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The Peabody Essex Museum is a bright and spacious wedding venue located in Salem, Massachusetts. The main focus of this museum is to connect people to one another through art and culture. With worldwide relationships both past and present at play throughout this venue, PEM is an intriguing place to secure a lasting bond with your partner.

Facilities and Capacity

This monumental building features a bright and spacious atrium, art galleries, and tranquil gardens. The expansive Atrium can host up to 270 guests beneath an impressive sky-light ceiling. Boasting a large open floor plan, this abundance of space is ideal for wedding receptions. The East India Marine Hall lends an element of sophistication to any event within it. The room is consistently flooded with light due to its large Renaissance-era Palladian windows. This space offers a selection of venue options from intimate art gallery spaces to dignified ballrooms.

Services Offered

The professional staff at PEM are available to help plan events and assist couples on their special day to ensure that everything runs smoothly. The museum has an exclusive catering company for celebrations hosted at the venue. Their caterers can work with clients to create a personalized menu that suits individual budget requirements. This venue is also available to host engagement parties, rehearsal dinners, and wedding receptions. Setup and cleanup, lighting equipment rentals, and tables and chairs are provided by The Peabody Essex Museum.

History

The Peabody Essex Museum was founded in 1799 with the hopes to broaden its visitors’ knowledge of one another and the world around them. This museum displays some of the earliest art discovered in America, Australia, and the Pacific islands. These exhibitions are arranged to show guests the connection between specific artistic and historical artifacts and their cultural traditions. As one of the nation’s oldest museums, PEM was among the first to gather pieces of work from across the globe and display them.

FAQ

Do you have a site fee for wedding receptions at your venue?

Yes

What is the starting site fee for wedding receptions during peak season?

$10,000

What is the starting site fee for wedding receptions during off-peak season?

$10,000

Do you have a site fee for wedding ceremonies at your venue?

Yes

What is the starting site fee for wedding ceremonies during peak season?

$1,000

What is the starting site fee for wedding ceremonies during off-peak season?

$1,000

Which of the following are included in starting site fee?

Chairs
Clean Up
Set Up
Tables

How many event spaces or rooms does your venue offer?

1

Describe your venue:

Museum

What kind of settings are available?

Indoor

Which of the following wedding events does your venue service?

Ceremony
Reception
Engagement Party
Rehearsal Dinner

What event services do you offer?

Clean Up
Event Planner
Event Rentals
Outside Vendors
Wifi

What event items are available?

Chairs
Lighting
Tables

What transportation and access is available?

Parking
Wheelchair Access

What months are included in your peak season?

January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December

What months are included in your off-peak season?

January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December

Still have questions?

Reach out about anything you didn't see answered here—no question is too small!

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Reviews of Peabody Essex Museum

This AI-generated summary gives you a snapshot of the overall ratings and feedback from the reviews this vendor has received.

Review summary

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The Peabody Essex Museum (PEM) has garnered high praise from numerous reviewers for its stunning venue and exceptional service. From the seamless wedding experience to the elegant and timeless ambiance, couples rave about the beauty and uniqueness of the space. Venue coordinator Natalia and the entire PEM team receive accolades for their professionalism, kindness, and meticulous attention to detail. Guests were impressed with the impeccable organization, delicious catering by Gourmet Caterers, and the picturesque setting in Salem, making PEM a top choice for couples seeking a magical and stress-free wedding experience.

Review summary

Powered by AI
This AI-generated summary gives you a snapshot of the overall ratings and feedback from the reviews this vendor has received.

The Peabody Essex Museum (PEM) has garnered high praise from numerous reviewers for its stunning venue and exceptional service. From the seamless wedding experience to the elegant and timeless ambiance, couples rave about the beauty and uniqueness of the space. Venue coordinator Natalia and the entire PEM team receive accolades for their professionalism, kindness, and meticulous attention to detail. Guests were impressed with the impeccable organization, delicious catering by Gourmet Caterers, and the picturesque setting in Salem, making PEM a top choice for couples seeking a magical and stress-free wedding experience.

Weddingwire
5.0/5 111 reviews
Google
4.6/5 4094 reviews
Melissa
Melissa Sent on 11/05/2023
5 out of 5 rating

Fantastic, accommodating, beautiful venue

Everything about this venue is wonderful. The location is perfect, the staff is accommodating, and the overall vibe of the event spaces are exquisite, high end, beauty. My wedding was here 6 months ago and my guests are still telling me it was the best wedding they've ever been too.
L
Laura Sent on 10/24/2015
5 out of 5 rating
The PEM Is amazing and so is Natalia and her staff at the museum along with the Hawthorne's staff and catering. It was the most perfect night. Everyone was happy and all the details and planning paid off beyond my imagination. The pre wedding meeting was great and so helpful because they knew exactly what I wanted and planned it all perfectly. When I saw the East India Marine room done up for my wedding I was speechless. it was as though I had set it up myself because it was just as perfect as I wanted it to me. Natalia was so accommodating and helpful. I could go on and on but you just need to see the room to know how beautiful it is. My guests all raved about it that it was like being in a time warp and just not having to think about anything because there was so much to see and look at. I am still reliving the night and so happy!
E
Eric Sent on 04/26/2022
5 out of 5 rating

PEM is the perfect wedding venue!

The Peabody Essex Museum is a HIDDEN GEM tucked within the cobblestone streets of Salem! And, it’s the PERFECT VENUE for a wedding! Not only is it a unique venue, but the staff is incredibly kind and knowledgeable, especially Natalia Laskaris (Director of Events). My husband and I were absolutely blown away by Natalia’s composure, professionalism and talent throughout every step of the planning process. We were most notably grateful for some advice she shared in the home-stretch; it truly helped us enjoy every moment of the wedding we worked so hard to plan. We couldn’t have picked a better venue for such an important occasion — mainly because of Natalia!
U
User5624975 Sent on 08/27/2014
5 out of 5 rating
We had our rehearsal dinner here, and it was stunning! This is an incredible venue, and the food was excellent. There is only one caterer to choose from, which is not ideal; however they did an outstanding job customizing a menu to our vision and serving delicious food!
U
User2014509 Sent on 01/19/2015
5 out of 5 rating
This venue could not have been more perfect!
U
User1489949 Sent on 05/16/2014
5 out of 5 rating
I highly recommend the lovely Peabody Essex Museum wedding reception venue based upon my recent positive experience with Natalia Laskaris, the Manager of Private Functions & Rentals and her team. Natalia is friendly, experienced and professional and coordinated a wedding reception which was beyond our expectations. She was very responsive to our planning questions and worked seamlessly with our vendors, including the Hawthorne Catering team (under Lindsay Otis and Liz) which provided fabulous service and delicious quality food and beverages. The Museum venue has that WOW factor which impressed our guests and provided unique photo opportunities and wonderful memories. Our cocktail reception was held in the dramatic Atrium room with dinner and dancing in the historic East India Marine Hall. The Museum is in close walking distance to the Hawthorne Hotel and Salem Waterfront Hotel which made for a wonderful wedding weekend experience with our guests. A constructive point of attention for future brides is that the Museum shuts down sharply at the end of the night. As such, if there is an interest in having an after-hour gathering with your guests, I would suggest meeting with local area bar/restaurant management in advance to confirm their ability to accommodate such a gathering. The Salem hotels have strict quiet policies and the local/hotel bars which we had understood would be open late were closed the night of our wedding. Overall, we were very happy with our wedding reception and our friends and family are still raving about the event several months later. We wish we could do it again!
Duncan
Duncan Sent on 06/20/2025
5 out of 5 rating

PEM is a venue cheat code for your wedding

As non-wedding people, we couldn't have chosen a better venue. Using PEM was like a venue cheat code.

First, PEM stands on its own as a wedding venue -- it doesn't need a lot of extra decor, lighting, etc. We went pretty minimal on these "extras" for our wedding, but our guests still loved the venue, commenting on how elegant the space was, how much they loved walking through the galleries and seeing the exhibits as part of the wedding experience, and how fun and interesting was the East India Marine Hall in which we had the dinner and dancing.

Second, the on-site staff and in-house/exclusive caterer, Gourmet Catering (GC), handled everything with aplomb day of. Our wedding went super smoothly and PEM and GC really went above-and-beyond in terms of their level of service: (1) We had a beautiful staging room, which was always well-stocked with food and beverages (champagne, among other drinks) as we transitioned from ceremony to cocktail hour to dinner and dancing and made for a great place to take pictures. (2) PEM and GC staff frequently checked in with us to make sure everything was going well, though without at all being overbearing and even helped with some last-minute hair adjustments. (3) PEM staff did all of the setup and breakdown for us -- we didn't have to worry about a thing.

Finally, we love Salem and the area around the museum. PEM is situated in a great place for pre- and post-wedding activities.

People often asked, as they do, whether we were stressed about the wedding. Especially as the date drew near. With PEM as our venue, I can honestly say that the answer was always no. We're so happy with our decision to choose PEM.
G
Gabbi Sent on 12/26/2023
5 out of 5 rating

Amazing Venue!

Natalia was fantastic! As a wedding planner planning her own wedding, my fiance and I were looking for a venue that was unique and spoke to us, but also one that had extensive experience with the intricacies of running a wedding.  Natalia and PEM ticked all of these boxes, along with being such an incredibly beautiful building, and an experience that our guests will never forget. Natalia was with us through the whole process, toured us through the space, gave our parents a second tour, and let us come by as much as we needed to plan out our ideas. She was even there overseeing the set up on our day, and made sure to check in with us! Even as a functioning museum having many rules to protect the art, they always worked with us to be as flexible as possible and offered us solutions as needed. We loved our whole experience, and love that we can come back and visit our wedding venue anytime :) Thank you to the whole PEM team, and especially Natalia! 
U
User895930 Sent on 08/11/2012
5 out of 5 rating
The PEM is a great venue. All of our guests were amazed by the space (we had guests from NYC, DC, France, London, etc. and many said they have never seen such an amazing and unique). We had the cocktail hour upstairs in the East India Marine Hall and the reception downstairs in the atrium. We had amber uplighting which made the space amazing. Natalia was a pleasure to work with and the museum was very accommodating. We had the ceremony in a private residence and PEM easily accommodated our plan to have the PEM as our rain back up (luckily we did not need it!).
U
User1939848 Sent on 08/18/2015
5 out of 5 rating
We held our wedding at PEM in August of 2015 (with Hawthorne Catering) and we were so happy with the venue and its team. The museum itself is so unique and we loved that we could have a modern look at cocktail hour in the Atrium and then a more traditional but still interesting look in East India Marine Hall for the Reception. We also took pictures in the Asian Garden which look fantastic. It's such a great venue in that it's sophisticated but not stuffy and there is lots for your guests to look at. Plus there are a number of hotels, b&bs and churches within walking distance. But even more importantly, their team is awesome. Natalia is so friendly, so organized and so helpful - I felt like I was in great hands from the start and she happily put up with my many post-it notes and directions for the day of the wedding. She was always quick to respond to my questions and coordinated everything perfectly the day of so I had nothing to worry about. Jen and the rest of her team also made sure everything ran smoothly all night and even noticed that I left my grandmother's pin on my bouquet and put it aside for me at the end of the night. Once we looked at PEM we knew it was the spot for us and we were thrilled with the way everything turned out!
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Awards

111
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2024 Winner
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WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2020 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2019 Winner
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Professional Network & Endorsements

Ceremonies & Passages Ceremonies & Passages Wedding Officiants

Lovely arts based venue. Professional staff.

Lisa Love Experience Lisa Love Experience Wedding Bands

What a spectacular venue. From the friendly staff to the great food to the amazing energy and sites in the museum. I must say this has been one of my favorite places to perform at.

The Feds Weddings The Feds Weddings Wedding Photographers

Wonderful location and great staff!

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Peabody Essex Museum frequently asked questions

Peabody Essex Museum includes the following items and services for wedding events in its starting site fee:
  • Chairs
  • Clean Up
  • Set Up
  • Tables
The space offered by Peabody Essex Museum for wedding events is known for:
  • Museum
Peabody Essex Museum offers the following indoor/outdoor options for weddings:
  • Indoor
Peabody Essex Museum offers the following types of wedding events:
  • Ceremony
  • Reception
  • Engagement Party
  • Rehearsal Dinner
Peabody Essex Museum offers the following services for wedding events:
  • Clean Up
  • Event Planner
  • Event Rentals
  • Outside Vendors
  • Wifi
Peabody Essex Museum offers the following furniture and decor items for weddings:
  • Chairs
  • Lighting
  • Tables
Peabody Essex Museum is recommended by 100% of couples who have used their services. Their overall rating is 5.0, with the same score awarded for quality of service, flexibility, value, professionalism and average response time.
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