Marin Art & Garden Center Reviews

Reviews

+16 User photos

• Julie E. Sent on 07/21/2022
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  Great Experience

  MAGC was great to work with, especially our primary contact, Dasha. They were prompt, responsive, and experienced - very smooth sailing and very patient to all our little questions.

  MAGC was great to work with, especially our primary contact, Dasha. They were prompt, responsive, and experienced - very smooth sailing and very patient to all our little questions.
• Julie G. Sent on 07/15/2019
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  MAGC was everything and more!

  We couldn’t be happier with the venue we chose for our wedding. It was a magical and beautiful venue to get married at. Stacey and Gina were very helpful during the process and we loved everything about MAGC. Definitely recommend getting married here!

  We couldn’t be happier with the venue we chose for our wedding. It was a magical and beautiful venue to get married at. Stacey and Gina were very helpful during the process and we loved everything about MAGC. Definitely recommend getting married here!

  • +5 photos
• Angelica O. Sent on 01/24/2019
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  Very happy with our choice - beautiful venue and great people!

  We reserved the Garden Room for our 120 guest wedding. We worked with Stacey and we were really happy with her responsiveness and professionalism. She had all the answers and even provided a really helpful brochure when we sat down with her while we were touring wedding venues that was complete with recommended vendors that they've worked with in the past.
  
  The venue was beautiful and we are very happy with how the whole day went. The whole day was perfect and we could not be happier with how everything turned out and how affordable it was.

  We reserved the Garden Room for our 120 guest wedding. We worked with Stacey and we were really happy with her responsiveness and professionalism. She had all the answers and even provided a really helpful brochure when we sat down with her while we were touring wedding venues that was complete with recommended vendors that they've worked with in the past.
  
  The venue was beautiful and we are very happy with how the whole day went. The whole day was perfect and we could not be happier with how everything turned out and how affordable it was.

  • +6 photos
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• Alisha Sent on 05/15/2018
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  Marin Art and Garden Center (MAGC) is absolutely breathtaking and exactly what my husband and I were looking for on our special day. Stacey and Gina from MAGC were very supportive and helpful leading up to and executing my wedding day.

  Marin Art and Garden Center (MAGC) is absolutely breathtaking and exactly what my husband and I were looking for on our special day. Stacey and Gina from MAGC were very supportive and helpful leading up to and executing my wedding day.
• Anne Sent on 10/15/2017
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  My new husband and I couldn’t be any more thrilled about having just gotten married at MAGC! We knew from the moment we walked onto the property that we would get married there. We wanted a casual, intimate, romantic garden feel and MAGC far exceeded our expectations. We had our ceremony on the Garden Lawn, dinner on the Stratford gardens, and the last of our reception in the Livermore Pavilion. We originally felt that the space would be too large for what ended up being a smaller wedding of about 70 guests, but it was so perfect. Our guests had plenty of space to roam around and we received endless complements on the property’s gorgeous whimsical setting. The reception areas are full of string lighting, which pretty much sold me immediately, and we were able to hang lanterns inside the Livermore Pavilion as well. That small touch really took the whole space to an even more romantic and unique level. The events manager, Stacey Kamp, answered all of questions promptly and efficiently throughout the entire wedding planning process. We truly have no regrets and have nothing but wonderful things to say about MAGC, it is the PERFECT place to say I DO! And with never-ending picturesque backdrops, there is so much to fall in love with.
  

  My new husband and I couldn’t be any more thrilled about having just gotten married at MAGC! We knew from the moment we walked onto the property that we would get married there. We wanted a casual, intimate, romantic garden feel and MAGC far exceeded our expectations. We had our ceremony on the Garden Lawn, dinner on the Stratford gardens, and the last of our reception in the Livermore Pavilion. We originally felt that the space would be too large for what ended up being a smaller wedding of about 70 guests, but it was so perfect. Our guests had plenty of space to roam around and we received endless complements on the property’s gorgeous whimsical setting. The reception areas are full of string lighting, which pretty much sold me immediately, and we were able to hang lanterns inside the Livermore Pavilion as well. That small touch really took the whole space to an even more romantic and unique level. The events manager, Stacey Kamp, answered all of questions promptly and efficiently throughout the entire wedding planning process. We truly have no regrets and have nothing but wonderful things to say about MAGC, it is the PERFECT place to say I DO! And with never-ending picturesque backdrops, there is so much to fall in love with.
  
• Tara Sent on 09/20/2017
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  MAGC is the greatest venue in the area! It was the first place we visited after researching for a long time and immediately we were sure this was the place for us to get married. The staff was incredible. Stacey is the best person to work with. She recommended every vendors and was spot on and helped make every step of planning incredibly easy and stress-free. The venue is insanely gorgeous and as one guest put it "it's like you got married in a bouquet."

  MAGC is the greatest venue in the area! It was the first place we visited after researching for a long time and immediately we were sure this was the place for us to get married. The staff was incredible. Stacey is the best person to work with. She recommended every vendors and was spot on and helped make every step of planning incredibly easy and stress-free. The venue is insanely gorgeous and as one guest put it "it's like you got married in a bouquet."
• Cindy Sent on 05/21/2017
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  Could not have picked out a better venue for our wedding! It was absolutely gorgeous! Stacey was super helpful and made gearing up to and the day of our wedding run smoothly. We would highly recommend this venue for a picture perfect wedding.

  Could not have picked out a better venue for our wedding! It was absolutely gorgeous! Stacey was super helpful and made gearing up to and the day of our wedding run smoothly. We would highly recommend this venue for a picture perfect wedding.
• Emma Sent on 11/08/2016
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  We just had our wedding at MAGC and it was perfect in every way. They were so kind, helpful, and accommodating every step of the way. The weather was great and the fall colors were just magical - the leaves falling from the trees added so much to our special day. Stacey and Jose made sure everything ran smoothly and was set up quickly. They were incredibly easy to work with and we are so glad we chose them for our wedding.

  We just had our wedding at MAGC and it was perfect in every way. They were so kind, helpful, and accommodating every step of the way. The weather was great and the fall colors were just magical - the leaves falling from the trees added so much to our special day. Stacey and Jose made sure everything ran smoothly and was set up quickly. They were incredibly easy to work with and we are so glad we chose them for our wedding.
• Chelsea Sent on 05/12/2016
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  We just had our wedding at the Marin Art & Garden Center and we couldn't have been happier! We absolutely loved how beautiful the venue was without us having to decorate at all. It is naturally gorgeous and so well kept. Stacey, the venue coordinator, is very friendly and helped to put together a solution when it looked like rain was going to be an issue. We were able to move the reception inside and it was beautiful and perfect. We are so happy with the experience and I would recommend this venue to anyone looking for a naturally gorgeous venue!

  We just had our wedding at the Marin Art & Garden Center and we couldn't have been happier! We absolutely loved how beautiful the venue was without us having to decorate at all. It is naturally gorgeous and so well kept. Stacey, the venue coordinator, is very friendly and helped to put together a solution when it looked like rain was going to be an issue. We were able to move the reception inside and it was beautiful and perfect. We are so happy with the experience and I would recommend this venue to anyone looking for a naturally gorgeous venue!
• Huong Sent on 06/29/2014
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  we had our wedding here Memorial Day weekend and can't say enough about the venue and the staff. We worked primarily with Stacey and she is a pleasure to work with. Really easy going, supportive throughout the process, and was responsive to all our emails! She was awesome the day of our wedding and helped take care of all the small details.
  
  The venue was perfect for what we wanted - outdoors, spacious, and family friendly. We ended up buying out the entire space which allowed us to get ready in the garden room. You can rent one of two spaces - the garden room or the lawn pavilion if you don't do a buy out. We did our ceremony at the gazebo. Rental also included the chairs and tables among other things. They'll provide this information. We couldn't be happier with how well kept the grounds are.
  
  Another note is that the space is wonderful if you're looking for a family/kid friendly venue. We had at least 30 kids under 6 at the wedding. The venue provided a lot of space for the kids to play. Would absolutely recommend this space!
  
  lastly, the center is a non-profit so the rental fees supports the programs and upkeep of the space! This was a huge plus for us!

  we had our wedding here Memorial Day weekend and can't say enough about the venue and the staff. We worked primarily with Stacey and she is a pleasure to work with. Really easy going, supportive throughout the process, and was responsive to all our emails! She was awesome the day of our wedding and helped take care of all the small details.
  
  The venue was perfect for what we wanted - outdoors, spacious, and family friendly. We ended up buying out the entire space which allowed us to get ready in the garden room. You can rent one of two spaces - the garden room or the lawn pavilion if you don't do a buy out. We did our ceremony at the gazebo. Rental also included the chairs and tables among other things. They'll provide this information. We couldn't be happier with how well kept the grounds are.
  
  Another note is that the space is wonderful if you're looking for a family/kid friendly venue. We had at least 30 kids under 6 at the wedding. The venue provided a lot of space for the kids to play. Would absolutely recommend this space!
  
  lastly, the center is a non-profit so the rental fees supports the programs and upkeep of the space! This was a huge plus for us!
• Ashley Sent on 07/27/2013
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  Wedding was beautiful and planning and set up were perfect. Would highly recommend.

  Wedding was beautiful and planning and set up were perfect. Would highly recommend.
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  User1297520 Sent on 08/22/2013
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  We had our wedding at the Marin Art & Garden Center and had an overall positive experience. They were very responsive, patient, and easy to work with. We had a beautiful wedding and all our guests commented on how lovely it was. They ask that you use vendors from their preferred list (those with experience at MAGC) however we decided to use our own florist, a family friend. The only drawback was that we could only start setting up 2 1/2 hours prior to the event time. It would have been nice to be able to set up from 9am onward, etc. though I'm not sure if this is due to staff availability/budget reasons.
  
  Overall, beautiful venue and nice staff!

  We had our wedding at the Marin Art & Garden Center and had an overall positive experience. They were very responsive, patient, and easy to work with. We had a beautiful wedding and all our guests commented on how lovely it was. They ask that you use vendors from their preferred list (those with experience at MAGC) however we decided to use our own florist, a family friend. The only drawback was that we could only start setting up 2 1/2 hours prior to the event time. It would have been nice to be able to set up from 9am onward, etc. though I'm not sure if this is due to staff availability/budget reasons.
  
  Overall, beautiful venue and nice staff!
• Katie Sent on 09/19/2012
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  The Marin Art and Garden Center (MAGC) was a magical place to get married. The reception was in nature, while being convenient. The space is just beautiful and I cannot wait to see my pictures. Anna was a pleasure to work with and just so supportive! The day of the wedding, the team worked together to make everything run smoothly!

  The Marin Art and Garden Center (MAGC) was a magical place to get married. The reception was in nature, while being convenient. The space is just beautiful and I cannot wait to see my pictures. Anna was a pleasure to work with and just so supportive! The day of the wedding, the team worked together to make everything run smoothly!
• Jennifer Sent on 07/24/2013
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  We LOVED MAGC! Everyone was so nice and easy to work with! They made our day fabulous!

  We LOVED MAGC! Everyone was so nice and easy to work with! They made our day fabulous!
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  User1530198 Sent on 02/08/2014
  4.9 out of 5 rating

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  Marin Art & Garden Center is such a gorgeous setting, you really can't go wrong with them. They seem to have the perfect venue for any sized wedding/reception. They do have some rules regarding decorations, but you don't really need them as much as other venues because of the lovely grounds. I think it was very reasonably priced for what it is. They do have a preferred caterers list, but the caterer we used on there rocked.
  
  They book up quickly. We visited them the same month we got engaged and we still didn't get our preferred date for a YEAR out! So if you like it, do it!

  Marin Art & Garden Center is such a gorgeous setting, you really can't go wrong with them. They seem to have the perfect venue for any sized wedding/reception. They do have some rules regarding decorations, but you don't really need them as much as other venues because of the lovely grounds. I think it was very reasonably priced for what it is. They do have a preferred caterers list, but the caterer we used on there rocked.
  
  They book up quickly. We visited them the same month we got engaged and we still didn't get our preferred date for a YEAR out! So if you like it, do it!
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  User1215570 Sent on 06/25/2013
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  Loved working with Anna. She was really attentive to our questions and needs.

  Loved working with Anna. She was really attentive to our questions and needs.
• Lauren Sent on 11/12/2023
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  Beautiful affordable wedding venue

  We were absolutely amazed by the beauty of MAGC. It was the most perfect day- it was gorgeous and the staff was amazing. My husband and I were very pleased and highly recommend this for your wedding.

  We were absolutely amazed by the beauty of MAGC. It was the most perfect day- it was gorgeous and the staff was amazing. My husband and I were very pleased and highly recommend this for your wedding.
• Beth Sent on 12/12/2008
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  amazing catering company who worked with all parts of my family in a pleasant, tasty and creative way. we had a vegetarian wedding that was out of this world with a desert bar. i recommend working with Jan! they are so accomodating with tastings and so responsible and reliable.

  amazing catering company who worked with all parts of my family in a pleasant, tasty and creative way. we had a vegetarian wedding that was out of this world with a desert bar. i recommend working with Jan! they are so accomodating with tastings and so responsible and reliable.
• Jessica Sent on 08/31/2015
  4.7 out of 5 rating

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  We loved our wedding venue! We rented out the Livermore Pavilion, where we had both the ceremony and the reception.
  Value: We got so much space for the money we paid. I could have fit so many guests! Instead I had plenty of space for the guests to hang around, with a different area that I could use for each activity without having setup areas overlap. We used the lawn for the ceremony, the deck for cocktail hour, upper lawn for family photos, the Stratford Gardens for dinner, and the indoor building for dancing and cake. Plus chair, table, and umbrella rentals are included which helps save money. They also have chiavari chairs available for a very reasonable price if you want to upgrade.
  Aesthetics: The property is just gorgeous. So much greenery and color. The colors are gorgeous in the fall as well as the summer. There's also a beautiful rose garden in the spring and summer. Pretty surroundings means less need for floral decor! Also they have cafe/market lights permanently in the Livermore area. So pretty and you don't have to rent them yourself!
  Service: Stacey Kamp, the rental manager, was great to work with! Shared lots of suggestions and answered my many questions. She was there to help my wedding run smoothly on the day of before handing it over to her capable staff. They're there to make sure all the venue facilities are attended to, e.g. lights, heating (if it's winter), signs that direct your guest to the right wedding if it's a 2-wedding day.
  
  We were worried about having another wedding the same day at the venue, but we didn't notice them at all! Stacey and staff did a great job of directing people traffic and keeping us separate. Also of note, there were lots of bathrooms available but only 2 in the Livermore Pavilion. Our guests didn't want to walk to the more plentiful but farther bathrooms so there was a constant line for bathrooms. Not a problem for me since guests will always let the bride cut to the front of the line! :)

  We loved our wedding venue! We rented out the Livermore Pavilion, where we had both the ceremony and the reception.
  Value: We got so much space for the money we paid. I could have fit so many guests! Instead I had plenty of space for the guests to hang around, with a different area that I could use for each activity without having setup areas overlap. We used the lawn for the ceremony, the deck for cocktail hour, upper lawn for family photos, the Stratford Gardens for dinner, and the indoor building for dancing and cake. Plus chair, table, and umbrella rentals are included which helps save money. They also have chiavari chairs available for a very reasonable price if you want to upgrade.
  Aesthetics: The property is just gorgeous. So much greenery and color. The colors are gorgeous in the fall as well as the summer. There's also a beautiful rose garden in the spring and summer. Pretty surroundings means less need for floral decor! Also they have cafe/market lights permanently in the Livermore area. So pretty and you don't have to rent them yourself!
  Service: Stacey Kamp, the rental manager, was great to work with! Shared lots of suggestions and answered my many questions. She was there to help my wedding run smoothly on the day of before handing it over to her capable staff. They're there to make sure all the venue facilities are attended to, e.g. lights, heating (if it's winter), signs that direct your guest to the right wedding if it's a 2-wedding day.
  
  We were worried about having another wedding the same day at the venue, but we didn't notice them at all! Stacey and staff did a great job of directing people traffic and keeping us separate. Also of note, there were lots of bathrooms available but only 2 in the Livermore Pavilion. Our guests didn't want to walk to the more plentiful but farther bathrooms so there was a constant line for bathrooms. Not a problem for me since guests will always let the bride cut to the front of the line! :)
• Darren Sent on 06/26/2010
  4.1 out of 5 rating

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  Beautiful venue, helpful staff, overall good value. Would recommend.

  Beautiful venue, helpful staff, overall good value. Would recommend.
• Stephanie C. Sent on 06/06/2020
  4 out of 5 rating

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  Lots of options, beautiful setting

  The beautiful gardens were the perfect setting for our wedding. One reason we chose MAGC was for its flexibility, as the grounds have so many areas that can be used for wedding space. Due to rain, we had our ceremony on the deck of the Livermore room which worked out great and didn't even feel like a backup plan. Another reason we chose it is because you can bring your own alcohol, including homebrew, which is not that easy to find in a venue. Here's some info about our experience:
  -Parking - If there are 2 events scheduled or if you guest count exceeds a certain amount, you have to show some sort of carpool plan.
  -Venue requires event insurance
  -The garden is nestled in close quarters in a neighborhood. So there is a curfew on outdoor music and a later curfew on indoor music, but it was nothing unusual, didn't have an impact.
  -The Livermore room is a little plain so needs decoration. (MAGC has lights and lanterns available to dress it up).
  -Bathrooms - there are two 1-person bathrooms in the Livermore room. The larger bathrooms were a little far from the building and are pretty dated.
  -Stacey is the main POC. She could be a little tough to track down sometimes, and I found her responses to be very short and not always answering the question the first time. They are switching to a different user interface that may streamline those communications.
  -Stacey has done a ton of weddings there. She provides a list of recommended vendors which was very useful. We used recommended vendors for coordinator, caterer, photographer and florist and each one was fantastic. It made things very easy that each vendor was so familiar with the venue already.

  The beautiful gardens were the perfect setting for our wedding. One reason we chose MAGC was for its flexibility, as the grounds have so many areas that can be used for wedding space. Due to rain, we had our ceremony on the deck of the Livermore room which worked out great and didn't even feel like a backup plan. Another reason we chose it is because you can bring your own alcohol, including homebrew, which is not that easy to find in a venue. Here's some info about our experience:
  -Parking - If there are 2 events scheduled or if you guest count exceeds a certain amount, you have to show some sort of carpool plan.
  -Venue requires event insurance
  -The garden is nestled in close quarters in a neighborhood. So there is a curfew on outdoor music and a later curfew on indoor music, but it was nothing unusual, didn't have an impact.
  -The Livermore room is a little plain so needs decoration. (MAGC has lights and lanterns available to dress it up).
  -Bathrooms - there are two 1-person bathrooms in the Livermore room. The larger bathrooms were a little far from the building and are pretty dated.
  -Stacey is the main POC. She could be a little tough to track down sometimes, and I found her responses to be very short and not always answering the question the first time. They are switching to a different user interface that may streamline those communications.
  -Stacey has done a ton of weddings there. She provides a list of recommended vendors which was very useful. We used recommended vendors for coordinator, caterer, photographer and florist and each one was fantastic. It made things very easy that each vendor was so familiar with the venue already.
• Jonathan Sent on 09/20/2016
  2.7 out of 5 rating

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    2.5
  • Value
    3.0 out of 5 rating
    3.0
  • Flexibility
    2.5 out of 5 rating
    2.5

  Overall, we were very, very happy with the venue itself. The grounds are gorgeous and the venue has pretty much everything you need (tables, chairs, hurricane lamps, etc...) We lucked out with the weather - which, if you know Marin, can be dicey for an evening ceremony - and everything ended up going off without a hitch. That being said, we were rather unimpressed with the service provided by the staff. Ms. Kamp was rather curt both in our walk through a few days prior to the ceremony as well as in follow up emails regarding the ceremony itself. We were also misled with regard to the tables they had available, thankfully our caterer jumped into the breach and fixed that issue. Lastly, the place is absolutely beautiful, but by no means a great value. For 5 hours you can expect to pay over $3,000 plus a $500 refundable deposit.

  Overall, we were very, very happy with the venue itself. The grounds are gorgeous and the venue has pretty much everything you need (tables, chairs, hurricane lamps, etc...) We lucked out with the weather - which, if you know Marin, can be dicey for an evening ceremony - and everything ended up going off without a hitch. That being said, we were rather unimpressed with the service provided by the staff. Ms. Kamp was rather curt both in our walk through a few days prior to the ceremony as well as in follow up emails regarding the ceremony itself. We were also misled with regard to the tables they had available, thankfully our caterer jumped into the breach and fixed that issue. Lastly, the place is absolutely beautiful, but by no means a great value. For 5 hours you can expect to pay over $3,000 plus a $500 refundable deposit.
• Jake B. Sent on 08/07/2019
  1.2 out of 5 rating

  1.2
  • Quality of service
    1.0 out of 5 rating
    1.0
  • Average response time
    1.0 out of 5 rating
    1.0
  • Professionalism
    1.0 out of 5 rating
    1.0
  • Value
    2.0 out of 5 rating
    2.0
  • Flexibility
    1.0 out of 5 rating
    1.0

  Very unprofessional staff. Go elsewhere.

  It's a really beautiful space and the majority of the people there are great, but dealing with Stacey and Gina is a huge headache. Because of the two of them, I wouldn't recommend it.
  
  Things really started to go poorly about four months before our wedding. As we started to ask some more detailed questions, we stopped getting answers. For example, I asked if they had the dimensions of the gazebo so we would know how big a garland to get to decorate it. I get a reply from Gina over a week later: "not sure what the dimensions are of the gazebo." I asked again, explaining it would help us with the garland. Stacey replies back this time: "Who is your planner/coordinator? They should be managing these details." What's the difference if my wedding planner asks it rather than me asking it? Why not just answer my question? It takes about a minute to walk from their office to the gazebo... We were planning all of this while living in Boston. Otherwise, we would have just gone to measure it ourselves.
  
  This was just one of many examples of rude/unhelpful exchanges. Stacey and Gina were actually so difficult overall that my sister-in-law created a new e-mail account pretending to be a professional wedding coordinator just so we could actually get questions answered. Even then, we had to ask multiple times to get answers on very simple things. For other things, we never got our questions answered.
  
  The kicker for us was how little they seemed to care about what we actually wanted or would make us happy. For instance, both Stacey and Gina were extremely rude in questioning us about not having dancing. We knew we didn't want this and our families would prefer to just spend the time talking and catching up since they aren't all together that often. When we explained this to Gina, she warned us that we need to think of our guests because they need to be entertained for the night. I guess Gina knows what our family would like better than we do? She seemed to think guilt tripping us about not caring for them was a good way to treat us. When Stacey brought this up with my sister-in-law (the one who was pretending to be a professional wedding coordinator just to get them to treat us a bit better), my sister-in-law explained that not having dancing and a dj is a cultural thing. Nobody in my wife's family has had this at their weddings. Stacey insisted that she's seen many Chinese weddings and they all had dancing. Sure, Stacey...please tell us more about my wife's culture that we don't know. In 2019, most people know to be very respectful of other people’s cultures and to be very careful talking about cultures that are not your own. I guess Stacey hasn't gotten the message.
  
  I'm sure Stacey will respond to this and try to explain how everything is our fault. Chances are that she just did not pay attention to what we did to actually provide the information or resolve the issue. I'm not saying my wife and I were perfect through this whole process and I'm sure there were mistakes we made. But I could go on with many more examples of mistakes Stacey and Gina made that I promise are 100% their fault.
  
  We ended up being happy with our wedding and our guests had a great time, but we had to stand our ground and put up with a lot of hassle from Stacey and Gina to achieve that result. I would recommend going somewhere else for your wedding.

  It's a really beautiful space and the majority of the people there are great, but dealing with Stacey and Gina is a huge headache. Because of the two of them, I wouldn't recommend it.
  
  Things really started to go poorly about four months before our wedding. As we started to ask some more detailed questions, we stopped getting answers. For example, I asked if they had the dimensions of the gazebo so we would know how big a garland to get to decorate it. I get a reply from Gina over a week later: "not sure what the dimensions are of the gazebo." I asked again, explaining it would help us with the garland. Stacey replies back this time: "Who is your planner/coordinator? They should be managing these details." What's the difference if my wedding planner asks it rather than me asking it? Why not just answer my question? It takes about a minute to walk from their office to the gazebo... We were planning all of this while living in Boston. Otherwise, we would have just gone to measure it ourselves.
  
  This was just one of many examples of rude/unhelpful exchanges. Stacey and Gina were actually so difficult overall that my sister-in-law created a new e-mail account pretending to be a professional wedding coordinator just so we could actually get questions answered. Even then, we had to ask multiple times to get answers on very simple things. For other things, we never got our questions answered.
  
  The kicker for us was how little they seemed to care about what we actually wanted or would make us happy. For instance, both Stacey and Gina were extremely rude in questioning us about not having dancing. We knew we didn't want this and our families would prefer to just spend the time talking and catching up since they aren't all together that often. When we explained this to Gina, she warned us that we need to think of our guests because they need to be entertained for the night. I guess Gina knows what our family would like better than we do? She seemed to think guilt tripping us about not caring for them was a good way to treat us. When Stacey brought this up with my sister-in-law (the one who was pretending to be a professional wedding coordinator just to get them to treat us a bit better), my sister-in-law explained that not having dancing and a dj is a cultural thing. Nobody in my wife's family has had this at their weddings. Stacey insisted that she's seen many Chinese weddings and they all had dancing. Sure, Stacey...please tell us more about my wife's culture that we don't know. In 2019, most people know to be very respectful of other people’s cultures and to be very careful talking about cultures that are not your own. I guess Stacey hasn't gotten the message.
  
  I'm sure Stacey will respond to this and try to explain how everything is our fault. Chances are that she just did not pay attention to what we did to actually provide the information or resolve the issue. I'm not saying my wife and I were perfect through this whole process and I'm sure there were mistakes we made. But I could go on with many more examples of mistakes Stacey and Gina made that I promise are 100% their fault.
  
  We ended up being happy with our wedding and our guests had a great time, but we had to stand our ground and put up with a lot of hassle from Stacey and Gina to achieve that result. I would recommend going somewhere else for your wedding.

  Marin Art & Garden Center's reply:

  You are right. I will respond to this. But I would not put this all on you. It is really our fault for not requiring you to have a professional planner. The Marin Art & Garden Center is a Non-profit organization that provides its space for weddings to help fund the non-profit. Gina and I are not wedding planners. We simply rent you the space and the rules are in the contract.
  When I spoke with you on the phone I was very concerned that you were trying to plan your entire wedding from afar without a planner, and I think that is where we got off on the wrong foot. I'm not sure why you were so against taking my advice to get professional help or why you felt that lying would be the right decision, but I was thankful when you had "hired" a planner, as most planners would be able to guide you through the planning process and answer questions.
  We host over 80 weddings a year here and in the past 7 years that I've been here I have not seen a wedding that didn't have either dancing or entertainment. So I was surprised when your sister-in-law said there would be no dancing. It was not a dig on your culture, and I do apologize if t came across that way.
  That all being said I am glad that you and your guests were able to enjoy the property and have a memorable wedding.
  

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