Camp Hidden Valley at Deer Creek Preserve Reviews
Reviews
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Weddingwire
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94 reviews
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![Ariel]()
Ariel Sent on 04/18/2026Camp Hidden Valley is the perfect setting for a magical wedding!
Camp Hidden Valley provided the perfect backdrop to our wedding and was the ideal place to host our family and friends for a weekend of love and fun! We were specifically looking for a full DIY venue to bring our vision to life, and the second we stepped foot on the property we knew it would be incredible. Lindsay and Leslye were super flexible throughout the entire process, allowing us to come onsite multiple times to measure and walk around, answering questions and making sure we had everything we needed! Although it is a full DIY venue, they have a rental company available for things like chairs, linens, silverware, etc. We rented the property for two nights, a Friday and a Saturday, which I would highly recommend to have the most time for set up and take down! The cabins were perfect and we had over 60 onsite guests stay. Everyone had an amazing time and loved not having to drive or go anywhere! During our stay Tony, Leslye and Lindsay were super responsive, coming onsite to bring more toilet paper and paper towels. There are some reviews on here that complain about the cleaning and re-set up upon departure, but if you are correctly prepared, understand what needs to be done, and have a good group of family and friends this won’t be an issue. We clearly outlined the camp rules and checkout procedures in a printed document to our onsite guests so they brought their bedding and trash to the correct locations and departed before 10am. We assigned specific tasks to everyone and had labeled bins ready to go! We were able to break everything down and clean with time to spare! I could not recommend this venue more, it is truly unique and perfect. Our wedding would not have been the same without it! -
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Jesica Sent on 11/12/2025
100% recommend
I cannot recommend this venue enough. They made our day/weekend completely exceed all expectations! All of my friends and family said this was the best wedding they have ever been too and I give most of that credit to the venue and Lindsay !!! -
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![Meagan]()
Meagan Sent on 11/10/2025TIL Death Do Us Part
We had a wonderful time, the facilities are clean and tidy, the atmosphere was perfect. If you’re looking for a good place that allows the rugged look and feel but still having a place for your guests to stay if anyone parties too hard, this is the place. Truly couldn’t have asked for a better place. They even let my husband put his deer head on the fireplace, which was very important to him. The venue is so peaceful too. -
Nicole Sent on 10/02/2025
Camp Hidden Valley
We had our wedding here last weekend and we had the best time! The property is absolutely gorgeous and Lindsay made sure to answer all our questions, to ensure we had a great experience! We got to make the place our own. We would definitely recommend -
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![Madeline]()
Madeline Sent on 07/26/2025Loved camp hidden valley
Lindsay was super helpful, venue was incredible, we basically had a field day with sports and the pool and with our 100 guests we had plenty of room for everyone who wanted to stay overnight, which ended up being around half. Many people have told us this was the best wedding they have been to! -
![Devin]()
Devin Sent on 06/16/2025Unforgettable weekend that everyone enjoyed
We had an incredible wedding at Camp Hidden Valley in June 2025. The venue came with everything we needed to make it a success. Lindsay was helpful and responsive whenever we had questions about the venue and was easily available for organizing walkthroughs with our families and our vendors.
The pavilion comes with great lighting and a sound system that you can connect to with bluetooth, so we enjoyed gathering there outside of the reception and hanging around a bonfire in the fully-covered fire pit. It also makes a great location for a ceremony in case rain happens.
We had our cocktail hour outside on the newly installed stone patio that's adjacent to the reception hall. It looked clean and classy with many of our guests choosing it as a spot for their pictures. There are a ton of picnic tables in this area as well so we felt like we didn't need to rent extra furniture for the cocktail hour beyond a few cocktail tables. The reception hall looked excellent and the provided lighting made the evening feel warm and intimate.
We loved the bridal suite and our guests enjoyed their time in the cabins as well. In particular, the large family cabins sounded like a lot of fun to stay in. It was great to have the smaller cabins available as well for guests who aren't part of a larger friend/family group. Everyone was comfortable and had easy access to a bathroom/shower when they needed it.
Our guests had a great time using the pool, basketball court, and large lawn for games during the day. They all expressed how beautiful, fun, and unique they found the venue. I hope to attend a wedding here as a guest one day! -
![Aaliyah]()
Aaliyah Sent on 05/24/2025Interested in a magical woodland wedding?
If your answer to my title is yes, then just book this already! This venue is magical and honestly the photos do not do it justice. From the woodland scenery to the twinkling lights to the awesome fact that there are cabins for your entire crew to spend the night in - it’s all amazing and led to an unforgettable experience.
We rented the venue the day before and the day of our wedding and had multiple people come up to us to tell us how magical/beautiful/awesome it is. I have friends that want to get married here now and friends that want their friends to get married here just so they have an excuse to come back!
Okay now let’s talk service! Lindsay(manager) is such a gem- super responsive, friendly, and just great vibes. From the initial inquiry to the final checkout walk through she was helpful and sweet. Leslie (owner) makes some delicious sweets and left us some sweets in the bridal suite which is just so thoughtful. Also when we did the open house Tony (owner) gave us a tour and it was so obvious how much passion they have for this venue and care they put into the place over the years.
Finally let’s talk DIY. So in my opinion you have two options with this venue - spend money on vendors to help you set up OR rent the day before to set up and essentially just have a weekend camping trip. We chose the later and it worked out great! This venue while it is “a shell” meaning DIY or outside vendor heavy, they really set you up for success. They provide a map of the campground, details on the cabin situation, reception master floor plan (I used prismm a free website to then help me figure out how to change the floor plan to scale), list of rentals that they can procure for you, and list of awesome vendors like Evolved Catering (hire them) and photographer Beck Rout (hire her) that know and love the place just as much as we do. Choosing from their preferred vendors list definitely made things easier and less stressful.
Thank you Camp Hidden Valley for everything! I might update this after Becky sends me the rest of the photos so you can see how magical it really is but that could take awhile and I might forget:) -
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![Shelby]()
Shelby Sent on 05/06/2025Best venue ever
From start to finish this venue was hands down a dream come true. Scheduling the visit before booking was easy and Lindsey was extremely responsive. She gave us a tour, answered any questions. Booking went just as smoothly. 30 day prior we did a final walkthrough and got to see the updated patio they installed which was breathtaking for our cocktail hour. Day of the wedding we had a group chat thread that if we had any questions or concerned they answered within minutes and were happy to help us. I couldn’t recommend a better venue for an event. My guests have been telling me “how awesome and cool” this venue was. It was so inviting and beautiful and truly unique.Camp Hidden Valley at Deer Creek Preserve's reply:
Thank you for sharing your experience, Shelby! It was a pleasure to work with you & thank you for choosing Camp Hidden Valley.
We wish you all the best! -
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Kristina Sent on 12/23/2024
Unique and beautiful wedding weekend!
It is a beautiful venue with a great team! We had a morning ceremony and a brunch reception with Dean and Brown Catering LLC, which gave us plenty of time to clean up and enjoy the outdoors, including the pool :) we hosted around 120 people in the lodge and had a great time. It takes a lot of organizing and work, but it is well worth the price for what you get! -
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![Stephanie]()
Stephanie Sent on 12/02/2024A wedding of fire and ice a day for the record books! Last minute snow on our November wedding
The infinite possibilities with this venue make it the perfect space for creating your vision. The days leading up to our wedding it became clear that we would most definitely be getting snow/ ice or rain… I refused to make the call until the day before and the owners and Lindsey were super flexible and worked with us on our last minute decision to put a tent up to keep all of our spaces covered and heated. I was still able to have my outdoor woodsy ceremony in the covered pavilion and it was nothing short of magical, sleet tinging the metal awning, fire crackling it was great.
We loved that we were not locked into specific caterers, or other vendors. We were able to rent additional hours leading up to the day of.
Highly recommend CHV for the couple looking for an intimate slow paced celebration. It’s a great blank canvas with great options for overnight stay.
For those of us getting married after kids, this was the only venue I went to where I wasn’t having anxiety about where they would be or what they could get into or break. Cannot speak highly enough about Lindsey (manager) and her responsiveness all along the way!
Sooo much credit to my amazing photographer (photography by Brea) for capturing it all these weee just some sneak peaks and photos from friends and coordinator ( Amy Frances) of set up -
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![Kate]()
Kate Sent on 11/06/2024The best day ever!!
From the moment we stepped foot on the property to tour the venue with hopes of booking our day to every thing leading up to our big day to then our wedding day, they were amazing! As a nervous bride filled with anxiety, excitement, the feeling of being overwhelmed with everything, Lindsay checked in every chance she could to offer a lending hand. Any questions or concerns I had were always answered in a timely manner. I never felt rushed when I needed to take a trip up to the venue to figure out a few last minute things or just needed to visualize something. Overall, it was such a magical day and I couldn’t have done it without this amazing team and their venue. Thank you camp hidden valley for making this girls dreams come true!! -
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Hannah Sent on 05/25/2024
100% Recommend Camp Hidden Valley!
We cannot recommend Camp Hidden Valley enough! We could not have asked for a better venue for our special day/weekend. Throughout the process of planning their responsiveness and care made us not only feel special but really reduced our anxieties! From vendor recommendations to our walkthrough they helped us so much with making we had plans for everything so that when the weekend came we had everything in place. If you are looking for a campground wedding this is absolutely the venue to choose! -
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Ashley Sent on 11/15/2023
Magical Wedding at Camp Hidden Valley
We were on the hunt for a venue that we didn’t need to be out of my 10pm, and when we stumbled upon Camp Hidden Valley we were immediately blown away with how gorgeous the venue is. And when we saw it in person? Immediately we knew it was the place we’d be getting married.
Every space is stunning, from the reception hall to the numerous outside areas.
Communication was amazing the entire time. Lindsay is PHENOMENAL and we were to glad to have her help us guide us to our wedding day.
AND there’s lodging on site, included in the venue price that allowed half of our guests to spend the night.
This place is an absolute dream of a wedding venue and I am so glad my husband and I chose to have our special day here. It could not have been more perfect. -
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Jaqlyn Sent on 11/15/2023
Beyond amazing
We decided to do the whole weekend and it was nothing but magical! Everything I ever wanted! It was a dream come true! -
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![Lindsay]()
Lindsay Sent on 08/09/2023Magical, whimsical, fairytale wedding!
Camp Hidden Valley at Deer Creek Preserve provided us with the most perfect space to make our vision come to life. A beautiful wooded backdrop, with an abundance of natural shade and plenty of room to accommodate our 160 guests. We were lucky enough to host our ceremony outside in the clearing with the arch you can decorate as you wish. Followed by our cocktail hour at the front side of the lodge, and full reception inside the grand lodge with plenty of room for bar, buffet and dancing. We rented a two night stay, and was able to host our rehearsal the night prior to the wedding and spend the entire day on the campground to get ready with our friends and family. Mother nature was on our side, but truly the venue was everything and more we could have imagined. We even ended the evening with a beautiful campfire surrounded with the people we love and we were even able to bring our most precious pup! Our guests raved about the venue and how accommodating everything was. Thank you to the owners, Leslye and Tony, for all you have done to provide the space for such special moments! -
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Jordan Sent on 06/26/2023
Best bang for your buck!
An absolute dream! Guests are still talking about it! Lindsay was outstanding and made the whole process seamless. 10/10 -
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![Grace]()
Grace Sent on 06/24/2023Flawless Venue Experience!!
My husband and I got married at Camp Hidden Valley on 5/6/23 and couldn't have asked for a better experience!! Leslye and Tony (owners) were easy to work with and Lindsay (manager) was so helpful! Lindsay went above and beyond to accommodate my busy work schedule and make us feel at home in the space. The actual venue is absolutely breathtaking! Each of the spaces in Camp Hidden Valley offers a rustic glamping vibe, exactly what I was looking for! Thank you to Camp Hidden Valley for making our day so special! -
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![Shannon]()
Shannon Sent on 06/22/2023Beautiful Venue
Camp Hidden Valley at Deer Creek Preserve is a wonderful place to host an event! Tony, Leslie and Lindsay were all very professional, personable and helpful during the planning process. We received a ton of compliments about the location. It is beautiful and quiet. -
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![Judy]()
Judy Sent on 06/21/2023DIY dream venue!
This was the rustic, magical, DIY venue of our dreams! Tony, Leslye, and Lindsay were so warm, friendly, and professional from start to finish. They take immaculate care of the property, and are always adding fun new touches and updates.
My husband and I both have project management and event planning experience, so we enjoyed the planning process and being able to craft a wedding that felt like uniquely "us". We couldn't have done it without the "can-do" helper attitude of our large wedding parties, and of course without our day-of-coordinator. Definitely a heavier lift for planning and implementation than an all inclusive venue, but it was worth it for us. So many people told us it was the best wedding they'd ever been to! We loved having full use of the property and were able to get creative to create a beautiful indoor/outdoor wedding that accommodated the needs & comfort of different guests. We did an intimate marriage contract signing in the woods at the Ridgeline Theater, processed across the field to our chuppah at The Overlook, had a big klezmer dance party in the Pavilion, then had an indoor/outdoor reception in and around the Main Lodge (and of course an afterparty/bonfire back in the Pavilion). Having the cabins overnight allowed us to actually spend time and enjoy being with our closest family and friends.
You will not find a more beautiful venue for a better price. THANK YOU CAMP HV!!!! -
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Alexis Sent on 06/03/2023
Great experience
We booked this venue the second we saw it because it was everything that we wanted- beautiful scenery, cabins for guests, a gorgeous pavilion, lodge, and more. It lived up to our expectations in everyway. The owners and manager were always super responsive and answered all my questions throughout the planning process sometimes within a couple hours. They also let us come visit the venue as many times as we needed to. I would recommend this venue for any couple who loves the outdoors ,wants to include their dog, and who just wants a unique experience that no other venue can provide. The only heads up I would give is to make sure you designate people to help you clean up everything the next day. We didn't expect the amount of clean up needed the next day and only my husband and I were up running around. Def make sure you tell your guests and/or family to help out the next day! Other than that, it was a dream. -
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![Caitlin]()
Caitlin Sent on 03/09/2023Amazing to say the least.
Our wedding was so amazing and exceeded our expectations in so many ways. The venue was more than accommodating and allowed me to come up multiple times before our big day to help plan how we were going to do everything. Lindsay who works there, was my day of coordinator and handled it like a boss! I have gotten so many compliments afterwards about how amazing and different our wedding was. It could not have been more perfect. -
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![Lisa]()
Lisa Sent on 11/15/2022Excellent venue
We just got married at Camp Hidden Valley Nov 5th & rented the camp the entire weekend. We couldn’t have asked for more! Out of town guests got to spend the weekend with us and nobody had to worry about drinking too much at the reception. They are all ways doing upgrades to the camp. We signed the contract, came to visit a year later & the alter went from a clearing in the woods to a gorgeous slate walkway through the trees to a beautiful alter set up. All twin bed cabins were upgraded to queens. Those were substantial and unexpected upgrades that we were so happy and grateful for. The weekend of the wedding, Lindsay, Leslye & Tony were available at anytime by text or phone but gave us our privacy to enjoy time with family and friends. The camp is gorgeous at night with all the lights hanging. We fell in love with the camp the first time we visited it,, then again the second time we visited but our wedding was absolutely perfect because we had an amazing atmosphere, laid back vibe in the woods and the perfect venue for us!! Leslye and Lindsay are also great at answering all your questions.
Camp Hidden Valley at Deer Creek Preserve's reply:
Thank you so much for your kind words, Lisa! It was such a pleasure to work with you. Wishing you and Bill the very best and we hope to see you again! Congratulations to the Varner’s! -
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Megan Sent on 01/29/2022
Perfect Woodsy Wedding
We were married at Camp Hidden Valley on 10/16/21 and it was an unforgettable and amazing day. This venue was everything we hoped it would be and the owners were awesome, helpful, and responsive every step of the way! The space, fire pit, coziness, and atmosphere made everything such a unique experience for our guests. We partied late into the night and our family and friends loved that they could stay in the cabins or camp and the party didn't have to end! Tony and Leslye are great- they were flexible but also gave great recommendations. We are already hoping to plan a anniversary/reunion party in the future! -
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Ashlee Sent on 12/09/2021
Absolutely amazing
Camp Hidden Valley was the most awesome best choice we could have made! I couldn’t have imagined my weeding being anywhere else. We booked the entire venue for the whole weekend which was amazing because we were able to have rehearsal dinner there Friday and set up so we didn’t have to day off. Then your guests that were drinking and couldn’t drive home could stay the night! There was also no end time as long as the noise was lower after a certain hour of the night. We partied as long as we wanted to! The owners were also amazing! They were so responsive and helpful. If there was anything we needed they would help us. For example if you needed help with any rentals or vendors they knew who to recommend. The cabins are all remodeled inside and super cute and welcoming. I highly recommend this venue! You will LOVE it! -
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![Jenny]()
Jenny Sent on 12/06/2021The most perfect venue — and owners — on Earth
Camp Hidden Valley at Deer Creek Preserve was the only venue my fiancé and I visited, because we knew it was “the one” as soon as we stepped foot on the grounds and took the tour with Leslye. She and her husband, Tony, are both incredibly knowledgeable, approachable, and professional, and they consistently made us feel completely at ease and supported in any and every way we needed. Much like the level of service we received from them, the venue itself is also the definition of perfect. The fact that we could rent it out for an entire weekend AND use all of the cabins for overnight lodging was a massive selling point. We used the property for our rehearsal dinner (which we kept casual), and our wedding, which was perfectly cozy and intimate. The wood burning fireplace inside the Grand Lodge and the wood burning fire pit in the outdoor pavilion where we had our ceremony elevated our entire aesthetic and atmosphere, and made our celebration feel so different from any we’ve been to before. I could write on and on and ON about how thankful we are to Leslye, Tony, and their property for giving us the wedding weekend of our dreams (better than our dreams, actually), but I’ll stop here. I’ll finish by saying: you will NOT be disappointed if you choose to get married in this magical spot! Thank you again!!!! -
![Paige]()
Paige Sent on 11/14/2021Perfect day
The owners are very responsive and helpful. Very personable as well. The venue is absolutely beautiful with beautiful rooms would 100% recommend this place to anyone! -
![Alexis]()
Alexis Sent on 10/26/2021Reasonably priced unique experience
We booked this venue a solid 2 years prior to our wedding date of 10/23/21 and over the course of these two years we have nothing but positive comments. Lesley and Tony let us walk the venue on 4 different occasions, we're always helpful in our questions, gave us forms with exact dimensions of everything inside the lodge, let us bring our pup, and we're helpful in giving advice for our weekend there.
Since we did book so far in advance we were able to book the camp from Friday to Sunday, so we checked in Friday at 2pm and left Sunday at 11am. we also got to see how much the venue was updated and cared for- new bridal suite, buses for sleeping, and updated spaces. Lesley and Tony also helped with our rentals, we needed a golf cart and sheets for 13 beds and they took care of everything and gave us a very reasonable invoice for what else was needed.
The day of our wedding it started to rain (it's good luck though!) And Lesley and Tony came out, cleaned off the benches, left extra towels and extra umbrellas for our guests.
On Sunday they did start the check out process at 1015, but it was helpful, so that whatever we had to fix (we just had to take an extra trash out) we could get done before the 11am check out.
Overall, we had an excellent experience with the owners and are absolutely in love with the pictures of the camp and woods behind us! -
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![Carolina]()
Carolina Sent on 10/22/2021Amazing outdoor venue
The venue was very beautiful and everything we dreamed of! Leslye and Tony were great communicators and very easy to work with. We highly recommend this venue to any couple who wants a woodsy and or rustic aesthetic. Thank you Leslye and Tony for allowing us to have our wedding at your site!
Best,
Carolina and Mike -
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![Emily]()
Emily Sent on 10/07/2021Camp Hidden Valley magical outdoor venue
This venue is gorgeous! Everyone that was there keeps talking about it’s outdoor beauty the ceremony and the reception were beautiful! The lodge was perfect for eating and dancing and the cabins were perfect for us to be comfortable and our guests to stay the night. The cool thing is the rental includes the cabins/bungalows. Also, Leslye and Tony were awesome! They made everything super easy when we booked and worked with our schedule. Leslye was really sweet to answer any questions I had and help save money by splitting rentals with other couples. -
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Phyllis Sent on 08/14/2021
Elegant Country Wedding
Wow! This place is great if you are looking for a rural setting! It was perfect for us - my son got married here (July2021). His bride came from another country, and our situation was truly 'the 90 day fiancée' so we had a limited amount of time to plan for this special event. We were blessed and very happy that it was available to us on short notice, but it was not short on beauty, or on responsiveness from the Staubbs, or on the services available to us. The location is beautiful! The bride & groom wanted a 'elegant country' feeling for the day, and it was just that. The couple was married outside a short distance from the main hall, under an arch that we were allowed to decorate, surrounded by strung white lights. The hall itself was also just right, from the great stone fireplace, to the white lights hung from rafters. We were permitted to arrange the room and tables as we wanted, and there was plenty of dancing room. The kitchen at the end of the hall was available to us also - there is a large walk in refrigerator, and an ice machine, plenty of counter space - just everything we needed. We had guests that came from a distance - they were allowed to stay in one of the many rooms on the property (which was included in the venue rental price). From the time we arrived on wedding day, to the time we left at the end of the evening, everything went smoothly. The owners game me their cell number in case we needed anything, which luckily we didn't need, but which I really appreciated. A few days after the event, we realized we had left some items at the camp - I called, and when I arrived to pick them up, I found them pulled aside and ready for us.
I'd highly recommend that couples consider this venue for their special rural wedding day! -
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![Jade]()
Jade Sent on 01/14/2021Outstanding Venue and Owner!
Camp Hidden Valley popped up on Wedding Wire as a new venue one day and i messaged the owner and rudely we just got in the car without warning to do a drive by because it was so close to home. So anyway, we roll up unannounced thinking we could just like drive by but Leslye happened to be on the grounds and saw us and waved us over (embarassing! but just shows how active she is and passionate). She just dropped what she was doing and gave us a tour. I felt so bad we didn't make an appointment we were totally just looking to creep before making one! Haha. Anyway, she took us around the full tour and there are so many options here you can marry on the grounds, outdoors, indoors, you can decorate yourself, there are fire pits, covered pavillion, staying accomodations (cabins) and it is just the perfect spot to have a reception that can roll into a late night fire pit fun with family and friends. It wasn't until we go to the main hall that we just got chills. I actually teared up because it was just perfect. That log cabin feeling, that rustic vibe, the open window view of trees.. i will surely say the pictures do no justice at all. This is a must see. Absolutely perfect.
Leslye was so quick to answer questions before i even had a chance to ask because she is so experienced, fluent in the field and professional to guide you through things. She suggested caterers and how the arrangements work - so many options to extend time or block off a weekend - etc. She got our date booked and has always been responsive. Thank you so much! We are so excited to have found this venue it was such a blessing to Harford County.
November 2021 -
![Julia]()
Julia Sent on 10/18/2020Incredible wooded wedding venue
Working with Leslye and Tony from Camp Hidden Valley at Deer Creek Preserve was a dream! The venue itself is the perfect wooded wonderland that we had hoped for - the summer camp setting is stunning and beautiful in any weather (as our rainy evening wedding can attest to!). Leslye and Tony are amazing to work with. Leslye is clearly a pro with lots of experience and is so helpful and quick to calm any worries you may have. Every amenity and accommodation is so well thought out, from the cabins to the bungalows to the wood set out next to the fire pit. It's the perfect "glamping" approach to a wedding in the woods. We highly recommend taking them up on their offer to hike around the grounds after a tour - the property is beautiful and has so many scenic settings to choose from for your ceremony. -
![Callie]()
Callie Sent on 10/18/2020Don’t pass up this Wedding Venue!!
Camp Hidden Valley Deer Creek Preserve FAR exceeded our expectations! Our day was absolutely perfect thanks to Leslye and her Husband. The venue is absolutely beautiful and accommodating for any type of wedding. From start to finish we felt like we were their number one priority; everyone felt safe, comfortable, and had a blast! We received endless compliments on having the best wedding people have been to. I highly recommend this venue. Thank you!! -
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![Carrie]()
Carrie Sent on 06/13/2019Heaven Sent
I had my wedding at Camp Hidden Valley on June 1st. We had the entire property to ourselves and it was the perfect size for 125 guests.
We got married under the pavilion, had cocktail
Hour outside, and main course/dinner/dessert in the lodge. After guests left, whomever stayed had s’mores at the fire pit/listened to music/played games and the next morning included a beautiful hike and pool time.
In terms of accommodations, the two suites next to the grand lodge remind me of something I’d see on a Joanna’s Gaines show and we had guests stay in the bunk houses as well.
The property is well-kept and is the perfect place to have an up-scale, yet rustic, event. Nothing but trees and beautiful back drop. Tony and Lesley were fantastic to work with- they couldn’t have made getting married any easier.
When I reflect on my wedding, certain visions stick out in my head: the number one consistent factor is the heaven-sent backdrop of the entire weekend. -
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David Sent on 09/25/2025
A rare gem in the woods
Not a single person had been to a wedding like ours, and it would NOT have been possible without this venue.
The reason it was so special was because of what it made possible with the after party.
Every wedding I've been to is the same formula - ceremony, dinner, dancing, go home. For some people, that's a great formula, but for us we wanted more. We wanted to give our guests a chance to stay up and party all they wanted.
After the wedding ended at 11pm, we started the "late night". Our west coast swing dance friends were dancing until 4 am. Our non dance friends were either wandering in the woods, hanging out by the campfire, chowing on leftovers, or just hanging out in small little clusters. I have never (and many of my guests as well) experienced a wedding after party like this.
It's hard to put to words the joy I had of just watching my friends and family staying up drinking, eating, and chatting, well into the morning in the middle of the beautiful wilderness.
While we made some wrong decisions in our wedding planning, choosing this venue was absolutely not one of them. -
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Erica Sent on 06/13/2025
Wonderful Experience
Honestly, this venue was like a dream come true. It provided us an amazing, whimsical wedding, but not just for one day, but for the whole weekend. Highly recommend getting it for 2 nights so you have time to set-up, but also so you can hang out and enjoy it! One of my favorite parts was just getting to see our nephews and nieces running around and playing with our wedding party.
So much thanks to Lindsay, who was incredible throughout the entire process. She was always so helpful and responsive, even going through photos and suggesting different layouts and decor and places to take photos, etc.
The only hiccup during the weekend itself was that the water heater for the bathhouse was not working, but the owners were very responsive and checked it out. While it wasn’t able to be fixed during the weekend, they allowed us to use the pool house showers and it wasn’t a big issue.
My only other con is that I really hope the venue gets recycling at some point, it’s a shame that they don’t.
But overall, it was a perfect weekend and I got a lot of compliments from the guests about having such a fun and unique venue. Highly, highly recommend! -
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Alissa Sent on 08/01/2022
Woodsy Rustic Dream Wedding 11/05/21
This venue was beautiful and was a fantastic place to have a wedding. Our guests compared the outdoor ceremony to Narnia and described the indoor as cozy/rustic chic. Camp Hidden Valley is definitely a DIY venue, so I recommend it for strong planners OR if you’re not (like me), have the capability of putting all hands on deck to help with things like setting up chairs and decor, directing/parking cars, starting the bonfire, cleaning up all the spaces you used afterwards, etc. Leslye was helpful with ordering the additional rentals that I desired for the day that were not included with the venue. She had connections, so it was not too expensive for me to add those on. Overall, we loved Camp Hidden Valley and are so thankful we had our wedding there. -
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![Rachel]()
Rachel Sent on 01/25/2022Perfect Campground Wedding at CHV!
We celebrated our wedding at Camp Hidden Valley in Oct 2021. It was a long time coming as we booked them in fall of 2019 and had to post pone due to COVID. We wanted a venue where we could really customize our vision and have the freedom to hand pick all of our vendors to get exactly what we wanted -- especially in regards to budget. It also ended up raining torrential downpour on our wedding day (truly no exaggeration, schools closed it was so much rain) and the lodge served as a STUNNING plan Z for our ceremony. I think it turned out even more beautiful than our original plan!
I highly recommend booking the night before to do all set up and have your rehearsal, that was a huge factor in piece of mind. Our guests LOVED staying at the campground in the assorted bunks and buses, and we had rave reviews on their experience. The groomsmen got ready at the venue and the bridesmaids got ready off site, but the bridal suite was the perfect place for the girls to hang out until first looks and ceremony. And I can't emphasize enough how perfect it was having the flexibility to bring in all our own vendors/decor AND have access to the full facility during our rental period.
The whole process was easy with CHV -- Leslye also helped arrange rentals and provided guidance on vendors she had worked with previously. Working with them was the perfect balance of freedom to conduct our vision and support on areas where guidance was needed. Highly recommend CHV for a woodland campground wedding! -
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Beth Sent on 11/04/2019
What a fabulous, fun wedding venue!
This weekend at Deer Creek Preserve far exceeded our expectations! Although chilly, it was a great experience to have such a large indoor and outdoor area for our use. The indoor pavilion was nice and toasty while the outdoors was perfect for a getaway and a great place to serve our rehearsal dinner bbq!
The rooms for bridge and guest were renovated beautifully with bathrooms. Rustic yet all the amenities.
The staff has worked with us all year and it was just a very pleasant experience. I recommend it to all! -
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Rebecca Sent on 10/16/2021Better then imagined
If your looking for a beautiful venue where you can party all night with your friends and family, this is it!! I can’t tell you how many compliments we received on this venue and the place is so beautiful that you don’t need a lot of decorations. Also Lesley and her husband are amazing!!!! -
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Angel Sent on 08/05/2021Beautiful place
It was really a beautiful place. Being in the woods is just so peaceful. The best part was they let you decorate how ever you wanted, you could chose a caterer or even just drop off, also the alcohol part you can bring your own or have some one else do it for you. Which really can help with the cost if you don’t want to spend a lot of money. The only problem I had with it was that they have a lot of tables in the lodge and pavilion so if you don’t want to use them than you have to move them somewhere else and have to put them back when your done. So if you don’t have a wedding planner/decorator that is a lot of work on you. Luckily all my family helped and we managed to get it all done and clean the whole place up by 11am. So it is due-able just a lot of work. All and all it was a really beautiful place especially at night with the lights. All of my guests enjoyed it and kept saying it was a beautiful place. Also the day that we got there Tony was really hands on with all my questions and helped accommodate our dog that we ended up bringing last minute. He got him a dog bed and bowls it was really nice because that was the only thing I forgot to bring. He really wanted to make sure we weren’t stressing so we could have a good wedding day. I would highly recommend this place!
The only reason I put 3 stars for the flexibility is because if you want to come earlier or stay later you do have to pay $250 every hour. I guess I have to respect that because it is a business. I just thought it was a bit pricey for a hour. -
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Lauren Sent on 01/10/2025
Beautiful Venue - But Be Prepared
We had the most beautiful wedding here in September of 2024. I’ve held off on writing a review due to our mixed feelings with the venue after everything was said and done. Many guests said our wedding was the most beautiful, fun, unique, etc that they had ever attended. Our pictures were beautiful. Once the ceremony began, the day ran smoothly thanks to our hired wedding coordinator. The overnight cabins are a great asset to avoid guests drinking and driving. Unfortunately as the couple planning the wedding we felt there were a lot of issues behind the scenes that caused us unnecessary stress that poisoned our view of the wedding venue.
The venue bills itself as DIY and lists its initial pricing low. When we first inquired we quickly realized pricing for a weekend wedding during wedding season is over x2 the advertised price.
Many things with the venue are DIY, be prepared to have to bring in many of your own vendors, chairs, tables, linens, appliances, plates, etc. Planning a wedding is always a huge undertaking, but even more so at this venue.
At the end of the day the amount we spent to throw a good wedding here far exceeded what we would have spent if we had went with an inclusive wedding venue.
The venue does not have its own bar top, chairs for the ceremony space, or additional miscellaneous items. The venue would offer to rent you items at an additional charge that were already at the venue (and would be removed from the space if you didn’t pay for them). A lot of these items seemed like they should be included when you’re already paying thousands of dollars to the venue.
We rented one day, Saturday, which includes 2pm the day of rental until 11am the next day. We quickly realized we would need more time to set up since again, the venue is very DIY. We inquired for renting Friday and were told it would be full price the cost of a Friday wedding (which doubles the cost of rental). Additional hours can be purchased at a rate of $250/hr, which seems exorbitantly high to me. We offered to pay $500 to come Friday night for 2 hours to set up for our wedding (there was no event Friday night at the venue) and were told no, if you want to come Friday for 2 hours you need to rent the day in full for $5700. I didn’t feel like we were treated or accommodated as paying clients, every step of the way was an opportunity for the venue to try to extract an additional fee.
The venue listed being “dog friendly” multiple times and has several pictures of the bride and groom with their fur babies. The week before the wedding we were informed we could only bring one of our dogs without fee, any other dogs were $150 per dog. We have 3 dogs, and couldn’t stomach giving the venue another $300, so unfortunately none of our dogs were able to spend the night at the venue. The venue billing itself as dog friendly was a major consideration into booking so this was a huge disappointment.
To speak to professionalism, our florist began to walk from her car at 11:45am to the hall and was chased back into her vehicle by staff from the venue who told her that she needed to wait until noon because that was the only additional time the couple purchased. Our florist came to us after and told us she has never been treated this way at any other venue and was shocked by this behavior. Our caterer inquired about using a folding table in the venue and was told no because the couple hadn’t paid the additional fee to use it (this table was still in the venue the day of our wedding.)
The cleanup here is also quite extensive, we found a 2 page checkout list the next day that had never been shown to us of everything that needed to be done to get your security deposit back. We stressed for hours in the morning cleaning the venue to the standards of the list just to be told in the morning that they forgot that list was there and it wasn’t meant for us (I had already spent 2 hours mopping the floors and replacing trash bags all over the grounds.)
Lindsay was very friendly and responsive to our texts, emails, and calls. We appreciated her setting up multiple walk through with us. Unfortunately a lot of the messages Lindsay relayed to us, which I can only assume were passed down from those above her (the venue owners we never met) were unreasonable and difficult.
This venue has SO much potential and can give you a beautiful & memorable wedding day. Unfortunately I feel at this time they are difficult to work with and not client centered. They may need to revisit there rental model and customer service.Camp Hidden Valley at Deer Creek Preserve's reply:
Lauren -
While we are thrilled that you had an amazing wedding with us, we are soo terribly sorry to hear you were less than 100% pleased with your experience with camp.
You've brought up many points that we would like to address but most importantly we'd like to assure you that our couples are the very heart and sole of our business and taking the upmost care of them in every way possible is our primary goal, always. We truly take pride in our customer service and feel that we go the extra mile with every opportunity presented (when we can legally and safely do so)
We are definitely a DIY venue. We feel that although this might seem like a bit more work for our couples, it allows them the flexibility and freedom to select vendors that are in their price range and best fit their styles and personalities.
Our rental prices are totally transparent and are sent out to couples upon their initial inquiry. Your post makes it seem as though we misrepresented our prices in some way. Our prices do vary by season and day of the week as do most venues but are never falsely advertised.
As for additional equipment, as a courtesy to our couples, we do offer to handle the rental and coordination of items such as heaters, tables, chairs, bar tops etc. Please understand that currently we do not own these items. We merely handle the rental and coordination of them for our couples. In your post, you mentioned we'd "take them away" if you don't pay for them. This is simply not true. Currently all equipment comes from an outside company and is delivered to the camp prior to your rental. We are in no way trying to nickel and dime our couples. We feel truly terrible that you somehow got this impression.
It is unfortunate that we cannot permit our couples to come to camp in advance of their contract. This is simply for liability reasons and has nothing to do with price. It is for the safety and security of not only our guests but of your personal items as well.
Camp Hidden valley is indeed dog friendly (on a limited basis). we do explain to couples upon their very first visit that one dog is permitted however, we discourage additional dogs (again for liability reasons) but, if couples truly want to bring additional dogs, we do charge a fee. If this was not clearly explained to you early on, we certainly apologize for the oversight however line 3 on your contract of our camp rules states:
3. No pets of any type are permitted other than 1 dog belonging to the renter
A stated in your contract, we do ask that our couples be the first to arrive to the camp (or designate a representative) to do a brief walk through prior to vendors arriving. We absolutely, genuinely apologize if we offended your florist in any way as this should never have happened.
We think there may have been some confusion about the tables you mentioned in your post. Our guests often leave items they no longer want and as a courtesy we offer them to future couples to use however, we ask that folks not count on the particular item (in your case it was two old tables) being available on their date as items sometimes appear and sometimes they disappear just as quickly and we'd never want you to be short a table, a vase, or other important piece of equipment. Again, it had nothing to do with paying for these tables as they were tables left by a previous group.
We are sorry you were unaware of our clean up policies. They are spelled out in our rental agreement and as a courtesy, we do keep a checklist in the lodge as a friendly reminder. We do want to say a quick THANK YOU and let you know that you did a truly amazing job with cleaning up
We appreciate you taking the time to write a thoughtful, detailed review of our camp and feel terrible that your experience was less than perfect. That being said, we feel that when couples rent the camp, we are all entering into a partnership together and the majority of the items you expressed concern about are clearly outlined in the rental agreement you signed.
We wish you and Jacob a lifetime of happiness, good health and lots of love!!
Fondly,
The CHV family
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Zach Sent on 08/17/2021Very stressful and frustrating experience
*This is our 4th revision because the owners keep disputing our reviews and we have to go back and edit. We are not bullies; we are unhappy clients who deserve a platform to speak on our experience. What a shame that the owners would rather argue, name-call and make excuses for their unacceptable behavior as opposed to using this important feedback as an opportunity to learn and grow their business for the future. Very sad. Just because DCP doesn’t see our perspective, does not make us wrong. It sure was an “ideal partnership” when they were cashing our checks! Please do not respond to us any further.
My wife and I were married here in Oct 2020 and the entire year leading up to our wedding was very stressful as the owners were extremely difficult to work with, in many different ways ranging from communication (emails about giving away our date because the owner misplaced payment - copied from email, “We have MANY March – May 2020 events looking to reschedule that would jump at the opportunity to rebook your date in October” and only apologizing after we sent screenshots from our bank that checks were deposited on their end) and general operations or inquiries about their property or in our opinion, flat out rude and nasty tone when talking to us or family members. It was extremely challenging from start to finish. There were zero attempts made to fix or repair the relationship. We can also copy and paste text from emails and go into more detail but our original negative review was pulled down because it does not fit the narrative that the owners are trying to portray. We are happily married, but simply regret getting married here as it ruined what blissful planning experience we thought we would have. We are not dwelling on the bad experience, honestly, we do not think about it or Leslye but found the energy to finally post our review to make others aware. If you’re considering booking and want to know more, please look on google for our full review.Camp Hidden Valley at Deer Creek Preserve's reply:
NEWEST REPLY:
Zach & Kaylee-
This is now the 6th revised review you are posting. At this point, we are just not sure what your intention is other than to try and "bully us." Once again, we are truly sorry you have so much anger toward us personally but, please...we respectfully request you consider letting other wedding wire couples make their own decisions.
ORIGINAL REPLY:
The year leading up to your wedding was indeed difficult. Not just as it pertains to our owner/renter relationship, which we agree was challenging, but a pandemic that basically shut down the world. Our goal in this reply is not to hash out all the half-truths and accusations of your original review. It is simply to say that we too wish things had gone more smoothly.
We did, in fact, make a mistake regarding your deposit status. An honest human mistake for which we clearly apologized. Below is a copy of the email sent within a day of that correspondence once our error had been discovered. We think is an excellent representation of our efforts at communication.
“My sincerest apologies. With all that is going on, it looks like your invoice was updated with our current deposit terms but these updated terms were not reflected in your original contract. You are absolutely correct. According to your contract, you have paid a 50% deposit and the balance of ….. is not due until 9.03.20. I sincerely apologize for any stress my email might have caused. Please understand we have a ton of couples pressuring us for 2020 weekends and have few to give. We have started contacting folks that are not current on payments in order to see if perhaps we can try and accommodate a few requests as some couples are choosing to push their fall dates to 2021 due to financial stresses, international guests, etc. I truly thought you had a ….. payment due March 1st but based on your contract this is NOT the case….again, my sincere apologies!!
Please feel free to give me a call if there is anything you’d like to discuss. All is fine on our end and do not worry your date is YOURS!!!
Stay safe and well and let me know if there is anything I can help with! -Leslye”
The bottom line for us is that we agree that this was not an ideal partnership. We certainly wish it had gone smoother for all parties involved. It is truly unfortunate that 10 long months after your event you both still have such disdain for us personally. We definitely made every effort to mend bridges with you both many times along the way. We truly wish you both many years of love and good health. We hope that a time comes where you are just happy to be married and remembering all the amazing days together since your wedding instead of dwelling on the challenges surrounding your event. All the best to you both.
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