Hollin Hall/The Meeting House

We worked with Nina at Hollin Hall for over a year leading up to our wedding. She was responsive, full of excellent and valuable suggestions, and an absolute pleasure to work with. She met with us many times during the course of the year, and was very flexible as we set up meetings with our caterer, our musicians, our photographers, etc. She had the answer to every question, and responded to our countless e-mails with patience and grace. Her attention to detail, every single last detail, saved us in several different situations and proved invaluable. The venue itself is absolutely gorgeous. We used the boxwood garden for our ceremony, and the wisteria arbor and the old house (Hollin Hall) for our reception. It was the perfect setting, and knowing we had the use of the meeting house as a back-up in the event of inclement weather was also a comfort. Overall, we couldn't have been happier with the venue or with Nina. Both were outstanding.

Hollin Hall was a beautiful setting for our fall wedding, and was just a fraction of the price of other similar venues we looked at. We got married in the gardens, held out cocktail hour in and around the historic house and held our reception for 115 people in the meeting hall. The meeting hall looked a bit plain when we'd done our pre-wedding visits but with uplighting by our DJ company and a colorful table linens it really transformed into a beautiful setting. The only downside of Hollin Hall is that there are some pretty tight rules that come with it. Our wedding was beautiful and we'd highly recommend Hollin Hall as a great venue. Just make sure to read the rules closely and get any changes in writing before you sign your contract as there is not much flexibility after that.

We had our September wedding here and couldn't have been happier with the staff or the setting--it was beautiful and perfect for our 100-person event. As others have mentioned, they do have some restrictions (due to the mansion being a historical site and due to the fact that it's tucked away in a residential neighborhood), but these did not end up hampering our event at all. I recommend using other vendors who are familiar with the site and its rules just to save yourself any hassle.

We were very happy with our wedding at Hollin Hall/Meeting House. Nina is very responsive and helpful and offered up a lot of suggestions and tips. The venue does have some strict rules but I found out if you just talk to Nina about them a lot of times she would work with us to accommodate whatever it was we needed. When the weather was forecasting possible rain for our outdoor ceremony she had chairs setup both inside and outside so that we could move the ceremony last minute if necessary and it did turn out to be necessary when it started raining 30 minutes beforehand. We moved the ceremony inside and it was actually just as beautiful if not more so than outside would have been. They have beautiful gounds and we were able to get a lot of great photos outside even despite the rain. It was also nice having Hollin Hall for our guests to go to for the cocktail hour while they changed over the Meeting House for the reception. My only complaint would be that you are only allotted a certain number of hours with your package and each additional hour costs more which is a bit frustrating since we really didn't have a choice in needing extra time due to how much time our caterer required for setup. Compared to other venues in the area the pricing is pretty reasonable and there are so many options for where to hold your ceremony/reception that I feel it's a great pick and one that isn't quite as overused as some other more popular locations.

The site itself is beautiful. If you want an outdoor wedding, this is your place. The price isn't too expensive, but a bit much for a church. You also have to pay by the hour, after your allotted time, and the price for that isn't cheap. Also, they won't let you bring anything ahead of time, or even come a little early the day of, which makes setting up the place a bit stressful. You also have a short window of time to clean everything up afterwards. They are pretty strict about how loud your music is too, and it can only be inside. We are glad we had our wedding there because it's so beautiful, but the rules and regulations are a bit much.

My husband and I were just thrilled to have had our wedding at Mount Vernon Unitarian Church in late May. The outdoor setting for the ceremony was simply beautiful. We used the slate patio instead of the lawn because of heavy rain the night before--but this turned out to be ideal. We were able to be outside, but guests were mostly shaded. The surrounding trees framed the ceremony nicely; it was exactly what we were hoping for. Nina is a sweetheart and was absolutely wonderful to work with throughout the process. She is patient, super nice and responds to questions immediately. (half star off for "quality of service" only because we had a different person supervising on the wedding day who didn't communicate as well.) Hollin Hall for the reception worked great. It feels more homey and is intimate yet was able to accommodate our 80 guests just fine. We also fit a jazz trio in the foyer and the buffet table in the back room. The layout is flexible. Many guests commented on the beautiful location. The only downside is that some guests got lost getting there--be sure they are armed with good directions and encourage early arrivals. Most of this problem has to do with being in the DC area itself. Overall, we couldn't have imagined a more perfect setting for the big day. Highly recommended!

We used Hollin Hall for both the ceremony and reception at our April 2009 wedding. The Hall was exactly what we were looking for: outdoor ceremony and reception space with good indoor spaces in case of inclement weather, not too big (we only had about 80 people at the wedding) handicapped accessible, not too stuffy, allows couples to bring in their own caterer (although there is a non-refundable administrative fee if you choose a caterer not on the Hall's "preferred list", close to DC, provides tables and chairs. The grouds and gardens are beautiful, and the house was comfortable and lovely. The playground and shrub maze on site were added bonuses, and kept our younger guests entertained. We had lawn games set up for the older guests, which turned out to be a real hit. The site coordinator, Nina, was very helpful and accommodating. She went above and beyond to accommodate our "non-preferred' caterer, let us bring wedding supplies over a few days before the wedding, and overall did a great job making sure we were taken care of. Towards the end she became a little scattered over some of the smaller details, but it wasn't too big a deal. As a last note, we used the Hall as follows: ceremony in the boxwood garden, cocktails on the side lawn and under the Wisteria Arbor (although it was so hot our guests mostly went inside to cool off during the cocktail hour), buffet in the fireplace room, guest seating in the mural room and the two porches, dessert in the foyer and dancing in the fireplace room. If you are looking for a venue that is comfy, homey, and flexible, Hollin Hall is a great location.

It was a huge pleasure to work with Nina Tisara at Mount Vernon Unitarian Church. She (and all other church staff I worked with) was incredibly responsive and helpful. They do have a few strict rules, but explain them clearly. We had a great day, and a great experience working with them. Our ceremony was in the boxwood garden, the cocktail hour was on the patio, and the reception was in the Meeting House. Hollin Hall is great too, but we wanted for our whole reception to be in one room. I would definitely recommend having your wedding there. I do think that the rental feel is kind of steep for a nonprofit chuch, but it does include a lot (including tables and chairs) and they do weddings there really often, so have a lot of good advice and know how to run things smoothly. It is a really beautiful, unique venue. We paid to have an extra hour.

This is a lovely location, probably the most beautiful in the area. The staff is very kind and courteous. Some of the rules are a bit rigid so it's best to read the fine print before signing the contract so you fully understand what you are paying for- I don't regret renting here but I do regret not understanding that we actually had to pay a lot more for the rental than we intended because of some of the rules. I would choose this venue again if they agreed to be a little more flexible.

Having attended Mount Vernon Unitarian Church as a child I have always known that this was the location for my wedding and reception. The ceremony was held in these gorgeous boxwood gardens. I walked down this long aisle under a flowering rose trellis and the ceremony took place in front of a large white gate. Which set next to the green boxwood was so pretty. The reception took place at Hollin Hall which is a large mansion situated on the property. The reception flowed from inside to the outside. Guests were able to get drinks under a flowering wisteria arbored terrace and meander through the boxwood gardens. Inside of Hollin Hall are beautiful hardwood floors and great windows looking out onto the grounds. Everywhere we went on the property afforded us beautiful pictures. The landscaping lends itself to being a great backdrop for wedding photos. The entire day was perfect and this setting made it all the more special. I would highly recommend a wedding and or reception at Mount Vernon Unitarian Church.