Lea & Christopher
September 19, 2026
in St. Louis
Day-of details
Getting there
With limited street parking at the venue, we strongly suggest taking Uber/Lyft to the venue or carpooling.
Run of show
Please arrive at CAM by 5:45pm, 15 min before the ceremony begins.
Recommended arrival time
5:45pm
6:00pm
Ceremony
6:30pm
Cocktails
7:15pm
Reception + dinner
Attire
Formal + danceable!
If you are inclined toward a theme, our wedding colors are apricot (orangey-red), fig (dark purple), and pear (earthy green):
Social media
Post away! Tag @christal.castles and @insomlea on Instagram so we can find the photos!
When captioning, please remember that we are not changing our names. Instead of “The van Deutekoms” please refer to us just as “the couple”, “Lea and Christopher” etc.
RSVP
To help us plan, kindly RSVP by August 16, 2026.
Registry
We are still assembling our registry. Please check back soon for an update!
Travel + accommodations
Lodging
We have reserved a block of rooms at the AC Hotel Central West End for Friday, September 18-Sunday, September 20.
Air travel
St. Louis Lambert Airport is about a 20 minute drive from Midtown St. Louis + the Central West End, where our venue + the AC Hotel are located.
To-do in St. Louis
Great Forest Park Balloon Race
Our wedding weekend coincides with the 54th annual Great Forest Park Balloon Race! A beautiful 30m walk from the AC Hotel through historic Forest Park will bring you to the Launch Field.
We recommend going to the “Balloon Glow”on Friday evening to for music, food and seeing the hot air balloons lit up like giant fireflies.
St. Louis classics
The AC Hotel is right next to St. Louis’ historic Forest Park!
Within Forest Park we recommend the St. Louis Art Museum, the view and fountains on Art Hill, and the St. Louis Zoo(all free and walkable!).
The City Museum is an artist-built playground with twists, turns, tunnels, slides, caves, climbers, a bus, a praying mantis, and so many sculptures and mosaics made from creative re-use.
If you venture downtown, we always recommend the view of the St. Louis Arch from the newly-renovated Arch Grounds. The tram to the top of the Arch is a unique experience too, but we prefer the view from the ground!
FAQs
Planning ahead
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Please RSVP by August 16, 2026. You can RSVP right here on our website.
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Yes, you can change your RSVP after initially submitting, but please have your response finalized by August 16.
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Due to the capacity and nature of the venue, the wedding and reception are adults-only. We kindly ask that only those named on your invitation attend and look forward to giving parents a night off!
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We kindly ask that only those named on your invitation attend. We appreciate your understanding as we aim to accommodate our guest list and the capacity of the venue.
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We will provide allergy-friendly and vegan dinner on request. Please indicate dietary restrictions on your RSVP.
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Formal + danceable!
If you are inclined toward a theme, our wedding colors are apricot, fig, and pear. -
TBD - We are working on selecting items for our registry!
Day-of
-
Please plan to arrive by 5:45pm, 15 minutes before the ceremony start time. The ceremony will commence promptly, and we want all of our guests to be comfortably settled to enjoy the celebration.
-
There is limited street parking at the venue, and with other events happening in Midtown we strongly suggest taking Uber/Lyft to the venue and for local guests to carpool if possible.
-
Post away! Tag @christal.castles and @insomlea on Instagram so we can find the photos!
When referencing the married couple, remember that we are not changing our names, so please refer to us just as “the couple”, “Lea and Christopher” etc. instead of “The van Deutekoms”.
