High Sierra Iris and Wedding Gardens

kly to any questions we had. You would never know this state was in a drought with how beautiful they kept the gardens and reception area. Another thing we really liked is, you could bring in your own vendors. Just be sure to get GREAT vendors, that will make the process go a lot more smoothly. We had about 140 guests and without a coordinator things would have got very hectic. Something to consider is if you have a lot of people, it might make the transition from reception to ceremony difficult unless you have the right people helping. And because the ceremony/reception space is the same, I would HIGHLY recommend a coordinator or designated family member or friend to make sure things run on time and are setup correctly. We got amazing pictures on the property and our family and friends could not stop commenting on how beautiful it was! Absolutely loved the venue and Nancy, I highly recommend for a beautiful, intimate, garden wedding.

you have your wedding here. First, everyone knows April showers brings May flowers. My wedding was on May 23, 2015. First, you do not get a coordinator for the place and you are pretty much left alone planning with little to zero assistance/guidance from the owner, Nancy, so you better have a good memory and take pictures everywhere. The owner is very nice but she is completely hands off in planning your wedding. Don't believe everything she tells you—why...During signing my contract with Nancy, I asked if there was a specific time the noise should be off and she said "no, you can party all night” (not that we would but I had planned to end the wedding by 11pm). I even wrote it down on the contract that there was no limit to when the music should be shut off. I later found out from Nancy that the music had to stop at 9:30pm a few months after I had already signed the contract; I only found out by chance when I visited the venue again during another wedding; of course with the bride's permission. Good thing I found out before I had my wedding invitations sent out. I was looking at the weather forecast two weeks and a week before the wedding and the forecast said possible rain. Like many brides, I was in a state of panic as there was really no plan "b" for this venue and everything was outdoors. So I immediately contacted Nancy in hopes to put up a tent and possibly plastic over the grass so it doesn’t get muddy. The only reason why I know it gets muddy there was because I've visited the venue on April, a year before my wedding. Nancy told me not to worry till the week of the wedding and I took her advice. In the beginning of the week, it still said possible showers so I asked the owner again if I can put up a tent and painters plastic over the grass so it doesn’t get muddy a week or at least 2-3 days prior to my wedding, she said "no" as it would ruin the grass (so with everyone walking on the grass wouldn't ruin her precious grass and its not like the tent poles have to be on grass). The owner did agree that I can put up the tent the day of the wedding but only hours prior. Well, this only works if the forecast said rain on my wedding day and it wouldn’t fix the mud on the grassy area...Nevertheless, I was stuck with no option but pray to God that it wouldn’t rain on my wedding day. The day before the wedding, during the wedding rehearsal, it showered that morning. I was frantic but looked at the forecast again and it said "no chances of rain," Nancy even said to me "I told you not to worry about the rain, see" (the famous “I told you so” comment). The day of the wedding came and I as well as the wedding party was busy preparing for the wedding. Nancy didn’t tell me it rained the morning of my wedding, I wished she had so I could have put up the tent. Low and behold, after the ceremony, it rained heavily and hailed ruining my wedding. No tent! Just a picture of Nancy shrugging her shoulders (taken by my photographer) after the rain. Also, why is it that Nancy is all over my wedding pictures on her sweater jacket and jeans—could you at least dress up if you are attending my wedding to check up on things. My wedding cost $45k ($2.5k for the wedding venue + $500 mandatory insurance for Nancy…though there are no wedding ins out there that cover weather).

close quarters, but still a lovely place. Everyone that came couldn't stop talking about how breaktaking the place was and how the wedding was so beautiful. Nancy there was so easy to work with and very accomadating. We couldn't be happier with our decision to have our wedding here.

BBQ it yourself, same goes for alcohol. Saved us so much money!!! The family that runs the facility are so helpful. I would highly recommend this site for anyone looking for an outdoor venue.

e talked with him at first he was very down to earth and pleasant. When we told him we wanted to have an evening wedding set at 5:30 he was fine with it he told us we could have some extra time to clean up at the end. However just before the wedding when I called to double-check everything we were told we MUST be completely out by 9pm no exceptions. I was extremely distraught and although we were assured everthing was fine I felt rushed on my wedding day. NOT GOOD! Also when we sent our first payment in we received a call a few weeks later from the owner saying he had not received our payment. I had to get a copy of my check from the bank stating that he had already cashed my check. Then when we tried to pay the second installment we were going to pay him in person in cash and he failed to show up and meet us at his establishment. The owner was also EXTREMELY RUDE to our caterer. When our caterer arrived to unload the dishes he backed up to the lawn area and the owner became furious screaming at the caterer and threatening him. Although a beautiful location i'm not sure anyone else would want to go through the hassle.