Salisbury House & Gardens

One star is generous. I would never in a million years recommend someone get married at Salisbury House. Let’s just say there’s a reason they have “dates still available this year!”. I had a wonderful wedding day because of all of my other fantastic vendors (which you can read reviews on), but I could go on and on about awful situations and circumstances Salisbury House put me in. If you’re reading this you likely know that SH costs more than any other venue in Iowa and that the fee comes with nothing. I want to stress this – you get nothing in return for your money except being able to physically walk on the property which you will still likely be yelled at for. Our guests – and US, the bride and groom!! - were routinely chastised, rebuked and lectured during our wedding, enough so that I’m still hearing about Lori from our guests, SH’s so-called “guest experience manager”. Their security guard, which I also had to pay for, banned my 90-year-old grandmother from coming inside in 95 degree weather because she had a sealed bottle of water in her hand. We were forced to dispose of hundreds of dollars of wine because staff wouldn’t let guests walk through the Salisbury House with any kind of drinks, even water, despite the contract stating otherwise. 15-minutes after being married, Lori berated my husband and I for being in the room that Bonnie told us to be, in which she grabbed the flower-end of my bouquet and threw it. We were told SH would provide a dolly for my aunt to move chairs 120 chairs from one end of the house to the other, but they did not provide it and when she asked about it the staff refused to get it. This sounds like a joke but I assure you it’s not. If the wedding itself wasn’t bad enough on SH’s part, the planning leading up to it was almost worse. Wedding planning should be fun, but Salisbury House made it stressful and traumatic. They have no amount of flexibility, will help you with nothing, and line-items you have in your contract will not be followed through on. If I thought it worth it I would get an attorney involved, and I have already been in contact with people from the State of Iowa regarding its non-profit status given these ethical issues, but I do hope this review will make you think twice about getting married there.

My husband and I were married here in June 2015 at 5pm. We were married in the South Garden and our reception was held in the Historic Carriage House. I could not be more happy with how our day turned out... luckily we were blessed with perfect weather. The garden where the ceremony was held is naturally so beautiful we used barely any extra decorations. The interior of the Salisbury House is surprisingly well suited to keep the bridal and groom parties separate, and the "holding rooms' were so beautiful we were able to get fantastic pictures there as well as throughout the entire property. The staff are very kind and accommodating. Though they will be diligent in protecting the space as it is antique and preserved. The facility is also well set up for guests. Our guests had plenty of parking and made a short walk up a slope to the ceremony. Following, they were directed to the other side of the mansion for the reception. Plenty of space available in both the ceremony and reception site for our 120 guests.