Keepsake

Don't Book Here!

If you're on your quest for the perfect venue I’m just giving a heads up— do NOT book your wedding at Keepsake at the Academy in Poughkeepsie! We had booked our wedding in late 2022/early 2023 and had paid for our wedding in FULL. We were given a great price and the venue was absolutely beautiful - perfect for what we had in mind for our special day. However, life happens and for reasons beyond our control we could no longer afford the further costs for our big day so we cancelled 6 months in advance, just as it was stated in our contract.. We anticipated at least 15% of what we paid (in full, mind you) was going to be kept as a nonrefundable deposit, as that what was delineated in the contract. However we were told the owners/investors are withholding 70% of what we paid. We were so disappointed! However, this wasn’t completely a shock as the whole place is just super disorganized. We Became skeptical after booking because they continuously shut down throughout the year to make “renovations” but the real reason was because they had no money to stay open. They couldn’t keep their food hall services open, they couldn’t keep their employees employed. They have massive turnover. Now they have a burger shop as a vendor who lets anyone in off the streets of Poughkeepsie. Their original manager Bryan has now left the company...the communication throughout the process was inept. We have text messages and emails that show they never respond. They tried to sneakily say that the check they had from us (a bank check with the agreed amount for the wedding in full and with our names on it…) wasn’t ours and we therefore had to provide bank documentation that this was in fact our check. Our vendors that we have contracts with have told us they have concerns about working there and warned us. We have heard from other couples that they have backed out because of lack of communication and uncertainty of the Academy (Keepsake) staying in business. We originally spoke 6 months prior to discuss our current life situation and we were reassured by management that they were going to get us 85 to 100% of our money back as we had given ample notice. Those statements came from Bryan and Heather, who sheepishly hides behind texts and emails and dodges you like the plague. Completely unprofessional. We hired lawyers who have sent multiple letters to them… no response of course, so legal action is likely happening next! Think twice before booking here - there are much better, more professional and secure establishments in the area to host your special day!