The Wallace Collection museum, the Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew, St Pancras Renaissance Hotel and countless historic European castellos, borgos and villas are just some of the venues we have planned weddings at that fall into the heritage, public or famous categories. If you love the idea of a grand celebration at a palace such as Blenheim, an iconic London landmark such as the Tower of London, or a well-known attraction such as the Roman Baths, there are a few things you’ll need to know about hosting a wedding at such an incredible place.
You’ll encounter architecture that needs hardly any decorating, open-mouthed delights from guests, and an utterly immersive experience capable of transporting you to another time entirely, but all this awe does come with some caveats.
Heritage Venues, Public/Tourist Attractions & Famous Locations To Get Married In
All of these venues are available for weddings – some might surprise you!
- Many London museums, including The Natural History Museum, The Wallace Collection, The Old Royal Naval College and London Museum Docklands
- Other iconic London buildings such as Trinity Buoy Wharf, The Shard and the Tower of London
- A huge variety of London hotels, including historically important ones such as The Savoy, The Ritz and The St Pancras Renaissance
- Tourist attractions by day, wedding venues by mid-afternoon such as Kew Gardens, Syon Park and the Barbican in the UK
- Historic Royal Palaces such as Hampton Court and Blenheim
- Heritage sites like the Historic Roman Baths and many National Trust properties
Across Europe you have lots of wonderful examples of historic venues – Italy, Portugal and Spain are practically overflowing with them, many having been beautifully restored and adapted for weddings.
Candy & Sam’s Wedding at St Pancras Renaissance Hotel
7 things you should know about getting married in a public, historical or famous venue:
1. Open to the public means restricted access times
Whether in the UK or overseas for a destination wedding, if you get married in a venue that is normally open to the public you will have to work with their restricted access times. It is very unusual to find a venue that closes to the public on the day of your wedding, and if they do offer this then it likely comes at a very high cost. In most cases, venues will agree to close earlier than normal – if not entirely, then at least in specific areas you will be using.
If you’d like to get married in a museum such as The Natural History Museum, at a tourist attraction such as Hampton Court Palace, or in a public place such as Jardines d’Alfabia in Mallorca*, you’ll need to be prepared for later start times (which can actually be a blessing at a destination wedding in a hot country!), shorter set up times for your suppliers, and careful planning.
*Katie and Tom’s wedding at Jardines d’Alfabia, a beautiful botanical garden in the mountains of Mallorca, was a great example of this. The venue closed at 3pm to visitors, and while we were allowed in to set up before this we had to be aware that the general public was also making use of the spaces at the same time. Their ceremony took place at 4.30pm, when the hottest part of the day was over.
Katie & Tom’s Wedding at Jardines d’Alfabia, Mallorca
*Take a look at Katie and Tom’s Jewish destination wedding in Mallorca in full detail.
If you like the idea of having your ceremony earlier in the day but can’t yet access your venue, consider getting married elsewhere and then moving to your chosen venue later for dinner and dancing. Many of our couples, including Daniella and Adam (see below), choose to do this, ensuring they have plenty of time for all the fun.
2. Check which spaces you are able to use for your wedding
Choosing to get married in a venue such as one of London’s incredible museums can sound like a brilliant idea, but quickly sours if you find out they’re actually offering nondescript rooms for your event that could be found anywhere. If you’re celebrating in a historic or iconic location, you really want the essence of the place to be easily identifiable in your wedding – for example, dining beneath the blue whale skeleton in the Natural History Museum’s Hintze Hall.
Not all public spaces allow you to use such recognisable parts of their venue for your wedding, usually due to the presence of protected artefacts or danger of damage to very old structures. If this is a dealbreaker, be clear on it before you fall in love with an idea.
Daniella and Adam’s Wedding at The Wallace Collection Museum
Daniella and Adam’s wedding at The Wallace Collection made the best of its incredible artwork, and they and their guests were able to celebrate alongside paintings, sculptures, armour and ceramics gifted in 1900 – take a look at their wedding in more detail.
3. You may have to choose from a supplier list
It is not uncommon for historical or famous wedding venues to insist that you choose from their list of recommended suppliers for your wedding, sometimes in just a few categories (catering is a big one) and sometimes more widely – you may even have to use an approved photographer, for example. Levels of flexibility on this vary. Some venues are strict and will not work with suppliers they have no experience with, whereas some will agree if a reputable wedding planner vouches for them.
This is all about protecting the heritage or longevity of the venue, and isn’t in place to be awkward or make your lives difficult. Weddings are big, complex events with lots of people coming and going, equipment being brought in and out, and a high footfall often moving with haste through what can sometimes be delicate areas. Trust and reputation are hugely valuable in the wedding industry, so if you’re planning to get married at a public place or historic venue then working with a top wedding planner can really help you.
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- Candy & Sam’s Wedding at St Pancras Renaissance Hotel
4. Noise restrictions are not uncommon in public, historic and famous venues
Noise restrictions, sound limiters and curfews should always be taken into consideration when viewing a wedding venue, particularly if entertainment is very important to you. Take a look at our recent guide on avoiding common mistakes when booking your venue. When considering a venue that is close to housing or in a town or city, you can likely expect restrictions on how much noise you can make – this is usually aimed at not disturbing local residents, and in the case of some really grand country estates, maybe even the family still living there.
These restrictions may take the form of sound limiters, which vary in strictness, time limits on how late live music can be played outdoors, and even rules about how many windows can be opened in your dancing space during the band’s sets. Knowing this in advance avoids any unpleasant surprises on your wedding day.
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- Daniella and Adam’s Wedding at The Wallace Collection Museum
5. Consider your ceremony and reception individually
Not all historic venues, tourist attractions and other well-known locations are licensed for marriage, which means you may not be able to get legally wed there. If it is licensed, make sure you find out which spaces are available for your ceremony and how the day will flow – from guest arrival to welcome drink to ceremony, and then further onto reception, dinner and dancing. Does the walkthrough of the guest experience make sense, and do you love all the spaces you’re being offered equally?
If you absolutely love the idea of dancing the night away in an historic royal palace, for example, but its ceremony spaces are not what you’re looking for, you can always choose to have your ceremony (legal or symbolic) somewhere nearby and then travel over for the dinner and party. Similarly, if you’ve fallen in love with the idea of having your ceremony at the Historic Roman Baths in Bath, you can then go elsewhere for your evening celebrations (even to a fabulous restaurant) and have the best of both worlds.
Public venues also make great welcome party spaces, sometimes working even better for an informal gathering than for your whole wedding day event. A great wedding planner will guide you through all of this and suggest venues that work for your wedding vision.
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- Annabel & Oli’s Wedding at Kew Gardens
6. Wedding coordinators are often included with historic and public venues, but…
A wedding coordinator is almost always included when you book a venue that is a heritage site, museum, tourist attraction or other public or iconic location, simply because the venue wants to ensure that they have someone of their own team overseeing everything on the day. Many couples see this and fall into the trap of believing it means they don’t need a wedding planner, but this couldn’t be further from the truth.
The wedding coordinator is there to oversee your day, yes, but their primary responsibility is to ensure everything goes well from the venue’s point of view. Guests not walking into restricted areas, the catering team not parking their van in the wrong place, the band being shown to the right green room…they are not there solely to ensure you have the most magical day possible – that is the role of your wedding planner.
7. Finally, don’t forget to absolutely revel in this beautiful venue you’ve chosen!
There is something utterly special about getting married in an iconic location, particularly if it’s somewhere your guests are familiar with (e.g. Kew Gardens, which is also a World Heritage Site), hugely appealing to an overseas crowd (a historic royal palace is always awe-inspiring for US-based guests) or has innate, instantly recognisable grandeur of its own kind.
Don’t forget to recognise and honour just how beautiful an opportunity it is for you to marry in your chosen venue, and soak up every visit, every planning decision and every moment of your day – your wedding is truly going to be iconic.
Annabel & Oli’s Wedding at Kew Gardens
We planned Annabel and Oli’s wedding at Kew Gardens, making use of three breathtaking spaces including the inimitable Princess of Wales Conservatory, and hosted a truly magical day. Click here to explore this beautiful London wedding venue as they experienced it on their wedding day, with images by Lucie Watson.
Hiring a wedding planner becomes more of a necessity as the years go by, and I would argue even more so if you’re booking a venue such as those discussed here. These kinds of venues, while fabulous, come with their own quirks and eccentricities which can make planning more challenging and complex than at, say, a London hotel or an Italian borgo designed for weddings. The combination of being open and available for the public and tourists and for your wedding requires your venue to wear many hats, and having a wedding planner on your team ensures you always have someone who is 100% advocating for you.
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