WEDDING WEEKEND WE WILL NEVER FORGET
We would like to take this opportunity to thank the entire staff of Chateau Bela, especially the event manager Katarina Dubecova, for an unforgettable wedding weekend in early July 2024.
After living abroad for over a decade, we wanted to find a place in Slovakia where we would feel comfortable welcoming a diverse international and Slovak group of friends and family, and we found this place in Chateau Bela. Many of our guests mentioned that it was one of the best weddings they've been to, and we have the staff at Chateau Bela to thank for this.
There are several things, which made this an outstanding wedding weekend:
1. Exceptional setting - while its history dates back centuries, the chateau has been recently completely rebuilt, and as such offers a truly aesthetic and authentic setting for semi-formal to formal events. The 'orangerie' hall has capacity of about 120 guests, which makes it perfect for mid-sized weddings. What we perhaps liked the most is that while it provides all advantages of an interior setting (esp. is not weather dependent), it feels very bright and spatious due to its large windows, and seamlessly blends the historical interior with exterior terraces and gardens. The acoustics were also great for both a live band and the DJ. In addition to the 'orangerie' hall, the entire chateau, incl. its rooms, courtyards, gardens, pool and other facilities were all spectacular.
2. Event management & service - while many venues offer some sort of event management, Chateau Bela went above and beyond mainly thanks to Katarina Dubecova, who coordinated most aspects of the wedding incl. food and beverage, accommodation, graphics, and several other components. Katarina is the most likeable, dedicated event manager, who always has the interest of the guest in mind, is truly responsive and absolutely strives to deliver the best event possible. During the wedding itself, Katarina was on site making sure everything ran smoothly, and whenever an issue arose, she took found the most creative solutions to resolve it. In addition to event management, the service (incl. everyone from waiters/bartenders, to receptionists and housekeeping) was consistently amazing; always welcoming, courteous and positive - not taken for granted in Central Europe.
3. Gastronomy, wine and drinks - having dined at over 50 Michelin restaurants, I would argue that while not of Michelin quality, the chateau offers one of top 10-15 dining experiences in Slovakia. The 4 course festive lunch and midnight buffet were delivered truly well even at a larger scale, and the kitchen was able to come up with proven but still inspired combination of traditional as well as innovative dishes. In addition to food, Chateau Bela's wine is some of the best if not the best in Slovakia, and perfectly complemented the local dining theme. Moreover, the hotel has a good selection of spirits and was able to offer a drinks bar, which was a big favorite of our guests (and thanks to the wonderful staff of Chateau Bela it was open several hours longer than promised). To provide a balanced view, we felt that some of the barbecue dishes and canapes were rather average, but still very good standard.
In a nutshell - it was a perfect wedding weekend and we are so happy in retrospect that we chose Chateau Bela. We will definitely keep returning in the years to come and relive these moments in Chateau Bela's beautiful facilities, or at one of their events that they regularly organize.