The Margate on Winnipesaukee Reviews
Reviews
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![Mary]()
Mary Sent on 10/15/2020Ashton made all our dreams come true!
Our wedding date was September 6, 2020. As I sit down to write this I have an overwhelming feeling of emotions of how perfect our day was. And I owe it all to The Margate and their staff.
My Husband and I decided on The Margate back in May of 2019. We had vacationed at the resort many times and had envisioned our wedding on the West Lawn.
Ashton was our wedding coordinator. I cannot say enough good things about Ashton and how amazing she was to work with. I am a type A person and had serious OCD that every single detail was planned perfectly for our wedding. I sent Ashton weekly emails, with questions and details for over a year. While this may have driven her crazy LOL she would ALWAYS respond to me in a timely manner and literally made it a priority to make sure EVERYTHING was exactly as I had envisioned. When the COVID-19 Pandemic hit earlier in the year I felt like many 2020 brides did, anxious and worried that our wedding day would not be how we had hoped. I sent many emotional emails to Ashton during this time. This is where she really blew me away. She listened and addressed everyone of my concerns, and was completely supportive of whatever our decision was when we were faced with rescheduling or not. She never pressured me into making a decision and provided me with multiple backup options. It’s also important to mention that she also didn’t let me give up hope on our dream wedding. This was all before I had paid my 50% deposit. They were very flexible with us during the uncertain time. At one point she even had me reserve a backup date for 2021 but would always follow up with- "We’re still keeping the original date because I have faith". She would watch the news and latest governor updates and report back to me. Needless to say the only reason we didn’t throw in the towel and reschedule was because of her. And let me tell you she was right!!!
To say that everyone at The Margate went above and beyond is an understatement. As if planning a wedding in 2020 wasn’t stressful enough. One week before my wedding I received an email from Caroline saying that my assigned coordinator Ashton was sick and they were unsure when she would be back. This had me panic stricken, but only for a moment because Caroline stepped right in. She reviewed my previous conversations with Ashton, picked up right where Ashton and I had left off and put me to ease right away. Thankfully Ashton was able to make it the day of my wedding and I had the pleasure of working with both Caroline and Ashton. Every single detail was PERFECT. From our guests checking into the hotel and receiving welcome bags, to our rehearsal dinner that was also held at The Margate, to our wedding day.
On the big day Ashton and Caroline set up everything exactly how I had envisioned. Ashton would check in with me frequently during the day to make sure everything was going smooth and sent me pictures of the tent set up so I knew everything was good to go! During our wedding Ashton continued to go above and beyond. She made sure every guest was taken care of, continuously checked in with my husband and I throughout the night to make sure we were happy with everything. She even collected all of our gifts, cards, and top tier of our cake and put it in our hotel room while we continued to celebrate at the reception. I received so many compliments from our guest on how helpful Ashton was.
If we could do it all over again we 100% would pick The Margate as our venue every time!
Our Favorite Parts: Awesome staff, Location, and the Fireworks- Highly recommend!! All our guests loved these and it felt pretty magical to end our wedding with these.
Things I wish were better: Hotel reservations were frustrating to work with. When you commit to have your wedding at the resort you receive a room block with a set price for your guests. Many of my guests were overcharged accidentally which required me to call them numerous times to remind them of our wedding rate. They also weren’t good about placing our important people near us even though we requested multiple times over a year in advance. Example my parents room was not near us and they unexpectedly placed my Maid of Honor in another building. Both of which were told when they booked that their rooms would be near mine. I was also told my suite didn’t have an adjoining room I had asked about this with hopes that a member from my bridal party could rent a room next to us for more space. However when we checked in there was an adjoining room. I would like to mention that Caroline and Ashton had no control over the reservations aspect otherwise I'm sure this wouldn’t have been an issue. -
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![Jodie]()
Jodie Sent on 10/11/2023would give them more than 5 stars if I could!
We had such a positive and pleasant experience with The Margate. The team they have are so incredible to work with. Our wedding did not go as planned but they were able to pivot and adapt and be there for us. We cannot speak more highly of Caroline and Kim, specifically, for working with us. You will be in great hands! -
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![Alyssa]()
Alyssa Sent on 10/12/2020Absolutely Perfect
Wow! There aren’t even words to express how happy we are with the Margate. The venue is absolutely stunning! We got married 10/10/2020 and as you can imagine, planning a wedding during the pandemic was not a lot of fun. The Margate, and most especially, our amazing coordinator Ashton really helped to make the whole process smooth and easy. Ashton was with us every step of the way, she checked in often and helped with any questions we had (and we had a lot lol). It was so nice knowing that we didn’t have to worry about anything because she would take care of things before they even became an issue. The entire day was absolutely perfect and so many people have told us how much they loved our wedding! We might be a little biased but we think it was the best wedding ever and we can’t thank Ashton and the Margate enough!! -
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![Wendy]()
Wendy Sent on 10/03/2019Our Happy Place
We are anchored at the Margate sandbar each weekend in the summer so it made perfect sense to have our special day there. Our coordinator was Ashton and she was so fun, down to earth and simply awesome! We had a fun-filled weekend of festivities. Started off with a bonfire, pizza, s’mores and kegs on the beach for our Friday night welcome party. Bonus fireworks display was absolutely incredible. Saturday ceremony right at the waters edge in the tent with the reception following in the Mariah room. Saturday night after party in Blackstones Saloon which was so much fun. They let us decorate early that day and we had the room until 1 am. Ended the weekend with Sunday breakfast in Blackstones to say bye to everyone and thank you. We couldn’t have asked for anything better. They accommodated every request we had, pizza and kegs on the beach, champagne as you walked into the ceremony tent, and everything else we wanted. Ashton worked hard to make sure every last detail was what we envisioned. The views were amazing and made for some pretty awesome pictures. We had a few hiccups with email/IT issues but Ashton gave us her personal email and cell number to put us at ease so we could reach her at all times. The weekend was better than we dreamed it would be. -
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![kimberly]()
Kimberly Sent on 09/26/2019Best day ever!
I had the time of my life! The Margate was accommodating and everything went off without a hitch. This venue is absolutely beautiful. And our wedding coordinator Ashton was beyond amazing! She was there for me from the planning process, to our big day! And made sure everything was absolutely amazing! I can thank her enough. -
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![Wendy]()
Wendy Sent on 09/19/2019Beautiful Dream Wedding at the Margate
We had the most incredible wedding at The Margate. From start to finish and the fireworks in between, our experience was wonderful. Our family and friends enjoyed the resort experience on the lake and the location and beautiful surroundings were literally perfect. The wedding of our dreams. Ashton was very quick to respond to all our questions and the changes that were made up until the big day. I would highly recommend getting married here! -
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![Tj Cutler]()
Tj Cutler Sent on 08/07/2019The most beautiful place for a Beautiful day
We couldn't have asked for a better location to hold our wedding. From the amazing views to the amazing staff. Ashton, our Coordinator, was EXTREMELY helpful and made sure that everything went perfect for us on our day. Ii would Recommend the Margate and Ashton to any and everyone. 100/10 Stars!! -
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![AllisonFellows]()
Allison Sent on 08/04/2019Nothing Short of Amazing!
When my husband and I were looking for a venue we found The Margate on WeddingWire...we booked a tour and needless to say we cancelled all other tours of other venues. It was perfect and we knew that at first glance. There is so much at The Margate to make your day even more perfect! Lake view rooms, sunset view, campfires, fireworks, pool parties, etc. our wedding was nothing short of amazing!!!
Onto our wedding coordinator...Ashton. Ashton was so much more than a wedding coordinator but also a friend. Ashton quickly became someone we could ask any question to and she’d have an answer. Ashton was amazing! On our wedding day she checked in just enough and was on top of making sure everything was exactly how we wanted. I could never thank her enough for all that she did for our wedding! I hope our paths cross again someday! -
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![Cheryl]()
Cheryl Sent on 01/03/2019Nice place
They have what we are looking for. We are meeting the vendor in April. Our wedding is in 2020 -
Lindsey Sent on 09/30/2017We had our wedding at the Margate this past July. It was a day that I will never forget, and yes, I know that is cliche, but it’s the truth. From when we booked the venue, to saying goodbye the next morning after the wedding, our wedding coordinator, Caroline, made everything possible. She went above and beyond and was always there when I needed to ask a question or to even just feel better about things. To my husband and I, our wedding day just flowed. Caroline did everything to make sure that we didn’t worry about anything.
We have been told that our wedding was over the top, and absolutely beautiful. I don’t think that would of been possible if it wasn’t for the Margate and how hard they worked from beginning to end and how much Caroline put her heart and soul into what she does. It was overall amazing. I wish I could go into more details, but still looking back at the day, I’m speechless. Without the Margate and Caroline, our wedding wouldn’t have been our dream come true! Thank you Margate and mostly, thank you to Caroline; you are truly amazing and we appreciate all you have done for us! -
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![Christina]()
Christina Sent on 05/13/2018My husband and I were married at the Margate Resort two weeks ago and it was absolutely perfect in every way! We had the ceremony at the Pavilion and our reception in the Mariah Room. We actually started with Beth as our day-of-coordinator but she left the Margate last November. Even though we were a little hesitant to be switched to Shelbie at what seemed like the last minute, she blew us away with her professionalism, organization, and hard work. The venue itself is gorgeous and needs very little decorations to make it a magical wedding. It was a little nerve-wracking that the Margate can potentially have up to three weddings on any given day, which effects the ceremony time. However, every detail worked out in our favor and our guests are STILL talking about our wedding! -
![Katy]()
Katy Sent on 07/22/2019Beautiful location for a lake ceremony
Ashton was our Margate wedding coordinator. She did a wonderful job keeping our day on track and was very accomodating. I had several family members complain about the quality of their lakeside rooms they paid top dollar for, but the bridal suite was spacious and comfortable. Our ceremony was on one of their small beaches next to the pavilion (we wanted feet in the sand) and our reception was in the Mariah room. Both locations were nice and we lucked out with the weather. We also had a bonfire after the reception. Our guests really enjoyed the bonfire as we provided smore kits as one of our favors. -
![Kaila]()
Kaila Sent on 11/20/2022A Dream Wedding Destination
The Margate was a dream destination for our wedding! It's so great how everything is right there so you don't have to leave the property. We used the dining room for our rehearsal dinner, we had a bonfire on the beach for our welcome event, had the ceremony in the pavilion, reception in the tent on the lawn, and the after party in the pool. Our coordinator was Caroline and she was wonderful to work with! Most of the time she was super prompt with her responses but occasionally I was waiting a few weeks. I think because they were down a coordinator she was extremely busy so this was very understandable. She still made sure all of my questions were answered and was crucial in making the wedding day run without a hitch! If you book with them, the room they initially show as the "bridal suite" is dark and not very attractive. Instead we booked the larger room in the Lakefront Building and that was perfect. You get a beautiful view of the lake in the background. The Margate is truly a stunning location with lots of great spots for photos with your new spouse and for your guests. We also did the fireworks at the end of the night and that was quite a highlight!
Cons and reasons I'm giving them 4 stars and not 5. Their booking system is a bit outdated. They give you an online option but it's not as easy with the blocks as the big chain hotels. I think I was on the phone with the booking at least 3-4 times where I let them know I still had never received a confirmation email with my booking and every time they said they would send it I never got it until finally about 1 month before the wedding. Most of my guests also never got a confirmation email. Check-in isn't until 4pm but the ceremony was set at 3:30pm and early check-in is not guaranteed even if you pay. Luckily most of our guests were there the day before otherwise this would've been an issue. I will also say I do not recommend buying any alcohol through them. We bought cases of wine through them. Industry standard is 200-300% and their markup was 400-450% and you can't return what isn't opened since they buy from a warehouse. They also usually have more than one wedding. Most of the time I didn't notice except during our toasts. While my dad and sister were giving their speeches the other ceremony was happening in the pavilion and half the time I couldn't really hear what the person was saying over the music/sounds from the other wedding. Similarly I felt bad for them and hoped the sounds from our reception didn't overpower their ceremony.
Despite these factors I still had my absolute dream wedding at the Margate and would still highly recommend it as a venue! -
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![Eric]()
Eric Sent on 09/25/2017Our experience was overall very good. They do a lot of weddings so they're well prepared. It was nice to have a venue where guests could stay, you could do the rehearsal, the ceremony, and the reception. Our day of coordinator was very helpful and almost acted as a wedding planner and helped us through a lot of the process. The venue itself is beautiful and our guests loved it. Compared to other similar venues in the area, the pricing for the ceremony and reception was very reasonable. There aren't a ton of places to go afterwards in the area if you're looking to keep the party going, but there are a lot of ways you can customize your after party like fireworks shows, a camp fire on the beach, or renting out the pool/bar area.
Just a couple of minor drawbacks. They only offer consumption bar alcohol which they estimate at $15 per hour per person. If you're planning on open bar, 100 people and a 5 hour reception puts you between $7500-9000. If you're doing cash bar. they don't accept cards and the closest ATM is across the street. They only have 4 food caterers they work with and you cannot use anyone but those 4. They usually do 3 weddings per day which can make things pretty congested. We ended up in a standoff with other wedding groups who were trying to get pictures in the best spots.
At the end of the day we had a great experience, guests had a great time, and it was everything we hoped it would be. -
![Aimee]()
Aimee Sent on 10/21/2019Beautiful venue
I had been eyeing the margate for years before i even got engaged so when my fiance also fell in love when we looked we knew it was perfect. We had a lawn reception and the view is just unbelievable! The pavillion where the ceremonies are help is gorgeous also. Our experience was up and down though, it doesn't seem that the coordinators are long term employees. Our coordinator was helpful, but didnt always seem to have a solution to issues that came up. The day of my wedding she helped with set up and then i didnt see her again until 5 minutes before i walked down. I had no idea where we were to go or meet her etc untill then which stressed me out! The night ran smooth, our bartender was amazing! We were told the staff would handle clean up and make sure our items were packed up for us to pick up the next morning. Well, turns out quite a few of our items went missing, including my cake cutting set that was given as a gift. No one at the margate can locate my items nor has any idea where they could have ended up.. this has left a bad taste in my mouth even though our wedding was everything we wanted. -
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