Haywood Hall

lly special with our guests. After numerous venue visits, we went to Haywood Hall and were enamored by this incredible gem of a historic site. The grounds at HH are welcoming and offer variety for however you choose to set up your ceremony and reception all while being perfectly snuggled in a charming, downtown location. Upon entering the home, you are wrapped by the inviting interior from centuries past. Rich tones of blue and green, Federalist period furniture, carved trims and artifacts are found throughout, while the garden has a canopy of large trees and lights at night. The only tradeoff with this venue is that all tables, chairs, tents and serving needs must be brought in via an external vendor, but keep in mind that the aforementioned traits offer a stunning, built-in backdrop for your festivities so decor expenses can be kept to a minimum here. Meeting with Caryll Poole, Event Coordinator at HH, is an absolute delight. She is the gracious, responsive and accommodating soul who communicates with you along the way. Ben, the on-site personnel on wedding day, was a superb presence to have just around the corner for any input or hiccups. Many thanks to them for showing the utmost care for our day! To summarize, this venue was the best possible location for our fall wedding with moody, yet sophisticated elements. It photographs beautifully and our guests raved about their time. We felt honored to be there on our day and Haywood Hall now is a monument in our story that we will surely revisit throughout our lives.

ests spoke very highly of her and how helpful and genuinely nice she was. You will not be disappointed in using Haywood Hall for your upcoming event!

scenery is so nice all year round at Haywood. The tent rental recommended by the venue was seamless and Caryll at Haywood was very pleasant to work with. Even if the weather isn't perfect on your wedding day, there is so much space for tents in the garden that you will still be dry. And the house itself is very cool - all of our guests were milling around in there and talking about how cool it was. Great, hidden-gem sort of place steps away from the Capitol building.

l and Caryll connected me with a caterer and rental service, both very familiar with the venue, which made everything even easier. It couldn’t have been a more stress-free planning process resulting in a beautiful evening event! The azaleas were in full bloom, the gazebo was shimmering with lights as were the trees and the arboretum. We had access to the garden and the house all evening. I did stress over the decision to have a tent, but was reassured by Caryll that it would be unnecessary and she was so right! The dinner under the night stars with the beautiful lighting in the garden was so serene and romantic. The bride and groom loved the setting so much that they rented it the next day for their wedding pictures. It was a perfect location for all of the aforementioned reasons and also it’s proximity to the Holy Name of Jesus Cathedral where they were married. Their pictures were gorgeous. Kudos to Alexandria Stetson Photography. Thank you to Haywood Hall Committee for maintaining this beautiful home and garden, to Caryll for all of her guidance and new found friendship, to Lee Fleming Catering whose culinary talent is beyond magnificent, Brian Tyler, florist and worker bee extraordinaire and Meredith at Grand Rentals, who has the patience of Job! You made it happen!

. I highly recommend having any event here!

was mostly tented due to uncertainty about the weather (and of course it ended up being a beautiful evening!). We were married in April and the gardens were just gorgeous! We hardly needed flower centerpieces, as the gardens were in full bloom. I worked with the resident manager Greg very closely during our 16 month planning process. He made the grounds available to us with little notice on many occasions. He had a lot of insight about placement of tables, chairs, food stations, & tents. He made sure the grounds were clean and neat before our wedding weekend. He also went above and beyond on my wedding day, helping my bridesmaids keep their belongings secure, and generally helping keep the event flowing smoothly. Haywood Hall is very special to my new family. My husband's mother is a Haywood and what is now a museum & gardens was once her family's ancestral home. It was touching to talk with and dance with so many members of the Haywood family at Haywood Hall. I would recommend Haywood Hall to anyone looking to get married in a beautiful indoor/outdoor space in downtown Raleigh!!

ed Downtown Raleigh wedding venues. The property is near the Capitol, but tucked away on a side street with an abundance of large oak trees, shrubs and flowers to block out all the city noise. If you're looking for a garden wedding in an excellent location, Haywood Hall is the perfect setting for you. Further, the groundskeeper, Greg Mobley, has an in-depth knowledge of local vendors and the downtown area. He's incredibly nice and willing to help in any way that he can. He referred me to the best florist, Janet Cross, and gave me some other helpful tips in the wedding planning process. For such a beautiful property in such a convenient location, the cost of hosting a wedding at Haywood is a bargain. One caveat is that you probably need a good year 1/2 to comfortably plan a wedding at Haywood since the venue doesn't come with anything but the property (you must book your own rentals, caterer, etc.). Another downside would be that the site doesn't offer the best rain plan. In the event of inclement weather, you would just have to order more tents for the backyard. However, if you don't mind a little extra work in the planning process and you're willing to "go with the flow" in case the weather doesn't cooperate, this couldn't be a more perfect venue for you and your guests.

ll. Very convenient.

picks. Inside the building is dreary, so hope for good weather. Guests must walk through grass and mulch. No private entrance for the bride to get ready to walk down the aisle. Notes: Be prepared to pay cash. They don't take credit cards. Think about whether you're OK with a Sunday date. Saturdays book up quickly. Overall, it was a headache to put together. I think Matthews House would have been easier and around the same price at the end.

oth the home and weddings in general. He was so helpful and accommodating throughout the entire process, always answering his phone when we had questions. It did happen to rain on our wedding day, but Greg and our catering company did a fantastic job implementing a rain plan. The show did go on and everyone had such a great time! Many thanks!

which i like. this place definitely has some personality. the house manager we worked with, greg, was more than accommodating and was always available to answer our questions. the only thing that may be a problem for some people would be if you pick a time of the year when it might rain...the rain back up plan for this place is not ideal. so, i'd make sure that you check a weather almanac to see what the chances are that rain will fall on your wedding day. but, we got so many compliments on this venue and it's such a deal at a little over $2K!