Planning your perfect winter wedding
The winter months may not be peak wedding season, but tying the knot at this time of year can come with a host of benefits.
Key elements of your big day, for example, from venue hire to other fees, may well be cheaper, while you could also find there’s greater availability of both your venue of choice and preferred suppliers.
What’s more, outside the main summer holiday period, the people you want to be there to share the occasion with you are likelier to be around. And if you’re of an age where lots of your friends are getting hitched, some may start to experience ‘wedding fatigue’ if there are back-to-back celebrations all summer.
Equally, you can embrace the theme with rich, deep colours plus stylish décor incorporating holly, pinecones and foliage – perhaps even piggybacking on the Christmas season with fairy lights, baubles and wreaths, plus plenty of sparkle!
Complete the atmosphere with ginger or cinnamon scents – a winter wedding can be really cosy and romantic. (Which is why they can work especially well if you’re going for a smaller, more intimate affair.)
And if you want to celebrate your nuptials with fireworks, you’ll have more hours of inky night sky to let them off.
Talking of backdrops, this time of year can also supply stunning backgrounds, from stark trees to firs and dustings of frost or snow – a genuine winter wonderland.
Here are our top tips for getting organised for your winter wedding:
Naming the day
Christmas weddings can definitely work well. However, it’s also obviously high season for festive parties, so bear in mind that people and venues are busy, and book early if your heart is set on a Yuletide celebration.
In January, on the other hand, it’s low season for hospitality and people are likely to have fewer commitments, while everyone likes being cheered up early in the New Year.
Get your timings right
You may want to book your wedding ceremony earlier in the day to allow enough time for photos while it’s still light enough. Even a 3pm ceremony, for example, means the light will be fading afterwards.
And, while we’re talking about photos, scope out potential backdrops in advance and check out the best locations with your photographer. At the same time, work out where you will shoot your wedding pictures if it’s raining.
Go seasonal with food and drink
Think in terms of treats like mulled wine or hot chocolate. Amaretto with heated apple juice is another option that invariably goes down well. The cooler months are all about piping-hot comfort food. A traditional roast could be one idea, followed by a warm pudding.
Do a tasting session in advance so you’re happy with everything.
Create an atmosphere
There are myriad ways of creating the perfect winter wedding ambience. Candles provide a gorgeous warm glow, especially when you consider how early it gets dark at this time of year.
Other ideas for completing your look include fur shawls, a velvet suit jacket for the groom, or indeed anything that complements your theme, whether you’ve gone for a Narnia winter forest feel or full-on Christmas tinsel and baubles.
Be prepared for any weather
Forecasts predict the 2023-24 winter to be milder but wetter than average. Plan your covered areas for photos and think about how you will stay dry as you travel to the venue. Work out how guests will travel without getting drenched, too.
Have your winter wedding at Berkeley Castle
Let us at Berkeley Castle create your dream winter wonderland wedding straight out of a fairytale. Our grounds look even more stunning than usual with a light covering of frost, coupled with the medieval fortress looming above them.
Exchange your vows this winter in the intimacy of our Long Drawing Room or against the grandeur of the Great Hall. (For religious ceremonies, lovely St Mary’s Church is on the doorstep.)
Enjoy a roaring fire, feast in the Great Hall and dance the night away in an ambience-drenched celebration. We offer full-weekend, exclusive use of our spectacular venue on the edge of the Cotswolds, so there’s no post-party travel home on a wintry night to worry about.
Get in touch with a member of the wedding team today, and start planning your magical winter wedding.
