5 Outdoor Wedding Venues in Southampton
An outdoor wedding in Southampton is a memorable and unique way to tie the knot. Southampton, with its beautiful parks, historic gardens, and coastal views, provides the perfect setting for a picturesque outdoor wedding. Plus, being so close to the New Forest provides ample opportunities for a stunning outdoor wedding.
We’ve found some of the best outdoor wedding venues in Southampton to help you choose your ideal spot. Don’t forget to explore our Southampton wedding car hire so you can arrive at your venue in style.
Best Southampton Outdoor Wedding Venues
These are the five best outdoor wedding venues in Southampton.
Morgan’s Yard
Capacity: Up to 250
Morgan’s Yard is a charming outdoor wedding venue located in Barley, Southampton. It’s exclusively an outdoor venue (with space for a teepee or marquee, of course!). It is only available to hire during July and August, so it’s worth booking in advance if you can.
Image from Morgan Yard’s Facebook
They have space for up to 250 guests and, like many outdoor venues, it’s very easy to customise the space to suit your style or theme. It includes full weekend access, rather than just the day. So you and your guests can camp out in the neighbouring fields and don’t have to worry about anyone needing to drive home in the dark!
Morgan’s Yard is only suitable as a reception venue - they’re not licensed for ceremonies. However, there are nearby churches and Southampton’s registry office, where you can officiate your wedding before a short drive to the reception venue.
They don’t have a website, but you can find them on Hitched, BrideBook or their social media.
Wedding car pairing: Arrive in timeless style with this 1927 Chevrolet available to hire in Southampton. The pop of red combined with the cream make this car a fantastic pairing for any outdoor wedding. It feels fun and carefree - all without losing its sense of classic style.
Wickham Estate
Capacity: up to 85 guests
The Wickham Estate is located just a 30 minute drive from Southampton centre in Shedfield. It’s a licensed venue, so you can have your ceremony outdoors as well as your reception.
Image from the Wickham Estate
The venue is a stunning vineyard with inside and outside areas, but their Gazebo is the ideal outdoor venue. It’s charming, rustic and beautiful.
If you would prefer to have your venue indoors, the Vine Room is a nice compromise. It has huge windows that overlook the gardens, giving it an outdoorsy feel without having to worry about the weather not holding up.
Find out more: The Wickham Estate
Wedding car pairing: Such a stunning venue deserves a stunning car. You’ll feel like royalty pulling up to the Wickham Estate in this 1965 Rolls-Royce Limousine. In fact, it’s the same model car that Prince William and Kate Middleton had at their wedding in 2011.
Exbury Gardens and Steam Railway
The Exbury Gardens & Steam Railway is located in the New Forest, a 30 minute drive from Southampton city centre. They showcase some stunning gardens and have a steam train that you can ride on your wedding day.
Photo from Carrie Bugg Photography
They are licensed for civil ceremonies in the gardens. So your guests can ride the steam train to the outdoor venue (while you arrive in a chauffeured golf buggy!) and experience a stunning outdoor wedding ceremony.
After, you could have your reception as a picnic in the garden, accompanied by a glass of champagne.
They have limited information available online, so it’s best to contact them directly via the form at the bottom of their website to find out more.
Wedding car pairing: This Classic, open-top Morris Minor would look fabulous driving you to a wedding at Exbury Gardens. The sophisticated style, combined with appealing curvy shape, give it a beautiful balance of formal and friendly. It’s an ideal car for an outdoor venue.
Chilworth Manor
Capacity: 120 guests (ceremony)
Chilworth Manor is on Southampton’s northern edge, in the village of Chilworth. It’s just a 15 minute drive from the city centre.
Image from Chilworth Manor gallery
It’s a stunning Edwardian manor house and, importantly for an outdoor wedding, has beautiful gardens stretching over 12 acres. They are a licensed venue, but you would have your ceremony indoors, moving outside for the reception.
They have a beautiful terrace area ideal for outdoor events and you and your guests are invited to explore the conservation area or the Manor’s original boating lake - now adorned with stunning lilies.
Find out more: Chilworth Manor Hotel
Wedding car pairing: Arrive in comfort and style with this Jaguar XJ LWB. It’s a beautiful, modern and luxurious wedding car available to hire in Southampton. It looks particularly fantastic when decorated with your choice of wedding ribbons.
Pylewell Park
Capacity: 150 sit-down, or 200 in the evening
Pylewell Park is a little further from Southampton city centre than some on our list, but it’s well worth it if you’re looking for a truly luxurious outdoor wedding venue.
It’s approximately a 40 minute drive from Southampton centre but offers a unique, completely customisable experience.
This video by Sylvestris Wedding Films showcases one outdoor wedding at this venue, providing some insight into what a wedding here could look like.
What sets this venue apart is that it doesn’t have set wedding packages, but is designed to be completely customisable according to how you envisage your day. Their packages simply include exclusively booking and rooms for multiple nights, and you decide the rest!
They’re the most luxurious venue on our list and you’ll certainly get VIP treatment if you get married here.
Find out more: Pylewell Park
Wedding car pairing: You’ll be treated like a VIP if you get married at this venue, so you certainly feel like one on the drive to or from this location. A Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud I is a beautiful 1950s Rolls Royce model. You can ride not just in luxury, but in vintage style.
Rownhams House
Capacity: 120, or 150 in the evening
Rownhams House is a breath-takingly romantic venue. In fact, the house itself was built as a consequence of a scandalous romance and, over the centuries, has seen its fair share of love stories.
It’s licensed for indoor and outdoor wedding ceremonies for up to 120 guests, and offers a wedding breakfast or high tea outdoors (or indoors if you’d prefer). They have a sofa lounge, licensed vintage bar and plenty of room for a dance floor in the evening.
Find out more: Rownham House weddings
Wedding car pairing: Match the romance and history of the venue with a classic and stylish British Austin Princess Limousine available to hire in Hampshire. It’s grand and luxurious, while maintaining class. Plus, it looks fantastic with wedding ribbons.
Benefits to having an outdoor wedding
Choosing to have an outdoor wedding in Southampton is relatively uncommon. Many people don’t consider an outdoor venue, but there are a range of benefits.
Natural beauty
An outdoor wedding venue will specialise in making the most of the natural beauty of their location. It makes for a stunning environment both to enjoy your day, but also for the photographs!
Space and flexibility
Outdoor wedding venues often have more space than in their indoor venues. Plus, the space is often highly customisable according to what you want to do and have at your event. For example, the style of seating is often much easier to change and move around than at an indoor venue.
More informal
While this isn’t true of every outdoor wedding, they do present easier opportunities to create a more relaxed and informal atmosphere. You could choose to have hay bale seating, for example, or tents so people can stay overnight.
There are a range of benefits to choosing to have an outdoor wedding. Our list of outdoor venues in Southampton can help make your dream wedding a reality!
Once you’ve found your venue, don’t forget to book your wedding car hire in Southampton.