Museum of the Shenandoah Valley

Everything about the garden was perfect for our wedding day. Catherine, the event coordinator, is organized, friendly, and nothing but helpful. The setting is gorgeous and the guests loved wandering through the gardens after the ceremony for the cocktail hour. We received so many compliments on the location that I can't imagine having our wedding anywhere else.

What a truly wonderful venue the “MSV” is! I feel like it is a secret that few D.C.ers find. If you haven’t visited the space yet, just you wait... when I first toured it in January under feet of snow, even then, I kept saying, “I wish I was going to be a guest at this wedding!” It is absolutely stunning. You will have the greatest pictures ever and all of your guests will be in awe of the setting, which can be whatever you want: natural, romantic, whimsical, ethereal, formal, etc. After reading about the venue, lots of our guests wanted to go early -- in fact, many guests went BACK on Sunday because they loved it so much. The price I paid included use of the entire grounds (!) from 4pm onward on Saturday and a rehearsal at 4pm on the Friday before hand. That price did not include a tent or chairs but does of course include use of the big hall (where we did our dancing at the end of the night)as a backup plan in case it rains. And the price included a beautiful space (a house actually) for the bride and bridesmaids to get ready in. It also includes a house for the groomsmen to get ready in as well. All air conditioned; and where we got ready had a stunning staircase with a huge mirror, which again, means we got some out of this world pictures. Importantly, for guests, there was a bathroom and lovely rooms down near the gardens too for before the ceremony and during the cocktail hour. Everyone there is extremely friendly but Catherine Bogaty, the event coordinator, is above and beyond. And let me tell you, the event coordinator at your venue is a KEY point person you’re going to be in contact with a lot, so it’s critical to trust the venue and their personnel. Catherine was there to assist us throughout the entire process, plus she walked us through the rehearsal, and she and her assistant were there that day with us to help run things. (All as part of the price – so go ahead and forget about getting a ‘day of planner.’) She is extraordinarily kind, patient, helpful, and a quick responder! I simply cannot say enough good things about the Museum and Catherine. You can see pictures on my friend Chad Michael Peter’s blog who did the flowers and print materials: http://chadmichaelpeters.squarespace.com/style-blog/2010/10/4/musuem-of-the-shenendoah-valley-weddings-melissa-and-jeremy.html You can also see pictures on our photographer’s facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/#!/media/set/?set=a.442775823130.235932.96749213130 (We used Artful Weddings – also absolutely fabulous!) Hope that helps. Happy hunting for venues.

We are so glad that we had our wedding reception at the museum. We had access to the entire grounds and the gardens and buildings were such beautiful backgrounds for all of our pictures. The event coordinator, Catherine Bogaty, was so great to work with and was helpful and accessible throughout the entire process. We could have imagined a better place to celebrate our big day!