UPDATED: Wedding Venues in Columbia, SC: The River Banks Zoo Botanical Garden

Today, my fiance and I explored the River Banks Zoo and Botanical Garden as one of our choices for a wedding venue in Columbia, South Carolina.  I will say from the start that this place is beautiful even in November.

This will be the view you'll have during the ceremony.

My fiance originally called Sallie Jean Jackson to schedule an appointment (you can get the number off the website).  She said that usually the time must be around 11:00.  That was good for us.  The day we went we made a huge mistake by driving to the Zoo.  The botanical garden is actually located across the river.  If you head down I26 toward Lexington medial center get off on the 378 exit, head pass Rush's restaurant , then take a left down Botanical Parkway, then you will run into to it.

After parking we walked through the whole park to where the visitor center is and the location of the Magnolia Room. The garden can only be described as breathtaking.   We were greeted by Ms Jackson.  She was full of smiles and handshakes.  Jackson then gave us a beautiful tour of the property.  My words will not do this place justice so please look at the pictures in the post.  After the tour, Jackson sat down with us and gave us a wonderful folder filled with not only their prices but of brochures for Hotels, a vendor list and even a place downtown to learn more about planning a wedding.  The folder was a touch of class and extremely helpful.  Ms Jackson also seemed sincerely wanting to assist us in every manner. The rental fee is $1,500 plus chair rental. This seems like an appropriate, fair price.    I was thoroughly impressed and my fiance was sold as a venue for the ceremony.

I would urge you to go see this place for yourself.

With approximately 3,000 square feet the Magnolia Room is a perfect spot for a small to medium sized reception.  The best part is that they have a lovely outdoor dining area along with an indoor. The indoor isn't that big, but it is definitely not small.  I am more accustom to attending receptions in huge reception halls that are probably too big for the event.  So please take a look at it for yourself, because I will admit that I don't know what a good size is.  According to Jackson, they can accommodate 120 seated guest and 250 in a cocktail style reception.   My amateur opinion is that this place is perfect for a reception for 100 guest or less.

The only downside of using the Magnolia room for your reception is that you have to use Riverbanks Catering.   They have a $4,500 minimum not including a mandatory 29% more in fees, gratuity and taxes.  So the minimum is around $5,805 not including any alcohol.  This gave my mother-in-law to be a sticker shock.  The $5,805 will cover around 100-115 guest.  That breaks down to about $58 if you have only about 100 guest.  If you have around 75 (like we most likely will have) the price is around $78 per person not including alcohol   If you want cocktails at your reception the open bar fee is $21 per person. This brings your total up to about $99 per person if you have a guest list of only 75 and brings your grand total up to $7,380 for around 75 guest or $7,905 for around 100 guest.  So for your true grand total, including the ceremony (and chair rental) it would be $9,705 for 100 guest or $9,030 for 75.  This also does not include your cake, music, flowers, and lighting. So as you can see the price rises quickly when you add your reception.
 If you buy your own alcohol they charge you a corkage fee of $6.50 per person, but this includes all mixers (soda, tonic, etc), set up and service. Also, all of the alcohol prices include public safety personnel  for the event.  

Another unfortunate downside to this venue is the earliest you can have your ceremony is around 6:30 p.m. in the winter and 7:30 p.m. in the summer.  You have to have your ceremony after the closing of the park which is at 5:00  in the winter/fall and they will allow guest to come in at around 6:00 and the park closes at 6:00 in the summer and guest are not allowed in until 7:30.  This blocks you into having a sunset wedding. I wonder if they make more revenue from the extra hour of being open versus the revenue they would make from more people choosing to rent this venue.  So keep in mind the allowed times of the ceremony when looking at this or any other venue.

For your out of town guest the good news is that this location is close to the airport.  There is ample eating places in the area and my fiance made a joke that if an accident happen your are right by the hospital.   The only drawback is that the hotel choices are limited when you compare your selection to downtown Columbia.  Nearby there  is a Homewood Suites (a Hilton chain) and Holiday Inn & Suites.  Both of these appear to be very nice and would probably suit the average guest.  The Holiday Inn even has a Sports themed grill  called Sporting News Grill.  We didn't check it out but that would add some extra entertainment to your guest's stay.
To conclude  every aspect of this venue is to encourage intake of the wonder of the garden. While browsing the garden it is too easy to get lost in a daydream of a pleasant sunny day, with the sounds of a string quartet whispering in the wind, along with the visuals of your future wife in a beautiful dress .  We wanted to stay a little longer and probably could have gotten lost in our day dreams for over an hour.  This is without a doubt one of the prime venues in Columbia and probably South Carolina to have your ceremony.   The garden sells itself.   It is too bad that they have limited themselves with the mandatory catering.  This may not be an issue if you have a larger budget then we do, but a small wedding reception of 75 guest or less at this locale is a little pricey, but the ceremony would be absolutely breathtaking.

UPDATE: We did decide to go with the River Banks Zoo, but what we have discovered is that there are tons of hidden fees that they don't tell you until they hand you a contract.  Be Prepared to pay 33% in taxes and administration fees.  So in other words if your catering bill cost $6,000, you will end up paying an additional $1,980.00.  Also, you have to pay 50% of the total bill for catering two weeks after signing the contract.  This was never brought up during the sales pitch nor at our meeting with the required caterer.  

Overall, the botanical garden is beautiful and they try to market it as an inexpensive venue, but the more you dive in, by the time it is too late you'll will find yourself paying thousands more and paying months sooner.  So if you are on a tight budget of $20,000 for your wedding, you may want to look elsewhere.   We probably should have done that.  The River Banks Zoo Botanical Garden is not a inexpensive venue unless your budget is north of $30K.

How to buy an Engagement Ring

You've made the big decision to ask the girl of your dreams to become your wife, but now you have another big decision; you have to buy a ring.  When I was searching for a ring I found it extremely stressful.  My girlfriend (now my fiance) wouldn't go look at rings because she wanted it to be a surprise.  That sounds great except that she was very particular on what type a ring she wanted.  You will find that most likely your girlfriend is the same way, so you will need to ask lots a questions.  Ladies,  if this is sounding familiar then you need to give  your man a brake and help him pick the right ring for you.

No longer does a young man in love just go down to the local jewelry store and buy a nice solitaire with the only worry being the quality of the diamond.  Now, due to the internet, most women know what they want,  they dream about the ring they want and  if you, the future groom, don't get it right then you will be in some mighty hot water.  This blog entry is to help you the groom-to-be pick the right ring.

LOOK AT LOTS OF PICTURES

When you first start out, you need to sit down with your lady and browse engagement rings on the internet.  She may not know what she wants, so take this time to look at many different styles.  I had no clue originally.    You need to know what type of setting she wants,  what cut of diamond she wants and you need to know how much you can afford.  So as you browse the pictures make sure to ask her why she likes certain rings and why she doesn't like others.  Take note of the cut of diamond, the various settings and the size of the diamond.  Additionally, don't forget to ask what size of ring she wears.

TAKE LOTS OF PICTURES

When you start out on your adventure to go look at rings, even if she goes with you, make sure you take lots of pictures with your phone.  This is for references and to compare with others.  Taking pictures of diamond rings is very hard, because they usually sparkle under the light of the store.  Because of this make sure you take several pictures.  Take one of it alone,  take one of it's side,  take one on your finger.  When I was searching for a ring, I would put it on my pinky and take a pic.  This type of picture will give you an idea of how big, small, dainty and pretty it will look on her finger.  Remember you need to hunt, hunt and hunt.  This ring is a huge deal.  You need to not only have one that she will love, but one that you can afford.  The price difference from one store to another will vary.  So write notes on how much they are with a reference to the picture that you took.

Groom tip: The first time that you go to look at rings you might get very nervous.  This is normal.  I got really nervous the first jewelry store I walked in.  You will be nervous over the idea  of marrying your love and making it a reality.  Being overwhelmed at first is normal .  When you decide to buy the ring, you will be even more nervous.  I personally stood outside of the store for over five minutes before I walked in to get the ring, but as soon as I saw the ring; and I pictured how happy she would be when I gave it to her, all my fears melted away and my nerves settled.  I actually became overwhelmed with joy.  

Bride tip:  Your husband to be is going to spend a huge chunk of change on this ring.  He has spent countless hours looking at rings and even more hours trying to figure out how to buy it.  He probably used finances that you didn't even know he had.  He could have borrowed money from someone he would have never in a million years ask for money.  So when he finally presents it to you watch what you say.  NEVER say that it's a good starter ring.   NEVER say that it's a little small.  NEVER say that is fine because that's all he can afford right now.  I have read women making these comments on the internet before and found them horribly rude to their future husbands.  

BIG BOX OR LITTLE BOX

Should you go to a large chain jewelry store or a local store?  That decision is all contingent upon the ring.  If you are worrying who will give you a better deal, I found that two different chains of the same big box store quoted me two different prices for the exact same ring.  Both prices were less then what they advertised on their website.  So, if you find a ring at a big box store, make sure to try at least one other store site if you can before purchasing   I personally found that the local stores usually had a larger selection and better pricing if it was a nice store.  I also found some small jewelry stores that specialized on very cheap and low quality rings.  So  make sure that you know what type of store you are in before making any serious decision.  You shouldn't buy a cheap ring, with a cheap quality diamond, when you can get something of twice its quality for only a couple of hundred dollars more.  When I was hunting for a ring, I ran into that same scenario.  So know your stores and shop around.

HOW TO BUY THE RING

Nearly all places will offer you several choices to purchase your ring.  You can buy it out right,  put it on lay away, or finance it.  I would suggest the first two over the latter.  The last thing you need to do is add more debt to your finances as you begin not only planning your wedding and honeymoon, but as you begin a new life with your new wife.  The less debt the better for both of you.  If you can't buy it out right, ask about their layaway plan.  I did a three month layaway to make it more affordable for me.  Just, please, please don't finance it unless you definitively have the means to pay it off in less then four months.  The best method is to wait and pay cash for it.

EXTRA TIPS:

1.  Google the 4 C's of a diamond.  You'll need to know them.
2.  Make a budget that includes putting back money for buying a ring.
3.  You might have to get a job on the side to get the ring of her dreams.
4.  Yes, the ring is very important and is probably so important to her that you'll never understand.
5.  You can never look at too many rings.
6.  Don't let it stress you out.

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