Flip flopping-Savannah or Atlanta

melsey62 · July 2010

I need to get some hardcore opinions of having my wedding either in Savannah or Atlanta. Most of my guests will be from out of town. While the reception prices in Savannah seem less expensive, it's the hotel rates that are shocking me.

One hotel we looked at in Atlanta was offering a room rate of $99.00 even though they want 98.00 pp for duet entree. My fiance also wants to do a nite out for everyone after the reception (not sure why) and of course there are more night spots in Atlanta than Savannah.

I would love to hear from any brides who went through this decision making process.

Let me know how you made your choice and I also would love to hear what hotels worked with you on your accomodations.

I should add we are planning to have our wedding and reception at a hotel venue.

Thanks!!!

Melanie (the flip flop bride)

kristi11876 · July 2010

Hi Melanie,

I am from Charlotte, and am getting married next June. My wedding is at Palmetto Bluff, but we also had a hard time deciding whether we wanted our out of town guests to pay Savannah hotel prices (or stay closer to the wedding locale for $89 a night). Where are your guests coming from, and have many already been to Savannah? If not, I suspect most won't mind paying the hotel premiums because they really are getting a vacation. In addition to your wedding, they will have access to Savannah. That is what answered the question for me. Savannah is such an amazing city, especially for a wedding weekend. But, if many of your guests have already been to Savannah, you may want to go with Atlanta.

It sounds like you want more of a big hotel feel, but I highly recommend you contact The Marshall House /45 Bistro. The Marshall House is a boutique property on Broughton St. that has 65 rooms...depending on your size needs, they will let you block anywhere from 5 rooms to the entire hotel. I have a block there for my wedding in June 2011, and the rates are 169 per night, which includes breakfast. The restaurant in the hotel, 45 Bistro, is very popular for weddings...they have function space for over 100, delicious food and VERY reasonable prices...they can also do the ceremony for you in a lovely indoor courtyard type space. The entire property, including the reception space is so pretty...very Savannah looking. I was originally contracted to have my reception there, but I changed venues based on my mothers wishes. But if you haven't looked into it, you should. Based on your posts, it sounds like it may meet all of your needs.

Good luck!

melsey62 · July 2010

Thank you so much Kristi!!! I don't remember seeing the Marshall house or perhaps we did on one of the tours. You are correct. None of my relatives have been to Savannah so it would be their first time. I am hoping my Mom will love it since she was a school teacher and was a history major. I was trying to plan things around Labor Day weekend in 2011 to give everyone time to travel and feel rushed.

Thanks again for the insight! Quite valuable and I will most definitely check out the Marshall house.

kristi11876 · July 2010

One other thought; I assume you checked out The Mansion at Forsyth Park...friends of mine planned a wedding there for this past Mermorial Day weekend, and had the wedding/reception on Sunday night. This worked well with the Monday holiday, and the rates at the Mansion on Sunday were significantly cheaper. They couldn't have afforded it on a Saturday, but could on a Sunday. Given that your considering Labor Day weekend, I thought I would mention this. One other thing which I'm sure you have considered...flights into Savannah Labor day weekend will be pretty expensive....just throwing that out.

iluvmytxrgr · July 2010

Atlanta is a big city. There will always be more night life. For the size of the city of Savannah, we have a great night life. There are some great places here.
As far as Labor Day goes, that is the last long weekend of "summer." Savannah is a huge tourist town. Hotel rates are going to be higher. I would look into another weekend unless you just really need to do it that weekend. I just checked the rates compared to Labor Day and it looks like there is a min. $20 savings per night if you don't do it on Labor Day weekend.

melsey62 · July 2010

I thought Labor Day might be a better weekend for some of my guests who will be coming from out of town. I will have some from California and quite a few from Chicago where the bulk of my family and my fiance's family reside. We will have others coming from Tennesee. I just wanted to make it easier for people not to have to rush back home so quickly after the wedding. I will do some research.

Thanks for the suggestions and keep them coming!

Melanie

iluvmytxrgr · July 2010

I can understand that.
There are a ton of hotels down town and even more being built. I would call them to see if they can give you any type of deal for booking a certain number of rooms. Also, look at the Comfort Suites, Mulberry Inn, The Hampton Inn, The Courtyard, and the Holiday Inn Express. I know everyone wants really nice hotels for their families to stay in. Most of these are brand new or newly renovated.

kristi11876 · July 2010

The Holiday Inn Express and Hampton Inn on Bay Street are sister properties, and managed by the same folks. I called for information at 6 pm on a Tuesday, and had a full proposal emailed back to me by 10 am the next day. I opted for a block at the Hampton Inn, but the Holiday Inn Express looked great too. For a block of 10 rooms, I was given a rate of 169 pn, and that is for a weekend in June 2011. One other great thing about these hotels is the extend the rate for 3 days prior and 3 days after your room block, just in case your guests extend their stay. Overall, working with them has been great...the service has been exceptional.

I remember in your original posts you said you were mostly interested in the larger hotel/ballroom thing...but I think the best thing about wedding planning in Savannah is all of the unique options that differ from the norm. I suspect you want your guests to be able to easily access the reception, but Savannah is such an easy city to walk around, or travel by trolley. You could easily have them stay in a hotel a few blocks from your function space and not inconvienence them one bit.

Also, have you checked out AVIA? Its one of the newest properties in Savannah; beautiful hotel (ranked #1 in Savannah on Trip Advisor) and they have function space large enough for a reception. The hotel has a more modern, contemporary feel, but its in a great location...you may want to check it out. I considered a room block there, but if you are not hosting an event with them, they have pretty strict attrition and cancellation clauses in the room block contract. I ultimately went with Hampton Inn (the one on Bay St), but the service I received from AVIA was also exceptional.

And now that I know most of your guests are coming from Chicago, I do think Savannah is your better choice overall. I've spent lots of time in both Chicago and Atlanta, and they are similar in many ways (although Chicago is by far the better city)...I think those guests would really appreciate the charm and uniqueness of Savannah.

laurenmk26 · July 2010

I am getting married in Savannah in October. Almost all of our guests will be from out of town. We are not getting married downtown, so we chose to book a block of rooms at the Springhill Suites over at the exit off of 95 that has about a billion hotels. Before we went with Springhill we were going to do the Wyngate, but the rooms were just nicer at Springhill.

melsey62 · July 2010

Hi Krisiti,

We are becoming fast friends here! Yes I did check out Avia too for the ceremony and reception. Here is the main problem I have. I am an older bride and so is my fiance. Our parents are up there in age and walking would be treacherous for them even if there were not on River Street. We were trying to keep everything centrailized so if anyone wanted to go back to their room to rest, it would not be a big deal. However if we end up at the Marriott or Hyatt, I may see if the other hotels can offer a lower rate. Parents can stay at our hotel and I will give my guest the option of staying at our hotel too or a lower priced hotel.

mrsball70 · July 2010

Hello, I'm getting married in savannah in april. I have no family from there and my fiance was very hesitant about it saying that no one would want to go there. However, it's very beautiful, the nature is it's own backgroud for pictures, on river street there are a lot of bars and you can also walk around with TO GO CUPS. Like vegas you can walk around with a drink. There's tons to do and it's just all in all charming. We went ahead and booked everything and we've just started telling all of our friends and everyone is actually super excited! Yes hotel rooms are a bit pricey but I think people will feel it's worth it. Besides they'll be saving a lot on airfare. Atlana is and awsome city but Savannah is truely unique. Before this site came out I had to do all of the vendor shopping on my own. If you're interested in any of the vendors chosen let me know....also my fiance and I went down there to check it out and make sure we loved it and he ended up loving it just as much as I...Good Luck

asegal · September 2010

I was also fli flopping between savannah and atlanta. However, I love savannah and it was more affordable for what I was looking for. Plus, then the wedding turns into a vacation in savannah for many guests.

melsey62 · September 2010

Hello there!

Thanks for replying. I am still torn. Love both cities but want this wedding to be fun for all. Would you mind sharing details of where you are having your wedding in Savannah? I was curious what vendors had you approached in Atlanta. I am overly worried about convenience for my guests. 100% of my guests will need rooms and I know ATL is a little easier to travel too by car or plane. Oh the dliemma. Honestly I am leaning more towards Sav.

If you don't mind, would you also share who will be entertaining at your reception? Sorry to ask so many questions but I want to finalize soon for a fall 2011 or summer 2011 wedding.

Thanks,
Melanie

asegal · October 2010

Sorry for my delay in responding!! Right now I am torn between Avia and Vics for the reception in Savannah. Currently I am waiting on Temple Mckive Israel to finalize there Rabbi contract to determine which site I am going with. Avia has a space for a ceremony if I dont like the new Rabbi. But I LOVE the view from Vics!
Any suggestions?

My biggest issue is money! In atlanta, I looked at the major downtown hotels, Marriot Marquis, Westin, Hyatt, Ritz as well as the Fox theatre, georgian terrace, plantations, Strand theatre, and many musuems. I loved the Fox there and if you use their prefered vendors it is affordable but the closest hotels are EXPENSIVE and would require my guest to rent cars!

One of the big deciding factors for me was how easy and cheap it was to rent a trolley, $300 for 3 hours (which covers transportation to venue from guests hotels and then to the reception site) and how walkable Savannah is. While Atlanta is walkable, it gets crazy busy at night which may be a little to much

I did a ton of research, my short list for Savannah was Mansion, Hilton, Sheraton, Hyatt, Marriott, Westin, Savannah Stantion, and Bryson Hall.

I loved the Westin! The people were so nice and the space is great especially if you are concerned with older family members. However, the price was too steep!

I haven't picked entertainment yet as I am in a holding pattern untill the new Rabbi is contracted and I can met him! What did you decide?

dancergirl104 · October 2010

Look at the Olde Pink House in Savannah. It is a restaurant with a ballroom for 150 on the second level. It is GORGEOUS! Bianca is the wedding planner and she is amazing. They do not have a website, but you can find pictures through Google and blogs...

Their prices are very reasonable, the food quality is better than what you will find at a hotel, and the service and staff cannot be matched.

christinemike2011 · November 2010

Hi Melanie,

I haven't been on this board much but I am 6 months & 1 week and now I am in full blown wedding mode....lol We live in Atlanta & my fiance and I just adore Savannah. We are older as well and have hardly anyone in Atlanta and EVERYONE is pretty much travelling east coast, west coast, Central America, Canada you name it. Even though the hotel cost is more in Savannah your guest will have such an experience in this great town and enjoy the vacation of it.

Have you checked out the Historic DoubleTree? I highly recommend giving Valerie Carr - [email protected] - (recently married herself) a call she is the event coordinator over there. Tell her Christine & Mike referred you. They also own the Hilton Garden Inn & Spring Hill Property next door. She gave us GREAT advise since she just planned her own wedding. Most our guest are staying there and she really worked out some good rates. Even as promotions changed she contacted us. The rate we are getting for our guest is almost $100 less then what is listed on line if you look on your own. We also got breakfast discounted parking, etc. We didn't look into to there banquet room but I am sure they are very nice. Worth looking into. Oh and she so takes care of us when we come into town now to do Wedding stuff...lol

http://doubletree1.hilton.com/en_US/dt/hotel/SAVHTDT-Doubletree-Hotel-Savannah-Historic-District-Georgia/index.do?brand_id=HH&brand_directory=/en/hhonors/&xch=756769075,HX52MLIY4URMACSGBIY222Q

We are getting Married at the Davenport House Gardens then having our Wedding Reception at the Lady & Sons (very inexpensive) this will give our guest the whole experience of Southern Savannah. The nice thing is the DoubleTree is right in front of the Lady & Sons. Also a few blocks down the road is Six Pence a great Irish Pub and across the street is the dueling piano bar Savannah Smiles. So even though it's not Atlanta night life there is plenty to do after the wedding.

Some of our guest thought the rate of rooms were high so we have recommended some other places in the area for them as well. I just went to a hotel in Sedona, AZ and for a Best Western that was run down is the same price as this very Historic looking Hotel.

Just my experiences & thoughts...Good Luck!

Christine

christinemike2011 · November 2010

BTW here is our Wedding site if you want to check it out as it really has helped our guest plan for Savannah.....Christine

http://weddings.theknot.com/pwp/pwp2/view/MemberPage.aspx?coupleid=5753007269125079&pid=7925539

melsey62 · November 2010

Thank you!!!!

Flip flopping-Savannah or Atlanta

Re: Flip flopping-Savannah or Atlanta

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