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Weddings

About

The Carousell Works Historic Event Center carries on a tradition of hospitality that began in 1907 when the Big Lake Amusement Park entertained thousands of visitors and the community’s crystal clear lake and sandy bathing beach drew visitors from miles around. Located in the historic brick schoolhouse in the heart of Big Lake, within easy distance of Elk River, Monitcello, St. Cloud and the Twin Cities, the Carousell Works is the perfect place for your gathering: a charming, vintage setting at an affordable price. One of the largest wedding and event venues in central Minnesota, the Carousell Works has a seating capacity of up to 325 and is a private event venue. Flexible room arrangements offer infinite possiblities for your wedding, event, or tradeshow. Vintage brick and polished maple floors (dating to the 1930s) offer a sophisticated beginning for your wedding or event decorating scheme. Smaller spaces at the Carousell Works are well suited for business retreats, meetings or more intimate parties, such as groom’s dinners, anniversary parties and birthday parties.

Dining at the Carousell Works is reminiscent of some of the best country clubs and restaurants in Minnesota. Our in-house caterer, A Catered Event , will surely make your celebration one to remember. Schedule a viewing today and experience the Carousell Works for yourself. We look forward to serving you. 763-263-7779.

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Frequently asked questions

How many event spaces or rooms does your venue offer?

1

Describe your venue:

Banquet Hall
Historic Building

What kind of settings are available?

Indoor
Uncovered Outdoor

Which of the following wedding events does your venue service?

Ceremony
Reception

What event services do you offer?

Accommodations
Event Planner
Event Rentals

What catering services do you offer?

Outside Cake

What event items are available?

Chairs

What food and beverage items are available?

Linens

Reviews of The Carousell Works

U
User2277119 Sent on 08/19/2015
5 out of 5 rating
Diane has been great to work with in planning out wedding. WE were able to get our date and then come in early to discuss what we wanted for our ceremony and dinner. She is allowing us in early so we can decorate and have our rehearsal so we can scope the place out with our photographer and wedding party and get out final details in order. She has been so kind and understanding that we have enjoyed working with her and even more excited for the day of our wedding. Her recommendations have been so helpful and wonderful and she even gave us some new ideas too.
M
Michelle Sent on 03/10/2015
5 out of 5 rating
I would recommend this place to anyone and everyone that will listen to me! It is set in an old school house that has the original (but sealed) hard wood floors perfect for dancing, she has her own table cloths chair covers and napkins at the location for you to rent from her if you choose to. It comes with a bar area (away from the dining room) a kitchen for the in house cater in back (guests wont know where they are coming from) and a guest greeting room outside of the dinning and dancing area. I had over 200 guests and it did NOT feel cramped when everyone was dining in the same room with the buffet tables and the cake and the DJ already set up in the same room. Diane (the owner) was so helpful with everything! She treated us as if we were family and was willing to bend over backwards to make sure our day was perfect! She helped so because I was planning my wedding out of state and she was very helpful. She greets guests when people start to flow in and gets people comfortable. She even saved our toasts when the DJ's microphone broke suddenly and didn't work she quickly turned on her sounds system and gave us her mic for us to use. This place is very reasonably priced also! Make sure you check this place out!
U
User1830607 Sent on 09/26/2014
5 out of 5 rating
Diane is great to work with. She helped make my wedding reception beautiful and very memorable! Thought everything turned out wonderfully!
M
Martin Sent on 06/30/2014
5 out of 5 rating
Diane was very easy to work with for our wedding reception. We loved the layout of the rooms at the reception giving our guest options to hang out away from the music or stay close to the action. We had lots of compliments on the food which was wonderful. The option to bring in our own alcohol saved us money and allowed us to provide drinks for our guests for the night.
P
Pam Sent on 11/06/2012
5 out of 5 rating
Diane at Carousell Works was wonderful to work with!! She helped us plan the reception and worked with us within our budget, and the wedding and reception were absolutely perfect!! I definitely recommend Diane and The Carousell Works to everyone!!! And the guests at our reception are still raving about A Catered Event's food...absolutely delicious!!!
Katelyn
Katelyn Sent on 10/05/2012
5 out of 5 rating
Diane was absolutely amazing to work with. Everything turned out beautifully and my husband and I are really pleased with the outcome of it all.
B
Bridget Sent on 04/15/2012
5 out of 5 rating
Diane was a great help. She and her in house caterer (Kevin with "A Catered Event") were very nice to work with. They are creative and helped us to put together the rooms in a way that suited our needs. The building is an old historic school building with wood floors and very high ceilings. It was not necessary to decorate much besides our table center pieces. They worked with our wedding planners' schedule to make sure the tables had all the linens on in plenty of time for them to put together the center pieces.

One big plus was the fact that they do not have a license to sell liquor. They allowed us to bring in our own alcohol (we paid $100 per keg from the liquor store and you'll never get that kind of price at a typical reception venue) and they provided the bar tenders. We did have to pay the bar tenders but that was a minimal cost when considering how much money we saved on alcohol.
J
J Sent on 08/23/2011
5 out of 5 rating
The Carousell Works was the PERFECT place for a wedding reception! From the moment we initially signed the contract we were taken care of. The staff was very helpful in determining the meal, the table linens, and other details that are often overlooked. The food was AMAZING!! We are still getting compliments on the overall atmosphere and catering. The building gives a unique space for a reception with a very affordable price. Thank you to the staff for making our day so special!!!
M
Jessica Sent on 07/21/2011
5 out of 5 rating
We have nothing but good things to say about the carousell works and a catered event foods! We were able to set up the day before and when weather ruined our plans of getting married outside, we had no problems getting the ceremony moved to the carousell works. The staff was very helpful in making sure everything turned out great for our big day! They helped our ceremony and our reception run as smooth as possible! The food was outstanding and we heard about it all night long!! At least a dozen people said it was the best food they have ever had at a wedding! Kudos to Kevin and his team on that!
J
Jamie Sent on 01/12/2011
5 out of 5 rating
we had so many compliments on how beautiful everything was - it is truly a gem of a location and the entire team made us feel comfortable and took care of everything for our special day!
We're all about trust. Our community relies on honest reviews to help you make those big decisions with ease.

Awards

24
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2012 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2011 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2010 Winner

Professional Network & Endorsements

1 Endorsement
Phodot Photography Studio Phodot Photography Studio Wedding Photographers

Mark and I just photographed our first event at The Carousell Works in Big Lake. The natural light that pours through the windows is beautiful for photographs. We are very excited that we have a wedding to photograph this August at The Carousell Works. I'm positive the bride and groom will love the venue.

Map

The Carousell Works frequently asked questions

The space offered by The Carousell Works for wedding events is known for:
  • Banquet Hall
  • Historic Building
The Carousell Works offers the following indoor/outdoor options for weddings:
  • Indoor
  • Uncovered Outdoor
The Carousell Works offers the following types of wedding events:
  • Ceremony
  • Reception
The Carousell Works offers the following services for wedding events:
  • Accommodations
  • Event Planner
  • Event Rentals
The Carousell Works offers the following furniture and decor items for weddings:
  • Chairs
The Carousell Works is recommended by 94% of couples who have used their services. Their overall rating is 4.7 out of 5 with the following breakdown: 4.8 in quality of service, 4.8 in average response time, 4.7 in professionalism, 4.6 in flexibility and 4.6 in value.

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