The Top Wedding Venues in Northern Ireland for Your Dream Celebration
One thing we are not short of here in Northern Ireland is beautiful places for couples to choose as their wedding venue. Choosing a venue is usually the first big decision every couple makes after they become engaged and it’s never an easy decision.
As experienced wedding photographers we have worked at lots of different types of venues from large country estates and high-end hotels to more rustic and intimate venues. Having visited all of these amazing venues we are well placed to help make your job of choosing a venue a little bit easier by letting you know which ones we rate as our personal favourites.
We could easily have listed over 100 amazing places to get married but have managed to squeeze the list down to just ten of our absolute favourites. We haven’t put these in any particular order. If you decide to choose any of these venues for your wedding, you are going to be in for an amazing wedding day.
Top 10 Northern Ireland Wedding Venues
LARCHFIELD ESTATE
Larchfield Estate is a luxury wedding venue just down the road from us in our home town of Lisburn. The main building is a converted 19th century barn. Ceremonies here are often held outside in the sunken garden. We love outdoor wedding ceremonies and this is one of the prettiest places in Northern Ireland to have one. The grounds around the venue are absolutely stunning and make the perfect backdrop for wedding photography.
We also love that there is a secret gated garden with a lake that is only for use by the couple and their wedding photographer on the day of the wedding.
Address:
Bailliesmills Rd, Lisburn BT27 6XJ
Telephone:
02892 638025
BEECH HILL COUNTRY HOUSE
Beech Hill Country House is a wedding venue with a real difference. If your idea of a dream wedding includes having your wedding ceremony in an ancient forest, grounds that include a beautiful lake, cocktails in the country pub, before dancing the night away under the stars in the Garden Pavilion.
If you are trying to find a luxury country house that oozes character and charm with a fun atmosphere to celebrate your wedding then Beech Hill could well be a great fit!
Address:
32 Ardmore Rd, Londonderry BT47 3QP
Telephone:
02871 349279
KILLEAVY CASTLE ESTATE
Killeavy Castle Estate is a wedding venue in Newry, County Down. Couples can choose to have an outdoor ceremony in The Walled Gardens or with the beautiful castle as the backdrop. You can also have your ceremony inside the Castle Pavillion.
There are many areas to use for photography including a beautiful courtyard, woodland walks and panoramic views over the Ring of Gullion.
Address:
12 Ballintemple Road, Killeavy, Newry BT35 8LQ
Telephone:
02830 444888
THE OLD COURT WEDDING COMPANY STRANGFORD
This venue is a little less well none but is a hidden gem. They can cater for both outdoor ceremonies as well as having their own church in the grounds if you prefer your ceremony to be a little more traditional.
The grounds around the venue are spectacular with amazing views over Strangford Lough and the owners are some of the friendliest people you could ever meet.
Address:
Strangford, Co. Down, BT30 7NB
Telephone:
02844 881318
DRENAGH ESTATE
Drenagh is situated in the middle of the countryside in Limavady. Couples can choose to say their vows in either the historic Georgian house or the beautiful moon garden. The moon garden has a unique atmosphere and is great for photographs, so we would recommend that option.
Receptions are held at this venue in a purpose-built marquee on the estate grounds. Just like the other venues we have mentioned so far, the grounds are exceptional for photography.
Address:
15 Dowland Rd, Limavady BT49 0HP
Telephone:
02877 722649
TULLYVEERY HOUSE
This venue has quite a lot of choices for couples to choose from for the location of their ceremony both indoors and outdoors. They also provide a private room which the bridal party can use for last minute make-up touch ups before the ceremony.
Again, the grounds around the venue are amazing, with lots of variety for photography. All of the best areas are quite close together as well making for a relaxing photo session.
Address:
7 Ardigon Rd, Killyleagh, Downpatrick BT30 9TA
Telephone:
02844 828226
ORANGE TREE HOUSE
This venue has a more modern feel than the venues we have mentioned so far even though the main building is a converted church built in 1820. The main function room can cater for up to 130 people. Ceremonies here are beautiful, as the room has a very unique atmosphere.
The raised terrace area at the venue is a great place to chill out, relax, spend time with your guests and to enjoy watching the tide roll in. This venue doesn’t really have any grounds to speak off, although both the beach and the little area on the left of the venue can be used for photography. Most couples that choose this venue go the ruins in Greyabbey for their photographs.
Address:
1 Portaferry Rd, Greyabbey, Newtownards BT22 2RU
Telephone:
02842 788103
BALLYSCULLION PARK
Ballyscullion is well known both for being a luxury wedding venue and for being used as a filming location for Game of Thrones. This venue also caters for both outdoor and indoor wedding ceremonies.
Receptions held here are marquee style and the large walled gardens have ample opportunities for photography. Weddings here often have a very relaxed vibe.
Address:
61 Ballyscullion Rd, Bellaghy, Magherafelt BT45 8NA
Telephone:
02879 386235
BRECKENHILL
This venue is in Ballyclare making it a great choice if you live in the greater Belfast area as there won’t be too much travelling for both you and your guests. Couples can choose to have an outdoor or indoor ceremony in The Stone Barn.
There are photo opportunities aplenty here with an avenue of trees almost like a mini Dark Hedges being one of our favourite spots for photographs at this venue. The owners are super friendly and very flexible with meeting couple’s needs.
Address:
45 Breckenhill Rd, Doagh, Ballyclare BT39 0TB
Telephone:
02893 340311
LISSANOURE CASTLE
This is another luxury wedding venue that offers couples a choice of areas to use for their wedding ceremony. Couples can choose indoors from the The Coach House or The Castle Barn.
The grounds here are fantastic with a good amount of variety, the castle is surrounded by lakes and woodland making for a very good location for wedding photography.
Address:
Ballyveely Rd, Loughguile, Ballymena BT44 9JW
Telephone:
02827 641132
Best Hotel Wedding Venues in Northern Ireland
Some couples won’t mind if their wedding venue has more than a one wedding a day policy and might prefer a hotel wedding venue instead. There are advantages to choosing a hotel wedding venue. Choosing a hotel venue means that there is lots of available accommodation for you and your guests. This means your guests can relax and not have to worry about arranging transport home as well as allowing you the option to meet up with them for breakfast or a second day of partying the day after your wedding.
Booking a hotel wedding venue usually means that you don’t have to book caterers as well as the hotel provides all of that on-site, usually as part of their wedding packages.
Top 10 Hotel Wedding Venues in Northern Ireland
For those couples that prefer a hotel style wedding venue, these wedding venues are well worth a look. We have photographed multiple weddings at each of these hotels:
The Best Quirky Wedding Venues in Northern Ireland
Perhaps you are the sort of couple that prefers something a little bit different than a country estate or hotel type venue. If that sounds like you, then a quirky wedding venue may be the best choice for you. These types of venues tend to be a little bit smaller usually and so are of course usually best suited to smaller more intimate weddings.
They all tend to have their own individual and very different styles. This style of wedding venue will often be converted barns, mill houses or bars and restaurants and many still include some of the original features from their past life.
Top 5 Quirky Wedding Venues in Northern Ireland
For couples that feel that a quirky wedding venue is the best option for them, we have visited these venues multiple times and can recommend each of them for fitting that quirky style that you won’t find elsewhere.
Best Wedding Venues in Northern Ireland for Adventurous Couples
Not every couple wants to have the “big wedding”. Smaller more intimate weddings have very much become a trend in both Northern Ireland and in the rest of the U.K. Many couples over the last couple of years have chosen to have elopement style weddings.
In Northern Ireland most of these couples will choose the North Coast for this type of wedding. The Causeway Coastal route has been a popular location for couples flying in from all over the world for elopements for many years.
The most popular locations here are:
Dunluce Castle
Dunseverick Castle
Ballintoy Harbour
Kinbane Head
Mussenden Temple
Other couples have chosen beach locations like Benone, Whiterocks and Cushendall. Some have chosen to get married in the middle of a forest with Crawfordsburn and Tollymore both being popular choices. Instead of booking a wedding venue for their reception many of these couples book function rooms in bars and restaurants to celebrate and party with a small group of family and friends after the ceremony.
There is also a growing trend for couples to get married and have their wedding receptions in either their own home or a family members home. The last few years have taught us all that its much easier to arrange this type of wedding than you might think. With Humanist celebrants able to perform a wedding ceremony almost anywhere and with lots of companies available that provide Marquees and outdoor catering etc. It has never been easier to plan this type of wedding. As photographers we love these more intimate weddings as there is often a more relaxed vibe about the whole day and we usually get more time with our couples than we would have at larger weddings.
If you would like to view photographs taken at all of the venues mentioned here and many others as well, be sure to check out our wedding gallery for inspiration.
If you would like to find out what the advantages and disadvantages are of Northern Ireland’s most popular wedding wedding venues, click on the button below.
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Tommy and Laurene, Pure Photo N.I.
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