Weddingbee Blog

Finding the perfect reception space was definitely not a walk in the park. It wasn’t nearly as easy a decision as securing the ceremony location. (And, to be honest, after being snapped back into reality with our budget constraints, I wasn’t feeling as confident about the ease of booking a reception space.) Since Williamsburg is such a small town, there wasn’t an adbundance of information about weddings online. I began a search by visiting a number of photography blogs to view pictures of real weddings in the area. It was a great way to gather ideas about new locations and have a more candid view of the spaces.

I initially found Wessex Hall at Williamsburg Winery. As a senior in college, I had made a trip with fellow sorority sisters to the winery and had fond memories. A reception at a winery would be fitting, as Mr. Hawk and I enjoyed attending the occasional wine tasting, and the rustic look of Wessex Hall with wood beams and metal chandeliers was perfect (and felt very Williamsburg). It was around $1,000 less than the Alumni House, which was a plus, but when I contacted them our date was booked. (Ugh. Woulda been too easy, right?) They only had availability on Labor Day weekend, and I wasn’t willing to change our date (and go back on the college’s waiting list for Wren) so I moved on.

Photo via Williamsburg Winery

Next, I considered several of the hotels in the area. There was the Hospitality House, where I was planning on reserving a room block, the Williamsburg Lodge, and Williamsburg Inn. The Lodge was booked, the Inn wanted something like a minimum of $20,000 in food and beverage, and the look of the Hospitality House’s ballroom wasn’t exactly the look I was going for. (NEXT!)

That’s when I happened across this blog about budget weddings in the Hampton Roads area. Kate offered some great ideas, including the Williamsburg Community Building, the Yorktown Freight Shed, and 2007 Legacy Hall. The Freight Shed was already booked, but both Legacy Hall and the Community Building were available, as they did not allow reservations more than a year in advance. I made appointments to see the spaces in person and dragged my MOH down to the ’burg one day after work. We visited Legacy Hall first. It was perfect. Only three years old, the building is new, modern, and fresh. It boasts floor-to-ceiling windows on the back wall, a retractable sky light, and hardwood floors and houses its own kitchen! (AHHH!) Best of all, the price is about a third of what we looked at initially and would really allow us some leeway in the budget.

All photos personal

I was pretty set on Legacy, but we went over to the Community Building anyway. (I swear, I tried to give it a fair shot, but I had Legacy L-O-V-E.) I did love the super-high angled ceiling and the location is closer to campus, but it was a bit older and I wasn’t loving the carpeting after seeing the hardwood at Legacy. My mind was made up. I had to hold out a couple weeks until May, but the moment I could officially reserve it, I sent in my application and deposit. We had us a reception hall!

Are you having your ceremony and reception at the same location? If not, was finding one significantly easier than the other?