The Sanctuary RI

All-inclusive venue

The venue takes care of it all - food and beverage, rentals, the works!

Full wedding (ceremony and reception) pricing

Starting at $15,000 for off-peak dates, and $20,000 for peak dates

Guest capacity

Up to 300 seated guests

About this venue

The Sanctuary is a beautiful and iconic wedding venue on the East River in New York City. It includes more than 16,000 square feet of event space and affords spectacular views of Manhattan. The property has several magnificent event spaces. The Sanctuary was formerly a church near The Octagon, a historic octagonal building on Roosevelt Island, now on the National Register of Historic Places. Today, the Sanctuary's original stained glass windows and locally quarried granite combine with more modern features, including a sweeping 40-foot ceiling and 30-foot marble bar, to create an effect that's nothing short of marvelous. The Sanctuary opens onto a covered veranda, complete with lounge seating and an Instagram-ready mural of Roosevelt Island. Beyond this lies the 4,000-square-foot Terrace, a beautiful reception space that can seat over 250 guests. Other notable event areas include the lovely front-yard Patio, the tranquil VIP Courtyard, and the fully renovated three-bedroom stone House

Seated guest capacity

  • 250-300

Venue type

  • Beaches, Waterfront Settings
  • Historic Estates, Mansions

Venue setting

  • Covered Outdoor
  • Indoor
  • Outdoor
851 Main St, New York, NY 10044

Our event spaces

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The Sanctuary

Historic converted premises to fit your each and every need.

Complete with brand new HVAC, a built out bar, and a stage.

Guest capacity

100-200 Seated

200-300 Standing

Square footage

2,000

Room cost

Included in total venue pricing

Available services that can be provided by The Sanctuary RI

Services & amenities

  • Bar services
  • Catering services
  • Clean up
  • Dance floor
  • Dressing room / Bridal Suite
  • Event coordinator
  • Event rentals
  • Event staff
  • Liability insurance
  • Lighting/Sound
  • On-site accommodations
  • Pet friendly
  • Service staff
  • Set up
  • Transportation
  • Wedding cake services
  • Wheelchair accessible
  • Wifi

Reviews

Write a review

3.8 (5 reviews)

  • Don’t get married here

    Verified review
    •Alexandra efstratiou•3 months ago

    I wouldn’t recommend getting married here. The owners aren’t on the same page- Frank made promises in writing that Alfonso later refused. One such example was that we could have taper candle on our tables lit- after we spent hundreds of dollars on non refundable candle holders- days before the wedding Alfonso told us we couldn’t use them. Another time, per our contract we had told our vendors they had until 1pm to clean up. Alfonso told me I was wrong and insisted I update my vendors on the timeline, when I pointed out where it said this on the contract he never apologized or even acknowledged he was wrong but merely said we had a communication issue. AKA he didn’t read his own contract and tried to bully me out of receiving what they agreed to. There were many similar instances throughout the process. The day before he reminded us to bring a cash gratuity (this was the first time he mentioned this) for his staff of 14 working the event (first they mentioned the number of staff working either- prior to that we were told they have an “excellent amount” of staff at each event). We noticed a few members of staff were their preteen children (one can only assume). Save yourself the headache.

  • Beautiful venue, some issues

    Verified review
    •Jamie •7 months ago

    Pros: gorgeous venue, food was good and there was a lot of it included in the package, good drinks, they were flexible on some aspects, on site house to get ready in Cons: communication wasn’t great… owners are on two completely different pages on things and it made it difficult to plan. “Day of coordination” included in contract only meant management of venue staff/setting out food at specified times. We were encouraged not to hire an outside coordinator and as a result my MOHs had to run around coordinating vendors and timeline instead, as well as set up and break down. Also do not be convinced to have your reception inside after dinner. We were told the outside bar would close after dinner (why?) and everyone would have to go inside for drinks, therefore splitting the party up if we wanted to have the whole reception in the tent. So after dinner we shuffled everyone inside for dancing. The party ended up splitting up anyway because there was very little seating inside for whoever did not want to dance/wanted to sit down with their dessert. I was sad about this and wish we hadn’t been convinced to do this. Overall we had a great wedding regardless and would recommend to get married here, but I would definitely hire a month of coordinator to save you the stress and especially to handle the pushback from management during the planning process. You are spending more on this one day than you ever have in your life most likely…. Have the wedding you want!

  • Instagram gold

    Verified review
    •Doreen E•a year ago

    I loved in New York for 20 years and found this location by accident. When we saw the pictures I thought there was no way it would be as cute in person, but then going for a site visit I was blown away. The Sanctuary had so much character and Alfonso and Frank were so helpful and open throughout the process. We were planning from California and they helped source vendors, provided onsite support and made allowances for special requests. Nothing like the hotels and wedding factories we’d seen. We had a truly bespoke wedding on the water dancing under the stars with the city to frame all of it. The food and drinks were plentiful and the staff on the day of our wedding was so gracious. I can’t recommend them enough. So grateful to have found them. Pics at #doreenandrob #doreenswedding2023

  • The Sanctuary RI made our dreams come true

    Verified review
    •Cindy Hernandez•a year ago

    From the moment we began speaking to them, we knew we were going to host our dream medieval themed wedding reception. They were the most receptive, accessible people we've spoken with throughout planning our wedding, and day of, they delivered with an absolute professionalism and remembered every intricate detail of our requests. Any couple needs to look no further than The Sanctuary for their wedding.

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