Choosing a wedding venue can either be one of the easiest or most difficult aspects of planning a wedding. With mountains of recommendations and reviews being thrown at you from every angle, it’s easy to feel a little bit overwhelmed at the frankly incredible range of brilliant and beautiful wedding venues there are dotted around our little country.
So what actually makes a couple choose one wedding venue over another? Is it the art of compromise where one juggles the heavy, ill-formed balls of budget, location, availability and capacity or should one plum for that one single outstanding feature? Most often it’s none of these, but the vaguest of reasons, the elusive ‘I just got a good feeling about that place’. Find out how 10 of our real wedding couples came to commit to the setting for their special day below.
Vintage: Redefined – Deirdre & John’s Elegant Riverside Wedding
The venue: Riverside Park Hotel, Wexford | The couple: Deirdre Shannon & John Lynch
Wedding Date: 16th March 2015 | Photographer: Martina California
“We chose the Riverside Park Hotel, Enniscorthy. We had a number of options to choose from within Wexford. As we were getting married in March, we knew that our guests wouldn’t be outdoors very much as it would be too cold. Therefore, the Riverside was perfect. It has a lovely reception area for the guests as they enter. The Riverside offer great packages and above all, they are noted for serving really good food. The hotel has set itself up as mainly a wedding hotel and the whole day ran really smoothly with so much of this being down to both the staff and the wedding coordinator.”
See all the photos from this pretty vintage-style wedding day here
An Intimate Independence Day Destination Wedding Ireland
The venue: Mount Juliet Estate, Kilkenny | The couple: Merrill and Garrett
Wedding date: 4th July, 2014 | Photographer: Tanya Colclough of Eden Photography
“We loved Mount Juliet Estate for its age and its natural beauty.”
See how the the couple’s day unfolded here
A Dreamy, Vintage-Inspired Wedding at Tulfarris Hotel, Wicklow
The venue: Tulfarris Hotel & Golf Resort, Wicklow | The couple: Laura Carey and Moritz Kleis
Wedding date: 6th June 2015 | Wedding photographer: Emma Russell Photography
“We chose Tulfarris Hotel & Golf Resort firstly because we fell in love with the location – on the peninsula jutting out in the lakes of Blessington – and secondly because of the amazing team of coordinators. From our first meeting, Lillian Mahon, Honora Carberry and Derrick the Duty Manger went above and beyond for us and all of our guests.”
See the full day here!
A Perfect Day at The Village at Lyons
The venue: The Village at Lyons, Celbridge, Kildare | The couple: Nicola Bucke & Christopher Busby
Wedding date: 29th May 2015 | Photographer: Couple Photography
“We explored getting married in Ireland or in Chamonix, France as Chamonix is a place we hold many happy memories of. Once we made a decision not to marry in France however, the Village at Lyons was the only choice for us. It was the first and only venue we went to see in Ireland as we loved the setting, the décor, the waterfall outside the window of the dining room and the size of the venue was perfect for us.”
Such a perfect day – see how it unfolded here
A Wedding at Home by Eden Photography
The venue: At home in Malahide, Co Dublin | The couple: Katie Ryan & Kian Cleere
Wedding date: 12th September 2014 | Photographer: Tanya Colclough, Eden Photography
“Having the wedding at home allowed us the freedom to design our perfect day. We welcomed family and friends in to Kian’s garden, which was lovingly decorated. We had our hearts set on a garden party. We had rustic bar tables and signs made from chopped wood from the garden, tipi tents from Magnakata, picnic benches and haybales, and outdoor games to entertain the guests! Luckily we had the weather for ice cream, cocktails and outdoor games!”
See the whole brilliant day here
A Super Fun Wedding at Summerhill House Hotel
The venue: Summerhill House Hotel, Wicklow | The couple: Maeve Mateer & Dylan van Vliet
Wedding date: 16th May 2015 | Photographer: Tomasz Kornas Photography
“We loved the feel of Summerhill House Hotel, we just really liked it when we saw it and all of the staff we met during the viewing were really nice – we knew it was the place we wanted our wedding! We loved that it was a country house that could hold a large wedding. It’s a beautiful venue that has the perfect layout for a wedding. We thought the function room was ideal and we liked the way the drawing room and other bar were available for any guests who didn’t feel like dancing. We had looked for a venue within one hour of Dublin and it was the first venue we saw and our favourite!”
See all the photos from Maeve & Dylan’s Day here!
Mint to Be! Shane & Sinead’s Ballymagarvey Village Wedding
The venue: Ballymagarvey Village, Meath | The couple: Sinéad O’Hara and Shane Guinan
Wedding date: 6th May 2015 | Photographer: Emma Russell Photography
“We completely fell in love with Ballymagarvey Village when we first saw it. It is a really special place from the manor house to the banquet hall. It’s your own private hideaway for the day. The staff are exceptional, along with them and the venue really helped to make our wedding day. The decoration in the banquet hall was perfect, the cherry blossoms and twinkling fairy lights gave the room a very romantic feel.”
Check out all the photos from Sinead & Shane’s modern minty day here
A DIY Bride’s Dream Day at Tinakilly Country House
The venue: Tinakilly Country House Hotel, Wicklow | The couple: Maria & Sean Farmar
Wedding date: 4th April 2015 | Photographer: Tomasz Kornas Photography
“We both loved Tinakilly’s vintage style and old world charm. It has big open fire places, chandeliers and is adorned with fresh flowers and lit candles – what’s not to love?! The stunning sea views, fab pavillion and manicured gardens made it the venue of choice for us. Our guests could not get over the venue and the food.”
See all the details from this stunning DIY day here
Gail & Yan’s Big Greek/Irish Wedding at Glasson House
The venue: Glasson Lakehouse, Westmeath | The couple: Gail Kearney & Yan Mila
Wedding date: 7th August 2014 | Photographer: Tanya Colclough, Eden Photography
“Glasson Lakehouse is surrounded by beautiful views of lakes, forests and greenery. It has true Irish charm. We had heard great things about the food and it was perfect for all our London and Greek travellers.”
Find out how this gorgeous Greek/Irish wedding in Glasson went here
The venue: Carton House, Maynooth, Co. Kildare | The couple: Niamh Ryan & Sean Brady
Wedding date: 12th September 2014 | Photographer: Michelle Prunty Photography
“How lucky are we to have such a stunning venue as Carton House on our doorstep?! With gorgeous grounds too to invite and treat our guests! We were blessed with Carton House as it is local for all our family and friends, so the day was more like a party and there was less stress for travelling. The staff too are just amazing and the treatment we got was just fantastic.”
See the full wedding here
