Wedding Venue Spotlight: The Lenox Hotel

Courtesy photo

Boy meets girl. Boy falls in love with girl. Boy pops question. Girl says yes. Yes, you’re part of your own love story.

So it would be only natural for you to choose a romantic location to tell that story in front of family and friends. One of Boston’s original boutique hotels, the Lenox Hotel, is that quaint, charming, and original location you might be looking for.

Once holding court as Boston’s tallest building (an 11-story Beaux-Arts hotel in 1900), this place tells its own love story—quite literally, in the 1970 classic romance Love Story. The movie’s stars Ryan O’Neal and Ali McGraw, who portrayed the Harvard lovebirds, stayed at the hotel while filming in Boston.

This iconic nod to local affairs of the heart isn’t lost on this wedding venue, as the hotel offers a one-of-a kind romantic setting for your once-in-a lifetime event. Since the ’70s, there’s been a steady stream of Hollywood guests, including Tony Bennett, Helena Bonham Carter, Michelle Pfeiffer, the cast of Oscar-winning American Beauty, John Travolta, and Anne Hathaway. Even Hollywood’s favorite diva, Judy Garland, brought glamour to Boston in 1965 when she made the Lenox home for three months.

Located at Boylston and Exeter streets in Boston’s iconic Back Bay, the Lenox provides a historic and charming space for couples to host their nuptials. It’s also near some of the most amazing scenery in the city, including the Public Gardens, Copley Square, Newbury Street, and the steps of the Boston Public Library. One photo backdrop you won’t get anywhere else is the hotel’s rooftop under the Lenox illuminated sign, with the Boston skyline in the background.

The Dome Room / Courtesy photo

When you host your sit-down dinner for up to 150 guests in the Lenox Hotel’s luxurious Dome Room, don’t forget to look up. Not only does it boast an elaborate gold-gilded dome, but you can also opt for lights that change color during your reception—you can select one color from a range of many to complement your wedding palette. And the lighting of the columns in the room adds a warm and romantic touch.

For a smaller wedding, choose the Heritage Room, which can host a sit-down dinner for 50 or a reception for 130. Even more intimate urban affairs can take place in City Table restaurant for a seated dinner and the City Bar lounge for a cocktail reception.

Suite / Courtesy photo

The fireplaces throughout the hotel’s common areas and many of its 214 rooms keep the flames of passion burning. In fact, the hotel boasts the most wood-burning fireplace rooms in any hotel in Boston. And you’ll even get to try one out, with your complimentary suite the night of your wedding, complete with its own romantic fireplace.

The details abound, and you’ll have two dedicated wedding professionals to help rein them all in. From the music selections for your complimentary piano player during your cocktail reception to your wedding cake from Dessert Works, this is one love story you and your guests won’t easily forget.

The Lenox Hotel is located at 61 Exeter Street in Boston.

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