Asilomar Conference Grounds Reviews
Asilomar Conference Grounds
Pacific Grove, CAReviews
4.4 out of 5 rating
4.4 out of 5 rating
25 Reviews
87% recommend it
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Featured
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Lauren Sent on 05/07/2020So Glad We Found Asilomar
We happened upon this venue one day and fell in love with its historical charm and beautiful natural surroundings. Grace Chapel was perfect for a small indoor wedding where my dad could still walk me down an aisle, and on top of that it was walking distance from the Seascape Room reception area.
The site coordinator Marisa was my hero. Her patience with people far surpassed mine, and I'd even call it superhuman. Throughout the whole wedding planning process, I always felt like we were in good hands. Even when I had no idea what I was doing (which was most of the time), as soon as our check-in calls were done I'd feel like I was okay without hiring a planner and could probably pull this wedding thing off.
Having a rehearsal the day before was absolutely essential. On the day of our wedding Marisa helped everything run rather smoothly. The ceremony timing and music went pretty much according to plan, plus the Chapel's built-in sound system worked perfectly. It was truly a beautiful place to have a ceremony and it felt so right for us. Many of our guests later expressed how beautiful the architecture was. When we all meandered to Seascape, we also utilized the jitney service for our older guests with mobility difficulties. We were only able to use the Seascape deck for cocktail hour because the patio had been reserved, but it worked out fine with the number and age range of guests we had.
The reception area had been set up as planned, with ample room for guests, buffet and dessert tables, and dancing. It was absolutely gorgeous.
The entire staff was just lovely, friendly, and so helpful. I heard that the food was very good, too. (Besides that incredible mushroom appetizer and a bit of salad, husband and I didn't get to sample much of dinner. Oops.)
Accommodations for us were cozy and we loved the thoughtful little care package. The view of the ocean and the dunes outside our window the next morning was amazing, and it was so peaceful.
Some minor cons: Guests should not expect luxury hotel rooms. They are definitely historic (To Asilomar I would recommend weather stripping on the doors-it got windy!) but they're clean and have their own charm.
Overall we highly recommend Asilomar Conference Grounds.
We are looking forward to coming back on our anniversary and hopefully before then, too. We are so grateful for all of the help and hard work that went into such an unforgettable experience. -
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Megan Sent on 10/28/2019
Best weekend of our lives, thanks to Asilomar!
We feel beyond lucky that we chose Asilomar for our wedding venue!!!
Atmosphere - beachy, woodsy, casual, but also elegant. I had a hard time describing the uniqueness of Asilomar conference grounds to guests before they arrived, but everyone LOVED the venue and couldn't stop talking about how beautiful it was.
Staff - Literally all Asilomar staff members I interacted with over the course of the wedding were fantastic. You get a site coordinator (no extra cost) to help you through the whole planning process, during the lead-up, and through the day-of events. I can't emphasize how helpful this was in making everything go smoothly and reducing my stress, both in planning beforehand and during the wedding itself.
Value - of all the wedding venues we considered, Asilomar was BY FAR the best value. Total cost was likely more than if you did a simple DIY venue, but also probably at least ~$10,000 cheaper than other beach resorts. You get a stunning setting, site coordinator, excellent food, and guest lodging at the venue. Since Asilomar does weddings regularly, they know what works and what doesn't. They will do everything they can to make planning easy and the wedding go smoothly!
I cannot recommend Asilomar enough!!! -
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Alycia Sent on 04/14/2019A Picture Perfect Venue
The minute my husband and I saw Asilomar, we knew we had to have it for our wedding venue! We loved the rustic look of the polished wood, fireplaces, and all the natural light let in by the many windows in the Chapel and reception hall. Natascha was a big help at walking us through everything and was not only a great venue coordinator, but also a day-of coordinator. We had a morning wedding and the brunch menu designed by chef Greg Lepesh was delicious! We got so many compliments on the food and the venue in general.
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Christine Sent on 10/30/2018Best Day Ever.
When my then fiancé (now husband) and I were in our early stage of wedding planning, after seeing couple venues, we knew Asilomar was THE venue because of the convenience of having both ceremony and reception sites in one vicinity. We love the ocean and nature so Asilomar was the perfect location for our special day. We had our ceremony at the Asilomar State Beach and reception at Seascape Room. We were very lucky & privileged to have Natascha VonThiele as our event coordinator. I can’t tell you how thankful we are for her. She was very responsive to any form of communication from start to finish. She is reliable, organized and on top of things. Our wedding day ran so smoothly all thanks to her. I give Natascha so much credit for how our wedding day turned out. My husband and I couldn’t be happier having Natascha as our coordinator. She is truly a gem. -
User2108324 Sent on 04/25/2015It was a beautiful event and a beautiful day. My memories will last forever. Thank you -
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Lia D. Sent on 01/29/2020Best Wedding Venue in PG!
Asilomar Conference Grounds was the perfect venue for our wedding! A rustic setting surrounded by the ocean and forest. We got married onsite in the cypress meadow, had our cocktail hour a few steps away and then dinner and dancing in the beautiful Seascape room. The coordinator Marissa is a joy to work with and truly loves what she does! She was responsive to my emails and was always able to get an answer to our many questions. Asilomar makes wedding planning easy with food and drinks included, as well as tables, linens, plates, glasses and ceremony seating. I was nervous about having enough room for dancing with our 120 guests, but the staff easily moved two tables and we had plenty of space! We finished the weekend with our guests by having post-wedding breakfast onsite at Crocker Hall! Only negative was that a few guests had poor experiences with their rooms on the grounds...As two kids who grew up in Pacific Grove we were so happy to get married at Asilomar! Definitely the best venue in Pacific Grove. -
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Monica Sent on 08/02/2018Natascha was very helpful and we had an amazing wedding! Would definitely recommend getting married here. Pictures turned out great and the weather was gorgeous for an early July wedding. It was also within our budget and I liked that the entire wedding was at the same location.
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User2423696 Sent on 11/12/2015Perfect Beach Wedding Location! Event Quality Lacking.
This place is stunning!! We chose Asilomar to host our wedding ceremony on the State Beach just steps off of their property. The beach is gorgeous and the conference grounds are beautiful. The package with Asilomar included permit for the beach, set up of chairs and arch and use of their sound system. All in all it is a great value.
While we were planning our event Asilomar went through 3 event managers. I think that this led to our less than exceptional service. We were disappointed that the event staff was unwilling to hold any of our ceremony items and would not help in any set up of any items other than chairs and arch. We brought our own table to place out water and parasols for our guests.
Overall we really love this place and hate to have to put negative marks against them as we do see the value in their offering. We set up our own extra items and our ceremony was all that we had dreamed of. -
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Amber Sent on 08/01/2019Disappointed
I am a bit disappointed in my experience here. I was very lead on during my initial apt on what they can do for me the day of my wedding. But did not realize until it was too late.
Here is a list of mistakes made:
-Table chart and arrangements. I sent a very detailed chart. But people were missing chairs at their table. And they were not in the right spot. I wanted my family to sit together and they were on opposite sides of room.
-they were suppose to save the top of my cake. But they didn’t so now my husband and I can’t do the traditional eating the cake a year later for good luck.
There was more things that upset me. But I won’t go on more.
My day of coordinator was very sweet and professional and I did enjoy working with her. -
User2095658 Sent on 04/13/2015The venue itself is GORGEOUS. The conference centre is very convenient to have a beach wedding. There is ample parking and your guests can simply take a 3 minute stroll to your beach wedding ceremony and return for the reception. Everything about the day itself was fabulous. Food, facilities, sound, etc.
HOWEVER, the planning stage was really very difficult! 1) I dealt with three different event managers in succession while I was planning my wedding so was constantly having to re-explain to a new person what i wanted 2) I had a difficult time communicating with them, I would email with specific questions and either would not get a response, would get a response that was inappropriate, or one answering only some of my questions 3) They kept asking me questions about details I had explained multiple times and wrote in detail on the event planning forms they had me fill in.
Overall I had a clear and extremely simple plan of what I wanted for my wedding and the event managers were very difficult to work with and did not seem at all experienced. But the venue itself is lovely and I would recommend to people if you are prepared to deal with the hassle.
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