San Antonio Botanical Garden

den space for your wedding, look no further!

The venue's beautiful setting saved us time and money on decorations, though other aspects, such as catering and equipment were more DIY than dedicated wedding venues. We signed our initial contract pre-covid, and coordination was a bumpy ride after that. We were planning from out of town, so resources such as pictures of the space and floorplans or dimensions were hard to acquire. The Garden also went through some changes to their event coordination staff, which made communication difficult. They also changed the terms of our contract as their events policies were updated, ultimately stripping us of rehearsal time the night before the wedding, as well as the dressing rooms at the venue, all of which were promised in our contract and paid for. They did find us new dressing rooms, but the groomsmen's was quite small and uncomfortable. They also held another event in the Culinary Garden, a space that we had rented, over part of the time we had rented it. We didn’t end up using the Culinary Garden but would have if there had been inclement weather on our wedding day. Note that they have a shortlist of approved caterers and rentals that you are required to choose from, and that your catering company will have to bring or rent you extra equipment if you book a space without a kitchen.

. The staff helped our vendors with everything they needed. This is such a great asset for San Antonio.

ntonio looks brown and plants are dead, the gardens were in full bloom, plants were well kept and we couldn't have asked for a better venue to celebrate this very special day.

e! Very Clean space and the included amenities just made it that much more worth it. Shimeyka Olivares, the Special Events Manager, was extremely helpful in getting this event planned and reserved for our special day. Her staff was helpful in the set up of the room as well as any one-off questions we had. We will definitely be looking forward to planning our next event with Shimeyka and the Botanical Garden.

's when we found the Botanical Gardens. The very same day, Shimeyka told us to come see the venue, and we were blown away. The location is stunningly beautiful, highly unique, enormous, and affordable. They have so much to offer, the possibilities are limitless. Furthermore, working with Shimeyka was fantastic as she is helpful, professional, and personable. All throughout planning and executing the wedding, this venue delivered on the promise of being LGBT friendly. My husband and I felt so welcome and supported. We are truly thankful to Shimeyka and all the staff for helping to make our dream wedding come true.

was very kind and respectful about clearing the area when it was time for the wedding to begin. In the end we were very satisfied with our decision, we would highly recommend it.

and we had so many gorgeous built in photo spots between the outdoor spaces and the greenhouses. The event staff were so kind and helpful and made the process painless for us. They even had a event coordinator on site for the event to help with set-up and directions so that we did not have to worry about it day-of. If you are a thrifty bride and are looking for a way to save money without sacrificing location, this is such a great spot!

which I was so nervous to do)! Everyone loved it. All the vendors and all the guests. Even people who weren’t invited have been messaging me asking where we went! Our photos from that night are stunning. In mid June my Mom kept saying it would be too hot, but at night it was just fine. The space accommodated catering, an Airstream Bar, an LED Dance Floor, Photobooth, Video Presentation and all the works! This was in every way the most perfect venue- and will be even more fun for me to visit now!

our guests with fans due to the heat and no shade (in the conservatory). Going through the vendor list provided by botanical was a little tough because you’re limited, but overall proved to be a good experience.

wanted was very sweet and helpful so I really thought it would be a lovely experience. The day off came and they had the misters turned on in the room I rented during my ceremony time. Everything was soaking wet and we had to rush around to find someone to shut them off so we could even enter the room. They told my guest and officiant that the wedding was supposed to be at 11 am when my contract clearly stated 2pm to 3pm. I was told if my ceremony ran late we would be kicked out even though it was their fault it was starting late. The people at the front desk were clueless and unhelpful when my maid of Honor asked them for help with the sprinkler/mister situation. They were all clearly more concerned with the larger ceremony that they were setting up for. So if your looking for a small intimate ceremony or an elopement know that they dont care about your day in the least and will muck things up for you. Only if you're planning a larger ceremony will they take you seriously. If not for my guest stepping up to help reorganize everything then my day would have been a disaster. I would not recommend them.

ing. We held the ceremony in the amphitheater followed by cocktail hour in another area and a dinner reception in the conservatory courtyard. Our guests raved about being able to go into the conservatory greenhouses throughout the reception. You do have to bring in all rentals, etc., from outside (only the space is provided), and vendors must be from an approved vendor list, but there are quality vendors on that list (and those vendors are experienced working in the Garden's space, so that's helpful). Rain plans are somewhat limited -- there is an old event tent on-site, and the classroom space can be rented for an additional fee (or you can pay a rental company to set up a nice tent for your event), but we were fortunate to have beautiful weather. The location is very convenient -- easy access to Lyft/Uber for our guests. This is a truly beautiful venue and it was a great place to host our wedding.

er we booked the venue, 9 months in advance, until I begged her to call me. She did not listen to my feedback regarding the way the night went. She was awful and is supposedly the only event coordinator for the SABOT, so I'm telling you... take your money elsewhere. While the gardens are SO beautiful, she made the experience the WORST.

extra stuff either. It was placed in a locker that was inside an office that I had to chase down a security guard every time I wanted to get something. Otherwise it was a gorgeous location.

Shimeyka was easy to work with and always responded quickly to my many questions. The ceremony, at the Westeria Arbor, was beautiful and easy to get to from the room that we got ready in. The ceremony, at the conservatory, was also beautiful. The venue had a coordinator on site that was easily available. The drawback from the venue is that they did not provide rentals, and we had to pay extra for the rentals. Also, because it is a city owned venue, there were a few extra restrictions such as no extra flower petals or open flames, but it was nothing we couldn't live without. We were very happy with the entire experience at the venue and loved our entire wedding weekend.

ocation.

ur ceremony and reception. Shimeyka was extremely helpful and pleasant to work with. She helped make my vision a reality!

erything was the day of! We had plenty of room in the bridal suit with all 11 of my flower girls! (Yes 11). It was the perfect backdrop to our big day and we couldn't be more thankful for everything the staff and Shimikya did!