Blue Ridge Brides Know: Service is Key for Wedding Guests from Out of Town

By Kristina Arntz -
Hilton Garden - Winchester, Virginia

You’ve got the ring, set the date and finally, you’ve chosen the perfect Blue Ridge venue for your wedding! Congratulations! There’s still so much to do…what next? Lose sleep? Why?! Perhaps because you’re wondering where those out of town guests will stay when they arrive for your wedding (probably not at Mom and Dad’s)… Or maybe you’re considering how those guests will get to the wedding – and then from the reception back to their home away from home?

Relax! There’s a place Blue Ridge brides go that makes life so much easier!  It’s the Winchester Hilton Garden Inn—at your service.

The Winchester Hilton Garden Inn offers brides and their guests so many surprising amenities you’ll be head over heels in love with the convenience and hospitality:

To start, the Hilton Garden Inn has the most convenient location of any hotel in Winchester! Easy I-81, I-66, and Routes 50 and 522 access to points north, south, east and west – just an hour from the nation’s capital and walking distance to great places for food, shopping and entertainment, like Chili’s, Glory Days Bar & Grill, the Apple Blossom Mall, Carmike Cinemas, large grocery markets, boutique gift shops, and so much more! But location is just the icing on the cake.

How about Complimentary Shuttle service?

The hotel will provide scheduled transportation for your guests within a 20 mile radius! That means no worries for you about guests getting from the hotel to the ceremony, the ceremony to the reception and from the reception safely back to the hotel.

Throw in a complimentary Personalized Web Page!

Hilton Garden Inn provides a customized web page for your guests to book a room online and receive your special group rate.

You get to publish details about all events planned for your guests – and can even include a thank you and share your engagement story! Plus add photos of you and your fiancé!

And, Miss Wedding Planner, your very own Guest List Manager…

Through Hilton’s online Guest List Manager service, you can view, download and print a reservations guest list to keep track of your attendees and their reservation status—anytime, 24 hours a day.

Plus the hotel will make your guests feel special, adding to their memories of your big day with a token of appreciation that says "Welcome to the wedding! Let’s celebrate!"

Your guests receive exclusive “Happier Hour” Specials -- discounts in honor of the Bride and Groom, at the Hilton’s Restaurant and Bar!

So what’s left for you to do? How about putting together a welcome gift basket or bag for your traveling guests? They’ll appreciate thoughtful little treats from you, designed to help them feel welcome. And the hotel will be delighted to deliver your gift to the guest’s hotel room – perhaps on the bed or on the desk – so that it’s the first thing they see when they arrive, or at the front desk when they first check in to the hotel.

A welcome gift basket or bag is a great way to share some of the local culture while adding a little fun and sentimentality, too! And a Blue Ridge Bride has lots of inspiring options to choose from for welcome gifts; include items associated with the region—anything “apple” is great! And if it’s edible, even better! The local farmer’s markets provide an endless selection of treats. Virginia peanuts are a delight to receive and a snack bag of Rt. 11 potato chips is perfect for “the local flavor” snack. A bottle of wine from an area vineyard makes a classy touch. And don’t forget to add a few “Visitor Bucks”--complimentary discount “money” coupons from the Winchester-Frederick County Visitor’s Center, and a map to local attractions, noting which attractions are your favorites and why. Aspirin, mints, antacids, band-aids or toiletry items like bubble bath are also thoughtful inclusions that will impress your guests and make them feel welcomed.

The Hilton Garden Inn will give each of your guests a welcome letter from the staff that details the hotel’s amenities (like the heated indoor pool and the customizable Garden Sleep System beds that have a dial on the side to adjust to personal comfort level) but why not add your own Schedule of Events? Your guests will appreciate being informed during their stay so they know where they need to be and when. And the hotel will help you with the details, like the complimentary shuttle service times, the bar and restaurant hours.

Adding a special note from you is a personal touch that expresses your appreciation of the guests who’ve traveled to be part of the festivities.

The Hilton Garden Inn makes it easy!

Your next step: Contact the hotel at (540) 722-8881.
Then: Ask for the sales department.

Then: Ask for the sales department. And finally, say: I want to set up a room block of 10 rooms or more for my wedding! 

And that’s it! (A room block costs you nothing and doesn’t even require a credit card!)

Now for the easiest part of all -- saying: I do!