Oakleaf Cottage — Attraction in Fort Oglethorpe

Absolutely beautiful venue I fell in love with the location upon the tour of the venue. I can’t truly express how much I loved the venue and location. There were lots of pros, the coordinator Autumn and her husband Mickey were so helpful. The venue setting up everything was awesome, they did a great job and completely brought my vision to life! The fact they had all my dream decor onsite was amazing! There are so many god things about this venue but I wouldn’t be honest if I said it was perfect. They are SO specific about who you hire for catering, It was almost impossible to find someone they approved of in my budget. They have very strict guidelines regarding being a green venue, that I appreciate. However there were things that often made me wonder why I’m paying 10k and I can’t be on site to do hair and make up, just little things you’d expect to get to do since you’re paying to use the property. The shuttle transportation situation was not great, I had a November wedding so it was chilly and with 1 van to transport 115 guests it was pretty bad. For those who plan on having drinks should know it’s a dry county so no alcohol, which was fine- I didn’t intend to have drinks at my reception. However some of the groomsmen had no idea it was a dry county and brought liquor as a gift to my husband in the cottage only, when we returned from taking pictures the owners had searched our PERSONAL bags (bridesmaid and brides that included bras, lingerie and personal items) and confiscated all bottles and personal flasks and put them in a plastic bucket in the middle of the parking lot off site without even letting us know. We were not serving the alcohol- nor did we intend to break county or venue rules. We weren’t mad it happened but how it happened. I completely understand that this would put the venue at risk to be shut down had they been searched by the law but the way it was done was incredibly unprofessional. The owners Cris and her husband were quite rude on the day of rehearsals and the wedding day. It didn’t ruin the day but most certainly set an unprofessional tone for the whole experience. My family and guests had lots of complaints about them. I felt embarrassed that they had treated my guests and family with disrespect. Not to mention a family friend said she attended a wedding the weekend before mine and they had DOUBLE...

My daughter just got married here. It is a beautiful venue. Her vision of her wedding was brought to life by Autumn and the vendors. Autumn was amazing. There are a few things that were frustrating. They are very specific on vendors, specifically caterers. It was pretty difficult to find someone they approved that was in our budget. The shuttling was a pretty big inconvenience. The bridal party couldn't have even 1 vehicle at top. Which as you can imagine trying to remember everything you need is hard when it's such a busy day. So if you forgot something in a car, you had to shuttle back down and up. It really cuts into your time. The owners were NOT friendly when we had interactions with them for the shuttle service, both on rehearsal and day of wedding. Also, on the wedding day Dave showed up to shuttle looking as if he just rolled out of bed. I think for the price you are paying the least they can do is be friendly, courteous and appear professional. If that's not your forte, hire someone who can do it. We chose not to serve alcohol(wine & beer only allowed). However there were gifts for the Bride and groom that were liquor inside the cottage. These were NOT going to be served and to my knowledge were still sealed. The owner Dave searched through the personal belongings and confiscated the bottles. We were finally able to find them with Autumns help. They had been placed in a bucket in the parking lot area. This was done without our knowledge. It seems the professional and courteous thing to do would to have approached the Bride or groom or family member and explain it couldn't be there. It could have easily been taken to a family vehicle for the duration of the event. Instead he invaded our privacy and we were left feeling violated. The communication can definitely be improved as well as being more courteous and welcoming. Last item, which was pretty bad, was a strong sulfer smell from the restrooms. I understand this may not be a preventable occurrence due to the water. But it should be told that it might occur. When we toured there was no smell but the wedding weekend it smelled like rotten eggs. We had scented candles but it only helped a little. The venue is gorgeous and unique but do take these items into...

We were the first of the coronavirus weddings at Oakleaf Cottage to be cancelled in March and rescheduled and had our smaller, postponed wedding on August 22. Throughout the entire planning process and wedding day, Cris and Dave exceeded all expectations. This venue is absolutely beautiful and includes so much! We chose Oakleaf Cottage because it included tables, chairs, dinnerware, decor, etc. and not only does it include that but Cris is the best friend and professional to have while you are planning (or re-planning!) your wedding. She was able to offer advice, vendor recommendations, and a listening ear through everything. My wedding day was beyond more beautiful than I could ever have dreamed and half of that is because of this venue. It’s the perfect spot if you want a “smaller” wedding with a lot of style. I’ll never forget spending time with friends and family on the string light porch the night of my wedding while the dj played in the barn.

One example of how this couple went above and beyond: as coronavirus was shutting down our world, we were trying to navigate how we could get married anyways and planned to elope with family and then stay the night at Oakleaf cottage as a mini honeymoon. But our county locked down due to the virus on the exact day we were planning our wedding and elopement for. We were told if we wanted to be married, we had to do it the night before. This threw all plans off but we were able to throw clothes in a bag and get ready and be married in 3 hours notice. Cris and Dave agreed to letting us stay at the cottage a night earlier than planned and with only a few hours notice! They also let us hang out at the cottage the entire next day which would have been our planned wedding day. It was so blissful and weird to see the place I dreamed of on the morning I was counting down to, but to only have my husband with me and not our other 124 guests. This is a memory I will absolutely never forget and I am so thankful for Oakleaf cottage and Cris and Dave for being soooo much more than a...