Oscar Swan Country inn

We got married at Oscar Swan in September 2009. We chose this place over the others due to the lush gardens, the European style tent and great home-style food. Think of marrying at an English Garden, that old school Victorian charm with tasty home cooked buffet meals. As a taste test, we enjoyed the food at Oscar Swan's during Valentines Day dinner and a Sunday Brunch. The best food for us: cheese blintzes for breakfast, goat cheese pizza and garlic shrimp for appetizers, roast beef and veggies for dinner.

It is a great wedding venue if you can handle the quirky owners: Hans and Nina Heymann. Nina for the most part, handles the day to day operations tracking everything in her notes.

There is no standard contract. There are wedding packages, but in reality you have to negotiate everything with Nina. She did NOT give us a discount for our Sunday wedding even though the website mentioned it.Nor does she do a good job of remembering what you have agreed upon. (She does not check her emails often, make sure you call her to check her emails). So make sure you have everything documented and signed. Also, make sure you negotiate what is included in the wedding count. We ended up paying full price for kids, the DJ and Wedding coordinator even though it is customary to have a cheaper price for them.

Nina will insist that you book your wedding party accommodations at Oscar Swan. Learn form our experience. We booked 2 rooms for 3 days and it was a bad idea. She told us that she gave us the "best rooms" with the "best lighting" and view. But, we knew this is not true because we had looked at all the rooms before. We got small and smelly (like your grandma's untended attic) rooms smothered with some occasional cobwebs and dust. The Frank Harding room did not even have a private bath. No centralized air. We had to open the windows at night since it was too hot. The Betty Jean Swan room had a very small toilet which was covered only by a wooden divider. The common bathroom was barely operational, with lighting wires exposed (I do not know how it passed building inspection). The bathroom tiles are grimy and dingy. As a sleeping area, the place is substandard and ghetto. BTW, the swimming pool has not been cleaned in months.

Another quirk, breakfast is served whenever the owner feels like it. One time it was served at 10:30 am, other times at 7 am and 9 am. If you are hungry for breakfast, go to Starbucks in W State in downtown Geneva.

Also if you negotiate the price with Nina, she will complain about some $20,000 wedding at the Herrington Inn. The Herrington Inn is pricier because they have 24 hour staff and modern luxurious amenities. Oscar Swan does not have a staff, only Nina. We pretty much figured that the rooms in Oscar Swan was inhabitable, and booked rooms at the Herrington Inn months before the wedding. The rooms we got at the Herrington were beyond comparison to Oscar Swan: whirlpool tub, lots of counter space (our bridesmaids got their make up and hair at the Herrington), comfortable and clean sleeping accommodations.

Other gripes. After the wedding, we were horrified to learn that Oscar Swan butchered our wedding cake top. Despite our explicit request to preserve the cake top, they served it to our guests.

The most unforgivable is one incident we had with our wedding party. We had one of our bridesmaids cancel her reservation because the place was not good for the kids (our flower girls). On a normal hotel, this will only incur a reservation charge for one night. Nina was upset and harassed our bridesmaid. Unfortunately, during the wedding, one of her kids had an eye injury. Instead of helping the bridesmaid, Nina harassed her and complained about making the bathroom dirty. They had to rush to an emergency room, and Nina could not care any less and even gave cutting remarks. In my book, this is inexcusable and unforgivable. Nina is a horrible hostess.

I am sorry, but I do not recommend Oscar Swan because of the owners.