Table of Contents
The Red Horse Barn wedding will be a great option if you always wanted to organize your outdoor event with a rustic or classic touch.
Located in Huntington Beach, California, the Red Horse Barn wedding venue offers this opportunity and much more. Beautiful open-air grounds, separate event spots, and horse boarding together with a fresh breeze from the coastline will make your wedding unforgettable.
Location of the Red Horse Barn
The Red Horse Barn is probably one of the most spacious barn wedding venues in Southern California. It’s located in Huntington Beach, a “Surf” city southeast of Los Angeles, only 2 miles from Orange County’s beachfront hotels, and coastline. So, the location is very convenient for out-of-town travelers.
Couples choose the Red Horse Barn among other barn wedding venues of California because of its rustic vibe and ample grounds. The venue itself takes place on a 25 acre equestrian center with a truly unique ambiance of the countryside. The surroundings are typical for Arizona or Montana and quite unusual for Southern California.
The venue includes a country-like farmhouse with expansive terraces, green lawns, and horse boarding . Actually, the Huntington Central Park Equestrian Center’s 25 acres are home to nearly 400 horses, numerous stables, and miles of public trails. So, the entire grounds are a paradise for horse lovers and the Red Barn is a beautiful piece of it. Though this site is the most visited as a great wedding venue.
The venue will provide you with 12 parking lots for on-site parking. Other cars will be required to park off-site across the street at the Sports Complex. You can also use shuttle service from the venue complimentary.
The Red Horse Barn Huntington beach holds one event per day, so you’ll enjoy your privacy. No unexpected visitors or tours, the venue is shown by appointment only.
Red Horse Barn wedding facilities
You can invite up to 250 guests to your Red Horse Barn wedding. The venue offers 2 renting options:
- You may book the place as a “venue only” facility: you will have 5 hours of guest time, plus additional hours for your preparation, setup, and breakdown. Besides, one hour of rehearsal time is included in your venue rental fee. Tables, chairs, china, decor, and other rentals are not included: you are required to bring all vendors for your event. You may select your vendors/ caterers or choose from the venue’s preferred vendor list (Exceptions are beverage and DJ services). The venue use fee starts from $4,500 to $6,000 depending on the guest count & day of the week.
- You can also book an “All-Inclusive Event” from the local An All-Inclusive Event company, which manages the venue. They offer an all-inclusive package with catering, cake, floral, and event coordinator. The price is $10,500 for up to 100 guests. Plus you can also book the Décor Package (for an added fee) to be totally stress-free on your wedding day.
The whole day at the venue will be from 09:00 until 11:00 P.M where the curfew is by 10:00 P.M. Alcohol service must end 30 minutes before the end and music has to be lowered at 9:40 pm.
As for restrictions, they are quite standard for open-air venues of this kind: no fire, sparklers, confetti, rice, or birdseed. Smoking is only in designated areas.
For horses’ safety, nobody from guests or vendors is allowed in the stables or other horse areas. No dogs are allowed.
Red Horse Barn Wedding Sites
The Red Horse Barn has different locations for all steps of your wedding.
- Groom’s Area & Bridal Apartment are in different parts of the house.
- For the ceremony, you can use a gazebo terrace. Another nice option is the back lawn. The lawn is not allowed for a dinner or reception party, it’s used only for ceremonies.
- The reception is usually celebrated on the gazebo terrace or on the open patio near the house.
The venue rental fee includes 5 hours of event time exactly. This time you can use it to your liking: for ceremony & reception, or for only one of both. There is no discount for fewer hours.
Bride & Groom Preparation Sites of the Red Horse Barn
At the Red Horse Barn, you’ll be provided with two indoor preparation sites for the bride & groom. Each will have his own private area, on the different sides of the property.
Bride’s room has a simple elegant design, with all the facilities she may need, and even more: it has a full modern kitchen and a long breakfast bar. There is a full-length mirror and a lot of light from the big windows for makeup and changing into the wedding gown. The dress you can hang under the ceiling on the porch. This outside area enclosed by a railing makes the bridal site more spacious and perfect for relaxing outdoors with the bridal party & relatives.
Groom’s area also has a restroom, lots of comfortable seating, and even a fireplace. On the shaded porch ringed by bushes & flowers, the groom & his friends can sit back and relax before the ceremony. From here also you can snap some nice shots of the groom’s preparation and friends’ toasting.
Both areas are air-conditioned. You will have them at your disposal 4 hours prior to your ceremony.
First Look & Couple photos at the Red Horse Barn Huntington Beach
At the wedding where I was shooting, the couple did their First Look on the back lawn behind the house. It’s a nice area ringed by a white fence & trees looking rustic and romantic at the same time. Also, it’s not far from the ceremony spot and easily accessible on high heels (though in our case the bride didn’t wear it). This spot is also nice for group shots which I‘m talking about below.
After the ceremony, when guests gathered for the cocktail hour, we took some pictures with horses in their stables. If you’ll also have an opportunity to snap some shots with these beautiful animals, don’t miss it. The venue management does not allow guests or vendors to stay in horse stables due to safety, but as far as I remember it does not apply to wedding photography. The venue staff can offer you also a golf cart to drive around for photography. Clear up all these points in advance with the site manager.
We followed our wedding timeline, so all the pictures we took were near the property. The couple discovered a very scenic spot on the backside of the house: a small stone stairway surrounded by flowers in bloom. We also took some pictures on one of the secluded pathways behind the house. As you see, no need to go far from the main event areas, you can snap some nice shots right next to the house.
Group Portraits at the Red Horse Barn
The house itself with its open porches and ringed by greenery is very picturesque. We were at the venue in the summer when it was all covered with blooming bushes. It’s a very nice and colorful scenery for any kind of portraits. You can take some good pictures in the house shade before the ceremony and right after, during the cocktail hour.
After the ceremony, we used the back lawn for big group portraits. It’s a nice spot because it’s surrounded by trees and well protected from the direct sun in the afternoon time. In the photos you see below, faces are lit softly without harsh contrast, and there under the trees is enough space for 10-15 persons.
Ceremony site of your Red Horse Barn wedding
For the wedding ceremony, the venue offers a gazebo patio which is also spacious and flexible. Firstly, you can choose the gazebo as your “altar”. In this case, it will serve you as a wedding arch, specially decorated with white draperies & florals.
The second option is to use the lawn as the couple from the pictures below did: they brought in a wood arch and used it as a focal point. In this case, your way down the aisle will start from the gazebo. Nicely decorated and covered with trees from the sun, the lawn spot is stunning scenery to exchange vows. It’s also great for the ceremony shots because your photographer can snap pictures from any angle.
The venue will provide you with decor only if you choose the Decor package. Otherwise, you have total freedom to customize your event with some personal touches, rustic or more classic. Keep in mind that the venue does not allow you to use anything which can damage the lawn like confetti, rice, etc. Still, you are allowed to use rose petals on the ground for the ceremony.
If the weather is supposed to be pretty warm, plan with umbrellas or canopies. However, the venue highly recommends to monitor the weather some days before the event and have the second plan in case of the weather change. For example, you can secure a tent in advance through your vendor as well as to put the time for its preparation into your wedding timeline
Reception site of your Red Horse Barn Wedding
The couple at the wedding pictured below used the open patio right next to the house with the adjacent lawn for the reception.
Why this place worked great for them:
- The tables were placed very compactly and no guest found himself isolated or far from the main crowd.
- The bride & groom had their entrance directly from the house doors and everybody could see them from any angle.
- The guests used the benefit of the lawn and played lawn games. Still, the venue allows activities that do not require staking into the ground such as Corn Hole, Ladder Ball, Giant Jenga, etc.
Keep in mind that no tables have to be placed on the lawn, no beverage or bar set-ups. Our bar was located near the house porch.
- For the guests, it was also convenient to have their seats near the house, because 2 on-site restrooms are located there. If your guest count is 175 or more, the venue recommends additional portable restrooms.
The couple brought in string lights and put lanterns on the tables. Around a giant tree adorned with twinkle lights, there was a dance floor. Actually, the gazebo patio served as a dance floor and activity spot, and the patio near the house for a dinner setup. In the gazebo, the couple placed a wedding cake. So, all the event spots are separated from each other and at the same time very close.
Advantages of the Red Horse Barn venue
Your Red Horse Barn Huntington Beach wedding will be an outside and open event in a truly blank canvas location. It’s a great place if you like to decorate the event spots to your liking. Many couples are excited to customize the site to exactly what they want: bring their own caterer, own alcohol, etc. Some newlyweds even bring in a kegerator with kegs of beers. You can organize lawn games for your guests or embody any other DIY ideas.
Still, there is an option to book an all-inclusive event with professional staff and coordination. So, the Red Horse Barn is one more flexible barn wedding venue in Southern California according to offered facilities.
The location — just a few minutes off Pacific Coast Highway— is easily accessible and convenient for out-of-towners. The venue grounds are quite unusual landscaping for California and will make you feel like you’re somewhere in the countryside.
The venue offers a lot of photo opportunities, especially if you are a horse person: the Red Horse Barn is home to 10 horses. The staff can drive you around after the ceremony for a photoshoot with these nice animals.
The Red Horse Barn has not only a special rustiс ambiance, but very well-kept grounds, comfortable preparation areas, a spacious patio with a classic white gazebo flanked by fountains & palms, and other picture-perfect backdrops. You can host any kind of wedding here, whether country-like or vintage, from a small, intimate party to a large celebration of up to 250 persons. (This article will help you to decide how many persons you should invite)
If you like to see more venues in Southern California with the country atmosphere & horses :), read other articles about:
Saddle Rock Ranch in the Santa Monica Mountains with its 100 acres of vineyards, horse boarding, and exotic animals;
Rancho Las Lomas in the foothills of Mission Viejo with historical buildings, gardens, and a small zoo;
Serendipity Garden in the San Bernardino Mountains with its hilly grounds and the service of a horse-drawn carriage.
Leave a reply