Barefoot Weddings: A Vendor Interview with Forrest Pond Lodge

Hi friends! Welcome to the very first post in my new Wedding Planning series, featuring weekly interviews with local wedding vendors in Southeast/Coastal Georgia.

The main purpose of this interview series is to provide a unique and time-saving resource for couples in the throes of wedding planning.

In this series, you will be introduced to various vendors including Wedding Venues, Florists, Planners, and more!

Today, it is my honor to introduce to you to our very first guests Patty & Thomas Wright, owners of the picturesque Forrest Pond Lodge, a weekend wedding venue located in Ludowici, GA.

Hi Patty and Thomas! I am so excited to feature your wedding venue for couples planning their wedding and looking – Please tell us a little about yourself and your business!

We are a weekend wedding venue with overnight accommodations. We host area bridal couples and often have destination weddings serving clients coming from all over the country as far away as Washington state to our beloved southeast Georgia.

Grooming Forrest Pond Lodge’s premises, lakes and accommodations for weddings is our favorite activity! We limit weekend weddings to 18 annually, so it never feels like a job. The rest of the year it is like being at a lakeside resort with amenities among family and friends just like it feels for our clients when they rent the premises.

What inspired you to open a wedding venue?
After selling his successful, but highly stressful company, Thomas spent the next five years of solitude loving his new outdoor “workplace” that had previously served as his and mine. Daylight to dark, he meticulously groomed the acres of lakes, forests and fields. Meanwhile, we used The Lodge for only personal family and friends’ events. When our only child graduated from high school it brought a feeling of closure to a season of our lives.

We began envisioning to share the now beautiful premises with couples wanting to make a commitment of marriage. Wanting to offer a stress-free celebration over an entire weekend with overnight accommodations, we built a matching log building venue where new extended families can also begin when two people fall in love.

What services do you provide/offer your couples?
Our being a weekend wedding venue allows you to enjoy plenty of time to prepare, work out details with your vendors, rehearse, have your rehearsal dinner if you’d like, and of course your indoor or outdoor ceremony and reception. If needed, we will be happy to provide a list of wedding professionals in every area or “All-Inclusive Packages”. Choose to stay overnight and experience the luxury and convenience of The Lodge only steps away sleeping up to 14 guests and partake in the premises’ activities.

What sets your venue apart from others in the wedding industry?
The entire gated premises belong to you and your guests for a uniquely private weekend experience. With multiple ceremony sites, choose the most romantic setting for your new beginning among lush lawns, majestic woodlands, massive stone steps, lakeside or indoors. In addition to The Venue, our hidden gem, The Lodge, has the finest in overnight accommodations and is exclusively available only with a weekend wedding rental. Whether fishing off the dock, driving the ball to the golf pin hole, partaking in yard games or sunbathing lakeside, everyone enjoys the beautiful setting sun over the water. The spectacular surroundings of the Lodge will make your stay as unforgettable as your memorable event at The Venue.

How far in advance do you recommend booking your venue/services?
Most couples reserve their preferred date 9-12 months in advance.

What does your booking process look like?
Tour requests are made through our website’s contact page. To reserve a date, we request one-half of the rental fee. The balance is due 30 days before the wedding. Clients are exclusively welcome to have engagement and bridal portraits on our beautiful premises. Pre-planning appointments are as often as clients need.

What do you enjoy most about owning a wedding venue?
Wedding tours and preplanning appointments full of smiles and great expectations are such happy occasions around here. Each couple is unique and very interesting as we get to know more than their chosen color scheme. We are honored to listen to their hopes and dreams as a future Mr. and Mrs. We encourage them, cheer them on and share a bit of life’s wisdom. Each meeting is like a mini celebration in itself.

What advice do you have for couples searching for a wedding venue?
Wedding planning starts with the Venue. All categories fall into place after the style and location of the Venue is chosen. Make sure the venue can accommodate the number of guests you are anticipating and has the charm you seek. Having the rehearsal dinner, ceremony and reception all in one location is a huge benefit. Add overnight accommodations on the premises with activities such as Forrest Pond Lodge provides will insure an enjoyable stress-free experience.

What can couples who book with you expect leading up to their wedding & day of?
Communication is the key to an enjoyable experience. Forrest Pond Lodge limits the number of weddings held annually. This insures you will have quick and efficient service from the owners themselves.

What should people know who are looking to book you for their wedding?
You will experience a mini-vacay in the midst of your wedding weekend!

Do you have any advice or words of wisdom for couples planning their wedding?
For the most stress-free experience during the planning process, hire a professional wedding planner. It can be very cost-efficient having someone with resources in the wedding industry. If you enjoy the planning process, hire a professional wedding coordinator to take over the last month, week or weekend.

Is there anything else you’d like to share about yourself or your business?
We actually get very attached to our bridal couples and their families! It is so rewarding seeing the beautiful wedding photos afterwards and later receive client’s holiday cards and baby announcements. We feel we have been a little part of history.

Do you love this venue? You can follow them on social media Facebook & Instagram

Want to inquire with them about your special day? Inquire here