Omni Barton Creek is a full resort about 10 miles from downtown Austin, and weddings here run like a well staffed hotel event. Everyone can sleep, get ready, marry and dance on one property. We have filmed couples who married on site and couples who married at a church and came back to the resort for the reception.
Hero photo: Omni Barton Creek Resort & Spa
Rooms for every part of the day
The resort assigns meeting rooms as working rooms for the day. On our days the Colorado room was the bride's getting-ready room twice, groomsmen used the Bull Creek Boardroom, Rio Grande or Rayburn, and vendors and bands ate in rooms like Rio Grande, Guadalupe, San Jacinto and Trinity. One bride got dressed in a hotel suite and did her first look with her dad in a Fairway Suite.
For us that means real rooms to work in, not a corner of a hallway. Ask which rooms you get and where they sit relative to each other, because a resort this size can put the bride and groom a long hallway apart.
Portraits on the grounds
One planner's timeline simply said portraits would happen in the classic spots at Omni, and on that November day we started solo bridal portraits on the lawn. In May, a golf cart waited for the couple after they arrived back from church so we could take them out on the course for portraits. Bring that up early, since the cart and route need to be arranged.
Church ceremony, resort reception
Two of our couples married at a church in town and used buses. In November, the wedding party left the resort about 75 minutes before a 5:00 ceremony, three 49 passenger buses carried guests back afterward, and cocktail hour started at the resort at 6:00. The couple reached the resort at 6:30, had a private moment with drinks in the Colorado room, and joined cocktail hour at 6:45. In May, the bus dropped the wedding party at the Brazos circle drive at 6:15.
If your ceremony is off site, expect the couple to miss the first half of cocktail hour. Use it for portraits instead of fighting it.
Reception, sound and the exit
All food and drink comes from the resort, with exceptions for wedding cakes and some cultural requirements, and a planner or day-of coordinator is required. The resort supplied the band stage on two of our days. Bands arrived anywhere from 10 AM to 2:30 PM on our days.
Exits vary. We have filmed a golf cart send off with streamers, sparklers with a golf cart, and a second line horn exit up the sidewalk with bubbles and no vehicle. Our days ended between 10:30 and 11:30 PM, with vendors out by 11:30 PM to 1:30 AM.
A real day here
A fall Saturday we filmed here (September 2025)
| 9:15 AM | Hair and makeup begins in the Colorado room |
| 10:00 AM | Venue access begins; planner and rentals arrive |
| 2:00 PM | Band arrives to set up, ready by 5:00 |
| 2:30 PM | Video coverage begins; bride gets dressed in the hotel suite |
| 2:45 PM | First look with dad in the Fairway Suite |
| 3:00 PM | First look with bridesmaids and bridal portraits |
| 4:00 PM | Groom and groomsmen photos with immediate family |
| 4:45 PM | Officiant arrives and is mic'd; ceremony detail photos |
| 5:00 PM | Guests arrive while the bride stays hidden |
| 5:30 PM | Ceremony |
| 6:00 PM | Cocktail hour with a jazz group; family and wedding party photos, couple portraits |
| 7:00 PM | Guests invited inside; couple has appetizers in the Trinity room while the dress is bustled |
| 7:15 PM | Introductions and first dance; sunset at 7:20 |
| 11:30 PM | Bar closes; streamer send off by golf cart |
Sample timelines by season
Sunset in Austin moves by three hours across the year, and it decides almost everything else on the timeline. Here is how we would shape a day at Omni Barton Creek Resort & Spa in each season. Times are a starting point; your planner and venue will tune them.
Spring
| 2:30 PM | Coverage begins with details and getting ready |
| 3:30 PM | First look, then couple portraits |
| 4:05 PM | Wedding party portraits, then immediate family |
| 4:50 PM | Couple tucked away in the Colorado room; guests arrive |
| 5:30 PM | Ceremony |
| 6:00 PM | Cocktail hour; extended family photos |
| 7:00 PM | Grand entrance and dinner |
| 7:25 PM | Couple slips out for golden hour, about 15 minutes |
| 8:00 PM | Toasts, then first dance and parent dances |
| 8:30 PM | Dance floor opens |
| 11:00 PM | Streamer send-off |
At the end of May sunset was 8:27, so after a 5:00 church ceremony there was still time for golf course portraits at the resort around 6:15.
Summer
| 3:15 PM | Coverage begins with details and getting ready |
| 4:15 PM | Bride with her bridesmaids, groom with his groomsmen, separately |
| 4:45 PM | Each side's family photos, still apart |
| 5:15 PM | Guests arrive; couple hidden in the Colorado room |
| 5:45 PM | Ceremony, first sight at the aisle |
| 6:15 PM | Family photos at the ceremony site |
| 6:30 PM | Wedding party photos, then couple portraits while guests enjoy a long cocktail hour |
| 7:30 PM | Grand entrance straight into the first dance |
| 7:40 PM | Dinner |
| 8:05 PM | Golden hour portraits between courses |
| 8:30 PM | Toasts and parent dances, dance floor opens |
| 11:15 PM | Streamer send-off |
Fall
| 3:15 PM | Coverage begins with details and getting ready |
| 4:15 PM | Separate portraits with the wedding party; no first look |
| 5:30 PM | Guests arrive to live music |
| 6:15 PM | Ceremony, timed for the last of the light |
| 6:40 PM | Recessional; family photos first, while the light holds |
| 6:45 PM | Cocktail hour into dusk |
| 6:55 PM | Golden hour couple portraits, about 20 minutes |
| 7:35 PM | Grand entrance, first dance, then dinner |
| 8:25 PM | Toasts and parent dances |
| 8:55 PM | Dance floor opens |
| 11:15 PM | Streamer send-off |
In mid November sunset was 5:30, during a 5:00 church ceremony, so first looks and formal portraits at the resort were done between 1:00 and 3:00.
Winter
| 12:30 PM | Coverage begins with details and getting ready |
| 1:30 PM | First look with dad, then a bridesmaid reveal |
| 1:45 PM | Groom's portraits with his parents and groomsmen |
| 2:30 PM | Wedding party tucked away in the Colorado room as guests arrive |
| 3:15 PM | Ceremony |
| 3:45 PM | Cocktail hour; family photos first, then the wedding party |
| 4:15 PM | Couple portraits, about 20 minutes |
| 4:45 PM | Grand entrance and dinner |
| 5:00 PM | Quick sunset portraits, about 10 minutes |
| 5:45 PM | Toasts, cake cutting, first dance and parent dances |
| 6:15 PM | Dance floor opens |
| 8:35 PM | Private last dance, then streamer send-off |
Common questions
Can we get ready at Omni Barton Creek?
Yes. On our days, meeting rooms such as Colorado served as getting-ready rooms, and brides also dressed in hotel suites.
Can we bring in our own caterer?
No. The resort says all food and beverage must come from the resort, with exceptions for wedding cakes and certain religious or cultural requirements.
Do we need a wedding planner?
Yes. The resort does not provide in-house planners and requires a professional planner or day-of coordinator.
How far is the resort from downtown Austin?
The resort says about 10 miles from downtown and about 30 minutes from the Austin airport.
Planning a wedding here? Send us your date and we will tell you how we would film it.