About this vendor
Okay, you caught us. People love The Shores of Turtle Creek for weddings (can you blame them?). We believe that weddings should look and feel amazing and actually be fun, not stressful. Our unique lodge is full of charm and character, and surrounded by beautiful landscape and lush greenery, you will fall in love the moment you step on site. Our full-service staff handle the details, so you can relax knowing you are in good hands – we provide the venue, catering, bar service and staffing so that your list of to-do’s is a whole lot easier. 16 years of weddings and we love every moment of sharing these special moments!! We invite you to come in and visit our grounds, but also to come in and meet the team who will be helping you turn your dream into a reality.
Amenities + details
Ceremony Area
Covered Outdoors Space
Dressing Room
Handicap Accessible
Indoor Event Space
Liability Insurance
Outdoor Event Space
Reception Area
On-Site Accommodations
Wireless Internet
Business Attributes
- Woman-owned Business
Ceremony Types
- Elopement
- Non-Religious Ceremony
- Second Wedding
- Vow Renewal Ceremony
Settings
- Estate
- Garden
- Park
- Trees
Venue Service Offerings
- Bar & Drinks
- Food & Catering
- Rentals & Equipment
- Service Staff
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Reviews
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4.4
out of 5.020 reviews
Review photos
Showing slide number 1 out of 6
We were looking for a venue that had a beautiful outdoor and indoor space. This was it. Very peaceful and pretty outdoor ceremony site with a stunning indoor space for the receptio...
n. We got married on a Sunday and the pricing was great. The recommended caterer's food was delicious and Anna, the venue owner, was very helpful and responsive.
6.23.24
Absolutely stunning inside and out. My wedding day went perfect! I couldn’t have picked a better venue. Anna is amazing, she was very helpful and gave great advice though...
out the whole process. I highly recommend The Shores of Turtle Creek.
Shores is 5 steps above the rest in our area for wedding venues. This is NOT your typical banquet hall with Parsons chairs, disco balls and chandeliers from the 50's. The place h...
as the feel of a lodge out west. Inviting and relaxing! And the owner of Shores knows her business and runs things like a well-oiled machine! The staff is friendly and the preferred vendors are outright awesome! This team knows how to throw a party!!
Wow, where to begin. The venue itself is beautiful obviously but you will not be happy with the experience and lack of professionalism with the owner. Anna is very rude and condesc...
ending. She was blatantly annoyed throughout the planning process, rehearsal, and the day of the wedding. Simple questions from the couple or the family/friends involved were answered with nothing but attitude, always. Simple accomodations the day of the wedding and rehearsal were met with snarky and sarcastic comments.. oh and we got locked out the day of the wedding! Anna was also caught drinking and her staff was smoking with guests. Keep reading on what to expect ..
Meetings:
- get everything in writing on follow up emails because she will say one thing and try and gaslight you later. Example, she tried to throw in extra charges for using the upstairs bar (when it's already included) and said she "must have been in a good mood that day" when she "offered" it for free?
- she is pushy with her own opinions and will try to swade you or make you feel silly for your own ideas as to what you want on your wedding (example-no first look).
Rehearsal:
-again rude comments to all involved for asking questions while setting up and practicing, everyone was way more distracted with her behavior.
-some things weren't placed for us yet to start decorating when we were told we could do it the day before
Now this is where I got the most upset!
Day of Wedding:
- she told us we could be there in the morning to finishing setting up. The guys were there by 930-10am (like she agreed) and the doors are locked! They tried every door, window, and phone. They waited and waited until the couldn't anymore. We all tried calling and no answer! My photographer calls at 1pm and still locked doors!! So now my paid vendors can't start either. She FINALLY answered the phone at 130 maybe and said we are lying and the doors have been open?! Again gaslighting!! So the bride, us girls, and the photographer/videographer all had to rush-it was a nightmare and I'm pretty sure she enjoyed it. Photo opportunities were missed because he couldn't start on time and set up wasn't finished. Unbelievably unprofessional!!
- we had a buffet and people were told they couldn't get seconds! Who does that?!
- my friend caught Anna chugging a beer in the kitchen during the reception - drinking on the job much?!
- her staff was very unprofessional as well dancing, drinking, and smoking during the event with the guests! And they all had terrible things to say of her during these conversations - you can't make this up
- my brother has a baby who needed his bottle put in the fridge and she begrudgingly agreed after more rudeness. Then later when he asked her for it she told him NO because they were serving dinner so he took it upon himself to get it from the fridge because he has to feed his CHILD!
Overall she will make the experience not as easy, pleasant, happy, or as professional as it should be when you are paying all that money! Keep that in mind and look other places for reviews since these can be taken down. Good luck.
Beautiful venue! Anna was awesome! The staff was fantastic!
Beautiful location, helpful and professional staff, and fair pricing = perfect day! Highly recommend.
I could not of imagined a better wedding. Anna had everything on track and made sure we were having a great time! She answered all of our questions and gave helpful tips on thing...
s we were not sure of! Her vendor recommendations were great too!
We had our wedding here on 9/2/22 and it was absolutely beautiful! Anna is a joy to work with! From the very first meeting up to the day/night of our wedding everything was perfect...
! She is very meticulous and makes sure everything runs as smooth as possible! She had a smile on her face the whole wedding day! Anna truly loves what she does and it shows. We had so many compliments on how beautiful the venue was and how wonderful Anna and her staff were. The Shores made our wedding day perfect. Thank you!
This is going to be a fairly long review, but I highly recommend reading the whole thing so you know exactly what to expect with this place. I would give the actual venue and day o...
f the wedding 5 stars, but I would give our experience leading up to the wedding 2 stars.
Let’s start with the positives: The Shores of Turtle Creek is a beautiful, scenic venue that had the exact vibe we were looking for. The outdoor ceremony and cocktail hour were perfect, and the availability of the outdoor decks during the reception was a great opportunity to have an indoor/outdoor reception. This helped with COVID anxiety, and just to have a space to cool off from dancing at the reception. Anna and her staff were on point on the day of the wedding, and things couldn’t have run more smoothly.
However, throughout the entire process, Anna was difficult to work with in a variety of ways. Our experience boiled down to gaslighting, an overall rude attitude, and acting as though we were a huge inconvenience. My biggest recommendation is to have EVERYTHING in writing to have a paper trail to back up all the claims she makes. Write a follow-up email after every meeting that has a list of every decision that was made.
The Knot does not allow for very long reviews, so just a few short details about why we cannot give this place 5 stars:
-Extreme rudeness towards our families and blatant annoyance when they asked perfectly normal questions during the planning process
- Not accommodating when there is a simple request, such as retrieving a chair for a musician at the rehearsal
- Anna says conflicting things and gaslights you about it. The most notable example is at our second-to-last meeting, were told to have our rehearsal on a Thursday because the venue apparently only has big events on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. We weren’t thrilled about a Thursday rehearsal, but we booked it along with the rehearsal dinner. At our final meeting about 2 weeks away from the wedding weekend, Anna told us there was going to be a 150-person event on the Thursday of our rehearsal, and that we would “have to work around it”. She then asked us if we wanted to switch to that Friday. Obviously, we couldn’t at that point, and we were super frustrated. Then, we got to the rehearsal day, and there was no event at all. She pretended like this alleged event never existed.
All parties, including us, the bridal party, and the parents, were quite frustrated by the end due to this kind of behavior.
Do I recommend this venue? There are not many venues that are as beautiful as this one. But you need to be prepared to put everything in writing, stand your ground, and remember that you are the one paying thousands of dollars to this place and you should be the priority. Every other vendor we had was so amazing, accommodating, and kind, and that reminded me that there is really no excuse for anything less than that.
Anna at The Shores is a force to be reckoned with! She made sure that everything for our day went smoothly and was extremely knowledgable about the venue itself. Her expertise guid...
ed us to make so many of the important decisions for the wedding that I don't know what a wedding coordinator would be left with (in regards to planning). On the day of, there were a few small miscommunications and changes--which may have made hiring an actual coordinator for that day worth it, but in the end, it all worked out alright. In the planning stages, Anna can come off as a bit controlling, but she made sure we got everything we wanted in the end. Anna made sure our food and events flowed smoothly, and she made the day absolutely beautiful for us.
Overall, it was a fantastic experience with The Shores, and we are so glad we got married at this naturally beautiful and serene location.
My husband I got married in October 2021 at the Shores of Turtle Creek and WOW. I don’t think our big day could have gone any better. Anna and her team at the Shores are PHENOMENAL...
. I would recommend anyone get married here, and there are several reasons why. Let’s start with the venue itself!
The Shores is a charming and tucked away venue that made everyone feel like they were in a fairy tail. It’s gorgeous year-round and I had the privilege of seeing it beautiful in the winter, spring, and summer while planning for the fall. The huge trees look amazing year-round, the ponds are gorgeous, the lodge is beautifully manicured in the spring and summer with bright flowers, and the snow in the winter makes the venue a wonderland. Both the inside and outside ceremony spaces were enchanting and warm! We made the day of decision to have our wedding inside because of the heat and rain threat, and I can honestly say that I wasn’t the least bit disappointed or regretful of that decision. Anna and her team made everything perfect even with the last minute change!
Finally, I have to give Anna some praise. Anna is a very hands on coordinator who makes wedding planning easy. She took the time to learn about me and my husband and our vision for the day. She leaned in with advice and helped us all stay on track for our wedding planning. We were done planning about a month out and it made it so much easier to enjoy the day when Anna had the eye and forethought to make sure everything was ready! If you decide to book the Shores, do yourself a favor and go with all of Anna’s recommended vendors. They will not disappoint. We were lucky enough to book Anna’s preferred DJ, caterer, florist, baker, and photographer, and wow did they put on a great party for us. The food was incredible, the deserts were delicious, the flowers were breathtaking, and our dance floor was never empty. I’ve had multiple guests gush about how our wedding was the most fun they had ever had at a wedding and we couldn’t have done it with out Anna and the incredible people she works with!
I really can’t say enough about this special venue and the family that works there. If you’re thinking about this venue do yourself a favor and visit. You’ll definitely fall in love!
This venue is beautiful! Anna did so much for us to make our day perfect from our first meeting to day of. Absolutely recommend for your wedding and special events
Absolutely loved our wedding at the Shores. Anna and her staff are phenomenal and made sure us and all of our guests were fully taken care even amidst a pandemic
Anna made it very easy to get in contact & make meetings with her, which made the process so much easier From start to finish! She was very thorough, professional, and helpful thro...
ugh the whole wedding planning process, and kept us on schedule. We had to change quite a few things around due to COVID but she had accommodated us to our needs. Our Ceremony Was held outside, it had so many beautiful photo opportunities. Lush green areas with wildflowers, and shaded areas with lots of trees and a pond. Not only that, there were a couple bridges and an adorable swing for us to take photos on. Inside the building for reception was beautiful. Tall vaulted ceilings with skylights and Large windows to see the pretty views of the grounds, and a fireplace in the middle. Outdoor seating was available with a covered deck area. We were able to do our dancing On deck area, which had good lighting and ceiling fans if needed. But they also have a good area inside for dancing if we wanted to. We had so many compliments on how beautiful the venue was and our decor. We used a lot of our own decor and was able to borrow some of The venues decorations as well. Overall great experience and had the best time at my wedding!! Would definitely recommend.
I couldn't have imagined a more perfect venue that had everything we were looking for. Our wedding was incredible and everything we ever wanted. Not one thing went wrong. Nothing!!...
! The staff was excellent! Our guests were so impressed with how fast and efficient the buffet dinner went! Honestly from the start of the day all the way up to midnight, the night was everything my husband and I had hoped for. Things were more than perfect and I could never thank Anna enough for all that she did. Anna steered us in all the right directions for all our decisions and we are still hearing about how good the food was! Words will never be able to explain our gratitude! I have nothing but amazing things to say! Thank you for making our wedding absolutely amazing.
I don't even know where to begin, everything was absolutely perfect. Anna is amazing, she took care of everything and made our day so much easier for us to enjoy. The staff was gre...
at and very helpful and friendly as well!! I cannot say enough good things, everything was absolutely perfect and I could not have dreamed up a better venue!
We couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful place to get married. But the staff, Anna the owner, the bartenders the wait staff. This could not have gone any better. Listen to Anna....
She will walk you through exactly what needs to be done and what you need to do in order to have your day go off without a hitch.
I already have people asking me if they only do weddings there. They would love the chance to go back.
This venue was so very beautiful and rustic for our Halloween wedding. There are gorgeous stone details, high ceilings with many windows for abundant natural light, a cozy fireplac...
e, and lovely wood detailing that creates warmth. Even though you have a wonderful canvas to start with, the venue can really transform with your own decorations to create a unique personal touch. The venue owners were pretty easy to work with, receptive to most of our needs, and were really on the ball with answering the numerous questions we had. There were a few things that were a bit pricey for us, but we made it work. I think the biggest downside for us was that upon booking our wedding, we were not able to have the day before the wedding to set everything up because there was a large party booked for the night before. EVERYTHING had to be set up the morning of the wedding, which made things were stressful for us. We enlisted the helping hands of family and friends, along with venue staff to make it happen. However, in the end I couldn't believe how beautiful everything was and that it came together fairly seamlessly. I had tears in my eyes as the DJ spun the last song. Thank you for such a memorable experience. :-)
One of the worst consultations that I have ever wasted my time on. I exchanged a few emails looking for a date for a daytime brunch event to host 100 guests this summer. She told m...
e the date was available and sent me pricing options. At our consultation, the manager learned it was for a wedding reception and she refused to give me the previously quoted party rate and stated they have an "image to uphold" and would only sell me the wedding package. The experience was then made to be uncomfortable and adverserial. Instead being asked how we could make it work and just quoting some prices, instead I was talked in circles about the supposed differences between the wedding and party packages. I feel I was treated rudely without any concern for my budget and values. She probably could have saved this sale easily if she were willing to compromise and see where we can meet in the middle. However, she made it clear that would not happen. The last thing this place cares about is if their customer is happy. Beware.
We hosted our wedding reception at Shores of Turtle Creek, and had a very positive experience. The venue inside is incredibly beautiful with a rustic charm. Outside, the grounds ...
are very natural and incredibly pretty. There were many places, both inside and out, that were perfect for photos.
We eloped a few weeks before our reception, so we did not have our ceremony at the space. Because we did not need the full day rental of the space, Anna worked with us so that we only paid for the portion of time that we were actually using the venue. We were very appreciative that our personal circumstances were taken into account and that she was so willing to accommodate our situation.
Shores of Turtle Creek offers many materials with which we could build centerpieces and decorations, which saved us money on items for which we might not otherwise have use. Anna was accommodating with our requests and quick to answer emails with questions as they arose while we were planning our event.
Our only issue was a small communication problem. There were a few times that we made decisions (about linens, decor, etc.) that it seemed were not noted or written down. We would be asked the same question several weeks later when we believed the decision was already made and done. In the end, all our choices and requests were fulfilled beautifully; the issue did make me nervous at times, though, that we may have to scramble or make a change.
Overall, our experience was incredibly positive. The venue was beautiful, the staff were all kind and accommodating, and our reception went off without a hitch. We received many compliments on our choice of venue and our guests were all very happy.
Contact
7908 Winn Rd, Spring Grove, IL
Shores of Turtle Creek