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Easton's Beach Rotunda

Janmichele5Janmichele5
10 Comments
in Rhode Island

Hello Fellow Knotties!

I am in the beginning stages of planning our wedding and I am a bit overwhelmed!  I keep coming back to the Easton Beach Rotunda as our top location.  I am a beach lover and love the fact that you can have the ceremony on the beach and the venue overlooks the water (plus AC in the summer). 


I was hoping to get some feedback from brides who have gotten married here or who are planning it.


I know with the $4000 site fee (is there any negotiation here?) you receive the tables and chairs with that fee.  Do linen’s come with this price as well?  And it also comes with an hour at the carousel which I really could go without if I had to!


I see in a lot of pictures, they have great lighting.  Is this included or did you hire lighting people? 


My biggest fear is that the price is decent for the rental but do you find that you have alot of "ADD-ON's" because its such a “blank canvas” 


How is the coordinator there to work with?


And if you could share your caterer’s and prices (feel free to PM me if you dont want to post publiclly!).  Just to get an idea of how much.  My goal is to keep the venue/food/booze under $15k if possible.   I would love a budget breakdown for any Easton Beach Rotunda Brides!


 Thanks for your help!!!

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Re: Easton's Beach Rotunda

  • LOMLBOATLOMLBOAT
    100 Comments
    The moderator of this board had her reception there and I believe she has a blog that she broke down how much she spent on things, but I know a lot of other brides past & present have info on this location.
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  • RoyalOrientRoyalOrient member
    Fifth Anniversary 1000 Comments Combo Breaker
    Hi! Welcome to the board! If you have time please don't forget to introduce yourself in the Knottie Introductions thread stickied at the top of the forum. Thanks! 

    I was married at Easton Beach Rotunda last May! The hubby and I also love the beach too! We had our ceremony right on the sandy shores, which was really nice because the weather was also beautiful. The rotunda is definitely a unique venue. We hosted our cocktail hour on the wraparound deck overlooking the ocean. Our guests enjoyed refreshing drinks and yummy food. They also loved the carousel - it made for a great photo opportunity and it was also a big hit with the kids and teens at our wedding. 

    As for your questions about the rotunda. 
    - There are discounts for the off season and to Newport, Middletown and Portsmouth residents. However, I don't believe the fees are negotiable as the Rotunda is owned by the city of Newport. I have politely inquired.
    -The rotunda does include tables and chairs but no linens. It is up to you or your caterer to provide linens and other rentals like flatware ect. Also, the rotunda staff does not set up or break down the tables and chair, that is the responsibility of the caterer too. 
    - Uplighting is popular but is not included in the rental fee. The rotunda does have recess lighting which simply allows you to adjust the lighting brightness. I used luminaries and candle holders as an alternative to the uplights.
    - There is a damage deposit that is returned to you after the wedding. I believe the fee is $200 or $250, I am not sure for 2012-2013
    - You also have to purchase wedding insurance. I purchased it via websafe for $175 but that included a host liquor liability insurance if you choose to provide your own alcohol. We had an open bar so we needed it.
    - There is a coordinator and two staff members. They help direct and assist vendors. However, I highly recommend hiring a DOC because the venue coordinator deals exclusively with the venue affairs. 
    - The rotunda does not allow any decor on the walls. I am not sure if they allow hanging lanterns but you can inquire with them. Uplighting is definitely the best option to add color to the rotunda. I also suggest using bright linens and bright flowers to bring color and warmth to the room. I like the blank canvas because it allowed us to create our own wedding look. 

    As for catering, I used both Jacky's Galaxie in Bristol and B&M Clambake and Catering Company. Jacky's specialize in authentic Southeast Asian cuisine, they also offer Western menus. We had a 7 course family style dinner for our guests - we had close to 200 guests and didn't want the long lines of a buffet. It was less expensive than a plated meal but cost more than a buffet. 

    B&M Catering Company offers delicious dishes on a dime! After another knottie used them for her wedding, I went in for tasting and loved what they had to offer. They caterer the food our cocktail hour. They have more info on their website in terms of pricing including a drop off menu. You can save money and have your guests self serve (buffet cocktail) with displays of food available. I had our DOC set up an area for cocktail hour. 

    I spent in total for close to 200 guests on the food for cocktail and the reception was around $7060. We had a lot of seafood for the Asian dishes and a lot of comfort food classics for cocktail hour, it was the perfect East Meets West for us.

    We bought our own linens since it was cheaper than renting from CV Linens and Smarty Had a Party. We rented our flatware, china and ect from Rentals Unlimited. Since our wedding was a beach wedding, we didn't think we needed the extra formality of gold chargers (although we had them for our head table) and knocked off any unnecessary rentals to save money.  

    I definitely think it is possible for a 15k wedding but that depends also on a few factors like how many guests you are expecting and how much you intend to spend on other big ticket items like your wedding dress, photography, music ect. 

    I have a budget breakdown below plus another link on ways to save for the big day. G.L and let me know if you have any questions.






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