Freqently Asked Questions

How many guests can be accommodated for the Wedding Ceremony?
For a civil ceremony Castle House in the estate grounds can accommodate up to 200 guests; whilst for outdoor ceremonies the Temple of the Four Winds on the South Terrace can accomodate any number of guests.

How many guests can be accommodated for the Wedding Breakfast?
The 1680 ballroom within the house can seat up to 200. The Saloon can accomodate up to 100 guests whilst the State Dining Room is perfect of small wedding parties and can comfortably seat up to 48. A marquee on the lawn is another dining option and guest numbers for this are limitless!

We are getting married next year - will the venue hire/accommodation charges that we have been quoted remain fixed so that we can sort out ourbudget?
Yes

Are there any other costs I should know about?
The quoted per person menu prices include all of the table linen, crockery, cutlery and glassware that you will need. The venue hire includes the services of the Library Bar for 2 hours before the ceremony and the Orangery Bar from the end of the wedding breakfast until midnight. Bar service outside of these times will incur a charge.

So what does the Wedding Planning Team do?
They will help you plan your wedding by dividing the day into half hour segments and gathering all of the essential wedding day information together. They will also help you with your drinks choices and will introduce you to the catering team.

On the day then who's in charge?
Your catering team are in charge of the major events such as the drinks reecption and the wedding breakfast whilst the evening reception is under the watchful eye of our fantastic bar and events team. We also have a Help and Assistence desk in the grand staircase hall which is manned all day in case you should need someone from the house to help you.

What are the Check-in/Check-out times?
Check-in is from midday [earlier for the wedding party of we don't have a wedding or event the day before] and check out is at 10am the next morning [although again this can be much later if we don't have another wedding or event booked]

Do we need a Master of Ceremonies?
This is totally up to you! You will have a fantastic wedding day plan in place - which you should copy all of your suppliers into so that they know where they fit in - and all of the catering and evening event teams know their stuff inside out and backwards! If you feel though that you want an 'all seeing eye' or someone perhaps to hold your hand then you can employ a Master of Ceremonies. Peter Craft is our recommended one.

What sort of sound systems do you have?
There is a CD player with 2 speakers and an iPod attachment in Castle House and a state of the art music centre in the Library Bar. Your DJ or band will bring their own sound equipment for the evening reception. If you are going to use pre recorded music in the ceremony room on the day you need to run it past the registrar and make one of your ushers responsible for pressing the play button!!

Can we source our own wine and champagne for the wedding breakfast?
No, but we have a very comprehensive wine list and a series of super drinks packages

Can we take any of the bottles of wine and champagne that we haven't drunk during the wedding breakfast over to the Orangery for the evening reception?
No -but it will be packed up for you!

Can we throw confetti?
Yes, but only fresh or dried flower petals please.

We understand that the Orangery Bar closes at midnight - can we extend the party after this time?
Yes, at an additional venue hire cost of £250.

Can we have fireworks on the day?
Yes, but only up until 10 pm and through our recommended fireworks company who you can contact directly on 0800 3281953