Overall, my experience with Ashton Gardens was not the greatest. Things started off well, but our initial point of contact seemed focused solely on getting us booked—which I unders...tand. After that, however, we were handed off to two different planners, and on the day of the wedding we were assigned yet another new person. Thankfully, the day-of planner did a phenomenal job, especially considering she was brought in last minute.
One major issue was that the cross we had paid for was never placed on the altar. I had to point this out to the planner on the day of the wedding, which added unnecessary stress.
Another nuisance was that the tablecloths were extremely wrinkled. I had communicated this concern to the planners beforehand, and for the amount of money spent, I expected the linens to be properly ironed. On the day of the wedding, the planner was able to have the main tables—the dessert table and the bride and groom table—ironed, but the fact that this had to be addressed at the last minute was disappointing.
Another challenge was the venue’s rigid scheduling. The hours are fixed: five hours before the ceremony and five hours after. For example, with a 4 p.m. ceremony, our access began at 11 a.m., and everything had to end by 9 p.m. In my experience, wedding receptions usually last much later, so we ended up having to purchase additional venue hours as well as extra DJ time—costs that add up quickly.
I would have preferred more flexibility from the venue. I didn’t need five hours before the ceremony; our florals weren’t even set up until 1 p.m. Ideally, we could have arrived at 1 instead of 11, and those two unused hours could have been applied to the end of the evening, saving us from paying extra.
Additionally, the water from the venue’s dispenser was unpleasant and undrinkable. I had to request bottled water, which the day-of planner thankfully provided.
In the end, I felt that for the amount of money we invested, the service and overall experience did not meet expectations.