Full Moon Resort — Hotel in Town of Shandaken

My husband I got married at Full Moon earlier this month in mid December and not a day has gone by since that we haven’t talked about or heard from one of our guests about how incredible the weekend was! There are so many amazing things to mention but overall I would say that our entire weekend experience was magical. The people, place, food- it all seems like a dream looking back on it!

Let me preface by saying that we both come from big Italian families who are used to the over the top ballroom weddings with a million food stations. When we told our families that we were going to be hosting the wedding in upstate NY with unique cabin style accommodations they were doubtful to say the least but all of those doubts went out the window SO fast once everyone arrived! Here is a hit list of all of important things and people I’d like to rave about:

The accommodations and entire resort was SPOTLESS and everything was beautifully arranged/decorated- even down to the beautiful plants in everyone’s rooms! Tia at FM was SO helpful with all of our booking questions and requests! The welcome dinner bbq was THE BEST! Everyone was absolutely blown away by their first meal- people are still texting me about the cornbread and mac and cheese. Josh and his team on the bar MADE every party throughout the weekend! Most of us let them decide what to make because they were so great and Josh somehow appeared out of thin air with a bottle of champagne at every opportune moment! They had set up a lounge area in what was intended to be where we would have meals. Instead we had breakfast and lunch served in the barn and had the lounge with fireplace and games as a communal spot for everyone to hang out and keep the party going at the end of every night! Morgan and Alexis were our wedding coordinators and they were absolute saviors! Morgan was available for all of my questions and so on top of everything needed throughout the entire planning process. They could not have been more kind, patient, and resourceful! The ceremony in the barn was beyond what I could have imagined. We only had brought a big wreath in for decorations and to be honest it wouldn’t have made a difference even if we didn’t have that because the set up, lighting, and mood was breathtaking all on its own! Morgan had everything flow so seamlessly- they have this down to a science! The reception was absolutely incredible! The Pavilion is such a vibe and again we didn’t even bring in flowers! We brought cut evergreens and gold candle stick holders and Morgan and Alexis made everything look so gorgeous! I can’t stress this enough, you DO NOT have to splurge on decor- this place just doesn’t need it because it’s beautiful enough on its own and you’re surrounded by floor to ceiling windows surrounded by nature! We opted for the tapas menu and it was the BEST decision we made! Everyone was able to try as many plates as the wanted after indulging in the massive “Hudson valley” spread they put out as a cocktail hour. Every single person said they’ve never had food this good at a wedding before! Again, Chef Adam is a 10/10!! He also made our wedding cake which was EXACTLY what we had envisioned aesthetically speaking and tasted even better than we had hoped! Biggest takeaway you should have that should assure you prior to booking your wedding at FM is the people. Every single person that works at FM is amazing. They made our families feel like rockstars the entire time (even our cranky family members that always complain). FM is run by and employs incredible humans that genuinely care about you. My husband and I cried with Morgan and Alexis when we had to leave!

Overall, I would recommend FM to anyone looking for a magical wedding weekend! We can’t thank the entire team at FM enough for making our wedding an unforgettable and long awaited success! We’re looking forward to coming back - y’all are family to us...

The first and most important thing to say about Full Moon Resort is that the staff is simply incredible. The scenery is majestic, the food is delicious, and the wedding experience from both the couple and the guests perspective is unforgettable. But the staff here is what truly sets this place apart. From the moment we arrived on the property for our first walkthrough, we were greeted with friendly smiles and warm welcoming attitudes. We met with Paul the sales manager who walked us through the Full Moon Wedding experience and all that the property could offer both us and our guests. Paul drove us around and enthusiastically helped us visualize how the weekend would go. He was engaging, informative, and passionate about his job and the venue in general. Full Moon offered exactly what we were looking for, a close-to-nature style wedding surrounded by family and friends in one location.

Once we decided to move forward with booking Full Moon Paul handed us over to the wedding coordination team. We personally worked closely with Tia and Morgan who were both fantastic. Tia was the reservations specialist/coordinator and she helped us navigate everything from what to include in our save the dates and invitations all the way through finalizing reservations and room assignments for our guests. They were always flexible and quick to respond.

Morgan went above and beyond for us to help us make our wedding everything we could have hoped for and more. She was always positive and spent a lot of time with us on the phone going over things line by line to make sure we were on the same page and nothing fell through the cracks. My wife came up with an idea for our florist to teach a floral arranging workshop the morning of our wedding, but first she ran in by Morgan to get the go ahead. Morgan was really into the idea and took time out of her schedule to hop on a call with our florist to make sure it all went off without a hitch. Throughout the entire process from start to finish Morgan was by our side making sure by the time we got to FMR for our wedding weekend there were no loose ends left. We always say we could not have done it without her and that’s a fact.

Aside from the key players we worked closely with every member of the staff was just fantastic. Additional shoutouts to Josh, Phoebe, and Alexis. Our guests felt well taken care of and there is just a homey, comfortable vibe that makes you as the couple feel 100% certain you made the right choice.

All of the spaces the wedding weekend unfolded in had their own special touches about them. The barn was where we held our welcome BBQ, cocktail hour, breakfasts and lunches. It is SO much fun going to the barn to have breakfast the morning of your wedding and seeing all your guests enjoying their meals and chatting with one another. Breakfast in the barn is also a really special post-wedding event because you have the chance to have one last moment with all of your guests and recap the night.

The reception that evening was all that we could have asked for. The warmly lit space held our 105 gusts perfectly with plenty of space for dancing. We opted for the Tapas style dinner and we were super happy with the result. The food was ready on time, each dish was plated thoughtfully, and each bite was delicious. The tapas style dinner was well received by our guests who were excited about the idea of trying multiple dishes, eating until they were full and doing it at their own pace. Chef Adam and his team did a wonderful job with all aspects of the culinary experience. Having been guests at many weddings ourselves it was nice to know that none of our guests would go to bed hungry after a full day.

Thank you Full Moon Resort for making our Wedding Weekend everything we could have ever asked for and more, our guests still wont stop...

We got married at Full Moon 10/15/2022, and it was the best weekend of our lives. We have family from all around the country, and loved the idea of having a full weekend of events, all in the same place, at a private resort where everyone could stay on the property. Full Moon really delivered on all our venue requirements. First of all, the scenery was STUNNING, and we hit the peak of fall foliage just right. People loved the "Welcome BBQ" in the barn Friday night. We had people dress up in Western outfits, and the father of the grooms' band played live music. People even got to enjoy roasting S'mores at the fire pit right outside the barn. On Saturday morning, guests walked around the grounds and did local activities, like visit Woodstock. Our ceremony was outside near the creek (but they had a solid back up plan under a tent in case of inclement weather). It was a little chilly outside, and the staff was more than happy to provide warm cider at the ceremony site. Our reception was in the "Moondance Pavilion," which comfortably fit our 175 people, but we did not even use the upstairs loft, and was perfect for dancing the night away. Our guests raved about the food, both at cocktail hour and dinner. I was impressed that they were able to serve a perfectly cooked steak to that many people! The afterparty took place in the Roadhouse Tavern right across the road (~2 min walk), which kept the energy going and offered late night snacks. To cap it off, Sunday brunch in the barn was delicious, and the perfect way to send off our friends and family.

Not only was the actual wedding so seamless, thanks to their clear experience throwing events, the planning process was very easy. From our first tour in Jan 2021, we felt welcomed by the staff, and could tell they were very capable. We had our tasting in Nov 2021, and got to meet with all the staff to choose food and beverages. The resort has a variety of cabins and "ski lodge style" houses, and when we visited the venue, we got to tour every room at the resort to help decide where to place our friends and family. Throughout the planning process, Tia was amazing at helping us coordinate the rooming situation. I will say that this was more complicated than organizing a seating chart, but in the end, our guests were very happy with the accommodations. We did not hire a separate wedding planner. While it took a lot of effort from us to coordinate and organize guest lists, working with Morgan and Phoebe and all of the full moon staff made it very easy to execute our vision. Morgan and Phoebe were amazing, not only from our meetings 1-2 months out, but they took over everything during the wedding weekend. Phoebe frequently checked in on me (the bride), brought me drinks and water, and even helped me change into my afterparty dress.

It was a fantastic experience, and if a rustic/outdoorsy resort for the whole weekend is for you, then we couldn't...