Tampa River Center — Local services in Tampa

We hosted a family wedding reception on Feb 26th 2023 at the Tampa River Center. While the venue itself had a spectacular setting and ambiance, It gives us no pleasure to state that our whole experience was ruined by the unprofessional behavior of staff member "Ashley", the person in charge. She was rude and disrespectful, yelling at my spouse and I and my daughter in front of her staff, other vendors, and our family members. We believe it was racially motivated, which was even more concerning (we are visibly south asian muslim-americans). The catering company staff also noted that they had never seen her behave so nastily with any other clients.

Moreover, there were many false promises made. We were promised certain table sizes, a certain number of parking spots, and specific equipment in the kitchen, which were not delivered on the day of the event. Additionally, Ashley refused to provide us with additional decor that was previously shown to us, such as easels, which was extremely frustrating. Furthermore; we were required to pay for 2 Venue staff to be present for the duration of the function, but only one staff member (Ashley) was present. She made sure that everyone sees her as she would occasionally come out, stomping and visibly angry, to walk around seemingly checking things.

We really wanted to have a smooth experience, but working with Ashley was a nightmare. Her unprofessional behavior and false promises made our wedding day even more stressful than it needed to be. While the venue itself is beautiful, we do not recommend working with this event venue, and we hope that you take our concerns seriously and make necessary changes to ensure that future clients do not have to go through the same ordeal for a City of Tampa...

If you’re looking for an amazing team and stunning riverfront venue, TRC is your spot!!! We used TRC as our wedding venue and it could not have been more perfect. The team there is absolutely stellar, we worked directly with Ashley but everyone we came in contact with was just a friendly, knowledgeable, and hardworking! The ceremony space on the lawn is the perfect area for a city and waterfront view, something that’s hard to find. The terrace is HUGE and the inside space is beautiful. My favorite part is the beauty TRC has when it’s dark outside. The lighting from the building just illuminates the expansive and beautiful architecture that TRC is. I wouldn’t have changed anything from our wedding day at TRC, it was truly so perfect! Thank you Ashley and all TRC staff for making our day so...

I’ve been in communication with this venue since April regarding my upcoming wedding in December 2026. I was told that dates could only be booked 18 months in advance, so I followed their timeline and reached back out in June. At that time, I was given two available dates and decided to fly in from New York to take a tour and confirm the details in person.

Today, I arrived for my 1pm tour after flying in specifically for this — only to be told that the dates I had been previously offered were actually never available. According to them, they had been “looking at the wrong calendar,” which is unacceptable for a professional venue.

This experience was completely unprofessional and disappointing. I’m grateful I found out now rather than trusting them with one of the most important...