A personal touch

Wylder Hotel Tilghman Island goes above and beyond

Story by Samantha Graessle

Photos Courtesy Wylder Hotel

Just south of the quaint, waterfront town St. Michaels, known for its welcoming atmosphere, lies a charming wedding venue: Wylder Hotel on Tilghman Island.

The hotel, tucked on a private island on the Chesapeake Bay, sits on a 9 ½ acre historic property with 50 rooms, perfect for hosting family and friends.

On top of a scenic coastal property and a private beach, the hotel also boasts several amenities such as kayaks, a saltwater pool, bonfire pits, corn hole areas and more.

KD Dowi, director of sales for Wylder Hotels, said they often describe it as an adult summer camp that is also kid friendly.

“It’s a place where you can just sit in front of the water and take a deep breath and get away from everything in the world,” Dowi said. “It’s peaceful, it’s quiet, but the activities we provide really hit home.”

Dowi, alongside a close-knit team, provides personalized white-glove service for guests, helping create a stress free environment day of the wedding.

“They’re very detailed. We actually were assigned our own waiter for the wedding, so my husband and I had somebody that was taking care of just us, which I thought was a really nice touch,” Clare Incontrera said. “And they made sure that we always had our food and drinks and anything that we wanted throughout the reception.”

Clare and her husband Tom, who held their wedding at Wylder Hotel in November 2025, were able to execute a cozy fall wedding while still hosting around 200 guests including their dogs, Ruby and Coco.

Alongside being pet and family friendly, Wylder offers a variety of packages including a full buyout where the property closes completely to the public for a full weekend, making a convenient and intimate stay for the wedding party and out of town friends and family.

Kristin Bram, Wylder Hotel’s general manager, describes it as “relaxed.”

“We have a lot of rehearsal dinners that’ll be crab feasts and family feasts,” Bram said.

She said that they often have people play corn hole before they get married, or hit golf balls in the water. She described a scene where grooms visit the sauna and in the cold plunge with their buddies the day of the wedding.

“It just makes it more of a whole weekend experience where you get to see all of your favorite people, instead of just a five hour experience where people are being bused in and bused out to another hotel,” Bram said.

Not every guest experience is the same. Wylder offers full and partial buyouts, with bookings based on food and beverage minimums rather than fixed packages. Full buyouts include exclusive weekend use of the property, with minimums that vary by season, while partial buyouts apply minimums to the wedding day only.

The venue hosts about 26 weddings each year, ranging from 17 to 200 guests, with a dedicated staff bringing each couple’s vision to life.

“We pride ourselves on everybody getting their unique vision for their wedding,” Dowi said. “We try to include personal touches each time too.”

Dow gave an example of a bride whose mom is from Trinidad and Tobago who wanted Jamaican patties. Wylder was able to source those for her so that the family could specifically have it.

“We just try to make sure that each couple has their own personal touch to their wedding weekend so they can do everything from rehearsal dinner all the way through farewell brunch the following day after the wedding,” Dowi said.

For my information visit: wylderhotels.com/tilghman-island.