Elkins Estate

Bride2BeN2013

Hi Ladies! I am recently enagged and this is my very first post. (yay!) Im in the process of step 1 of planning... Finding my venue. I live in S. Jersey but am originally from the Philadelphia area. So Im open to venues in either areas. I am interested in a mansion type venue as oppose to the hotels or country club type feel. I just discoverd Elkins Estate online and really love the way the pictures look. And a Friday during off peak season  may be in my budget which is no more than $120 per person. But after reading the reviews on their bankruptcy filings, I feel kind of foolish to even still be conidering it. Are there any prides who have recently booked this place in like the last year (post bankruptcy filing) and would like to share their experiences on it? Or are there any suggestions for other Mansion type venues in the greater Philly/ SJ area that are no more than $120 per person. Also my guest list will be around 130.

Thanks!

LorLor22

Congrats on your engagement!  I looked at Elkins Estate when I got engaged a year and a half ago, and while it was nice, I thought the property looked a little run down. That, combined with the bankruptcy/legal issues, was enough for me to decide to look elsewhere.

I've heard good things about Glen Foerd, Pen Ryn, Holly Hedge, Bolingbroke, and Cairnwood. I'm not sure what the prices are, but I'm sure there are ladies here who can be more helpful!

bridetobe71412

My wedding planner convinced us to not even look at Elkins. Not because it's not gorgeous, but because of the bankruptcy issues and internal management issues. I'd be majorly concerned about it and wouldn't want to start planning with issues right off the bat. Just my opinion.

We're having our wedding at Cairnwood and, all in, it'll be more than $120 per person. When we decided on it, we didn't think about this, but every single thing is an add-on, so it really, really adds up (quite quickly). Depending which caterer you go with and how many people you have, you may be able to make it work if you really liked the property. I'd check it out if I were you and if the thought of add-ons don't bother you.

We visited Glen Foerd/Pen Ryn and they are very pretty but weren't really what we were looking for. I didn't like how there were multiple events on site at once and I didn't like the location. Greystone Hall is outside Philly and is a really nice place, but I'm not sure what the cost pp is. Holly Hedge was just too far from major hotels and I believe was relatively expensive. We actually really liked Knowlton Mansion except it was on a pretty major road, and didn't have the same ambiance as Cairnwood. Cairnwood was the full package, which I suppose is why it's expensive.

I wrote a novel. Sorry! Hope that helps somewhat.

Bride2BeN2013

Thanks for the well wishes and the great advice. I will be making some calls this week to set appts up. Has anyone heard good things about the merion tribute house?

bridetobe71412

I have heard good things about it, but didn't inquire as to rates because they were already booked on the date we were interested in. FYI - Tina Fey had her reception there, I think!

Bride2BeN2013

oh wow thats a super cool fact.. I just googled it and your right! they should definitely advertise that on their site haha. They are having an open house  tomorrow night shich Im attending. Im really excited about it.

bridetobe71412

Good luck!

ccb150

Hey, girls! If you learn anything about pricing for the merion tribute house, will you post? I'm curious too.

Bride2BeN2013

So I went to the Open House last week and I absolutely loved it!!!! We were able to hold our date for 6/1/2013. Im so excited to have a venue and date! It was exactly when I wanted and where I wanted!

 I cant believe how many dates in 2013 have already been booked!

Bride2BeN2013

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_pennsylvania-philadelphia_elkins-estate-1?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local Wedding BoardsForum:105Discussion:9a3d4e03-2c1a-4869-bbd4-ff6b928d84caPost:241bc983-0005-40e1-b8d7-dc61f76db0dd">Re: Elkins Estate</a>:
[QUOTE]Hey, girls! If you learn anything about pricing for the merion tribute house, will you post? I'm curious too.
Posted by ccb150[/QUOTE]

All of their venue pricing is on the website but in summary.. May - Oct is about 5K on a saturday and April/ November is 30% off of that and the remaining months are about 40% off. Friday and Sunday is discounted as well. They have 10 exclusive caterers which range in price from about 60 per person to around 100 so the pricing really depends on what you want. we were able to get a 30% discount off of a Saturday in June if we left the afternoon open for another person to book. This worked for us because we were planning to have the ceremony off site and the reception start at 7pm

ccb150

Thank you! I must have missed it on their site, so I appreciate you writing up that note. For the catering, do they charge tax/gratuity on top of the per person?

Bride2BeN2013

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_pennsylvania-philadelphia_elkins-estate-1?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local Wedding BoardsForum:105Discussion:9a3d4e03-2c1a-4869-bbd4-ff6b928d84caPost:16b98dc1-9414-4c77-9c45-12d5295ec7bc">Re: Elkins Estate</a>:
[QUOTE]Thank you! I must have missed it on their site, so I appreciate you writing up that note. For the catering, do they charge tax/gratuity on top of the per person?
Posted by ccb150[/QUOTE]

some do, but the 80-100 per person I mentioned included the tax and gratuity. Some of the caterers include cake and alcohol for open bar also. So it really depends. Was their a budget you had in mind?

Bride2BeN2013

sorry I had mentioned 60-100 previously so it would be about 80-100 with tax and gratuity included.