beach on the Atlantic Ocean. Wedding ceremonies --as well as bonfires, lobster bakes, and barbecues -- can be held on the beach.
The cost includes an event coordinator, an on-site manager for the day of the event, security, bride and groom dressing areas, valet and shuttle service, a ceremony with arch, optional tent rental if the event is outdoors, cocktail hour with hors d’oeuvres and heat lamps, reception with dance floor, stage, a buffet or three-course plated menu, and open bar with premium liquor.
Bear Flag Farm
Average wedding cost: $100,000 peak, Saturday wedding, 100 guests
A private Northern California estate near Napa, Bear Flag Farm is a functional farm of vineyards, citrus orchards, and lavender fields. And only about a dozen times a year the grounds open up for private events.
The cost includes the site rental fee, a wedding coordinator, valet/shuttle service, an on-site manager, ceremony with arch and aisle runner, cocktail hour with hors d’oeuvres and heat lamps, reception with chiavari chairs and dance floor, DJ, uplighting, tent rental, a three-course plated menu, open bar with premium liquor, wedding cake, a coffee and tea station, additional desserts, floral arrangements, and votive candle lighting.
Pleasantdale Chateau
Average wedding cost: $102,000 peak, Saturday wedding, 150 guests
Built for New York City chemical company executive Charles Water Nichols, Pleasantdale Chateau in northern New Jersey was modeled after the Norman architecture he loved seeing in northern France and southern England. Today it’s run by a family with six generations in the restaurant business who brought back the property’s farm, greenhouse, and apiary to supply event meals and the family’s local restaurants.
For this venue, there is no rental fee, but there is a guest minimum for all events (200 on Saturday, 150 other days). The cost includes a wedding coordinator, valet/shuttle service, on-site security, on-site manager, a three-course plated menu, open bar with premium liquor, ceremony set up, cocktail hour with hors d’oeuvres, reception with dance floor, stage, wedding cake, coffee/tea station, and additional desserts.
Museum of Fine Arts
Average wedding cost: $109,000 peak, Saturday wedding, 100 guests
As one of the largest museums in the country, Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts offers numerous backdrops for Saturday and Sunday wedding ceremonies, including an all-weather outdoor option -- the glass-enclosed courtyard.
The cost encompasses the site rental fee, food buffet and open bar, cocktail hour with hors d’oeuvres, and the reception with chiavari chairs, a coffee/tea station and desserts. Also included is a $30,000 required donation, designating the donor a Director’s
Circle member.
(Yes, museums can be event venues, and when you throw an affair, it’s not quite a “pay what you wish” night. For a ceremony and reception under the 94-foot blue whale at New York’s American Museum of Natural History--a venue not on Wedding Spot--expect a 200-guest minimum and a required $15,000 Individual Patron Membership-level donation. At least it’s tax-deductible and supports education and/or the arts.)
Cedar Lakes Estate
Average wedding cost: $113,000 peak, Saturday wedding, 100 guests
A onetime lakefront summer camp in the Catskills region of upstate New York, this rustic venue offers ceremony site options including a deck over the lake, a hilltop and a poolside patio, plus a barn of reclaimed wood and modern glass for a very Hudson Valley wedding reception.
That cost includes the site rental fee, event coordinator, valet/shuttle service, on-site security and manager, a three-course plated menu, open bar with premium liquor, cocktail hour with hors d’oeuvres, reception with dance floor, special lighting, coffee/tea station, and additional desserts.
Monarch Beach Resort
Average wedding cost: $120,000 peak, Saturday wedding, 100 guests
This Orange County coastal hotel and spa can host up to 700 wedding guests. That number should be no issue for the frescoed ballroom, as it’s the size of a mansion in itself--12,000 square feet. Among other indoor and outdoor event sites are a grand lawn with orange and olive trees, and the Pacific Promenade, inspired by a hall of mirrors.
The Monarch doesn’t charge a site rental fee, but there is a minimum food and beverage amount. The quote above includes a wedding coordinator, security, on-site manager, a buffet or three-course plated menu, open bar with premium liquor, ceremony with arch, cocktail hour with hors d’oeuvres and heat lamps, reception with dance floor, stage, coffee/tea station, and additional desserts.
The Resort at Pelican Hill
Average wedding cost: $125,000 peak, Saturday wedding, 100 guests
This Palladian-style resort modeled after an Italian seaside village is located south of Newport Beach on more than 500 acres. It boasts panoramic ocean views, an event lawn for ceremonies overlooking the sea, and the appropriately named Mar Vista ballroom for the reception.
That rate gets the happy couple a wedding coordinator, the rental fee, a four-course plated menu, hosted bar with premium liquor, ceremony with arch, cocktail hour with hors d’oeuvres and heat lamps, reception with dance floor, stage, votive candle lighting, wedding cake, coffee/tea station, and additional desserts.
Oceana Restaurant
Average wedding cost: $128,000 peak, Saturday wedding, 100 guests
This Michelin-starred seafood restaurant has been open in Midtown Manhattan for over two decades. It has a wine room for smaller events, plus the main dining room, the grand salon and an outdoor pavilion area.
Parties over 60 require a buyout of the whole restaurant for the night, so this cost includes that, plus a third-party wedding coordinator, day of wedding on-site manager, a three-course plated menu, hosted bar with premium liquor, cocktail hour with hors d’oeuvres, reception with votive candle lighting, special lighting, dance floor, stage, outside catered wedding cake, cake cutting, coffee/tea station, and additional desserts.