Fire Lake Event Center

Clearly things have changed at Fire Lake. We booked it for a wedding. We made the booking in March for an October wedding. Other than asking us for money, they hardly communicated. They were largely unresponsive and dismissive. The wedding day came, and they were unprepared and unsupportive and unresponsive. It’s clear that they no longer want to be a wedding venue. They gave the clear impression ready they just didn’t care.

This place is terrible. My husband and I booked our wedding 8 months in advance, with plans to have both the ceremony and reception there. All the while I communicated with several different people, and it was extremely hard to get answers about anything. I did however make sure I asked the important questions repeatedly; would the lights under the pavillion work, will the place be clear of trash and extra tables, and will there be a place for the women to get ready? I was assured that all of those things would be taken care of (plus a number of other small yet important details; like apparently not being able to refrigerate my cake on the property which was also something I’d asked about repeatedly.) I went to check the place a week before the wedding and they had put a trapeze structure where the ceremony archway was, 5 months prior, that could not be moved. WTF. But when I called to ask about it I was told «your wedding is not really a priority right now.» Exactly what every bride to be wants to hear right? Jump to the day of the wedding; I’ve again been reassured that I can have the ceremony on a different part of the property and everything will be clean and ready to go. No. I show up the morning of to be told «what are you doing here?» And I had to wait two hours for the «bridal suite» that I’d been promised to be available to my bridesmaids and me. Then the lights did NOT work, there was no one there to help us– we had been told a groundskeeper would be there that day. Not to mention there were ugly old chairs and trash everywhere. My bridesmaids and I had to move heavy ass wooden tables and pick up trash the morning of my wedding. After the wedding a month ago, I was offered a refund, but never received it and continue to get ignored by all the staff. This place SUCKS.

Notice how all of the good reviews of this place are outdated?
I shouldn’t complain too much. These people fit us in with really short notice (we were scheduled to get married at Bastrop State Park, which burned down) and promised us that we could have our reception in the pavilion without a curfew, that they didn’t have neighbors for miles, so the sound wouldn’t be a problem, and that we would have the whole next day to strike and pack up everything so our families wouldn’t have to work too hard. That’s the whole reason we chose this place, since what was important to us was that we have a good reception, since my husband is from France and our families can’t get together very often.
The first red flag was how beyond unprofessional everyone involved with this place really is. I mean, in their defense, they are a special effects company and NOT a wedding venue. When we got there, the place was a mess (trash everywhere, rotting garbage in the trash cans, rotting food in the refrigerator) and the swimming pool was disgusting. We found a leaf blower and started cleaning up the pavilion while the guys started trying to figure out the pool vacuum. At this point a man came storming over from across the property to berate us, completely snubbing me when I introduced myself and then told us that we weren’t to «touch [his] things.» Then he did nothing to do all of the work that should have been done before we even arrived.
The owner of the property was at my wedding taking photos the whole time without permission of any kind. In all of the excitement, we assumed that he was an assistant for the photographer that we’d hired. These pictures ended up on his website for advertising purposes AFTER I asked that he not use photos of us for the purpose of getting more business – because not only is that illegal, but they effectively ruined my reception, and I was angry.
We started being threatened with police at 9:50 pm because the music was too loud for the «neighbors». By 10:30, everyone was leaving because we had to move everyone into the living room of the house. Our WEDDING reception! We were being treated like we were teenagers throwing a house party! Anyway, when our guests started leaving they said that they could hear nothing when they were just barely at the edge of the property, so the only one who could have been complaining about the noise to the police were the people who actually lived on the property – the employees of this place themselves.
This is when they told us that, instead of having the whole next day to clean, we’d have to be gone at 10 am. This is when they told us that we wouldn’t be able to play paintball like they’d promised, that they wouldn’t staff the ropes course like we’d agreed, and that we might not get any of our deposit money back ($ 2,000 – which we still haven’t seen). We had a big breakfast planned for our friends and out-​of-​town family, and this had to be cancelled. We all worked like mad from the second we got up, and on empty stomachs, too.
I’ve been calling and emailing them for a month now to get back a few things we left there, still without resolution.
If you want to rent this place out for a birthday party for kids, I’d say go for it. They’re not going to mind the junk lying around everywhere, the unfinished pavilion, or the
complete lack of service. But please do NOT trust these people with a wedding, it’s not worth the money.

I wouldnt spend a dime at this place. They make promises they dont keep. The lake is a huge dry hole in the ground, the cabana is unfinished and the house is in serious need of some upgrades.
Some one else mentioned the ants… also, on the same property is a paintball place that looks like a run down army base or something.
Country Ghetto. I wouldnt have my daughter get married there, for sure. Really, save yourself the drive. (Its almost in Dripping Springs!)

This was an excellent venue for our summer wedding! We started looking for a venue in Feb for a June wedding (I know right) and stumbled upon Fire Lake. Steve showed us around the property, which was very spacious and had lots of options. Gazebo area for dancing/​reception, lots of shady space for the ceremony itself, swimming pool for the kids the day before while we prepped, and even a zip line for our out of town guests to have a little fun (those who could fight the rush hour traffic on 290 anyway). My wife and I each had a bed and bath in the house to use as needed for the weekend, and the staff was on hand as we worked through the last minute details. They were even able to help us transport some kegs (with a delivery charge) after the wedding was over. Friendly staff, awesome setting, lots of options to plan your perfect wedding.
I give four stars instead of five for some minor things. The location is out of the way, so great for spacious and scenic but sucks for getting your guests there, especially with Austin traffic being what it is. We did have a little confusion on details that we were able to get resolved a few days before the event, but my wife was getting pretty nervous in the weeks leading up as it was a little difficult to communicate. And we didn’t enjoy having to set and pack up the tables and chairs since we didn’t have a caterer.
All in all, I’d suggest this place for anyone looking to do the same thing we did. A small-​medium wedding in a gorgeous location with friendly staff. My wife and I loved it, and you will too!

I recently attended a friend’s wedding hosted at the Fire Event Center. The weather was perfect and the venue is really pretty. They offer a lovely country home for the bride and groom to spend the night/​weekend at after the wedding. The home is spacious and is located far enough (too far if you ask me) to provide for privacy. Another beautiful bonus is that the home sits on a large amount of land and overlooks a small lake. The day was beautiful.
The only cons are that it is way out in the middle of no where. There is no lighting to really speak of. So, when the festivities were in full swing, there were no lights to illuminate the evening. Either you stayed in the eating area or you had to fend for yourself. Another negative is that there is only one restroom in the house for a venue that boasts capacity of 2500 guests. Lastly, the grounds are not treated for fire ants. One of my friends was attacked in the dark and came home with over 100 fire ant bites all over her ankles and legs. Her legs look pretty bad and she says they itch and burn. Yikes!
All in all, the evening was lovely. The venue is quite beautiful. However, for the price that was paid (in the thousands) for the weekend, I believe some extra lights and an exterminator would garner five stars.