It is inevitable in travel that the places you visit will become associated with a certain stage or time in your life. Even if your visit isn’t for a milestone occasion, when you think of that location, you also think of what was happening in your life during that time. 

After this weekend, the town of Waitsfield, Vt., will for me be forever associated with one thing … my wedding! Back in January of this year, my fiancé and I selected the 1824 House as our wedding venue. With limited vacation time and an 8-hour drive separating us from Waitsfield, we had to throw caution to the wind and put our trust in the rave reviews and fantastic photos we saw online and book the site unseen.

From the very start I knew we made the right decision. The 1824 House is owned by Occasions Catering, which also owns the Linen Shop out of Rochester, Vt. Paige from Occasions helped me through every step of planning, from the linens, to the bar, to the menu of all local and organic foods. As I selected other vendors (including Schoolhouse Garden for my flowers, Birke Photography and Afterglow Salon for our hair and makeup), I began to realize what a small community I was working with and how lucky I was to have chosen it.    

With the final items on my checklist done, it was at last time to head north for the big event. Our family and friends were welcomed by the 1824 House managers Sarah and Greg, filling their eight beautiful rooms. It was so easy to make ourselves at home, gathering around the table while Sarah made cookies in the evening or breakfast in the morning. We enjoyed games on the lawn including cricket, bocce and corn hole. We jumped from rocks into the swimming hole just across the street. And we spent our evenings surrounding the bonfire and looking up at the stars. All the while, Occasions took care of all the details, putting up the tent and preparing the barn for our wedding reception. 

When Saturday afternoon arrived, it was 73 degrees, sunny and not a cloud in the sky. We hired a shuttle bus to pick up our guests at neighboring inns including the Yellow Farmhouse Inn, Wilder Inn, Sugar Lodge and the Pitcher Inn. We asked them to meet us on top of the hill behind the 1824, quite a steep climb in fact, where we held our ceremony looking out over the Mad River Valley. From there it was a night of great food, laughter and dancing, all led by RPM Entertainment owner Richard Pitonyak. Many guests lost their voices, and possibly a few pounds, from dancing and singing the night away with Richard.

We had such an outstanding time. I cannot wait to return to the 1824 House on many occasions in the future and reflect on all of the fun we had.  

— Danielle Hudena, executive vice president