Our Pseudo-Destination Wedding

Hello Nearlyweds! I am Miss Glen Allen, the newest addition to your favorite blogging team. FI and I are getting married on Good Friday, April 10, 2009 in Glen Allen, VA, just north of Richmond. Our wedding will be held at Virginia Crossings Resort, a tiny, tucked away golf resort that we just love. Everyone always asks us why we're getting married in Central Virginia when FI is from NY. I am from NJ, and we live in Howard County, MD. So, here's the reason. A couple of years ago, I moved to the Richmond area to take a new job. Not long afterwards, we got engaged and the search began for the perfect location. Naturally, our families wanted us to get married closer their homes in NY or NJ. However, we have a fairly modest budget for our wedding. We are hosting the wedding ourselves, and we have no desire to pay the $200 per person that is so common at venues up north. We expanded our search to PA, where my brother lives; Maryland, where we both went to college (Morgan State - Go Bears!) and where FI still lived; and finally VA, my home at the time. We found that the farther away the venues were from major metropolitan areas, the better the pricing got, without compromising quality. I remember the when I discovered the perfect place. I was "working" one day, really looking at Virginia wedding venues online, when I stumbled upon Virginia Crossings Resort listed on a common wedding site. I visited the resort's website, and loved what I saw. I thought the round courtyard was just so cute and unique. They are also the featured venue for the NBC12 Dream Wedding. I looked at their address and thought, 'Wait! I live off of that street.' When I mapped it, I found that it was actually a mile away from my home. I went to VCR that same day, drove through the gates, and I was blown away. It has that WOW! factor that every bride can appreciate. You would never guess that this little piece of heaven is tucked right there. 20 acres of immaculately maintained golfers' and romantics' paradise, nestled in amongst new home communities and quaint villas, but still convenient to major highways, railways, and the airport. Their standard wedding package offers all the features that other places consider extra. Our wedding is costing less than $100 per person, and we are getting a great value. I never wanted to get married at some huge place where six weddings are going on at once. VCR is small enough that I will be the only bride on our day, which is great because I don't want to see anyone else in a white dress on my wedding day. Even our flower girl will be wearing yellow.

This is Virginia Crossings Resort. The building on the left holds the ballroom, meeting rooms, and restaurant. The building on the right holds the guest rooms. I will be walking down the long aisle from the center, mansion-style building.


We decided to have an outdoor ceremony in the round courtyard, and in the center building on the second floor, just above the columns is a beautiful little dressing room for the bride and her attendants. I'll be able to look out the window of that room and see everything and everyone in the courtyard.



Our reception will be in their Henrico Ballroom.

So after researching venues in 5 states, and DC, VA worked out best for us. Our wedding will end up being a pseudo-destination wedding. We live 2 1/2 hours away from the venue, and I love it! It's close enough to home and to our family that everyone can get to it with minimal travel expenses. None of our wedding guests live in Virginia, so the wedding can be a nice little weekend getaway for them. Also, since FI and I don't live close to the venue, it makes us plan our time well when we visit the Richmond area. We schedule several wedding meetings on the same Saturday, so we don't have to take time off from work. Since our vendors know that we live far away, they are more inclined to accommodate our scheduling needs. During these wedding day-trips FI and I take together, he is actively involved in every meeting, idea, and decision that day, and it works out well. We each have a great time and feel like we've accomplished alot in that day.