What are the best wedding venues in Brighton in 2021?
Brighton is super quirky and creative, but you have to dig around to find quirky wedding venues. It has plenty of venues, but what if you’re looking for something a bit more… you? Luckily, I’ve been shooting weddings in Brighton for years, and my couples are often a little alternative, so I’ve been there and done that for you so I can give you the best recommendations for Brighton wedding venues.
Dive in and find your perfect venue for your wedding in Brighton – whether you’re into burlesque, the beach or farms, there’s a Brighton wedding venue out there for you. Some of these wedding venues are a little bit outside the city, because while Brighton’s a fab colourful place, it’s not got a plethora of venues to choose from, so you might want to look further afield. All the venues in this list are in Brighton or the outskirts of Brighton.
Fabrica Brighton
Fabrica is an old church turned art venue and sometimes wedding venue. It has gorgeous light, lots of space, and is just one room, so you’ll get to see everyone 🙂 Here’s an awesome (cat themed!) Fabrica Brighton wedding and this Duke of Yorks and Fabrica wedding (you might recognise the bride!) that I’ve photographed. We love the light this room has, and the fact that everything is in one big room so the vibe stays lively.
Details
Capacity: 130 standing/seated at tables. 110 seated theatre-style. Alcohol licence: Until 12am. Music licence: Bands and DJs
Available for weddings in December-March and June or September.
Pricing £2950 for 3 days.
Location
The Lanes, walking distance from the beach
More info
https://www.fabrica.org.uk/venue
Brighton Music Hall
Right on the seafront is Brighton Music Hall – a long, narrow venue perfect for smaller weddings, especially if you all want to spill out on to the beach in the summer. Here’s a fab Brighton Music Hall Wedding I shot. We love the fact that it’s right on the beach.
Details
The best bit – no hire fees! If you’re looking for a free wedding venue in Brighton, Brighton Music Hall is ideal. It’s right on the beach and has a heated outside terrace if it’s chilly out.
The upstairs floor seats 20 – 80 guests and 120 standing. For the ceremony they can seat up to 60 guests with a further 20 guests standing. The venue is available from 10am with a late license until 2am.
Location
On the beach in Brighton
More info
https://www.brightonmusichall.co.uk/
Oh So Social Brighton
A free wedding venue in Brighton! Oh So Social is a laid back beach bar on the seafront in Brighton right next to the giant doughnut. Hire is free, so it’s perfect for a budget Brighton wedding. It has loads of inside space and booth-style tables, as well as a heated terrace on the beach. Here’s an Oh So Social Brighton wedding I shot last October.
Details
Free hire.
Location
On Brighton beach near the pier
More info
https://www.ohsobrighton.co.uk/hire-ohso/
Secret Barn
Just outside Brighton, this is one of my favourite wedding venues in the area. It’s a barn, but it also has a glamping site, a huge outside area for tables and a bar etc, and a meadow next door for dreamy sunset photos. For Liz and Luc’s Secret Barn Sussex wedding, the sun went into full glowing mode just before dinner and speeches – so they dragged all the tables outside and did it all in the hazy sunset.
Details
The Secret Barn seats up to approximately 90 -110 guests for dinner, stands up to 150, and you are allowed up to 40 to camp. For more than 110 you will need a marquee. Petal and Feast are the sole caterers and florists.
Location
Near Steyning
More info
https://petalandfeast.co.uk/the-secret-barn
Four Oaks Farm
A bit outside of Brighton but still in Sussex is Four Oaks Farm, a piece of land owned by a couple so excited about weddings that they’ll sit in their garden at a distance and watch with grins on their faces. They have loads of land for a tipi or marquee and you can have your ceremony on the lawn outside next to the lake (which they totally don’t mind you swimming or boating in!) Here’s Al and Ruth’s Four Oaks Farm Wedding Sussex.
Details
£2250 venue hire – you’ll have to hire your own tipi or marquee.
Location
Hassocks
More info
https://www.fouroaksweddings.co.uk/
Iford Village Hall
If you’re creative and want to put your own stamp on your wedding day, go for the blank canvas of a local village hall. Iford Village Hall is just outside of Brighton and is one of my fave village hall wedding venues in Sussex: here’s a gorgeous Iford Village Hall Sussex Wedding I shot with an outdoor handfasting ceremony in the meadow just next to the hall.
Details
Iford Village Hall venue hire is £1500 for 3 days.
Location
Lewes BN7 3EJ
More info
Brighton Bandstand
The famous iconic Brighton Bandstand! It doesn’t get cooler for a wedding setting. You’re right on the beach, with views of the pier, and it’s covered so if it rains a little bit you’ll stay dry. You’re surrounded by fab venues for the afterparty too.
Details
Between April and September, The Bandstand is available to hire for weddings and ceremonies. Ceremonies can only take place on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday. The Bandstand Café is situated beneath the Bandstand at beach level and can also be hired privately. Hire of bandstand top deck which includes electricity and room for 80 guests (50 seated and 30 standing) £680. Hire of bandstand top deck plus one ground floor winged area £910
Location
Just beyond the West Pier in Hove
More info
https://new.brighton-hove.gov.uk/bandstand
Brighton Town Hall
Four different rooms (including a police cell!) for anything from just you two up to 120 guests. A classic place to have your ceremony, and move on to one of these other cool venues once the serious part is over!
Details
£130-£850
Location
Bartholomew Square
Hotel Du Vin Brighton
A quirky hotel right by the beach. It has private rooms for smaller weddings and a bar and terrace for a drinks reception.
Details
£3600 for 50 guests and a 3-course menu inc a supper later on. Holds up to 120 guests.
Location
Ship Street
More info
https://www.hotelduvin.com/locations/brighton/
Stanmer House
A country house in the middle of a huge park estate, with a quaint back garden that’s the sort of thing you see at National Trust houses, Stanmer is a great venue if you want a mixture of laid back country house, pub vibes, back garden and marquee. A Grade 1 country house in acres of unspoilt Sussex countryside, with ceremony rooms, reception rooms indoors or in a marquee, and a lawn for summer receptions. Here’s a Stanmer House wedding I shot.
Details
40-300 guests
Location
Just outside Brighton on the way to Lewes
More info
Pangdean Barn
I’m pretty sure Pangdean is someone’s house and land, with a barn converted into a wedding venue. It sure feels that way, with a family vibe and a homespun feel. The garden is lush and the sort of place that makes you think why can’t I live here?! And the barn is converted into a huge venue with a bar, and a separate room with sofas for quiet time. You can even legally get married outside in the garden, which is proper English country garden style stuff when the sun’s out.
Details
The Old Barn comfortably seats up to 190 people for a ceremony or for a meal. The Stable is ideal for 20 – 50 people seated (or 70 people for a ceremony). In total, for the informal part of the evening, we are able to accommodate a maximum of 300 guests. Prices are bespoke.
Location
Just outside Brighton on the South Downs
More info
Brighton Pavilion
It doesn’t get much grander than a royal palace for your wedding. There are a couple of ceremony and reception room options, plus a small outside balcony. You’re only allowed to have wedding photos at the Pavilion if you’ve booked it for your wedding, so this is worth noting if you have your heart set on wedding photos on the grounds.
Details
Ceremonies from £795; receptions from £1320
Location
In the middle of town – you can’t miss it!
Chilley Farm, Hailsham
Chilley Farm is a rustic campsite with a little farm shop and a huge field for camping in, as well as a small field next to a barn where you can hold your reception. The barn also has a concrete terrace area where you can have speeches, outdoor dining, and even your dancefloor if it’s warm out!
Details
The venue can hold up to 80 seated guests, and up to 200 standing guests, with the potential for more if you add a marquee.
Location
Near Hailsham in the middle of the countryside
More info
Barn Venue For Hire in East Sussex
Meeting House, University of Sussex
I’m not sure if you have to have been a student here to hold your wedding at the Meeting House, but if you can get in there, it’s so perfectly quirky and colourful.
http://www.sussex.ac.uk/chaplaincy/
Wilderness Wood, Hadlow Down
We live 7 minutes from the venue so it’s officially our local, and we’re just in love with it. We went to their Christmas fair this winter and fell in love with it even more. It’s got woods, an outdoor kitchen area, rustic outdoor seating for very small groups, a large marquee for big weddings, a legal wedding ceremony treehouse in the woods with a clearing for chairs, which doubles up as a stage for a band later on in the evening, for dancing in the moonlight surrounded by fairy lights.
You can also camp at Wilderness in the field (there’s a cottage for the bridal party), and go for a head-clearing walk the next day around the Christmas tree farm and woodland. There’s even a zipline and giant swing. It’s got everything. Also you can spend your free weekends there at the cafe, and wandering the woods – so you can relive your wedding memories.
If you’re looking for a woodland wedding venue where you can get legally married and stay overnight, Wilderness Wood in Sussex is the one. Here’s a hippy Wilderness Wood wedding I shot.
Here’s some more info on Wilderness Wood.
Location
Hadlow Down, East Sussex
Blackstock Country Estate
Blackstock is a cosy barn with two lots of outdoor space – one a cosy courtyard and the other a cosy courtyard leading onto acres of land, complete with animals! They’ll even drive you around in a buggy if you don’t fancy walking down to the ponds for photos. Plus there’s a rose garden, two barns, a getting ready room with the best light (ok that’s just exciting for me) and the nicest people running the place.
Here’s Maria and Kevin’s Blackstock Country Estate wedding we shot in 2019.
Details
The venue can accommodate 150 day guests and 250 evening guests and both barns are licensed to hold civil ceremonies.
Location
Hellingly BN27 4HF
Iford Village Hall
The village hall is a fab blank canvas with its own kitchen, meadows and woodland surrounding the hall (great for photos!) You can have a non-legal ceremony here under the big tree, or do the legal stuff at Brighton Town Hall and get a bit of city and countryside all in one day.
Here’s an Iford Village Hall wedding I shot.
Details
Iford Village Hall venue hire is £1500 for 3 days.
Read more about Iford village hall.
Location
Lewes BN7 3EJ
Buxted Park
Buxted Park is a super fancy mansion in the middle of a beautiful park. We haven’t shot a wedding there before, but would love to – so pop us a message if you’re getting married there! We live 10 minutes down the road, and love keeping things local.
They say: “As you drive past the 13th Century church and arrive at this Palladian mansion with its beautiful chandeliers and impressive fireplaces, you will find yourself in Sussex’s finest parkland, providing a unique backdrop for your wedding day. Relax and mingle with friends on the terrace or head for the tranquillity of the lake – a great spot for your wedding photos. In the evening, dine in the stunning Victorian Orangery or spacious Ballroom.”
Details
Prices from £80 per person or £8,000 for exclusive use.
Location
Uckfield TN22 4AY
Broyle Place
Broyle Place is a fab country house where you can get married in the garden and party in the marquee. The best thing? Your guests can glamp overnight!
Details
Prices start from £3,600.
Location
Lewes BN8 5PW
Bell in Ticehurst
The Bell is Ticehurst is one of the coolest pub wedding venues in East Sussex. They have all sorts of weird shit, it’s awesome. If you’re at all alternative you’ll love this place. Plus it has a lovely back garden and a really cool backyard den you can stay overnight in.
As Frankie and Brett (Bell in Ticehurst Wedding) say:
“We fell in love with The Bell because it isn’t your typical wedding venue. After visiting a lot of beautiful but fairly soulless places we started to feel that perhaps we didn’t fit into this whole wedding industry of frou-frou frills and clean white prettiness. Then we visited The Bell, and everything fell into place. Here was somewhere we could be us, we can be weird and loving and funny.”
Details
Venue hire starts from £1,250
Location
Wadhurst TN5 7AS
Swallows Oast
Swallows Oast is a beautiful barn in Wadhurst, with a marquee and courtyard, plus lovely fields and woods for photos – like this one! I shot a beautiful wedding at Swallows Oast years ago – in fact the bride went to school with Todd (my partner and second shooter at all weddings) and that’s how Todd found me!
Here’s a fab summer Swallows Oast wedding.
Location
Wadhurst TN5 7HE
Alfriston Gardens (formerly English Wine Centre)
The English Wine Centre has a cosy barn for the ceremony and a big marquee for the reception. The gardens are stunning – perfect English gardens – and if you time it right there are wheat fields just outside the venue for beautiful photos.
Location
Polegate BN26 5QS
Hawthbush Farm
A fave wedding venue of mine – the light, bright barn; the woodland ceremony clearing; the firepit; the hot tub in the woods; the endless fields – Hawthbush Farm run by Foxtail weddings is perfect for barn weddings.
Here’s a Hawthbush Farm wedding for you to get stuck into!
Details
Venue hire from £4,500
Location
Heathfield TN21 0JY
Secret Barn by Petal and Feast
Secret Barn is such a chilled, lovely venue. They pride themselves on not being a wedding machine – your wedding will be super special as not many people get married there. It’s got an orchard for the ceremony, a barn for dinner, a small lawn for drinks and a huge field for camping. Plus the people who run it are florists and caterers so that’s three jobs in one!
Here’s Liz and Luc’s Secret Barn wedding.
Details
The Secret Barn seats up to approximately 90 -110 guests for dinner, stands up to 150, and you are allowed up to 40 to camp. For more than 110 you will need a marquee. Petal and Feast are the sole caterers and florists.
Location
Secret! It’s near Steyning but that’s all they want you to know for now…
More info
https://petalandfeast.co.uk/the-secret-barn
Four Oaks Farm
A bit outside of Brighton but still in Sussex is Four Oaks Farm, a piece of land owned by a couple so excited about weddings that they’ll sit in their garden at a distance and watch with grins on their faces. They have loads of land for a tipi or marquee and you can have your ceremony on the lawn outside next to the lake (which they totally don’t mind you swimming or boating in!) Here’s Al and Ruth’s Four Oaks Farm Wedding Sussex.
Details
£2250 venue hire – you’ll have to hire your own tipi or marquee.
Location
Hassocks
More info
https://www.fouroaksweddings.co.uk/
Upwaltham Barns
More East Sussex venues worth checking out…
Crockstead Fields, Halland
Hendall Manor Barns
Glynde Place
Pelham House, Lewes
Yoghurt Rooms, East Grinstead
High Hurstwood Village Hall
Alciston and Selmestimon village hall
Laughton Barns
i360 Brighton
Lewes Castle, Lewes
The Shelleys, Lewes
A BIT ABOUT US
We’re Anna and Todd, a fun wedding photographer couple in Brighton. We blend in like guests and because there are two of us, you get extra photos, more guest candids, extra angles and no missed moments!
If you’re having your wedding in East Sussex then give us a shout! Or if you’re not ready to book a wedding photographer, follow us on Instagram for latest inspo: https://www.instagram.com/annapumerphotography/
