The only reason my wedding day went well was because I was so organized during the planning process.
We booked with the DoubleTree Downtown before the pandemic hit. Employee turn over was expected but we went through 7 different contacts while we were planning for 2 years (we postponed our 2021 day to 2022).
When we started working with our final contact Joseph, it was obvious he had not read our file at all. When we initially met he had the wrong date for our wedding and had no idea we were going to be using the lounge for our ceremony, it was in the contract. He tried to tell me 40 days before the wedding that we could not use the lounge space for our ceremony. I did not accept that answer. He then said we could use the lounge but guests would have to sit backwards to watch the ceremony as they would not turn/move the furniture. After much arguing and stress on my side we got to use the lounge as it had been described to us 2 years ago when we first signed the contract. He asked that I put a document together detailing everything that had been discussed and agreed upon over the past two years which I was happy to do. It included our contract, the rates we were promised, details about the day and the food we had picked for the buffet. The rates we signed at were not honoured (which I get due to the pandemic and inflation, but I wanted to include that in this review), there was also a lot of Mis-communications, one example was when I was told we would set up the lounge on the Friday night, only to arrive at the hotel and be told that lounge set up wasn’t happening until a couple hours before the ceremony. This was fine but since I had planned on Friday I had to scramble to find help from a friend to oversee the set up while I was getting my make up done. Akshay was lovely to work with, he is the current banquet manager. When we set up the reception space on Friday (Picasso ballroom) he was there to help and was ready to adjust where needed, very flexible. The few negative notes I have about my reception is that they did not re-fill the buffet fast enough or give my MC any sign they needed an extra moment and the last few tables that went to eat did not have the same buffet options as everyone else and were only offered the vegetarian option. (The food tasted great though). When the dancing began the wait staff cleared unused (pre-paid) drink tickets off the tables and my mom had to go up and ask for them back when she noticed. They would also clear full
Or half drunk drinks off the table when people would put them down to dance resulting in people having to spend more money or complain. This may have been a purposeful tactic on the hotels side. The wait staff also cleared personal property, I had created favours for my husband and I with our new last name on them and they were thrown out, I’ll never be able to get them back.
Joseph was telling all of my family members how great the wedding was and how organized it all was, as I had said before I had to be because he was the most un-organized person I worked with during my wedding planning. The space is beautiful and if you choose it just be on your A-game and have everything in writing. I want to add as well, I did bring up these comments and concerns with the event staff and they did discount my remaining balance.

We had our wedding there last weekend and it was amazing! I originally booked in 2019 and we had to postpone. Over the last 3 years my contact kept changing due to staff turnover, which made me a little nervous. However, Joseph and Akshay did an absolutely amazing job. They made us feel so welcome and like we were the main event of the hotel!

The food was delicious, the room was gorgeous, and the bartenders kept the party going right until the end. Our suite was GORGEOUS, with a whole wall of windows which were amazing for doing hair and makeup in the morning. Between the bridal party and vendors, we had 18 people coming and going from our suite in the morning. The people at the front desk did an awesome job making sure everyone got to the right room, and it was plenty big enough for all of us.

Apparently there were some issues with the projectors and the audio in the ballroom but I didn't even notice! Akshay and Joseph were there all evening and were on top of any issues that came up. Highly recommend!