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Black Bear Country Club Reviews

amandaleigh2016amandaleigh2016 member
Third Anniversary First Comment
in New Jersey
Alright ladies, I am very interested in the Black Bear Country Club owned by crystal springs! It looks amazing and appears to be in my budget but I am hearing many different prices people have paid per person from 65 to 110! That's a big difference and I am trying to stay within 65-75 range! Please any information would be great appreciated!
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Re: Black Bear Country Club Reviews

  • silver0319silver0319 member
    Fourth Anniversary 500 Comments 100 Love Its First Answer
    I just PMed you back. 

     We had an amazing time at our wedding. Everything was perfect, the food was delicious, and Linda (the Maître'd) was great! Our guests all let us know great everything was, and so many people were surprised to know Black Bear even existed. It's truly a hidden gem. 

    Our wedding was the same weekend as the food and wine, the last weekend of ski season, and the first weekend of golf season. We had a bunch of OOT guests, and they loved the amenities available within Crystal Springs.

    It poured the day of our wedding, so most of our pictures ended up being inside. They came out lovely, but I would have loved to have taken pictures in the hotel lobby. This was an oversight on my part, but something to think about.
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  • Gordo2014Gordo2014 member
    100 Comments Second Anniversary 5 Love Its
    edited October 2014

    Our short list boiled down to Black Bear and Lafayette House. Though we lked Black Bear better, Lafayette House was more open to negotiating price and they hit our number.  Black Bear is a lovely place and it's nice to have the Crystal Springs tie-in, but with budget in mind, we're happy with our choice.

     

    BTW, our photographer featured images from Black Bear and they looked lovely, but as Silver noted, the great opportunities are outside so have a back-up plan in case of rain.

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  • amandaleigh2016amandaleigh2016 member
    Third Anniversary First Comment
    So Lafayette house was willing to work with your budget? That's always a plus! My top three locations are black bear lafayette house and perona farms. Theres always positive and negatives to these locations but in the end I need something that works with my budget and the rustic feel im going for! Im trying to only spend about 8-9,000 on the venue and doing A LOT of DIY projects not only just to save money but just because I love doing them and also adds homey touches to the wedding! Gordo if you don't mind me asking how much roughly are you spending on the lafayette house?
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  • Gordo2014Gordo2014 member
    100 Comments Second Anniversary 5 Love Its
    I think we came in down around $70/head, but that was for only a 3 hour reception plus cocktails, not 4.  Plus it's a Saturday afternoon instead of evening.  It's a second marriage for both of us so we cut some corners others might not want to.  But we found Stacey, one of the owners, to be excellent to work with.
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  • silver0319silver0319 member
    Fourth Anniversary 500 Comments 100 Love Its First Answer
    When we signed our contract, the bronze package at Black Bear started at $65/pp, regardless of day and time. We had 5-hour reception (including cocktail hour) on a Saturday night. It didn't include the cake, but the fee was relatively low for such a large cake from Palermos (we had the entire bottom tier leftover). We also ended up having a few last minute cancellations. They boxed up the meals for us, and we were able to pick up the food and cake the following day.
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  • Knottie93815920Knottie93815920 member
    Second Anniversary 10 Comments Name Dropper
    Hi @silver0319 I would love to know more info about your experience at Black Bear also! I've emailed them for info but think I should call and talk to someone. I'm afraid to go there and fall in love with it. What time of year was your wedding? Anyone in particular you recommend I ask for?

    Thanks so much!
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  • silver0319silver0319 member
    Fourth Anniversary 500 Comments 100 Love Its First Answer
    edited October 2014
    @Knottie93815920 We got married on March 29. It cold and rainy, there was still snow on the ground, but our wedding was perfect. emailed and actually had very little phone contact with the folks at Black Bear/Crystal Springs. We met with Julie, the catering/wedding sales manager. She was our point person throughout our whole planning process. 

     They do have a wedding coordinator, but Julie acted as ours (due staffing in their end). Linda, the maitre'd, was awesome. She made sure everything ran without a hitch the day of the wedding, and was great about accommodating our schedules and needs for dropping off and picking up decor. 
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