Branford House Mansion Reviews

I had the pleasure of hosting my wedding here in May of 2024. I was initially very hesitant to book this venue as I wanted a true "wedding venue", not a venue that is able to host weddings. However, my husband was totally in love with the setting and I'm so glad we booked our event here! From the start Bethany and her team were great to work with. Their hours seem to be a bit sporadic so if we had a question for their team, we found it was best to email. Responses were not immediate, it did often take a few days to hear back which was fine, it just meant we had to plan ahead with our questions!

While Branford House isn't a "wedding venue" specifically, they are able to offer many of the items needed to host a wedding, including tables and chairs, which made planning so much easier. Additionally, they do not require the use of a specific caterer though they do provide a list of vendors that have worked the venue before. Given that the venue was built as a home and subsequently has a more challenging floor plan to accommodate, I was grateful that we elected to work with a catering company that's familiar with how Branford House operates. However, they do require that if you are serving alcohol that you contract with UConn Catering for bar services.

My husband and I held both our ceremony and reception at Branford House with the ceremony outside and the reception inside. Because the venue is on the water I did need to account for humidity and wind when planning my hair/makeup as well as ceremony decor. Additionally, because Branford House is considered state property, renting the property does not include the sidewalks behind the mansion along the Sound-- meaning that depending on how things are staged, you could have strangers in the background of the photos. My husband and I did not have this experience but it was something that we took into account when booking the venue. Overall though, this was the perfect setting and perfect venue for our day.

Bethany helped us plan our wedding at the Branford House, and we cannot say enough about her or the venue. You can see for yourself how absolutely stunning the Branford House is – from the ocean view to the romantic wood décor, we felt like royalty getting married in such a place. Bethany is the manager, and she was wonderful to us. She cheerfully fielded multiple phone calls and emails about even the tiniest of details, sending us pictures of the beautiful mantlepieces and videos of measurements she took for our floral arrangement planning. She also went above and beyond in coordinating with our caterer the day of our wedding to help set up and take down our ceremony and reception. She helped us fit a relatively large winter wedding indoors without it feeling crowded at all, and we are so grateful for all the care she took with us and our day. I know it’s something she does every weekend, but she truly made us feel like the only wedding of the year and her priority, and it was wonderful to know we were in such caring hands.

My husband and I got married at the Branford House in April, and it could not have been a more perfect venue choice. The scenery is second to none, year round, hands down. It can truly be decorated to fit anyone’s style, and it creates such a special, unique space for each person’s day. The option to have all parts of the wedding inside or outside was a huge draw for us, and it was so nice to be able to utilize the beautiful indoor space and the peaceful outdoor space!

I don’t even know where to begin (in the best way) about the House Manager, Bethany. Bethany was absolutely AMAZING in helping us coordinate using the space for our day. Her knowledge of what works well in the indoor and outdoor spaces and just of weddings in general was invaluable to us. Bethany was patient, accommodating, and so willing to help with anything we needed. We knew immediately after meeting Bethany that we wouldn’t be able to find a better person to work with for our day — she is truly so kind and welcoming, and it made all the difference. Bethany is truly one of the kindest, most wonderful people I’ve ever met, and we will be eternally grateful to her for helping us make our day perfect!

(Photos done by Molly Mia Photography & Film and SMS Photo).

Honestly this location was amazing I’d suggest it to all friends an family

The Branford House Mansion was a dream come true. From working w/ the SUPER nice manager (Bethany) to the gorgeous mansion on the Long Island Sound, we couldn't have asked for a better venue for our wedding.

My husband and I got married at Branford House in April of 2022. The venue is absolutely beautiful - three stone fireplaces (one for each room!), stunning wood-paneled walls, and an incredible stone portico with a great ocean view. Those features are the reasons why I was eager to book the venue, and they really shined on our wedding day. However, the Branford House is incredibly difficult to work with, and the complaints I have are not unique to me; I've seen other brides complain of Branford House's inflexibility, and it's something that I would encourage any bride to seriously consider before booking. Branford House forces you to book a bar through UConn Catering. The bar seemed pretty overpriced (their "Premium" tier featured Tito's vodka instead of Grey Goose for example). When it came to the wedding day, the staff was oddly strict about how drinks were served. There were multiple points in the evening when the bar refused to serve our guests; they told guests that they wouldn't serve drinks while speeches were being made, but the very reason our guests were at the bar were to acquire drinks to participate in toasts. The Branford House manager also scolded my mother-in-law and wedding party for bringing drinks to the bridal suite. Beyond the bar, Branford House was inflexible when it came to scheduling our rehearsal time. I was told that they would not allow me to book any rehearsal time at the venue until 14 days before the wedding. That window of time was too close for comfort, and we ended up scheduling our rehearsal at a separate venue to make everything work logistically. In the weeks leading up to the wedding, the Branford House manager told us that she would be present for the wedding to help answer questions as vendors were setting up. However, when we arrived at the venue, the manager introduced us to a new staff member who - while very kind - did not know where certain things were in the building when our vendors did have questions. All of that being said, Branford House was incredibly affordable and saved us a ton of money when it came to our wedding budget. But at the end of the day, I would have booked a different venue for a higher price if it meant getting more responsive and flexible service.

The most amazing wedding venue! Bethany & Bailey were fabulous to work with! I am so glad we picked the Branford House for our Fall wedding in CT. The house, the lawn, the water view, the wrap around patio - everything at the Branford House is picturesque. We were able to do our ceremony on the lawn, cocktail hour on the patio, and dinner and dancing inside the Branford House. It flowed perfectly and the venue was the perfect size for our 135 person wedding. The ability to work with any vendor (beverage must be done through Uconn) and 10 hour venue rental timeframe are two of the many factors we loved. This gave us plenty of time for our first look, ceremony, cocktail hour, dinner and dancing all at the Branford House. Would highly recommend this venue!

The Branford House is a stunning and beautiful venue at a great price, especially if you compare with similar venues. I do think they need to add a mirror into the bridal suite - I had no idea what I looked like all day once ready.
Unfortunately if you book this venue you can only choose Uconn catering for alcohol services. The lack of options is some thing we weren’t too worried about, what I didn’t appreciate after having a relationship with this venue for 2 1/2 years, was the liquor service’s assistant manager’s treatment of my family which was completely uncalled for on the day of our wedding.

With my husband and I being the only two signing and reading a contract with UConn, this staff member felt the need to be condescending and snotty to multiple people in my family. Meer minutes before alcohol services were supposed to open, my groom kindly asked for a drink and she replied that the contract says 5:30. Any normal human would not have been so petty over literal minutes, and even so he said OK and walked away, upset, on his wedding day. The same staff member came into the bridal suite, looked at glasses in everyone’s hands which were provided by our caterer and gave my brother-in-law the same attitude and told him that his tea better have tea in it - which it  did.. completely out of hand and rude. As someone who has worked in both food and customer service, I would -never- speak to a customer this way, let alone anyone at all. I just gave nine grand to these people who for some reason felt their bad day needed to upset a newly married couple and their family. We’re nice people. I’m disappointed.

This same staff member once, confronted, justified her attitude that it was in the contract, as if my family read it or knew anything otherwise - not only that, but they weren’t even in the wrong to begin with. Completely unprofessional with this employee and embarrassing on my behalf.

As if that wasn’t enough, I gave a very detailed floor plan to all vendors and signed on for three bars, two of which were there. We were missing an entire bar by the dance floor. I didn’t want people leaving the dance floor for drinks, thankfully our DJ was amazing and made that happen. We had added a bourbon bar to fit our theme as a fun addition, it was mixed with our regular bar which was not what we had asked for either.

Unfortunately, I had already handed gratuity money to my planner and had have a nice tip before all of this, expecting wonderful services and happy guests. I will add that our guests never had to wait for drinks which was of course ideal.

Bethany L. at this venue was very kind and helpful. If you put signs up at this property, prepare for the wind! All of our beautiful acrylic signs fell over and broke before the ceremony even started. IT forgot to keep the building open for my planner the night before which may have prevented some hiccups, but overall the rest of the people and experience at this venue was a happy one. Thank you for your help over the past couple of years.. our wedding was beautiful and we’re still happy we married here regardless of the problems.

I can’t say enough good things about the Branford House. I went to a wedding there years ago and it absolutely blew my mind. When we got engaged, I knew we needed to get married there! The building itself is gorgeous, and the views are breathtaking! We lucked out with the best weather and were able to have our ceremony outside on the lawn. Katherine was great to work with from start to finish. Our guests were completely wowed. I can’t wait to see our professional pictures! If you’re having your reception inside, there are some challenges as it’s separated into three rooms and is unlike many traditional venues. Hire good vendors (especially a day-of coordinator!) who know the space and you won’t have any issues. We couldn’t have asked for a more perfect day!!

The Branford House was the perfect wedding venue for us. Katherine was very easy to work with, and we loved that we could work with any vendors we wanted. You can't beat the beautiful stately exterior, stunning dark woodwork inside, and those ocean views - all of our guests loved it and it had the classic romantic ambience that we were looking for.

The Branford House was absolutely beautiful and we were able to get ready on site, making it a very smooth day. We had so many comments on how stunning the place was and how representative it was of the beauty that is the New England Shoreline. If you want to feel like royalty, this place will do just that.

The Branford House is VERY beautiful and has an amazing location. If you get a good day as far as weather, which we did, it makes for the most gorgeous and relaxing wedding experience you can imagine. Unfortunately everything else about this venue is a problem. Staff were unresponsive and unhelpful. There is very little flexibility or understanding on any front. They have a requirement that you hire UConn Catering for any alcohol, and their service is very overpriced and lacking in selection. Again, it's very picturesque but I don't think I'd recommend it to a friend.

Thank you to The Branford House for the beautiful venue for our dream wedding. The only slight complaint was the lack of mirrors with which to get dressed in the private room.

Branford House was the venue of my dreams! You get the Newport look and feel without the insane price. The inside is just as beautiful as the outside and all our guests were so impressed with the location which is right on long island sound. The property around the house was just perfect for our outdoor ceremony and all of our our pictures. In my opinion, the best thing about Branford House is that they let you hire the caterer of your choice - a huge cost savings! I was nervous about the three different rooms but we used the large main room and one smaller room for a sit down dinner. With 115 people, it was just perfect. We used the other smaller room (near the portico) for our dance floor and it all flowed well. It helps that our caterer and DJ had worked there many times before. We optimized use of the space by having our cocktail hour and first dance on the patio. The only reason I give this place four stars instead of 5 is because the bathrooms are hideous (think public school bathroom) and the venue manager, Katherine, can be pretty tough to get in a hold of. But don't let that deter you - this place is amazing otherwise!

Wonderful place! Ask easy to work with!

This is such a stunning site for a wedding. Katherine was very easy to work with--she was responsive and helpful and very accommodating. The house has everything you could hope for, from a great kitchen for the catering staff to a beautiful room for the bridal party to get dressed in, and the fireplaces are stunning. Plus, you can bring your own vendors/caterer in, which very few other sites in the area allow. This flexibility allowed us to have exactly the wedding we wanted. We had a wonderful winter wedding here and walking down the staircase to get married in front of the main fireplace was like something out of a fairytale. The views out to the ocean are stunning and you really feel as though you have stepped back in time. The woodwork is incredibly intricate too, which makes for exceptional photo opportunities. I could not be happier with the venue!

Overall, it was a beautiful location. The view is spectacular and there is air conditioning inside! The guests loved being able to walk outside and talk on the patio after dinner, get drinks at the outside bar, or dance with the dj. There were many options for every guest at the wedding to be satisfied. The outdoor area is perfect for appetizers and cocktail hour, too. Guests could spread out without feeling confined to small spaces. The only negative is that there are 3 separate rooms inside which kind of separates people from each other. We had a little over 100 people so we spread people out between the main room and the room to the left of the main room. The room to the right was designated for dancing and the bar was just outside that room. We didn't have to break down tables and it worked out perfectly! You can make it work depending on your needs.

A great option for us and our wedding! We had about 75 people, and the tables were tight in the main room, so 75 was a good number. It was also a little difficult to get dancing going in the side room because the rooms are split and the dancing room got hot fast with only twenty people, but that being said, everyone said it was one of the most beautiful weddings they'd been to. The grounds were beautiful, it was open, people came and went, and it had a great, elegant but laid-back feel that we wanted. We had a pizza truck out front (Branford was great about flexibility and letting us use our own caterers to create our vision and feel for the night) and Cloud Nine salad bar and bar. So many people loved the outside parts of the venue that many people milled about outside, enjoyed the view and the ocean breeze. The photos were exceptional; there were so many photo opportunities that it was hard to narrow down our options to favorites. The on-site coordinator was helpful and incredibly kind. We loved the intricacy of the interior and the wood work.

This place went with our Fairy-tale, Ocean-Side theme wedding perfectly! This venue is absolutely beautiful, and the ocean-side views are amazing is you are so lucky to have the weather cooperate for you to have your wedding outdoors on the lawn. We were lucky and the weather was absolutely perfect! This venue does have it's challenges, as it's a broken up space and not an open ballroom type setting. With keeping our guest list to right around 100 people we were able to work with the space, having the guests eat in the center ballroom, dancing in the West Room and Food Service Stations in the East Room. Realistically, this venue can really only comfortably accommodate weddings up to 100 people, any more than this and it's tight and challenging. If you have a wedding larger than 100, I would recommend renting the tent out on the lawn. I also discovered when interviewing caterers for this venue, that most DO NOT WANT to do a seated, plated dinner at this location. Because they kitchen is in the basement, they said it was very challenging. So if you're heart is set on a seated, plated dinner, this is probably not the best venue, unless you do the tent. The venue does absolutely nothing for you, except provide a person to be on hand to have the place open, direct traffic and close the place up at the end. The people on hand were very friendly. However, one frustration I did have was getting a response from the venue coordinator. At first she was very quick to return my calls, but after all my money had been paid, it seemed as though I was no longer important and many calls and emails were not returned quickly, if at all. The bridal party got ready on site, but it is good to note that no mirrors were provided and it was a good thing we had thought to bring our own. It would have been also good to bring some lamps, as the lighting was very poor. We are still very happy that we found this place to have the wedding, even with it's challenges it was awesome.

We had our wedding at the Branford house on Saturday, 4/23. The venue is spectacular - beautiful stone mansion on the water with a gorgeous lawn and stone patio. The inside is also amazing, with ornate wood walls, huge fireplaces, super tall ceilings and chandeliers. Since the venue itself is so beautiful, you really don't need to do much in terms of decoration and you can still have a beautiful wedding! The venue also allows you to bring in all your own vendors - a blessing and a curse. Blessing because you can choose anything you want and find cheaper options. Curse because it's a lot of work! But I think well worth it in the end because the even will truly be "you".
Katherine was great to work with and very responsive. Either Katherine or her assistant will be at the venue with you the day of the wedding, which was nice to help organize. There's a great room to get ready in for the bride & her maids off the side of the venue. I really enjoyed getting ready there because you can keep an eye on the set up while getting glammed up and hanging out with your maids.
The price for this insanely beautiful wedding is really low. We got lucky and got a Saturday right before the rates went up for Spring/Summer/Fall. I would definitely recommend this venue if you're looking to really personalize your wedding and make it your own.

My wedding is 1/1/2016 and I have been working with the Branford House, and Katherine since last March. They have been nothing short of wonderful, flexible, nice and open. I cannot wait until my wedding and I will definitely write a review after ward. My friends and family said this was hands-down the best wedding - most elegant, most fun, gorgeous venue they had ever seen! I highly recommend it. The staff is amazing, friendly, low-key and flexible.

Stunning venue. Wish the staff was more helpful though. I had to design the floor layout myself.

The Branford House is a magical setting for your wedding or celebration. Katherine, the manager, is amazingly helpful and wonderful too.

There was nothing like the views that the Branford House provided! The backdrop of the house and the water view made our wedding breath taking. What we enjoyed most about the Branford House was their flexibility. We could use any vendor we liked, and as the bride, we were able to get ready right at the house. Katherine was responsive, and helped us to find a spot for the huge tent we put out on the back lawn. We know it was a difficult task because there was construction going on, but she got it done!

Thank you Katherine!

We had our wedding at the Branford House in August and it was everything we could have asked for and more! It it an absolutely beautiful setting. It's natural wood, fireplaces and beauty make planning and decorating quite easy.

We had our ceremony outside on the lawn, cocktail on the patio and the reception inside. Our wedding was "rustic chic" meets "nautical."

Katherine and her team were flexible with us - always let us pop in to take pictures and see the space. We could bring in any vendors that we wanted. She had worked with a lot of our vendors previously, which made coordination seamless.

They have a beautiful bridal suite that we used the entire day to get ready, store our things in etc.

There are so many nooks that we used for flowers, candles etc. The fireplaces are naturally extravagant and we enhanced them with plants and candles.

The grand piano is available for use and we used it for our guest book and favors.

People spent most of the evening outside on the water enjoying the weather and the view :)

I would highly recommend this venue based on its location, beauty and flexibility! Book in advance though, as they fill up quickly!