Farm & Facility Rentals
Frequently Asked Questions
Once I send you an email, is my rental confirmed?
Once we’ve confirmed all the details of your booking with you, we’ll send a confirmation. You’ll need to sign and return this agreement, committing to respect and uphold Willowgrove’s rules and rental policies, as well as pay your deposit to finalize the rental. Your deposit will be approximately 25% of your booking cost, plus a $125 damage deposit. Until we finalize your booking with these steps, we can’t guarantee your rental or requested dates at Willowgrove.
How does final payment work?
You won’t receive a final invoice until after your visit. That allows us to update your numbers accordingly. Once received, Willowgrove asks that you pay your final invoice within two weeks of your visit (unless alternate arrangements have been made). If we don’t receive your payment within 2 weeks, any outstanding balance may be charged interest of 1% per month. You are welcome to pay with Visa, MasterCard, Cheque, or E-transfer.
Can I book if I don’t know the exact group size?
An estimate will be fine to get things started. We confirm group sizes in advance to make sure we have enough staff and program capacity available to host you. You can confirm your total numbers at least 7 days before your rental, but after that, your group will be charged based on your original booking.
What if my group size changes?
On the day of your visit, Willowgrove’s Host will greet you and record your actual numbers. If it ends up that you have more guests than expected, these numbers will be added to your final invoice. If your group is smaller than expected, we can reduce your final numbers by up to 10% of your confirmed guests. However, at minimum, you’ll always have to pay for at least 25 guests, and for groups over 150 people, additional fees may apply.
Will we have the whole farm to ourselves?
As a 100-acre property, Willowgrove’s rental program can support many guests at once, and sometimes have more than one rental group on site at a time. Each group will have its own base location, while the open facilities - like washrooms, out-houses, trails, and playgrounds - remain open to each group on site. If you would like the entire property to yourself, in some cases Willowgrove can grant Site Exclusivity for an additional fee.
How does responsibility and liability work for renters?
In order to rent Willowgrove’s property, someone needs to sign an our agreement and act as the group's primary contact. The primary contact is essentially the leader of the group, and is responsible for the groups’ behaviour and for enforcing the rules of the program and property (See Policies below). This means that Willowgrove is not responsible for the safety, supervision, or wellbeing of any children or youth invited by the primary contact during a rental program. Children and dependants remain the sole responsibility of their guardians. This is why Willowgrove requires that each primary contact provide proof of insurance for a minimum liability of $2,000,000. If you don’t have your own group insurance, renters may pay a fee to join under the organization’s liability policy.
Can I bring my dog?
As a working farm with many diverse ecosystems, Willowgrove is a pet-free facility. This means that we do not permit any outside animals unless they are service animals.
Will both children and adults be charged?
Yes. However, children 2 years old and under and any support persons required for visitors with disabilities to participate in our programming, will not be charged.
Do we have to clean up after ourselves?
We ask that you leave the site as you found it. In order to maintain our environmentally friendly mission statement we encourage waste-less rentals at Willowgrove. If you chose to leave your recycling and garbage for us to dispose of, a waste removal fee applies.
Are we allowed to smoke or drink on site?
No. Groups are not allowed to use alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, or illegal narcotics of any kind while renting at Willowgrove. If these rules are not respected your group will forfeit your deposit and you may be asked to leave the facility.
Rental Polices and Expectations of Use
Your rental agreement confirms adherence to the following rules and policies of Willowgrove listed below. Failure to act in accordance with these rules will result in a loss of your damage deposit and could result in your removal from the property.
Renters assume all risks, Willowgrove is not responsible for any injuries incurred on site
Willowgrove is a drug-free, smoke-free and alcohol-free environment
No weapons or firearms are permitted on Willowgrove property
There is no hunting or fishing allowed on site
All campfires must be made within the designated fire pits
Willowgrove is not responsible for your children, guardian supervision is required
All rentals are granted access to open facilities such as washrooms, out-houses, trails, gaga ball court, soccer field, hayloft, games room, playgrounds. However, any additional spaces, if not included in the rental agreement are restricted. Other facilities accessed by reservation only. These include baseball diamond, pavilion, indoor pavilion, dining hall & kitchen, fireplace and fire pits. Furthermore, guests must respect all "No Trespassing", "Staff Only", "Private Residences", and "Out of Bounds" signage. Any rental spaces must be reserved in advance.
Parking is limited to the designated areas, please keep all vehicles off the grass
For the health and safety of all our patrons and livestock, you must never feed the animals and are not permitted to bring pets of any kind onto Willowgrove property (Exception made for service animals).
Willowgrove is a boomerang site and requires all groups to take their garbage and recycling with them. Any garbage left will result in a “Waste Removal” added to your invoice.
Set-up and clean-up are to take place within the time parameters specified in your rental.
“We had an absolutely fabulous time... The day was everything we could have hoped for! [Willowgrove’s] kind attention to us & warm hospitality really made the difference & you can bet we’ll be back for another retreat.”