I had the honor to officiate a wedding there on Sunday the 8th. I arrived early and was able to do a quick run through with Candice and the rest of the staff. Everyone at the Emerson was absolutely professional, very attentive, patient and accommodating. The wedding ceremony had to be delayed and the staff worked diligently to assure that things went smooth, that all parties involved were on the same page and most importantly communicated well with me so that we can assure that the bride, groom and their families were happy. It was truly a pleasure to work with everyone there.

We got married at the Emerson Inn on 6/29/2019, and we COULD NOT HAVE BEEN HAPPIER with that choice of venue! We fell in love with the inn the first time we visited- it’s charming and intimate and the views are beautiful- but it’s always hard to know ahead of time how the experience will be. It not only was everything I’d hoped, but exceeded expectations across the board! We had 88 people at our wedding so we did the ‘exclusive use’ package where you fill the 34 rooms of the inn for the weekend. Having everyone in one place allowed for so much more convenience for the guests (since they didn’t have to worry about transportation between events) and more time for all of us to catch up: over breakfast, relaxing on the porch, etc. I loved getting ready in the morning and glancing out on the lawn to see friends coming and going, playing lawn games, relaxing at the pool, going for walks, etc. We had the ceremony inside the parlor (the fallback plan for weather), and it was beauti... Read moreful. The space/layout was great for the reception too. Just as great as the setting was the SERVICE!! Everyone was commenting on it: all of the waitstaff were exceptionally helpful, proactive with solving problems, and positive. Candice is the event coordinator and she took care of everything. She really cares about what she does and her heart was in it from beginning to end. She was also perfect with sort of preserving and protecting our plan for what we wanted: when guests had suggestions (turning down music volume during dinner, or ‘wouldn’t it be nice if the flower girls did XYZ’), Candice politely and succinctly deferred to our plan, or checked in with us to confirm whether that was okay with us- she was focused, positive, and socially masterful. Emily the rooming coordinator was proactive and helpful. The food was delicious for our catered meals and for morning breakfast, and everything worked out well across the board. HIGHLY recommend Emerson Inn for a wedding venue!!!

Having planned many events and stayed in many hotels, I can honestly say the Emerson Inn experience was second to none. The event coordinator was flexible with a "we will make it work" approach putting in long hours as if this were her own child's wedding. The Emerson staff, from bell hop, to server, to maintenance, to chefs, to front desk, to housekeeping all shared this same work ethic. Everyone was easy to work with so we could all relax and enjoy to occasion. Last minute changes due to weather and some special accommodations were problem solved and handled seamlessly and with enthusiasm and grace. Set up for ceremony, cocktail hour, buffet, dancing was smooth and efficient. Staff often anticipated needs, including some from our 95 year old, special guest. The food was delicious. Passed bites during cocktail hour were plentiful and very tasty. Dinner exceeded even high expectations. And breakfasts provided new surprises each morning for lasting fond memories (homemade donuts!).... Read more One can't beat sitting on the porch in a rocking chair with the ocean their before you. A doable walk to town or a shorter walk to a state park made it a location from which one can access Rockport. . Family and guests have given us nothing but positive feedback and enjoyed being together in this pretty setting. If we have another event to plan, we would go back to the Emerson Inn without hesitation. For us, the Emerson Inn is an unqualified recommendation and played a huge role in making our daughter's wedding so much fun and so special for everyone. Thank you.

We had our wedding at the Emerson Inn at the end of April and were so happy with the experience. Candice, the Events Manager, and Emily, the Guest Services Manager, were both incredible throughout the whole process of booking the Inn, rooms, and putting together our wedding. Candice is so detail oriented and thinks of the small things that will make the experience better for you and your guests. The rooms are lovely, clean, and very comfortable (the beds are awesome). The food from the Pigeon Cove Tavern was great-we did a buffet and all the food was delicious-and breakfast was yummy as well! Of course, the view and location cannot be beat. If you're looking for a relaxing and lovely night away, or a great place to host your wedding on the water-this is it!

My husband and I got married at the Emerson Inn in September 2018 and it truly is a one of a kind experience. Everyone that attended commented on how cool it was that the entire hotel was only booked by our wedding guests and therefore, anyone they said hello to would be a family member or friend. This was one of the aspects that we ended up loving the most, in fact our nieces and nephew almost got too comfortable and started walking around with no shoes as if it was their home. The staff are very helpful and make you feel a part of the family. Candice is a wonderful event manager and really helps you through the entire process and executes everything perfectly on the day of the wedding. I was ecstatic that the venue came with her services as the same day coordinator and I didn’t have to recruit any family to set anything up. Everyone could just enjoy themselves and celebrate! We had an event planned each day throughout the weekend, a Welcome Drink, the wedding and then ... Read morea brunch and they were all executed exactly how we wished. It allowed us to just take in all the moments and really enjoy time with our guests. The food was also so delicious!! We had wedding guests that came up to us and said it was the best meal they ever ate! The breakfast each morning is phenomenal! At first, I was nervous about the size of the venue’s dance space, but honestly, it was awesome because our 150 person wedding took over the space and made it a huge dance party! It was incredible! Oh and how can I forget about the views!! One CANNOT beat the view of the venue. It is an absolutely stunning back drop for a wedding ceremony and we were definitely blessed by mother nature the weekend we got married. I highly recommend the Emerson Inn! We will be back to enjoy the ocean view as a getaway too!

The Emerson Inn is a beautiful venue to host a wedding reception, especially following the hotel's recent renovation. Everyone on the staff, but especially Event Coordinator Melissa Hobbs, was very accommodating and made our big day a huge success. We planned our entire wedding from overseas, so extra kudos for Melissa and Co. for dealing with us remotely. We had 140 guests which approached the Emerson's maximum (150), but everyone was comfortable and the service was great. EVERYONE raved about the meals, so kudos to the chef - though plating all 140 guests took considerably longer than anticipated. No bother since Melissa kindly agreed to extend the party an extra hour to ensure our guests could properly enjoy the dance floor. Bar service was superb and the hotel was super accommodating on special booze/signature cocktail requests. We researched a ton of wedding venues on the North Shore and could not have been happier with our selection of the Emerson. Our guests loved ... Read moretheir elegant, cozy, New England seaside inn experience - and so did we. Look forward to returning in the future to enjoy a cocktail on the veranda.

My wedding venue was The Emerson Inn by the Sea, and their wedding coordinator is Melissa Hobbs. This venue was exactly what I wanted - comfortable, low key, elegant and on the water with magnificent views. Melissa made my wedding everything I envisioned, and she was a dream to work with. She is very patient, knowledgeable, professional and so pleasant. On our wedding day, she ensured that everything ran smoothly and while I knew she was there she made herself invisible. Everything was seamless. Six of us stayed at the Inn the evening prior and the wedding night. Our rooms were charming and comfortable - with ocean views. Perfection all around! Thank you Melissa!

The Emerson was the perfect place for our wedding. It was our last venue we visited when we were planning our wedding; we wanted somewhere on the ocean, in the Cape Ann area, and a hotel/inn so that all of our guests could stay and not have to go or drive anywhere the whole weekend, and no where else had really sold us yet. As soon as we drove up and I saw the place I knew we needed to have our wedding there! Melissa the events coordinator at the inn was amazing; she was so knowledgeable, helpful, patient, and kind and put our minds at ease so many times throughout the planning process. When we found out that we were going to have to have a day wedding, from 12-5, due to the inn opening for dinner at 5:30, we initially were apprehensive until Melissa's expertise kicked in again and she suggested we do an after-party harbor cruise out of Gloucester on a whale watch boat, which is exactly what we did (easy to book, and cost effective!). And it was AMAZING. We brought our photograph... Read moreer and DJ (also affordable to do) and got some great photos and did 2 straight hours of dancing, after a very beautiful, casual reception at the inn. The staff was incredibly friendly and helpful, they seemed genuinely excited for us even though they do weddings all the time. Melissa helped us plan everything out and told us what worked best in the space and we didn't have to worry about a thing come the wedding day, she and the staff took care of it all. Our guests are still raving about the food, the rooms, the whole vibe, and said it was the best wedding they'd ever been to. Some of them even want to make the Emerson a new vacation spot and come back to stay! We used the pool a few times the week before the wedding because we were staying on site, and that was clean, comfortable and had a great view. Overall we could not have been happier with the Emerson and are SO glad we found this hidden gem on the north shore!

There was never any doubt that we would be married at the Emerson Inn. We wanted the quintessential New England summer wedding and this was the PERFECT location! Melissa Hobbs, the Inn's wedding coordinator, was beyond excellent and made sure our day went off without a hitch. I honestly didn't have to worry about a thing because Melissa had it all perfectly coordinated and all we had to do was enjoy our special day. We had a traditional lobster bake and our guests raved about the food! It really was delicious and the ambiance of being on the ocean was just beautiful. Since we had a lot of out of town guests, Melissa helped us arrange a meet -n- greet the day before the wedding, which included appetizers and cocktails on the Inn's beautiful veranda. That too was delicious (the cocktail shrimp are a must!) and the setting was just stunning. Ocean breeze, sunset, and champagne! The entire weekend was just perfect.

All the stuff at the Emerson In by the sea were so accommodating and flexible for our last minute wedding. Since the first call they responded and we were able to have our special day there. We can't thank them enough for their help. BTW: The rooms are beautiful. The restaurant: a 5 star. The grounds GORGEOUS..!!! Thank you, thank you, thank you. Mr. & Mrs. Glass

Beautiful venue: wonderful location, elegant and understated setting - just right. My daughter's extensive contacts with Melissa before the event were very positive, the staff were all friendly and highly professional. The wedding reception could not have gone better. Very much recommended.

Emerson Inn was AMAZING. Our bicultural wedding had a lot of needs and they were able to accommodate everyone in ways that didn't stress out the bride's or create work for themselves/family. Food was DELICIOUS, and plentiful! They made food for Friday night welcome party, Saturday morning, Saturday's wedding, the after party and Sunday brunch- everything was so good, and they were so attentive to the many dietary needs. The venue is beautiful, they know what they're doing, they offered great advice AND allowed us to create our own vision. They're really flexible and willing to take control, while also giving you the space to make it your own. We got married there before it was open for the season so communication was a little hard at times. But, we were organized and on top of what we needed to be and they ran with the rest. By the time wedding weekend rolled around, we were part of the party and they made sure we had a good time...bringing us champagne, cracking glowsticks, and busti... Read moreng moves. It was a fantastic experience and completely financially doable no matter your budget!

Oh my goodness. Where do I begin? Candice was an absolute pleasure to work with - she made our very intimate wedding even better than we could have ever expected. She also took care of all the details I hadn't even thought of and made the day totally stress free. The venue itself is gorgeous - very coastal and classic with a lot of amazing places for pictures (inside and outside!). Our room on the top floor was perfect as well. We had an intimate elopement with just us, our parents, and my sister with dinner on the porch at the Pigeon Cove Tavern after. Dinner was phenomenal and the whole weekend was quaint, serene, and gorgeous. I couldn't have picked a better venue! Rockport is also a great little town with a lot of coastal New England charm :)

Melissa Hobbs, the Events/Banquet manager was a joy to work with. She bent over backwards to make sure everything was perfect!. They took such good care of us from the minute we walked in, to making beautiful trays of food for our wedding party /family to nibble on while getting ready all day to helping us set up a wonderful brunch for everyone the next day.The Venue is so charming and beautiful- the pictures in the garden were breathtaking! The food was excellent. Since this is such a small inn there is limited space and limited choices for timing of events, but we worked it out and had a blast!