Wedding Planning Guide

We are able to give guests in need a ride to and from the ceremony. We typically give one ride at a time (depending on guest mobility) beginning 20 minutes before your ceremony start time.

It is very helpful if we know the approximate number of rides needed and if you have guests in wheelchairs or other assistive equipment.

Upon your request, we can also give cart rides to the bridal party to get to the ceremony or nearby photography locations.

Parking for caterer’s is located at the Catering Bay. If your caterer has not been to our venue before, they may wish for Monarch Valley to show them where to park.

Inside the Event barn, the caterer may use the Catering Bay as a curtained work station—except when the Catering Bay is being used as the buffet location or for another use.

There is a large sink with fresh water inside the Supply Closet of the Event Barn. Most caterer’s do not need access to the Banquet Room kitchen, but they are welcome to use it.

If you having a plated food service, or other alternative to a buffet, please check-in with us so that we may discuss a few details.

You should discuss insurance and liability options with any caterer.

Occasionally, couples choose to have their ceremony at a local church instead of on our lawns.

The church ceremony is an alternative option that can blend in seamlessly with your wedding at Monarch Valley. You’d just have your guests meet at the church for the ceremony first. After the ceremony, everyone would make the short drive (or shuttle ride) from the church to Monarch Valley.

Of course, we love, love, love our outdoor ceremonies, but opting for a church ceremony can add an extra sense of faith, tradition, and formality to your wedding experience, if that’s what you’re going for. Not to mention the fact that it’s weather-proof and that some of the architecture in these small town churches can be unexpectedly stunning!

It’s also worth noting that most denominations allow pastors/priests to officiate weddings offsite.

Check out our inventory or schedule a planning visit to see the decorations we offer. After your wedding, you should plan to remove the decorations and items that you brought in.

We allow staples as long as you take them back out. Command Strips are great to use. However, extra-gummy florist tapes may cause damage charges.

On a perfect day, the doors of the Event Barn will be open to create a cross-breeze. Make sure your table settings are secured!! Avoid name cards unless you tape or weight them down. Ideally, even cloth napkins should be weighted or folded in a way that resists breeze. If flower arrangements are tall, vases should be very sturdy.

We do not provide tablecloths or tableware for the reception dinner. Check with your caterer, as they may have options. Or, check out Facebook Marketplace or other sites to buy used items at a discount. It’s often cheaper to buy new tablecloths than it is to rent (though we think rentals are worth the price!). Consider if you will want an ironed/steamed look or if you are ok with fold marks. Then build in enough time to iron accordingly. Alternatively, you may quick-wash the tablecloths in small batches (please no more that 5 at a time in our machines), semi-dry them, then drape them over tables to finish drying with a spritz of your own wrinkle releaser spray.

For those with a minimal aesthetic, you may request for us to remove the antique farm items from shelves in the Event Barn. Most items can be removed, except for certain items that are permanently attached to walls.

We have decorative string lighting (and regular lighting) on the ceiling and railing of the Event Barn, as well as in the Beer Garden and around the Fireplace. If you wish to add additional decorative lighting, it should be simple for you to install—you should not plan to install extra ceiling lights without a professional.

Ceiling drapery is very rarely added by couples. We have ladders to use if you would like to hang drapes, but you should plan a considerable amount time to install and remove such drapery. Any ceiling drapery must be securely installed to prevent safety issues.

We have curtains on the three lower doors of the Event Barn.

DJ’s must arrive with all music pre-downloaded to ensure proper playback. They should not rely on wi-fi for any of their DJ needs.

Every DJ and band requires a unique amount of space for their equipment. Please be sure to discuss space and set-up needs with your DJ in advance. This is very important because the DJ usually arrives last (at a time when you’ll be unavailable) and we want to avoid having them arrive with more equipment than there is space allotted for.

We have extension cords to cross the lawn for your DJ at the outdoor ceremony.

To avoid long buffet lines, we recommend having your DJ announce which table numbers should go through the buffet one or two tables at a time. Starting with any tables that will be removed to create the dance floor (so that those guests will have extra time to finish their meal).

Typically, the dance floor is created by removing a set number of tables and chairs after dinner. This works best if you create an intermission after dinner where guests will naturally leave their seats—and not be required to sit back down for speeches, cake cutting, etc. We will ask your DJ to announce this intermission so that guests understand when and why their tables are being removed. It’s even better if you’ve filled these tables with family or party members who will be understanding of losing their table after dinner.

If Monarch Valley is working alone to create the dance floor, then your intermission should be timed for 5 minutes per table being removed.

If you don’t have a DJ, you may request use of our sound system. Our sound system consists of two speakers and one wireless, hand-held microphone. The speakers also have input for laptops, phones, ipads, etc, so that you can play music.

Monarch Valley staff will set up our sound equipment at your requested times. However, someone from your group would need to be responsible for managing the mics and music during the ceremony or reception.

This is a complimentary offering meant to help reduce your music costs here and there. However, we are not music professionals and do not have backup equipment in the case of a break or rare failure.

Here are our speakers: sweetwater.com/store/detail/PassConfS2–fender-audio-passport-conference-s2-portable-pa-system

Here is our receiver/microphone set: sweetwater.com/store/detail/BLX288PG58-H10–shure-blx288-pg58-dual-channel-wireless-handheld-microphone-system-h10-band

We have plenty of extension cords to cross the lawn.

All fireplaces are wood-burning and we supply all the wood needed. Monarch Valley staff will start all fires. Guests usually enjoy adding logs to the outdoor fireplace, but we’ll maintain it if not.

The indoor fireplaces are only started upon request or when the temperature calls for it.

You can use the outdoor fireplace for S’mores. But please avoid any other cooking over the fireplaces and use the grill we provide instead.

Special Event Insurance is not required but can help limit your liability in the event of an incident. If you choose a vendor who is unlicensed (especially a food or liquor vendor) we highly recommend you get a special event insurance policy for each day of your rental. Oftentimes homeowners or renters insurance will offer special event insurance, so it’s good to start your search there. Or, we can recommend the insurance company that we use.

Every so often rain, a hot spell, a cold spell, or even snow, can happen and your plans may need to adjust. We will do our best to advise, but will look to you (except where safety is concerned) to decide to move your outdoor ceremony inside or not.

Our three-season Pavilion/Event Barn does not have insulation, forced heating, or central air. We can make it cooler by opening up all four corners of the barn as there is often a breeze. We have high-powered fans to help with air flow. Or, we can close up all the doors and add our temporary heaters.

We have heating and air conditioning in our Lodge and Banquet Room.

If needed, we’ll discuss the weather plan with you once you arrive at the venue (or a few days in advance in certain circumstances).

We do not provide industrial storage space for ice—only a variety of coolers/ice chests and the two kitchen freezers. If you are having a beer trailer, that can be a great place to store ice chests over the weekend.

Plan to fill up our freezers first, then bring in the rest of your ice on Saturday to immediately place into your drinks bins and ice chests.

Monarch Valley does not provide bulk ice. We recommend Kwik Trip in either Blair (5 miles, 511 W 4th St, Blair, WI 54616) or Whitehall (7 miles, 36281 Main St, Whitehall, WI 54773).

For other needs, both of these towns have a Dollar General. Whitehall has a hardware store and small grocery store.

You decide who stays at the lodge. There are 5 bedrooms, each with two beds and a private bathroom. For guests staying off-site, offering a shuttle service can be a nice touch. Camper/RV parking and tent camping are available by request.

Monarch Valley staff will only enter the living area of the Lodge if tending to the fireplace, or upon request.

There is gravel parking and we will provide parking signs. It very helpful if overnight guests park as far back in the lot as possible so guests arriving for the ceremony can park closer.

Having a lot of RVs reduces available parking space, while shuttles help reduce the amount of parking needed.

For the best experience, you may wish to assign one of your helpers as a parking assistant in the 45 minutes leading up to your ceremony. Monarch Valley can advise parking assistants, but our small staff is giving cart rides at this time.

We have five RV parking spaces, each with an electrical hook-up (but no water access or waste removal). Bathrooms in our nearby Event Barn and Banquet Room will be open to guests at all times.

We charge $50 per RV, per weekend to park an RV.

All RVs and tent campers MUST SCHEDULE A CHECK-IN TIME with Monarch Valley in advance. Upon arrival, RVs and tent campers will make their payment and receive parking/camping assignments from Monarch Valley staff.

Our rural-ness shows when it comes to wireless internet. You will only have access to wi-fi in the Lodge but not in the Event Barn or on the lawns. Plan to download any music ahead of time.

We welcome you to schedule a photography visit on the farm in the months leading up to your wedding. Use your session to take engagement or family photos with your photographer. This is complementary.

You can schedule additional venue walk-throughs with us. You are welcome to bring along vendors or other helpers who would benefit from seeing the space beforehand. We do not accept tours or visits during wedding rentals.

Monarch Valley provides all the trash receptacles and liners/bags you should need.

At this time, the only recycling we offer is for soda/beer cans. So going with as many canned beverages as possible is a great strategy.

To incorporate additional recycling, low-waste, or zero-waste goals—you are encouraged to take a waste-reduction strategy. Single-use dinnerware produces the most landfill, so you can hire a plated service with rented dinnerware. Bartenders can be instructed to sort their empty glass bottles in separate containers. But if a guest throws a plastic cup into a plastics recycling bin, along with a straw and muddled fruits, then the bag becomes landfill unless you sort it yourself (or find a center that will sort it for you). Expecting guests to self-sort additional recycling will require a lot large bins, instructions, and additional sorting afterwards.

The option to decline our Venue Staffing Service (previously referred to as our Set-up, Take-down, & Cleaning Service) is for couples looking to keep costs down. Going this route boils down to a “leave it like you found it” or “DIY” policy.

Here are the differences between going DIY and taking our Venue Staffing Service:

If you decide to go DIY, please note:

1. The crew helping you – whether it’s your wedding party or your family – is expected to follow our venue rules on where and how to store our inventory, as well as follow the cleanliness standards we offer. We recommend you set expectations around take-down and clean-up with your helpers in advance.
2. We will give you an orientation upon arrival and will be available to provide ladders, tools, advice, and instruction during your set-up.
3. We will provide you with printed copies of our DIY Take Down & Cleaning Checklist for all your day-after responsibilities. We also provide all the towels and cleaning supplies you’ll need.