I had the pleasure of staying at the Sonesta Gwinnett Place recently and absolutely fell in love! One thing that I always tell our clients to look for when planning their destination wedding is to pick the perfect host hotel.  You want a place that not only serves as the hub for all of your events, but is also welcoming and has something for everyone.

The Sonesta Gwinnett Place has the ability to host all of your events– hospitality suites, welcome party, rehearsal dinner and reception.  An indoor ceremony is even a possibility depending upon your numbers.  One of my (many) favorite places was an event space right off of its ultra mod lobby.  It is an intimate space that immediately puts you in the mind of the Old Hollywood restaurant, The Brown Derby. It’s tiered layout and intimate round seating gave me all sorts of inspiration for vintage dinners and cabaret style cocktail parties!

The Ballroom has to be one of the most modern yet still objectively pleasing rooms I’ve been in at a hotel. The versatility of the room struck me– everything from the carpet to the lighting fixtures lend themselves to any type of event. Additionally, with the large size of the room, I see so many things there– custom bars, lounge areas, staging, draping, dramatic lighting and so much more.

I spent hours talking shop with the catering team and they were phenomenal.  Tracy and I talked for literally hours during our walkthrough and it was evident that she loves what she does and loves her clients. This is so important when working with your venue!

The ballroom isn’t the only great event space. Right outside of ballroom is a spacious lobby that could serve as a lounge or cocktail area.  The outdoor terraces are beautiful and spacious. In fact, I fell in love with the pool area.  While this would have to be special request worked out with the property, there are some  beautiful soirees that could happen around the pool!

I think the ARTBAR made the Sonesta  a truly unique experience.  Not that having large gift shop and radio station inside the hotel isn’t unique enough, but the ARTBAR was a special treat.  Each Sonesta has its own signature restaurant with different themes and specialties.  The Sonesta Gwinnett Place’s ARTBAR was a sleek, modern gastropub that offered high end, gourmet southern delicacies with several other unique one of a kind dishes.  The area is so relaxed, yet fun– with art on the walls from local artists, and croons from live musicians.  The pool table and TVs playing music videos from the 90s was a plus for this girl.

After dinner at the ARTBAR, I journeyed back to my room and fell out.  The bed had to have been made out of Ambien, as I was instantly relaxed.  Granted, I didn’t have my toddler tossing toys at me or the other three kids reenacting scenes from Game of Thrones, but the room was clean and comfortable.  Pretty soon, it was the TV watching me instead of the other way around!

Service was great all the way around– from the front desk to check out.  It was such a relaxing, yet immersive experience, I think it is perfect for weddings and social events!  Looking for a getaway for you and the girls or maybe a staycation, they have covered there too.  I’m definitely going back!