The dress has been purchased, the reception venue has been booked and the guest list is coming along, but what about your rehearsal dinner? Don’t stress! Riverbanks Zoo & Garden serves as your unique location to celebrate before the big day.
Between the Botanical Garden and the Zoo, we have quite a few unique venues to choose from depending on the size of your group. For intimate groups of 25 to 75 people we recommend:
For larger parties of 50 or more people we recommend:
We like to let our past clients tell you about our spaces:
- “The venue looked great for our rehearsal dinner and the food and the wait staff were excellent.” – Groom, The Birdhouse
- “Everyone had a fabulous time! We loved the ARC – it was perfect. The food was amazing, especially the shrimp and grits! Would definitely recommend The Zoo for a rehearsal dinner or wedding!” – Mother of the Groom, ARC
- “All the guests just loved the zoo setting for the rehearsal. We made a full day of the event and visited the zoo earlier before the dinner began. The room set up was perfect and the food tables beautiful. The wait staff was organized and even helped locate a cake server for the cake we brought in. I will definitely be reserving a room at the zoo again in the future.” – Mother of the Groom, Ndoki Lodge
Want to see what more of our past clients are saying about Riverbanks Zoo & Garden for Rehearsal Dinners and Wedding Receptions? Visit our profile on TheKnot.com. This one was too good, not to share!
- “After looking at many beautiful venues we stumbled upon the Ndoki Lodge at Riverbanks Zoo and fell in love. At first, it might look a little rustic but I believe this venue is a hidden gem. The lodge looked absolutely stunning on the night of our wedding reception. The wrap around windows gave us an outdoor feel but with air conditioning! Our guests enjoyed exploring the zoo on their way in to the lodge. You can also use the outdoor area near the lodge to have an outdoor/indoor feel. The lighting is beautiful with tiki torches, lanterns in the trees, and cafe lights throughout the lodge, which are all included in the rental. They have a built in sound system that we used during our cocktail hour before our band started playing. Tables, chairs, and table linen were included also. This saved so much money not having to rent lighting, table linen, and decor for catering tables. The zoo does their own catering and it is SO YUMMY with lots of options. The planning process was smooth and easy with McKenzie Roland. I have been to many weddings in Columbia, and I may be partial but the Ndoki Lodge is by far my favorite :-)” – Bride, The Ndoki Lodge
With all of the different options, we’re confident one of them is exactly what you’re looking for!
Also, if you have booked your wedding with us and want to do your Rehearsal Dinner here at the same or different venue, we have preferential rates set in place for you! Give us a call at 803.602.0900 to find out more.
