Mistletoe Bough — Hotel in Alexander City

I rarely ever leave reviews, but what my family and I experienced at this venue deserves to be known. This was supposed to be a beautiful, joyful weekend celebrating my cousin’s wedding in Alexander City, Alabama. Family members traveled from all over, some driving over ten hours, others flying in, just to be there. The property itself was absolutely stunning, but the owners’ behavior completely ruined any chance of it being the special and happy weekend it was meant to be.

From the moment we arrived, the woman who owns the bed and breakfast was immediately rude, condescending, and unwelcoming, an attitude that carried throughout the entire weekend. She spoke to guests like we were inconveniencing her simply by being there. During the rehearsal, both owners micromanaged everything, constantly interrupting, yelling, and talking down to the bridal party as if it were their wedding. We were all there to celebrate and help, but their behavior made everyone uncomfortable .

It didn’t stop there. At one point, my sister’s two children were playing a game on their Nintendo Switch in the living room. The woman actually went over and scolded my nephew, telling him to give his brother a turn because she was “tired of hearing him scream.” Then, unbelievably, she came back with a TIMER and told the kids they had to take turns. Who in their right mind disciplines guests’ children like that? The entire family was shocked that she thought that kind of overstepping was acceptable.

Another disturbing moment was when my three-year-old daughter needed to use the restroom. She ran up the steps toward the bathroom we had just used an hour earlier, and before she could even get inside, the same woman stopped her and said, “No, no, no, you need to turn around and go back to your adult.” The woman clearly didn’t know I was walking around the corner and overheard this. My child was about to have an accident, and this woman was more concerned with controlling people than being kind or accommodating. It was truly unbelievable.

To make matters worse, the male owner MOVED MY CAR without permission, claiming it was for parking purposes, yet by the end of the night, the space was empty. They THREW AWAY over $500 worth of catering that the family had paid for, simply because they “didn’t want it sitting out.” Their controlling attitude and lack of respect were beyond anything I’ve ever experienced.

And the final straw? During the reception, the female owner snatched a microphone out of a guest’s hand mid-song, claiming “we don’t do karaoke here,” despite the fact that karaoke had been going on for hours with the bride and groom’s full permission. When confronted, she and her husband escalated the situation and actually had a member of the family kicked out of the wedding The rest of us left in protest. It was heartbreaking to see such an important day end in chaos because of two people who should never be in the hospitality business.

This venue is physically beautiful, but beauty means nothing when it’s run by people who treat guests so poorly. The owners are controlling, unprofessional, and completely out of touch with how to treat others. They ruined what should have been one of the happiest days of our family’s life, and that’s something we’ll never forget.

If you’re considering booking your wedding or event here, please don’t. No matter how pretty the pictures look, the experience behind them is anything but. You deserve better than to have your once-in-a-lifetime day destroyed by...

I’m writing this review not only because of the amazing experience I had for my wedding this past weekend but also at the two negative reviews that were just left by two of my bridesmaids Aleah and Rachael. The owners were absolutely amazing. They made sure that the people who could not act right and respect me, and my husband, for the wedding were told they needed to act right for our sake as we have spent so much money on our wedding. There was a lot of childish acts from our wedding party when it could have been more relaxing for us, Jennifer and Ed the owners made it as relaxing as possible, and I will forever thank them. Not only were the rooms amazing but the treatment that we got from the venue owners, Jennifer and Ed was top-notch. They made sure that me and my husband had the wedding of our dreams and they helped me not allow any nonsense to happen. We ordered lunch to be catered while we were getting ready for the wedding and everybody had ate and there was bread and sauce and a couple of little straggling wings on the table as we were asked to see if we were done eating so she could clean it up. I appreciated her so much for making sure that the food was off the dining room table and taken care of with what little was left since my guests were arriving at 3 o’clock and it was going on 230. She wanted the venue to look like a fairytale dream without chicken wings, and french fries left everywhere. She took care of everything and she made the best breakfast. It was such an amazing retreat and a beautiful venue. I will always recommend this venue for anyone who considers to get married. I can’t help when adults act like children, but I will say if you want your wedding to be amazing. Ed and Jennifer will definitely help with that. I had the wedding of my dreams and I cannot wait to visit again for a weekend stay at mistletoe bough!

Anthony and...

The owners (Jennifer and Ed) were by far the most significant problem. From the start of the night, i was introduced to them via tension and hostility due to the parking arrangements. This led to an unsettling feeling, and I had a sneaking suspicion that this would inevitably lead to a problem... sure enough it did. The owners were great.. with passive aggressiveness and micro-management. The venue was a nice historic home; unfortunately, that is the one of the few positive notes from the night. I have been to many weddings throughout the years, but the management alone is the main issue that needs to be highlighted and addressed. I never write google reviews, but based purely on the number of fictious bot accounts that are claiming rainbows and wedding bells, that has pushed me to leave some alternative insight. To the management, I recommend that you stay away from the venue while hosting future events (i.e. sublet the staff and event coordinator as it is a direct conflict of interests), as your presence alone was stressing and disturbing; that coupled with the constant oversight and passive aggressive comments sent home the hammer to the wedge. Once again the venue itself was nice [aside from the shirtless potbelly gentleman across the street observing the proceedings diligently]. If you would like to be micromanaged at each step and condescendingly told what to do like a child, then this is your place. If not, then i would recommend a...