MA Wedding Venue: Gore Place

Gore Place is an old historic governor's mansion located in Waltham, MA. It has 45 acres of beautiful gardens and lawns, along with a great old mansion and carriage house. Most larger receptions (125 or more) are held in a three season tent that is available for rental from May-October. Smaller parties (100 or less) can be held in the Carriage House and mansion. The entire site is yours for the day if you rent on a weekend and they only hold one wedding a day. The rental is only for the property and tables and chairs for 125. You must use a caterer, alcohol supplier and toilet rentals (for over 120 ppl). I think the grounds look very pretty and Waltham isn't too far from Boston so it would be easy for your guests to get to. There is plenty of accommodations all around so that shouldn't be a problem either. With that said, I found their rules and regulations to be pretty strict. Events end by 9 pm with music ending at 8 pm and the bar has to close by 8:15 pm. You have to pay $250 for a one day liquor license and the cater has to pay fees for using the dumpster and getting permits for the day of the wedding. I can see these costs being passed along to the couple. Most of the other rules are standard, but overall it felt like all the rules just took the fun out of it. I didn't visit so I don't know what the ground look like in person but the pictures are pretty. I would suggest this venue for a bride with a smaller party and doesn't mind have a wedding earlier in the day. Details below!

Information		Comments
The Venue: Gore Place		A historic old governor's mansion.
Location: Waltham, MA
Rental Season: May-October only.
Ceremony Onsite: Yes, outdoors.
Capacity: up to 200. Chairs and tables for 125 are provided, anything more than that will have to be rented.		This includes the  Carriage house and event tent. The Carriage house can hold 100.
Guest Min Required? No
Bridal/Groom Rooms? Yes, there are rooms to get ready in the mansion.
Function Rental Fee: Fri&Sun $4,000, Sat $5,500, Mon-Thur: $3,000. Prices are less for parties under 75 people.		The rental is for 8 hours from 8am-10pm. All events must end by 9pm. 8hrs includes 2 hrs set up and 1 hr clean up.
Overtime Fee: $500/hr
Ceremony Fee: Not specified.
Catering: Must choose from their list of exclusive caterers.		The caterer must get a permit from Waltham for the day of the wedding for $55. For use of the onsite dumpster $100.
Alcohol: This is done by an outside per-approved company.		Alcohol must end 45 min before event ends. No cash bar, kegs or beer cans allowed.
Food/Beverage Min? No
Bar Fee: None		Bride and groom must get 1 day liquor license from Waltham for $250.
Extra Fees: $1,000 damage fee is due up front to be returned after the event.		No mention of sales tax or additional fees.
Accommodations: None
Venue Contact: Michelle Caruso		functionrentals@goreplace.org

The Carriage House