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Weddings

About

Tobacco Ranch Event Venue is a rustic barn and farm wedding venue located in Clare, Michigan. It is a historic ranch that is perched on a sprawling 80-acre property bordering Michigans’ well-known Tobacco River. Towering cedar trees, flowing creeks, and a serene pond make for a beautiful backdrop to any special occasion. The venue is situated less than a mile away from the downtown Clare area as well as the historic Doherty Hotel. The Tobacco Ranch Event Venue’s combination of modern renovations and abundance of original structures welcome guests into a timeless setting, idyllic for wedding celebrations.

Facilities and Capacity

There are over 80-acres of pristine landscape with which couples are given access when planning their big event. Throughout the wooded glens and tranquil hideaways, one can find a perfect spot to exchange vows and hold a memorable ceremony gathering. With a plethora of top-quality facilities available, the soon-to-be-weds are sure to feel spoilt for choice when finding a space to make their own. Two lovingly-renovated barns offer special locations to host a rehearsal dinner or wedding reception. For the convenience of caterers, a kitchen prep room is readily available and offers a simple solution to the planning party. To help couples and their entourage feel relaxed, get-ready rooms are provided and offer a sense of privacy while preparing for all of the festivities. Some of the additional facilities available include but are not limited to:

  • Large ceremonial lawn
  • Gathering fire pit
  • An outdoor covered dance floor
  • An outdoor silo bar
  • Barn loft

Services Offered

The experience of each couple and their guests come first and foremost at Tobacco Ranch Event Venue. To help each nearly-wed pair on their way to a successful wedding day experience, a comprehensive set of services have been provided. This includes the likes of audiovisual equipment, various decor items, and furniture such as tables and chairs. An onsite event planner is happy to assist couples in designing and executing their wedding.

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Frequently asked questions

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?

$5,000

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?

$10,000

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

$5,000

Which of the following are included in the starting site fee?

Bridal Suite
Chairs
Parking
Tables

Which of the following are included in the starting price for bar service?

Limited Bar

How many event spaces or rooms does your venue offer?

2

Describe your venue:

Barn
Farm/Ranch
Historic Building
Waterfront

What kind of settings are available?

Indoor
Covered Outdoor
Uncovered Outdoor

Which of the following wedding events does your venue service?

Ceremony
Reception
Bridal Shower
Engagement Party
Elopements
Rehearsal Dinner

What event services do you offer?

Bar Services
Event Planner
Event Rentals
Get Ready Rooms
Liability Insurance
Wifi

What bar services do you provide?

Bartender(s)
Cash Bar
Open Bar

What event items are available?

Audio Equipment
Chairs
Dance Floor
Furniture
Lighting
Photo booth
Tables
Tents

What food and beverage items are available?

Linens

What transportation and access is available?

Parking

What months are included in your peak season?

June
July
August
September
October

What months are included in your off-peak season?

January
February
March
April
May
November
December

Reviews of Tobacco Ranch Event Venue

K
Kearstin Sent on 10/30/2019
5 out of 5 rating

Gorgeous Place

Absolutely loved everything about this place! Our wedding turned out perfect! The staff was amazing! Jim was an awesome DJ and great for helping with everything! He did so much! Danielle F was our event coordinator and she was amazing and so much help! Anytime we needed anything or had questions she was there! :)
L
Lindsey Sent on 11/03/2019
5 out of 5 rating

Great wedding venue

We had the most perfect day and our day was exactly how I imagined!
Danielle
Danielle Sent on 10/30/2019
5 out of 5 rating

Tobacco Ranch

It was so beautiful and the staff support was amazing!
K
Kerri Sent on 07/07/2020
3.4 out of 5 rating

Owner of Tobacco Ranch

My daughter and her fiancé were just married at Tobacco Ranch and while I can not deny that this wedding venue is truly beautiful, I would like to offer a few suggestions to those of you planning a large wedding there. First off, hire your own Wedding coordinator! I can not tell you how thankful I am that I did this. Sara Nunn from Timeless Events and her team were nothing short of remarkable. Without them my daughters day WOULD NOT have ran so smoothly! They took her vision and turned it into a reality. I would even hire your own DJ....not his! My daughter had a list created for ceremony/reception/dinner music and few were played! Second, make sure you get EVERYTHING in writing before you sign a contract or transfer money! You do not want to be worrying about enough seating, table linens, or help the day before the wedding! Lastly, plan on bringing your own decor... there is very little there to offer besides bench seating for the ceremony, an arch and a few signs. They posted my girls day and most everything you see was ours. I hope this advice offers a bit of help and peace of mind to you and your family. This is one of the most important days of a persons life and you want people who are experienced and sensitive to your wants and needs...after all if you are in the wedding business these should be givens. One last thing, Shane was there the entire time and was very helpful and friendly to all of us, very thankful to him... he does not have an easy job!!
C
Cody Sent on 06/20/2022
2.4 out of 5 rating

June 2022 Wedding

First, the venue was beautiful and the wedding day was close to perfect. It really is a great barn venue and the grounds are well maintained. However, I wanted to share some of the negative things that significantly impacted the experience for myself (the groom), my wife, and our immediate families.

A few things that really attracted us to book this venue for our Saturday wedding was that when we toured in October 2020 to book for June 2022, we were told we would be able to have the venue for Friday afternoon/evening, the whole day Saturday, and Sunday morning. We were told that someone would be at the venue the day of to help coordinate the day and work with us to ensure everything went as planned. Coordinating with this person would also make clean up easier at night since everyone would be on the same page. Even looking at other reviews, it seems like someone usually is there all day to help and ends up being very helpful.

The contract signed by both parties stated that we would be able to be at the venue cleaning up until 12:30 am the night of and we would be able to then finish cleaning up Sunday morning from 9 am - 12 pm. The first red flag was that around 6 months before the wedding, we were told that an event was booked for that Sunday and we would not be allowed to clean up at all the next day. Everything had to be out on Saturday night, but at the time we didn’t see this as much of a problem because we thought we had until late in the night to clean up and they ensured that they would help with cleaning and organizing our decorations to easily be loaded into vehicles.

Next, just a couple months before the wedding, we got a surprise call from the owner notifying us that a couple was looking to book the venue the Friday prior for a wedding. He gave us the option to keep it, however we would have had to pay an extra $1500. We did not budget for this extra fee so we did not book it, which took away our option for an early setup and left us scrambling to figure out where to do the dress rehearsal. Then just two weeks before the wedding, we were told that we had the option to have a rehearsal on Thursday, but that the Friday wedding also wanted it for a rehearsal and decorating so we needed to coordinate times. We did end up visiting the venue for an hour and a half on Thursday with our parents and officiant which helped, however if we would have known this was an option sooner we could have had more time to coordinate with our bridal party. Having the venue on Friday night wasn’t in the contract, so it was more so an annoyance because we were verbally told early on we would be able to use it.

The day of, the person we thought would be something like a day-of coordinator didn’t show up until soon before the first wedding party activities. My wife tried to tell them about the remaining vendors that were left to show up and offered an itinerary so she knew the schedule of events, however she did not take it. Even though we tried to talk to the venue workers and owners about the day, they did not seem to care. This lack of communication proved to be problematic later in the night.

During the reception, the bridal party was being told to go clean up the bridal/groom suites because they were messy. Some party members volunteered to clean up during the reception since we were being bothered about it, and while they were cleaning the workers still harassed them about how it wasn't cleaned up. All of this caused unnecessary stress on the bridal parties and we ended up feeling like an inconvenience.

After the music stopped at 11 pm and the last guests started to leave, the workers and the owner quickly became very rude and aggressive, rushing the families to clean up everything and get out immediately while they sat and watched. They were visibly upset that we hadn’t had everything immediately loaded up, and they showed it by talking poorly of family members while everyone rushed to get out. They talked to myself and my wife, telling us that we were very unprepared and needed to hurry up. All of this caused unnecessary panic, causing items to be given to the wrong people and belongings to be mixed up. Even with all the commotion, everything was out well before midnight even though our contract stated we had until 12:30 am. The workers still made it to the local bar before any of the family that was cleaning up did.

Overall, we paid a lot to have help on the day of and have the venue for half the weekend. As they kept taking away privileges, there was no offer to lower the charge, only requests for us to pay more to keep the privileges we thought we had. Then the day of the immediate family and bridal parties were treated very poorly and made to feel like inconveniences on the property. I would advise anyone considering using this venue to study their contract and stick by it and hopefully not be taken advantage of the way that we were.
We're all about trust. Our community relies on honest reviews to help you make those big decisions with ease.

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Tobacco Ranch Event Venue frequently asked questions

Tobacco Ranch Event Venue includes the following items and services for wedding events in its starting site fee:
  • Bridal Suite
  • Chairs
  • Parking
  • Tables
The bar service starting price at Tobacco Ranch Event Venue includes:
  • Limited Bar
The space offered by Tobacco Ranch Event Venue for wedding events is known for:
  • Barn
  • Farm/Ranch
  • Historic Building
  • Waterfront
Tobacco Ranch Event Venue offers the following indoor/outdoor options for weddings:
  • Indoor
  • Covered Outdoor
  • Uncovered Outdoor
Tobacco Ranch Event Venue offers the following types of wedding events:
  • Ceremony
  • Reception
  • Bridal Shower
  • Engagement Party
  • Elopements
  • Rehearsal Dinner
Tobacco Ranch Event Venue offers the following services for wedding events:
  • Bar Services
  • Event Planner
  • Event Rentals
  • Get Ready Rooms
  • Liability Insurance
  • Wifi
Tobacco Ranch Event Venue offers the following furniture and decor items for weddings:
  • Audio Equipment
  • Chairs
  • Dance Floor
  • Furniture
  • Lighting
  • Photo booth
  • Tables
  • Tents
Tobacco Ranch Event Venue is recommended by 83% of couples who have used their services. Their overall rating is 4.2 out of 5 with the following breakdown: 4.8 in average response time, 4.4 in value, 4 in quality of service, 4 in flexibility and 3.6 in professionalism.
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