Wedding DJ at The Reserve at Lake Keowee in Sunset, SC

The Space

The Reserve at Lake Keowee began as a development in 2000 on the shores of a lake that runs more than 26 miles long and is noted as one of the purest on the eastern seaboard. Over two decades it grew into a private, gated community of more than 3,900 acres with 30 miles of shoreline in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, and in 2024 it was acquired by Old Edwards Hospitality Group, linking it to the Old Edwards Club in Highlands, North Carolina.

The centerpiece for events is the 20,000-square-foot Orchard House clubhouse, built in Craftsman style overlooking the Great Lawn, renovated in 2019 to add formal and informal dining, a pub, and terrace seating with wraparound mountain and lake views. Founders Hall, a separate gathering space on the property, is used for weddings, services, and concerts. The Reserve’s own Charitable Foundation, established in 2006, has raised and donated $691,000 to local charities since it began, and the community describes itself as a sanctuary for those seeking a life enriched by the outdoors and shared experiences, a description that has held for over 20 years.

Capacity & Layout

The property does not publish a fixed reception capacity, but the scale of the venues gives a sense of what is possible: the Orchard House clubhouse anchors the Great Lawn for larger gatherings, while Founders Hall offers a more contained room for a ceremony or a smaller reception. A couple choosing between the two is really choosing between an open lawn-facing reception and a defined indoor hall.

Outdoor space is not limited to the Great Lawn. The community holds more than 1,400 acres of parks, preserves, and trails as part of over $100 million in completed amenities, and a 200-slip marina on the lake itself opens up a waterfront ceremony or portrait backdrop that few venues in the area can match.

Amenities

Dining runs well beyond a single banquet kitchen: the Orchard House, The Pub, The Market, a Caddie Corner food truck, Pool Kitchen and Bar, and Cabana Grille all operate on property, so a wedding weekend can move through several different settings for a welcome dinner, the reception itself, and a next-day brunch without leaving the community.

The marina supplies kayaks, boating, and jet skiing for guests staying through the weekend, and a five-suite bed and breakfast style guest house is available on site for the wedding party or out-of-town family. A wellness center with massage therapy and a golf course designed by Jack Nicklaus round out a property built for a multi-day stay, not just a single event. A USTA competition tennis center with four lighted Har-Tru clay courts and pickleball, plus Laurel Village, a newer collection of turnkey cottages circling a private putting course, show how much the community has kept building since it opened in 2000.

Location & Getting There

The Reserve sits in Sunset, South Carolina, in Pickens County, under an hour from Greenville and roughly 25 minutes from Clemson University, with GSP Airport about an hour away for guests flying in. Three gated entrances control access to the community, so getting a full vendor list to the gate ahead of time matters here more than at an open venue.

Between the open-air Great Lawn beside the Orchard House and the more enclosed Founders Hall, sound setup depends entirely on which space is booked: the lawn calls for outdoor-rated equipment facing open mountain views, while Founders Hall behaves like a standard indoor hall with walls to work with.