Lakefront · Burlington
Spirit of Ethan Allen: private wedding charters
Town BurlingtonType Lakefront
A Spirit of Ethan Allen wedding charter reserves private ship space with catering, bar service, tables, linens and staff. Distinguish the specific charter from public cruise tickets and confirm its boarding, departure and return times before printing the guest itinerary.
| Detail | Event requirement |
|---|---|
| Season or dates | April through October via WeddingWire |
| Catering rule | The ship is the exclusive caterer ↗ |
| Alcohol rule | The company controls all food and alcohol service ↗ |
| Site or venue fee | From $5,000 for a reception and $200 for a ceremony in peak season via WeddingWire |
Boarding is part of the wedding schedule
With an assumed 5 pm departure and boarding closing 15 minutes earlier, guests must be aboard by 4:45. A waterfront arrival at five would miss that hypothetical cutoff.
Use the actual charter’s boarding instructions. Confirm accessible boarding, the reserved deck’s dinner arrangement and the alternative itinerary if sailing conditions change.
References
The Spirit of Ethan Allen is a cruise ship, and its weddings page sells it as an all-inclusive venue: tables, linens, catering, bar service, professional staff and a floating backdrop that needs little decor, so a couple deals with one vendor instead of several. The page explains that chartering means renting a private space on the ship for a specific group, an exclusive alternative to individual public-cruise tickets.
Spirit of Ethan Allen: the setting, and what couples plan around
A charter has a fixed departure and return time. The timeline is set by the boat, not by the band. Ask when boarding closes, what happens in bad weather on the lake and how many guests the ship's private space holds for your package.
The ship's private events page describes hosting an event on the lively decks of the Spirit of Ethan Allen rather than in a standard venue. Its weddings page describes it as an all-inclusive charter with catering, bar service and staff. WeddingWire lists it as a wedding venue in the heart of Burlington. The boat leaves from and returns to the Burlington waterfront.
On a charter, the guest count is limited by the vessel's licensed capacity and the departure schedule is fixed. Ask what the maximum is for a wedding charter, whether the ceremony is onboard or at the dock, and when guests must board.
What Spirit of Ethan Allen states
WeddingWire listing for Spirit of Ethan Allen
- Spirit of Ethan Allen in summary
- Town; Burlington; Type; Lakefront; Catering; The ship is the exclusive caterer.
Boarding belongs on the invitation and supplier timetable
A private charter and a public cruise ticket are different reservations. Ask which deck or private area the wedding contract assigns, where guests check in and which return time appears in that agreement. Send those instructions to suppliers as well as guests; flowers, music equipment and a cake need their own loading arrangements.
As an example, a twenty-minute guest-boarding window ending at 4:45 pm would start at 4:25 pm. That is hypothetical scheduling arithmetic, not the ship’s published boarding policy. Use the operator’s actual instructions before printing it.
Request accessible boarding information for the guests attending, and agree how altered sailing conditions affect the ceremony and meal. Tables, linens, staff and the company’s exclusive food-and-alcohol service belong on the charter’s inclusion list, so separately hired suppliers can price only the work they are actually permitted to perform.
More in Vermont lakefront wedding venues: Basin Harbor weddings, Lake Morey weddings, Community Sailing Center.