Bodega Ridge

Everyone loved this place. This venue was as close to a one-stop-shop as my wife and I could find when searching. The staff where lovely and the location of the property was the best. We can't say enough good things about Bodega Ridge.

We found Bodega Ridge on The Venue Report when we were looking for venues for our wedding. We are avid travelers, both wedding industry professionals (photo and video), so we had a certain level of aesthetics and expectations, while also really wanting our wedding to be focused on our marriage and a relaxed gathering for family and friends rather than a perfect Pinterest wedding. It was important to us to find a place where our friends and family (from all over the globe) could come and stay on the property for the weekend (both at the Ridge and the Cove) and explore the area. Bodega Ridge checked all the boxes - BC was a place we had always wanted to go, the location is remote enough to feel private, but easily accessible from Vancouver, and ridiculously stunning! To top it all off, the owner Jesse and our venue contact and coordinator Angie were absolutely gems. They were so patient with us as we planned to bring 50 of our nearest and dearest to an island we had never been to (we only visited the month before!) and we had a million questions. The staff onsite was spectacular and so friendly - the service was on point and handled with so much love and care, the food was AMAZING (I wish I could taste it again), and the weather on our weekend was spectacular! You can tell that Bodega is a labor of immense love by Jesse and his entire team - they actually care about their guests and making sure you have a spectacular wedding. We honestly couldn’t have asked for a better experience for our wedding, it felt like absolute MAGIC and we plan to come back to Galiano and Bodega for years to come.

Bodega Ridge is situated on a beautiful ridge overlooking the Trincomali Channel, which we chose for the laid back, West coast natural setting and atmosphere, combined with the luxurious cabins and food options, and a high level of service. From the ceremony site to the pavilion, to the patio and the main lodge, there was a great variety of picturesque settings for each event at our wedding. We heard from more than one guest that it was the most beautiful and well run wedding they had attended, with the tastiest food (from paella to suckling pig, to ling cod). In addition, they very accommodating for those with dietary restrictions, creating separate meals for individual guests. Our wedding was postponed by a year due to the pandemic and the team at Bodega were incredibly flexible, understanding and personal. Combined with the in house wedding planner, Angie and her team at AWE, we would highly recommend this venue for any couple that loves the outdoors of the West coast and the comforts and service of a resort, which feels both intimate and personal.

Bodega Ridge is a true west coast/BC experience and we felt so lucky to be able to have our covid micro wedding with them. We had originally planned a 70+ wedding but Bodega was super flexible, kind and understanding with us. We ended up using both the Cove and the Ridge for our few guests and they provided a beautiful experience. The cherry on top is that Bodega comes with Angie Allen as a coordinator and she is worth her weight in gold. Despite the challenges of a covid, Bodega helped pull off a serene and amazing wedding experience for us!

We were married at Bodega Ridge in July 2019 and can’t say enough positive words about how wonderful of an experience it was! The list of wonderful things could go on and on, but below are a few highlights:
• The food! We received SO MANY compliments on how delicious the food was, with many guests even saying it was the best wedding food they’d ever had (I would very much agree!). I could eat the salmon wellington for every meal, and the paella is not only absolutely delicious, but is made in a huge pan in front of you and your guests. The portions of all of the food were very generous – huge kudos to the kitchen team!
• Organisation/planning support – wedding planning support comes with booking the venue, and Angie is the most wonderful, calming, lovely lady you could ever hope for to help you plan your wedding. She is an absolute pro. Being totally clueless to organizing a wedding and very much making things up as we went along, it was so reassuring to have Angie there to guide us with the tasks we needed to be doing, and with great advice and suggestions on anything we asked. On our wedding day we were also supported by Danika who was equally lovely, super organized and ensured the day went without a hitch – I didn’t have one moment of stress the whole time I was at Bodega Ridge :)
• The venue itself – is just out of this world stunning. We hosted 60+ guests from outside Canada, and it was the most perfect setting to show off the true beauty of the BC coast and to help them truly understand why we love living here. We and our guests stayed onsite for 3 nights, and had the most magical time tucked away in the quiet beauty of Galiano Island. As well as the natural beauty that Bodega Ridge has to offer, the lodge, cabins and all of the extras have been restored and designed with such great style and care. Having previously researched other venues where we would have to source all of the extras like tables and chairs ourselves, it was so exciting to come to Bodega and have such good quality and aesthetically pleasing furniture/items there for us to make use of.

Thanks Jesse, Angie, Danika and the whole Bodega Ridge team – you are all so lovely! A totally outstanding venue, I just wish we could do it all again.

We held our wedding at Bodega Ridge last month and can’t speak highly enough about it. We knew we wanted to get married on one of the Gulf Islands and when we began researching, the Bodega website jumped right out at us as exactly what we were looking for, so we went ahead and booked without even visiting! It was 100% the right decision. The whole planning process was made easy with Jesse and Angie’s guidance and advice along the way, despite the added challenges of an island wedding. In fact, all of the staff were amazing, with the most positive, can do attitude. Nothing was too much trouble. The actual event was just magical and our guests (many from the UK) were blown away. The cabins are fantastic, the stunning ceremony site, grounds and lodge, not to mention the views. The food was some of the best I have ever tasted, again something many of our guests agreed with and commented on. Being able to have the wedding over a three-day period made it so special as the guests really got to know each other and were able to completely take in and enjoy the wonderful surroundings of beautiful Galiano Island. Thanks again to the whole team!

My daughter and now son-in-law discovered Bodega Ridge while seeking the most “ comfortably chic, immersed in nature” wedding venue. They found it at Bodega Ridge on Galiano Island, BC. Following their extensive search in Vancouver as well as Vancouver Island my husband and I concurred fully— what a fabulous wedding venue on every front.

Galiano Island is a beautiful location, readily accessible from Vancouver, as it’s the first ferry stop from Tsawassan and a short beautiful ride. We also heard that good weather was highly probable from this particular Bodega Ridge site — indeed we enjoyed a sunny blue sky wedding!

This is a spectacular property of trees (many arbutus) and meadows, with charming, well appointed log cabins, at the Ridge and Cove, a bright beautiful lodge with sweeping views to the ocean and outlying islands. Adding to this, is the very special Ridge Point where the wedding ceremony takes place — this is indeed an outdoor chapel — full of divine energy.

The property owner Jesse and his staff are a dream team! Jesse is very personable and with a friendly ease, welcomes and accommodate his guests as though welcoming friends into his home. His calm nature is in tandem with the zen environment. Of special note is the wedding coordinator Angie, who not only is a beautiful and caring person, her communication, organizational, and professional skills are stellar. Right out of the gates, Angie was on top of everything. We so enjoyed our meetings with her where she kept the momentum of the to-do list right on task. On wedding day she filled in picking up a few stray pieces which I know added to the already fullness of her responsibilities that day — thank you Angie!! Orchestrating the rehearsal with her forever smile, overseeing the wedding — where she magically ensured people and program were on queue, then afterwards, breezed through the guests with her beautiful energy to personally deliver champagne, appetizers to the bride and groom, and parents . Angie worked enthusiastically, yet somehow was invisible.

The kitchen’s reputation was another reason for hosting the wedding at Bodega Ridge - they exceeded their reputation: Let’s just say this kitchen’s food headed by Chef Elmark Andres was exceptional. Each and every one of our guests were delighted above and beyond with the tastes that came out of this kitchen. From their Angus and vegan burgers, to the amazingly fresh and tasty potato salad, fresh garden greens salad, to the superb paella (artfully prepared on the patio for all the guests to marvel) and the ling cod, caught in the pacific right in our midst; everything was fresh, local and beautifully prepared. Family style is the theme and we loved that for it added to the wedding warmth as guests shared both good and company. The service and presentation was also top notch! Sunday’s breakfast scones, vegan banana bread, homemade fig jam simply divine and with the other breakfast items also beautifully presented. The food and details went beyond our expectations.

The warm, welcoming, happy-hearted staff were shining stars too- friendly, personable and professional - a pleasure to meet.

Thank you to Jesse, Angie, Danika and all the team at Bodega Ridge for making our daughter and son-in law’s wedding the absolute best and most beautiful celebration. We wished the time didn’t go by so fast for we wanted to linger longer, in each and every moment of the experience . . . not only with our family and friends but with the Bodega Team too.

Book Bodega Ridge - you will be blessed!

Angie and Jesse make dreams come true! We couldn't have planned, plotted or willed a better wedding weekend. As soon as we spoke with Angie we knew she was someone we'd enjoy working with and immediately felt like she got what kind of wedding we wanted. Finding a venue was the most difficult part of wedding planning for us, we spoke to over 50 venues and continuously felt like something was missing. Our priorities were a beautiful setting, being outdoors, taking over a place completely for an entire weekend, food & wine, and most importantly flexibility. Bodega Ridge exceeded our hopes in every category. They worked with us to create an event that felt authentic and represented our preferences in every way, from customizing the menu, to the format of the day, to the decor. Everything was executed flawlessly, we didn't have to worry about a single thing. The staff rolled with last minute changes throughout the event with enthusiasm, we changed the times on almost everything all weekend and every time we requested something the answer was 'no problem'. Jesse was incredibly hands on with the entire weekend, which brought a calm sense of things being handled and a bit of humour. My last bit of praise is for the food, we loved it and more importantly our guests continue to talk about how great it was. We couldn’t have been happier with the experience!

Where to even begin with this incredible venue. From the first meeting I had with the owner, Jesse, and his exceptional event planner, Angie (we’ll get to her later), I knew this special place was the right spot for our wedding.

The property and its beauty speaks for itself. Falling asleep to the sweet sounds of nature and waking up to freshly ground coffee... some of the best sleeps of my life were actually during my wedding weekend!

Jesse, Angie, and their teams worked with us to plan a 3 day weekend for 140 people that involved a lot of customization to turn our vision into a reality. There was not one request to which they said no to, always a “let’s see what we can do”, and did they ever DO!

The staff provided outstanding service all weekend long and the food was some of the best we've had in our life! I actually don’t know where to start with the food...maybe with the lavender honey butter??? The food is next level, and I’ll have to leave it at that for fear of this review extending to another three pages.

Now let’s talk about Angie.

We worked with Angie for a year leading up to our big day. She felt like family since day one and I can whole heatedly say she became family by wedding day.

Angie executed a 3 day weekend full of seamless events. She is calm, communicative, and responsive beyond measure. Working with Angie was a huge enhancement to our wedding year and the planning process. I will gladly provide additional details to any future clients about my experience working with her. Angie - you are a true gem. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for creating the wedding and weekend of our dreams.

It was tough to leave the ridge the morning after our wedding and say goodbye to the Bodega team, but I know it won’t be the last time we step foot on that property (or taste that honey butter).

All the best!
Lauren and Mitch