Man, oh, man! If you are looking for a "local" destination wedding...French Lick is THE PLACE! Truly, I was amazed when I saw it! My assistant Pam and I went to French Lick this past week for their Wedding Destination Preview and WOW, I just can't say enough nice things about our Amazing experience! Not only did they pamper US as the wedding planners (a rare treat as we're usually the ones behind the scenes taking care of the preparations) but we also toured the properties that included ENDLESS options for Wedding Ceremony and Reception locations.
(this is West Baden main entrance)
The resort has SO MUCH to offer with 2 historic hotels (French Lick Springs & West Baden Springs), 3 golf courses, a Casino, 2 Phenomenal Spas, Several Restaurants and a Horse Stables for riding...to name a few! We stayed overnight at the West Baden Springs Resort property and it was UNBELIEVABLE! It underwent a huge renovation and reopened last July and it is breathtaking!
(A view from my room's balcony!)
(This picture of the bedroom is better than my picture...I had already taken over my room by the time I thought about taking a picture! ugh!) It was so stunning and Comfy too! Here's the Bathroom:

The wedding sales team at French Lick & West Baden were terrific and would be great to work with. I can't wait to have a wedding there!

(Dee, Kathy, Liz & Melody from Left to Right)
They really wined us and dined us to give us a taste of what they would do for their Bride's and they do it right! We were greeted at valet & the front desk with extremely courteous & helpful staff then we were whisked away to the incredible spa at West Baden for their Signature Massage! Heaven! Our massage was followed by a yummy lunch in the Atrium you see above (one option for a ceremony or reception or both-you can block off part of it or if your party is large enough you can reserve the whole thing, and you can have amplified music in that atrium past 9pm if you book all of the interior rooms (97 rooms) which isn't hard to do if everyone is traveling in...my opinion)
This is another view of the atrium at night with the cool lighting:
We had a lovely cocktail hour overlooking the beautiful venue location of the Main Lobby at West Baden-which can be blocked off to be made private. LOVE this option! Dance Floor could be in the center of this round room. Love that...and you could do cocktails in all sorts of options-outside in the gardens, on the veranda, in the mezzanine above...the list goes on and on!
Then we tolley'd over to the French Lick Resort Event Center for a YUMMY gourmet 5 course meal in the beautiful Windsor Ballroom! And the creme de la creme were the individual wedding cakes they served to us for dessert! So tasty and pretty. They were all different! What a treat!


After we were stuffed we hung out with our wedding planner friends for a bit and some headed to the casino but we were exhausted and headed back to our comfy bed for the next days fun tours!
This is a picture of the French Lick side of the resort (well part of it...you can see the casino that of course has to be on water...)

The Royal Treatment was continuous...I could get used to that! In Room Breakfast Dining with Blueberry Pancakes...my FAVORITE!

I loved our Welcome Gift Basket too! Thank you Frenck Lick Sales & Catering Team!

We hated to check out of our rooms but I've saved the best for last...the tour! It makes me so excited for a hopeful wedding there in the future! The Gardens at West Baden are a PERFECT setting for a Ceremony! (Any size really...perfect places for small or large)
Isn't that view of the West Baden so pretty!

(I'd love to go back in a few weeks to see all the flowers in full bloom!)
Rain options abound too from this pretty Hygeia (spelling?) building that would make the cutest Wedding Chapel! to the great many porches that are normally filled with rocking chairs but can easily be transformed to a ceremony location!


We then went over to the French Lick properties and saw some of their pretty options for ceremonies and receptions...a few favorites were:

And the mezzanine of their really pretty refurbished lobby at the French Lick Resort is so nice:

Then we saw some of the beautiful rooms and suites at both properties...I of course was smitten with the Presidential Suite at West Baden but who wouldn't be with over 3000 Square feet of living space in it!
To top it all off we had a lovely lunch at the 1875 Restaurant that was decorated so beautifully in silver leaf- I think it would be perfect for a rehearsal dinner or Bridal Luncheon!

So, a few more things that excite me about French Lick...they have the "Stables" at French Lick as well that offer horseback riding and a really fun Chow Wagon Dinner Party with Hay Ride...now wouldn't that be a fun and different Rehearsal Dinner and it's right there on property! I'm loving that too! There is so much more that I could tell you about...the horse drawn carriages, the old timey cars, the pluto springs, not to mention that every morsel of food we ate (and we ate a bunch) was DELICIOUS! Seriously! I was very pleased with everything!
The next thing you may not know is that French Lick is a hop skip and a jump away from Louisville. We made it just at an hour from Louisville! Seriously!! How perfect is that...not far away at all! In my opinion...it's GREAT!

Well, if you can't tell from this post...the folks at French Lick made me a very happy wedding planner...can't wait to go back! You must try it out...if not for your wedding, be sure to think about a fun bachelor/bachelorette weekend or even go there for a honeymoon...it's just wonderful with so much to do!
See how happy Pam and I were at the West Baden!!