If you’re looking for a gorgeous outdoor option for a downtown Raleigh wedding venue, then Haywood Hall House & Gardens is your spot.

The house itself is gorgeous and full of incredible antique furnishings. But the gardens are where your party will happen. Whether tented or fully al fresco, your wedding reception at the Haywood gardens is bound to be lovely. Most people don’t even know the Haywood Hall grounds are hiding just two blocks away from the Capitol, but once you stumble across them, you feel transported from the city.

There’s space inside the historic house for getting ready, and most couples have their ceremony on the lawn in front of the building. Others simply use the gardens for a reception after a ceremony at one of the many nearby churches.