Overlook Barn — Attraction in Banner Elk

WE DO NOT RECOMMEND THE OVERLOOK BARN! Trust us… wedding planning is extremely stressful, and it seems that the management at the Overlook barn goes out of their way to increase that stress level as much as they can. The best way to describe our experience with the Overlook Barn is: extremely stressful to deal with, disrespectful, dishonest, disorganized, and extremely difficult. They made us promises that they failed to deliver on, the day of the wedding. The only thing they have going for them is that the place is absolutely gorgeous, but is run in the most unprofessional and disorganized way. I’m sure the owners are great people, but unfortunately, have hired horrible management to run their establishment. Their staff is extremely difficult to deal with, get a hold of, and they do not follow through on the things they say they will do. The story of our experience with the Overlook Barn is riddled with stress-inducing negligence and extremely disappointing unprofessionalism. The impression we were left with from their staff is that “We just don’t care about how your wedding day turns out. You better figure it out on your own and don't count on us to help you in any way.” Our experience with the Overlook Barn was disastrous. As if wedding planning wasn’t stressful enough, having to deal with a venue that constantly neglects your concerns and needs made it so much more stressful.

How disappointing it was to realize that on our wedding day there was ZERO staff (yes... I said ZERO!!!) at the venue during our event to help us with any of the issues we encountered. We had to figure EVERYTHING out ourselves. Or the fact that in our initial conversation when booking the venue, we were told one thing, when what was in the contract was completely different. Pay attention to every little detail in the contract and DO NOT go off of what they tell you because those are two very different things. They cannot be trusted. Or maybe what was most frustrating was the fact that our wedding rehearsal was almost taken away from us until we agreed to have it at an obscure hour (11 am) when we would still be intruding on another wedding party's preparation time just to show up and find out that there was STILL zero staff from Overlook barn to help us, even though they told you they'd be there and made you reschedule and reschedule to meet their schedule but never showed up anyways. Or maybe what was most frustrating was the fact that the coordinator from the Overlook Barn was so impossible to get a hold of for the entire 7 months of our wedding planning process. 7 voicemails would not be enough to get a call back from her any earlier than two weeks, if that. Instead, we were only left with the option of waiting and stressing, and keeping our other vendors on hold until our coordinator decided to get back to us at whatever time was most convenient for her. Our whole experience with Overlook Barn was just, absolutely disastrous!!!

Thankfully, in the end, we had the support of our awesome family and friends to help bridge the many gaps that the Overlook Barn created for our special day. WE STRONGLY RECOMMEND YOU DO NOT USE THE OVERLOOK BARN for a wedding venue because it appears to be an organization that still has a lot to figure out in terms of customer service, process and...

I can't recommend this venue enough!!! The Overlook Barn team was truly a dream to work with. From start to finish, they made sure that I always had everything I needed and more to ensure that I had the wedding of my dreams. We booked the venue late December 2018 for our November 2019 wedding and had constant support throughout the entire process. We had emails, touch base calls, check ins, etc every step of the way and we always had all of our questions answered. The team also has such a wide array of vendors that they have such an amazing working relationship with that it was never difficult to find a vendor for anything as they had such a huge list of recommendations. Not only did they have an exceptional list of resources, but every vendor I spoke to was so excited about the prospect of working with the Overlook Barn Team so I felt confident that I had made the right choice in choosing them as our wedding venue. By the time my wedding day arrived, I was completely relaxed. I had no last minute questions or concerns that had gone unanswered, I had a clear idea of what to expect and what not and had all of the information and more at my fingertips. I remember very clearly walking in that morning to the team setting up the tables and chairs, asking if there was anything at all I needed, making sure the heat was on, etc. I never once had to help a vendor with a delivery or advise someone of where to go because the team was there and already on top of it before anything ever got to me. I was in pure bridal bliss in the beautiful bridal suite not worried about a thing! Not only was I completely relaxed, but I also felt so special. The owners themselves left sweet notes and gifts in the suites for my groom and I and Cliff and Katie introduced themselves personally to us. The whole experience was incredibly personal. I never felt like "just another bride." I felt like a part of the family. This touch was not something I expected out of such a large and popular venue, but I can tell you that it stood out to my family and guests. Such sweet and pure gestures are why it doesn't get any better than this venue. You will never feel like your wedding is just another one in the books for this team. They'll make sure that your day is just as perfect as you hoped for it to be. Even if it rains like it did on my day :) It was even better than I could have ever imagined. Book them if you're looking for the perfect wedding! Thanks for everything, Overlook Barn!

Alexa and Alex...

I advise caution when dealing with this venue. We took the risk of booking a new venue without any reviews or feedback and had an experience far from ideal. We booked the Overlook Barn based on pictures and conversation with their manager due to living out of state. When we arrived at the venue for the first viewing, we were surprised to see that the small barn had an enormous deck built on the side that wasn't shown in any of the pictures, effectively blocking 1/3 of the view. I expressed my concerns to the manager, who rather than allay our anxiety, promptly offered to cancel our booking and refund our money. This is a wedding, not a dinner reservation. There is lot of energy and emotion exerted in to selecting the perfect venue, and to have the Overlook Barn manager passive aggressively suggest cancelling the reservation is completely unprofessional. As a result of the obstructed view and our concerns, we were able to negotiate gratis use of the small barn for our wedding. I sent an email to Overlook confirming the gratis use of the small barn and the cross back chairs, and requested the contract be updated. The manager advised the contract wouldn't require updating now, and the changes would be captured later. Then, one week out from our wedding we received a call from our planner advising Overlook Barn requires $750 extra for the small barn use during the cocktail hour. This is when I requested to cease contact with the Overlook Barn manager and deal directly with the owners. Enough was enough. I expected some common sense to prevail but unfortunately that wasn't the case. I explained to the owner that I couldn't help but feel we were having cash forcefully extracted. Here we are, everything is booked - flowers, violinist, tables, decorations etc for the small barn and then the week of the wedding we are told it's another $750. The owner made a convenient interpretation of my earlier confirmation email and proceeded to tell me I was being insincere. Their demand of $750 was that left field, out of disbelief, our wedding planner offered to cover it with her fee! We can honestly say we've never been treated so poorly by any business. These are weddings. They're expensive, they're stressful and they put strain on all involved. Overlook Barn, why not try and alleviate these strains and show some business acumen and compassion towards your customers? I'm confident we won't be the only people with negative...