“We knew what we were looking for very early on; it was just a matter of whether it existed in the area we wanted. When we found The Birchwood, we knew it was a perfect fit: the stunning ballroom, the rooftop, the location, the in-house offerings, their pricing, and their lovely staff! We didn’t need to tour anywhere else. It was a no-brainer for us and exactly what we were praying for.

We wanted something that could host our guest count without feeling massive. This is underrated in the overall feel of any event. The Birchwood ballroom was a perfect balance between intimate while still being comfortable for our guest count. Not to mention, the ballroom is beautiful! Since my mother was doing the decor, it meant she didn’t need to do anything with the ceilings or walls.

Having great in-house food and drink was a massive relief. The entire staff, from the concierge to the servers, went above and beyond. We truly can’t thank them enough!”

“We envisioned a downtown St. Petersburg location that could showcase the city’s charm. The Birchwood stood out for its unique look and rooftop cocktail hour. We cannot speak highly enough of the Birchwood. Personally, I am a big believer in going with your gut and listening to your intuition. From the moment we walked in, I felt like this was what I had been dreaming of. If you are considering having your wedding in St. Petersburg, touring the Birchwood is a MUST.

The service is incredible; every step of the way, they supported us. Claire Lehman is the event sales manager, and she goes above and beyond for her couples. Wedding planning has been known to be a stressful process. Claire calmed all our worries, gave us confidence in our decisions, offered expert advice, answered all our questions promptly, and ultimately gave us the wedding of our dreams. It went better than we could have ever imagined. I was a very hands-on bride during planning and was wondering how everything comes together. I learned that it all tied together through Claire’s helping hands.”

“We wanted a venue that was timeless and convenient for our guests. We wanted a mixed option of indoors, away from the heat, and outdoors, to enjoy the Florida weather! The Birchwood had that with the ballroom, balcony, and rooftop.

“The Birchwood is a place that we were very familiar with. We love The Canopy and frequent their happy hours for a delicious mango margarita or an espresso martini. We also celebrated Thomas’s birthday dinner there. We loved The Birchwood for our wedding because the majority was included in the price. From our first walkthrough with Claire, we felt like everything would be taken care of, and they had a solution for everything. We loved that the ceremony, reception, food, drinks, staff, etc, were all included in the cost. It did not feel at all like there were any hidden costs, which we felt like at other walkthroughs we had done. We also loved that we could do the after party on the rooftop, which holds a special place in our hearts.”

“We considered a few things when looking for a wedding venue. We wanted a venue that would comfortably fit our guest list without feeling too cramped or too cavernous. We looked at some beautiful outdoor venues but were anxious about weather backup; we wanted a venue where the experience would be great no matter the weather. It did end up raining for part of our wedding, and we barely noticed because we were already inside, so we’re glad we did that! We were also intimidated by the idea of DIY decorating a blank canvas, so we wanted a venue with its own personality and existing design elements we could build on. Plus, since we don’t live in Florida, it was important we found a venue with a team that was communicative and could handle things from afar.

“The Birchwood was an amazing wedding venue. Everyone we worked with was great, but our main point of contact was Marlice, and our experience with her was excellent. You can tell The Birchwood has weddings down to a science without feeling cookie-cutter or impersonal. Catering was all in-house, and the chef went out of his way to assure us multiple times that we could make specific requests for different dishes if needed (such as ‘this guest prefers their steaks very well done’ and other similar requests, which is way beyond what we expected). Marlice also gave us multiple first dance practices on the official dance floor two days before the wedding at our walkthrough, staying behind to film us and cheer us on.”

For our reception, we wanted a venue with a ballroom, an outdoor space, and a view of Tampa Bay. Our favorite date night is going to downtown St. Pete for dinner and then heading to The Birchwood for a drink on the rooftop.

We chose The Birchwood because we love the location, it holds special meaning for us, and it checked all the boxes for what we envisioned in a venue. The service was amazing!

We knew we wanted to be in downtown St. Pete, and a view of the water was ideal. With it being Florida, we were worried about the rain so we definitely wanted the wedding inside to not have to deal with the hassle of last-minute changes. We also wanted it to be easy to navigate to for some of guests that needed extra accommodations. A venue with a hotel was also a plus, because over half of our guest list was from out of town.

The Birchwood made things so easy from start to finish. It was not only our venue but also took care of our catering, tables, chairs, linens, uplighting, and bar. Their staff was phenomenal in helping us plan and serve our guests during our night.

I looked for a venue that had a lot to offer and was in a great location. I wanted a beautiful space where I could do both the ceremony and reception.

I can absolutely say The Birchwood provided amazing service! I could go on and on about them! From the minute we signed our contract with them until the end of the wedding day, they were the absolute best.

The Birchwood is in a great location in downtown St. Pete and offers so much to help you have an amazing wedding day. I love that they have so much to offer, unlike other venues that just provide a space. On top of that, the food they serve is so delicious!

“The feel of our reception was most important to us: the music, lighting, location, great cocktail hour on the roof and beautiful custom altar, it needed to feel like a fairytale. Every person that we know has told us that they have never been to such an incredible wedding.”

“We wanted a unique venue, water views, and good food. We found all of that at The Birchwood. I loved the look, the rooftop space for cocktail hour and the fact that we would be the only wedding there that weekend. Their service was incredible. They made planning process as easy as possible, the food was incredible, and the hotel stay was wonderful for all of our guests. We also wanted the wedding to feel intimate; being a boutique hotel with only 18 rooms, our friends and family pretty much had the hotel to ourselves which was so much fun! Having the wedding at The Birchwood gave some great options for places for our guests to stay while being surrounded by great restaurants, museums, and shopping.”

“I love everything about the Birchwood: the food, the Prosecco glasses, the staff, the managers and the view! The Birchwood tops all other downtown St. Pete venues because it’s just cool, elegant yet sexy, fresh and the food is delicious! Their ballroom is gorgeous, and the hotel itself is amazing to stay at and get ready in! Much of the décor lends itself to amazing pictures too. We had a black-tie cocktail hour and reception at The Canopy rooftop and The Birchwood Grand Ballroom. We wanted it high-class, yet nautical and glamorous, and we feel like we nailed it! The Birchwood offers the best views of downtown ever! What more could we have asked for?! Amazing!”

“We wanted a venue that was convenient for our family, since we have a few family members with limited mobility. The Birchwood had everything all in one location (a restaurant, hotel, ballroom and after party), and we could get married outside, which was one of the main things we looked for in a venue. The people we worked with at The Birchwood were phenomenal! You could tell they were very experienced with big events and weddings because they were organized and full of helpful hints and tips for us. The food was unbelievable too and everything was served quickly and hot! The bartenders and wait staff were all friendly and helpful too. They did an amazing job.”

“We knew that we wanted something classic and elegant, and The Birchwood definitely delivered. From day one, everyone we worked with was extremely responsive and flexible. We wanted our entire wedding to be vegan, and all of the staff at The Birchwooddidn’t even bat an eye! The banquet chef was open to creating a plant based menu, and he was genuinely excited about it. The whole staff had such a great attitude about it. This was absolutely not the case with any other venue or catering company we talked to.

We also loved the elegant ballroom and the rooftop canopy bar, with breathtaking sunset views of the marina and the St. Petersburg skyline. We wanted our ceremony to take place in nature, so we were pleased that The Birchwood is right across the street from a pretty park and the water. The bridal suite was gorgeous, and they delivered a nice plate of our appetizers and mojitos to us during our cocktail hour so that we could have a moment alone before making a grand entrance to our reception. When we walked into our reception, it was more than we ever could have hoped for! The sweetheart table they set up for us was so beautiful, and there were many little touches that we never would have thought of that pulled everything together perfectly. Our wedding guests were raving about the food, and they were surprised that eating an all plant-based meal could taste so good! At the end of the night, a few of us went up to The Canopy rooftop bar and enjoyed a few drinks and some cupcakes in a cabana. When we returned to the bridal suite, a bottle of champagne was waiting. It was all so magical. The Birchwood staff thought of every little detail, and worked very hard to make our day as special as possible. Every step of the way, we knew that we had chosen the right venue.”

“We looked for a venue where you could do a cocktail hour separate from the reception, somewhat of a water view, newer, walking distance to hotels and where drinks and food was catered from within. The price at The Birchwood was much better compared to a lot of other hotels. The food was very good, the open bar was a fair price and the ballroom with the balcony off of it, you can’t beat it!”

“My parents are the owners of The Birchwood, and it was really important to me to have our reception there. Even though The Birchwood is my family’s business, I hadn’t experienced the venue’s service as a bride. The sales manager, Mary Barnett, helped us create an ideal floor plan for our guest count, choose our food choices and drink tier and worked with my wedding planner on an emergency plan B for the rainy day. She also kept in touch with me through the weeks leading up to the big day to assure that all details went smoothly, and the vendors were all up to date on everything. I will never forget the moment I stepped in the ballroom and saw everything put together. The flowers, table linens, place settings, lighting, and details were exquisite. We received multiple compliments from our guests about the food (the bone-in filet was to die for) and the drinks, particularly the wine (which Dennis, the in-house sommelier helped us pair with dinner!). The service and experience the Birchwood provided was above and beyond our expectations.”

“What first stood out to us about the venue was how stunning the ballroom was! The Birchwood was done so beautifully that I decided to keep centerpieces and decorations minimal to really enjoy the beauty of the space. The functionality of the space was also a huge draw for us; we held our ceremony, cocktail hour, and reception all in the ballroom and ballroom foyer, which worked perfectly for us and our 70 guests. We also love downtown St. Pete, and we had a really wonderful view of the water and the rest of downtown from the ballroom. The Birchwood was also extremely affordable in comparison to other all-inclusive venues that we looked into. Overall, we had a really wonderful experience with everyone at The Birchwood; they were quick to respond to calls and emails, and were accommodating to everything we needed!”

“Of course, price was our first deciding factor. After that, we just wanted the most beautiful space for our money! Ironically, I always said no hotel ballrooms! But when I walked into The Birchwood’s fourth floor ballroom, it was so stunning! The décor was so elegant and the beautiful built-in bar was a definite plus, but the huge windows overlooking Beach Drive and the Vinoy Yacht Basin really sold us. It was the perfect spot to satisfy our wish of being on the water and feeling open and airy, while still hosting in an elegant atmosphere. We also hosted cocktail hour downstairs in a private space at the Birch and Vine Restaurant, and invited people up to The Canopy Rooftop bar after for drinks. Our dads were the last ones to leave and didn’t want the party to end!”

“We wanted convenience, location, good bones (with the interior and exterior), outdoor ceremony options, and great food! I loved the beautiful interior of The Birchwood: the crown molding, light bulb chandeliers, and waterfront balcony view! The staff is also incredibly kind and very attentive. The easy win factor for this venue is hands down the food.”

“Our first impression was extremely positive. We immediately loved the atmosphere, look, and location! It definitely met our requirements of timeless and elegance. We realized that we could utilize multiple floors, including their wrap-around porch, cocktail areas, and rooftop bar.”

“The Birchwood was incredible! We did not begin our planning process with a planner, so their service was greatly appreciated. They were always eager to answer our millions of questions and really treated my family with top quality service. Without The Birchwood’s superior staff, our wedding would not have been possible.”

“The second we toured The Birchwood, it was decided. It had everything we could have imagined. The beautifully restored historic 18-room hotel was intimate enough for our family to all be on-site together for the weekend. Something that was important to us was having an indoor ceremony at the same location as our reception. The Birchwood staff easily flipped the same space during cocktail hour to accommodate our request. It was perfect. There wasn’t one thing about the Birchwood that I would change! From the moment we secured our date, the service we absolutely impeccable.”

“The Birchwood ballroom is so beautiful and the location is second to none. During the whole process, everyone made wedding planning so easy and enjoyable. I was incredibly pleased with the service they provided, and was even more thrilled with the food!”

“The Birchwood had everything I envisioned for my wedding theme. Their colors and vintage ambiance was exactly what I was looking for, and the water view from the ballroom’s balcony was a huge plus. From start to finish, The Birchwood’s service was impeccable! They were calming, professional, knowledgeable and overall full of great people. They were everything and then some!”

“What really stood out to us about The Birchwood were their gorgeous waterfront views and convenient downtown location. We also loved that fact that they offered catering and a full-service kitchen on site, which made it so much easier to coordinate for day-of logistics. From start to finish, the service was exceptional, and we loved being able to fully customize our menu. The Birchwood did an amazing job working with us to create some special items for our cocktail hour, like Cuban sandwiches and Philly cheesesteaks. Getting to add in those little details added the personal touch we were looking for.”

“We received 5-star service! Everyone at the Birchwood was so helpful and understanding through the entire process. The team at the Birchwood really helped me through the process, understood my need for organization, and treated us so well from the moment I checked in the night before to the day of our actual wedding.”