The Perfect Venue
I was married at Dodasa in May 2019 and picking Dodasa as our wedding venue was THE BEST decision I could have made. It will be hard to summarize what an absolutely amazing and perfect wedding we had, but I’ll try to describe our big day so that you’re able to envision what your wedding could be like, if you choose to host it at Dodasa Ranch too.
First of all, I need to say thank you to Dawn, Don and Sarah for being absolutely WONDERFUL in every possible way. I‘ll come back to them =D
As for our wedding, we had a weekend long event starting on Friday afternoon until Sunday at noon. We had 55 people stay on the property, including our wedding party, immediate family, and closest friends. Then we rented a charter bus to bring the remaining 65 guests from the Hampton Inn in Lodi to the property on Saturday for the wedding, for a total guest count of 130. We also invited the 65 non-ranch guests to the Sunday brunch as well, which I am so glad we did! After how much fun everyone had on Saturday, they were thrilled to come back on Sunday for brunch.
Friday evening was a blast. The amount of excitement while everyone was arriving was soooo much fun. Everyone was finding their cabin and hanging out on their porches enjoying the weather and talking to their neighbors. Some of our guests didn’t quite understand the concept of the shared cabins when we tried to explain it, but once they got there they loved it!! While the wedding party rehearsed, all the other guests gathered on the pavilion patio area enjoying drinks and reconnecting with people they hadn’t seen in a long time. Then it was time for the rehearsal dinner. Dawn had decorated the pavilion with a bohemian theme and it was adorable. All my girlfriends commented on how cute it was and couldn’t believe that this was just the rehearsal dinner décor!! The food was also amazing. We had margaritas, a fajita bar and a churo donut desert. It was to die for. We hadn’t tasted any of their food beforehand as its all cooked family style but all the reviews we read said the food was great, so we went with it. The reviews were right on, the food was excellent. We had some toasts, played some games and ate some smores. It was a perfectly chill night before the big day!
Saturday morning started early and folks walked up to Miss Kitties for breakfast. It was casual and fun to see everyone that morning. Especially for me as it was going to get real busy, real fast that day. The girls headed to the bridal suite for a day of hair and makeup. The bridal suite was the best!! Furnished super cute, large enough for the 8 girls I had in there all day plus 3 hair and makeup gals (and definitely room for more if you have more in your party). It had a makeup chair installed which I loved and they brought us champagne and food throughout the day. All the other guests on the ranch went trap shooting, played lawn games, fished and used the paddle boats. It was so cute to look at the window of the bridal suite and see all my guests having fun. After the activities, the guys headed up to the cottage, which we used at the groomsmen getting ready area.
After pics and first looks it was time for the ceremony. They opened the doors to the beautiful blue gate and it was a very special entrance for my dad and me. The DJ they used (James) and the officiant (Ed) were both wonderful throughout the ceremony. We met with both of them beforehand to explain our vision and wants and they executed it perfectly. Ed is a very warm man, and it was nice to have such a good person officiate our wedding. Dawn and her team had decorated the ceremony area beautifully with flower arrangements on barrels, the tree wrapped in white lace, dream catchers hanging from the tree and the best part… CRACKERJACK, their donkey, wearing a flower crown to great the guests upon their arrival. The property in general and all the extra décor not only looked amazing in person but our professional phots turned out so pretty as well…. There are so many locations on the property for cute photos.
Then it was time for the cocktail hour, wedding party entrance and dinner. The pavilion was decorated exactly as Dawn described it would be and even better! I was really impressed with how many flowers they used on the table arrangements as well as the lovely fireplace décor, table settings, and sweetheart table…. everything was just gorgeous. The pavilion seated our 130 guests perfectly and left a good amount of room for a dance floor. The service was great, the food was great, the music was popping, and everyone partied up until the very end. We did a sparkler exit to the last song at about 10 o’clock and it was the perfect climax to the event. The non-ranch guests headed out while everyone else enjoyed a late night snack and smores and hung out either by the pond, the fireplace, the firepit, or on the porches of their cabins for several hours talking, laughing and drinking until it was time to go to bed.
But the fun wasn’t over!! Sunday, EVERYONE came back together for one last delicious brunch cooked up by Don and his team, and accompanied by mimosas and bloody marys! The weather was perfect all weekend but it felt especially blissful sitting in the shade on Sunday morning as everyone shared their favorite parts of the night before.
On Sunday, I also had the pleasure of hearing what an amazing time everyone had. Many of our guests are used to attending weddings at wineries, nice hotels, exotic locations, etc. I can honestly tell you that since my wedding, nearly every single one of my guests has told me something along the lines of ‘it was the best wedding I’ve ever been to’ or ‘it was the most FUN I’ve ever had at a wedding.’ And each guest went on and on and on with their personal favorite touches which ranged from the food, to the property, to the décor, to the team of people making it all happen. Which brings me to Dawn, Don and Sarah….. I cannot thank them enough for creating this amazing location and for planning and executing the wedding of our dreams!!!! You three are the BEST and I don’t think another team could have pulled off what you did. On top of pulling off a great wedding, they are also the nicest, warmest and most generous family!! If you can believe it, after we returned home from our honeymoon in Greece, we found they had sent us a wedding gift. Can you believe that?!? They sent US a gift. We are the ones that owe them. Everything they did was personal and special and perfect.
To summarize, if you’re considering getting married at Dodasa… do it. And then don’t worry about a thing! I know it’s easy for me to say that in hindsight, but I can’t imagine a bride much picker than I was (about almost every detail)! I documented everything I hoped and wished for and talked through it all in advance with Dawn in multiple planning meetings and then she took care of EVERYTHING. It was all flawless and all 100% stress free to me, ESPECIALLY the day of.
I’ve been talking about Dodasa Ranch ever since May 11th and I’ll continue to, in hopes that one day I’ll be invited to attend a weekend wedding there too!!!!