Always dreamed of having your own royal wedding? These fairy-tale locations scouted by Helen Raine will give you the luxury start to married life you’ve always imagined.
You only get married once (hopefully!). So this is your chance to channel your inner royalty without people complaining that you’re getting above your station. Hiring a castle is the perfect way to make a regal statement and, surprisingly, it’s cheaper and easier than you might imagine. Here are the top 10 fortified venues that won’t relegate you to a debtor’s dungeon.
Mas de Beauce Chateau, Aveyron, France
Mas de Beauce is a 14th-century fortified manor house just 25 minutes from Rodez Airport. It has everything you’d expect in a castle, from a look-out tower to a functioning antique bread oven and a private swimming pool. The clincher is its private, consecrated chapel, just the right size for an intimate wedding.
Be lord of the manor for your wedding as you stroll through ancient stonewalled rooms, below beautiful old wood beams. The place is also full of charming quirks. To get to the kitchen you’ll have to walk through a gigantic old fireplace. If you don’t want to do the cooking and cleaning yourself a maid and a chef are available at an extra cost.
Prices for a week start at €1,260 for up to eight guests with www.oliverstravels.com. The website has a lot of useful information on how to organise the wedding part of your stay and they even offer the services of a dedicated wedding consultant if you’re having trouble.
Castle on Florentine Hills, Tuscany, Italy
This ancient manor was built in the 15th century, deep in the Florentine hills. The whole ground floor is at the disposal of the wedding party. The reception room has painted frescoes and you can also use the lodge, the courtyard and the garden; there’s space for up to 180 guests. If you want to, you can organise your own catering with prior agreement, but in-house catererers can also be provided.
The castle is located 45km from Florence’s Amerigo Vespucci airport. Prices start at €2,320 for a midweek rental. While there’s no accommodation onsite, a nearby farmhouse provides room for 50 people in eight apartments. Visit www.initalywedding.com for further details; services include assisting with paperwork and translation services (€450 for a civil wedding, €1,000 for a religious wedding).
Lough Cutra Castle, Gort, Galway, Ireland
Lough Cutra has had many incarnations; it was built by John Nash, who also worked on Buckingham Palace, and guests have included the poet W. B. Yeats. It also provided famine relief, housed soliders, functioned as a convent and is now a private home, albeit one with turrets. The surrounding countryside has a long archaeological history.
This castle is perfect if you want to design your own wedding, as they have no in-house catering and leave the details of the day up to you. The private location is also a big draw.
Up to 160 guests can dine (a marquee can be erected if your numbers exceed that) and the bride and groom get to stay in the castle wedding suite. Additional accommodation for guests is provided in the castle (18 people) and in three self-catering cottages located around a genteel courtyard built in 1846 (23 people). For availability and costs, contact the castle directly on www.loughcutra.com.
Konopiste Castle, Prague, Czech Republic
Just 40km from the centre of Prague, Konopiste is a classic fairytale castle with gorgeous gardens. Your wedding could take place in the chapel, beneath the starry blue ceiling hung with chandeliers.
The castle has had an eclectic history. It started life in the Early Gothic period, and had Renaissance and Baroque renovations. At the end of the 19th century it was redone in the Romantic style for Franz Ferdinand d’Este, who was to inherit the Habsburg throne and whose assassination sparked World War I. It’s hard to find much of a trace of its chequered history in the peaceful, manicured gardens and decorated interior.
www.royalwedding.cz offer a package here from €1,290 (exact price depends on exchange rate at the time). That includes the support of a wedding planner, legal document court translation fees, transport for the Bride and Groom on the day, the ceremony, a coordinator to help with the wedding, music, witnesses, a toast and a bouquet and buttonhole.
Thornbury Castle, South Gloucestershire, UK
If you’re looking for a dramatic wedding, it’s hard to top spending your first night in the bedchamber where King Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn once slept. Behind the solid oak doors of this Tudor Castle, you’ll also find roaring log fires, intricate tapestries and exposed stonewalls; outside, the ancient gardens are perfect for photos. The head chef can also produce a bespoke menu for you based on the foods that you love.
The ‘Duke’ package includes 50 day guests and 100 evening guests, house wine, three-course wedding breakfast, evening buffet and accommodation of seven rooms in the north wing. Prices start at €12,000. If that’s outside your budget, you can go low key and just hire the library or the lounge for your ceremony for around €1,100 (www.celticcastles.com). Accommodation for two starts at €380 per night.