Winter Wedding Ideas in the United Kingdom

If you're hoping for a contemporary venue for your small wedding, try the London Eye.

A winter wedding at a United Kingdom wedding venue might be for you if your wedding dreams include worlds of white, mistletoe and evergreen trees. Whether you're going for a hip, modern look or striving for something timeless, the United Kingdom offers a variety of wedding venues.

The London Eye

Look down at Big Ben and say "I do" over the bright lights of London aboard Merlin Entertainment's London Eye. The London Eye moves like a Ferris wheel and travels about 400 feet into the air at its highest point. The Eye's clear capsules provide views of London on all sides as a backdrop for your wedding. London Eye wedding packages accommodate the bride and groom and up to 19 guests in one capsule for an hourlong trip, and include a glass of champagne for each guest. Guests also can ride in additional capsules nearby for an additional fee. London Eye wedding packages start at about $7,000 as of April 2010.

The Merlin Entertainments London Eye
Riverside Building
County Hall
Westminster Bridge Road
London SE1 7PB
United Kingdom
[phone]
londoneye.com

Hedingham Castle

If princess appeal or a touch of timeless history is what you're searching for in your wedding venue, rent a castle, such as Hedingham Castle in Essex. Hedingham Castle features four separate floors and extensive grounds. Enjoy a candlelit wedding amid the graceful arches of the banquet hall, or indulge in a period themed event with minstrels strolling and strumming throughout the castle. Heddingham Castle can accommodate weddings of up to 130 guests, and venue rental begins at about $2,000 as of April 2010.

Hedingham Castle
Bayley Street
Castle Hedingham
Essex CO9 3DJ
United Kingdom
[phone]
hedinghamcastle.co.uk

Gretna Green

If Scotland is your preference, get married over the anvil in Gretna Green. The first village on the road from London to Edinburgh, Gretna Green quickly became the site of many clandestine marriages after Lord Hardwick's Marriage Act passed in England in 1754. Home of the "irregular" marriage, Scotland honored any marriage witnessed by four individuals. It didn't matter who performed the ceremony, and the officiant was often the local blacksmith, who married the couple over the blacksmith's anvil.

Today, couples planning to tie the knot in Gretna Green will find a number of wedding venues, such as the Gretna Hall Hotel, which offer packages honoring the village's illustrious history. Dating back to 1710, the Gretna Hall Hotel offers a wide variety of wedding packages from simple civil ceremonies to weddings over the anvil in the old blacksmith's shop. Full packages typically include at least one night's stay for the bride and groom and a three-course wedding breakfast for up to 95 guests the morning after the wedding. Pricing on Gretna Green wedding packages runs the gamut from a few hundred dollars for a civil ceremony to thousands for a more elaborate affair.

Gretna Hall Hotel
Gretna Green
Gretna
Dumfriesshire
DG16 5DY
[phone]
gretnahallhotel.com

References

• The London Eye: Weddings On Board the London Eye
• Hedingham Castle: Castle Weddings and Civil Ceremonies
• The Gretna Wedding Bureau: Gretna Green Weddings
• Gretna Hall Hotel