Six newlywed couples share their experiences of getting married in Spa City.
My family has been visiting Hot Springs since I was little and the first time I saw the Anthony Chapel, I knew that was where I was going to get married. This was the best part of planning our wedding in Hot Springs. The vendors were so friendly and helpful. Randi Slick from Signature Events helped us throughout the wedding planning process. Using the Belle Arti Group for our rehearsal dinner and reception was the best choice we could have made. It did not take long for Penny to realize how much I love food and she did everything she could to make sure the cocktail hour and dinner at the reception was perfect.
We chose Hot Springs as our wedding destination because it was close enough to both of our hometowns so that many of our friends and family would be able to attend, but it also provided a destination wedding-type weekend. Using the Anthony Chapel at the Garvan Woodland Gardens was a no-brainer — it’s beautiful! The staff at Garvan Gardens was incredibly accommodating and the staff at Mountain Valley Water Visitor Center went above and beyond at our reception to help make the weekend such a success. Most importantly, my wedding planner, Randi Slick, was phenomenal. I could not have done anything without her.
We currently live in Washington, but we are from the Hot Springs area and our family and friends are there, so we wanted all of them to be able to come. It was the central location and perfect because it has so many wonderful venues and options for weddings. We loved everything about the Hamp Williams Building where we had our ceremony and reception — it was a little rustic, but could be dressed up very easily and the space was large enough for our long guest list. All of our vendors were excited to help with anything to help make the day be perfect, and if I got stuck on something or couldn’t choose, they were happy to make suggestions and help me make a decision.
We chose to get married in Hot Springs because of the Chapel at the Gardens. It reminded me of the chapel in Eureka Springs, which I had always wanted to be married in but I knew that it would be easier to get guests here than Eureka Springs. Once we visited the Gardens, we knew — it was so beautiful that it moved me to tears. The Porterhouse at The Regency was the perfect setting for our vintage look and the service that Penny Gargano provided is second-to-none. Randi Slick was my coordinator and ensured that I got everything that I wanted and didn’t have to worry about a thing. Jennifer Horton with A More Beautiful You did my hair and makeup and was professional and a joy to work with.
We wanted our wedding to be very natural, outdoors and near water, so Lake Ouachita was the perfect place for the atmosphere we wanted to create. My favorite part of Mountain Harbor Resort is its natural beauty, but I was also very impressed with the staff there. They were extremely helpful and open to almost anything my husband and I wanted to do. My husband’s family is Italian, so we chose Bella Arti’s authentic Italian food for our reception. The resort owners were very helpful and gave great advice for what would work best for what we wanted. We also used Ambrosia Bakery for our dessert table. They had plenty of options and we were extremely affordable and delicious!
Hot Springs was perfect for us. It was also great for our out-of-town family and friends — they all loved the area and city, itself. Anthony’s Chapel at Garvan Woodland Gardens is beautiful without any extra work or to do — from the moment that guest step out of their cars, it is beautiful all around. We had our reception in the Crystal Ballroom at The Arlington and our rehearsal dinner at The Porterhouse, which was more than expected. All of our vendors were very friendly and, most importantly, prompt. Nothing was late and everything was as promised — no last minute changes had to be made, so that was a very big deal to me.
