Indiana Lodge Wedding Weekend: A Sample Timeline

An Indiana lodge wedding weekend at Forest Park Lodge runs at least two nights, with the wedding party sleeping in the house and the celebration held outdoors on 65 acres. The house sleeps 16 in 7 bedrooms and 4.5 bathrooms, and an event here can host up to 300 guests, with the reception under a rented tent on the event lawn.

A typical wedding weekend here runs in four parts: a welcome gathering, a day on the land, the wedding, and a farewell brunch. On a two-night stay, the day on the land and the wedding share Saturday. A third night gives each its own day.

The ceremony takes place in the open fields. The private fishing pond and the Horse Barn are backdrops for portraits and first looks, not event rooms: the Horse Barn is not set up for events, and there is no indoor ceremony or reception space. Plan the whole day around the fields, the tent and the house.

“We stayed here for my sons wedding. It was a great location between Indy and Bloomington.” (a guest, February 2026)

A sample weekend

This plan fits the four parts into two nights. The fixed points are check-in, check-out and quiet hours. Everything else moves to suit your ceremony time.

Friday: arrivals and a welcome gathering

• Fri 5:00 PM
  Check in. The couple, the wedding party and close family settle into the bedrooms.
• Fri 5:30 PM
  Walk the open fields with your planner and choose the ceremony spot, then look at the event lawn where the tent will stand.
• Fri 6:30 PM
  Welcome gathering. The overnight party gathers in the atrium for welcome drinks.
• Fri before 10:00 PM
  Bring any outdoor conversation inside before quiet hours begin.

Saturday: a day on the land, then the wedding

• Sat 8:00 AM
  Coffee for the house, then a slow morning on the land. Fishing is allowed in the private pond, so anglers in the group can bring a rod.
• Sat 10:00 AM
  A swim before the day gets busy. Guests can ask for the pool to be warmer, up to 85°F, for $125 per 5 degrees per day, with at least a day’s notice, so make that request on Friday or earlier.
• Sat late morning
  Your rental crew and caterer set up under the tent on the event lawn.
• Sat 3:30 PM
  First look and portraits, with the pond or the Horse Barn behind you.
• Sat 4:30 PM
  Ceremony in the open fields.
• Sat 5:15 PM
  Cocktail hour and dinner under the tent.
• Sat 7:30 PM
  Toasts, the first dance, then the music you cleared with the owner.
• Sat before 10:00 PM
  Last dance and the send-off, planned without fireworks.
• Sat after 10:00 PM
  The overnight party moves into the atrium for the late hours.

Sunday: farewell brunch and goodbyes

• Sun 8:00 AM
  Farewell brunch at the house. Keep the menu short: supermarkets are 5 to 15 minutes away for coffee, juice and anything the caterer does not bring.
• Sun 11:00 AM
  Check out.

If your families would rather linger over brunch, move it off site: restaurants are 10 to 20 minutes from the lodge.

The marriage license

You need an Indiana marriage license to marry here, and both of you must appear in person at a county clerk’s office to get it. If one of you lives in Indiana, you apply in the Indiana county where you live. Out-of-state couples apply in the Indiana county where the marriage will be solemnized.

Monrovia is one of the Morgan County towns, along with Martinsville, Mooresville and Morgantown. The Morgan County Clerk’s office is at 180 S Main St, Suite 172, in Martinsville. Hours are Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

You can start the application through the state’s marriage license application, which saves time at the counter. You still have to go in to finish and receive the license.

A license is valid for 60 days from the day it is issued, and you can marry as early as the same day. If you do not marry within the 60 days, you must apply again. A weekday visit in the week or two before the wedding keeps you well inside that window.

What to bring:

• One form of ID: a current, valid driver’s license or state ID card, or a passport.
• Your Social Security Number (the card itself may not be required).
• If either of you was married before, the date that marriage ended. Some counties also ask for a certified copy of the divorce decree.
• For both of your parents: full name, last known address and birthplace (state or foreign country).

Documents in a language other than English may need to be translated and notarized first. Local policies vary by county, so contact the Morgan County Clerk’s office in advance to confirm the list. Both of you must be 18 or older for a standard license. The clerk cannot issue one to anyone under the influence of drugs or alcohol when applying, so keep the visit away from a tasting or a toast.

As of October 2026, the Morgan County fee is $25 if one or both of you live in Indiana and $65 if you both live out of state. A certified copy is $4, and each additional copy is also $4. Order at least one for a name change at the BMV or with Social Security. Most counties require the fees to be paid in cash, so bring it with you.

Indiana Code section 31-11-6-1 sets out who may perform a marriage, so check that your officiant qualifies before you book them.

Tent, rentals and vendors

Event bookings do not include the tent, tables, chairs, linens, setup, teardown, cleanup or staff. Couples bring all of these in through their own vendors. With no indoor ceremony or reception space, the tent is both your reception room and your rain plan.

Tent and rentals

• Hoosier Tent and Party Rental at 3642 W 16th St. in Indianapolis is a family-owned company with pole, frame, clear top and clear span tents in various sizes, plus tent sidewalls, lighting, fans, tables, chairs, linens, a dance floor, a stage and flooring. It has served the Indianapolis area since 2001. Best for: getting the tent, the sidewalls and the furniture from one company.

How it works in practice:

• Business hours are Monday to Friday, 8 AM to 4 PM. From Dec. 1 to Mar. 1, winter hours are Monday to Thursday, 8 AM to 4 PM.
• The showroom is by appointment only, and evening and weekend appointments with an event specialist are available.
• It offers event-day delivery and post-event pickup, so the crew brings the tent and furniture in and takes them away again.
• For smaller items you collect yourself, customer pickup is Friday from 7 to 9 AM and return is Monday from 7 to 9 AM (Thursday pickup in winter). Holiday weeks may change those days, so ask when you reserve.

Its planning process runs on fixed checkpoints: 30 days before the event, two weeks before and one week before. Put those dates in your own calendar, along with setup, teardown and cleanup times in every vendor contract.

Catering, bar and a rehearsal dinner

Servers, bartenders and the cleanup crew come through your vendors. When you talk to caterers, ask whether they bring servers, handle setup and cleanup, and work under a tent.

• Goeglein’s Catering is a full-service caterer based in Fort Wayne that offers off-premises catering, alcoholic beverage service, custom centerpieces and decorating. Its off-site catering covers most of Northeast Indiana, so ask first whether it will travel to Morgan County. Office hours are Monday to Friday, 8:30 am to 5:00 pm, with Saturday by appointment. Best for: one vendor that brings the food, the bar and the table decor.
• 1915 Steakhouse and Bar at 290 East Morgan Street in Martinsville is set up for special events. Best for: a rehearsal dinner in Martinsville, the same town as the clerk’s office and the hotel below.

The honest tradeoff: a caterer from Fort Wayne is a long way from Morgan County, so a local caterer may be simpler for the wedding dinner. Visit Morgan County helps event planners with venues, hotel room blocks and area information for guests, and it is a good first call for local names.

Where the rest of the guests stay

The house sleeps 16, so at a wedding for up to 300, most guests book a room nearby. Hotels and short-term rentals for extra wedding guests are 5 to 15 minutes from the lodge. Lodging around us is spread across Martinsville, Mooresville, Morgantown and Monrovia, and it leans toward vacation home rentals, with fewer hotels. Hotel rooms are the ones to hold early.

• Brickhouse Loft: a Boutique Hotel, 240 North Jefferson Street in downtown Martinsville. Best for: out-of-state couples and their parents, since the clerk’s office where you apply for the license is in Martinsville too.
• A room block through Visit Morgan County: the visitors bureau works with area hotels to create an affordable room block for a group planning a special event. Start with its hotel and lodging listings, then ask about a block. Best for: a large guest list that wants rooms in one place.
• Hotels near Indianapolis International Airport: hotels within a five-mile radius of the airport offer courtesy vehicles for travelers. Best for: guests flying in who want a ride from the terminal to their hotel.

There is a tradeoff with the airport hotels. The airport is about 21 minutes from the lodge by car, so guests there need a car or a ride for every trip out to the wedding.

Ask for the room block before your save-the-dates go out, so the hotel details can go on the card.

Getting guests here and around

Three airports are within driving range of the lodge:

Indianapolis is the airport most guests will use. Rental cars are at the Ground Transportation Center on the first floor of the Terminal Garage, and that is also where Uber and Lyft riders meet their cars. The airport’s ground transportation page lists each option.

Taxis wait at the curb on the lower level, just outside Baggage Claim, with a $15 minimum charge for any fare from the airport as of October 2026. Shared rides and limousine services leave from the Ground Transportation Center, which can suit a wedding party arriving together.

Once guests arrive, there is plenty of parking on the property. There is no street parking, so never tell guests to leave a car along the road. For a large wedding, ask guests in nearby hotels to share rides, so there is room for the cars that matter most on the day: the house guests, the caterer and the rental company.

For the town itself, from groceries to dinner, send guests our guide to Monrovia, Indiana along with the invitation.

House rules that shape the day

These rules set the frame for the whole weekend. Build your timeline and your vendor contracts around them from the start:

• Quiet hours: 10 PM to 8 AM. Plan the last dance before 10 PM.
• Amplified music: amplified outdoor music needs the owner’s approval. Get it before you sign a band or a DJ.
• Fireworks: not allowed anywhere on the property. Plan a send-off that does not use them.
• Pets: welcome with the owner’s approval and a fee. Ask before the family dog joins the wedding party.
• Length of stay: a wedding booking includes at least two nights at the lodge.

Read about the house, its rooms and the pond before you set the guest list for the overnight party. Then clear the music and the tent plan with our team in your first conversation, along with the details on our weddings page, so the plan you share with vendors already fits the lodge.

For an overnight family gathering without a wedding, the family reunion checklist covers the same ground, and our questions and answers cover the stay itself.

See wedding pricing