Shangri-La Event Center

Pretty venue, need a better wedding planner

So, this venue is really pretty.. we held our wedding here in October. Monique was our wedding planner and unfortunately she dropped the ball on many things on our wedding day and during the planning process. We had monthly meetings, to which she never remembered anything we spoke about and when we would follow up, I was constantly having to remind her of what we talked about and the decisions that were made at the previous meeting which became frustrating and overwhelming. She eventually hired an assistant to help during our meetings and her meeting notes were also incorrect every single time. Monique came off as nice and professional at first but it was pretty clear throughout the process that she wasn’t. It caused me alot of stress and anxiety to the point where I debated calling the whole wedding off numerous times because I didn’t feel like our wedding day was going to be a successful day due to the lack of organization and communication. I just didn’t feel confident in her ability. The day turned out beautiful, thanks to our friends and family picking up the slack.. setting places for people to sit at dinner and clearing all the plates. I was told there would be wait staff for that.. which there was not. Unfortunately, my parents were unable to stay at my wedding due to Monique not having the heaters set up on the deck, as promised. It was very cold and everyone was freezing, both of my parents have health issues and this was a non negotiable.. and I was reassured MANY times that there would be heaters. She didn’t hire a licensed bartender, she brought her sister in law to bartend.. we held a cocktail mixer before the reception and drinks were heavily over poured and we ran out if alcohol quickly. Our alcohol lasted for less than HALF the drinks we calculated for.. my best friend had a few bottles of wine that she shared with the guests. There was nobody there to cut and serve the cake, I paid money for a cake that wasn’t served. The outlets in the bridal suite barely worked and it was extremely difficult to do my hair, my hair had to be done numerous times which caused me to be late to my own wedding. I will say, as far as the decorations went.. she did a good job. Her husband built a beautiful backdrop that I envisioned and we were very grateful for that. She didn’t listen to anything we wanted for the aisle which was a sad reality as I walked down the aisle.. she treated my fiancé as an assistant the day of and stressed my fiancé out on our wedding day. She wasn’t friendly to our family or guests and numerous people commented on the fact that she seemed irritated to even be there and wasn’t helpful. As far as her being a day of coordinator, that is absolutely not the case. Her strong point is the decorations but beyond that, she is not a wedding planner nor a day of coordinator.