Tips for a Cocktail Hour Your Guests will Actually Enjoy!

Are you planning a cocktail hour between your wedding ceremony and reception? While many people enjoy this type of event, there are a few ways they can go wrong. Our wedding venue near Colorado Springs is here to help! Below The Historic Pinecrest has provided some helpful tips on how to host a successful cocktail hour.

Provide Adequate Space

You don't want to cramp all of your guests in a small space that makes them uncomfortable. If you are going to schedule a cocktail hour, ensure there is adequate space for this type of activity.

Strive for Seating and Standing Space

While the majority of people will stand and mingle with other guests, some may prefer to sit while they wait for the reception to start. Strive to provide both standing room and seating options during a cocktail hour.

Set the Mood with Music

Although many of your guests will chat with others, it is nice to provide a little background music during this time. It's recommended to have smooth and soft music to accommodate for easy conversation, should your guests prefer to visit with one another.

Offer a Signature Cocktail

A fun way to incorporate your favorite drink is to offer a signature cocktail during a cocktail hour. Whether it's the bride and groom's drink of choice or a fun new drink that fits your wedding theme, try to spice it up a bit with a signature drink.

Provide Non-Alcoholic Options

Not everyone is into drinking alcoholic beverages and it's best to provide non-alcoholic options during a cocktail hour, as well. Especially if your guests will be bringing children to your wedding, try to incorporate water, juice, or lemonade options too.

Don't Forget About the Food

Depending on the time of cocktail hour, it is nice to provide a few appetizer type food items for your guests to enjoy. This can help give them a little something to munch on before a full meal is served during the reception.

Keep it to an Hour

You don't want to keep your guests waiting too long. An hour (at the max) is recommended for cocktail time. After that, people start to get antsy and want to start celebrating the newlyweds at the wedding reception.

Offer Entertainment

Consider keeping your guests busy during this time of the wedding. From signing of the guest book to lawn games, there are a number of activities you can offer your guests to participate in. Kids especially love little games to keep them busy (and their parents will too!).

After you've read these helpful tips, you're ready to finish planning our your wedding day at The Historic Pinecrest. Our event center is the ideal place for a cocktail hour. We have a large deck offering breathtaking views and the perfect spot for your guests to mingle and visit, while you enjoy your first minutes as husband and wife! If you'd like to see our Colorado Springs wedding venue for yourself, please schedule a private tour today. We look forward to showing you around our stunning venue!

A Beautiful Wedding Awaits...

106 Pinecrest Way

Palmer Lake, CO 80133

www.PinecrestEventCenter.com

Call or text for a private tour!

719-357-8613

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Key Tips for Planning Your Big Day

Planning a wedding can be a little overwhelming for some brides. Here at The Historic Pinecrest, we want to help make the planning process as easy as possible! One of the first steps in the planning process is to choose a venue. Our beautiful wedding venue near Colorado Springs offers the ideal backdrop for your wedding day. If you've already booked your big day with us, take a look at the tips provided below to make your wedding planning experience a little less hectic!

Estimate Guest Count

Before you can even book a venue, it's important to get a good idea of the number of guests you plan to invite. This number can actually help you narrow down which wedding venue is going to work for your big day. While there is no guarantee, about 30% of the guests you invite will not be able to make it to help you celebrate.

Create a Wedding Binder

A notebook or binder filled with everything wedding can help keep all of your plans and ideas in one place. From to-do lists to service provider contracts, it's important to have all of this documentation handy, for planning your big day.

Book Blackout Dates Early

If you plan to get married on a highly sought after date, book your wedding as far out as possible. This can help you ensure you get the venue and service providers you wish for. It's important to get your major wedding providers lined out, to ensure they are available for your date.

Block Off Hotel Rooms

As soon as you set your wedding date and get a venue locked down, try to reserve a block of hotel rooms at a nearby hotel. This can help give your out-of-town guests a good idea of where to stay, especially if they are not familiar with the area. Try to keep price in mind when blocking off rooms - take the budget of your wedding guests into consideration, when selecting a hotel.

Allow Time to Set Up

Plan ahead for set-up time prior to your wedding. Whether it's the day before or the morning of your big day, make sure you have plenty of help to decorate your wedding ceremony and reception space for your big day!

Enlist the Troops

Be sure you have plenty of friends and family members on hand to help with your entire wedding process. Whether your bridesmaids want to help create decorations for your big day or your family members want to help you decorate and set up at your wedding venue, ensure you have plenty of hands on deck to allow your wedding to go off without a hitch!

Now that you know all these ways to make the process of planning a wedding a bit easier, you're ready to get started! When you book your wedding with The Historic Pinecrest, you can rest assured that our venue will provide a breathtaking backdrop for your ceremony, reception, and everything in between. We look forward to helping you make your big day just how you've always imagined!

A Beautiful Wedding Awaits...

106 Pinecrest Way

Palmer Lake, CO 80133

www.PinecrestEventCenter.com

Call or text for a private tour!

719-357-8613

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Hear From Our Brides

We pride ourselves on offering a beautiful wedding venue near Colorado Springs, CO. With a wide range of ceremony, reception, and housing options, The Historic Pinecrest is the ideal place to say "I Do". If you're recently engaged or looking for the perfect place to have your wedding, we've got the place for you. Hear from some of our brides, as we feature our testimonials in this week's blog.

"Thank you for having us at your beautiful venue. It was the perfect place to have our wedding and our guests were very pleased. We appreciate your accomadating approach and wish you success. Everything was beautiful and stress free; All we could have hoped." 

~ Salma and Max

"I just wanted to say thank you to you and all your staff including Linda for making my daughter's wedding day so special.  Your venue is truly a magical place to be married.  As you know, we utilized the lodge, chapel and reception hall and it was wonderful to have everything in one location.  We even had the rehearsal dinner catered in the lodge which was perfect!  We heard over and over again about the fabulous decorations in the reception hall, and we didn't even have to do most of them!   We will certainly recommend Pinecrest to anyone we know that is looking for a wedding venue, you are the best!"

~ Thanks again, Chris Boynton

"Thank you both so much for being such a light in this process. You and your staff really dedicate your time and energy to creating a magical experience. Our day was incredible and we are incredibly grateful ! What a fantastic way to start this new journey!"

~Kelly Hennegan, Groom

"Pinecrest was more than we could have ever hoped for and the Pinecrest family went above and beyond to make us feel like family too and to make our day perfect ! I'm so glad we started a new chapter in our lives at an amazing venue surrounded by wonderful people like the two of you. May many blessings come your way as you continue to touch the lives of others." 

~Carly Hennegan, Bride

Whether you're thinking about a large wedding or a smaller, private ceremony, we have plenty of options for you! Our wedding chapel offers a romantic mountain wedding with ample seating for your big day. If you're wanting to party the night away, our event center offers space for up to 225 guests fully equipped with dance floor and reception amenities, for a pleasant reception for you and your guests. Stay with up to 20 guests at our lodge featuring 9 bedrooms, 6 bathrooms, and a full service kitchen. No matter what you're after, we have the flexibility to accommodate to your needs, for your big day!

Now that you've heard from those who've experienced it themselves, you're ready to tour our facility. Come see what all the hype is about and schedule your date, before it's booked! To set up a private tour of our Colorado Springs wedding venue, give us a call at 719-357-8613. We look forward to making your wedding day dreams a reality!

A Beautiful Wedding Awaits...

106 Pinecrest Way

Palmer Lake, CO 80133

www.PinecrestEventCenter.com

Call or text for a private tour!

719-357-8613

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