Venue Search Outtakes #1: Places that don't fit our wedding.

Well, as you readers know, this past weekend Katelyn and I went to southern Maine for two reasons; to visit my parents in Lewiston, and to see in person as many of the venues as we'd been looking at online as we possibly could in the span of two days.  I adopted a tactic that may or may not have been the best way to go about looking at places, and that tactic was (for the most part) not letting places know that we were showing up to see their venues.  My thinking was that if we could see the venue as it normally is (not all made up by the staff for our scheduled visit) we'd have a better idea of what to expect, and also that the behavior of somebody startled by our visit would be a good indication of how they would behave if we had our wedding at their venue and something went wrong in the planning for whatever reason.

Of course, the thing I forgot to take into account was that it was a Saturday in peak September wedding season, and so many of the places we ended up visiting actually had weddings going on when we arrived.

Regardless, we were able to see most of the venues we'd set out to see, and we were at least able to get a sense of whether or not a venue would be something we can consider for our own wedding.  This post is a wrap-up and reflection upon the places that would not work out for us.  That way, with this business out of the way, I can move along to places that we did like and are better suited for us.

Note: There won't be any pictures in this post because we really didn't photograph places that we knew wouldn't work for us.  I will, however, include the website links in case you are interested in visiting the venue sites.


Venue Search Outtake #1: Clay Hill Farm in Cape Neddick, ME
Website: http://www.clayhillfarm.com/
Reaction & Reasoning: Clay Hill Farm's website does a really nice job of making their venue look neat and pretty for your wedding.  It's location in Cape Neddick, just a few miles from Greystone Manor, was something that held appeal for us.  This appeal went away when we found ourselves driving away from the ocean and into a much more wooded area of town.  While this seclusion could be considered a positive because of how busy the beach area and downtown can get, Clay Hill Farm is still located directly off a road which means (though traffic is low) that vehicle noise and neighbors could potentially interrupt a ceremony.  It will be a pretty venue with the leaves changing color, but the property feels cramped for the number of guests it can hold.  The website boasts nature trails, which would be splendid if we were planning a hiking weekend, but we're looking for a wedding venue.

To be completely honest, a wedding was being held here so we were unable to meet with anyone, but we were able to see the grounds made up for the wedding and I was personally able to see the interior.  From this brief glimpse of the interior and the grounds, one thing was clear: the venue didn't have a "wow"-factor.  While it is certainly an affordable venue, it didn't fit our need of having a place that will be magical or that will be interesting for our guests to visit from both in and out of state.


Venue Search Outtake #2: Ocean Woods Resort in Kennebunkport, ME
Website: http://www.oceanwoodsresort.com/
Reaction & Reasoning:  This venue is a prime example of why you need to visit a place in person instead of just trusting its online façade.  When you visit the Ocean Wood's Resort website, you see a beautiful aerial shot of the resort and the surrounding marsh and ocean area.  What that picture does not tell you is that the resort apparently does not extend across all that space; from what we could tell, it is just the building, and the rest is public land.  If we wanted to have the ceremony down by the sea in this area, the resort might be okay, but even then it's a big "no" for us.

The resort is small, cramped, and looks like a bargain hotel.  A reception was being set up when Katelyn and I stopped in and we probably could've stuck around for food because nobody noticed us; I understand that planning for an incoming reception takes precedence over engaged couples showing up out of the blue, but not a single person in the entry noticed us.  It was a very easy decision to turn around and leave as soon as we could; interestingly enough, this venue visit (our worst of the day on Saturday) directly preceded our best visit of the weekend.  More on that one later.  For now, know that Ocean Wood's Resort is probably a great place for vacationers who want to have the ocean close by; it's not well-suited for a wedding or a reception by our opinion.


Venue Search Outtake #3: Fisherman's Wharf Inn in Boothbay Harbor, ME
Website: http://www.fishermanswharfinn.com/
Reaction & Reasoning:  My family frequently visited Boothbay Harbor when I was growing up, and it's always been a favorite coastal destination for me.  When Katelyn found the Fisherman's Wharf Inn online, I was interested becuase of the area and because I'd forgotten where the inn was.  As we drove through downtown Boothbay Harbor and found it, I immediately remembered.  The Fisherman's Wharf Inn is a fairly bare-bones hotel for lodging with a wharf on the harbor and a restaurant.  Had I remembered this beforehand, we probably wouldn't have even bothered looking at it.  There's didn't appear to be space to hold a nice ceremony, and even if your ceremony was held elsewhere in the area, you'd be able to do better for a reception space.  We didn't even get out of the car.


Venue Search Outtake #4: Camden Harbour Inn in Camden, ME
Website: http://www.camdenharbourinn.com/
Reaction & Reasoning:  Unlike the other three venues I've discussed in this post so far, the Camden Harbour Inn is a really beautiful place.  It has amazing rooms, a great restaurant on the ground floor, and a spectacular view of the harbor in Camden.  Unfortunately, there is no space on the grounds for a ceremony and the venue is too small to host even just a reception for a wedding party as large as ours is going to be.  We didn't really inquire about rental pricing, but it was pretty clear from the surroundings that it's out of our financial range anyway.  However, if we wanted to honeymoon in Maine, this would be a really beautiful place to do it.


Venue Search Outtake #5: Portland Schooner Company in Portland, ME
Website: http://portlandschooner.com/
Reaction & Reasoning: We didn't actually visit this venue (as it isn't really a venue, it's just where the schooners tie up) but Katelyn and I decided that a wedding on a boat in Maine in October simply provided too many logistical issues.  Even if we rented out both schooners, we would not be able to accomodate the entire wedding party.  Even if our party was small enough, the schooners would have to draw close to one another for all persons to hear the ceremony.  And even though we could bring our own alcohol on the boat to serve, we'd still need to figure out what to do for a reception and meal.  All of this doesn't even acknowledge the fact that if the weather is cold or rainy in October, it would be a complete and utter disaster.  A nice dream, but not something we would be able to pull off.  For those looking for a smaller wedding (85 guests or so) and a summer wedding, however, this could certainly be an option.


Venue Search Outtake #6: Black Point Inn in Scarborough, ME
Website: http://www.blackpointinn.com/inn/
Reaction & Reasoning:  This is another venue that Katelyn and I didn't actually visit, and that's because I hadn't correctly communicated the cost of renting the venue before we decided that we were going to put it on the list of places to visit.  While the venue is probably very nice and while we could probably have a good time with it, the charges are astronomical when you consider that a wedding of over 70 guests requires that the entire inn be rented out; yes, I understand the point of requiring the inn to be rented out, but at over $100 per person per night, it doesn't work for us.  If you have the means and you're planning a wedding in the Scarborough area, you could probably check it out and fall in love with it.  For us, knowing the cost means knowing better than to even entertain ideas about it.


And that's the end of the venue "outtakes" from this past weekend's search; six more venues off our list.  Check back over the next few days as I take the time to talk about (and show pictures of) places we actually did like and could conceivably consider using for our wedding.