MY FAVOURITE SUSSEX WEDDING VENUES
FROM GRAND COUNTRY HOUSES TO WOODLAND, CASTLE, SMALL AND UNUSUAL SUSSEX WEDDING VENUES
Looking for your perfect Sussex wedding venue? Pull up a chair.
Sussex is properly spoilt when it comes to getting married. Rolling South Downs, ancient woodland, castles, country houses and a coastline that runs all the way from Rye to Chichester.
From stately homes you can take over for the whole weekend to a brewery taproom with no seating plan, there’s a Sussex wedding venue for every kind of couple.
I’ve been photographing weddings across East and West Sussex for over 25 years, so this isn’t a list pulled off a directory. Most of the venues below are places where I’ve photographed real weddings, and I’ve linked to each one so you can see what a day there actually looks like. The rest are Sussex wedding venues I’d happily recommend to my friends.
I’ve split them into sections so you can jump straight to what suits you: country houses, outdoor venues, venues with accommodation, luxury, castles, small weddings and the brilliantly unusual. Getting married in the city? Head over to my guide to Brighton wedding venues instead.
Once you’ve picked your venue, get in touch for my wedding photography prices and get your date in the diary. Sussex weekends book up fast, but I do have a few last-minute dates, so it’s always worth asking.
My Favourite
Wedding Venues in Sussex
The 4 Best
Country House Wedding Venues in Sussex
Firle Place: French Chateau Meets English Garden Party
Home to the Gage family for over 500 years, Firle Place sits right at the foot of the South Downs, just outside Lewes.
Sophia and Jack wanted their Firle Place wedding to feel like a French chateau meets an English garden party, and the house makes that easy. Elegant rooms, sweeping parkland and soft Downland light that makes everyone look fabulous.
You can take Firle for the day or the whole weekend, with bedrooms in the house for your nearest and dearest. It is one of those Sussex wedding venues where the building does half the work for you.
Cowdray House: A Stately Home With A Stone Unicorn On The Roof
At the heart of the huge Cowdray Estate near Midhurst, this is one of the grandest Sussex wedding venues around.
I’ve photographed two weddings here and it is fancy in the best possible way. There is literally a stone unicorn perched on the roof. Arrive on Friday, have dinner with your favourite people, get married on Saturday and wave everyone off on Sunday.
Want something a bit smaller? The Walled Garden at Cowdray, set against the Cowdray Ruins, is a gorgeous, more relaxed option on the same estate.
See Mo and Nick’s Cowdray House wedding and Gini and Marc’s Cowdray wedding
Wiston House: That Stylish Country House Party Feel
Mentioned in the Domesday Book, Wiston sits in formal gardens surrounded by thousands of acres of parkland beneath the Downs near Steyning.
Emily and Dan checked in on the Friday night with an intimate dinner party, then got married the next day, which is exactly how I’d use this place.
It has a relaxed, stylish house party vibe, with the orangery and gardens giving you lots of choice whatever the weather does.
Balcombe Place: Chilled-Out, Luxe Weekend Weddings
A private, family-run country house with its own drive, landscaped gardens and views over the South Downs.
I can’t think of many places in Sussex that do the chilled-out, luxe weekend wedding better. From April to December it’s hired for two nights, so the house properly becomes yours, with bedrooms for your closest crew and plenty of room to spill out into the gardens.
More Country House Sussex Wedding Venues Worth A Look
- Goodwood House, near Chichester – the Duke of Richmond’s family home, as grand as Sussex gets.
- St Mary’s House, Bramber – a Grade I listed house with topiary gardens and a Victorian Music Room for up to 90.
- Findon Place, Findon – an elegant private house tucked into a Downland village.
The 3 Best
Outdoor Wedding Venues in Sussex
The Secret Barn: The Only Barn I’ll Make A Fuss About
Tucked down a quiet country lane near Steyning, it’s an old threshing barn on a working farm, not a done-up wedding barn.
I’m not usually a barn person, but The Secret Barn is the exception. It’s laid-back, lovely and rough around the edges, and surrounded by so much outdoor space that Alice and Ed held their whole reception outside.
If you’re dreaming of long tables in a field with the Downs as your backdrop, put this one at the top of your list.
Nymans: Romantic Ruins And Gardens
A National Trust garden at Handcross, where the house and gothic ruins frame the Loggia and Sunk Garden.
Anna and Hans held their ceremony and reception here and kept it intimate, relaxed and modern. The Italianate Loggia, with roses climbing its stone arches, is licensed for ceremonies, and the ruins make an incredible backdrop for portraits.
Bonus: you can come back and stand in the exact spot where you said your vows any time you like.
Duncton Mill: An Outdoor Festival Wedding By The Lakes
Spring-fed lakes at the foot of the Downs near Petworth, with room for a marquee or tipi.
Sarah and Andy threw a proper outdoor festival wedding here and, even with the great British weather doing its thing, it was a brilliant party.
It’s a blank canvas, so you’ll bring in your own tent and suppliers, which means you can make it completely yours.
More Outdoor Sussex Wedding Venues Worth A Look
- Two Woods Estate, Pulborough – say your vows under towering redwoods on a 42-acre woodland estate, then party in the barn and orangery.
- The Hyde Estate, Handcross – lakeside receptions in the Wild Garden of a private 850-acre estate, May to September only.
- Slaugham Place, near Haywards Heath – marry under the arches of Elizabethan moated ruins, then dance in a marquee in the water gardens.
- The Cedar Roof Barn, Isfield – a hand-built oak and cedar barn in open fields between Lewes and Uckfield, for up to 120.
- Chafford Park – technically just over the border in Kent, but too good to leave out. See Laura and Joseba’s festival wedding.
The 3 Best
Sussex Wedding Venues With Accommodation
Gravetye Manor: Built For A Bride
Richard Infield built Gravetye for his true love around 400 years ago, deep in the countryside near East Grinstead.
If you want a smaller wedding that feels utterly luxurious, Gravetye is hard to beat. Weddings are exclusive use, all 17 bedrooms are yours and the food is Michelin-starred.
Lily and Andy’s day was intimate and relaxed, with those famous gardens doing a lot of the heavy lifting in the pictures. Weddings run from August to April, so it’s a brilliant autumn or winter choice.
Pelham House: Country House Meets Private Club
A 16th-century townhouse in the middle of Lewes, 25 minutes from Brighton and an hour from London.
Anna and Tom’s wedding here had a brilliant working man’s club twist, and Pelham House rolled with it. It has the grandeur of a country house with the ease of a town venue, so guests can stay over or wander out into Lewes.
A great pick if lots of your guests are coming down from London by train.
The George In Rye: Like Stepping Back In Time
A historic coaching inn on the high street of Rye, one of the prettiest towns in Sussex.
Natasha and Dom got married in Rye and celebrated at The George, and wandering through town afterwards felt like stepping back in time. Cobbled streets, wonky old buildings and a proper inn with bedrooms upstairs, so your guests can make a weekend of it.
More Sussex Wedding Venues With Rooms
- Greentrees Estate, near Haywards Heath – a grand oak hall for up to 250, a walled garden, a lake and eight cottages for your guests.
- Buxted Park, near Uckfield – a country house hotel licensed for ceremonies in six spots, three indoors and three outside.
- Horsted Place, near Uckfield – a country house hotel that does everything from cosy library ceremonies to festival-style lawn parties.
- Amberley Castle – 19 bedrooms behind a portcullis. More on that one below.
The Best
Luxury Wedding Venues in Sussex
If you want the full five-star treatment, with spa days, room service and a team that thinks of everything, these are the Sussex wedding venues I’d look at first.
Luxury Sussex Wedding Venues To Put On Your List
- South Lodge, Lower Beeding, near Horsham – a five-star Victorian country house built in 1883, set in 93 acres of parkland with sweeping views of the South Downs. It hosts just one wedding a day, has 88 bedrooms for your guests, and the rhododendrons put on a show in spring.
- Alexander House, Turners Hill – a 17th-century manor in 120 acres of parkland, with the Utopia Spa for the morning before and the morning after. There’s an outdoor wedding gazebo in the grounds, room for around 90 at the wedding breakfast and 200 in the evening, and plenty of bedrooms so nobody has to drive home.
- LIMEKILN, near Eridge – a design-led private lodge in 60 acres of ancient woodland, from the team behind Kin House. Exclusive use, up to 200 seated, and the most stylish party you’ll go to all year.
- Gravetye Manor – Michelin-starred food and 17 bedrooms, all yours. See the full write-up above.
The 3 Best
Castle Wedding Venues in Sussex
Sussex Wedding Venues With Towers And Turrets
- Amberley Castle, near Arundel – a 900-year-old castle in the South Downs with 19 bedrooms, exclusive use for up to 56 guests, or many more with a marquee.
- Herstmonceux Castle, near Hailsham – a moated 15th-century brick castle with Elizabethan walled gardens, now welcoming weddings again after restoration.
- Lewes Castle, Lewes – a 1,000-year-old romantic ruin with panoramic views over the town and the Downs, available for outdoor ceremonies from April to October.
The Best
Small Wedding Venues in Sussex
Small Sussex Wedding Venues I Love
- Southover Grange, Lewes – Lewes Register Office lives in this 16th-century manor, with gorgeous gardens for photos afterwards. Daisy and Rhys married here before their Beak Brewery party. Check dates if you’re thinking spring 2027, as maintenance work is planned.
- Brighton Town Hall – I married here myself, so I’m biased. Read my Brighton Town Hall wedding guide.
- Brickwall House, Northiam – a Jacobean house with formal gardens near Rye, lovely for a smaller, characterful day.
- Gravetye Manor, Pelham House and The George in Rye – all three (above) are brilliant for intimate weddings too.
- Your local village hall – don’t write it off. With good flowers, great food and fairy lights, a Sussex village hall can be a total joy. More ideas in my guide to micro wedding venues.
The 3 Most
Unusual Wedding Venues in Sussex
Beak Brewery: A Wedding With No Seating Plan
If the words seating plan make your shoulders creep up round your ears, Daisy and Rhys have the answer.
They got married at Southover Grange in Lewes, then threw a relaxed party at the Beak taproom with great beer, good food and not a seating plan in sight. Friends mingled freely and nobody was stuck next to great-uncle Derek all night.
It isn’t a traditional wedding venue, so get in touch with the Beak team early to talk about private hire.
Ridge Farm: A Legendary Recording Studio Turned Wedding Venue
Right on the Sussex-Surrey border near Rusper, this 16th-century farmhouse estate was once one of the UK’s great residential recording studios. Oasis finished Be Here Now here and Muse made Origin of Symmetry.
Alison and Andrew both work in the creative industries, so a weekend wedding with genuine rock and roll credentials was a no-brainer. They said their vows in the woodland ceremony glade, and as they were pronounced married a surprise Mariachi band struck up Just Like Heaven by The Cure. Pure joy.
You hire the whole place for the weekend, with the farmhouse to stay in, camping for guests and the freedom to bring in your own caterers and drinks. Perfect for couples who want to do things their way.
More Unusual Sussex Wedding Venues
- Bolney Wine Estate, Bolney – vineyard wedding receptions with a big balcony over the vines, about 14 miles from Brighton.
I’ve photographed weddings all over Sussex for more than 25 years and I still get giddy every time I drive over the Downs.
Sussex has a wedding venue for every kind of couple, whether you’re dreaming of a weekend takeover at a country house, vows under the redwoods or a party in a brewery taproom. If you’d like a photographer who knows these Sussex wedding venues inside out, I’d love to hear about your plans.
Featured Posts
from THE BLOG
READY TO MEET YOUR
SUSSEX WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER?
Once you’ve found the venue, I’d love to help capture your big day.
As a wedding photographer who has worked at Sussex wedding venues from Rye to Midhurst, I know how to make the most of every sweeping staircase, woodland clearing and moody castle wall.
You can check out my rates and get in touch to chat about your plans on my contact page here. Let’s make some magic together!
