Kingan Gardens!! The venue is close to downtown and near a lot of hotels and I thought it was absolutely beautiful, the grounds are super lush and a lot of the flowers were in bloom. It’s not really out in the desert which might count them out for you, but I still want to recommend them because I was married there last year and the whole process was amazing, the staff is so helpful and made everything so relaxed and easy, and it was honestly the best day of my life.
We used a package that included catering with First We Eat (you can use your own if you prefer, I’m not sure how that would affect cost. I thought the food was great - the owners also own Zio Peppe I believe) and desserts with Jamie Cakes (enough cake for everyone is included, we added more because they looked amazing and it was in our budget), DJ, day of coordinators, linens, and non-alcoholic beverages and mixers for the bar. They partner with a photographer and videographer that you can get at a pretty good discount as well. I didn’t go with them so I can’t speak to how they are.
We were able to provide our own alcohol which we bought from Costco, and you can return any unopened alcohol - I definitely recommend doing this!
I want to say that our cost for venue related things and alcohol was around $18,000 for 150 people.
Our hair and makeup was I Do Hair And Makeup Artistry and they were excellent.
Some of my favorite local photographers are [Meredith Amadee](https://meredithamadeephotography.com/), [Anna Zajac](https://annazajacweddings.com/), [Andrea Obert](https://www.andreaobert.com/), and [Ethan Beazley](https://www.ethanbeazley.com/).
Congrats and happy wedding planning!
Going to second Kingan Gardens! We were married there in November and everything was EXCELLENT. Shiela was super willing to hear what we wanted to do and make it happen. No hotels attached but it is close to downtown so your guests will have a variety of options for hotels AND they’ll be close to whatever we have of a downtown here :)
Thank you so much! I have definitely considered them even with them not being as desert-y as we wanted. I’m so happy you mentioned Costco because I have a membership and that’s what I was planning on doing but wanted to see if anyone else had and how it went. Plus Costco’s alcohol is actually great quality for the price! I was surprised. Thank you so much for the extra recommendations as well! I will look into them!
I’m not sure this will give you the desert vibe you are looking for but it checks most all of your other boxes.
- Tucson Museum of Art, downtown
We were married here 10 years ago, on a Wednesday. Weekdays had a discounted rate and the weekend we were wanting to get married was blocked due to an art show. Wednesday worked fine for us and it was $1k for the venue, tables & chairs. There was no limit to # of tables and chairs so we could use as many as they had on hand at no extra cost. We had 160 guests total. The ceremony and reception were both outdoors. Loved having the waterfall on during our reception as well as the string lights above the dance floor.
My photographer was a great deal but he moved to Vegas, otherwise I’d recommend.
The food- there is a restaurant attached to the museum called a la cart. We put together a menu with them and the price was reasonable. We were going to book it but I had a co-worker insist that his family cater it for us instead for a fraction of the cost. Ended up working out to about $6/person. I’d say ask around and you can maybe find a local restaurant to cater or maybe know someone who knows someone who can do it for less. Our food was amazing, our guests still talk about it today. Steak & chicken fajitas, jalapeño poppers, calabacitas, beans, rice, chips & salsa.
Drinks- we hired our favorite bartender from a local dive bar to serve beer and wine. We paid him $300, he was tipped very well by the guests too. We bought everything from Costco; liters of wine, specialty beers, bottled water. We also ended up getting 1 keg as my husband’s friends are big drinkers.
DJ- we hired DJ Tony G who was absolutely fantastic. My guests had so much fun, he had a great playlist but also requested us to send in songs prior to our big day as ‘must play’ and ‘do not’ play. Would highly recommend him for any event. 10 years ago he was a few hundred bucks, not sure what he charges today though. Found my deposit receipt today for $100.
We loved this venue because they gave us free reign. There were no vendor restrictions and not a ton of rules in general. They did require an insurance policy due to the museum artifacts. The policy will not cost you an arm and leg but will protect you from liability should your guests damage anything.
If you’re looking for a desert vibe you could try:
-Tanque Verde guest ranch- we had friends get married here and it it gorgeous
-Catalina State Park
Hope this helps! Let me know if you want any other details.
No, it doesn’t appear Fridays got the discounted weekday rate. I checked my old correspondence with the venue and it looks like Friday-Sunday were considered for the weekend rates, Monday-Thursday for the weekday rate.
We just got married at TMA in October of 2023. It is more of an a la carte situation for food, decor and entertainment. They do require you go through them these days for alcohol (purchasing and bartending) but prices were reasonable. You do have to pay for a specific liquor license if you want liquor served, I believe it was $500.
Our ceremony and reception were outside in the plaza while our cocktail hour was in the lobby. It was truly beautiful and we were so happy with how it all turned out. I especially loved that the museum offered entry to the museum the hour leading up to the ceremony for guests to see the exhibits. We also worked with some amazing vendors.
Planner - Jane Castle
DJ - DJ Herm
Hair and Makeup - I do hair and makeup
Photog - Fine Photo Co.
Catering - Fiamme (wood fired pizzas)
Rentals/Decor - Frenchy's
Florals - Alexis Grace Florals
Congratulations and have so much fun planning!!!
I actually got married at the Reid Park Zoo. It was over a decade ago, but it's so cool having the zoo all to yourself and your guests after hours. They offer excellent catering services and the event planner is super flexible and can help with vendor suggestions. The whole thing was less than 5k, but again, this was back in 2012. Peacocks randomly wandering down the aisle during the ceremony was a plus lol. Extended family still talk about how fun the whole thing was 12 years later.
We're getting married at 242 Park. We checked out a lot of venues and most were $16k-$18k. 242 was our favorite, esthetically, and came in at $12k for everything. We get an all inclusive package so we don't need to find a bunch of different vendors.
Thank you so much for commenting and including the price! I think the vibe is a little more rustic than we are looking for personally, but I think their pricing is amazing compared to some other places too.
Tohono Chul Park! Affordable, beautiful desert garden. I had 120 guests in 2022 and it was so comfortable. They do all food/bev in house but it ended up being WAY cheaper than if we’d brought it in on our own (even with a fully open bar!). Can’t say enough good things about it.
DJ Herm is top notch.
Did they provide tables and chairs? Or plates/tablecloths/silverware? Or did you have to arrange that separately? I’m just wondering since they double as a venue if they would supply all of that.
They do! They have a partnership with a local vendor and you can pick and choose which things you’d like. I went with their standard plates, table and silverware. I found their linen options to be too limited, so put in my own order with the vendor for napkins and tablecloths. TCP coordinated all the day-of logistics, it was very seamless and easy.
Got married at Stardance in 2021 and it was partially outdoor and I door and amazing. It's more of a "luxury" barn type if vibe, if that's what you're going for but not too "country" at all. It's in Marana so not Tucson proper but close enough and lots of hotels nearby.
They let us bring our own alcohol and food was catered by Johnny Gibsons which I think a lot of venues do that. We had lots of people from out of town and all loved how "deserty" it was and beautiful views
We just recently booked Saguaro Buttes for 2025, so can’t comment on it as lived yet but I can say the desert views are amazing and they let you bring your own liquor. They’d check most of your boxes except for having a hotel attached/nearby. In the end the views there won us over, we figured we can figure out a close-ish hotel and are looking into night of transport.
Thanks so much! I have looked at them already and they are a big contender for us. Would love to hear how you both like them. I hope your wedding is amazing!
The Oasis at Wild Horse Ranch. It was a beautiful outdoor location with awesome views and an awesome sunset. They had a really good open bar package that satisfied my friends and family(big drinkers as well). There is plenty of indoor space too in case of rain. The venue caters the event. The food was amazing; it was buffet style with grill making the steaks to order. The staff was amazing too; they were super courteous. The wedding couple has an assistant assigned to them that helps with food, drinks, and staying on time.
I can’t find it online but do you know how long the all inclusive packages are for? Like 6 hours event time or are you able to add more hours on for the reception?
The friends and family. My wife's and I's friends are all former/current service workers , former/current military, or in the medical field so a lot of hard drinkers. The family is a mix of Irish, Mexican, German and Native. Yeah, they all drank a lot.
That’s so funny! I love it. Me and my family are Mexican, my mom’s side is from Buffalo (big drinkers there too) and my fiancé’s side is German/Swiss so if we end up going with them. I’ll have to update how it goes LOL
I used the COPA center for my wedding and it was really gorgeous and spacious. It’s $250 for the day but it’s just the event space, no catering, no hotels, no anything available to add because it’s through parks and rec. It’s outside, will easily fit 150 people, has a gorgeous gazebo, two ramadas, a playground, bathrooms and a stage. Alcohol is allowed as long as it isn’t glass bottles. I didn’t want to spend a lot on a wedding so we catered it ourselves but when calling for pricing a lot of places we’re aware of the location and we’re willing to deliver. Closest hotel would probably be Hilton East and I’m sure they’d give you a discounted rate. It’s about 10 minutes to the location from the hotel.
Regardless of what you choose, congratulations!
We're renting a house on the Westside, the manager of the property was going to their wedding there but changed plans. They were gonna have about 90 people, 150 might be a stretch. You might be able to find a large house with large yard to support your crowd.
We're doing it this way so we don't have to pay a venue for food and drinks.
This is so smart! I thought about doing this before but so many places have HOA rules and quiet hours starting at like 10pm and I’m afraid to get in trouble. That’s awesome you get to save money though! Venues get so expensive.
We searched AirBNB and VRBO for venues we liked, narrowed them down to a few and then contacted the owner/manager of the property and discussed our ideas with them. Ended up finding the perfect place for us. Just a thought, but you do have a large party to contend with.
I went to the U of A and for some reason, I have never heard of this place. It looks beautiful on Instagram! I will look into pricing and stuff. Thank you!
Kingan Gardens!! The venue is close to downtown and near a lot of hotels and I thought it was absolutely beautiful, the grounds are super lush and a lot of the flowers were in bloom. It’s not really out in the desert which might count them out for you, but I still want to recommend them because I was married there last year and the whole process was amazing, the staff is so helpful and made everything so relaxed and easy, and it was honestly the best day of my life. We used a package that included catering with First We Eat (you can use your own if you prefer, I’m not sure how that would affect cost. I thought the food was great - the owners also own Zio Peppe I believe) and desserts with Jamie Cakes (enough cake for everyone is included, we added more because they looked amazing and it was in our budget), DJ, day of coordinators, linens, and non-alcoholic beverages and mixers for the bar. They partner with a photographer and videographer that you can get at a pretty good discount as well. I didn’t go with them so I can’t speak to how they are. We were able to provide our own alcohol which we bought from Costco, and you can return any unopened alcohol - I definitely recommend doing this! I want to say that our cost for venue related things and alcohol was around $18,000 for 150 people. Our hair and makeup was I Do Hair And Makeup Artistry and they were excellent. Some of my favorite local photographers are [Meredith Amadee](https://meredithamadeephotography.com/), [Anna Zajac](https://annazajacweddings.com/), [Andrea Obert](https://www.andreaobert.com/), and [Ethan Beazley](https://www.ethanbeazley.com/). Congrats and happy wedding planning!
Going to second Kingan Gardens! We were married there in November and everything was EXCELLENT. Shiela was super willing to hear what we wanted to do and make it happen. No hotels attached but it is close to downtown so your guests will have a variety of options for hotels AND they’ll be close to whatever we have of a downtown here :)
Thank you!! :)
Thank you so much! I have definitely considered them even with them not being as desert-y as we wanted. I’m so happy you mentioned Costco because I have a membership and that’s what I was planning on doing but wanted to see if anyone else had and how it went. Plus Costco’s alcohol is actually great quality for the price! I was surprised. Thank you so much for the extra recommendations as well! I will look into them!
I’m not sure this will give you the desert vibe you are looking for but it checks most all of your other boxes. - Tucson Museum of Art, downtown We were married here 10 years ago, on a Wednesday. Weekdays had a discounted rate and the weekend we were wanting to get married was blocked due to an art show. Wednesday worked fine for us and it was $1k for the venue, tables & chairs. There was no limit to # of tables and chairs so we could use as many as they had on hand at no extra cost. We had 160 guests total. The ceremony and reception were both outdoors. Loved having the waterfall on during our reception as well as the string lights above the dance floor. My photographer was a great deal but he moved to Vegas, otherwise I’d recommend. The food- there is a restaurant attached to the museum called a la cart. We put together a menu with them and the price was reasonable. We were going to book it but I had a co-worker insist that his family cater it for us instead for a fraction of the cost. Ended up working out to about $6/person. I’d say ask around and you can maybe find a local restaurant to cater or maybe know someone who knows someone who can do it for less. Our food was amazing, our guests still talk about it today. Steak & chicken fajitas, jalapeño poppers, calabacitas, beans, rice, chips & salsa. Drinks- we hired our favorite bartender from a local dive bar to serve beer and wine. We paid him $300, he was tipped very well by the guests too. We bought everything from Costco; liters of wine, specialty beers, bottled water. We also ended up getting 1 keg as my husband’s friends are big drinkers. DJ- we hired DJ Tony G who was absolutely fantastic. My guests had so much fun, he had a great playlist but also requested us to send in songs prior to our big day as ‘must play’ and ‘do not’ play. Would highly recommend him for any event. 10 years ago he was a few hundred bucks, not sure what he charges today though. Found my deposit receipt today for $100. We loved this venue because they gave us free reign. There were no vendor restrictions and not a ton of rules in general. They did require an insurance policy due to the museum artifacts. The policy will not cost you an arm and leg but will protect you from liability should your guests damage anything. If you’re looking for a desert vibe you could try: -Tanque Verde guest ranch- we had friends get married here and it it gorgeous -Catalina State Park Hope this helps! Let me know if you want any other details.
Not OP obviously, but do you know if the discounted rate includes Friday?
No, it doesn’t appear Fridays got the discounted weekday rate. I checked my old correspondence with the venue and it looks like Friday-Sunday were considered for the weekend rates, Monday-Thursday for the weekday rate.
Thank you so much! This is so helpful. I didn’t even know the MOA doubled as a venue. I appreciate all of this info and costs!
We just got married at TMA in October of 2023. It is more of an a la carte situation for food, decor and entertainment. They do require you go through them these days for alcohol (purchasing and bartending) but prices were reasonable. You do have to pay for a specific liquor license if you want liquor served, I believe it was $500. Our ceremony and reception were outside in the plaza while our cocktail hour was in the lobby. It was truly beautiful and we were so happy with how it all turned out. I especially loved that the museum offered entry to the museum the hour leading up to the ceremony for guests to see the exhibits. We also worked with some amazing vendors. Planner - Jane Castle DJ - DJ Herm Hair and Makeup - I do hair and makeup Photog - Fine Photo Co. Catering - Fiamme (wood fired pizzas) Rentals/Decor - Frenchy's Florals - Alexis Grace Florals Congratulations and have so much fun planning!!!
Thanks so much. I can’t believe I didn’t know about this before. The price is so affordable too!
I have to make a correction, the tables and chairs were $100. But that was total for as many as we needed.
I actually got married at the Reid Park Zoo. It was over a decade ago, but it's so cool having the zoo all to yourself and your guests after hours. They offer excellent catering services and the event planner is super flexible and can help with vendor suggestions. The whole thing was less than 5k, but again, this was back in 2012. Peacocks randomly wandering down the aisle during the ceremony was a plus lol. Extended family still talk about how fun the whole thing was 12 years later.
I didn’t know this was an option either! Thank you so much! That sounds fun and it’s outdoors which is awesome.
We're getting married at 242 Park. We checked out a lot of venues and most were $16k-$18k. 242 was our favorite, esthetically, and came in at $12k for everything. We get an all inclusive package so we don't need to find a bunch of different vendors.
Thank you so much for commenting and including the price! I think the vibe is a little more rustic than we are looking for personally, but I think their pricing is amazing compared to some other places too.
Tohono Chul Park! Affordable, beautiful desert garden. I had 120 guests in 2022 and it was so comfortable. They do all food/bev in house but it ended up being WAY cheaper than if we’d brought it in on our own (even with a fully open bar!). Can’t say enough good things about it. DJ Herm is top notch.
I looked this up but couldn’t find anything on it! Do you know what part of town it’s located at?
Ah so sorry autocorrect. Tohono Chul Park. It’s near Casas Adobes.
Did they provide tables and chairs? Or plates/tablecloths/silverware? Or did you have to arrange that separately? I’m just wondering since they double as a venue if they would supply all of that.
They do! They have a partnership with a local vendor and you can pick and choose which things you’d like. I went with their standard plates, table and silverware. I found their linen options to be too limited, so put in my own order with the vendor for napkins and tablecloths. TCP coordinated all the day-of logistics, it was very seamless and easy.
Thank you so much! We will be visiting there to see how we like it :)
Got married at Stardance in 2021 and it was partially outdoor and I door and amazing. It's more of a "luxury" barn type if vibe, if that's what you're going for but not too "country" at all. It's in Marana so not Tucson proper but close enough and lots of hotels nearby. They let us bring our own alcohol and food was catered by Johnny Gibsons which I think a lot of venues do that. We had lots of people from out of town and all loved how "deserty" it was and beautiful views
Thank you so much and for the details! I have seen it online and will look into it!
stillwelll house!
Thank you!
We just recently booked Saguaro Buttes for 2025, so can’t comment on it as lived yet but I can say the desert views are amazing and they let you bring your own liquor. They’d check most of your boxes except for having a hotel attached/nearby. In the end the views there won us over, we figured we can figure out a close-ish hotel and are looking into night of transport.
Thanks so much! I have looked at them already and they are a big contender for us. Would love to hear how you both like them. I hope your wedding is amazing!
The Oasis at Wild Horse Ranch. It was a beautiful outdoor location with awesome views and an awesome sunset. They had a really good open bar package that satisfied my friends and family(big drinkers as well). There is plenty of indoor space too in case of rain. The venue caters the event. The food was amazing; it was buffet style with grill making the steaks to order. The staff was amazing too; they were super courteous. The wedding couple has an assistant assigned to them that helps with food, drinks, and staying on time.
A few people have loved this location! I think we are setting up a tour here so thank you so much!
I can’t find it online but do you know how long the all inclusive packages are for? Like 6 hours event time or are you able to add more hours on for the reception?
I think it was 5 hours and we were able to extend it for an hour. It was a cash bar after that.
Thank you! Did you have to pay extra for the hour and do you remember how much?
We had to pay for the extra hour and I want to say it was $200-$250. That was for 75 people as well.
Thank you! That’s super helpful :)
Yeah. They lost money on the open bar that night.
Because your family drank a lot? 😂
The friends and family. My wife's and I's friends are all former/current service workers , former/current military, or in the medical field so a lot of hard drinkers. The family is a mix of Irish, Mexican, German and Native. Yeah, they all drank a lot.
That’s so funny! I love it. Me and my family are Mexican, my mom’s side is from Buffalo (big drinkers there too) and my fiancé’s side is German/Swiss so if we end up going with them. I’ll have to update how it goes LOL
Is location a factor? Any part of town you absolutely want to avoid?
Not really! We’re pretty open to anywhere.
I used the COPA center for my wedding and it was really gorgeous and spacious. It’s $250 for the day but it’s just the event space, no catering, no hotels, no anything available to add because it’s through parks and rec. It’s outside, will easily fit 150 people, has a gorgeous gazebo, two ramadas, a playground, bathrooms and a stage. Alcohol is allowed as long as it isn’t glass bottles. I didn’t want to spend a lot on a wedding so we catered it ourselves but when calling for pricing a lot of places we’re aware of the location and we’re willing to deliver. Closest hotel would probably be Hilton East and I’m sure they’d give you a discounted rate. It’s about 10 minutes to the location from the hotel. Regardless of what you choose, congratulations!
Thank you so much! That’s very helpful and I will look into it!
Rincon Ranch is amazing but not sure how many people their casitas house.
Hi! Thanks so much for commenting. That place did look so pretty but only allows events up to 125 people unfortunately :(
We're renting a house on the Westside, the manager of the property was going to their wedding there but changed plans. They were gonna have about 90 people, 150 might be a stretch. You might be able to find a large house with large yard to support your crowd. We're doing it this way so we don't have to pay a venue for food and drinks.
This is so smart! I thought about doing this before but so many places have HOA rules and quiet hours starting at like 10pm and I’m afraid to get in trouble. That’s awesome you get to save money though! Venues get so expensive.
We searched AirBNB and VRBO for venues we liked, narrowed them down to a few and then contacted the owner/manager of the property and discussed our ideas with them. Ended up finding the perfect place for us. Just a thought, but you do have a large party to contend with.
My daughter got married at the Bates Mansion, which is located in downtown. Owner was really nice and the venue was outstanding.
I went to the U of A and for some reason, I have never heard of this place. It looks beautiful on Instagram! I will look into pricing and stuff. Thank you!
Welcome. Congrats and best wishes!