Ojai Weddings

The romance of Ojai — the astonishing natural beauty, the sage-and orange-blossom scented air and its sacred and spiritual presence— has long attracted newlyweds and honeymooners.

Ojai Valley Inn

ojaivalleyinn.com | 855-697-8780

905 Country Club Road

The Inn may be one of the best-loved wedding venues in southern California. The Inn includes gorgeous settings for the ceremony, superlative service and romantic accommodations, plus well-appointed reception spaces that can handle large gatherings of celebrants. Ceremonies can be scheduled at the Hacienda Courtyard and Artist Cottage Lawn, or the Farmhouse lawn. Visit ojaivalleyinn.com and look for their wedding brochure.

Lavender Inn

innkeeper@lavenderinn.com | 855-646-6635

210 East Matilija Street

Described by brides as “a magical wedding destination” the Lavender Inn is a place to write the story of your special day with the backdrop of the Pink Moment on the Topa Topa Bluffs, stunning, colorful gardens under majestic oaks, a pond with waterfall and the scenic backdrop of the nearby mountains. Book the entire Inn for friends and family and create magical memories that will last a lifetime. We can accommodate up to 100 wedding guests.

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457 East Ojai Avenue

805-640-7987

Housed on the site of Ojai’s first bakery, The Dutchess is a truly magical and historical setting for weddings, rehearsal dinners, welcome parties and more. There’s so much flexibility for your special event, whether it’s a more intimate gathering on our back patio, a seated dinner for 140 or a fun cocktail reception for 200. The unique Burmese-Californian menu draws inspiration from our chef’s heritage and celebrates the best seasonal ingredients from local farmers, while our bakery team crafts the most stunning and whimsical wedding cakes and desserts.

Brandi Crockett Photography

brandi@brandicrockett.com |

805-415-2234

An Ojai native, Brandi has been a professional photographer for more than 10 years. Her work has taken her to the far reaches of the globe in Africa, Indonesia, Europe, and extensively throughout the Americas. Her photographic candor is a vision steeped in extremes; profound cinematic-like storytelling, intimate weddings, vivid landscapes, and authentic candid moments shot through the lens of raw, rich portraiture. Beautiful, sublime, and nuanced, Brandi’s work inspires the viewer’s imagination to co-create with her and deep dive into textural moodscapes.

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OJAI THROUGH THE years

1947 town of Nordhoff was founded with great fanfare by Thomas Royce Surdam, a very busy real estate developer and former gold miner. He bought 1,700 acres that year and built the Blumberg Hotel. More than 300 people attended the opening event and he sold land for $6.25 an acre.

1874

1889

Long regarded as one of the finest prep schools in the country, The Thacher School was founded by William and Sherman Thacher and has several famous alumni, including Thornton Wilder, Howard Hughes and actor Noah Wylie. Its original motto was “Teach a boy to shoot a rifle, ride a horse and tell the truth.”

1917

Changed name to Ojai after a massive redevelopment project led by Edward Drummond Libbey, an Ohio glass magnate and frequent winter visitor. The fire of 1917 burned so many buildings that Libbey and others used that blank canvas to rebuild in the spirit of the “City Beautiful Movement,” which held that people are shaped by their living environments. Among the landmarks built in that epochal period were the Post Office Tower; modeled after the Campanile in Havana, Cuba; Libbey Bowl, the Arcade; the St. Thomas Aquinas Church; (now the Ojai Valley

Museum); and the Ojai Country Club, now the Ojai Valley Inn.

1921

City officially incorporated with great fanfare.

1922

Jiddhu Krishnamurti comes to town, sponsored by the Theosophist Society, along with his tuberculosis-suffering younger brother Nitya. Positioned by the Theosophists as the “World Leader,” Krishnamurti rejected that title with his famous essay,

“Truth is a Pathless Land.” He once held the Guinness Book of World Record for being the world’s most prolific public speaker.

Aldous Huxley, a frequent visitor and co-founder of Besant Hill School, published “Doors of Perception” about his experiences with mescaline. Two of the three “trips” took place in the upper Ojai Valley.

1969

“Lost Horizon” is released. The Frank Capra-directed film starred Ronald Colman and featured scenes from the Ojai Valley, much of which was left on the cutting-room floor. The establishing shot of the Ojai Valley from Denison Grade remained, and Ojai’s link to the mythical Shangri-La has endured ever since.

1937

A massive flood swept through the Ojai Valley, causing millions of dollars of damage. Most tragically, six Boy Scouts camping in the Sespe backcountry were drowned, along with their adult leader and three rescuers.

1971

A key year for Ojai as the Ojai Valley Inn opened with a star-studded guest list and partners (Bing Crosby and Bob Hope), “The Ojai” — as the Ojai Valley Tennis Tournament is affectionately known, returned bigger than ever after a five-year World War II hiatus and the Ojai Music Festival was founded.

1947

The Manson Family murders comes home to Ojai, when lawyer Ronald Hughes’ body was found in the Sespe Hot Springs area. The notorious cult had other connections to Ojai, as they overstayed their welcome at a local campground, believed to be either Camp Comfort or Wheeler Hot Springs or both.

1948

Beatrice Wood, a frequent visitor to Ojai to hear Krishnamurti’s Star Camp lectures, permanently moves to town. “The Mama of Dada” lived here until her death in 1998 at age 105. Her close friendships with key 20th century artists Marcel Duchamp, Francis Picabia and Man Ray did much to establish Ojai’s identity as an artist mecca. The potter, encouraged by Anaís Nin, launched a career as a writer at age 90.

2004-2005

A series of powerful rainstorms flooded the Ojai Valley and led to Ojai being shut off from the outside world for more than a week, with our main artery, Highway 33, being cut down to one lane of traffic for months. It took several months for Highways 150 and the 33 from Ojai to Santa Paula to reopen. A mudslide on January 10 killed 10 people at nearby La Conchita.

2017

The Thomas Fire raged through and around the Ojai Valley, charring more than 250,000 acres; the largest wildfire in California history to that time. Six years later, it now ranks ninth.