Getting married at Orchard River View in Palisade, Colorado means saying your vows as the river rushes by and the wind rustles the leaves of the orchard trees. It means sharing your first dance beneath the larger-than-life chandelier. Before you begin planning your wedding at this Palisade wedding venue, check out everything you need to know from one of the area’s top wedding photographers:
About Orchard River View
Orchard River View is a newer wedding venue in Palisade. The wedding barn sits along the Colorado River and hosts a peach orchard on site. Views of the Bookcliffs and Mt. Garfield, along with the cliffs of the Palisade Rim that glow in the sunset light, make the already beautiful backdrop even more stunning.
Getting to Orchard River View
This wedding venue in Palisade lies just off the interstate I-70, a quick drive coming from either east or west.
If flying, you can fly into an international airport in SLC or Denver and drive the rest of the way to Palisade, or you can take a connecting flight into the Grand Junction airport. Renting a car, taking a taxi, public buses, or getting on Uber are the best ways around the city from there.
Grand Junction, Palisade’s neighboring town, also has a train station with an Amtrak stop if you decide to take the train here!
Quick Facts About the Wedding Venue at Orchard River View
Capacity: Orchard River View can host up to 300 wedding guests
What’s Included:
- Grand Chandelier
- Grand Staircase
- Two Indoor Restrooms
- Fully Heated & Cooled
- Getting Ready Suite
- Catering Kitchen
- Security
- Parking Attendants
- Tables, Chairs, and Wood Benches
- Liquor License – all alcohol provided/served by ORV
Getting Ready Suites at Orchard River View
There is one getting ready suite at Orchard River View, located in an upstairs loft room with large mirror and well-lit space for full getting ready or finishing your final touch-ups and getting dressed. Since there is only one space on-site you will need to find a second place for your partner to get ready, unless you’re getting ready together. Most couples choose to stay somewhere in Palisade and have the second person get ready there, or the second person may not care about getting ready photos, in which case they just show up ready. If you choose that option and still want “getting ready photos” – many photographers will simply stage those images to get the important ones.
Orchard River View’s Wedding Ceremony Locations
Wedding ceremonies at Orchard River View are typically on the lawn behind the barn, with views of the Colorado River and Mt. Garfield in the background. There are a couple different directions you can face to set up, but most couples will opt to use the paved walkway as their aisle, with the large shade trees behind their arbor. The venue has wood benches for your guests to sit on during your ceremony, keeping the relaxed vibe of the space throughout the day. In case of rain, extreme heat, or for winter weddings, the barn makes a great option for an indoor ceremony as well and is heated and cooled!
Wedding Photo Ops around Orchard River View
As I’ve mentioned, the photo locations around this wedding venue are diverse and stunning. When getting married at Orchard River View, you have the bookcliff mountains and Mt. Garfield across the river, and the cliffs of the Palisade Rim area surrounding the other side of the space, giving visual interest to your horizons. The Colorado River sits along one edge of the venue and offers a cooling breeze, an added reflective glow at sunset (and potential for rafting photobombers to cheer on your first kiss!) As the venue suggests, there is also an active peach orchard on site that you can use for portraits as well. Finally the large shade trees along the river’s shore offer a shady backdrop with beautiful greenery as well.
Hosting a Wedding Reception at Orchard River View
While many couples use the paved patio for an outdoor cocktail hour, most wedding receptions at Orchard River View take place inside the barn. The beautiful ornate chandelier stands watch as you share speeches, your first dance, and the party all night long. The cooled air inside offers a needed reprieve from the heat of the summer, and the party often spreads outside after the sun sets and the cool desert air takes over in the evening. There’s plenty of room for yard games, food trucks, and all kinds of ways to customize your wedding reception on the property!
Best Time of Year for Getting Married at Orchard River View
In Palisade and the Grand Junction area, the summers are brutally hot with July and August typically resting in the triple digits. For this reason, most couples will choose getting married at Orchard River View in May, June, September or October. The barn is cooled, though, so if you can brave it through the heat of an outdoor ceremony and portraits, the getting ready and reception parts of the day are kept relatively cool through the summer! You could always host a winter wedding here, as well, as the barn is fully heated in addition to cooled.
Lodging for Your Orchard River View Wedding
There is no lodging on site at Orchard River View, but many couples who come from out-of-town opt to stay at other nearby lodging. In Palisade, the Wine Country Inn offers the largest number of guest rooms and a beautiful and quintessentially “Palisade” vibe. The Spoke & Vine Motel is a boutique lodging option with a super cute and convenient location. Outside of Palisade vacation rentals and lodging, Clifton is the next closest area – and Horizon Drive off of the interstate is just beyond that with tons of traditional hotel options as its also the airport exit.
Orchard River View Wedding Photos by Amanda Matilda Photography
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