The Retreat at Hiawassee River Reviews
Reviews
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![Angela]()
Angela Sent on 10/19/2024Wedding of the century
This place is absolutely beautiful!! Great place to have the perfect intimate wedding experiences. Diana and Kennedi were absolutely wonderful!! They went above and beyond to help me with the wedding and planning it all out. Having your whole family get to stay on the venue property all together and bond. The cabins were soo cozy and warm. -
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![Allie]()
Allie Sent on 04/29/2022Perfect venue!
This was the PERFECT wedding venue; I don't know how it isn't booked every single weekend. For what most places charge you for 6 hours, you get this place for 72 hours (check in Fri, check out Sunday). Doesn't include the cost of the cabins, but once your guests book those you get a big discount on your venue. GORGEOUS location in the northern GA mountains. Has both outdoor and indoor ceremony and reception options so you have an immediate rain contingency plan. I LOVE the cabins onsite- all our wedding party and family stayed on site in cabins that are so lovely, with full kitchens, and of varying sizes. We didn't want a venue with a ton of rules (such as you must use preferred vendors, or pay fees if non-preferred, or must have a bartender or security, etc.) their rules were basically "don't burn it down". Jokes aside, they were SO flexible and accommodating. Megan who runs it was so helpful and available and just amazing.
We really wanted venue that was outdoors with lots of trees and peaceful, had flexibility and had no hidden fees. This more than delivered, it was my elven forest wedding dream venue, it even has a little creek running through it that is so serene, you’re surrounded by the mountains (on the other side of the creek is an adorable field with some cute cows).
All our guests were likewise gushing about both the venue and the cabins. I could not possibly recommend this venue anymore, what an absolute dream, we had a perfect wedding. -
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![Aubrey]()
Aubrey Sent on 02/20/2022The perfect venue for an intimate wedding
My husband and I decided early on to have a 100-count guest list for our December wedding. It was important to us to have a venue that accommodated that size but did not feel too big. The majority of guests would be traveling from out of state so we also wanted onsite accommodations. After touring The Retreat, we knew it was the perfect balance of all we wanted for our wedding. The three ceremony sites gave us peace of mind that no matter what the weather was like, we could switch plans easily and get married in a beautiful setting. We filled all 12 cabins with friends and family who arrived Friday and stayed until Sunday morning. Instead of a rehearsal dinner, we did a Welcome party with all our wedding guests which was so fun and let us have more time with everyone. The venue also had a “wedding closet” which housed tons of decor items and furniture that can be used however you want them to. The best thing about booking The Retreat was working with Megan, their venue coordinator. She was responsive, organized and so kind - she even went out and bought an iron within the same hour of me realizing our cabin didn’t have one! I’m so glad we found this hidden gem and look forward to more stays at The Retreat. -
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Avery Sent on 02/02/2022
Wedding 10/30/21
The venue was beautiful!! The mountains were very colorful which was exactly what I had dreamt about for our wedding! Cabins were also very nice and it was nice to have the families close together in the other cabins on the property. 10/10 recommend!! -
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![Rebecca]()
Rebecca Sent on 02/02/2022Perfect in Every Way
The whole process in booking and organizing my wedding weekend was exceptional and seamless. We reserved the venue and all of the cabins on the property to allow family and friends to reserve cabins individually and stay on the property all weekend with us. Everything was clean and absolutely perfect. Megan was our go-to gal and she was fantastic, very responsive, understanding, and helpful throughout the whole process. I could not have imagined a better wedding weekend if i tried. Not to mention the venue is BEAUTIFUL and an unbelievable value for the money. Do yourself a favor and look no further for the perfect venue! -
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![Tara]()
Tara Sent on 02/02/2022The most Amazing place!
This venue was so perfect for our vow renewal, Megan was the most helpful, sweetest and attentive person I have had the pleasure of meeting and I am so thankful for her help through the whole process. We have a home not far from here and the mountains are the perfect place but the outdoor barn church was the absolute most gorgeous venue and the river outside was breathtaking! I would recommend this for any kind of event or even a weekend getaway! Thank you again so much to Megan for everything that helped make my day perfect! -
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![Legacy]()
Legacy Sent on 11/26/2021Beautiful venue in the north GA mountains
This venue is BEAUTIFUL. It is very well kept and there are many many options for locations for your ceremony and pictures. We filmed a wedding here and the staff could not have been more welcoming! Highly recommend!!! -
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![Dianne]()
Dianne Sent on 08/23/2021Breathtaking & Relaxing
I could not have asked for a better wedding venue! Megan was an absolute dream to work with. She was so responsive and flexible. I highly recommend getting your friends and family to rent all the cabins for your wedding weekend. It felt so secluded and intimate. 1000% recommend! -
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![Cayla]()
Cayla Sent on 01/25/2021Best venue and best wedding!
The Retreat at Hiawassee River is the best venue for many reasons! Not only is it the most beautiful with the scenery of the river and north GA mountains, but it is the most accommodating with the staff being so helpful and flexible. They did everything possible to work with us and make sure we had everything we wanted for our special day. It is also a major plus that there are numerous cabins on site that the wedding party, family, and friends can stay in for the wedding; literally just being able to walk home to your cabin after a night of fun at the wedding was great! We were able to have both the reception and wedding at the venue and stay in the cabins to make it a full weekend vacation with a wedding at the end! The Retreat has everything you need for the perfect wedding- beautiful scenery, very affordable, nice and helpful staff, accommodations on site, a choice of outdoor or indoor ceremony options if needed, a full selection of decorations, chairs, and tables provided, and so much more! Choosing this venue for my wedding really helped make it the best day ever! -
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Debbie Sent on 02/18/2020
Such a wonderful venue for a wedding!
The wedding venue as well as the cabins on the property made this the perfect venue. We originally planned an outdoor wedding but due to rain had to move it inside to the barn. Having both options was one of the main reasons we chose this venue. The building where we had our reception dinner had plenty of room with many decorations on site that we were able to use. The game room was perfect for the groom and his groomsmen before the wedding and later a kids room while the grownups were at the reception. All of the staff were excellent! -
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![Charles]()
Charles Sent on 12/09/2019The perfect place and best bang for your buck for sure
We looked at 15 venues before choosing the retreat for our wedding. It was everything we needed and wanted in one spot. The property it beautiful and so well maintained, the chapel and reception hall is beautiful and awesome. Megan and the entire staff was so much help, thru the entire process! If you have a small wedding (around 50 to 60 guest) everyone can stay on the property or if it was bigger wedding, then the immediate family and wedding party can stay on property! So peaceful and perfect place -
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![Lorrin]()
Lorrin Sent on 11/13/2019A Natural Beauty
We are so incredibly happy to have found The Retreat at Hiawassee. It was truly the perfect wedding venue for us. We visited a couple of beautiful wedding venues in the area, but ultimately chose The Retreat for its unparalleled natural beauty, freedom to choose our own vendors, ability to house family and friends onsite and the customer service. Megan was so great to work with from our very first tour, to many trips in between and the big day.
The venue’s beauty speaks for itself and we were fortunate enough to have incredible weather at the end of July – no rain and not too hot. The pavilion does not have A/C as of today, but this ended up not being a problem for us which I was surprised by. The outdoor ceremony site is so serene and gorgeous, but there is also the barn/chapel for a backup location or to host other events. This is where we held our rehearsal dinner.
A few added bonuses we really appreciated were an unlimited supply of ice onsite, chairs/tables/linens provided, and all the décor you could need. I did most of our decorating myself, but there is honestly plenty of stuff there you can borrow. We received so many compliments on our venue and our guests enjoyed hanging out and getting to float the river. I may be biased, but it was a wedding weekend unlike any other. Can’t wait to return again one day for a reunion one day!
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![Alex]()
Alex Sent on 11/12/2019Amazing Venue and great people
Love this Venue and the staff! Megan is super helpful, kind, and accommodating.
Fred is the groundskeeper to keep it short, and he was so awesome too. Made us feel welcome and right at home.
I don't have anything bad to say about this place, but if there is one word of advice after a wedding, HIRE SOMEONE TO CLEAN THE VENUE UP FOR YOU THE MORNING AFTER!! haha
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![Lauren]()
Lauren Sent on 08/17/2019Perfect venue
Our experience with the Retreat was incredible. Megan was incredibly helpful -- always quick to respond and offer help. We had a lot of independence and freedom for the weekend, and we and our guests loved staying in the cabins. The scenery is absolutely gorgeous, and all of the facilities are incredibly clean, beautiful, and functional. The barn chapel was perfect for our ceremony, and the clubhouse worked great as an assembly spot for the men getting ready. Cabin 11 served as a great "getting ready" spot for the women.
Everything was perfect and I can't recommend the Retreat enough. It is an incredible value! We really got a lot for what we paid. -
![Patricia-Anne]()
Patricia-Anne Sent on 06/24/2019Don't Miss Out!
The Retreat was amazing! We and our guest absolutely loved it! The Retreat staff was a joy to work with, especially Megan! I highly recommend this venue, it is worth every penny. -
Cathy Sent on 06/03/2019
May 2019 Wedding
I cannot say enough great things about The Retreat at Hiawassee River. We booked our daughter's wedding here after falling in love with it. The setting is gorgeous with the river flowing right next to the ceremony site. Absolutely perfect. The staff, particularly Megan, were outstanding to deal with. She always answered my questions promptly and professionally. We utilized numerous, recommended vendors, all of them excellent, which added to our comfort level. We reserved the venue for the entire weekend, and rented all the cabins located on the property. They each were clean and very nicely appointed. It was so much fun to have family and friends all together. The Retreat at Hiawassee River is an ideal location for a beautiful wedding. I recommend it highly. -
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![Ashley]()
Ashley Sent on 03/21/2018I may be a little biased, but this is the most beautiful venue I've ever been to. From the moment I saw the barn chapel, I knew that is where we would get married. I loved all of the string lights everywhere on the property and the overall rustic feel. Another thing that sold me was that they have a lot of decorations available that we could use for the ceremony and reception. All of the tables, chairs, and linens were included with venue rental. I think the only thing that we had to bring in were the flowers.
We had lots of family come in from out of town and they are still raving about the Retreat. Megan in the office was an absolute joy to work with and she answered every single one of my questions and put me at ease while wedding planning. If I had to do it all over again, I'd definitely choose this place over and over again. -
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![Marquelle]()
Marquelle Sent on 01/04/2016This was my DREAM wedding venue! We are from Florida, but I only wanted a quaint mountain wedding and this venue was PERFECT!! We found it by chance when driving around the area and from the moment we drove down the winding road along the river towards the Pavilion and Barn Chapel, I just knew I had to get married here! For destination weddings, this place is ideal because of the on-site cabins, that are ALL amazing by the way! There is plenty of space for your guests and the hammocks that line the river are great! Georgia Corn, my god-send, who helped us coordinate and organize all of the guests who stayed on-site and helped me with vendor coordination and everything else that happened on-site, was simply the BEST! She is patient, helpful and bent over backwards to make this a pleasant planning experience for us! The Pavilion has plenty of space for the reception and the Barn Chapel is simple and rustic! But plenty of space to decorate and embellish if you want! The cabins were all clean, well stocked and just getting to sit on the porch and listen to the river is incredibly relaxing before the crazy of the wedding sets in! I cannot say enough about this place and we plan on going back soon to actually enjoy the rustic peace that the Retreat offers! -
![User2304113]()
User2304113 Sent on 09/07/2015The venue is absolutely beautiful and the staff very helpful. We just finished booking this venue and couldn't be more excited. This is a perfect place, not just for your wedding day, but for a wedding weekend.
Also, we love that the are letting us use our own vendors, which is saving us a ton of money. -
![Kyi]()
Kyim Sent on 10/20/2020My Fairy Tale Wedding
This was the most perfect wedding g venue!! Megan took care of all my questions & requests (& all of my mothers crazy requests, ha) I visited the venue periodically throughout my year & a half engagement & would love the tiny touches/additions they would make every time I went. My most favorite was the swinging couch by the river. -
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![Georgia]()
Georgia Sent on 09/25/2017This venue is completely breathtaking and just gorgeous! Our family rented the property for the entire weekend and had the best time! I loved that they could all stay right there with us and celebrate more than just one day for our wedding. It is very DIY so you do set up everything yourself, but they have linens ready to go for you which is great! I highly recommend purchasing the entire weekend package, it was wonderful to have a full day to set up and a half day to take down - so much easier! I could go on and on about how great this venue is but I'll stop there :) -
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![Gus]()
Gus C. Sent on 10/28/2024Under new ownership not the same any longer
These new owners forfeit my pre-paid stay based on a 30-day cancellation policy that it's not depicted anywhere plus I made and paid for my reservation by phone and at the time I was not informed of such policy, when I requested the cancellation, I was told that it must have made the cancelled 30 days prior to arrival which was news to me. At this point I explain to the female owner that I lived in Western North Carolina and just had been ravaged by hurricane Helene consequently I could not travel and leave my wife alone as we had no power, water, WiFi or cellular service, all of did not matter to the owner. Do yourself a favor and stay away from this place it's being operated by despicable operators without any empathy whatsoever
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