Beach Elopement Weddings in Scotland
Scotland has the grand Castles and the beautiful stately homes but did you know we also have some of the best beaches to elope to as well? Beaches and rolling waves make for some of the most stunning elopement backdrops with the added element of the sea breeze to create dramatic, atmospheric wedding photographs. Our best beach wedding elopement packages are combined with a Castle, the ultimate Scottish elopement combination!
Image by Margaret Soraya
Image by Otago Street Collective
Dunscaith Castle on Isle of Skye
The Isle of Skye has to be up there with one of the most picturesque, romantic places in the UK, maybe even the world! You’ll be spoiled for choice with the amount of places you can have your ceremony on Skye but the dramatic ruins of Dunscaith Castle create a stunning backdrop for a beach elopement. Just standing in the one spot you can have a backdrop over the water, with the Castle ruins and the mountains of Skye all surrounding you.
Dunnottar Castle
Dunnottar is another dramatic Castle ruin near Aberdeen that looks majestic from all angles, whether it’s from the adjacent cliff top or down on the beach. Despite having plenty of experience planning Dunnottar elopement weddings, the beautiful scenery never fails to take our breath away. Down on the beach looking out to the North Sea with the Castle on the rocky headland towering above you is the perfect beach elopement spot.
Portobello Beach
If you’re looking for a beach location closer to a city then Portobello Beach in Edinburgh is the perfect sandy seascape for you. This beach is likely to be a little more busy than the others so be prepared for plenty of congratulations from passers by! After your beach wedding you can go straight into the city to one of the many great restaurants for your wedding meal.
Luskentyre Beach on Isle of Harris
The quintessentially Scottish surroundings of rugged rocks and heather make a stunning elopement location. On Harris is Luskentyre beach with white sands and crystal clear waters surrounded by mountains. This famously beautiful beach is a spectacular setting for an elopement wedding and bound to give you some amazing memories and photographs to cherish forever.
The beauty of any outdoor wedding is that you have complete control over whatever decoration you would like. You could either bring decorations with you or you could let the scenery be the star. We’ve thought of a few creative ideas you could use to add a bit of decor to the occasion;
Create an aisle to walk down by lining shells, stones, lanterns or flowers down either side - we’ve even seen a couple create an aisle with sandcastles decorated with small shells!
Bring an arch backdrop you can put at the end of the aisle for your significant other to wait at. Add plenty of flowers and sheer, flowy fabrics that will pick up the movement of the wind and compliment the waves behind you.
Use calligraphy painted shells as name places and your wedding breakfast and sand and shell filled glass bowls as centerpieces to tie into the theme.
Go with a beachy water theme for your wedding stationary!
Source Sea Breeze scented candles with personalised labels and have them as table decorations and favours for your guests.
Beach Wedding Essentials List
Some beaches are great to kick off your shoes and feel the sand between your toes like Luskentyre or Portobello, but other Scottish beaches can be fairly rock like, such as the one at Dunnottar Castle so make sure you have a sensible shoe option packed with you!
Scotland as you probably know is famous for going through about four different weather systems in the space of one day so you’re never 100% sure what you’re going to get - it’s all part of the fun! We’d recommend having some umbrellas handy for your guests and yourselves and during the summer months you may also want to add some SPF, we can do sunny too!
In Scotland we do get midges that can give you itchy bites and if you’re on the beach there’s also the possibility of sand flies. These can be combated with a spray of some Jungle Formula insect repellent on yourself to prevent bites or sticky patches you can apply under sleeves or inside clothing that prevent the midges coming near you. This is all available on the internet or in supermarkets and chemists and is up there with the essentials we would recommend.
If you’re really throwing yourself into the beach elopement spirit you might want to go for some photographs in the water but- remember and bring a couple of towels to dry your feet or just use to wipe sand off.
Image by Margaret Soraya