Touring wedding venues has got to be one of my favorite tasks as a luxury upstate NY wedding planner. Choosing your wedding venue is often one of the first – and most exciting – tasks on your wedding planning checklist but it’s also one of the most important *cue the overwhelm if you are trying to do this on your own*. As a wedding planner, I love when couples come to me before they choose a wedding venue so we can be strategic in finding the right fit (as beautiful as it is logistically practical for their budget and guest list). Seneca Ridge is a brand new wedding venue on the scene, so I knew I had to tour it to see if it would be the right fit for any of my future couples!
Let's cut to the chase – you are going to want to save this one for later!
I’m going to share a lot of the pretty here, but I do want to take a minute to stress just how important choosing a wedding venue is! To make it a little easier, make sure to check out a few of my other posts on the blog:
- 12 Most Intriguing Wedding Venues in Upstate New York
- The 20 Most Overlooked Questions to Ask Your Wedding Venue
- 6 Steps to your Perfect Wedding Venue
Or if you prefer to listen, here are a few of my favorite podcast episodes on the subject:
Now, back to Seneca Ridge – one of my new favorite wedding venues!
Introducing Luxury Finger Lakes Wedding Venue: Seneca Ridge
If you’ve followed us for a while, you know that we think there is no better place for a destination wedding weekend than the beautiful Finger Lakes region of Upstate New York. One of the things we absolutely loved upon arriving at Seneca Ridge, was that downtown Geneva was only 8 minutes away (and there were many hotels just 12 minutes away!). One of the logistical challenges of being a wedding planner in Upstate New York is the remote locations of some of our favorite venues. Although we have made great friends with the shuttle companies in the area, it was refreshing to see a venue so close to the city (without sacrificing the Finger Lakes view you are coming here for!).
Need help budgeting your wedding expenses? Use our Wedding Budget Bundle so you can stop stressing if you can afford that venue you've been stalking.
Wedding Ceremony at Seneca Ridge
Wedding ceremonies take place just steps away from the backdoor of the home at Seneca Ridge. Overlooking the beautiful Seneca Lake (and 5 acres of secluded land), your ceremony will feel intimate even if you have 200 guests in attendance. Your wedding party will wait with you in the foyer of the Seneca Ridge house before making their way down the aisle. Ceremonies at Seneca Ridge start at 4:30pm – when the weather starts to get a little cooler and the natural lighting is just right.
Cocktail Hour in the Historic Barn
When you book the Seneca Ridge wedding venue, you either book for the day or the weekend. Included in your wedding venue rental is the use of this gorgeous 1840s barn for your cocktail hour. Can you picture drinking your signature cocktail here? Mingling with your guests before the reception? Personally, we love when there are completely different locations for your ceremony, cocktail hour, and reception because there is so much opportunity to surprise and delight your guests. This unique barn is just the beginning!
This barn can also make the perfect place for an afterparty once your tented wedding reception ends!
A Luxury Sailcloth Tent for your Wedding Reception
I absolutely love an outdoor tented wedding, and this wedding venue has spared no expense. Unlike some of the permanent tents available at other wedding venues, this one is complete with stunning wooden posts (no metal beams here!) and clear tent walls (so you’ll have an unobstructed view even if the weather doesn’t cooperate.) This outdoor tent can hold up to 180 guests for a sit-down dinner, and we can’t imagine a more dreamy place near Seneca Lake to eat (almost) under the stars. Wedding receptions can take place between 5pm-10pm (but don’t worry – like we said the barn makes for the perfect after-party location).
Check out this sneak peak from their Instagram for photos of this beautiful tent at sunset:
View this post on Instagram
Does this outdoor tent give anyone else Bridgerton wedding vibes? Click here for Bridgerton wedding inspiration.
About the Seneca Ridge House
Because you don’t want to waste a minute of your wedding day traveling between locations (if it can be avoided!), the Seneca Ridge House accommodates 8 guests in 4 rooms total. We loved touring this historic home and couldn’t love the intimate, historic vibes for getting ready. Also, this staircase makes for great photo ops!
Quick Facts about the Seneca Ridge Wedding Venue
Although we hope you love this wedding venue as much as we did, here are some quick facts if you are thinking about making this dreamy wedding location yours:
- Seneca Ridge is suitable for guest lists of up to 180 people.
- You need to bring in your own catering. In a way, I kind of love when venues don’t provide catering because it allows us more options for customization and personalization!
- There are NO restrictions on outside vendors. Hallelujah!
- As of this blog post publication date, you can rent this wedding venue by the day for $5,950-$6,950, or for the entire weekend for $10,500. We expect these fees will increase once this wedding venue executes a few more weddings under their belt.
- Right now, there are only 20 spots for parking so you will likely want to book a shuttle! They have plans to expand this in the future too!
Before you can really book your wedding venue, you need to create a wedding budget. Find out how much a wedding in Upstate New York really costs here!
Is the Seneca Ridge Wedding Venue right for you?
Run by former wedding photographers (who have been in the industry for over a decade), there's so much about this Seneca Lake wedding venue that we absolutely love. Before we let you run off into the sunset (and save your date!), we want to remind you to hire a wedding planner first. After all, friends don’t let friends plan their weddings alone. If you think we might be the right fit for your wedding day, learn more about working with us here, or connect directly with us here. In the meantime, we will just be sharing luxury wedding inspiration over on Instagram!
Not ready to commit to a Finger Lakes wedding venue? Save this post for later!
Be the first to comment