Colonial Williamsburg Resorts Reviews

Our daughter's dream wedding was held at the Williamsburg Inn. From the moment she stepped onto the grounds she knew it was the perfect setting for her wedding.

The venue is stunning, timeless historic and beautifully maintained, offering countless stunning photo opportunities.

We cannot recommend, Yuani Valentine, Weddings and Special Events Coordinator, highly enough! Yuani's knowledge of the venue, attention to detail, and prompt responses made everything seamless.

Lindsay Codekas, Manager of the Floral Studio at the Williamsburg Inn, created stunning bouquets and centerpieces.

From start to finish, the food exceeded all expectations--beautifully presented, flavorful, and perfectly timed.

The wedding cake was a showstopper. The pastry chef worked with us to customized flavors and fillings. It looked stunning and tasted even better.

The combination of the Williamsburg Inn's breathtaking ambiance and Yuani's exceptional expertise created a celebration that was both sophisticated and deeply personal. We cannot recommend this venue highly enough for couples seeking a wedding experience defined by elegance, impeccable service and unforgettable memories.

We celebrated our wedding at this venue, and it was truly the perfect choice. Everything — from the atmosphere to the service — was exceptional. The staff were friendly and attentive, and the whole day went so smoothly

Working with the Williamsburg Inn / Lodge for our wedding was amazing. They have a wide variety of event spaces that are all beautiful and well maintained. All spaces are close by and allow for easy movement through the entire day. The events team at the Inn/Lodge is top notch and will go above and beyond to make sure all the small details are taken care of.

I can’t say enough good things about our event at Shields. It was perfect in every way thanks to Liz and her team. While the price tag is typical of Colonial Williamsburg, I would highly recommend them. Our dinner was turnkey and stress free allowing us to enjoy the evening with our guests.
If I had to do it again I wouldn’t change a thing.

The entire experience working with the team at Colonial Williamsburg Resorts was incredible. My husband and I got married in the Oval Garden and had our reception in the Colony Room of the Lodge (~215 guests). Yuani (events), Lindsay (florals), and the catering and pastry teams were phenomenal. Not only were they extremely personable and heartfelt in making our day perfect, but they went above and beyond in all of our expectations. Our communications with them were always thorough, and if there was ever a miscommunication, we got it ironed out with such ease! Our florals were BEAUTIFUL, the food was INCREDIBLE, and the entire experience really couldn’t have been better. They accommodated all of our guests who stayed at the Lodge or other CW properties so professionally. They also worked really wonderfully with all of our outside vendors. I really can’t say enough good things about getting married here!!! You may feel some sticker shock depending on which packages and venues you look at, but it is worth it for a beautiful, worry-free wedding day with the most amazing team.

Having our wedding at the Williamsburg Inn took what is typically one of the most stressful events in life and made it simple. Every decision was presented in an orderly fashion and made our lives so much easier. Nothing was ever “off the table”, and I cannot say enough nice things about their staff. Always supportive, prompt, willing to go any mile, and never made us feel pressured. Truly, they made the best day of our lives as easy as possible and exactly what we envisioned. They adjusted to our needs and put us first always. Yuani the main coordinator, had exquisite attention to detail, and Lindsay with florals met with us several times to assure the vision was absolutely perfect. The tasting and food were amazing, and the pastry chef took an enormous amount of time to get our unique cake just right. Truly, you can’t go wrong with this team. Cannot recommend enough.

I cannot advise you to book your wedding here quick enough! Yuani, Lindsey (Florist), and the whole team here are second to none! From day 1, we felt like family and were treated like royalty. Yuani is by far one of the most amazing persons I have ever met and I can’t imagine having worked with anyone else. She helped make our entire vision come to life, kept us organized and helped brainstorm ways to make all the unique elements happen. The actual day of our wedding was stress free and turned our even better than I imagined! It was elegant, beautiful, and historic, and all our guests said it was the best experience they’ve ever had coming to a wedding (putting the Breakers Palm Beach to shame!) It has changed from being just a venue to us, to being a special place we’ve already spent birthdays and plan to spend our Anniversary’s at and take our kids to one day. Book now, and it’ll be the best decision you’ve ever made - I promise! (Photo credits to Luke and Ashley Photography)

Colonial Williamsburg hosted our son’s rehearsal dinner and wedding welcome party at Shields Tavern Pavilion. Many guests were traveling from out of state and we wanted a fun Virginia feel to the event, with a live band, florals that tied in with local flora, and food that reflected Southern hospitality. Our event contact Yuani Valentine was gracious, professional, and on top of all details to ensure everything came together absolutely beautifully.

Our wedding was a dream! The team at CW was fantastic to work with. Yuani was wonderful to work with. CW is all inclusive with food, cake, flowers and alcohol for the wedding. It was wonderful to have a venue that was all inclusive.
The food was DELICIOUS! Our guests raved about how tasty the food was. We also received a complimentary room the night of the wedding. The staff at the Williamsburg Inn were so amazing to us and our guests. Everyone was wonderful, super attentive to us, and the staff who worked our wedding were wonderful!! If I could get married there again and relive the day again, I would!

We had an afternoon wedding at the Williamsburg Inn. Yuani, Lindsey, Chef Travis and team went above and beyond to make sure the entire event was perfect! They were flexible, friendly and so so helpful from top to bottom. They even helped us plan and host our rehearsal dinner in the garden with three weeks notice (after our other venue cancelled). We cannot recommend this team and venue enough.

We had a great experience working with CW Resorts for our wedding. The venue options are all beautiful, the food was spectacular, and the staff was so friendly. THE place in Williamsburg to have your wedding!

We worked directly with Yuani, who is such a pleasure. She made sure we had everything we wanted, down to the last detail. She went above and beyond to ensure we had accurate cost estimates and knew our options throughout the planning process.

Unfortunately, our wedding occurred over the weekend Hurricane Ian came up the coast. Through every new weather report, Yuani was on the phone with us, talking about potential options (our ceremony and cocktail hour were scheduled to be outside), and making sure that no matter what happened we would have a beautiful wedding. Thankfully we had a perfect window that Saturday and everything went exactly according to plan, but without Yuani there to help us through the stress of having to make the last-minute decisions, I don't know what we would've done. She's a miracle worker!

Hands down it was the best decision to host our wedding reception at The Inn. The staff work day in and day out with other couples, but they have this keen ability to make you feel like you are the most special couple they are working with. From every element of the planning process right down to the execution of the reception, we were never let down. We now think of those at the Inn as a part of our family and spend each wedding anniversary right back at the place where it all started! If you want to build memories in a location where you know that each detail will be carefully and thoughtfully handled and also feel like you have a place to visit for the years to come that feels like home, then I highly encourage booking this location.

The day after my now husband proposed in Williamsburg, we went into the Inn for a tour of their venue spaces and immediately fell in love. From that very first day through our wedding weekend, we could not have asked for a better experience working with the entire Williamsburg event team. Yuani Valentin went above and beyond every step of the way working with us. If we had a concern, she immediately had a solution. If we had a question, she had an answer. Yuani is a true visionary and made my husband and I feel as if she was planning her own family members wedding when she worked with us. We had the wedding weekend of our dreams in a fairytale location, executed by true professionals. We cannot thank Yuani, Travis (the Executive Chef of the Williamsburg Inn), or Lindsay (Floral Coordinator for Colonial Williamsburg), enough for all they did to make our dream a reality.

Our experience with Yuani Valentine and The Williamsburg Inn could not have been better. We feel so lucky to have worked with her and everyone at the Inn. She made our wedding day everything we dreamed of and more, and went above and beyond. Leading up to our wedding Yuani took care of little details, was always in touch, and so easy to talk to. Everyone at the Inn is so kind and accommodating, and I will always have such fond memories of our wedding weekend at the Williamsburg Inn with our family and friends! I wish we could do it again!

My fiance and I decided to elope after so many plans fell through due to planning a wedding during the pandemic. We are from Northern VA and wanted a location within a few hours from home where we could have a private wedding, just the two of us. We decided on the Williamsburg Inn after reading the history of the hotel and seeing pictures of the grounds. We were not disappointed when we arrived, being greeted by gracious staff and having a look around at the classic luxury of the property. My fiance was in touch with the hotel prior to our arrival to ask about having our private ceremony on the grounds. The desk directed us to Leslie, the GM, who was very generous and accommodating. She answered all of our questions, made sure the staff was aware of our plans, and offered anything she could do to make our time there special. All of the bell, front office and housekeeping staff were friendly and quick to help with any request- big or small. We visited the restaurant for breakfast and lunch while we were there and had drinks on the patio as well- everyone was friendly and offered their congratulations. I also visited the Spa twice which was just a short walk down the path from the hotel. All in all we don't think we could have picked a better place! We can't wait to visit in the warmer months and plan to visit each year as a special celebration of our 2020 wedding :)

Almost three months ago prior to the start of the COVID-19 Pandemic and its ultimate shut down of not only Colonial Williamsburg, but of the United States as a whole, we were able to have the wedding of our dreams at The Williamsburg Inn. Even with all that has happened and was happening before and during our special day the team at Colonial Williamsburg came through for us.

No wedding day is perfect on every account. Neither of us believe that is possible and we went into our day knowing this. There are always the last-minute things that are forgotten or sudden disappointments that you did not expect. And that’s when there isn’t a Global Pandemic breathing down your neck. But the comments we got from all of our guests, family, and friends was simple. “This was perfect, everything was perfect!”. From the Doormen, Valet Parking Attendants, and Custodial Staff to the Cooks, Servers, Bartenders, and Groundskeepers, no problem or fault could be found by those we invited to share in our special day. Everyone stated they felt safe, enthused, taken care of, relaxed, and joyous all weekend.

The staff is incredibly communicative during all phases of the planning and executing of the wedding and reception. Their venues are second to none, and the historical architecture made our special day feel once in a lifetime. If you are looking for a wonderfully elegant, classy, and incredible all in one experience you should look no further than the Williamsburg Inn and it's grounds.

I would highly recommend Colonial Williamsburg Resorts for a venue. We met with Brittany first to look around the Inn to decide on a location and get the contract going. We met with Yuani who coordinated everything up until the ceremony. Both ladies were super friendly and amazing to work with. They responded so quickly to any questions we had! The Inn took care of all of the catering, drinks, and cake and everything was perfect and delicious! The staff was so friendly as well. Our experience was amazing and everyone we worked with at the Inn made sure our wedding day was perfect!

Williamsburg Inn is hands down the absolute best venue in the Williamsburg area! Yuani Valentine is a dream come true in wedding coordination. She was able to suggest and execute things that took the wedding to new level. She treated us like family! She was calm and confident throughout the planning process and wedding day. We absolutely loved working with her!
My daughter had her wedding and reception on Queens Terrace last weekend. I am not exaggerating when I say it was spectacular. Everything went off without a hitch and exceeded our expectations on every level. We used the Inn's internal florist, Lindsay Codekas. The price was better than another local florist, and she was able to completely outdo them! Everything was breathtaking! Lindsay really listened and understood my daughter's vibe and knocked it out of the park!
The food was excellent and the servers were friendly and the epitome of professional at all times. In fact, every staff member that we worked with or ran into at Williamsburg Inn was friendly, helpful, and committed to ensuring we were happy at all times!
I rate this venue and this staff with the highest score! They certainly earned it!

I cannot think of a more exquisite wedding reception venue than the Williamsburg Inn! Every detail was perfect for our early spring event, even the weather cooperated!

Our out-of-town guests loved their accommodations in the Griffin Hotel and enjoyed being in Colonial Williamsburg with so much to see and do.

On the big day, guests spilled out of the East Lounge onto the beautiful patio overlooking the well-landscaped grounds during the cocktail hour while being serenaded by the Jamestown Quartet. Dinner and dancing followed in the newly renovated Regency Room.

We worked with Yuani Valentine over a 10-month period to plan every detail of the event. She is knowledgeable and charming, provides great advice, attends to every detail, and honors every request. The event was flawless! Our special thanks to the Chef who created 78 amazingly perfect meals and received rave reviews from our guests. And thanks to the wait staff and bartenders who performed just as you would expect --- competent, professional, and courteous.

Thank you, Williamsburg Inn, for making our special day so memorable!

We had a great time having our wedding at the Williamsburg Inn. We worked with Brittany to get the contract for the venue, and then we met with Yuani to help us coordinate the day of. Both were wonderful in terms of understanding our needs, answering our questions, and providing suggestions. They were very flexible and communicative.

We worked with Yuani a lot, which made our wedding immensely less stressful. She was very calm and so incredibly helpful when it came to getting a timeline and coordinating with the vendors on the day of. We had to move our wedding inside, and we ended up using a different ballroom instead of our original rain backup plan (same room as reception), which was beautiful and a wonderful suprise.

As for the night of accomodations, my husband and I had a wonderful experience. We used the Perry Shaw Hepburn room to get ready (no bathroom), but it happened to be connected to our night of room! The staff came in between the ceremony and the end of reception and set up everything so nicely for us. There was champagne, chocolates, fresh towels, and a personal note. It made us feel so special, and we had such a wonderful experience there. We really hope to come back for an anniversary!

The Inn also did our cake and our dinner. The bar service & specialty cocktail we chose, and everyone commented on how delicious the food was. Not typical or bland, as some event food can be sometimes, but intensely flavorful and felt very healthy and light. The cake was divine as well. Overall such a good experience.

We couldn't be happier with our wedding at the Williamsburg Inn! Yuani Valentine was our event coordinator, and she was amazing to work with every step of the way. We had both our ceremony and reception at the venue. The Regency Room was recently renovated, and the room looks even more stunning and timeless than before. The venue really went above and beyond with every detail. From the ceremony setup, to the food, floral arrangements, cake, table settings, etc. - everything about the day was flawless. We have had so many guests rave about the venue. Thank you to Yuani and the Williamsburg Inn for making this our best day yet!

We decided to host our rehearsal dinner at the Williamsburg Inn on December 14th. It was such a magical experience! Yuani Valentine was the person assisting us with scheduling our event, and her customer service and care throughout the process was amazing! Our guests were absolutely awed be the gorgeous lights and Christmas trees on the drive up to the Inn and the elegant decor in the lobby. Our dinner was held in the Goodwin room, and it looked absolutely breathtaking! Our servers were polished and gave us a first class experience and the chef prepared an absolutely delicious, fine-dining meal. Yuani was present throughout the night checking in on our comfort and experience. I would give this entire dinner a 10 star review if I could!

Written by Mother of Bride -- Stephanie and Zachary married on 10/27/2018

The Forbes 5-Star Williamsburg Inn provided a truly elegant venue and totally outstanding experience for our daughter's dream-come-true wedding reception! From our initial visit to the Inn in December 2017, the delightful wedding sales and planning team of Brittany Rice and Yuani Valentine helped us make our daughter’s wedding reception the perfect celebration for her most special day! And on Stephanie and Zachary’s wedding day, The Williamsburg Inn really felt like our very own magnificent and charming home. From the warm welcome at front doors of the Inn, to a beautiful sunset cocktail hour in the East Lounge and patio (while the bride and groom enjoyed a private celebration in the Inn’s quaint Library), followed by a gorgeous wedding reception in the Regency Room, topped off with nightcaps in the Lounge, and then finished with a lovely suite for the newlyweds…5-STAR WOW!!! Our guests raved about the food and drinks, but most importantly, about the gracious service and charming elegance (and fun!) of the wedding celebration. My husband and I greatly appreciated the Inn's complete wedding package that included the cocktail hour with appetizers, three course dinner, open bar, personalized wedding cake, champagne toast, and two nights complimentary stay at the Inn! And the best surprise was no surprise with the final bill, as it was exactly what we had planned. The Inn’s list of Preferred Vendors was also very helpful in finding top-notch vendors who provided fabulous wedding services. We are so grateful for Yuani Valentine (Manager of Weddings & Special Events), who is always a total joy to work with and makes wedding planning fun and worry-free. Yuani’s great depth of wedding planning experience is invaluable for helping her clients design their perfect celebration…and that she does with grace and style and ease!

We had our ceremony on the Queen’s Lawn, cocktail hour on the Queen’s Terrace/East Lounge, and dinner + dancing in the Regency Room of the Williamsburg Inn. We also had our rehearsals dinner and post-wedding breakfast at the Lodge. The venue was stunning; everything was so beautiful. The absolute best part was getting to work with Yuani Valentine (the CW hotels event planner). She has a very charismatic personality and made the whole process so much fun. I could not have picked a better place to get married!

We are so glad that we went with Colonial Williamsburg for our wedding! Yuani was an absolute pleasure to work with, she is a real pro at what she does. She put us at ease throughout the entire process and answered all of our questions in a timely manner. Our guests were treated with the first class experience that you would expect from a well-regarded organization.

The Woodlands was an amazing venue. The courtyard outside was perfect for cocktail hour and the room upstairs fit 160 people comfortably. We highly recommended this location.

I can’t say enough about how wonderful our experience was during the entire process of planning the wedding at the beautiful Williamsburg Inn. Brittany Rice, Director of Wedding and Events, Colonial Williamsburg Hotels, Dana Lucan with the Williamsburg Lodge were wonderful helping to guide us through the sales process and Yuani Valentine, Wedding and Special Events, Colonial Williamsburg Hotels who help in so many ways with planning, executing and overseeing our event....all were very professional and so very helpful...and wonderful to work with and very attentive to the bride and groom, bridal party and guest the day of the event. The venue is beautiful, the food was delicious and beautifully presented and the staff was top notch...it made for a perfect day!

We just had the most beautiful wedding at the Williamsburg Inn! Yuani Valentine was our wedding coordinator and did an amazing job making our day perfect! She helped execute every little detail perfectly and even helped with things we didn’t even think about. Their florist created an amazing and beautiful dinner table for our guests of 40 and our cake and bouquets matched with perfect elegance. The food was incredible and everyone was in awe with how beautiful the venue was overall. We had our ceremony outside of the East Lounge in the queens garden then dinner in the East Lounge.
Thank you Yuani for making our day perfect.

The Williamsburg Inn is such a beautiful setting. The experience was professional from planning to wedding day. I highly recommend the coordinators, chefs, florist and staff!

Yuani and Brittany are the best!

My husband and I had a fabulous wedding at The Williamsburg inn. The staff were easy to work with and responded very well to email and phone communication. We opted to have our cake(s) and florals also through The Williamsburg Inn and could not have been happier with our decision. All of our guests commented on how beautiful our wedding was at the Inn!

The Williamsburg Inn is a premiere venue for a wedding. Their staff, particularly Yuani and Brittany are totally professional. Our wedding ceremony and reception was flawless. If you want value, professionalism, and flair, choose the Williamsburg Inn.

It was a Magical experience! All guests absolutely loved their experience and stay at the Williamsburg Inn! Yuani Valentine, Wedding & Event Director, was 5 star!!!

Brittany and Yuani did a fantastic job of coordinating and providing for the rehearsal dinner. They even went above what was talked about with adding music during the dinner. Everything went so smoothly and I didn't worry at all. Stress free:)

The Williamsburg Inn was THE perfect venue for a Wonderful Winter Wedding Weekend! All wedding guests were very complimentary and the Bride & Groom plan to celebrate some anniversaries there for sure! Job well done.

absolutely loved the venue!! I can't imagine getting married anywhere else.

Absolutely the most beautiful place to have a fairytale wedding! Brittany, Michele and the entire staff made my daughter's wedding perfect. The chef' was AMAZING!! Perfect!!

The Willismsburg Inn was an exceptional venue for our wedding and celebration gathering. The coordinator was always available to assist and worked tirelessly to assure we were happy and our guests were attended to. Also, the floral department is beyond exceptional -no boring arrangements. Their input resulted in our flowers being one of the highlights for our guests. A venue like no other.

Absolutely spectacular. Ask for Brittany, she helped us from start to finish planning the most beautiful chic wedding we could have ever imagined. Absolutely gorgeous venu, white glove service and most pleasant, uncomplicated, stress free wedding planning! Can’t reccomend this venu enough it was perfect start to finish and our memories will last a lifetime.

Fantastic! Food superb, venue beautiful. Brittany, the Inn's coordinator was perfect and extremely helpful. Whole wedding planned on 2 weeks exactly as bride wanted it.

Colonial Williamsburg, VA is the perfect venue for any and all of your wedding planning. It is the ideal place to invite guests to visit or re-visit all that CW has to offer in the way of entertainment, while experiencing history in such a beautiful and complete setting.

We hosted our daughter’s wedding at the Williamsburg Inn in October 2016. Our weekend festivities began at the Inn’s Fountain Terrace as a welcome dinner for our out-of-town guests, families and bridal party. A delicious southern BBQ was featured in a relaxed, yet elegant atmosphere. A private ceremony was held in the Inn’s East Lounge, which had been transformed to look like a quaint chapel. The ceremony was followed by an outdoor cocktail reception, located on the Queen’s Lawn, just outside the East Lounge. Dinner reception was then held in the beautiful Regency Dining Room. Our weekend ended with a complete southern-style brunch at the Williamsburg Lodge Traditions Restaurant. Selective menus for each event were beyond spectacular! (An outstanding food and cake tasting were offered to the Bride, Groom, and parents three months prior to the wedding.) Our thanks to CW Chefs for scrumptious southern fare!

The wedding planning and personalized selections were all made possible with the meticulous guidance and assistance from Michele Derosa and Clark Taggart, of Colonial Williamsburg. Michele is a true special event professional, having assisted us with every detail, from start to finish. Clark’s expertise in room set-ups and floral design is second to none. This dynamic duo helped us achieve the wedding of our daughter’s dreams. The Williamsburg Inn and entire staff at Colonial Williamsburg far exceeded our expectations and are to be commended for making each and every one of our guests feel right at home. Thank you, Colonial Williamsburg. We could not have asked for a more perfect wedding!

The Inn’s Spa and Wellness Center was also the perfect place to prepare for the big day!

I couldn't be more delighted with the Inn. A bridesmaid had an issue with her dress. I brought it to the attention of the front desk and they took care of it within an hour.
The food was superb. Many guests told us the filet was the best they ever had. Everything was perfect.

Very beautiful gardens and they Are kept up wonderfully

Spectacular! Kathy Cannon and her staff were wonderful to work with during the wedding planning stage and on the day of. Food was perfect- I have received so many comments about the quality of the dinner- and the cake was beautiful. Gorgeous venue!

The Lodge was wonderful to work with - things are pricey in a place like Williamsburg that tends to be a destination location, but I could not have asked for a more attentive crew than the people at the Lodge - they were prompt in answering any and all questions and quick to respond to whatever changes arose.

The staff was exceptional and every detail was addressed and we had a perfect Reception at the Lodge in the Virginia Ballroom.

We would recommend the Williamsburg Lodge for a destination wedding as we had the Mother of the Bride coordinate our wedding with the assistance of the Mother of the Groom. On the day of the wedding we hired a wedding day planner and the wedding reception was perfect to the letter of the agreement.

Since our wedding was over a hoilday weekend we were concerned with the room rates and the Lodge worked with us for all of our out of town guest since they were traveling national and international.

The attention to detail was perfect the chef introduced himself to our family the following evening when he discovered we were watching the fireworks on the lawn. He wanted to know if we were pleased with the food and the service - really great experience. We were concerned about the wedding cake since we had only a photo to share but the cake was perfect and quite tasty.

Highly recommend the Lodge for the destination or local wedding.

We were able to reserve the space at the Rockefeller Complex at the very last minute. The staff at every lever were very kind and professional, and take their job very seriously. Brittany was an absolute joy to work with and made the experience very easy. She was very experienced with executing a wedding, and had many useful recommendations we were able to implement.

The space was incredibly gorgeous and decorating was very easy. We had access to the ceremony area the day prior for the rehearsal, and we were able to start setting up at 0900am the day of.

They were very flexible. We were able to add a lot of personal touches to the decor, and the staff were very accommodating for arranging the space.

The food was great and well in the range of our budget.

We had a great experience overall. The planning, preparation, and execution came together flawlessly and the staff make coordinating it all a breeze.

We had a great experience wtih the Lodge! Everything was gorgeous andit's in a great location

We fell in love with The Williamsburg Inn during a summer trip. Wanting an intimate ceremony, we chose to make it a destination event. Everyone at the Inn was amazing and helped us work to create our perfect day. Very responsive to emails and calls. Never once did I worry - from 6 hours away - that our plan wouldn’t come to fruition.
We used vendors from the preferred list and they were ALL amazing - florals, food and cake all done by the Inn.
I can’t say enough nice things about Liz Hodges as our planner/coordinator. By the end of the wedding weekend she was basically considered family.

We had our ceremony and reception at the Providence Hall House. The location was comfortable and beautiful. Starting out, we had a very vague idea of how our wedding should go. Yuani helped us set the details and made our ideas a reality. It rained on the day, and she was very good about telling us the options, her suggestion, and letting us decide. In addition to this, we were unsure of when we able to have our wedding because of some visa issues, but Yuani and the Colonial Williamsburg Inn worked with us to find a date that would work.

I agree, there is very little feedback out there regarding weddings at the Williamsburg Inn, and this made me very skeptical. However, I'm SO glad that I paid no attention to the other reviews out there because I had a fabulous experience! We held our cocktail hour in the Fountain Garden and our reception under a tent in the Oval Garden.

Kathy Cannon was a saint and coordinated everything including the set up of the tent, tables, chairs, lighting, place settings, and more. The chef created signature drinks, crafted a fresh oyster bar with creative toppings, baked a DELICIOUS cake, and the food was fabulous all night long...definitely not typical wedding food! Dinner was served quickly and on time, the bartenders were friendly and attentive, the event really was seamless. They worked with us in every way possible, and I have to admit, although I wasn't a bridezilla, I had a lot of special requests!

Something to keep in mind when having an event here, and probably a large part of why the other reviews were not the greatest...Colonial Williamsburg is a BIG organization. This has perks and downsides. The downside is that they aren't going to coddle you like you're their only client. They have a busy schedule and a set way of doing things. You need to be very specific and organized with your requests and sign an Event Order with ALL of the details you want. The bright side is that being such a big organization, they are very professional and can provide everything you need for a wedding in one centralized place. They provided votives for the tables, hurricanes to line the brick walkways, a cake cutter and display, the band stage and dance floor, even big beautiful chandeliers for FREE. They truly are a powerhouse with a lot of resources.

As long as you are a fairly organized bride and know what you want...absolutely have your wedding here! The location is beautiful, the value is solid (not a "deal", though), and I thought the staff was fantastic...especially Kathy!

P.S. we also had a tea on Friday afternoon in the Goodwin Room for my bridesmaids and friends...this was just as seamless as the rest of the weekend!

Brittany Rice and her team are an extraordinary group of people to work with. Our event was uniquely challenging in that the head count was high and it was a multi-day function involving a number of different venues in the Lodge. Despite this, Brittany managed to orchestrate every last detail in very short order. You would be very fortunate to have Brittany part of your event; she represents the highest level of professionalism and attention to detail and furthermore accommodated us in exceedingly generous ways that only one capable and invested in her duty would do. I would have no hesitation in recommending her group to anyone. Last but not least, the Colonial Williamsburg property in springtime is stunning! The Virginia Ballroom is amazing as are the Fountain Garden , Oval Garden and Rockefeller Complex. If I had to provide one minor piece of constructive advice, it would be in training of hotel staff (not the banquet staff, they were perfect) to be aware of the event and associated ins/outs and personnel associated with the event.

Once I was able to actually get in contact with someone at the Lodge, I had a good experience. It took me a month to get someone to talk to me - but I've heard that is not unusual - just be persistent if it is a place you really want. My coordinator helped me create a lovely wedding. Make sure to ask lots of questions and make sure to get your answers. The actual wedding reception was more beautiful and amazing than I expected. The dinner was delicious and I got a ton of food. I chose one of the lower priced menus and I was stunned at how good it was! The presentation was lovely and it tasted delicious (and I'm a bit of a food snob). The cake was beautiful and the chef decorated it exactly as I wanted. I was stunned at how well he copied what I wanted. The cake itself didn't taste that great, but I am a big cake person. I'm not sure that my guests noticed the cake taste.
The attention my family and I received from the coordinator and the captain the day of the wedding took me aback - I felt so special and attended to. They wanted to make sure I had a very special day and I did! I have no regrets - the Lodge gave me the wedding I dreamed of - even better than I dreamed of!

I wanted the Lodge from the start, and so I was very persistent in getting a hold of someone. However, it was, like for many brides, difficult to reach someone to go over details. The Lodge did make several accommodations for us, and for that, I'm greatly appreciative. Towards the wedding date, the Lodge was more responsive and considerate towards our needs. On our wedding day, they somehow ran out of hors d'oeuvres and that was disappointing... especially since fewer people showed up to our reception anyway! I really wanted to eat some of the items I chose on our tasting day! All in all, the food is delicious and wonderful. The staff was very attentive the day of, as well.

I read all of the reviews online about the Williamsburg Inn before my husband and I decided to have our reception here... that means that I read exactly one review and only one... and guess what... that one wasn't so flattering. There was nothing else out there in the form of reviews, and this gave me great pause. Now, because I consider myself a pretty strong woman who can pretty much deal with anything, I decided that we should throw caution to the wind and have our reception at the Williamsburg Inn. The cocktail hour was in the Fountain Garden and the dinner/dancing was under a tent in the Oval Garden. The locations are beautiful, the food was fantastic and the staff was kind and attentive. Kathy, who worked with us from the beginning, was wonderful. She did everything in her power to give us the reception of our dreams. Unfortunately, you guessed it... there is a "but."

I am not sure how long the "powers that be" at the Inn have been in the wedding business, but from the outside looking in I would guess that a couple of them took one or two night classes in hospitality and then decided that they were competent enough to run a 5 star resort. I have been intimately involved in the planning of several or my girlfriends' weddings so I know how this all works. I am also aware of what happens when the Food manager and the Beverage managers don't seem to live on the same planet and when there is no one capable at the top to make them work together. Hosting a wedding IS NOT LIKE hosting a business luncheon people!! Get a clue!

The other thing I found quite astounding is that they just didn't seem to have any interest in trying to work with me. Didn't they know that I was going to write a review? Didn't they realize that the only review out there wasn't so great? Didn't they realize that I would be honest and point out the good and not gloss over the bad? Why would I point out only good things so that the next bride who decides to use them can find herself in the same situation I found myself? Welcome to 2010, I'm not covering for your shenanigans.

That all being said, it was painfully obvious that Kathy's hands were tied in so many situations. How she puts up with the drama every time she organizes a wedding for them is beyond me... the woman is a saint! The day of the wedding everything went smoothly... totally and completely at the direction of Kathy.

So ladies... if you plan to have your reception here do it only if you can open up your bank account and let CW swim around in it. If you have the stomach for stiff negotiations, which will not really get you anywhere then this is the place for you. It is a beautiful location, Kathy and the wait staff is wonderful, but I really think CW and the Inn need to take note: a wedding is nothing like a business event... because you think it is, this is why you are doing such a poor job of it.

The Williamsburg Lodge was a wonderful venue and we enjoyed having our wedding there. Weddings are not their number one thing, so I think some things get over looked because they are more used to working with customers dealing with conferences. The food was delicious and the venue gorgeous. They often made our requests come through, but it sometimes took several tries to tell them. The prices are a bit high, but for the food you get what you pay for. The bar is very over priced, but it comes with the territory. We loved having our wedding in Williamsburg, as it gave our guest plenty to do! We wouldn't change a thing, but a little more attention to deal on the part of the Lodge would have made it even more perfect.

We had both good and bad experiences with the Williamsburg Inn. The venue itself is beautiful, well maintained and clean etc., the two wedding coordinators were both very kind people who tried hard to fix problems and get us what we wanted for our wedding but unfortunatly the disorganization that appeared to be a problem at the beginging of our planning process took its toll during our reception. While I am sure that the wedding coordinators gave it their all, and there had been an emergency which caused us to have to switch wedding coordinators a few weeks before the wedding, much of the stuff that we had discussed at length with the Inn was not executed on the day (hors d'oeuvres were not delivered to our holding room, the time of the champagne toast had not been clarified to the serving staff resulting in a water toast, no green beans were served as requested, the wait staff were under the impression that the bride was the groom and the bride's sister was the bride so the table was set up with the bride and her sister facing the room, this also made the service at the head table poor. In addition to this our wedding was sign-posted under the bride's name only rather than the bride and grooms name, a problem which was on going throughout the entire planning period and was corrected numerous times.

In addition to this the service of some of the wait staff was poor, the wine was served significantly later than the start of the meal, the bar tender disappeared for probably an hour and a half to two hours despite being paid to attend the bar during the entire event (some guests considered serving themselves drinks because they had been waiting for so long), all of the staff disappeared towards the end of the reception (the groom had to leave to go and find them so that we could cut the cake), and the room was very hot (the guests, bride and groom were literally dripping with sweat by the end of the reception).

Despite the fact that everyone at the inn is very nice, I was really disappointed with their execution of our wedding reception. It could have been an absolutely perfect day if everything had gone smoothly on their front, but unfortunatly that was not the case.

Site location, taste of food, wedding cake taste & design were all wonderful. We used the Woodlands Terrace (part of the conference center) and it was beautiful. The staff was great on my wedding day. The only problem I had was the communication prior to the event. It was extremely hard to get my calls/emails returned and my questions answered. I started attempting to book the place 10 months before my wedding, could not get a menu and price list until 6 months before wedding, and then I could not get my final contract sent to me until 2 weeks before the wedding. The value (prices, taste of food, ease of event day of) were worth the hassel though.

I could not agree more with what the two other brides have said about the Inn. My wedding was in October 2009 and I wish I had thought to post here earlier so the October 2010 bride avoided what I went through. Let's run through my experiences with the Inn: My first meeting was with the dreadful wedding planner Amanda. I lived at the time in DC but my parents are in Williamsburg so I went all the way to Williamsburg for the weekend to meet with Amanda on Sat morning and she doesn't show up or even call to apologize for standing me up. This is before I signed a contract. My second meeting with her, she showed up 25 min late. At this point I told the Inn I did NOT want Amanda as my coordinator and they gave me Kathy instead. I did not feel comfortable moving forward with such an incompetent person as my planner.

Then the Inn refused to negotiate on the cost of any of the venue rentals even though I was having my rehearsal dinner, ceremony, reception, wedding brunch and bridal tea at the Inn. Yes, that's right, I had to pay the full cost of the venue rentals for all these places at a cost of upwards of $10,000. That's right-$10,000 for just the rooms-and what's ridiculous is that at most wedding venues they give you the room for free as the cost of your food and drink cover the rental cost. That's how everything is at the Inn-there is absolutely NO negotiation on anything-food, drink, venue rental costs, etc. They don't even cut you a break for renting A/V equipment (we wanted to put up a slideshow of our relationship together and they charged us more than $600 to rent a projector and screen). In addition, for my wedding I wanted some Colonial details-a horse and carriage and a fife and drum quartet. These items are on display in the Village EVERY SINGLE DAY. However based on the fact that it took me 8 months to organize these items and more than 20 phone calls and dozens of emails you would have thought I had requested the Queen of England to be at my wedding instead.

Then the hotel was rude to our guests who wanted to stay there for the wedding (either giving them the run around in terms of customer service or even worse claiming they didn't have our wedding on file) and, here's the kicker, didn't even reserve a room for my husband and I for our wedding night even though it was in the contract. We fought back on this and did eventually get a room but our contract also said we would get a suite for our wedding night but we just got an ordinary room as they gave our suite away. As part of our renting of the Providence Hall House for our wedding ceremony, we got the five hotel rooms at Providence Hall for our use and we gave them to several of our guests so they wouldn't have to pay for a hotel (some came from long distances). A couple days after our wedding, we got our final bill for our wedding and, guess what, they tried to charge us for these rooms. That's right they charged us $500 per room and our guests said that the heating in their rooms wasn't working on a cold October night and they were shivering in their beds they were so cold. We fought back and showed that the rooms were included in the room rental and the charges were removed but it was still an unnecessary headache to deal with on our honeymoon.

Then don't get me started on the slow response to emails (weeks would go by without a response to a simple set of questions) so I eventually found I had to call Kathy to get answers to questions. Most of the time I ended up talking to her assistant Erin as she refused to put me through to Kathy but Erin would usually run down the answers for me same day which was better than no response at all. Now did the event turn out well without any major hiccups? Yes. Was the event in a beautiful location that the guests oohed and aahed about? Yes. But sometimes I wonder if it was even worth it to do it at the Inn for the logistical head aches I had to go through to get simple tasks accomplished and the rudeness of some of the staff I encountered. I also think there was NO value for money. They don't do ANY deals even if you book multiple events with them and don't seem grateful at all that you are even a customer of theirs. I just think there are other Colonial homes in the area that are just as beautiful and will probably give you better service that is less expensive for your wedding. I really would avoid this place at all costs unless you want to have endless frustration for your wedding. It still makes me angry 2 years later....