Which Wedding Package Is Right for You? | Scarborough House
Every couple who tours Scarborough House asks some version of the same question. It usually comes near the end of the walk, somewhere between the ceremony grounds and the front porch: "So how does this actually work, and which package is right for us?" It is the right question to ask, and the honest answer is that it depends on your guest list, your budget, and how much of the estate you want to make your own.
We built three wedding packages on purpose, so that the celebration fits you instead of the other way around. There is an intimate all-inclusive day for your closest thirty people, a full-estate weekday wedding that is the best value we offer, and a three-day weekend where the whole party stays on the property from Friday to Sunday. Each one is a genuinely different kind of wedding, and each one has real advantages over the other two.
This is the plain-language comparison we wish every couple could read before their tour. We will walk through all three, tell you where each one wins, and show you how to find the fit. And if none of them are quite it, we will tell you how we build something custom.
The quick answer
If you want the short version, here it is. Choose the Micro Wedding if you want a small, meaningful day and you would rather not plan a single thing. Choose the Weekday Wedding if you want the entire estate and a big guest list at the lowest possible price, and you are happy to bring your own vendors. Choose the Weekend Experience if you want the whole property to yourselves for three days, with everyone sleeping on-site and no rush at all.
Now for the details, because the differences matter more than the prices alone suggest.
The Micro Wedding: when less is exactly enough
The Micro Wedding is our all-inclusive package for up to thirty guests, and it is the easiest wedding to plan because we plan almost all of it for you. It is a flat five thousand five hundred dollars.
What you get
You get a full day on the private estate, and you get vendors who are already lined up through our local partners. Photography, florals, and food are arranged for you. The ceremony space and the reception are set. The chairs, the tables, and the setup are handled. Meika and I are on-site to coordinate the day so that you are not chasing anyone down. In practice, this means no vendor calls, no spreadsheets, and no decisions about linen colors at eleven at night. You show up, you get married, and you are surrounded by the people who matter most.
Who it is best for
This package is for couples who want the beauty and the meaning of a real estate wedding without the months of planning that usually come with it. It is perfect for second weddings, for couples who elope but still want their parents and closest friends there, and for anyone who has watched a friend plan a giant wedding and thought, "I do not want to do all that." Thirty guests is enough for the people you truly cannot imagine getting married without, and it keeps the day intimate and personal.
Where it wins over the others
The Micro Wedding wins on simplicity, and it is the only package where the planning is genuinely lifted off your shoulders. With the Weekday and Weekend packages, you bring your own vendors, which gives you total control but also gives you the work. With the Micro Wedding, we have done this many times, we know the people who do it best, and we hand you a finished plan. If your idea of a dream wedding does not include building a vendor team from scratch, this is the one. It is also the lowest-stress way to marry on the estate, and for a lot of couples that peace of mind is worth everything.
The Weekday Wedding: the whole estate for the best value
The Weekday Wedding is the most affordable way to get married on the property, and it is the one that surprises people the most. It is two thousand five hundred dollars for a full day, Sunday through Thursday, for up to two hundred and twenty five guests.
What you get
You get the estate, your way. That means the lawns, the historic buildings, and a private outdoor ceremony space, from noon to nine at night. We set up the tables, the chairs, and the tablecloths, and we have the covered pavilion ready. You bring your own officiant, caterer, photographer, and decorator, whoever you want, however you want them, and you pay them directly with zero markups from us. There are no overnight stays with this package and no vendor list you have to choose from. It is just the estate, the grounds, and nine hours to make the day entirely yours.
Who it is best for
This is the package for couples who want a big celebration on a real budget. If you have a large guest list, this is actually the package that holds the most people, up to two hundred and twenty five, which is more than most people expect from the least expensive option. It is ideal for couples who already have vendors they love, or who enjoy the planning and want full creative control over every detail. And it is perfect for anyone flexible on the day of the week, because moving a wedding from a Saturday to a Sunday or a Thursday opens up both the calendar and the budget in a big way.
Where it wins over the others
The Weekday Wedding wins on price and on capacity at the same time, which is a rare combination. It is the cheapest package we offer, and yet it holds the largest guest list of any of them. It gives you the full grandeur of the estate, the same grounds and the same Southern charm as the weekend buyout, for a fraction of the weekend price. The trade is that it is a day event rather than an overnight stay, and it is Sunday through Thursday rather than a Friday or Saturday. If you want the whole property and a big party but you do not need everyone sleeping over, this is the smartest money you will spend on a venue. Bring your own vendors, keep the markups in your own pocket, and let us handle the setup.
The Weekend Experience: three days, everyone under one roof
The Weekend Experience is the signature package, the one the estate was really built for. It is ten thousand five hundred dollars for a full Friday-through-Sunday private buyout of the entire property.
What you get
You get everything, and you get it for three days. The whole estate is yours, with no other events and no sharing. There are thirteen bedrooms that sleep twenty six or more, so your wedding party, your family, and your closest friends all stay on the property together. You get the ceremony grounds, the heated and cooled pavilion, the pool, the fire pits, and all the lodging. The weekend gives you time that a single-day wedding never can: a rehearsal dinner on Friday, a slow and unhurried wedding day on Saturday, and a farewell brunch on Sunday before anyone drives home.
Who it is best for
This is for couples who want a destination-wedding feeling without the destination-wedding travel cost. It is for the families who love the idea of everyone waking up in the same place, coffee on the porch, kids running across the lawn, the whole group together instead of scattered across a dozen hotels. It is for couples who do not want the day to end at nine at night, who want the memory to stretch across a whole weekend. If you have ever been to a wedding and wished it did not have to be over so fast, this is the package that answers that wish.
Where it wins over the others
The Weekend Experience wins on time and on togetherness, and nothing else we offer comes close on either. The Micro and Weekday packages are both wonderful single days, but they are single days. Only the weekend gives you the full estate for seventy two hours with everyone staying on-site. It is the only package with overnight lodging included, the only one that turns your wedding into a weekend reunion, and the only one that gives you a Friday and a Saturday, our most requested dates. If your dream is to gather everyone you love in one beautiful place and simply not let go of them for a few days, this is the one you have been picturing.
Side by side
Here is how the three compare on the things couples ask about most.
Guest count
The Micro Wedding holds up to thirty guests. Both the Weekday Wedding and the Weekend Experience hold up to two hundred and twenty five. If your list is large, the Micro is out, and the choice is really between the Weekday and the Weekend. If your list is small and you want it that way, the Micro was made for you. Not sure how the numbers work for food and drink? Our wedding food and drink calculator can help you plan, and our ceremony seating planner will map out the chairs.
Price
The Weekday Wedding is the most affordable at two thousand five hundred dollars. The Micro Wedding is five thousand five hundred, but remember that it includes vendors, so you are comparing a venue-only price against an all-inclusive one. The Weekend Experience is ten thousand five hundred and includes three days and all of the lodging. See all of the details on the pricing page.
Days of the week
The Weekday Wedding is Sunday through Thursday. We reserve Fridays and Saturdays for the full Weekend Experience. Micro Weddings are generally open on Sundays, with Saturday availability limited to last-minute and off-peak dates, since we keep prime Saturdays for full-weekend celebrations.
Vendors
The Micro Wedding is all-inclusive, so the vendors are arranged for you. The Weekday and the Weekend are both bring-your-own, with zero markups from us. You hire the people you want and pay them directly. If you would like help finding trusted local professionals, browse our vendor directory.
Lodging
Only the Weekend Experience includes overnight lodging, with thirteen bedrooms sleeping twenty six or more. The Micro and Weekday packages are day events. If having everyone stay on the property matters to you, that alone points to the weekend.
What every package shares
Before you pick, it helps to know that no matter which package you choose, you are getting married at the same remarkable place. The setting does not change between them. What changes is how much of it, and for how long, is yours.
A truly historic home
Scarborough House is the oldest home in Wilson County, a Federal-style estate that is more than two hundred years old. Over its long life it has been a stagecoach stop, a church, and a school, and local legend even says George Washington once stayed the night. In 2020 we restored it into a wedding venue and micro-resort, and the character of the place is part of every wedding here, from the tall windows and black shutters to the brick chimneys and the wide front porch. You can read more of that story on our about page.
Grounds built for a celebration
The estate was restored with weddings in mind. The pavilion is heated and cooled, so your reception is comfortable in July or in November. On the hottest days we run the ceiling fans and keep a thousand-pound ice machine going, and if the heat really climbs we dump the ice straight into the pool to bring the temperature down. There are fire pits for the evening, Edison-bulb lighting strung overhead, water stations, and expansive lawns with historic outbuildings for your photos. Every one of the three packages gives you these grounds to celebrate on.
Owners who are actually there
Meika and I do not hand you off to a rotating staff. We live this venue, and we are on the property for your wedding. That is true whether you book the smallest Micro Wedding or the full three-day Weekend Experience. When something needs handling on the day, you are talking to the people who own the place and care about it like family.
A note on seasons and dates
One more thing worth knowing as you compare packages: the estate photographs beautifully in every season, and the right time of year can shape your choice. Spring brings green lawns and long light. Summer gives you warm evenings and, on the Fourth of July, we have hosted real fireworks shows over the grounds. Fall is our most requested season, with cool air and golden fields behind every photo. If timing your ceremony to the light matters to you, our golden hour calculator will tell you exactly when the sun sets on your date so your photographer can plan around it.
Dates also affect which package makes sense. Prime Saturdays are reserved for the Weekend Experience. If your heart is set on a Saturday, that points you toward the weekend buyout. If you are flexible and open to a Sunday through Thursday celebration, the Weekday Wedding opens up both the calendar and real savings. The best way to know what is open on the dates you are considering is simply to ask us.
How to choose
If you are still deciding, ask yourself these three questions.
How many people are you inviting?
This is the fastest way to narrow it down. Thirty or fewer, and the Micro Wedding is likely your answer. More than thirty, and you are choosing between the Weekday and the Weekend.
How much do you want to plan?
If the idea of arranging your own vendors sounds fun and freeing, the Weekday and Weekend packages give you that control. If it sounds exhausting, the Micro Wedding hands you a finished plan. There is no wrong answer here, only what fits the way you want to spend the months before your wedding.
Do you want a day or a weekend?
If you picture one beautiful day and then home, the Micro or the Weekday will serve you well. If you picture a whole weekend with your favorite people staying over, only the Weekend Experience gives you that. Think about the feeling you want the morning after, and the answer usually becomes clear.
None of these fit? We build custom
Here is the thing that does not always fit neatly into three packages: your wedding is yours, and sometimes it does not look exactly like a menu. That is completely fine. We are flexible, and if we have the date and the space, we would love to shape something around your vision.
Maybe you want a Sunday celebration that runs a little longer than the standard day. Maybe you want a small elopement with just a handful of people and a photographer at golden hour. Maybe you want a two-day gathering that is bigger than a single day but not quite the full weekend. Maybe you have an idea we have never heard before. Whatever it is, reach out and let us try to make it work. You can start a conversation on our custom package page, or just tell us about it when you visit.
Common questions couples ask
A few questions come up on almost every tour, and the answers often help couples settle on a package.
Can we upgrade from one package to another?
Often, yes, as long as the date and the space are available. Some couples start out thinking they want a small Micro Wedding and realize their list is growing, and we can talk through moving to a Weekday or Weekend date. The sooner we know, the more flexibility we have, so bring it up early and we will work it out together.
What if it rains?
The heated and cooled pavilion is your weather plan for all three packages. Ceremonies can move under cover, and receptions are already there. Rain on a wedding day is supposed to be good luck anyway, and here it does not have to change the celebration.
Do you only do weddings?
No. While weddings are the heart of what we do, the estate also hosts other gatherings and events, and that is part of why our custom option exists. If you are dreaming up something that is not a standard wedding at all, tell us about it.
How far in advance should we book?
Popular dates, especially fall Saturdays for the Weekend Experience, go early. If you have a specific date in mind, it is worth reaching out sooner rather than later. If you are flexible, we can almost always find something that works, and flexibility is one of the easiest ways to save money and stress.
Come see it for yourself
You can read about the difference between a day and a weekend, between thirty guests and two hundred, between all-inclusive and bring-your-own, but the truth is that the estate makes the decision easy the moment you stand on it. Couples walk the grounds, step into the pavilion, and see the house, and the right package tends to choose itself.
Scarborough House sits in Stantonsburg, in Wilson County, an easy drive from Raleigh, Durham, Wake Forest, and Greenville. It is the oldest home in the county, restored into a place built entirely around the wedding weekend experience. See it in photos in our gallery, read what other couples have said on our testimonials page, and when you are ready, book a tour. Meika and I will show you around, answer every question, and help you find the package that fits your day. We would love to meet you.