$16,750 starting price
101-150 guest capacity
This venue can host up to 150 guests
About this vendor
An Experience Truly "Beyond Words"
The Press Hotel offers couples a boutique wedding venue near the Old Port of Portland, ME, renowned for being a writer's paradise. Inspired by the 1920s and featuring interior design reminiscent of a century gone by, this historical establishment boasts a journalistic flair. Blending modern style and comfort with vintage charm, this gorgeous hotel can host an unforgettable city wedding.
The Press Hotel celebrates the power of the written word with seven beautiful floors and many stories to tell. Originally the home of the Portland Press Herald, couples can commemorate their historic day where literary greatness occurred. Each of the four event spaces exudes the spirited editorial meetings once held in those very rooms. Begin your day in the lavish Penthouse Suite, where you can relax, indulge, and prepare for the big day. Follow the swarm of typewriters and descend the dramatic open staircase that leads you down from our lobby. You’ll be greeted by our Art Gallery walls, bursting with the latest curated works by local artists. Our Composing and Editorial rooms also call our Art Gallery level home. Our Composing room would be the perfect location for your dinner reception portion of the event. This space can accommodate a maximum of 70 guests for a seated dinner. Across the hall is our Editorial room – perfect for dancing and mingling. Our Art Gallery is the communal space that connects the function spaces, perfect for mingling in a standing reception style. These three spaces are often referred to as our Gallery Common. The Gallery Common can accommodate up to 150 guests for a heavy reception-style event. The hotel's luxurious 110 guest rooms and suites feature a vintage-styled journalist desk, wood floors, and local artwork, including a woven wall tapestry by Angela Adams. The historic building boasts oversized windows in every guestroom, providing light and fresh Maine air during your stay. You'll notice playful newsroom references, thought-provoking quotes, and occasional one-liners in the most unexpected places throughout your event.
The Press Hotel team lives up to the outstanding hospitality Maine is loved for and will do everything possible to realize your vision. Couples can reach out to discover wedding packages with a range of services tailored to their requirements. You won't have to lift a finger, as the inclusive packages cover everything from catering to accommodation, rental items, and more.
Pricing details
Starting prices
Reception:
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Ceremony:
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Bar services:
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Catering:
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Starting prices don't include service fees, taxes, gratuity, and rental fees. Guest count and seasonality may also affect prices.
Amenities + details
Handicap Accessible
Indoor Event Space
Liability Insurance
On-Site Accommodations
Reception Area
Wireless Internet
Covered Outdoors Space
Dressing Room
Outdoor Event Space
Guest Capacity
- Up to 150
Settings
- Historic Venue
- Hotel
- Museum
- Restaurant
Venue Service Offerings
- Bar & Drinks
- Cakes & Desserts
- Other Desserts
- Food & Catering
- Planning
- Rentals & Equipment
Reviews
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4.6
out of 5.07 reviews
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We had our wedding weekend and reception at the Press Hotel in December 2023, AND IT WAS MAGICAL. My group was sooo well taken care throughout the entire weekend -- from the front desk to the valet and incredible bartending/catering teams to GRACE/ HALEY in the Events office -- everyone went truly above and beyond to ensure we had a perfect time. We had the Penthouse suite for the weekend, which felt essential to get ready and have space for all of the wedding things!
PS: I can't recommend the 'Family Style' dinner enough - the food was DELICIOUS (and abundant!) and it was so fun for our guests to pass plates.
Working with Grace and her team at The Press Hotel for our July 2022 wedding was an absolute pleasure. They accommodated all of our requests and curated a beautiful and stunning reception space for our cocktail hour and seated dinner. Grace assisted us throughout the entire planning process, including linen rentals, decor, seating chart, food/drink menu, and more. Our guests still rave about the food and drinks, and we found that the "family style" dinner was perfect for our 40 person reception. The service was exceptional from start to finish! Highly recommend The Press to any couples looking for a modern, elegant, and centrally-located Portland venue. Thank you to The Press Hotel for making our wedding weekend so memorable!
This reception venue should only be used for seated dinners. We went with their heavy banquet style, and be aware: your guests will not be served a full entree even though you will pay more than the seated dinner. At $145 a person for dinner, not including alcohol or even water, I expected much more than for all of my guests to leave hungry and eat lobster rolls and burgers down the street afterwards in tipsy desperation.
That being said, I think a seated reception would have been lovely and I really wish I went that route even though I would have had to split into 2 rooms because of guest count. We got married at city hall in the State Room and that was a perfect transition, but dinner was big disappointment.
Communication with the coordinator was great, although I do wish I was told that my guests would not receive an entree in their banquet style reception. We were assured the standards were the same, and the menu we selected from had three courses (passed and stationary appetizers, "action stations" , and desserts)....
Other tips: their sound system is very quiet, although they pitch you can have your own playlist, you may want to bring your own speakers. I also suggest you let them know you'd like champagne to be passed out when the bride and groom actually arrive to the reception after pictures, since we didn't get any bubbly when we arrived as they passed it out so early everyone drank it before we got there. Thus, there was no queue for our toast and it instead we were crowded by guests for pictures when we arrived and ended up doing our toasts and dances about an hour after we wanted to (& after our photographer had to leave).
Any questions?
From start to finish The Press Hotel was amazing to work with. They accommodated all our requests and were beyond helpful in the planning process. The hotel is absolutely gorgeous, with modern, unique decor and a farm to table restaurant and coffee shop on site this place will make you feel like royalty and wow your guests. From the seasonal, sustainable food and drink menus to the way the staff is always one step ahead of your needs, the atmosphere and service is truly above and beyond.
Albert Thayer, our wedding coordinator handled our event with expertise and poise and I honestly cannot say enough good things about him. He is very dedicated to his craft and devoted to helping create the day of your dreams. Not to mention, he is one of the kindest most genuine people you’ll ever meet. I would chose him over and over again if I could.
If you’re looking for an intimate, romantic and unique wedding experience, I HIGHLY recommend The Press Hotel and Albert Thayer.
We stayed here for our wedding and had a room block and Anna and her team were amazing to work with. All my guests felt welcome and well taken care of!
Our wedding at the Press Hotel was unforgettable. They treated us like royalty from the moment we first inquired. Our coordinator, Anna Paschal, was incredibly professional and helped us with every detail. There is a lot to be said for having your wedding in a beautiful boutique hotel with a rooftop deck. Just about everything was taken care of for us, from the delicious meal Union restaurant prepared, to the luxurious accommodations. We were actually able to relax, if only for a little bit. Since we had a small wedding (about 60 guests) and an even smaller ceremony (20 guests) we were able to take advantage of the incredible backdrop of the City of Portland while delivering our nuptials on the rooftop deck with our closest friends and family. Because the rooftop deck was connected to the penthouse suite, we reserved for the day of the wedding, the wedding party was able to use it to get ready and then greet guests as they arrived for the ceremony. Cocktail hour, held in the art gallery adjacent to the reception, was the perfect setting for our guests to mingle while waiting for us to arrive. The reception was held in their well-appointed, warm composing room. Our guests were treated to an elegant setting in which to enjoy their meal. We ended the night dancing until our feet hurt and we retired to our room still full of incredible memories of the most perfect day. Thank you Press Hotel for making our wedding weekend all that we imagined.
We were looking for a venue in Portland, ME that would be able provide it all; event space, catering and rooms for the guests….but that didn’t have that “generic hotel” feel to it.
We were immediately drawn to the Press Hotel after having brunch there one Sunday.
The atmosphere, aesthetic and tone of the hotel was exactly what we were looking for in a wedding venue.
From our first meeting with Crystal, we knew we were in good hands. Crystal helped us navigate the planning process and what a savior she was, as we had little free time between busy careers and grad school. She kept us on track and helped us with the little details that tied it all together. To say she went above and beyond would be an understatement. It was as if she had known us for years and knew exactly what we wanted, before we knew we wanted it! She was a dream to work with and made the whole process stress free.
We held our ceremony in the Editorial Room and it was a great back drop for photos. The art gallery was the chic space for our cocktail hour. The reception was held in the Composing Room and it was perfect! There was no need to bring in excessive decor. We used simple white floral arrangements from Campbell’s Floral design and they did a fantastic job (and the flowers lasted for days!).
Crystal and the chefs at Union helped us craft all the food for the cocktail hour and dinner at the reception. We wanted the food to be the focal point and our guests let us know just how great the food was! Everything looked wonderful and tasted even better, and as most couples claim, they didn’t get to eat at their wedding…that was not the case here! We enjoyed every bite!
The chefs at Union also created our wedding cake and as someone who is a dessert fanatic they did not disappoint! They served up tiny individual cakes with gelato on the side, it was a fun spin on “cake and ice cream”. And the reception favors! I still get texts asking “where can I buy those pumpkin whoopie pies” five months later.
The staff during the cocktail hour and reception were outstanding. I think my father put it best when he said, he didn’t notice they were there, yet his wine glass was never empty!
The rooms at the Press Hotel are just so beautiful and so modern and the staff was very gracious and helpful from check in to check out.
The hotel itself provided many locations for photo ops. When we got our photos back we were floored at how beautiful everything looked. Clare Norton Photography was just outstanding. Clare did an amazing job at capturing the whole day for us, she is a real pro!
I can’t say enough great things about the Press Hotel, Crystal, the chefs and the staff. We were so happy with every aspect of the day, it was absolutely perfect!
Contact
119 Exchange St., Portland, ME
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$16,750 starting price
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The Press Hotel
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