Weddings at Cavender Castle, Georgia
View photo gallery of real weddings at Cavender Castle

In the early years of the 19th century, prospectors dreamed of striking it rich in the area around Dahlonega, Georgia---the site of the nation's first large-scale gold rush. Today, couples can make a wealth of memories as they exchange vows at Cavender Castle, Dahlonega's regal special events sanctuary. In the following Lovetripper interview with proprietors Rick and Cyndi Durham, find out how you can say "I do" at this dream venue.

Could you tell our readers about some of the different wedding packages offered at Cavender Castle?

We offer several Wedding Packages tailored to weddings of all sizes.  Let’s start with our Intimate Wedding Package designed for the bride, groom and up to six guests. This wedding is popular for vow renewals, celebrities, and others looking for a really private ceremony. The Intimate Package typically takes place at the top of our four story tower which features a dramatic 360 degree view of the Appalachian Mountains.

Next is our Perfect Wedding Package designed for up to 50 guests.  This is a popular choice for second marriages, and weddings for immediate family and friends of the Bride and Groom.  Our goal is to offer an elegant, but simple wedding package that will easily fit into everyone’s budget.

By far the most popular is our All-Inclusive Wedding Package for weddings of 50 to 200 guests.  This package provides the bridal party with exclusive use of our nine acre estate for the entire day, a choice of four ceremony sites, food for their guests, and a long list of items that every bride needs on her wedding day.  Everything we have on site is available to our brides without additional charge.  This eliminates the hassle and cost of chair rentals, linen rentals, centerpieces, and so on.

Our goal with all of these packages is to make the wedding planning process stress free and budget friendly. I personally work with every bride and coordinate every wedding. And, since we only book one wedding per day, every bride gets 100% attention from me and my staff.  We LOVE hosting weddings and making our brides happy!

What special romantic touches can a bride and groom expect at Cavender Castle on their wedding day?

First, our grounds are beautiful.  We have many, many locations that are perfect to capture that special photo of a lifetime.  Second, after every ceremony we arrange for the bride and groom to have a few private moments together at the top of our four story tower.  From this scenic location they can see for over fifty miles and dream about their future together.  And most importantly, my staff and I work really hard to make the wedding and reception flow flawlessly.  We make sure that the bride and groom are able to concentrate on each other, and not worry about what comes next, or how their guests are being treated.

What sites within the castle or on the grounds are available for wedding ceremonies?  What sites on the property would you recommend for wedding photo opportunities?

Let me answer your last question first….  We have countless locations for photos all around our nine acre estate.  Azaleas and blooming flowers are everywhere!  Photographers love having the choice of three fountains to pose their subjects in addition to using our Groom’s Walk, Matrimony Bridge, and of course, Cavender Castle as backdrops.

As for ceremony sites we offer four choices at The Castle. The largest is our Olde World Gazebo.  We provide up to 175 wedding chairs at this location, and there is standing room for hundreds more. 

The Blue Lagoon is an option for brides who want to have flowing water as a part of their ceremony.  The bride and groom state their vows under a wood gazebo as our fountain flows nearby.

The Top of The Tower is our smallest and most private ceremony site.  From here, the bride and groom are married while gazing out at a 360 degree view of the mountains.

Our final site is The King’s Ballroom.  The Ballroom is used primarily used as a ceremony site during the colder months, and is our back-up plan for rain year around.

Cavender Castle would provide a romantic backdrop for a theme wedding.  What advice can you give to couples who wish to contribute to the Olde World atmosphere through their choice of music, or the ceremony itself?

My first piece of advice would be to have their ceremony at The Olde World Gazebo.  Handcrafted in Italy, brides, grooms, and guests are easily transported back in time for the ceremony.

Second, we are able to arrange for brides to make a dramatic entrance as they are delivered to the Bride’s Walkway by horse drawn carriage.  One of our brides elected to forego the carriage and arrive on horseback.

As for music, we keep a variety of recorded music from that era in our library for brides and grooms to choose from.  For those wanting something special, we can arrange for Celtic musicians, a string ensemble, or for Bagpipes to play during the wedding.  There is nothing quite as memorable as bagpipes echoing from the hillsides with Cavender Castle in the background.

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Photos courtesy Cavender Castle