Bristol Mountain Occasions — Attraction in Town of South Bristol

After we got engaged, we both agreed that we wanted to have a venue that would also showcase the seasonal beauty. We visited three venues prior to Bristol Mountain, but Bristol Mountain was already high on our list because based on their website, we loved the rustic vibe from the lodge and how it was surrounded by mountains. In addition, when comparing other venues’ pricing and our budget, Bristol Mountain was the most reasonable for us and what we were looking for. We were also able to attend a tasting event offered for all couples getting married at Bristol Mountain, and that was very insightful to see how tables could be set up, what the food service would be like, how some popular items tasted, etc. On our wedding day, we loved how friendly and accommodating all the staff members were! Our guests told us how attentive the staff were – from asking if they needed more drinks, bringing over plated food for our gluten-free and vegan guests, to clearing away dirty plates and glasses. While we made our arrangements for teardown after our wedding since that was not part of the staff’s role, we were pleasantly surprised that they helped clean up throughout the evening (when everyone was on the dance floor) by neatly putting away our table arrangements and other decorations into the boxes we brought! The staff and venue truly made our wedding day so special, we cannot thank them enough for their hospitality and beauty of the place!

Last but certainly not least, our venue coordinator April Haynos!! We cannot find enough ways to describe just how wonderful April was throughout our entire wedding process!! Perhaps the biggest reason why we chose this venue was because we knew we would be in good hands with April. It was clear that she was highly experienced and knowledgeable in this field, provided us so much information (even on things we didn’t even consider, like providing us a quote based on our guest count and interests on services by the end of our meeting) that she answered all of our questions before us asking, and was very down-to-earth, practical, reasonable, transparent, and professional. I sent countless emails to April with different questions every time for over a year, and every time, she was extremely responsive and answered every single one of my questions, which really helped with our wedding planning process since we were planning everything on our own. While April’s official title is “venue coordinator”, April truly wore multiple hats and always reassured us by saying that she would do everything she possibly could. She was the point-of-contact for all of our vendors so we did not have to worry about arranging arrival times, our rehearsal coordinator, and our day-of coordinator by setting up signs to show guests where to go, communicating with our vendors, and coordinating with staff members. She also always had a calm, grounded, and collected demeanor that was reassuring – what could have been major headaches (e.g., problem-solving one of our reception décor pieces, my husband calling her on our wedding day saying our timeline may be off due to an unexpected transportation issue) were always resolved with her calm and confident “we can work with that” attitude and mindset. Lastly, she became our friend throughout the process and always had our best interests in mind – she let us know of exciting news when Rocket Lodge was filling in the circular hole before our wedding (more floor space!), asked us if she could grab us drinks after our ceremony so she could put it on our tables while we were taking photos, and checked in with us to make sure we were having a great time at our wedding. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you April for making our once-in-a-lifetime event an experience we (and our families and guests) will always look fondly back on – you are...

It's hard to put into words how magical of a place Bristol Mountain is. Although starting with the location is easy. BM is located in a gorgeous valley near lake Canandaigua. The drive to the mountain is a picturesque look into the beauty of New York State. Rolling hills/mountains with gorgeous farmhouses everywhere you look sets the scene for the natural beauty of this venue. BM does not allow the nature alone to do all the talking though. The Rocket lodge is one of the cooler buildings you will step foot in that was built in this century. The exposed rafters all meeting at a single point 30+ feet above your head gives the feeling of epic elegance without coming off as stuffy or pretentious. There is a GIANT and beautiful patio surrounding 1/3 of the whole lodge, with multiple natural gas fire pits, all overlooking the expansive lawn leading up the mountain. The perfect balance of indoor/outdoor options ensure that every guest no matter their preference or background has something that interests them to enjoy the event. Every staff member was kind, attentive, and dedicated to providing us and our guests with the best experience possible. The food was also excellent the entire weekend. We hosted our rehearsal dinner at the sunset lodge, and our wedding reception at the rocket lodge, and the food was absolutely delicious at both events. Last but not least is April, the wedding coordinator for Bristol Mountain. From the first time we met April, she filled us with confidence that she could not only handle our event, but would ease the strain of it for us. April has a cool and calm demeanor, while still being a true professional, that shoots straight and gives you clear and honest answers to any questions you might have. She was constantly available for communication; we never had to wait more than a day for responses to emails, and was available for minute to minute correspondence for more time sensitive matters. The week leading up to our wedding, there was a 50% forecast for rain, making a truly difficult decision for us on whether to keep the ceremony at the peak of the mountain or to move it to alternative indoor location. April was candid and accommodating, answering all my questions, and leaving the decision up to us to the farthest extent she possibly could without there being safety concerns. On the day of our event April was just as if not more amazing than she had been throughout the process. She made sure everything was running smoothly for us (communicating with vendors, preparing the ceremony location, facilitating the ceremony itself, and doing last minute adjustments to reception set up to fix where we had mistakenly placed our welcome sign/seating chart). But beyond all of that she also went far above and beyond the call of duty, constantly checking with my wife and myself to make sure we had everything we needed, and snapped into action the couple of times we had requests that had NOTHING to do with the venue's responsibilities to us. If you are on the fence about hosting your wedding at Bristol Mountain, do it. April alone is reason enough, and you add in the picturesque NY location, breathtaking venue, as well as the extreme dedication of the entire staff, and you truly can't go wrong. We couldn't be happier with our wedding day/weekend, and cannot heap enough praise and thanks on April and the rest of the staff for making our day, one that we will cherish and remember for the rest...

Choosing Bristol Mountain as our wedding venue was easily the best decision ever!!! From the inquiry email to gather information to the actual wedding day (so about a year and 3 months apart), April, the events coordinator, was seamless to work with. She was able to answer all my questions (and like most brides, I had a lot!) in a timely manner and eased any worries I may have had.

We were able to set up before the wedding day and all the staff were so helpful with everything. On the actual wedding day, everything was PERECT! The staff were so helpful and nice, the drinks were good, the food was great, and everything ran so smoothly! My husband and I got married at the summit and then had the reception at the Rocket Lodge. At first, I didn't want to get married at the summit to just save some money, but I'm SO happy we did and it was well worth it. Our guests also loved the chair lift! Additionally, my husband and I were the last to load on the lift and it was peaceful to have a few minutes alone to just process everything. The cocktail hour/reception at Rocket Lodge was also amazing. Cocktail hour was on the patio and we did the pretzel bar for food- guests commented on the uniqueness of the pretzel bar and the different dips! Reception inside the lodge, like everything else that day, was beautiful! We did a buffet style dinner, and the food was hot and delicious. We were also luck enough to return the next day to pick up all our décor (although Bristol and the Rocket Lodge are so beautiful on their own, we didn't really have much).

If you're thinking about looking at Bristol for your wedding.. DO IT! I promise you won't be disappointed- seriously April is THE BEST!!!

Photography by Liv Toolan...