Colorado Chautauqua

Our daughter and her new husband just got married at Colorado Chautauqua in a ceremony in the Enchanted Mesa Garden with a reception to follow in the Community House. We chose Chautauqua because it is located at the foot of the Flatirons, which makes for impressive photographs, and Chautauqua itself has the charm of an era of a century ago. We began working with Rosy Lujano-Rojas in mid-January to plan a September wedding at the Chautauqua which for us was a destination wedding because we live on the West Coast and could not visit the site initially, but Rosy helped us through every step of the planning process. Rosy was always pleasant and helpful in answering our many questions about accommodations to menus to preferred vendors. In all cases, we went with the vendors recommended by Rosy. She also advised us in reserving the 10 accommodations at Chautauqua required by the contract. For us, it was not a problem because most of our guests and family traveled from out-of-state to Boulder for the wedding. Coordination of lodge and cottage reservations was the most challenging part of the wedding planning, but Rosy aided as needed. The day of the wedding was busy. We took full advantage of the calm atmosphere in the Larkspur and Bellflower rooms in the Community House for hair and makeup appointments for the bride and her attendants and as a retreat for the bride to get relaxed and ready for the ceremony. Rosy was available throughout the day and checking in with us to see if we had any unmet needs. The wedding ceremony in the Enchanted Mesa Garden was beautiful. We had decorated a wooden wedding arch with faux flowers and chiffon drapes for a backdrop to the officiant and bride and groom, and a string quartet played music for the ceremony. Rosy helped us in the rental of chairs for 60 guests and coordinating audio for the ceremony with a technician. The Community House verandah, Grand Assembly, and Rocky Mountain Climbers Club provided a homey, vintage atmosphere for the reception and ample room for guests to move from one space to another. The dinner that Chautauqua catering provided was delicious and guests complimented that the food was exceptional. We made sure to accommodate all dietary preferences and allergies with the menu. We had a full bar and an audio set-up with technician for slideshow and music. Rosy took charge of helping us set the menu, room layout, coordinate the audio technician and make sure that everything was as we had requested. Finally, Rosy and all the Chautauqua staff that we met during our stay were, without fail, friendly and welcoming. If we had a question or a need, they addressed it right away and with a positive attitude. Beyond the staff, the atmosphere of Chautauqua is calming and reminiscent of a bygone era of life at a slower pace and without televisions. We enjoyed sitting on the front porch of our cottage and visiting with our wedding guests who were staying at Chautauqua as they walked by on their way to the dining hall or general store or for an evening stroll. My husband and I concluded that we’ll be back to visit again. It’s a lovely community. With staff members like Rosy, Chautauqua is a wonderful place to hold a wedding. We highly recommend it.

Absolutely stunning! My whole family and wedding party had the best time. Wow, we are so happy and grateful that we got married at Chautauqua! It felt like at every stage of wedding planning we were affirmed that we made the right choice of venue. LODGING: We had people coming in from different states and different countries. It was so incredibly convenient and lovely to have everyone staying on the Chautauqua campus. Everyone had their own space but was steps away, so we were able to make the most of our time together. Also, the spaces were so beautiful - the two-bedroom cottages literally have the Flatirons as their backyard. We had some members of our wedding party stay in Mary Galey Cottage, and it was the best wedding planning decision that we made. We got ready in the cottage, we had our rehearsal dinner in the cottage, my sister and best friend threw a surprise intimate bridal shower in the cottage. I'm so happy we decided to rent Mary Galey, it literally made the whole week. FOOD: So many guests complimented our menu! We are vegetarian, and we were able to choose an all vegetarian menu that was absolutely delicious. We were also able to accommodate a lot of different dietary needs. They had tons of options, vegan, vegetarian, gluten free, plus the regular "steak and chicken" type options. We did a tasting about 8 months before the wedding and it made it so easy to choose what food we wanted. We also went to breakfast the day after the wedding at the Dining Hall and that was delicious too! THE RECEPTION VENUE: Our reception was at Community House and we had about 85 people there. It was PERFECT. There are rooms upstairs and downstairs that were great for kids or anyone who needed a break from the party. The party spilled out onto the beautiful verandah, so there was a nice indoor/outdoor thing happening. We had cocktail hour in the Rocky Mountain Climbers Club, and it was super comfortable and pretty. Also the staff were great!!! VENDORS: Chautauqua has a recommended vendor list, but you can bring in people not on that list. We got our DJ from their list and they were awesome. Also, they touch base with vendors on the day to make sure everything will run smoothly. ABOVE AND BEYOND: Academic Hall is centrally located and always has someone there for Guest Services. This was massively helpful. We had multiple people in our families who needed mobility assistance, and Guest Services (and the grounds crew) offered to drive them where they needed to go on a golf cart. They are also so, so responsive and helpful to bring extra towels, linens, paper towels, anything that anyone in the cottages needed. The biggest of shoutouts to Rosy, the Wedding & Sales Manager/venue coordinator, who is the absolute best to work with and made everything go super smoothly from when we booked to the day of our wedding. OVERALL: This truly was like a small local business feel for a big event. All of the courtesy, kindness, and one-on-one care of a local business, with the polish and detail of a big professional venue. Also, they are a nonprofit. So our money went towards an organization that pours back into the community. We had the best time and can't recommend Chautauqua enough!!!!!