Envisioning something different from the usual wedding banquet? Look beyond hotels for a wedding venue that is cosy and romantic
The Summerhouse Dome - where we had dinner after our ROM
Now that I've written about the 3 venues we decided upon, I'll share a bit about other venues we considered or looked at online. When I started researching on venues, I often lamented to Janan about how wedding venues in Singapore are 1) expensive 2) ugly 3) small. Keep in mind that as long as you're going for something besides the usual hotel banquet, the seating capacity is often limited to 100-150 max.
A) Garden wedding
Wheeler's Estate (max. 120)
The White Rabbit (max. 120-150)
Vineyard at Hortpark (max. 135)
The Halia at Botanic Gardens (max. 214, but across different rooms)
Hotel Fort Canning (up to 250 pax)
On Wheeler's Estate At the very start of the planning process, I wanted a bohemian garden wedding and Wheeler's Estate was my first choice. It has lovely greenery for the ceremony and chill cafe vibes for the dinner. They also have a cute camper van named Bambi that you can take photos with. I had the idea of having different photo spots around the place - the ground floor for the colonial style, the lawn for natural scenery, etc. I thought it would be nice to do that instead of taking photos at the tables or against a small photobooth backdrop that can't fit everyone. In addition, they've added a gazebo and Skydeck and the place looks so pretty with fairy lights at night! You can head down for a dinner date and check out the place :)
Ultimately, I decided against it because I saw from photos that the second level area is actually rather dim at night. We also found a place that we loved more, so we scrapped the idea. One thing to note is to try and find actual photos of the place (i.e. before editing) or make a trip down at the timing you want to see how the place will be like. The last I checked in 2018, there's a minimum spending to book the place (ranging from $11-15k depending on weekend lunch/dinner), and the max capacity for the second floor (the part with air-con) is 120.
The White Rabbit I think this is another one of those places that looks really good in photos, but was rather lacklustre in real-life. We went there for brunch one day just to check out the place, and found the place a bit dim and didn't really like the floor tilings. The garden at the back with the 'rabbit hole' is cute though. Overall, it's rather pricey and the seating space is limited as well. From what I saw on the Onethreeonefour website, it's up to 120 pax with a minimum spend of $20-25k for weekend lunch/dinner.
B) Cafe Wedding
Image from http://www.therefinery.sg/
The Summerhouse
Botanico
PS ChopSuey Cafe (can only be booked Mon-Wed)
Plentyfull
The Refinery
Picnic SG@Wisma (indoor garden)
Boufe Boutique Cafe
Masons at Gillman Barracks
Lewin Terrace (have to climb a lot of stairs up so it's not good for elderly, but we went there for lunch after our ROM and the food was good)
The Summerhouse is just beside Wheeler's Estate. But I think ceremony area-wise, Wheeler's Estate looks prettier. You would think that cafe weddings would be cheaper, but they're really not. Especially for places like Lewin Terrace, the price is $10-15k for 80 pax.
If you want a casual lunch for friends, the ones that I considered were Plentyfull and the Refinery. Both quoted me around $6k+ for 100-120 pax. Plentyfull has a bohemian/botanical vibe, and is fully air-conditioned. It's also in a convenient location at Millenia Walk. The Refinery has more of an industrial vibe, but is still nice for chilling out. You can also have a more relaxed wedding with activities like board games, flower stations etc.
C) Beach Wedding
Tanjong Beach Club
Coastes
I think for Beach weddings, these 2 stood out the most for nice scenery. You can take really nice photos with your bridal party at the beach itself! I decided against Tanjong Beach Club because again, the inside looked too dark at night for photos. It's also not good if you want to wear a ballgown, as there'll be lots of sand in your train. If I recall correctly, Coastes was out because there was no wet weather plan. I think the restaurant wouldn't have been able to accommodate all 100+ guests in case of wet weather.
If you still want to go ahead with a beach wedding, choose February as your wedding month! After a lot of research, February turned out to be the month with the least rainfall and so it's best for outdoor weddings. This proved true for our own wedding ^^
Two more venues worth mentioning are Changi Cove Hotel and Alkaff Mansion. For Changi Cove Hotel, even though it's a hotel venue, it has a warm and cosy vibe to it. We didn't choose it mainly because I wanted an outdoor ceremony. Image from
Alkaff Mansion is a great place to consider if you want something grand and pretty. They have a gazebo and lawn for the outdoor ceremony, and two levels of indoor dining for the dinner. They were closed for renovations in 2018, but I saw recently that they reopened and the pictures look lovely!
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