La Crosse, Wisconsin
Where to get married in La Crosse
Five venues, and what each one gives your photographs.
How we judge a room
The place matters less than the light we bring to it.
We still look at three things: where the daylight comes from, how dark the reception gets, and how far it is to open sky at sunset.
01 · Downtown La Crosse
The Court Above Main
Built in 1894. Sixteen-foot ceilings, the original wood floor and windows floor to ceiling. Up to 180 guests, a getting-ready suite upstairs.
See the Gronseth wedding →
02 · On the Mississippi
Celebrations on the River
Three rooms on the river, the largest seating 400. Catering in house and a shuttle to nine partner hotels.
Visit the venue →
03 · Caledonia, Minnesota
Winnebago Springs
A hundred wooded acres south of Caledonia. A chapel with an arched window onto the waterfall, a hall for 250 and cabins for guests.
See Lindsay & Greg’s wedding →
04 · Onalaska
La Crosse Country Club
Up to 200 guests, catering in house and a director of events. Open to non-members.
Visit the venue →05 · Small weddings, downtown
The Charmant Hotel
For elopements, small weddings and rehearsal dinners: a rooftop for 75 standing and a private room for 50. Elopements with us start at $2,400.
Visit the venue →Before you sign
Three questions for any venue
Where does the sun set from the ceremony spot? How dark does the reception get? Can we step outside for ten minutes at golden hour?
Your wedding
Tell us the date. We’ll bring the light.
The place matters less than the light we bring to it.
The venue still sets the stage. We look at three things: where the daylight comes from, how dark the reception gets once the dancing starts, and how far it is to open sky at sunset. These five cover the range around La Crosse, from a ballroom for 400 to a rooftop for thirty.
The Court Above Main
The Court Above Main fills the third floor of an 1894 building on Main Street: sixteen-foot ceilings, the original hardwood floor and windows that run floor to ceiling. It seats up to 180 for a ceremony and dinner, with a private suite for getting ready.
The windows give us soft daylight all afternoon. After dark the chandeliers do the work and we build the rest, so the dance floor reads as warm and deep instead of flat.
Celebrations on the River
Celebrations on the River runs three rooms on Dawson Avenue, each with its own riverside patio for a ceremony. The largest, Center Court, seats 400; the other two seat up to 325 and 275. Catering is in house, and a shuttle runs guests to nine partner hotels.
Big rooms get dark fast once the dancing starts. That is where the light we carry matters most: the dance floor stays sharp and the color stays true.
Winnebago Springs
Winnebago Springs sits on more than a hundred acres in the Winnebago Valley, six miles south of Caledonia, Minnesota, across the river from La Crosse. The chapel looks through a tall arched window onto the property’s waterfall, the reception hall holds 250, and guests can stay on site in cabins and lodge rooms.
Open fields, the woods and the chapel doors all sit a short walk apart, so a whole portrait session fits between the ceremony and dinner.
La Crosse Country Club
La Crosse Country Club hosts weddings of up to 200 on Marcou Road in Onalaska, and it is open to non-members, who pay a room rental on top of food and drink. The kitchen is in house, with tastings, and a director of events runs the day.
The course is the reason to come. Late in the day the light rakes across the fairways, and ten minutes outside is all a portrait needs.
The Charmant Hotel
The Charmant is a boutique hotel in a restored downtown building. It suits a small wedding, an elopement or a rehearsal dinner: the rooftop terrace takes 75 standing or 30 seated, and the Serenada room seats up to 50.
It is one of our portrait spots downtown. The brick, the windows and the rooftop at sunset give a small wedding more looks than its guest count suggests. Elopements with us start at $2,400.
Three questions for any venue
Where does the sun set from the ceremony spot? How dark does the reception get once the lights go down? Can we step outside for ten minutes at golden hour?
Asked before every wedding
Do you photograph weddings outside La Crosse?
Yes. We have photographed weddings in Caledonia, Minnesota and McFarland, Wisconsin, and we travel for the right one.
Do you photograph elopements and small weddings?
Yes. Elopements start at $2,400. A courthouse wedding or a small dinner gets the same light and direction as a full day, in the hours you need.
What should we ask a venue about photography?
Where the sun sets from the ceremony spot, how dark the reception room gets once the lights go down, and whether you can step outside for ten minutes at golden hour.
Do you photograph engagement sessions?
Yes. Engagement sessions run on our couples portraits: see how a couples session works.
Tell us the date. We’ll bring the light.
Top 10 Photographer in the World · Three consecutive years