Belmont Manor and Historic Park

in the process and in answering any questions. We got so many compliments from guests for Belmont and they had so much fun exploring its diverse feature (outdoor garden, small pond, manor, etc). We are soo happy we chose to have our wedding at Belmont!

r flowers were still in bloom so we had very little need for flowers for the service (under the trees) or for cocktail hour (bird bath gardens). The lighted tent for dinner and dancing was perfect! The Belmont staff answered all of my questions, no matter how stupid, and their day of staff were very helpful. I would not hesitate to hold any function at the Belmont! It is an amazing venue for an unbelievable price.

t it would look like in the summer but it was SO beautiful. It is maintained beautifully, so luscious and had a lot of space for pictures and guests. We did everything outside at the end of August, it was perfect. Would definitely recommend it to others. The venue was easy going and allows you to bring in anything you need for the wedding, there are no required vendors!

g ceremony, the grounds for guests to explore throughout cocktail hour, the manor, the tent, the table/chairs, etc -- everything was absolutely top notch. We received so many compliments from guests on how beautiful Belmont was for our special day. Additionally, because Belmont is owned by the county, the rates are a great value for what you get, compared to similar privately owned venues in the area. That being said, prospective couples should be well aware of the restrictions the venue has in allowing non-preferred restaurants to cater at the property. We specifically needed Indian and/or Iranian food at our wedding, and we primarily booked Belmont because they didn't require couples to use their preferred caterers. However, that was misleading because we simply could not find a single Indian or Iranian restaurant in the entire DC area that fulfilled every item on the extensive list of insurance requirements that Belmont has for caterers. Liability insurance is fairly standard in the catering industry, but Belmont requires restaurants to fulfill various coverage items line by line to the exact dollar amount, and offers absolutely no exceptions (i.e. the restaurant could have an additional $3,000,000 of coverage beyond Belmont's requirements, but still be rejected for lacking $1,000 in workers compensation coverage). Likewise, even if you used their preferred caterers and then had the preferred caterer outsource to third party restaurants for ethnic food (a standard practice when using pre-approved caterers for ethnic food), Belmont would STILL require the third party restaurant to fulfill each and every one of their insurance requirements. In our experience, this made it virtually *impossible* to have Indian and/or Iranian food on the property. Due to this, there were moments where we thought we'd have to fully cancel our wedding day because we couldn't lock down a caterer that the venue would approve. In our culture, sharing traditional food is one of the most important aspects of weddings, so opting for American cuisine through a preferred caterer was not a great alternative option. Additionally, we had religious dietary restrictions to consider as well (halal), so being able to use a caterer that supplies halal meat was also a critical consideration. I will give Belmont's staff credit, they provided multiple deadline extensions to find an ethnic caterer that could be approved. Eventually after 2 months of searching, we were able to find an Indian restaurant who was willing to upgrade their insurance policy to match Belmont's exact requirements, although we had to pay for the added insurance premium (~$1000), that finally solved our catering nightmare. All that to say -- if having ethnic food (specifically Indian food) is a hard requirement for your wedding, BE SURE to find an ethnic restaurant that can be approved by Belmont BEFORE you book Belmont. If you cannot find one, I'd strongly recommend looking into other venues, because even venues that mandate using their approved caterers can typically still outsource to ethnic restaurants without too much difficulty. If however you don't need ethnic food, Belmont is an amazing venue at an amazing price, and their preferred caterers will likely be able to fulfill all your needs.

rden cocktail hour, to tent reception. Speaking of the tent, it beautifully accommodated our 120 guests, and provided plenty of space for dancing. The inside of the tent is bright and great for pictures. The manor house is gorgeous, and the wedding party had plenty of space to get dressed and relax ahead of the ceremony. The only issue we encountered was that the ceremony seating was in the incorrect location when we arrived. Our day-of coordinator had to move the seats because Belmont staff refused to do so. Aside from that hiccup, we had no issues with Belmont and would highly recommend to any couple looking for a garden wedding near Elkridge area.

still being really easy to access for guests, unlike a lot of actually out-of-the-way venues we checked out. It's also super fun to have the whole house to get ready in. We had a decent-sized wedding party and there was a lot of space for all of us to hang out, a pool table, and a big patio in the backyard (we brought cornhole!). And there are a lot of different spots on the grounds to choose from for both the ceremony and the cocktail hour. We found the staff really friendly, helpful, and easy to work with, and they made a lot of good recommendations for other vendors in the area, some of which we ended up using. October was a beautiful time to be there, though we did get extremely lucky with the weather. It's important to note that the tent used for receptions (and the ceremony if there's bad weather) does not have climate control. We panicked a bit right before the wedding when the forecast temperatures kept dropping and we weren't sure if we should bite the bullet and spend a bunch of money on heaters. We ended up not using them, and it was a little chilly in the tent, at least until people started dancing. So if you're getting married later in the year, keep in mind that you may need to heat the tent, and it is not cheap (estimates we got were $2,000+). Overall we had a fantastic experience at Belmont and a truly beautiful wedding day! Highly recommend!

of having very strict rules for vendors. We brought in a lot of vendors, trees, florist, bar, lighting, and band and because the access for the vendors is limited we ended up paying an additional 500.00 for an extra hour to set up, and we lost our security deposit of 750.00 b/c the last vendor didn't make it out in an hour; i.e. by midnight. Factor those costs in if you are going to have something more than a caterer and flowers. If it rained, I think the inside would be very limited. All in all, we are glad we booked at Belmont.

icturesque places on the property, it is difficult to decide where to have your ceremony! We used so much of the property on our special day. We decided to have the magnolia grove as our ceremony location, one of the gardens for our first-look, pictures by the reflection pond and the front of the house...the list goes on! We ended up using the manor house for our cocktail hour and the tent for our reception. The tent is a beautiful backdrop. So many other venues did not include a tent liner or chandeliers inside their tent, but Belmont has a beautiful soft look inside of their tent and even has some vines along the top. They were very flexible with our lay-out for the tables. One thing that I didn't realize when booking with Belmont is the absolute need for a day-of coordinator or wedding planner. Luckily my good friend's sister is in the business and stepped in to be my day-of coordinator. Belmont is very much hands-off on your wedding day. You truly need someone to be there to set up and take down your wedding. You also need someone to help coordinate your vendors. Other than that, I am still in awe of the beauty of Belmont Manor and can't get enough of our pictures!!

o the wedding and the day went smoothly thanks to the staff. All of our guests were so impressed by this venue and our photographers got amazing pictures from all over the grounds.

mmodating and receptive to our needs throughout the whole process - including the day of the wedding when we had to make changes due to inclement weather. I would definitely recommend this venue.

ther. Plan B was executed and I didn't have to worry about a thing. It's also such a beautiful venue. My caterer was happy to work with the staff as well since they made it easy for her to make sure everything went off without a hitch. Highly recommend! Thank you to everyone at the Belmont.

, but nevertheless, we took a risk and fell in love with the venue for its beautiful green gardens and landscape surrounded by nothing but pure nature. Now that we've had our wedding there, we can finally say with experience that it was one of the best decisions we had made regarding our wedding because even with pouring rain that day, we had the most spectacular wedding thanks to the AMAZING Belmont staff that supported us and did everything they could to make our day possible, wonderful, and the absolute best (particularly under the gigantic gorgeous tent). THANK YOU to everyone on the Belmont team for making sure the tent was set up according to our wishes, for guiding our guests from the parking lot into the manor, and for understanding that the pouring rain had made all tasks a little bit more challenging than usual. If it had not been for Belmont staff cooperating with all our vendors to figure out plan B, we would not have had the most perfect day ever!

barn and farmland vistas surrounding the park. we couldn't decide where to have our ceremony. We ended up having in near the Aqua Pond-gorgeous! The staff of Belmont are exceptional. We have worked with them for over a year. They helped us along to way and we're wonderful during our wedding. They took our grandparents who had trouble walking in golf carts to and from the ceremony and we're so attentive. We felt so fortunate to have found such an amazing venue with people working there who understood our needs and helped us with all our questions. We would recommend Belmont highly. And it is a great value as well. In fact two of our friends have already booked Belmont for next yr and 2019. Thanks Belmont staff-you are the best! Mark

everything - gorgeous!! The price is super fair and the staff was very helpful. This is a venue that requires you to find all your own vendors but they weren't super strict about it. Every guest said nothing but amazing things about Belmont and were all so pleased to be somewhere beautiful and different. Love you, Belmont!!!!

e it seem like they would be there to help during the wedding. That was not the case at all. The only thing I know they helped with the day of the wedding was the parking and nothing else. I was very shocked at how unprofessional the staff was after our wedding as well. My mother stayed after the wedding was over to clean up and make sure the venue met the requirements for us to get our security deposit back and they still did not give it back. She even asked the venue staff member if everything looked okay for us to get our security deposit back and they said yes. In order for you to have an organized wedding day at Belmont Manor you need to do A LOT of pre planning and communicating between ALL of your vendors before your wedding, Belmont will do nothing. Also, they have 0 flexibility. They have very strict rules and will not budge. DO NOT PLAN ON BELMONT STAFF TO HELP YOU WHATSOEVER. It's sad because the venue is extremely beautiful, but has no benefit when the staff is unhelpful/unprofessional.

ery is so lovely you only need minimal decorations. We were married under the big tree in 2014 that was later cut down. It was perfect! I would highly recommend to anyone, and do!

nor house complete with bridal and groom suites. The staff are friendly and very easy to work with. The only potential issue is rain - only a smaller wedding would fit inside the house if need be. There was supposed to be a hurricane on our big day and the scramble to lock in a rain plan was rough but luckily the rain held off and we did it all as planned despite some clouds! I would highly recommend Belmont.