Getting Married in a Historic Wedding Venue
10.02.22
There are so many benefits to getting married in a historic venue – they are beautiful, unique, and your wedding is part of a really long line of history that probably defines the area it’s located in. There are likely stunning rooms and romantic feature décor, especially if you’re in a grand house or castle. For buildings like those run by the Scottish Historic Buildings Trust which is a non-profit, you can really enjoy your day knowing that any income from your wedding gets invested directly back into your local or national heritage.
But different venues will have different challenges to overcome – so if you are planning to get married in a historic building, it’s important to consider the following points and ask your venue team questions to put your mind at ease:
1.
Is the building pre- or post-restoration? Depending on its current status, it might be a bit run-down, or recently done up. There can be restrictions both ways in terms of décor and affecting the historic fabric of the building, or there might be a lot more DIY involved than you’d intended – but on the plus side, you might have complete free rein to hang lights from the ceiling or stick things to the walls!
A building that has already been restored or has been maintained might not allow the same level of attachment, but you can rest easy knowing that facilities such as lifts or disabled toilets have likely been considered and implemented as the building has been changed to fit 21st century needs. If you are wanting to attach things to walls or ceilings, ask the venue if there’s any flexibility to use these ideas with their newer fixtures, like wrapping lights around a bannister or using shelving rather than Blu-tac.
2.
How can you use the history to your advantage? You can entertain children with historical activities, colouring in, quizzes, or ‘I Spy’s’ in the rooms. If you have a smaller wedding party, ask your venue team to take them on tours of the spaces or have information cards for guests to start conversations.
Chances are the venue team greatly value the history of the building, and will be more than willing to talk about it to your guests and will be passionate about bringing its stories to life in lots of different ways!
3.
What kind of storage is available? While some grand country houses will have stacks of rooms suitable for furniture or decoration storage, other historic venues don’t have the same capacity – for the simple reason that they probably weren’t built with weddings in mind!
Always check with your venue that they have the space for the things you need, like a kid’s room, a bar area, storage space, a room for the band to wait before setting up, or anything else that comes to mind. If they have been hosting weddings for years then they likely have systems in place that work really well, so will be able to recommend how to use their space to make your day run smoothly.
4.
What is the flow of visitors or tourists like? There’s no denying that people love to see a historic venue, especially if it is normally open to the public, like a country house whose grounds are publicly accessible or a historic building in the centre of the city. Ask your venue if the space will be used for other purposes, or if you have exclusive use, and how they will manage the public if they try to visit the grounds.
5.
Don’t get stuck thinking that just because it’s a historic venue, there’s only one way that it can be set. While some of the features may feel more traditional, there are infinite ways that you can use your creativity to showcase your own personality – it is your day after all! If you’re not looking for a wedding designer, simply talk through ideas or ask for advice and inspiration from your venue team.
Ultimately having your wedding in a historic venue is a truly memorable experience, and one that is incredibly unique! Use all of its spectacular features to your advantage, and trust your venue team to show you what can be possible – and you’ll never forget it.
Decided on a historic venue?
If you think that a unique, meaningful and romantic historic venue is for you, then browse our venues on our website and get in touch for more information on our spectacular celebrations.
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