Wedding Venue Feature: Roger Williams Park Botanical Center
| Vibe and Features | Botanical garden within a greenhouse, surrounded by a huge park |
| Guest Capacity | 160 |
| Location | Floral Ave. Providence, RI 02905 |
| Similar Venues | Pond House Café, Eolia Mansion at Harkness Memorial State Park, Stone Acres Farm, Graduate Providence / The Biltmore |
Horticulture is the practice garden cultivation. Plants and weddings have gone hand in hand for centuries. If you’re a plant lover and planning to get married in Rhode Island, then a Roger Williams Botanical Garden wedding is probably what you need.
This post contains images taken by me while working with my friend Jessica Hosey Imagery.
About Roger Williams Park Botanical Garden
At 12,000 square feet and 40 feet tall, the Roger Williams Park Botanical Center’s (RWPBC) main building, called the Conservatory, was built in 2007 and designed by Torrado Architects. It’s open all year and maintained at a temperature of about 70 degrees. While it’s open to the public, a small admission fee is required (unlike Boston Public Garden).
To be accurate, RWPBC is actually 23,000 square feet in size in its entirety. This Providence botanical garden is home to plants both inside and out, spanning multiple buildings. Outside, the plant life is arranged in sort of a terraced manner. The inside is wheelchair accessible because the property has both stairs and smooth walkways.
Venue Vibe and Features
As a wedding venue, RWPBC is stunning and unique for the same reason: the endless plant life. Your wedding ceremony will take place in the Conservatory, which is a large square with some water features built into the floor as well as plant beds all around.
After your ceremony, you’ll have to have chairs transferred to the botanical center’s Mediterranean Room for your wedding reception. Cocktail hour begins in the same location as your ceremony; your hired bar and catering vendors will serve guests right there.
One great thing about a Roger Williams Botanical Garden wedding is that you essentially have use of the entire facility. This gives you quite a bit of freedom for portraits and photos. This makes this wedding venue great for a DIY couple.
Consider Hiring a Wedding Planner
As it’s part of a park owned by the City of Providence, RWPBC doesn’t have dedicated wedding staff. You’re going to have to separately book the following vendors and services, in addition to the normal things like a DJ and wedding photographer:
- Caterer and bar service
- Chair and table rentals
- People to set up decorations, move furniture around, etc.
Therefore, I strongly recommend hiring a wedding planner or day-of coordinator to help ensure that things run smoothly.
The Temple to Music at Roger Williams Park
Also located at Roger Williams Park is the Temple to Music. During your wedding at Roger Williams Botanical Center, you could easily jump into a car and head to this part of the park for photos. Remember to talk to the city about a permit for professional photography.
Roger Williams Botanical Center Wedding Cost
Here’s some information about the cost of booking a wedding at Roger Williams Park Botanical Center:
- For weekend weddings at the venue, the base fee is $3600 for five hours (a sixth hour can be added on for $550). Holidays cost more.
- The venue is open to the public until 4:00 PM. Technically, your Providence botanical garden wedding isn’t allowed to start until 5:00 PM.
- RWPBC provides no catering or bar service, so you’ll have to book these vendors separately and get them approved. There’s a small parking lot right next to the main greenhouse, perfect for a wedding food truck if you go that route.
- RWPBC also provides no furniture. Again, a wedding planner can easily help you with rentals.
- There’s a $300 fee for a catering tent, available from March through November if you need it.
- For $300, a photography permit can be purchased that allows you to take photos between 2:00 and 3:00 PM. Engagement sessions are allowed with the purchase of a permit for $150.
Hotels Near Roger Williams Park Botanical Center
Because it’s located in Providence, there are plenty of hotels near Roger Williams Park Botanical Center. They include Hilton Garden Inn Providence, Dye House, Edgewood Manor Inn Bed and Breakfast, and Courtyard by Marriott Providence Warwick. While this venue does have space to place belongings, there is no dedicated getting ready location on site.
Roger Williams Botanical Garden Wedding Photos
Here are some photos from a Providence botanical garden wedding at Roger Williams Botanical Center:
Learn More
Here’s how to inquire about your own Roger Williams Botanical Center wedding:
For more info about my work as a wedding photographer, just use these links.
