Venue Details

Camp Wandawega is like a perfectly curated Wes Anderson movie, with a history to make an equally interesting plotline. These grounds have hosted everyone from sinners to saints (the jury's still out on us after this weekend)... In 1925, a hotel was built to capitalize on Prohibition. The booze-hole is still found in the main lodge! Per the Wandawega proprietors, “Although Prohibition comes to an end, the demand for ladies of the night, gambling and bootleg liquor does not. The tavern (nicknamed Orphan Annie's after the madame herself) is a popular hangout for a cast of characters including criminals on the run, local law enforcement, and Chicagoans hankering for some debauchery.” Hmm Chicagoans and debauchery? A foreign concept…

By the 1950s, the resort changed several hands; first it turned into a lake resort for affordable getaways, and then was bought by the Latvian Catholic church, and the space was used by the Chicago Latvian community as a summer camp over the years. In 2003, the current owners, who had spent summers attending the camp in the 1970s, bought the property to keep it within the extended family. Since then, they have been slowly and intentionally restoring and curating the space to be the whimsical and nostalgic place it is today!

The wedding will be outdoors, both ceremony and reception will be onsite! The reception will be fully tented and in the chance of rain, the show will go on! The grounds have a lot of nooks and crannies to explore, so we hope you can come spend some time with us and discover the charm of camp for yourself. Take a virtual tour in advance!!

We're giddy about the venue, it brings up tons of personal memories of Ali's days at Girlscout Camp and Alex's time growing up spending time at the lake and camping... but, we want everyone to have the right expectations of this, perhaps, unique experience! These buildings and the grounds are from the 1925s, and they are true to their age. Please take a moment to read the Camp's Manifesto of Low Expectations, but know that we have high expectations of your dance moves.