Can anyone help with a beautiful location for a wedding in Scotland?
 

We're hoping to get married in Scotland this summer. We are looking for a beautiful, romantic location outside, but I'm struggling as I don't know Scotland very well. If anyone has any ideas, I'd really appreciate it.

well you could always 'do a Madonna' and get married in a Scottish castle. I'm afraid Skibo Castle, where she got married, is now a private club, but here's some other venues:

http://www.castles.org/Chatelaine/weddings.htm

Claire, can you try to narrow it down a wee bit. Price, type of geographic location, seaside, mountain, what?

Castle, hotel, park, beach, what?

How do you anticipate dealing with it if it rains?

Have you checked out the rules and how to comply?

Thanks for the quick replies. We want something very simple and cheap(!)and outside, so hiring castles is not an option. We both love water, so maybe a loch or a beach somewhere might be a good idea. I've just read about Fairie Glen on the Isle of Skye - does anyone know anything about it?
We're not bothered about the rain - we'll just get wet!
And thanks Sheila - I understand about the rules, so that shouldn't be a problem.

We got married at Lennoxlove House in 2002. It's near town of Haddington, about half an hour from Edinburgh. Loved the location, the grounds, the castle and the entire process.

http://www.lennoxlove.org/

Sorry, my post must have crossed Claire's reply - I missed the outdoor part. Never mind the Lennoxlove - they have lovely grounds, but still, it is much more of a castle venue than an outdoors one.

You ARE talking about Scotland so you might want to have an indoor alternative. . . .

And how many are you talking about attending?

But one place that comes immediately to mind - Inchmahome Priory in the middle of the Lake of Menteith. It is an absolutely lovely runined priory on an island reached by a small launch. Swans, view to a small churchyard and and hotel across the lake (yes - "Lake", not "Loch").

Here are a few photos of it:

http://www.mysteriousbritain.co.uk/m...nchmahome.html

http://www.ancient-scotland.co.uk/site.php?a=95

http://www.rampantscotland.com/visit...inchmahome.htm

http://www.heritage.me.uk/religiou/inchmaho.htm

Thank you - Inchmahome Priory looks beautiful. I'll look into it some more. There will probably only be a very small group of us - no more than 10.

We also got married at Lennoxlove, last May. (It's very close to where I was brought up).

It's a wonderful location but as Kasperdoggie says, it's probably too big for your needs. Also, bear in mind that many of these castle/stately home venues get booked up for weekend weddings *years* in advance. The wedding industry has become big business in Scotland.

I'd recommend you get your hands on a copy of the Scottish Wedding Directory magazine (http://www.scottishweddingdirectory.co.uk/), which is published quarterly. It has all the info and ads you'll ever want for venues, caterers, pipers, photographers, music, etc. etc.

There's a few things you'll need to read up on, especially administrative requirements for non-Scots. If you haven't already, start by reading up here: http://www.gro-scotland.gov.uk/regsc...d-in-scotland/

Claire

You will find some more ideas on

utopia-scotland.com

I've known people get married in the Botanic Gardens in Edinburgh, but I guess you are looking for somewhere a bit wilder ?

I knew someone who got married at Dirleton Castle in East Lothian. It's not one of the castles which has been turned into a hotel (like Dalhousie, where I got married); but a semi ruin. Their wedding was outside but there was a bit they could have sheltered in had it rained.

It's not a place which would get booked up since it's not geared up for weddings - they had to find their own minister etc.

It is also possible to get married on Inchcolm Island in the Firth of Forth (not far from Edinburgh), which has a ruined abbey. I considered it but didn't want to risk bad weather.

hanl has a point about some venues getting booked up years in advance (though not so much the type of venue you seem to be seeking, I think); but I'd say that is mainly for Saturdays & the school holidays. I don't think you'll have a problem if you want, say, a Monday morning in June.

Good photographers do however get very booked up; so if you want a professional photographer, book asap.

As you are planning an outdoor summer wedding, you might want to check out this link (from another thread) helpfully provided by Sheila.

http://www.undiscoveredscotland.co.u...atures/midges/

Midges as wedding crashers are far less entertaining than Owen Wilson and having everyone at the ceremony smelling strongly of DEET doesn't sound particularly romantic.

What a horrid thing to do to her!!!

Claire, just stay east!!!

As Caroline said, I don't think we'll have a problem with booking somewhere, as we're not really after a traditional 'venue' and it doesn't matter what day of the week we marry on. We're quite unconventional, so are really looking for a 'beauty spot'that won't be crowded with tourists (if such a thing exists). We don't want the traditional cake, wedding breakfast, photographer etc etc - we'll probably just stay in a little cottage near where we decide on and relax for a few days.
This probably all sounds a bit weird to everyone, but it's our idea of the perfect wedding!
And yes, I'd forgotten about the midges - perhaps by late August they'll be disappearing?!

But the west looks so beautiful - I suppose there has to be a drawback somewhere!

Sheila, what on earth did I do? Other than suggest she keep the midges in mind when choosing a place/time for an outdoor summer wedding? I'm confused.

Are you planning on having a civil or a religious wedding ceremony?

Because the rules regarding venues differ slightly - civil weddings can only be held in approved places (there's a list at: http://www.gro-scotland.gov.uk/files...lace-name.html) while religious weddings can, in theory, be held anywhere.

Thanks hanl - we want a religious ceremony and are hoping we'll be able to find a minister mad enough to turn up! Apparently, you can usually find one who'll go pretty much anywhere.

Have you indicated how many will likely be in attendance? A remote setting might sound great, but arranging accommodation/catering etc. for the wedding party and guests might be a bit of a problem.

There will be very few of us - probably just a few close friends. We'll all be happy with a decent meal, a proper pub and self-catering/B&B accommodation, so as long as I book fairly soon, I don't think it should be a problem.