300+ guest capacity
This venue can host 300+ guests
About this vendor
Located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, The Horticulture Center is a garden wedding venue that boasts a modern exhibition hall and greenhouse. This unique venue is located in Fairmount Park with both indoor and outdoor spaces to host your wedding ceremony, reception, and rehearsal dinner. Built in 1979, the Center sits on the former Horticultural Hall, an 1876 Centennial Exposition Building. A portion of the event fees from renting the Horticulture Center benefits Fairmount Park Conservancy.
The center can accomodate up to 250 people for a wedding ceremony and reception, and 300+ for a seated dinner or cocktail reception in this historic and elegant arboretum.
Services Offered
The Horticulture Center uses Constellation Culinary Group as the venue’s exclusive caterer. They are dedicated to using locally-sourced products and paying attention to the details while providing flawless service to you and your guests. As well as catering, bar services are provided through an open bar with a variety of wine, beer, liquor, and specialty drinks served.The Center provides the following items for your convenience:
Chairs
Tables
Linens
Barware
China
Flatware
Glassware
Amenities + details
Ceremony Area
Handicap Accessible
Indoor Event Space
Outdoor Event Space
Reception Area
Covered Outdoors Space
Dressing Room
Liability Insurance
On-Site Accommodations
Wireless Internet
Guest Capacity
- 300+
Settings
- Garden
- Park
- Trees
Venue Service Offerings
- Bar & Drinks
- Bar Rental
- Cakes & Desserts
- Food & Catering
- Rentals & Equipment
- Service Staff
Reviews
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4.7
out of 5.023 reviews
Review photos
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Stunning venue - the display garden is truly a one in a million place to get married. We initially planned to have our cocktail hour outdoors as we wanted to highlight the reflecting pool but unfortunately the weather didn’t permit - we had cocktail hour inside and it was still incredible. The whole team there was impressive and the food was truly delicious. My standards for wedding food are pretty low but it was excellent, and many of our guests commented that it was the best wedding food they’ve ever had (and they’d eat it again if they could). The whole team was lovely to work with. So, so glad we got married here!!
We had such an amazing experience at the Hort! Olivia made the process really easy, and the venue itself is so stunning. All of the staff at the wedding made the day so smooth and easy, and they even made sure to put extra food aside for us during each course (in addition to it coming to our table! weddings are crazy it was very helpful). The food was PHENOMENAL--Constellation is so so good! Our day was perfect!
We had our wedding at the Horticulture Center in November and it was the dreamiest day and the most seamless planning process!
Olivia worked with us and is an absolute superstar--I don't know how she does it. We felt like the only couple she was working with, and felt like we were the Hort's only wedding every time we toured, visited for a walkthrough, or rehearsed. Which of course isn't true! This is a testament to the way that Olivia and the team puts couples first and prioritizes your day and experiences.
We picked the Hort as a venue because we loved how lush and beautiful it is naturally. It met and exceeded that expectation, and surprised us in so many other ways. I cannot explain how stunning the night was. My memories are all bathed in the most beautiful, golden glow.
First--the food is exceptional. My guests (even two months later) are still telling me about how delicious the food was and how much they loved it! Maybe this is obvious to others, but I didn't realize we would have an assigned waiter to make sure we were eating throughout the night, which I really appreciated.
Second, communication with the venue was easy, proactive, and made us feel really confident we made the right choice. We booked pretty early, as people tend to do post-COVID, and it was helpful to be kept on track with regular updates. The tasting was well-organized and I appreciated how far in advance it was (we attended a July tasting for an early-November wedding).
Finally, and I definitely underestimated this, the Hort has a wealth of connections and vendors they recommend. This was exceedingly helpful whenever we--fairly last minute--realized that we would need lighting because we didn't think about an earlier sunset in the fall! Because the Hort has good relationships with so many trusted vendors, who work in the venue often, it was really easy (and not stressful at all) to work with a lighting vendor last minute to make sure we could see our dinners!
All in all, I would absolutely book the Hort again and how I get to be a guest at a Hort wedding in the future!! It was the most wonderful day, in no small part because of Olivia and the team.
This venue, combined with Constellation catering, is unbeatable for a unique environment for any special event. Olivia and the staff at The Horticulture Center made sure our food and service were top-notch and were always responsive to our questions/concerns. They were also willing to collaborate on our custom requests for menu items and service styles. The staff at The Horticulture Center are professional and made us feel completely at-ease during our entire event. This indoor, tropical space was transformed into the disco of our dreams and our food/beverage service was impeccable. The Constellation team accommodated our vegetarian-only menu with ease and The Horticulture Center was the perfect space to have our wedding/reception. Five stars, across the board!
We can't say enough good things about the Horticulture Center! Olivia helped us put together an amazing event and was super helpful throughout the process. All of our guests commented on how beautiful the venue was and how delicious the food was! The event staff were all so kind and we didn't have to worry about anything the day of the event - they even set aside drinks and cocktail hour snacks for us so we could have a quiet moment between the ceremony and cocktail hour without missing out on the food!
Can't say enough about the Hort! The constellation team was fantastic to work with (Brittany/Olivia) and helped us create a wedding that was unique to us!
We wanted a private moment during our reception and Olivia was able to set up a hidden sweetheart table in the cocktail hour space and can't recommend it enough!!! We still had all of the vibes and chatter but felt like we had a private restaurant just for us! We could still see friends and family as they were passing through but they got the hint, we could wave over who we wanted to AND we got to eat our dinner!!! We finished up before everyone else and still had time to make it around to the tables and say hello :) Honestly, my favorite part of the night.
Food was great, vibes were better. 10/10
We got married back in September (this review is long overdue) and were so happy with choosing Fairmount Park Horticulture Center as our venue. I wanted someone different than the typical ballroom wedding and this was the most beautiful and unique venue, we fell in love with it immediately. The entire team & service was absolutely incredible! Special shout out to Olivia who was extremely helpful throughout the entire planning process. She is the best!!! Do not hesitate booking your wedding here - it is well worth every penny!
Fairmount Park Horticulture Center was an absolute dream of a wedding venue. The staff went ABOVE and beyond to make sure our wedding was flawless. Every guest raved about the venue and the staff.
The Fairmount Park Horticulture Center was the venue of our dreams. It combines the the feeling of nature with the security of a climate-controlled indoor venue. Gail and The Hort staff made our wedding day seamless and all of the details were exactly as we had desired. Though it was pricey, we felt it was deserved. My husband and I received countless compliments from our guests on how stunned they were with the venue and how special it felt compared to a typical venue. Thank you to all of the staff for making our day an absolute fairytale.
Our wedding was at the Fairmount Horticultural Center in October. The day was absolutely magical! Every single detail came together in a way that absolutely exceeded every expectation that I ever had for my wedding! It was just perfect in every way. My family and friends couldn’t get over the space and how different it was from your typical wedding. I need to say that Gail helped us navigate moving our wedding due to Covid and answered every frantic email I had to finalizing the details. For the day of Adam Fisher was the MVP he was incredibly helpful and since I didn’t have a coordination stepped up on a huge way for us. I will forever be great full for the hard work and attention to detail for the whole team there! They made my day perfect and I didn’t worry about a single thing! Thank you from my husband myself and my whole family for an experience of a lifetime!
We got married here on 9/17/21 and I'll start by saying that the wedding turned out stunning, we brought in a full design team to transform the space and it looked incredible. We got many compliments on how unique the space was and how the vision came together.
I was really disappointed with the service by the Constellation Team, I constantly felt like I was bothering them throughout the entire wedding planning process. There was little to no communication prior to our wedding, except if they were waiting on an invoice to be paid. I constantly felt like we were being nickeled and dimed on every little thing despite the fact that the per plate was around $215/pp. Honestly, I debated writing this review, but when I NEVER heard from them again after our wedding I figured it was necessary. Never once did they follow up or make sure we were happy. Our other vendors all sent us kind messages or thank you cards, even down to the bakery we used for our wedding cake. It's disappointing that the vendor we spent the most money on didn't have the courtesy to do the same. I do feel our money would have gone much further elsewhere.
Our wedding was a dream! This venue is absolutely stunning on it's own...throw some flowers and lights in and wow! Our guests were raving. The food is on a next level good! Gail was our point of contact and she was so great at responding and keeping us informed and organized all the way up to the big day! Thank you so much to the entire staff for our perfect wedding!!
I didn’t end up having my wedding at the Horticulture Center due to a change of plans caused by COVID, but I think it’s important to positively review vendors that are flexible with COVID clients. Leila & team were very empathetic and understanding of the unique challenges of planning a wedding during COVID and when we decided to move our wedding out of state due to PA guest count restrictions that would not allow us to include our entire immediate family, they were completely supportive. I cannot say the same about some of the other vendors I had contracted for my wedding. I know Leila & team are very talented event hosts and I am sad I didn’t get to work with them for our wedding, but I can't thank them enough for their professionalism given the situation.
We had our dream wedding at the Hort. Leila and her team were professional, kind, flexible and truly
know how to host a wedding! They worked with us to reschedule our date due to COVID.
The space is gorgeous- so much natural light and the greenery is stunning. The space is flexible- we were originally going to have 100+ people, but scaled down. The wedding still felt intimate and perfect.
The food was beyond outstanding. We had a wonderful tasting a few months before the event and that blew us away. The food on the actual wedding day was even better.
This was my dream venue and I’m so glad we decided to have our wedding here. Everything was perfect and we couldn’t recommend it more.
The Horticulture Center was by far the best venue that we visited when looking for our wedding venue. The space is large, absolutely gorgeous, and the exclusive catering team, Constellation Culinary, is unmatched in quality. We worked with Gail to coordinate our wedding day, and she was so great throughout the whole process. This was so important to us, as the wedding planning process can be very stressful but Gail was always quick to answer emails and provide clear and helpful responses. The night of the wedding, the team at the Horticulture Center was extremely professional and the servers, bartenders, and kitchen team did an amazing job. All of my guests were raving about how the venue is so gorgeous and how the food was amazing. I highly recommend the Horticulture Center to any engaged couple, it is an incredible space with the best and highest quality service. They will make your wedding the best wedding you've ever been to.
The Horticulture Center was a dream come true! Our family and friends are still talking about how magical the venue was, especially for a nighttime winter wedding. It far exceeded our wildest imagination, and we’re so happy we were able to share this amazing space with our out-of-town guests. The Constellation Culinary team was also equally amazing - so accommodating, communicative, lovely to work with. Thank you Leila and Gail for the absolute best night of our lives! It was absolutely unforgettable!!!
Disappointing to say the least. The price of this venue is extraordinary (truly insane) and the service is horrendous. My sister got married here (12/7/19) and the food was sub par to say the least. Entree drop was super late and all of the food came out cold. The venue is not accommodating at all. My mother and father in law needed to leave early to take care of my sick infant who was the flower girl and they refused to box up any food (they left far AFTER the timeline for when food should have been dropped per the wedding timeline). Gail, the wedding coordinator for the venue was exceptionally rude. Most places offer the bride some level of assigned staff to get drinks, food, etc and help with anything needed to help ease the stress of the day. That was not provided. It was shameful for the price they charge. It’s a shame because the wedding itself was beautiful (thanks to her other vendors). Do not work with Gail. I usually do not post bad reviews but I don’t want other brides to have a similar experience. For the price, this wedding should have been FLAWLESS. It was not. Many guests were left upset about their meal being ice cold, the head table included.
A dream wedding venue! Food and service was exceptional. Many guests remarked it was the best wedding they had ever been too.
We were looking for a "winter wonderland" venue and the greenery and the atmosphere at the Horticulture Center was perfect. Everything was gorgeous and we had so much creative liberty throughout the whole process. The team was clearly dedicated to making it the best day ever. Guests have continually been reaching out telling us it was the most beautiful reception they had ever been to. We love the Hort!!
The Hort is an amazing place to have your wedding. The food, atmosphere and staff are lovely
The Horticulture Center was warm and comfortable yet beautiful and elegant, and everything we'd hoped for as our wedding venue. It looks unbelievably lovely when lit up at night and is perfectly structured for a wedding event (i.e., ceremony in front room, cocktails in middle and dinner/dancing in back). Further, Constellation Culinary (the catering and event vendor who operates the Hort) was extremely organized and pleasant to interact with, and worked with us to put together a magnificent, fully-vegetarian menu for our guests as well as a smooth-running wedding event. Highly recommend!
The Horticulture Center was an amazing place for our daughter's wedding reception. Our guests were absolutely amazed by the beauty of both the cocktail area and the dinner/dance area of this facility! It is one of the most romantic spots you will find in Philadelphia, and STARR Catering did an amazing job with the food. Gail and Leila were fantastic. Our guests are still raving about the quality of the food!
We got married at the Fairmount Park Horticulture Center, where Starr Events is the exclusive caterer. Leila and Gail (from Starr) made our day special and run smoothly. We had visited the venue countless times for appointments and events prior to our wedding. But when we stepped inside on our wedding day, we were blown away by how amazing everything looked. It looked the best I'd ever seen it. We were especially impressed at the level of professionalism from the staff and the attention to little details, like refolding the napkins and replacing the olive leaves (which we had placed on each napkin) whenever guests got up. They were prompt in getting out the food and drinks quickly. Our guests have not stopped raving about the venue and the food (some said it was the best wedding food they've ever had and we, of course, agree). And the signature cocktails cleaned up! Overall, they were a pleasure to work with and if you are getting married in the Philly area and quality of food is a top priority for your event, I would definitely recommend going with Starr.
Contact
100 North Horticultural Drive, Philadelphia, PA
The Fairmount Park Horticulture Center
The Fairmount Park Horticulture Center's photos