Newport Beach House: A Longwood Venue — Attraction in Middletown

Increased price by 33%!!!

Be careful as this facility is excellent and responding when you are scheduling an event but not so much if a Global Pandemic arises and you need to reschedule.

Our daughter’s wedding was scheduled for a Friday evening in Newport RI at the Newport Beach House @ 3 Aquidneck Avenue in Middletown, RI 02842 on 12/18/20. This is a Longwood Ventures & Destinations property.

In light of COVID 19 and the RI.gov website saying “Social gatherings: Social gatherings can be no larger than 25 people indoors or 50 people outdoors. For social gatherings like weddings where there is a licensed caterer involved (which makes the setting more like a restaurant) gatherings can be as large as 50 people indoors or up to 100 people outdoors.” We made the difficult decision to move the event to 12/17/21.

Well the Newport Beach House was willing to do that and move my deposit to the new date only if I agreed to a 33% increases in the guaranteed minimum from $15,000 to $20,000!

Please note the event is scheduled for a FRIDAY in December, not a Saturday in July. Certainly not prime time however their first date was on a Friday in December in Newport so they wanted to be married on a Friday in Newport.

So I called our “Sales Contact” Ms. Parker that we worked with in December of 2019 on June 8th to reschedule the event. No call back which was in stark contrast to the response times prior to my sending a $5,000 deposit…

I left another message and emailed on June 9th. Again, no response. On June 11th I called and a receptionist gave me the name and email of the “Director of Events”, Ms. German who I called and emailed that day. She did respond that she was not available until 6/15.

I thought this may be easy as we are experiencing a horrific Pandemic and gatherings of over 50 people are currently against RI law so I emailed Ms. German on 6/12 asking for the new date of 12/17/21 and did not receive an email back.

I called her on 6/15 and left another message and finally received a call back on 6/16. It was clear the she did not want to postpone the event and said she would do so only if I agreed to increase the “Event Minimum” by 33% from $15,000 to $20,000!

If you are thinking of booking an event at the Newport Beach House in Middletown, RI, a Longwood Ventures & Destinations property please be aware the their “Event Minimum” does NOT include taxes (understandable) or their 22% “Administrative Charge” (NOT understandable).

Mind you the agreed upon total was $21,710.76 before the upcharges for linens.

We are empathetic that the Newport Beach House and Longwood Ventures & Destinations is experiencing challenges during COVID 19 as we drive by their often on our way to 2nd beach and the parking lot sits empty. Most everyone, is experiencing financial inconveniences.

However, the fact remains that we do not have any way of knowing what things will be like in 5 short months. This is our daughter’s wedding and currently her guest list of 85 is illegal in RI.

Sure it may be legal in December OR maybe it won’t. We need to rebook the band, cake, hotels etc. etc. and EVERYONE else understood and accepted the new date at the agreed upon prices, Except the Newport Beach House and Longwood Ventures & Destinations.

I even agreed to increase the “Guaranteed Minimum” to $17,500 and meet Ms. German half way and that offer was not accepted.

I truly feel held hostage. They have my deposit and we only want to move the date. We do not want to cancel but a 33% increase is not acceptable.

Not sure how this will turn out but be aware that while the facility is beautiful their COVID 19 policies are not. Think twice before...

I attended a function there this weekend. Needless to say the venue itself is pristine as it is posh. However, it’s not without fault in the service department.

A couple hours into the evening I started to develop a headache and retreated to my car for some aspirin. On the way back into the building, I went into the wrong door as I was trying to access the elevator. At this point another function person kindly instructed me to the door closet to the street. As I now entered the correct door and made a beeline to the elevator. A young, blond short-haired girl appeared from behind a curtain partition and began to verbally berate me for no reason. She was clearly a function director-type person for another wedding taking place where she was carrying a clipboard and wearing all black. As I type this, I’m still baffled by her audacity and the pretentiousness where she thought it was her place to make a scene and presume incorrect judgement, which clearly was that I was some sort of wedding crasher. I take great pride in my upbringing and always comport myself in a dignified manner with good etiquette. Her demeanor and unfounded/unfair accusation made me feel compelled to defend and explain myself, but she was dismissive and kept shrieking the word “disrespectful” at me, as if having a poor sense of direction and wanting to use the elevator was an egregious offense.

As a 42 year old adult, Johnson and Wales hospitality graduate, and someone who has formerly managed several high-end restaurants in downtown Providence, it is clear they failed to properly vet their employees or they’re just empowered to believe they can talk to anyone as they see fit. At the very least they should talk to this ill-mannered female who is deluded into believing she’s J-lo from the “Wedding Planner”, so she doesn’t wantonly reprimand and alienate another guest. As trivial as this may appear to some, nonetheless, I felt aggrieved and feel like she owes me an apology. I’ve written the business several emails and received no response.

Update: A representative from the business did contact me and apologized profusely for that employees unwarranted behavior. I appreciated the effort despite it not being his fault which is why I upgraded the...

NANTUCKET/NEW ENGLAND FEEL. I THINK PERFECTION Would best describe my daughters wedding day at Newport Beach House. I was extremely impressed with every encounter with the staff. They were informative and upfront about all the costs and fees prior to the event (all details were in the contract so its important to read all details). They were also extremely attentive and accomatative with all our needs (the complimentary wedding planner and attentants were excellant). Although having a wedding is extremely expensive, we found their venue to be reasonable compared to other venues we priced and it included many items that other venues charged extra for(tables, linens, flatware,wedding planner/attendants, etc). The main reason my daughter picked this venue was because of the gorgeous decor. It was a modern beachy/ chic decor and it was a beautiful canvas for my daughters dream wedding(You can literally decorate it any style because its white with gorgeous grey hardwood floors and stunning lighting ).Infact, Even the bathrooms were gorgeous but in a understated way. The BEST part of this venue is the views!!!!! -You are blown away when you walk in. OCEAN FRONTVIEWS- OUR GUESTS were just awed when they walked in. We had lower level room with cathedral ceilings. Also, The food was delicious!!! Every guest commented that "it was the best food they ever ate at a wedding".The chef really knows how to cook. (We only had 114 GUESTS.) We had a choice of salmon or herb chicken. They both melted in your mouth. I literally cant say one negative thing about anything because it was perfect!!! Thank you to all the staff for making her day a...