The Chattahoochee Nature Center hosts weddings, corporate events, team-building days and receptions for groups of 25 to 250 guests, in eight indoor and outdoor spaces set on 127 acres. The center stands on Willeo Road in Roswell, Georgia, north of Atlanta, on grounds that look out over wetlands, ponds and the Chattahoochee River.
Seminars and company events
For meetings, the Cowie Weiss Theater seats 65 in theater seats with flip-up desks, a large HD screen and audio-visual equipment, and the Private Classroom takes 25 with a whiteboard and a projector screen. Kingfisher Hall, a multipurpose room for up to 200 depending on setup, works for a plenary session, a lunch or an awards evening, with white chairs and AV in the premium setup. The center adds activities that companies rarely find in a hotel: guided hikes, guided canoe trips and animal encounters, as well as a Corporate Eco Challenge. Venue tours run on weekdays from 9:30 am to 4:30 pm.
Weddings and receptions
Couples choose among three ceremony sites: the Green Roof, the River Boardwalk or the Ben Brady Lakeside Pavilion. The Pavilion takes receptions of up to 250 guests, while the Green Roof and the River Boardwalk each suit weddings of up to 70. The rental includes tables and chairs for the ceremony and the reception, a wedding suite for getting ready, a two-hour rehearsal the day before when the calendar allows, and a venue manager from the center who works with the couple's planner or coordinator.
Rooms and capacities
The Ben Brady Lakeside Pavilion is an outdoor space by the lake for 200 guests, or 250 with a tent, with a gas fireplace and a warming kitchen; evening events run from 6 to 11 pm, with setup from 3 pm. Kingfisher Hall holds 200 indoors and closes on weekdays from May 1 to August 30. The Green Roof takes 50 seated or 85 for a cocktail reception, with views of the grounds and the river and a small warming kitchen. The River Boardwalk holds 80 and includes the Hirsekorn Family River House and the Abreu Family A-frame. Heron Pond Pavilion takes 150 in the daytime across one covered pavilion seating 50 and two smaller shelters. The Cowie Weiss Theater seats 65 and the Private Classroom 25, and the Meadow Learning Center is a multipurpose room filled with daylight.
Catering
Food is supplied by outside caterers. The center publishes a list of preferred caterers and vendors, and receptions are often prepared by farm-to-table caterers from that list. At the Lakeside Pavilion, there is no cooking on site unless a preferred caterer is booked, and the caterer sets up with the center's equipment.
History and setting
The center has spent about 50 years connecting people with nature along the Chattahoochee River. Its daytime program for visitors, with trails, wildlife and summer camps, runs alongside private events, which is why several spaces are available mainly in the evening and some close during the summer camp season.
Getting there
The center is at 9135 Willeo Road in Roswell, about 30 km north of downtown Atlanta. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport is the nearest major airport, about an hour away by car depending on traffic, and most guests arrive by car.
