Crescent Boat Club rents its second-floor club room and riverfront deck at #5 Boathouse Row, 5 Kelly Drive, Philadelphia. Together the two spaces accommodate up to 140 guests and are available to club members and to the public for weddings, receptions, rehearsal dinners, corporate meetings, and private parties. Rentals start at $1,500. You may use any caterer you wish, including food trucks, and you may run the bar yourself.
Scouting a location rather than booking an event? Film, television, commercial, and editorial photography inquiries are handled separately on our Film and Photography Location Inquiry page. Visiting the Row? Directions, parking, and transit are on Visiting Boathouse Row.
On this page: At a Glance · The Space · Capacity & Layouts · What Is Included · Why Renters Choose Crescent · The Setting · Events We Host · Catering, Bar & Vendors · Planning Your Event · Photographs · Availability · Getting Here · Questions · Request a Date
At a Glance
| Capacity | Up to 140 guests across the club room and deck |
| Spaces | Second-floor club room with bar and kitchen, plus an outdoor deck over the Schuylkill River. The Ennis Room and other spaces may be available for additional fees |
| Climate control | Air conditioned and heated; the room is usable in every month |
| Rental rate | From $1,500. Quoted per event on the basis of date, guest count, and hours |
| Rental period | Eight hours, ending at 11:00 p.m., inclusive of set-up and clean-up |
| Catering | Open. Any caterer, self-catering, or a food truck. No exclusive caterer and no house menu |
| Bar | Bring your own alcohol. Run it yourself or have your caterer or a bar service run it |
| Provided | Tables, chairs, bar seating, bar tops, deck seating, television, and internet. Full inventory below |
| Not provided | Linens, food, alcohol, ice, glassware, staff, decor, and audio equipment |
| Ceremony | Ceremony and reception may both be held on site |
| On-site staffing | A Crescent representative is present for the duration of your event |
| Set-up and clean-up | The renter’s responsibility. All trash and supplies are removed the same night |
| Payment | Check, money order, or online through RegattaCentral |
| Accessibility | Second floor, stairs only. The building is not wheelchair accessible |
| Address | #5 Boathouse Row, 5 Kelly Drive, Philadelphia, PA 19130 |
| Parking | Limited on the Row. Nearby lots and transit are covered on Visiting Boathouse Row |
| Inquiries | Use the inquiry form on this page |
The Space
The club room occupies the second floor on the river side of the boathouse. The interior was largely shaped by the Philadelphia architect Charles Balderston in his 1891 revision of the 1871 building by Davis Supplee, himself a Crescent member. It is air conditioned in summer and heated in winter, and it contains a bar, a kitchen, and tall doors that open directly onto the deck.
The deck runs the width of the boathouse front, directly above the water, with fixed seating for twenty. Because the club room doors open straight onto it, the two areas function as a single space: guests move between them without a room change, a shuttle, or a break in service. In practice this means cocktails outside and dinner inside can share one timeline, and the deck stays in use through the evening.
Capacity and Layouts
The club room and deck hold up to 140 guests in total. How many of those can be seated depends on the configuration you choose and on how much additional furniture you bring in. The figures below are a planning guide; the final floor plan is confirmed at your walk-through.
| Configuration | Guests |
|---|---|
| Standing reception, club room and deck | Up to 140 |
| Seated dinner using the club’s own five round tables | Approximately 50 |
| Seated dinner with additional rented tables and chairs | Confirmed at your walk-through |
| Ceremony seating in the club room, using the club’s eighty folding chairs | Up to 80 |
| Seated meeting or presentation | Up to 80 |
| Deck seating (fixed) | 20 |
| Bar seating | 25 |
Most events above roughly fifty seated guests bring in extra tables and chairs. Every Philadelphia party and event supply company delivers to the Row, and we place no restriction on which you use. Tell us your guest count in your inquiry and we will tell you plainly whether the room carries it in the configuration you want.
What the Rental Includes
The rental gives you exclusive use of the club room and the deck for the agreed period, together with the furniture and fittings listed below. Everything consumable or decorative comes in with you or with your vendors, and leaves with them the same night.
Included
| Round tables | Five, 72 inches |
| Folding tables | Four, 6 feet |
| Chairs | Eighty white folding chairs |
| Bar seating | Twenty-five seats |
| Bar tops | Three |
| Outdoor seating | Deck seating for twenty |
| Kitchen | Available to your caterer as a staging and service area |
| Television and internet | Both provided |
| Climate control | Air conditioning and heating |
| Restrooms | Two, on the same floor as the event space |
| On-site representative | A Crescent representative is present throughout your event |
Not Included
Linens, food, alcohol, ice, glassware, china, flatware, serving equipment, kitchen consumables, catering and bar staff, event coordination, flowers, decor, candles, audio equipment, lighting, and any tables or chairs beyond the inventory above. Removal of all trash and supplies at the end of the night is also the renter’s responsibility.
Additional Spaces
The standard rental covers the club room and the deck. The Ennis Room and other areas of the boathouse may also be available, depending on the date and on what the club has committed elsewhere in the building. Additional spaces are quoted separately and carry their own rental fee and cleaning charge. If you want more room for a cocktail hour, a breakout, a buffet line, or a quiet space away from the main room, raise it in your inquiry and we will tell you what is available on your date and what it costs.
Payment
Rentals start at $1,500, and the figure for your date depends on the size, hours, and shape of the event. Payment is accepted by check, by money order, or online through the RegattaCentral platform, which is the same system the club uses for its rowing programs. Your quote sets out the amount and the schedule.
Why Renters Choose This Boathouse Row Event Venue
Boathouse Row is a National Historic Landmark, and Crescent is a working boathouse rather than a purpose-built function hall or a hotel ballroom. Shells are racked downstairs and our junior, novice, and masters crews are on the water most mornings. That is a large part of the appeal, and it also shapes what is practical. Access, timing, and accessibility are worth raising in your first message rather than your last.
- An open vendor policy – No exclusive caterer, no required bar package, no approved-vendor list to work around. Most comparable venues in Philadelphia, including several on the Row, contract an exclusive caterer whose minimum is bundled into the room. At Crescent you hire whom you like, self-cater, or bring a food truck, and the savings stay with you.
- Capacity among the largest on the Row – At up to 140 guests, the club room and deck take a full guest list. Several neighboring clubs publish seated-dinner capacities between 65 and 100.
- Ceremony and reception in one place – Club room and deck together, so vows, cocktails, dinner, and dancing need one venue rather than two, with no shuttle and no gap in the middle of the day.
- Usable in every month – Air conditioned and heated. Neither is standard in a nineteenth-century boathouse, and both matter in Philadelphia. Winter and shoulder-season dates are genuinely available rather than nominally available.
- Photography without a second location – River, bridges, boat bays, dock, tower, and the lights of the Row are all within a few steps of the door, so your photographer does not need to move the party to get the coverage.
- Someone from the club is there – A Crescent representative is on site for the duration of your event. They know the building, the power, the kitchen, and the stairs, and they are the person your vendors ask when something needs sorting out.
- Direct dealing – Your inquiry goes to the club, not to a booking agent or a catering company’s sales desk. Terms, pricing, and dates are settled with the people who hold the building.
The Setting
Boathouse Row sits on the east bank of the Schuylkill in Fairmount Park, roughly a mile and a half from City Hall and a short walk upriver from the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The Fairmount Water Works is immediately downstream, Lemon Hill rises behind the Row, and the Schuylkill River Trail runs past the front doors. Guests can arrive by car, by rideshare, by bicycle, or on foot along the river.
From the club room and the deck the view takes in the river and West Philadelphia on the far bank, the rest of Boathouse Row curving downstream, the Fairmount Water Works, the Philadelphia Museum of Art above it, and 30th Street Station beyond. After dark the lights along the Row come on; from Crescent they are not a view across the water but the light on your own deck.
- Close to Center City, set apart from it – About ten minutes’ drive from Center City hotels and close to the main routes in and out of the city, but on a park drive by the water rather than on a commercial block.
- Parking takes planning – Parking on the Row itself is limited and posted regulations along Kelly Drive apply to your guests as they do to everyone else. Clients holding larger evenings frequently engage a parking service, and curb space can be held with a City Temporary No Parking permit.
- A setting that changes through the year – Crews on the water at dawn in spring and fall, the far bank in leaf through the summer, and open sightlines downriver in winter, when the room is heated and the lights come on early.
For a riverfront wedding this is the whole argument: the ceremony, the photographs, and the reception all happen within a few steps of one another. Practical detail for guests, including parking lots, transit, trail approaches, and where to set down at the door, is set out on Visiting Boathouse Row. That is the page to send with your invitations.
Events We Host
Crescent works as a Philadelphia wedding venue, a corporate meeting space, and a private party room without changing anything but the floor plan. These are the events we see most often. If yours is not listed, ask.
- Weddings and receptions – Round tables in the club room, cocktails on the deck, and the river behind every photograph.
- Rehearsal dinners and welcome parties – Smaller and earlier, and a practical choice for out-of-town guests who have not seen the Row.
- Birthdays, anniversaries, engagement parties, and graduations – Buffet service down the center of the room, seating around it, doors open to the deck.
- Memorials and celebrations of life – A quiet room with a river view, suited to gatherings that call for dignity rather than production.
- Corporate meetings, offsites, client entertaining, and holiday parties – Ten minutes from Center City, with television, internet, and seating for up to eighty in a presentation layout.
- Non-profit and fundraising events – An open vendor policy keeps catering costs under your control, which matters when the room is a line item rather than the point.
- Rowing and club functions – Regatta hospitality, team dinners, and alumni gatherings, planned around the club calendar below.
Catering, Bar, and Vendors
Crescent operates an open vendor policy. There is no exclusive caterer, no house bar package, no approved list, and no commission taken on anyone you hire. You may engage a full-service caterer, order in, self-cater, book a food truck, or combine them. This is the principal commercial difference between Crescent and most comparable venues in Philadelphia, where an exclusive caterer and a food-and-beverage minimum are usually attached to the room.
Caterers
The companies below have either worked at Crescent or are established Philadelphia caterers. The list is alphabetical, not ranked, and none of them is a preferred or required vendor. Several already know the kitchen, the stairs, and the load-in from Kelly Drive.
- 12th Street Catering
- Brûlée Catering
- Chef’s Table Catering
- Constellation Culinary (formerly Starr Events)
- Deke’s Bar-B-Que
- Di Bruno Bros.
- Eatible Delights Catering
- Famous 4th Street Delicatessen
- Feast Your Eyes Catering
- Feastivities Events
- Frog Commissary
- Garces Events
- Pagano’s Market and Bar
Food Trucks
Food trucks are welcome, and they suit this venue well: a truck handles service while the club room and deck stay clear for seating. Philadelphia has a deep field of trucks catering private events, from cheesesteaks and barbecue to tacos, pizza, raw bar, and dessert. Three points to settle before you book one:
- Placement – The apron in front of the boathouses is shared with other clubs and with rowing traffic, so a truck’s position has to be agreed in advance. Raise it in your inquiry rather than on the day.
- Power – Trucks run on their own generator or propane. The club does not supply exterior power for a truck.
- Service route – Guests collect from the truck at ground level and eat in the club room or on the deck, so plan a serving window that does not run against your ceremony or speeches.
Your truck operator must hold current City of Philadelphia licensing and health-department certification, exactly as a caterer would.
Bar and Event Staff
The bar in the club room has three bar tops and seating for twenty-five. You supply the alcohol, ice, glassware, and mixers, and you either run the bar yourself or engage a caterer or bar service to run it. The club does not sell alcohol, does not stock the bar, and does not provide bartenders or servers.
- Swig Events – bartenders, servers, and day-of coordination on a bring-your-own-alcohol basis, which is how the bar in the club room operates.
If you are serving alcohol to a large guest list, engaging experienced bartenders rather than asking friends to pour is the sounder arrangement for everyone involved.
Rentals, Supplies, and Everything Else
For tables, chairs, linens, glassware, china, flatware, tenting, dance floors, lighting, or audio, any Philadelphia party and event supply company can deliver to the Row. We place no restriction on which you use. The same applies to florists, photographers, musicians, DJs, and planners. Tell us who you intend to use and we will make sure they have the access and information they need.
Planning Your Event
A rental at Crescent is a straightforward commercial arrangement between you and the club, set out in a written agreement. The section below covers the points that most often come up in planning, so that you can build a realistic budget and schedule before you commit to a date.
Holding a Date
Check the club calendar below, then send your date or date range through the inquiry form. We will confirm whether it is open and quote the rental. A date is held only once the rental agreement is signed and returned. An open square on the calendar indicates availability; it is not a reservation.
Hours, Load-In, and Load-Out
A standard rental is eight hours and ends at 11:00 p.m. That window includes set-up and clean-up rather than sitting outside it, so an eight-hour rental ending at 11:00 p.m. begins at 3:00 p.m. with your vendors on site. Build your schedule backwards from 11:00 p.m., not from the end of dinner.
- Access – Load-in and load-out are from Kelly Drive, at ground level, and then up a flight of stairs to the club room. There is no lift and no service elevator. Anything heavy, wide, or fragile has to go up those stairs by hand, so tell your rental company and your caterer in advance.
- Deliveries – Rental equipment, flowers, and cake are delivered within your rental window unless a separate time has been agreed with the club. Nothing can be left overnight before or after the event without prior agreement.
- Collection – Anything you or your vendors bring in leaves the same night. If a rental company will only collect the following day, arrange that with us before you sign their contract.
- Vendor arrival – Give us a vendor list with arrival times ahead of the event so that access is arranged and nobody is standing on Kelly Drive with a van.
Who Is There on the Day
A Crescent representative is on site for the duration of your event. They are there to look after the building, not to run your event: they are not an event coordinator, a bartender, or a member of your catering staff, and they do not set up, serve, or clean up. What they do is open the building, show your vendors where things are, deal with the power, the heat or the air conditioning, and anything to do with the fabric of the boathouse, and lock up at the end.
In practice this means you are never standing in a strange building at 4:00 p.m. wondering who has the key or where the breaker panel is. Give your caterer and your planner the club representative’s role in advance so everyone knows which questions go where.
Music, Sound, and Power
The club room takes a DJ or a small band. You bring the audio equipment; the television and internet in the room are provided, but there is no house sound system, no projector, and no stage. Confirm power requirements with us in advance if you are bringing amplified equipment, and have your DJ or band supply their own extension leads and power distribution.
Music ends when the rental ends, at 11:00 p.m. Work backwards from that: last dance, final song, and the start of clean-up all sit inside the eight hours. Tell your DJ or band the hard stop when you book them rather than on the night.
Weather and the Deck
The deck is open to the sky. Because the club room is air conditioned, heated, and large enough to take your full guest list, the deck is a bonus rather than a dependency: a wet forecast changes the shape of the evening but does not require a marquee, a shuttle, or a backup venue. This is a material advantage over garden and rooftop venues where the rain plan is the whole plan.
Paperwork
A signed rental agreement covers use of the building, the deck, the grounds, and any additional spaces you have taken. It is issued once a date is confirmed and sets out the fee, the hours, and your responsibilities as renter. Return it signed, and the date is yours.
Clean-Up
Removing all trash, food, alcohol, decor, and rented equipment and leaving the club room, kitchen, deck, and stairs clean is the renter’s responsibility and a condition of the rental rather than a courtesy. Put it in writing with your caterer, allow time for it inside your rental window, and appoint one person to see it through after the guests have gone.
A Working Timeline
| When | What to do |
|---|---|
| 9–12 months out | Check the club calendar and the Schuylkill River race schedule. Send your inquiry and arrange a walk-through. |
| 6–9 months | Sign and return the rental agreement. Engage your caterer. |
| 3–6 months | Book bar staff, tables and chairs beyond the club inventory, linens, music, photography, and any parking service. |
| 6–8 weeks | Confirm the floor plan, guest count band, and load-in and load-out times with the club. |
| 2–4 weeks | Send the club your vendor list with arrival times. Apply for a Temporary No Parking permit if you want curb space held on Kelly Drive. |
| 1 week | Final guest count to your caterer. Confirm delivery and collection times with every vendor. |
| Event day | Load in, run the event, clean up, and load out inside the rental window. |
| Next day | Confirm that all rented equipment has been collected. |
Dates inside twelve weeks are sometimes available, particularly midweek and in the winter months. If your timeline is short, say so in your inquiry and we will tell you quickly whether it is workable.
Photographs
Availability and the Rowing Calendar
Crescent is a working boathouse, and the calendar fills with rowing programs, regattas, and member events before it fills with anything else. Check your date here first, then send it through the form below.
The calendar opens in a new window. A block on a date means the boathouse or the event space is already committed. An open date indicates availability but is not a reservation; dates are held only once the club confirms them in writing. All times Eastern.
Spring and fall regatta weekends close Kelly Drive and fill the river, which complicates arrival for guests and access for vendors. The Schuylkill River Schedule published by the Schuylkill Navy lists them, and the Calendar of Events page carries the rest of the club’s dates. Race weekends are not automatically unavailable, and some clients want exactly that atmosphere. The point is to know which kind of weekend you are booking.
Getting Here
- Address – #5 Boathouse Row, 5 Kelly Drive, Philadelphia, PA 19130
- Guest parking, transit, and directions – Parking on the Row is limited. Nearby lots, trail approaches, and transit options are set out on Visiting Boathouse Row, which is the page to send to your guest list.
- Parking services – Clients holding larger evenings often engage a valet or parking service. Confirm the arrangement with us before booking one.
- Vehicle drop-off – Set-down is on Kelly Drive at the front of the boathouse. Rideshare pick-up at the end of the night works best from the same point.
- Holding curb space – Curb space on Kelly Drive can be reserved with a Temporary No Parking permit from the City of Philadelphia Streets Department Right-of-Way Unit. Apply several business days ahead and post the signs at least twenty-four hours before the event.
- Vendor load-in – Access is from Kelly Drive at ground level, then up one flight of stairs.
- Access inside – The club room is on the second floor and is reached by stairs. There is no lift.
Questions About Renting a Boathouse Row Event Venue
The Space and Capacity
How many guests can the club room hold?
Up to 140 across the club room and the deck. The club’s own furniture seats about fifty for dinner and provides eighty chairs for a ceremony or presentation; larger seated counts bring in additional tables and chairs. Tell us your guest count and the configuration you want and we will confirm whether the room carries it.
Can we rent more than the club room and deck?
Possibly. The Ennis Room and other spaces in the boathouse may be available depending on your date and on what else the club has committed in the building. They are quoted separately and carry their own rental fee and cleaning charge. Ask in your inquiry and we will tell you what is open on your date.
Can we hold the ceremony here as well as the reception?
Yes. Ceremony and reception may both take place on site, which removes the second venue, the shuttle, and the gap in the middle of the day. Describe the shape of the day in your inquiry and we will talk through how the room and the deck turn over between the two.
What happens if it rains?
The event moves inside. The club room is air conditioned, heated, and large enough to take your full guest list, so the deck is an addition rather than a dependency and no marquee or backup venue is required.
Is the space wheelchair accessible?
No. The club room is on the second floor of a nineteenth-century boathouse, reached by stairs, and there is no lift. The building is not wheelchair accessible and cannot be made so for an event. If anyone on your guest list has mobility needs, factor this in before you choose a date.
Are there restrooms?
Yes. There are two restrooms on the same floor as the event space, so guests are not using the stairs during the event.
Catering, Bar, and Food Trucks
Can we bring our own caterer?
Yes. Crescent operates an open vendor policy: any caterer, any party and event supply company, no approved list, no house caterer, and no commission on anyone you hire. This is the single biggest commercial difference between Crescent and most comparable venues, where an exclusive caterer and a food-and-beverage minimum come attached to the room.
Can we self-cater?
Yes. The club room has a kitchen you can use as a staging and service area. If you self-cater, remember that you also take on serving, replenishment, and the full clean-up.
Can we have a food truck?
Yes, and it is a good fit for this venue. Placement has to be agreed in advance because the apron in front of the boathouses is shared with other clubs and with rowing traffic. Trucks run on their own generator or propane; the club does not supply exterior power. Your operator must hold current City of Philadelphia licensing and health-department certification.
Is there a bar, and who runs it?
There is a bar in the club room with three bar tops and seating for twenty-five. You supply the alcohol, ice, glassware, and mixers, and you either run it yourselves or engage your caterer or a bar service to run it. The club does not sell alcohol, stock the bar, or provide bartenders.
What is provided, and what do we bring?
Provided: five 72-inch round tables, four 6-foot folding tables, eighty white folding chairs, twenty-five bar seats, three bar tops, deck seating for twenty, use of the kitchen, a television, internet, and climate control. You bring everything else, including linens, food, alcohol, ice, glassware, china, flatware, staff, decor, audio equipment, and any furniture beyond the inventory above.
Booking, Cost, and Logistics
What does it cost?
Rentals start at $1,500. The figure for a given date depends on the size, hours, and shape of the event. Send your date, approximate guest count, and what you have in mind through the form below and we will come back with a number. Because you are not tied to a house caterer, your total catering and bar cost is set by the vendors you choose rather than by the venue.
How long is the rental period?
Eight hours, ending at 11:00 p.m. Set-up and clean-up happen inside that window rather than outside it, so an eight-hour rental ending at 11:00 p.m. starts at 3:00 p.m. with your vendors on site. Music ends when the rental ends.
How do we pay?
By check, by money order, or online through the RegattaCentral platform. Your quote sets out the amount and the schedule.
How far in advance should we book?
Saturday evenings between May and October are the first to go, and nine to twelve months ahead is sensible for a wedding. Boathouse Row wedding venues are a small field and the good dates move early. Midweek dates, daytime meetings, and winter events are often available at much shorter notice. If your timeline is short, say so and we will tell you quickly whether it is workable.
Is anyone from the club there during the event?
Yes. A Crescent representative is on site for the duration of your event. They open the building, orient your vendors, handle anything to do with the boathouse itself, and lock up at the end. They are not an event coordinator, bartender, or catering staff, and they do not set up, serve, or clean up.
When can our vendors load in?
Within your rental window unless a separate time has been agreed with the club. Load-in is from Kelly Drive at ground level and then up one flight of stairs; there is no lift or service elevator. Send us a vendor list with arrival times ahead of the event so access is arranged.
When does the music have to stop?
At 11:00 p.m., when the rental ends. Give your DJ or band that hard stop when you book them, and leave time inside the eight hours for clean-up afterward.
Where do our guests park?
Parking on the Row is limited and posted regulations along Kelly Drive apply to your guests as they do to everyone else. Nearby lots, transit, and trail approaches are set out on Visiting Boathouse Row, which is the page to send with your invitations. Clients holding larger evenings often engage a parking service; confirm the arrangement with us before booking one.
Can we hold curb space on Kelly Drive?
Yes, by applying for a Temporary No Parking permit. Applications go to the City of Philadelphia Streets Department Right-of-Way Unit, not to the Philadelphia Parking Authority, which handles enforcement and metered parking. Apply well ahead, since the Right-of-Way Unit asks for several business days’ notice, and post the signs at least twenty-four hours before you need the space. Full details and the online application are on the City’s Temporary No Parking permit page. Because Kelly Drive runs through Fairmount Park, confirm the location with the Right-of-Way Unit when you apply.
Who cleans up afterward?
You do. Removing all trash, food, alcohol, decor, and rented equipment and leaving the club room, kitchen, deck, and stairs clean is the renter’s responsibility and a condition of the rental. Allow time for it inside your rental window and confirm in writing that your caterer treats it as part of the job.
What paperwork is involved?
A signed rental agreement covering use of the building, the deck, the grounds, and any additional spaces you have taken. We issue it once a date is confirmed; you return it signed.
Can we see the space first?
Yes. Crescent is not open for drop-in visits, but we schedule walk-throughs by appointment. Use the form below, say you would like to see the room, and we will arrange a time.
Request a Date
Every rental inquiry goes through the form below, whether you want to check a date, ask about pricing, or arrange a walk-through. The more you tell us, the faster and more useful our reply will be. Please include:
- Your date, or a range of dates, and whether it is fixed
- The type of event and approximate guest count
- Rough timings, including whether a ceremony is involved
- Whether you are seated, standing, or both
- Your caterer or food truck, if you have chosen one
- Anything unusual: a truck on the apron, a band, a parking service, guests with mobility needs
Crescent Boat Club has rowed from #5 Boathouse Row since 1867 and has been a member club of the Schuylkill Navy of Philadelphia, the oldest amateur athletic governing body in the United States, since 1868. Club history · Membership · Programs · Visiting Boathouse Row · Film & photography · Information