The Brazilian Room in Tilden Park is one of the East Bay’s most beautiful and affordable wedding venue. We’ve photographed several weddings over the years at the Brazilian Room (also often called the Brazil Building) and we love working there. We’re so lucky to have Tilden Park in our backyard and we love that there is a such a great wedding venue tucked within it’s borders.
Below are some tips we’ve compiled over all our years working there as well some photos from past weddings.
Weddings at the Brazilian Room
The main ceremony location at the Brazilian Room is outside on the patio and has a seated capacity of 150 guests. The view is beautiful and overlooks the lush tree covered hills of Wildcat Canyon. The patio is adjacent to a large green space, which adds a pop of color to your ceremony backdrop. Due to the abundance of natural scenery, it doesn’t take much to turn the patio into an elegant wedding ceremony site.
The Brazilian Room is a beautiful venue both inside and out. The large floor to ceiling windows allow guests to continue to enjoy what nature has to offer during your wedding reception. A reception at the Brazil Room allows you to feel connected to the outdoors while enjoying the romantic comforts of hardwood floors, dark wood paneling and even a large stone fireplace.
How to Reserve the Brazilian Room
The park service operates an online facility calendar that you can use to check availability. As with most Bay Area wedding venues, Saturdays and Sundays in the Summer months are quick to go and weekend dates in September are a hot ticket and book up quick.
How much does the Brazilian Room Cost?
One perk about using a wedding venue operated by the Parks Department is price. The Brazilian Room is one of the more affordable wedding venues in the area. Couples looking for a good deal can choose to have their wedding on an “off-peak” day of the week (Monday, Wednesday, or Thursday) or opt for their day rates. Friday through Sunday pricing, for Alameda & Contra Costa County residents, starts at $2100 with longer facility buy out options available. You can view the full breakdown of rental fees here.
photo Locations at the Brazilian Room
We always tell our clients that the Brazilian Room and nearby venue grounds are plenty for most family, wedding party, and couple portraits. However, Tilden Park has so many wonderful areas to take wedding photos. Below are some of our go-to spots for shooting couple, wedding party, and family portraits.
Regional Parks Botanic Garden
One popular area to visit for wedding photos is just down the hill at the Botanic Garden. This is a beautiful labyrinth of plants that contains hundreds of native California plant species from coastal redwoods to California poppies. It’s the easiest spot to access and one of our favorites. Bear in mind there is an additional fee to use the space for wedding portraits.
Tilden Park Picnic Sites
In addition to the garden, there are plenty of nearby picnic sites with open meadows and groves of eucalyptus trees. Immediately behind the Brazilian Room is small open space off Anza View Rd. If you follow Wildcat Canyon Rd. towards Inspiration Point, you’ll pass Mineral Springs and the Quarry Trail Picnic Site both of which are nice spots for photos. The latter option climbs a little bit but the Seaview Trail is worth the view.
Inspiration Point
While the name certainly elevates your expectations, Inspiration Point in Tilden Park may not be the best spot for wedding photos. It’s a beautiful place don’t get us wrong but with wedding day logistics it can be tricky to truly take advantage of this place. The immediate view from the parking lot looks out over the San Pablo Reservoir and is slightly obstructed by the hillside trees below. To achieve a view that looks out on to the San Francisco Bay you will have to walk quite a bit along the Nimitz Trail for the tree line to fall away. This is a lovely, mostly paved trail but for a quick scenic spot you’re better off finding a different location.
Grizzly Peak
Grizzly Peak, with it’s panoramic views of the Bay Area, is a popular idea but not one that we personally recommend for golden hour photos. It’s a popular spot and over the past few years has become even more tricky to park at.
Wherever you are in Tilden Park, make sure to stay on trails and watch out for Poison Oak! It’s rampant out there and certainly won’t make for a happy wedding keepsake.
Preferred Vendors
The Brazilian Room has a required caterer list here. You must hire a caterer if you’re having an event on Friday, Saturday, Sunday or on a holiday.
The venue also provides a preferred vendor list for photographers, florists, event planners, and DJ’s. We’re grateful to be listed as a preferred photographer!
If you’re interested in other venues, check out our list of favorite Bay Area wedding venues.
About e&b photography
e&b photography is a natural light wedding and portrait photography studio located in Oakland, California.
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