MV Skansonia

ons and made us feel comfortable and relaxed on the day. Vicki and Victoria were amazing and we are so grateful for everything they did for us!

nths leading up to the wedding, she was quick to respond to emails and great at helping to keep up organized and ready. During our rehearsal and wedding day, she kept things moving and made sure we weren't overwhelmed. I can't speak highly enough about Vicki and all the staff at the Skansonia, our wedding day wouldn't have been as amazing as it was without them!!! The venue is quite stunning as well. Our guests enjoyed the uniqueness and ambiance of the venue. The food was amazing too! I'd definitely pick the Skansonia if I had to do it all again! Absolutely no complaints!!

nd I aren't the most organized folks. The staff went above and beyond to calm our nerves about preparation, but also helped with every facet of the ceremony and reception. The women of the Skansonia were the talk of the town amongst family and friends. They seamlessly guided us through the process of planning and executing the entire day and everything went off without a hitch. They really made us feel comfortable, they advised us when we were unsure and most importantly, they listened to our every request, no matter how big or small it was. We wouldn't have pulled this off without them. Next, let's go with the venue itself. We are originally east coasters who now call Seattle home, so most of our guests came from out of town. The venue blew everyone away. The historic charm, the waterfront location, the quintessential views of the downtown skyline made it a truly unique celebration. We're still getting calls about how unbelievable the venue was. Few decorations needed to make this place looks beautiful, the history speaks for itself. Up next, my favorite: the food! One of the reasons we chose the Skansonia in the first place was the reviews about the food. Man, they did not disappoint. From the tasting night to the reception itself, there was never a bad bite. We had steak, salmon, butternut squash ravioli and plenty of tasty appetizers. Normally for weddings, it is quantity vs quality but the Skansonia found the secret to provide both. I couldn't tell you how many times we were told that it was "the best wedding food we've ever had". We had 160+ guests and we heard that from nearly everyone. On top of how delicious the food was, it was extremely affordable compared to other catering services. If they were a restaurant (hint: they are), I would eat there constantly (hint: I do). Miscellaneous comments - One of our main concerns was the table setup with our group size and how most tables would be separated from the dancefloor. The ladies of the Skansonia assured us that they would create a layout and environment that flowed with the events of the night and they backed up their statements. While people were dancing, others hung out at the bar and others wandered out front and on the upstairs decks. The layout really provided an intimate setting where people could get a variety of settings if they wanted to. We provided our own alcohol for the wedding - mostly beer bottles and wine. The Skansonia was so helpful in providing accurate alcohol amounts and they were extremely accommodating for dropoff of the alcohol and other wedding decor. Overall, the women of the Skansonia were easy to work with, proactive with communication, honest with their professional opinions and most of all, their presence was calming, assuring and approachable. I know it sounds cliche, but we really would not have been able to pull the wedding off without them. I would recommend this venue and it's wonderful employees to anybody (and have been!). I hope that one day, Susie and I can attend a wedding on the Skansonia as guests, so we can see from another perspective how wonderful this place really is. Thanks for so much!!

were going to plan my wedding all over again, I would definitely still get married at the Skansonia.

le across Lake Union? Aside from the perfect setting, everything else was spot on. The food was delicious! I would pick something and say "you must have _________", but there isn't just one thing! You can't go wrong w/ the menu. The space is well laid out to allow guests to move about easily, find a quiet spot, or even escape outside. The onsite staff were wonderful during the event. Perfectly kind and helpful all evening. Looking back, there is not a thing we would change and given the chance, we would do it all over again!

inside is equally beautiful with unique vintage-looking decoration and beautiful lighting hanging from the ceiling. The staff at the Skansonia are also wonderful people to work with. Kristine answered all my questions, no matter how little or silly and met with me and my husband several times to make sure that we were the most comfortable we could be with everything having to do with our wedding day! Both Kristine and our day of coordinator, Vicki, helped us to make the boat our own for our wedding day with suggestions on decorations and other ideas. Vicki was the most incredible coordinator I could have asked for, she was calm and made me feel so loved on our wedding day. I felt so confident knowing that she was in charge and she did an amazing job allowing us to enjoy our day but also moving things along so as not to go over our allotted time. I also loved that we were able to get all food and cupcakes from the Skansonia as well. It made it easy to only have to deal with one person as opposed to five different vendors! And the staff at the Skansonia did all of the cleaning up! I loved that my bridal party and family had minimal cleaning post-reception. Thank you to the amazing staff at the MV Skansonia for making our day so special! The MV Skansonia was the absolute perfect place for my husband and I to be married and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a beautiful, elegant venue.

d we are so thankful for everyone's help and support from the Skansonia! We have heard nothing but amazing compliments about the venue, the service, and of course the great party that ensued ;) The Skansonia truly is Seattle's best kept secret and Scott and I feel so lucky to have spent our special day in such a beautiful location that captures Seattle at its best! We also loved the fact that the Skansonia used to commute from Gig Harbor (my hometown) to Tacoma as a passenger ferry which gave us another reason to love this venue and its' unique character. Again, we thank you and would absolutely recommend you to all our friends and family! Jennifer & Scott Tester

s complimented the food. The staff is very helpful, too. We met with Ellie, one of the coordinators for the Skansonia, the before the wedding and she really helped us figure out the timing and logistics for the big day. On the day of the wedding she took care of everything for us. She really made sure the event ran smoothly. I felt like I didn't have to worry about a thing. I highly recommend using the Skansonia.

questions sometimes multiple times a day/week and they always gave quick and informative responses. For the events directly before the wedding (i.e. finalizing meeting, rehearsal, etc) they were completely on top of everything and very relaxed which helped to keep us relaxed too! We worked directly with Shauna and Ellie and they were both there the night of the wedding to keep everything running smoothly and make sure we had everything we needed. For everything that was included and the incredibly wonderful setting, the price was very reasonable. We have had many guests remark about the amazing food and great location and we highly recommend this venue to anyone!

up to 30 minutes before the ceremony). The food was amazing as well! We had salmon, pasta, and a green salad. They also allow you to bring on all your own alcohol without a corkage fee, which was a huge savings for us. We also made our own centerpieces and brought them in, which they were totally fine with. Easy to work with, flexible, and affordable! It was an amazing day and I wouldn't change a thing about working with this venue!

s guests), the space was nice, and it was affordable. We loved being able to bring all our own alcohol on board. There are some cons - first, you only have one hour before your event to set up, though you can purchase additional time for a fee (for us, it was $300 for each additional hour, but I believe that has since gone up). The staff are very nice and professional overall. We were quite upset though, that on our wedding day, one of the staff told family members that the front rows for the ceremony were reserved. Yes - that was correct - they were reserved - for family! As a result, several family members ended up standing for the ceremony because they'd been told not to sit up front - and those front rows remained empty for the ceremony.

a wonderful job for our wedding.

all the vases They were so nice and the venue was perfect. Loved just about everything!

a day of wedding coordinator. Second, they've created unbeatable atmosphere. Being on an eclectically and vintage decorated old ferry boat with a glowing view of the Seattle skyline was so magical. Third, the prices were up front and they have so many options to add on to make a wedding easy (candles, table runners, cake, ice cream, catering, flowers etc). They have many vendors that have worked with them in the past. It was a great piece of mind to know that many of vendors already knew the staff and layout of the boat.

out of town guests to Seattle. The food was unreal - so delicious, I was very happy with it. Upgrade to inlude the Lobster Mac when you upgrade the number of entrees...guests (and I!) loved it. The planning and service at the wedding and before was so easy to plan. Overall, I thought the quality, service, and value for the venue were all 5 out of 5's. In my particular case, I was not able to come anywhere near my guest minimum, so for me, the value was not there as much - so I recommend definitely making sure you can meet the guest minimums when picking out your day.

staff were great, so friendly, helpful, but one person in particular seemed to maybe be having a bad day but that would be the only flaw! It's a spectacular venue, they do a fantastic job!!

y any fees for renting the venue, you simply use their in house catering. My guests raved about the food and unique location, and I would HIGHLY recommend it! Shauna was a wonderful help, and I couldn't have asked for better! The ONLY thing we weren't ecstatic about was having to pay a tuning fee to move the piano closer to the deck for our outside ceremony - but that's it!! I definitely would use this venue again, and hope that you do, too!

thought the food was OK, but my guests raved about how good the food was. My only complaints are that you can only book the boat for 5 hours, including the one hour setup time, since they usually have 2 events per day. Also the speakers are only set up on the side of the dance floor, so you can't hear the music during dinner.

medallions and a sometimes less than pleasant to work with onsite catering manager, Tamara, it gets an honest four. The old boat is so classic and beautiful and unexpected, even. All our guests loved the location!

d. The upstairs was easy to escape to after the ceremony for pictures and such.;Some guests will have to park a ways away and walk on a gravel path. There are a few disabled spots, but if you have lots of elderly people it might be a problem. There is a drop off area. The food is only ok, and you must use their catering.

e everyone feel comfortable and warm.;Trying to get ahold of the staff prior to the wedding week tended to include a bit of phone tag.

they worked with us to have it on the boat - it turned out fantastic.;My only issue with the site was that they forgot to set out some of the things we brought ahead of time - disposable cameras and guest book for example. So it is best to have someone there to oversee some of those details.

te we saw then throwing away food and we got all most no left overs. Which were looking forward to since we didn't get to eat more than a bite.