Getting Married in Bethel?
Chris and I loved everything about being married in Bethel—the people are wonderful, the location is gorgeous and everything was perfect. If you’re looking to get married in Bethel or Newry, ME, below are some links and information that you might find very useful.
Location
Ski Esta was the perfect place to have our wedding. It was gorgeous, huge and literally had every amenity you could possibly imagine. We partied until 4AM, going between hot tubs, pool and the entertainment room and everyone raved about how amazing it was. Sophia was incredibly helpful the entire week, sending up the caretaker when things needed fixing and arranging for leaf removal the morning of the wedding so it could be perfect. And it was.
Photography
Chris and I used Andree Kehn, who was not only wonderful, but everyone raved about her beforehand. Her photos were absolutely amazing and everyone thinks they look incredible! (A true sign of a great photographer!)
Food
You literally cannot go wrong with The Good Food Store right in Bethel. The food was incredible—we are still getting emails about it. They also did our groom’s dinner the night before and that was just as amazing. They are incredibly nice, very efficient and so helpful—and they provided a completely dairy free option for a person at our wedding for both nights and she loved it. But seriously, the food was just so very, very good that my mom (who had insisted on a tasting and was bummed she didn’t get one), raved about them for hours.
Flowers
Carol of Pooh Corner Farm did our flowers and they were gorgeous. The bouquet and centerpieces were exactly what I wanted and she paid attention to every detail. All of our flowers are still looking great and it’s been almost a week.
Hair/Makeup/Nails
I had the ladies from Island Indulgence Spa in Rumford do hair and makeup (plus we went there the day before for a nail day), and they were incredible. Super nice, very friendly, they got their on time and did more hair than they had planned on! My makeup was amazing—thank you Melissa!
Dessert
We had cupcakes from Two Fat Cats in Portland, ME, and the only thing I would change is the amount we ordered. They did one bite cupcakes and we ordered 250 for 50 guests… we should’ve ordered 350. The cupcakes were to die for (my mom and new mother-in-law both had eight) and it was the perfect size to shove up the groom’s nose. They don’t deliver this far, but we had someone coming up that day from Boston and she grabbed them on the way—don’t let the distance deter you!
Rentals
All our linen, tables, chairs and china rentals were from One Stop Party Shop in Portland, ME. Everything looked great and they delivered and picked up a couple of days later.
Favors
Chris and I positively love Sin bakery in Providence, RI. They do amazing truffles in very cute little boxes which were perfect to hand out as favors. One was dark chocolate with coffee and caramel and one was dark chocolate with coffee milk ganache—order 1/2 more than you think you’ll need!
Officiant
We really waited until the last minute to pick our officiant, but Rev. Donald Coverdale was wonderful. We went over ever detail together and he changed everything we asked without question. He even showed up when he was sick!
Clothing
My aunt/godmother made my dress, but my awesome (excruciatingly painful) shoes were from Cutesy Girl and my veil was handmade by Pishposhes. Chris’ suit was from Men’s Wearhouse—sadly we waited too long to get one handmade by Duchess Clothiers of Portland, OR—which I HIGHLY recommend. It’s quite hard to find a three-piece suit these days, particularly one that is chocolate brown.
Other Good Places to Go
The Sunday River Brewery is a perfect place to get a lot of people together before or after the wedding—they have huge tables, the food is awesome and they do really excellent specials.
The Sudbury Inn main dining room has amazing food. Go there. EAT.
We had friends stay at the Bethel Inn and the Chapman Inn and both were great.
If you need food, The Good Food Store and BBQ Bob’s cannot be beat.
If you’re looking for some lovely jewelry, Sunday River Gems in Newry, ME, carries gorgeous pieces—priced very reasonably.
My sister loved Elements Art Gallery, where she picked up some awesome stoneware by Earth & Fire Pottery and handblown glass by Bartlett Studios/Nick Bartlett.
Getting married in Newry was one of the best decisions we made. We handled almost everything via phone and email (although we did visit twice) and if you’re thinking of getting married up here, you can be completely comfortable. It will be gorgeous, people will love it and you’ll remember it fondly. (And getting a marriage license was a piece of cake—we walked in, gave licenses, signed everything and walked out with it in hand in less than 30 minutes. No blood tests, no waiting, but if one of you are divorced, you will need a raised seal notarized copy of the divorce certificate—that’s it.)
Keep in mind that it’s a tourist place and so some things are seasonal—we were there the week after Thanksgiving and there wasn’t snow yet, so a lot of restaurants were closed or had reduced hours. The places that were open (at least 10) were amazing.
Trust me. We didn’t go to bed till 4AM and I spent most of my wedding evening in a hot tub. Win!
Update: If you got married, or are planning to get married in Bethel, share your tips below!
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