Willard InterContinental Washington

I loved my wedding at the Willard. The location is just amazing. The decor is fabulous. We had an afternoon wedding and it was wonderful and affordable, at least in comparison to their evening rates. The food is delicious. Our faux cake was perfectly decorated and the actual sheet cake so yummy and exactly what we wanted. Everything was very well coordinated. The service at the wedding was very good. My only advice would be to read your contract and your banquet order of event carefully. Make sure it includes EVERYTHING you want covered so there are no surprise costs, omissions, or errors. Do not assume anything even if previously discussed. Get it in writing. We wanted a simple, elegant, fun event with minimal labor on our part. Having our venue, food, cake, linens, silverware, service, set-up, tear-down, and day of coordinator all wrapped into one vendor made wedding planned a lot easier on this busy bride. I would highly recommend the Willard.

Our wedding reception in the Willard's Crystal Ballroom & cocktail hour in the courtyard turned out wonderful! Everything was beautiful and many of the guests said it was the best wedding they had ever been to and that the food was the best they had ever had.The experience of planning the wedding was not so fun because I felt at times that we were being nickle and dimed. There was an extra charge for every little thing, from handing out welcome bags to guests staying in our room block at the Willard to coat checks to the champagne toast & signature drink, even though we were paying for the premium bar package (unlimited drinks for each guest with top-shelf liquor). And still there was an extra charge per person for the toast and signature drink.The price for valet parking vouchers for guests increased from the price listed on the contract we signed and we still had to pay the higher price despite the contract.Some of the guests staying in our room block reported that they never received the welcome bags. But overall, the staff was nice & accommodating and they put together a great wedding in the end! They were also extremely helpful with coordinating the schedule so it was nice that we didn't need a wedding planner.Overall, I would recommend the Willard for a wedding reception (especially the Crystal Ballroom because it is so beautiful), but don't expect to get any deals! You will pay for what you get!

We looked at many hotels in the area. You name it; we looked at it. We selected the Willard, because of its history and lovely rooms, and for its food and service. We actually planned to have a small wedding (80 guests), because we love the Crystal Room. They were able to flip the Crystal Room in less than an hour from ceremony to reception, and even though our decor for both were quite detailed (see http://blueskyfilms.com/films/brendaandjonathan/Laure was our coordinator/catering manager, and we started working with her more than a year before the event. It was amazing how responsive she was via email and how attentive she was to all our needs. The Willard does not have "wedding packages", but we really got into being able to tailor our wedding. We were planned a Filipino-Jewish (Fewish) wedding, and we wanted the food we selected to reflect both cultures. Laure helped us go outside the menu options (e.g. filipino spring rolls, challah bread and rolls, etc.) and tried to keep to a somewhat kosher-style menu. The Willard also provided the wedding cake, and it was quite yummy. When we weren't quite happy with the selection, she was able to source other options for us, and the chefs were very kind and understanding. We think of ourselves as foodies, so our standards were rather high, and we wanted something more than just the average hotel food (and we've been to enough hotel events to judge). The Willard delivered, and the food and service were excellent. We also had other events which the Willard organized and delivered beautifully. We started our wedding weekend with a Welcome Dessert Party in the Grant Suite. After our ceremony, we went to our bridal suite (the Jenny Lind Suite!) to have the yichud, which in Jewish weddings is a moment the bride and groom have alone and can share their first meal together. We had an afterparty at the Round Robin Bar, then when we wanted to party more, we took the remaining revelers to our bridal suite and were provided with food and beverage to fuel the party to the wee hours! The next day, we had our Farewell Brunch at the Cafe du Parc which had a wonderful buffet brunch for us. In all of our wedding activities, the Willard excelled in food, service and organization. A couple of weeks later after the wedding, we were at the Willard for another event, and the staff even remembered us and were so kind and attentive, even though it wasn't OUR wedding anymore!My husband is the most critical person I know, and he was appalled at the amount of time and money one can spend on a wedding. But after our wedding, he now says that he wishes that we could have such a celebratory event at the Willard every year!!! The prices are on the high side, so maybe my rating for the value for cost should have been less, but because we were rather picky with our options for not only the menu, but the decor, organization of the events, etc., we think we did receive value for the cost.

We worked with Laure, who was very approachable and sweet, although at times disorganized and tardy. In the end, however, she pulled off an amazing wedding at an amazingly low price. I think most people wouldn't believe that we paid such a low amount for a fancy looking wedding at the willard, but it's true! The Willard is such an inherently gorgeous venue - absolutely perfect for a classic and elegant wedding. The food was so delicious, and we really loved how we never felt nickeled and dimed; the wedding cake and dance floor were included, and there was no annoying site fee. Probably the best place to have a wedding in DC, and the price was surprisingly affordable, if you negotiate and limit your guest count.

Laure was the person with whom we worked and was absolutely the best fit for us. She paid close attention to detail. We had guests attending who required assistance moving about so Laure planned our location and set up based on their predicted needs (we had zero complaints and felt everyone got to enjoy every moment to the fullest without a struggle). She took copious notes when meeting with us to ensure our day would reflect precisely what WE wanted and she succeeded beyond my wildest imagination! She prepared a detailed plan down to the minute of what would happen when and where and who was in charge of that portion of the event, we could then see the day unfold and modify if needed - but she took great notes so we didnt' have to modify because she got it all right within a few meetings! The place was beautiful (we wed in the Crystal room which doesn't even need additional decorations really so that saves $ too), event well coordinated (people moved to cocktail hour and back without a problem), perfectly prepared and elegantly served food (white glove service - we were told it was the BEST chicken people ever ate and certainly best chicken at a wedding!), service fantastic, orderly, reasonably priced, perfectly executed event. We had our own personal staff member tend to our needs (food, beverage, assistance, napkin, etc) anything we might appear to think we may need, they would provide before we even had a chance to ask! We were escorted to and from our room (they gave us a ready room and we had a room the night of the wedding) so we never had to worry about getting lost, or wonder what was next because they lead us from event plan to event plan in such a way that we didn't even realize we were being lead. It was PERFECT! Thanks Laure!!!

They were great! Loved Laure! Loved the Crystal Room! The pictures are going to be GREAT!PS~ Food was great too!!

If you are having a smaller wedding (like 100-150 people), have your ceremony off-site and then have your reception in their Peacock room. It is much less expensive than the main ballroom, but you still get the perks of being at the Willard, such as spending the night of the wedding in one of their incredible suites! First-class venue.

The Willard Intercontinental Hotel is a gorgeous and historic venue. The Senior Catering Manager was interesting to work with. On the one hand, she was highly organized and had fantastic suggestions to create an elegant ambiance for our wedding. On the other hand, she was curt and belittled the bride throughout the wedding planning process. So, she could have been more professional.Nevertheless, everything went smoothly on our special day. Our guests raved about the delectable food. And, we had a perfect platinum wedding on a decent budget. Thank you!!

Phenomenal venue. Steele Steveson provides personalized service for her brides and grooms and helps you create the wedding day of your dreams - no stress, no fuss, no problems. Highly recommended for brides who don't want a headache coordinating the details.

Our Wedding Reception was held at the Willard Intercontinental in downtown Washington D.C. This hotel is beautiful- I fell in love with it the first time I went inside, and that was 15 years ago! I swore if I ever got married I would want the reception to be there, and it was! My dream became a reality and it was awesome.

As far as the food served, I can only assume it was good. Unfortunately I never got to sit down and eat during the reception, but I didn't hear any complaints. When we went to pick out the menu we tried different things, so if the food was as good on my wedding day as it was when we taste-tested, then I am pleased.

We also reserved a hotel block here, for our guests. I would rate this a 3. It was very, very pricey- even with the block discount. But, I was expecting that since its one of the fancier hotels in D.C.

FIRST CLASS ESTABLISHMENT!! I would not change one thing from my wedding day. We got married on December 28, 2007 and the hotel was incredibly beautiful. The moment you pulled up in front of the hotel you were surrounded by gorgeous decorations for the holidays. The lobby was adorned with amazing Christmas decorations and trees and the hallways lit up with a beautiful glimmer. Our wedding & reception were held in the Crystal Room. The hotel did an amazing job of setting the wedding ceremony and creating a beautiful, warm, romantic environment. The hotel staff flipped the room in 35 mins for the reception. The room was AMAZING!! We had a beautiful combination of round tables and the biggest dance floor they could provide. The lighting was gorgeous and the hotel decor itself is breathtaking. We added lots of beauty with our florist and linens, but aside from that the room was breathtaking. The food was so delicious and the staff were friendly and unobtrusive. The night was so fluid. We didn't have to think about anything but enjoying ourselves. The wedding cake made by The Willard was quite a sight. All of our guests talked about our wedding for months and many said it was the most beautiful wedding they had ever been to.

It was a beautiful location, the food was great and the staff was very helpful and great to work with

We had a wonderful experience with the Willard. Our ceremony and reception was held in the Crystal Room, which has beautiful columns, crystal chandeliers and a very ornate ceiling. The cocktail hour was held in the Courtyard while the room was set up for the reception. The Willard is a first rate hotel and it shows in all of the details. Our catering professional, Christina Presock Canalaz, was wonderful to work with. We met with her several times to set up the menu and event schedule. She faxed me diagrams of the ceremony and reception table set ups. You can see them on our wedding website at www.weddingwire.com/wong. We had a wonderful tasting appointment that gave us a clear idea of what the service would be like at the wedding. The Willard did a beautiful faux cake for us - two types of cake (chocolate and strawberry) were served from sheet cakes. They did our monograms on each of the cake plates and garnished each plate with chocolate candy shaped like a bride and groom in front of a little screen made out of honey. Since we did our wedding on a Sunday, the Willard lowered the usual $15,000 minimum for the Crystal Room to $10,000 and offered the "Honeymoons on Us" promotion qualifying us for a free stay at one of their hotels. We also got a huge complimentary suite (the Abraham Lincoln suite) the night before the wedding and two day use rooms for the day of the wedding. We paid about $200 per person after taxes for the food. Very, very, very highly recommended if you can afford the Willard.

The Willard Intercontinental Hotel is everything a girl could dream of for her wedding day. The rooms are beautiful, the staff friendly & helpful, & the food magnificent. A bit on the pricey side, but well worth it.

We used the Crystal room for the ceremony, dinner and dancing, and the Nest for cocktail hour. The space is beautiful, so you don't need to add much in terms of decor. The staff is generally very accomodating and the food is delicious--a thousand times better than food I've had at events at other hotels. But they charge top dollar, and for that I'd expect perfection (or close to it). We didn't quite get that...They served the wrong dessert which, while tasty, wasn't what we chose. They also forgot to have cordials at the bar, which we requested and were in our contract (though in the end they didn't charge us for them). The bartender was also missing during a lot of dinner and dancing, so some guests had to mix their own drinks! These are the reasons I downgraded them on value and professionalism.

Very easy to work with. Food is by far EXCELLENT!! Very thoughtful... and very experienced. It is a beautiful venue... with history that's just one of a kind. It is wonderful for Brides and Grooms who want to take it easy (relatively) and NOT have to worry. Because they'll take care of all the food and cake, and furnitures. I would be caustious on their Vendor Recommendations. Most turn out to be great, except for the Florist.