A quick heads-up: our venue operates a little differently than most. We’ve built our own proprietary planning, organization, and communication system, fondly named the Roadmap, Couple Portal, and Advisory.

This suite of tools keeps everything beautifully organized, around the clock and across all people involved, but they only succeed if everyone—including outside planners—takes the time to use them correctly. Don’t worry, they’re intuitive and built on familiar tools like Google Drive and Google Sheets. (One bride put it best: “This is so easy to use that grandma can do it.”)

By accepting this assignment and representing our couple, you agree to work within the planning framework they’ve been given, which is organized through our Couple Portal, Roadmap, and related tools. If you are unable to work with our couple and our venue as outlined here, please let them know right away so they can assign a different planner.

If you’re good with it, we’re excited to have you on board and look forward to working together. You should be given access to the Roadmap, the Portal, and Advisory at the same time the couple is given access, or as soon as you are hired.

You are welcome to use your own checklists, questionnaires, or planning documents for your internal process, provided all final information is entered into the Couple’s Portal. To keep everything centralized and transparent, all information must stay visible to everyone through the Couple’s Portal, rather than in parallel or duplicate forms.

Please do not share your own forms with the couple, vendors, or our team, as this creates parallel systems and undermines the clarity of our process. If you are hired to manage activities outside our venues or inns—such as placing gifts in hotel rooms for guests—you are free to use your own forms for those, as long as they don’t overlap with the information already captured in our system.

This page explains what is within our scope, what is outside of it, and what responsibilities are shared or transferred when a planner is involved. Let’s start by outlining the scope of our team and venue, and where planners typically step in.

The Role of Planners at Our Venue

While our team manages the full scope of the venue and operations, outside planners and coordinators are typically hired to focus on the couple’s personal world—the details, styling, and guest-facing elements that fall outside our scope. The responsibilities below reflect what we typically see planners handle, but your role may look different depending on the agreement you’ve made with the couple. You may be asked to take on fewer of these tasks, or more, depending on that agreement—and whether or not you bring an assistant may also affect which responsibilities you cover. Please be clear with the couple about exactly what you will handle and what remains their responsibility.

Leading up to the wedding

In the months and weeks before the celebration, planners play a central role in guiding the couple through details and decisions that fall outside our venue’s scope. This often includes communications, creative direction, logistics, and keeping personal touches organized and ready for the big weekend.

Invitations and RSVPs

Planners generally take the lead on invitations, stationery, and related design decisions, as well as managing RSVPs and guest communications. We will review invitations only to confirm critical details—such as the venue address and event times—but the process of sending, tracking, and coordinating guest replies belongs with you.

Styling and design

Guiding the couple’s aesthetic is also within the planner’s role. That includes helping define their color palette, floral direction, attire, stationery, and overall vision. While we provide a beautiful setting and included décor elements, the creative details are yours to guide.

Lodging and transportation

Logistical support is another key responsibility. Planners often assist couples with arranging guest lodging and booking transportation—areas where we provide recommendations but do not manage reservations or scheduling.

Personal décor and rentals

Planners are also responsible for organizing personal décor items—escort cards, signage, favors, gifts—and ensuring they are travel-ready for the wedding weekend. This extends to handling logistics for any rentals outside our inclusive venue package.

Scheduling support

Finally, planners often support the couple in scheduling aspects outside our scope, such as bridal party preparation, first looks, and family photo sessions, ensuring everyone is where they need to be at the right time.

During the wedding weekend and events

Once the wedding weekend begins, planners and their assistants shift into an on-the-ground role, managing personal details and guest-facing responsibilities while our team focuses on venue operations.

Guest arrival

Lead planners are usually the first to greet guests, engaging with them as they arrive and guiding them to and from the ceremony site. Assistants often support by directing vehicles to the parking area and pointing guests toward the walkways leading to the event spaces.

Personal décor setup

When it comes to décor, professional decorators and florists typically manage their own installations, but planners are the ones who step in to organize and place the items that fall outside of that scope. This often includes things like signage, escort cards, guest books, favors, and gift or card tables—personal details that make the celebration feel unique to the couple.

Bridal party and family schedule

Another key role is keeping the bridal party and family on schedule throughout the day—for example, making sure everyone is photo-ready, arriving on time for portraits, and prepared when it’s time to gather for the ceremony.

Ceremony responsibilities

The ceremony itself is a shared responsibility. Planners and assistants are stationed at the ceremony site, cueing musicians, working with audio, and managing guest seating, while our manager is inside the house coordinating the family, bridal party, and couple for the actual processional. To make this seamless, we provide a radio for communication so both sides of the team are aligned.

Vendor coordination

Planners also act as the main point of contact for outside vendors, with one of our managers available to assist on any property-specific details.

Troubleshooting and wrap-up

Planners take the lead in troubleshooting personal items and needs—whether that’s bouquets, attire, favors, or signage. At the end of the night, they are responsible for wrapping up personal décor and belongings, as our team does not pack or transport those items.

Gratuity Handling

At other venues, you may have been asked to handle gratuity on behalf of the couple or family. At our venue, that is not permitted. Gratuity for our staff cannot be handed out in cash; instead, we use an online system that automatically distributes it based on role, hours, and involvement.

The gratuity payment must come directly from the couple or a family member through the portal (instructions are in their Gratuity Guidelines Form). The responsible party must be named on that form. While you cannot handle gratuity intended for our staff, you may be asked to assist with gratuity for outside vendors if the couple assigns you that responsibility.

Final Notes

Our team is committed to making each wedding seamless, joyful, and beautiful. When planners and our managers work in sync, couples experience the best of both worlds: your personal attention to their story and details, and our venue expertise and operations.

We appreciate the effort you put into aligning with our systems and processes—it makes all the difference. We look forward to working alongside you to create a magical day for our couple.