The Bellevue offers two entirely different weddings. The Grand Belle is one of the largest and grandest ballrooms in Philadelphia — seating up to 1,450 guests, with two tiers and the full Gilded Age spectacle. XIX is the other: the 19th floor, French Renaissance interiors, city views from the balconies, and an intimate scale that the Grand Belle was never designed to provide. I photographed a wedding in the XIX this year. It is a genuinely beautiful space for a smaller celebration — and if the Grand Belle is not the right fit for your guest count or your vision, XIX is worth a serious look.
What is XIX at the Bellevue?
XIX — pronounced “nineteen” — is the 19th-floor event space at The Bellevue Hotel at 200 South Broad Street in Philadelphia. Originally conceived as a private event space when the hotel opened in 1904, it operated for years as one of Philadelphia’s most celebrated restaurants before being restored to private events by Cescaphe. The interiors are French Renaissance in style, with the Pearl Room’s famous pearl chandelier, the Cameo Room’s 36-foot ceilings and stained-glass dome, and balconies with sweeping views of Center City, Philadelphia.
How is XIX different from the Grand Belle?
Scale and intimacy. The Grand Belle seats up to 1,450 guests across two tiers and is one of the grandest ballrooms in the city. XIX is designed for smaller celebrations — 40 to 80 guests for the most intimate configuration, up to 200 in the Cameo Room. The character is different too: where the Grand Belle is sweeping and theatrical, XIX feels like a private club on top of the city. The pearl chandelier in the Pearl Room. The stained glass dome overhead in the Cameo Room. The balconies where guests step outside and look down at Broad Street below. It is grand in its details rather than its dimensions.
The Spaces
The Pearl Room is the ceremony space — the beloved pearl chandelier, intimate proportions, and the particular quality of light that comes through those 19th-floor windows. XIX ceremonies are hosted here under the chandelier that has become one of the most recognized details at the Bellevue.
The Cameo Room is the cocktail and reception space — 36-foot ceilings, a stained glass dome that floods the room with diffused natural light, and two grand balconies overlooking the Philadelphia skyline. The balconies are one of the most distinctive details of any wedding venue in the city: guests step outside at cocktail hour and stand above Broad Street with the entire skyline around them.
The Rose Garden, also on the 19th floor, is a 2,714-square-foot space inspired by the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles. Up to 400 guests. Floor-to-ceiling windows with panoramic city views.
Photography at XIX
The pearl chandelier in the Pearl Room for ceremony coverage. The stained glass dome light in the Cameo Room — diffused, even, and extraordinarily flattering. The balconies at golden hour with the Philadelphia skyline behind the couple. The Pearl Room windows with that particular 19th-floor city light. The Bellevue’s corridors, the Grand Staircase, and Broad Street itself are all available for portraits, regardless of which ballroom you book. The XIXth adds the balconies and the stained glass dome light, which are genuinely distinctive portrait locations unavailable anywhere else in Philadelphia.
Frequently Asked Questions: XIX at the Bellevue
Where is XIX at the Bellevue located?
200 South Broad Street, Philadelphia, on the 19th floor of The Bellevue Hotel. Corner of Broad and Walnut, on Philadelphia’s Avenue of the Arts.
What is the capacity at XIX?
40 to 80 guests for the most intimate Pearl Room configuration. Up to 200 in the Cameo Room. Up to 400 in the Rose Garden. Managed by Cescaphe, Philadelphia’s premier wedding planning and catering team.
Is XIX a good choice for a smaller wedding at the Bellevue?
Yes — it is the right choice if you want the history and grandeur of the Bellevue without the scale of the Grand Belle. The pearl chandelier, the stained glass dome, the balconies above the city — none of those require 400 guests to be extraordinary. For couples seeking an intimate, genuinely beautiful Philadelphia wedding with city views, XIX is one of the strongest options in the city.
Do you photograph weddings at XIX at the Bellevue?
Yes. I photographed a wedding here this year and know the light in the Pearl Room and the Cameo Room. If your wedding is here, I would love to hear about it.
