Guides for Brides logo
Fairs & Events Planning Tools
Wedding venue with marquee set for wedding breakfast and reception celebrations

Find Your Ideal Wedding Venue

Finding your wedding venue is the first thing you need to do to set the wedding planning wheels in motion. From pretty wedding barns to luxurious hotels and beautiful private gardens, the kinds of wedding venues available to you are endless. Narrow down your search for the perfect setting for your big day using our wedding venue finder.

I'm looking for

located in

List search

7680 results

Elizabethan wedding barn at Copdock Hall set for ceremony with fairylight backdrop
EPS Photography

Exclusive Offer

Spotlight

Copdock Hall Wedding Venue

Gorgeous Barn Wedding Venue with Vineyard Setting in Suffolk

21 reviews

Suffolk, Ipswich

£4,500 - £8,200

Venues

Rutland Hall Hotel Wedding Venue in Oakham

Timeless Elegance in the Heart of Rutland & Leicestershire's Stunning Countryside

1 review

Rutland, Exton

£POA

Venues

The Adelphi Hotel Liverpool Front Steps view

Mid Week Offer

Spotlight

The Adelphi Hotel, Liverpool

Iconic Edwardian Style Hotel Wedding Venue in Merseyside

6 reviews

Merseyside, Liverpool

£2,499 - £4,999

Venues

Elaine

Ask Our Expert

Elaine

Elaine has over 8 years of experience working with wedding venues, and advises many of the top hotel and venue brands on their wedding marketing. She has a deep understanding of statistics that can accurately predict the online popularity of a particular venue and she is happy to share that knowledge with wedding couples and venues.

Harrisons Hall is in Mold, Flintshire. Civil Licensed Wedding Venue

Spotlight

Harrisons Hall

Harrisons Hall is a Bespoke Wedding Venue surrounded by an abundance of natural beauty!

14 reviews

Flintshire, Mold

£1,000 - £10,000

Venues

Classics Suite at Grand Hotel Gosforth Park

Spotlight

Grand Hotel Gosforth Park Wedding Venue

Large Hotel Wedding Venue with Beautiful Grounds

11 reviews

Tyne and Wear, Newcastle Upon Tyne

£4,500 - £14,500

Venues

Our beautiful set up for a ceremony in our Italian Garden

Special Offer

Spotlight

Milton Hill House Wedding Venue

18th Century Georgian Manor house set on 22 acres

70 reviews

Oxfordshire, Abingdon

£3,500 - £10,000

Venues

Dont forget to mention Guides for Brides
Netley Hall Exclusive-Use Wedding Venue

Spotlight

Netley Hall Estate

Welcome to Netley Hall Estate - Your Ideal Wedding Venue in Shropshire

26 reviews

Shropshire, Shrewsbury

£5,000 - £16,000

Venues

Glewstone Court Country House Venues in Herefordshire

Special Offer

Spotlight

Glewstone Court Country House

Create lasting memories in the beautiful country making sure you leave as part of the family!

16 reviews

Herefordshire, Ross on Wye

£6,500 - £14,500

Venues

Meon Valley Hotel & Country Club, Venues-Receptions in Hampshire

Exclusive Offer

Spotlight

Meon Valley Hotel & Country Club

Large Hotel Wedding Venue in Southampton surrounded by Countryside

7 reviews

Hampshire, Southampton

£POA

Venues

Sign up to our wedding planning newsletter

Choosing your wedding venue is one of the biggest decisions you will make when planning your wedding. It can also be one of the most challenging. Your venue is going to have a huge impact over the look and feel of your special day, so it makes sense to spend as long as you need to find the perfect wedding location. Here you can find some of the UK's best wedding venues and filter down by location, capacity, price, type and more.

You'll need to be organised if you want to secure a popular wedding venue or somewhere that offers a limited number of weddings per year, as many couples tend to book between 18-24 months in advance of the big day. For this reason, if you are planning last minute, you may find a fantastic wedding venue deal.

Find your perfect wedding venue online

An online search can quickly reveal everything you need to know about a venue. Dip into beautiful photography and videos. Take a virtual tour through hallways and reception rooms. Find important information like floor plans, capacities, availability, and cost.

When it comes to venue planning, we know what matters most. Our detailed and interactive listings are how we are able to answer some of your most frequently searched terms like “wedding venues near me”, setting you up with your area's most breathtaking venues.

Plus with our availability checker, you'll be able to find venues that have your date (or a similar one) available.

How much should I budget for my wedding venue?

As a starting point, most couples spend around 45% of their wedding budget on their venue and catering costs. But, it will really depend on your priorities with some couples spending up to 60% of their budget on these 2 elements.

In reality, there is no right or wrong when it comes to how much you and your partner choose to spend on your venue as everyone's desires for their wedding day will be different. Couples who have their hearts set on a country house wedding venues will likely spend more than those who want to be married in a pub or restaurant. Couples that want to have a three course meal with canapes and petit fours as their wedding food will likely spend more than those who are happy with an afternoon tea wedding breakfast.

So, if you have a wedding budget of £20,000 for example, you'll want to reserve around £9,000 for the venue and catering as you begin your venue search. Then, once you find a wedding venue you love, you can make a judgement on whether to increase (or decrease) that spend!

Local wedding venues - near you

Getting married and celebrating your newlywed status at a local wedding venue is a very special thing. Your hometown and locality is often part of your identity and when you find an absolute gem of a venue just a short drive or even a walk from your home, you know you're in luck!

If you are looking for a venue near you, you have come to the right place. On Guides for Brides you can filter through our venue listings and search by location, budget, venue type, features and more. So, you can be sure that you will find an exceptional setting in your local area.

What type of wedding venue can I choose for my big day?

There are so many wedding venues at your finger tips, explore the wide variety using our venue finder. Here are some of the most popular types of wedding venue and what to look out for to ensure it suits you.

Civil ceremony licensed wedding venues

Civil ceremony licensed wedding venues enable you to hold both the legal wedding ceremony and the reception in the same place and can often be a hotel, wedding barn, stately home or castle. These complete wedding venues have one or more rooms licensed for civil ceremonies. Prior to the pandemic, you had to be married beneath a permanent structure for your civil ceremony. Since then, the law has changed to allow couples marrying in England or Wales to do so outside as long as it is within the grounds of a licensed wedding venue.

Those marrying in Scotland and Northern Ireland don't need to worry about ensuring their venue is licensed for civil ceremonies as it is the officiant that is licensed in these nations and not the venue. So, you have a much wider choice when it comes to where to host your legally binding wedding ceremony. The law is hopefully going to be changing in England and Wales to allow for a similar system to Scotland and Northern Ireland in 2023-2024.

Reception venues

If you have carried out your wedding legalities in a church, town hall or registry office, your choice of wedding reception venues is unlimited as you won't need it to be licensed for weddings. This can also keep the cost down as these venues tend to be less busy so offer great wedding packages to encourage you to book. You'll want to identify somewhere that is suitable for the vibe you are wanting to achieve. So, if you fancy somewhere rustic and romantic, a barn wedding venue may be most suitable. Whereas, if you want a luxurious and opulent location, why not consider a stately home or even a castle wedding venue?

Equally, you'll want to make sure the space is suitable for any additional entertainment you are wanting for the evening, from making sure there is enough space for your ideal wedding band or DJ to ensuring you have the right capacity for your guest numbers.

Exclusive Use Venues

Most couples want an exclusive use wedding venue. This means that they want a setting that is private for them and their guests to celebrate. For this, we recommend looking for a dedicated wedding venue. Apart from the odd mid-week conference or Christmas party, these venues are purely focused on delivering weddings and are the most likely to offer exclusive-use of the space and any accommodation that is available onsite.

If you want to marry in a venue that is usually open to the general public, for example a golf club wedding venue, restaurant, a castle or a museum, the cost to have exclusive use of the wedding venue can be high or you may be limited to hosting the event when the space has officially closed to the public. So for example, if you want to marry in a museum, they may only allow your wedding ceremony to take place after 5pm when they've closed their doors and the event can be truly private. Similarly, for a large hotel wedding venue, you may need to commit to filling all the bedrooms to be able to have exclusive use of the property.

Dry Hire Wedding Venues

Dry hire wedding venues are perfect for those wanting a blank canvas space for their big day or for those planning a DIY wedding. You'll pay a flat fee to hire the space and, aside from maybe needing to use approved caterers, you have the freedom to choose whoever you want to work with when it comes to wedding suppliers. It is worth noting that when you choose a dry hire venue you are often needing to remember to budget for things like furniture hire and cleaning costs. Speak to the venue to find out what services are included within their hire fees and whether you will need to arrange any specialist cleaning or hire in your own chairs and tables for the day.

Land for hire

Similarly to dry hire wedding venues, land for hire is ideal if you are wanting a space to start totally from scratch without even a building in place. Land for hire venues are exactly what they say on the tin - land and fields that are available for you to hire at a flat fee. They are usually chosen by couples who want to have a marquee wedding but maybe don't have the space required at home. As with dry hire, you will need to find all of your wedding suppliers and in almost every case hire in your own marquee or tipi structure and furniture for the day.

Do you run a wedding venue?

Let our couples know!

FAQs About Finding a Wedding Venue

There are 6 things you need to know about your wedding in order to find the ideal wedding venue: approximate wedding venue budget, approximate number of guests, ideal wedding date, preferred location, type of ceremony you'd like, catering preferences.

To find the best wedding venues in your area you need to start by searching online for wedding venues near your location. Utilise search engines or dedicated wedding venue directories like Guides for Brides to discover a range of options, read reviews, and explore their offerings.

In order to get your first choice venue for your preferred wedding date, we recommend booking your wedding venue about 18 months before the day. Plus, this leaves you plenty of time to arrange everything else! The most in-demand wedding venues might be booked a year or more in advance, so securing your preferred venue early is highly recommended.

The best wedding venues will get booked up quickly, especially for summer Saturdays and you can tell which are the best based on the quality and quantity of the reviews they've received. Make sure you read them carefully before you enquire.

Opting for a wedding venue near you offers location convenience for you, your guests, and your wedding suppliers. It reduces travel time and logistics, making it easier for everyone to attend and participate in your wedding ceremony and reception, especially if the majority of your guests are based in the local area.

Our research shows that in 2024, the average price of a wedding venue package in the UK is £9,046. However, the price for your wedding venue will depend on your individual needs and priorities - factors such as location, level of luxury and guest numbers will affect the cost of the venue. As a starting point, we suggest placing at least 45% of your total wedding budget towards your venue and catering costs. The majority of couples end up in the 45-60% range.