Real wedding · Downtown Orlando
A gazebo ceremony, a homemade dessert and a dance floor that kept going in the rain.
In 1893, Colonel Peleg Peckham of Winter Park built a house on Lake Lucerne and gave it to his daughter as a wedding present.
More than 130 years later, we watched another couple get married in its garden gazebo.
The bride is a baker, so she made the dessert herself. Then the rain came, and everyone kept dancing in it.
The house has changed hands since 1893. Dr. Philip Phillips, the citrus grower it’s named for, bought it in 1912 and lived there until 1959, and it’s been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1979. It still knows how to throw a wedding.
Here’s what the day looked like, where we shot, and what to know before you book it.
Right after the ceremony, we stay put at the gazebo. The white railings and the ivy make a great portrait spot, and nobody has to walk anywhere. From there we’ll use the covered veranda, where the columns and banisters photograph well, and the front steps. If the weather turns, the house has an interior staircase, a foyer and a parlor to work with.
The French doors in the dining room let in soft, even light, a big help on a bright Florida afternoon. Once it’s dark, head back out to the brick courtyard and let the market lights do the work.
Dancing can happen on the brick, on the covered veranda or inside, so whoever runs your music needs a plan for power and sound in each spot, plus a backup if rain sends everyone indoors. The venue doesn’t publish an end time for music. Get it in writing in your contract.
An outdoor ceremony means competing with wind and a little street noise. Our DJ handles wireless mics for the ceremony and toasts, so your vows come through clearly in the film. We’d plan portraits for the last hour before sunset and point guests to the free garage, which keeps the front circle open for vendors.
The venue keeps a list of DJs it recommends. Its site calls them pre-approved and highly recommended, not required, so if you’d rather bring your own team, check with your coordinator.
That depends on which page of the venue’s site you read. Its events page says up to 150 and its weddings page says up to 250, with a 30-guest minimum. Ask the venue to confirm for your layout.
There are two backups: a ceremony on the covered veranda, which seats about 70, or an indoor ceremony at the French doors in the main dining room.
We’ve seen it happen here. It rained on the wedding in this post, and people danced right through it.
Yes. Guests can park for free in the garage at 500 Delaney Ave on weekends and after 4 pm on weekdays. There’s also a small front circle and a lot behind the house.
For catering, yes: Millenia Catering is exclusive. Everyone else on the venue’s list is recommended, not required.
Yes. Our all-in-one package is $6,000 and covers eight hours of photography, six hours of film and six hours of DJ/MC.
Photo, film and DJ from one team, so the people covering your day aren’t meeting each other for the first time at the gazebo.
Venue details from drphillipshouse.com, the National Park Service register record and Wikipedia, checked October 2026. Confirm current details with the venue.
