The Berkeley City Club is a Bay Area historical landmark dating back to 1929, which was designed by the renowned architect Julia Morgan. This historic hotel and event center is situated right next the UC Berkeley Campus. This landmark hotel and private social club opened up in 1930 to honor the need for a women’s activity center. This unique hotel is a living and breathing architectural museum for guest to see the work of Julia Morgan. This event center is such a perfect location to host weddings and events amongst its historic confines.
For the getting ready part of your wedding day the Berkeley City Club does not offer any getting ready suites for couples to use. Though they offer the chance for couples to book hotel rooms on-site for the getting ready part of the day, which is a great option. I always highly recommend that couples get ready at their wedding venue if they have the chance to. It makes for a less stressful day and you’ll have more time to get ready or relax before your ceremony instead of traveling around town. The hotel rooms that they offer a breathtaking experience that brings you back in time from when the club first opened up in 1930.
The Berkeley City Club offers a couple of locations around the hotel for your wedding ceremony to take place at. The first site for ceremonies would be the outdoor covered Terrace, which is located on the second floor. If the weather is nice the coved siding can be lifted to give you city views. Another indoor option is the Drawing Room, which is located on the first floor right near the entrance to the club. This historic grand room has giant fireplace as the center piece of the room along with high vaulted ceilings. One of the clubs private courtyards is located just outside the Drawing Room’s glass doors. One other option for super small weddings is hosting your nuptials outside in the hotels center courtyard area. The courtyard is weather depending if you’re able to host your ceremony there or not. That’s one of the biggest bonuses about the city club is that inclement weather will never disrupt your special day. The club gives you plenty of options to pick from for you to host your ceremony at, which is way more than most venues offer.
When your ceremony is over your family and friends will be able to enjoy cocktail hour in the Member’s Lounge room, which is located on the second floor. This space is a gorgeous historic room that transforms you back into the early 1930’s with it’s architecture and decorations. A portable bar can be set up in the room so guest do not have to travel far to drink their favorite cocktail. Another option for your cocktail hour or to add more space to your party is to use the covered Terrace area for your guest to enjoy drinks and hors d’oeuvres at. While everyone is enjoying themselves you’ll be finishing up family, bridal party and couple portraits.
After your ceremony you’ll most likely be finishing up with family portraits and maybe some bridal party pictures. Once finished with these formalities you’ll be able to have your couple’s portraits taken. There are so many hidden photo locations around Berkeley City Club, besides the obvious spots that you’ve seen online or with your own eyes. The most famous and photographed location at the club is the indoor swimming pool. Wedding couples are able to book a reserved time slot to have their pictures taken at the pool without any unwanted guest swimming or lounging around. By having a booked time slot you’ll have perfect glassy water with refections in the pool when you arrive. No choppy water. Then there are the two outdoor garden courtyards at are super popular with having your wedding photos taken at. The first courtyard is located at the center of the city club. This square courtyard garden is the surrounded by banana trees, large ferns and many other types of vegetation. The second outdoor courtyard is located right outside the Drawing Room. This is a long rectangle courtyard that leads out to two giant covered archways, which is next to an outdoor patio area. Both of these courtyards are a perfect spot for couples photos. Then you have the many inside hallways and stairways around the city club that are a stunning backdrop for these types of pictures on your wedding day. There are many locations around the club that have beautiful window light and the stunning architecture of the hotel as a backdrop. I’m sure your wedding photographer and you will not have a hard time on your special day capturing breathtaking pictures of the two of you together.
When cocktail hour is finished and you’re done having your portraits taken for the evening the party will move on into one of the many locations that the Berkeley City Club has to offer for your reception party. The Venetian Ballroom is the largest of them all and is located on the second floor of the club. This grand ballroom has tall two story vaulted ceilings that are decorated with hanging vintage chandeliers. On each side of the ballroom are three massive windows that flood the room with beautiful natural light. This is your classic turn of the century ballroom which even comes equipped with a stage and dance floor. The second largest reception site inside the club is the Drawing Room, which is located on the first floor and is also used to host ceremonies. This historic room also has vaulted ceilings and large decorative windows. Your third option for your reception is to host your party in the Member’s Lounge, but this is geared towards smaller more intimate weddings. Lastly for the smallest of weddings you’re able to use the Loggia room, which is located right next to the courtyard and can only hold about 15 guest. This is perfect for the most intimate wedding party.
The Berkeley City Club is a hidden gem of a wedding venue for the bay area and is just absolutely one of the most stunning historic hotels in Northern California. If you’re looking for a venue that has lots of charm and class than look know further then the Berkeley City Club. Once you take a site visit and see this hotel with your own eyes you’ll soon realize why so many couples choose to get married at this historic club.
Here’s a list of unique services that Berkeley City Club offers for weddings and events.
If you are interested in hiring Doug Miranda to photograph your wedding day please fill out the contract form on this website. You can also email him directly at doug@dougmiranda.com or give him a call at 916-422-2256. He looks forward to hearing from you and learning more about your special day.