My now-wife and I initially booked the National Press Club back in October of 2019, when we needed a space that would have held 150-200 guests. Flash-forward to a spring and summer of uncertainty in 2020 that many had to deal with, and we were unsure that we would be able to be married at all.

Yet, that space and size turned out to be lucky for us, as we were able to use the National Press Club to have a socially distant, pandemic-restrictions-compliant, wedding and dinner reception for 30. Throughout the process of planning, George and his team were able to roll with all of the changes such a ceremony would entail, from rethinking seating arrangements to designing menus. Most importantly, he and his team were responsive throughout the entire process as we reconfigured the ceremony to meet the new normal: no concern was too small for an email or a phone call, and George was always able to come up with an answer that would help our day go off as smoothly as possible.

On our wedding day, George and his team at the National Press Club did a great job of managing all of the processes: from setting us up with "get ready" rooms, to working with our other vendors, to changing the decor from ceremony to reception, to even helping us manage our "surprise" entrance to the reception. (Of course, the food and drink were delicious as well!).

We received many compliments from our guests throughout the evening and after the wedding about how special of an event we held, and how safe they felt (everyone was wearing maks, completed temperature checks, and complied with the local Covid rules), even in these uncertain times. Much of the credit for that can go to George and his team at the National Press Club: they preserved our dream wedding date with a fabulous wedding. Highly recommended.

We got married at the National Press Club in December 2025, and we had an amazing experience. We toured about 8 wedding venues leading up to the event, and when we toured NPC, it just felt different.

First, it was apparent that NPC was a great value compared to other wedding venues in the area. They waived the venue fee if you hit their food and beverage minimum, and they were up front with any additional fees/taxes. Since we were trying to reserve the venue at the end of 2024 but had to wait until 2025 to sign the paperwork due to the holidays, they still allowed us to be grandfathered in to 2024 prices. Additionally, NPC has different ways of charging for the bar - from bar packages to a ticket system to a consumption bar. Knowing our guests, we felt that paying by consumption would work best for us, and we were glad to have that option since not all venues offer it. Since we were having people fly in, we really wanted to have a venue that was in walking distance to hotels, partly so we wouldn't have to worry about paying for transportation to the venue and adding another logistical element. The NPC is nice because the JW Marriott is literally right next door, which makes for a great room block. Finally, NPC and hotels in the area are metro-accessible.

We ended up reserving the ballroom, First Amendment lounge, and Holeman lounge for our wedding as well as side rooms for the groom's party to get ready and for the wedding party to hang out before the wedding. The rooms themselves look so cool - from the First Amendment lounge you can see the White House, and the Holeman lounge is classic and picturesque for a ceremony. The blue carpet is beautiful and adds to the D.C. vibe. In comparison, some other venues we looked at had carpet that detracted from the beauty of the space.

Secondly, NPC is very flexible and responsive. We ended up asking our POC- Renee (who's amazing!)- a ton of questions as we were planning our wedding, and she was always responsive and professional. After we had a lower number of guests RSVP than we expected (120 instead of 150), we asked to move our ceremony from the ballroom to the Holeman Lounge about 3 to 4 weeks before our wedding, and Renee was able to accommodate us. Some other things we asked for were: specialty cocktails (French 75 and Old Fashion) (although the bar can make many different types of drinks for your guests); we modified the Filet Mignon to be served with Mashed Sweet Potatoes; we had three entrees for guests to choose from; we added a Dessert bar and used the NPC's projector; we asked to remove the flags hanging on the wall in the ballroom and the video screens in the lobby area; and we used a mixture of NPC glassware and rentals. NPC handled our rentals being dropped off and picked up without issue - you just have to communicate the times to them so there's not a conflict with another event. NPC also allowed us to drop off our decor the week leading up to the wedding and pick it up the following week, which made things a lot easier for us.

Finally, everything at NPC went so smooth the day of the wedding. The food was absolutely delicious and we had multiple guests rave about the appetizers, the main course, the dessert, and our additional dessert bar. They worked so well with all of our vendors to make everything run perfectly and on time! I had multiple people tell me it was the classiest and most fun wedding they had ever been to and a lot of that was due to NPC.

So many things about NPC made this such a beautiful wedding. Our wedding was one of the best days of my life! There are a lot of wedding venues in DC and it can be a big decision. For us, choosing NPC made our dream wedding a reality!

National Press Club is a wonderful wedding venue. We couldn’t have been happier with our choice to have our wedding reception there! Renee and the whole team were incredible to work with - so responsive, detail-oriented, accommodating, and helpful. We looked at 12 venues in DC and NPC was by far one of the best values plus we loved the flexible space options, that all catering and furniture was in house, and it was a great location especially for out-of-town guests. The food was delicious and high quality was a huge menu of options and they were great about accommodating dietary restrictions too. Highly recommend!

Our wedding at the National Press Club was an unforgettable experience, and we owe a huge thanks to George and the entire team for making it truly magical.
To start, the NPC was a beautiful venue. It provided the perfect backdrop for our special day. Its historic charm and elegant atmosphere set the stage for a truly memorable celebration. We recommend seeing it in person to get a sense of how large of a space it is and the great bars set up for cocktail hour. It was a great space for a live band.
Beyond the excellent venue, George went above and beyond to ensure that everything ran smoothly on our wedding day. He was an absolute pleasure to work with from start to finish. He was incredibly easy to communicate with, accommodating, and flexible, ensuring that every aspect of our wedding was exactly as we envisioned. From coordinating with the band for setup and receiving vendors on the day of the wedding to attending to our needs throughout the night, he was attentive to details, proactive, and always one step ahead.
For example, we walked through the venue a few weeks before the wedding and talked about what we wanted with George. Every little detail we noted was taken into account and executed perfectly by the NPC and George. George's extensive experience in weddings was evident in the invaluable advice he provided. From menu selections to timing details, his insights were incredibly helpful in ensuring that our day unfolded seamlessly. Another example of George’s attention, when we arrived at the venue after the ceremony and photos, George brought us cold drinks and warm appetizers, just what we needed to refuel before we joined the reception!
The food and drinks at the NPC were also excellent. The steak was perfectly cooked. The hit was the vegetarian acorn squash entree, which George recommended to us! The endive salad and a dessert from a local bakery were also hits. Everyone raved about the food and cocktail hour appetizers. We appreciated the opportunity to taste multiple menu options ahead of time, allowing us to customize our menu to perfection.
Finally, the National Press Club team was incredibly flexible when it came to dropping off and picking up items for the wedding. They also graciously allowed us to take some early photos, adding to the convenience and ease of our day. Throughout the night, everyone at the National Press Club was warm, welcoming, and eager to assist in any way they could. Their kindness and professionalism did not go unnoticed and added to the overall exceptional experience.
To conclude, we highly recommend the NPC for your wedding. They are incredibly accommodating, pleasant, and helpful to go along with delicious food and a beautiful venue.

After touring the National Press Club we immediately sent an email to book. This unique venue was the perfect fit for our DC wedding! George was an excellent resource from start to finish, explaining the Press Club's offerings, coordinating with other vendors, and making sure that we had everything that we needed to have an amazing day. And the food! Unlike so many lackluster venues, the food at the National Press Club was delicious.

Best kept secret in Washington DC! This was the best decision we ever made and it is insane this famous venue is accessible at this price point. Weddings have become outrageously expensive with a million moving parts and when we found the press club we couldn’t figure out the catch. We were able to accommodate almost 200 guests in downtown Washington DC with in house catering for better pricing than standard hotels and venues in Virginia or Maryland. Our guests were all coming from the west coast and some for the first time to dc so to bring them into a historic venue with views of the White House and reception in the same room of the correspondence dinner made it an unforgettable venue. George is absolutely fantastic and the definition of a true professional who loves his work. He helped us create our dream wedding and was available to assist us with any question or request. The food is absolutely to die for and the chef is incredible. This is restaurant quality food with a huge selection of options, perfectly cooked beef, and incredible house wines; our guests haven’t stopped raving about it. I have been told by so many of the guests that this is one of the coolest most memorable weddings they have been to. Thank you to George and the press club for the most unforgettable magical wedding.

Long story short - our wedding was worth the wait! My husband and I started our wedding planning process in 2019. We were one of the couples who did a micro wedding in 2020 (at a different location) and rescheduled our big party twice - once in 2021 and finally had the chance to have our party in 2022. We wanted our wedding to be safe and DC to be open by the time we had our big wedding. NPC is a great one stop shop. They provide the rentals (tables, chairs, stage, dance floor, etc), catering, alcohol, and the space has plenty of rooms! We picked out the food in March 2020 and the food this past weekend was still perfect over 2 years later! George Arfken is who we worked with for years and he is very responsive, straight forward, and professional via email. We can’t recommend the venue enough, especially for busy professionals like my husband and myself! Our family and friends had the best time this past weekend and we appreciate the venue being so flexible with all our reschedules.

Where do we even begin! The venue made our wedding. My husband found this place on wedding wire and we fell in love with the minute we walked in. It's such a historic, unique place to have a wedding, and the pricing is not that much different than doing it at a hotel. Not only that, the food is incredible, and working with Cara and Michelle who are the event planners for the venue were the icing on the cake. They handled everything for the day of coordination. They were also so accommodating when we had to move our original 2020 date due to COVID. We are so happy with the way everything turned out and we can't recommend this place enough!

National Press Club is a perfect DC wedding venue! It has everything you want amazing venue, food, and staff! It gives off a classic "old school" DC vibe. We loved that everything could be done in one spot and that there was plenty of room to get ready before hand. Since our wedding was in December the Press Club is already decorated with poinsettias everywhere and Christmas tree which brought a whole other beautiful vibe to the venue. The food is outstanding- best wedding food I have ever had! So amazing that my husband and I go back every year for our anniversary to the restaurant and have a lovely meal (same chef)! If you are looking to have a classic, unique, and regal feel of a wedding the Press Club is the spot in DC!

We had an amazing experience working with the Press Club. From the get-go, we worked with George who was incredibly warm, welcoming and easy to work with. Although COVID presented challenges to our plans, George was a wonderful partner throughout and we cannot highly enough recommend!