How the day works
Planning
Think about the relationship between ceremony location, town, dinner, lodging, and guest transportation rather than treating the reception room in isolation.
union hotel wedding venue guide
Union Hotel: planning notes from weddings we photographed.
An old-town Sonoma setting near redwoods, with a restaurant-led reception and a less conventional venue feel.
The photographs and planning notes below come from a complete wedding we photographed here. Confirm current pricing, capacity, access, and policies directly with the venue.
What the photographs need
Light and movement
Occidental adds streets, architecture, and community around the forest landscape.
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Related context
Before signing
Test Union Hotel against the day guests will actually experience.
Trace the route from arrival through the ceremony, cocktails, dinner, and the end of the night. At Union Hotel, the useful question is not simply whether each space looks good on its own, but whether people can move between them without long waits, unclear directions, lost belongings, or a transportation problem. The character of the place—an old-town sonoma setting near redwoods, with a restaurant-led reception and a less conventional venue feel.—should remain part of the experience once the rooms are full.
Ask the current venue team about capacity by layout, sound and end times, rain or heat alternatives, accessibility, vendor access, parking or shuttles, power, rentals, and which spaces are included. Then walk the photography plan through the same route. InOccidental · Sonoma County, available light and travel can change quickly; a strong plan protects the gathering first and uses the setting without turning the wedding into a tour of it.
- Confirm the current floor plan, capacity, and weather alternative
- Walk every guest and vendor transition in order
- Check sound, access, parking, rentals, power, and the real end time
- Keep portrait travel shorter than the social time it replaces
A complete story at Union Hotel
Redwood wedding at the Union Hotel, Occidental
This Gorgeous Redwood wedding at the Union Hotel , in Occidental, Gave us all the feels. It wasn't really a surprise. We knew we liked the couple a lot when they let Laurent drive their boat during the engagement shoot , but their wedding made us fall madly in love with them! one partner surprised the other partner with an original song for their first look, and if that doesn't have you crying right away then don't be surprised if you start bawling by their gorgeous redwood forest ceremony -- or maybe you're already dead inside . In any case, words don't really do this wedding justice so we added some music to give you all the feels, enjoy.
See the full story
No awkward posing
The place matters. The people make the photographs.
We plan enough to use the venue well, then keep attention on the wedding as it unfolds.
Tell us about the day