NSBR: how would you feel about a "camp wedding"?

[color of my heart]

because i trust y'all and your opinions. and most of you are married with families.

in my search this morning for "alternative wedding venues" (our preliminary number from our venue of choice was bigger than expected), i came across this: http://yoursummercampwedding.com/ it looks really nice, from the photos. and he seems all for it, i could be persaded, as long as i could have my pretty wedding. which it seems like i could. the boy was excited. his exact response, via text, was "YES. OMG YES. CALL THEM NOW!" plus, it's on a lake. and i love that. even if it's not MY lake. of course, i have no idea how much it would cost. but i'm thinking that it would be reasonable, purely because people wouldn't need hotels. and all of that. plus, it's a whole weekend.. we'd have to change our date, to make sure it was warm enough. but yeah. anyway.

i don't know how our guests would react if we told them "oh hey, our wedding spans a whole weekend and we're having it at a summer camp on a lake..."

how would you react? would you think "oh how fun!" or would you be turned off?

[Darcy Baldwin]

I think it'd be a blast - especially since it's a camp resort venue as opposed to a tent venue where folks might be really uncomfortable.

But remember - this is YOUR wedding and YOUR union. While wanting to make sure people are happy, but sure you're doing what YOU want

[color of my heart]

well. i want everyone to be happy. i have like, three requirements for my wedding:
1) good food.
2) good photos.
3) everyone there and having fun.
so. i think that if everyone liked the idea? it'd be awesome. cause i think people would have fun. there aren't tons of kids coming, but the adults would have fun. i think. i hope.

[Tracyfish]

That looks so fun!!! I would guess that anyone that wouldn't love it probably won't be much fun at your wedding anyway. LOL

[origami]

Looks WAY more fun than most weddings that I've attended!

[kscwgirl]

um that looks awesome.

[YepBrook]

Interesting!!! So, I did some searching and found a few wedding blogs mentioning their wedding at Camp Cody: http://flammiaandandrews.ourwedding....03244/22191529 & http://www.wix.com/chrisandvanessa/finally#!details

Looks like it costs guests about $40 per person, per night and they have to bring their own linens and sleep in bunk beds. Now, for my extended family the whole camping thing would not go over well. They are not the outdoorsy type. I think it would be fun to attend a friend's wedding and not have to spend a fortune to join in the celebration. But I can't imagine having grandma sleep in a cabin... although there are other hotels to stay nearby, it seems.

I think if your friends & family are the fun, camping, adventure, active types that this would be a dream place to celebrate a wedding!!!! How fun to have a bonfire and make s'mores with all the people you love around you? I say, if you and your fiancee are excited about it, go for it!

ETA: Just wanted to clarify that I can't imagine having MY grandma sleep in a cabin... but that's because I know her, and she is 80 and not a fan of "roughing it" at all. It would be a deal-breaker for me to not have my grandma in the same place (hotel/campsite/whatev) with us celebrating. If it's important for you to have high attendance I'd run the idea past some of the people you really want to be there... see what they say.

[mariewilcox]

My sister and her DH did this in the town where our camp is located. She didn't do it at OUR camp just because of the number of people, insurance reasons, etc. but it was on the other side of our lake at a resort that does this type of thing.

Everyone had a BLAST! It really was so much fun. I actually performed the ceremony for them (none of us are religious in the least and here in Maine a notary public can perform marriages). They got married down by the water and it was beautiful. Good food, good fun, good times

[*Celeste*]

i was in ossipee a couple weekends ago at white lake - it is so pretty there! that looks like fun!

[taracotta7]

This sounds like so much fun! I think it would be an amazing event full of great memories. I would go in a heart beat for a family member.

[tuneskids]

a young lady who used to babysit for us (her parents have been friends of my husband for about 15 or so years), she got married two summers ago at a lakeside resort/campground. It was great! We went up with the IL's truck & camper (while the kids stayed behind with the grandparents). There were cabins to rent, or you could set up camp (trailer or tent).
The bride & groom were always up at the lake camping with their families, it's where they got engaged, so to them, it just made sense. We were there for a week leading up to the wedding, so much fun was had by all - kayaking, canoeing, water-skiing, hiking, and just sitting around the campfires, drinking & telling stories. We all had the BEST time!!!

[haydensmommy217]

that looks awesome!!!

[marlathrall]

I think it would be totally awesome. And you'd have some great stories and memories from your wedding. Love the idea!

[Sherri Tierney]

I think it would be awesome! Is there a possibility that some people can just attend the wedding and not stay at camp for the weekend if they are opposed to the camping part of it? It seems to me like it would be a fabulous way to celebrate a marriage! I'd love to do something like that when we renew our vows.

[rach3975]

I think it definitely depends on the crowd you want to invite. My family includes a lot of older relatives, and something like that sounds like too much walking (especially on uneven surfaces), too many activities they couldn't participate in, etc. Assuming that the cabins aren't heated or air conditioned, that could also be a problem for older relatives depending on the time of year.

But if you have a younger or more active crowd, sure! I think it would be a lot of fun.

Also, how far is it from where you live? Because if people have to travel, there will definitely be some who don't come who would if it was a local wedding. I'd think your closest friends and family will probably come anyway.

[Nettio]

Well I think it sounds awesome to me but it definitely would depend on your crowd. I have a hard time imagining my 94 year-old grandma or in-laws staying in a bunk, ya know? But I do love the idea of having downtime to hang out with everyone. That was something I wish I would have had more time at at my own wedding - it went so fast!

[catgoddess]

Originally Posted by Nettio

Well I think it sounds awesome to me but it definitely would depend on your crowd. I have a hard time imagining my 94 year-old grandma or in-laws staying in a bunk, ya know? But I do love the idea of having downtime to hang out with everyone. That was something I wish I would have had more time at at my own wedding - it went so fast!

This! I think it sounds like fun for a close friend or family member, but I don't think we would attend if it were for more distant family or friends or work colleagues. Mostly because I usually only camp at a Holiday Inn. I would do it for my sister, but not for my co-worker's daughter.

[MamaBee]

I, too, think it sounds like a blast... however, it would have never gone over with my family... haha... unless you were paying for their stay - then it's just principle that they take the free room.

[heathergw]

Mark's 2nd cousin did something like this last year. We have a big family reunion every year so the resort owner (cabins) set it up to "reserve" an island on the lake for the wedding... it wasn't a big wedding and was only family... and a very very small island LOL... but it was fun and we all took pontoons to the island and then toured the lake afterwards and the wedding party had their own pontoon... it really was tons of fun, though my boys were sick so they couldn't come to the wedding part... but the reception they could come to which was a dinner at a nearby bar/grill and then cupcake and champagne reception at the resort beach afterwards and swimming in the lake... was soooo much fun!!! So... some grandparents would be totally fine with sleeping in a bunk but we're all used to it since we do it every year and some do it for 2 weeks instead of the one week that we go

[gracelikerain]

I think it looks beautiful and it's such a fun idea. I'm not a camper, but I would do it for someone close to me. I love the idea of something different for your wedding that makes it memorable and unique!

[lovely1m]

I agree, I think only close friends and family would likely come then, but it sounds like fun.

[DawnMarch]

I think this looks awesome. Then again, I've always wanted to be one of those families who got together every summer at "the lake". Too bad I have neither a lake nor a cooperative family!

[Milmomma]

It looks pretty. Out door weddings can be very pretty. I have to say it wouldn't work with my family either though. Between his grandma(87) and his mom(knee replacements). My FIL has knee issues too. I think it looks great but realistically for older people it may not work out the best. Younger generations may like it? I would ask around before setting any deposits if you want others happy. If you don't care what others think or how many show up, do what you want! Its your wedding.

[xboxmom]

Honestly I think it would really fun and unique and make for some amazing photos and memories. My husband and I ended up just getting married at the court house the first time around and that's why this year we did the whole wedding renewal in Hawaii. The first time around no one would listen to me and didnt want me to have the wedding where I wanted it and my Mom fought me tooth and nail so I finally said ENOUGH and just went to the court house and didn't have a wedding at all. This is your wedding. You need to have it where you want. People will be upset or not like the idea and yada yada but at the end of the day if you love it and your husband to be loves it that is all that really matters. If Grandma doesn't want to sleep in a bunk bed maybe you can bring her an Aerobed just for her. Anyway that is my two cents. Be happy and cherish the day and make your memories.