Festival Wedding Ideas

Planning a festival themed wedding? Well, good news! We’re here to help.

Festival weddings have become a hugely popular wedding trend over the past few years. And with good reason. Weddings can be notoriously stuffy affairs, with lots of traditional quirks that can feel a little kitsch and even sometimes a bit bizarre. Embracing a more relaxed, fun-loving attitude to wedding planning sits a lot easier with many modern couples looking to bring a fresh atmosphere to their big day.

We here at Tailored Entertainment have witnessed first-hand the festival theme’s rise in popularity. After all, no festival is complete without an incredible line-up of music, is it? The demand for festival style wedding entertainment started a few years back and shows no sign of abating any time soon – and luckily, we represent some of the UK’s best festival bands! (More on that later…)

FESTIVAL WEDDING IDEAS – HINTS AND TIPS FOR YOUR FESTIVAL THEMED WEDDING

So, for this week’s blog, we thought we’d pool together some of the very best festival wedding ideas we’ve picked up over the last few years. Cause, well, we’re just nice like that. In this article, you’ll find everything you need to make your festival wedding absolutely incredible. And if you fancy a little extra reading, maybe try this previous blog of ours interviewing the good folks at I Do Festival Weddings on their advice for planning a festival themed wedding.

For now, let’s get started with a few general hints and tips.

SET THE TONE FROM THE OFF

Whilst many of your friends and younger family members have probably attended a festival themed wedding or two, your older guests probably have no idea what to expect. So, it’s important to get the tone right from the moment you send out the invitations. Find some beautiful festival style wedding stationery like these awesome examples from wedfest – you can even print out some cool little Access All Areas passes to give it that real festival feel! And be sure to pack those invites with as much information as possible. From camping options to facilities on your festival site, make sure everything is covered from the word go.

DON’T FORGET THE FESTIVAL ESSENTIALS

Festivals aren’t always the perfect environment for fascinators and high heels. Be sure to plan ahead by giving your guests a handy checklist of festival essentials that will make sure everybody has the best time they possibly can (people are always happier and more relaxed if they know what’s happening beforehand!). This could include helpful festival tips like packing an extra layer for the evening, advice on camping essentials, and footwear that’s appropriate for your chosen venue. And if you’re hiring portaloos, it might be worth letting guests know in advance! (again – no one likes to be surprised!).

KEEP THE CEREMONY RELAXED AND INFORMAL

If you’re planning a festival themed wedding reception, it makes sense for the wedding ceremony to follow suit in terms of tone. Relaxed, slightly less formal wedding ceremonies can be just as intimate and, if anything, even more personal than a traditional wedding ceremony. Your wedding venue is going to make a huge difference to how effectively this pays off – licensed barn venues and quirky country houses lend themselves perfectly to relaxed wedding ceremonies. You could introduce a little festival flavour by using hay bales for seating, dressing the venue in wildflowers, and booking some wedding reception music to sing you down the aisle.

CHOOSE A VENUE THAT SUITS YOUR THEME

With festival-style weddings being such a big thing in the UK right now, there’s loads of brilliant venues out there to choose from. But it’s a big old choice, isn’t it? This is going to be your Glastonbury, for crying out loud! For us here at Tailored Entertainment, there are three distinct kinds of places that really work for a festival themed wedding venue. Here’s a little round-up of each, with a venue recommendation thrown in for good measure.

Tents & Tipis – Camp Katur

For the classic festival themed wedding aesthetic, you need a venue big enough to accommodate large tents and tipis. Modern tents and tipis are remarkably beautiful places to get married and are suitable in almost all-weather conditions. What’s more, you’re starting with a ‘literal’ blank canvas, meaning you can really make the space your own.

Camp Katur was listed in our favourite Yorkshire wedding venues and is a perfect example of a tent & tipis wedding venue that gets the festival themed wedding venue spot on. Camp Katur is a pristinely kept nature escape that can cater to weddings of absolutely any and all shapes and sizes. There’s also a whole host of accommodation onsite including pretty little camping pods to the ‘Romeo & Juliet’ inspired bridal lodge.

Quirky, Rustic Barns – Pentney Abbey

The joy of planning a festival themed wedding in one of the many incredible rustic barn venues in the UK is – often times – the internal wedding planning service can take care of a lot of the logistics on your behalf, leaving you to just relax and enjoy yourself. They also lend themselves brilliantly to the style and feel of a sun-drenched, festival themed wedding.

Pentney Abbey out in Norfolk featured in our recent blog listing 20 unique UK wedding venues. It boasts all the same advantages of barn wedding venues that you’ll see anywhere in the country – great all-in-one wedding packages, a beautiful rural location, onsite accommodation…but it’s real USP is the buildings themselves. The ceremony venue is set up in an imposing 13th-century medieval gatehouse with beautiful stonework and surrounds. You can really feel the weight of history in this place.

Pub Venues – The Perch, Binsey

Here at Tailored Entertainment, we absolutely LOVE a pub wedding venue. And they happen to suit themselves brilliantly to a festival themed wedding. Think about it – the beer is on tap, and if you find the right place you can treat your guests to a pretty spectacular wedding breakfast!

If you’re using a pub wedding venue as your location for a festival style wedding, make sure it’s got plenty of space to accommodate the festival itself. You want somewhere like The Perch in Oxfordshire. An absolutely SUPERB riverside pub with stunning food and a massive outdoor space, perfect for hosting your festival wedding.

THINK ‘FESTIVAL’ WITH YOUR CATERERS

Music is, of course, the centerpiece of any festival (don’t worry, we’re getting there!) but any good festival is only as good as the food on offer. It’s important to get your festival style wedding caterer bang on the money to make sure your theme feels truly authentic. Choose a caterer that puts emphasis on local, seasonal ingredients. Food trucks are a great way to bring a taste of the festival to your wedding day – and these days the street food style wedding food on offer from a myriad of caterers is as good as any you’re likely to find from a traditional three-course wedding breakfast. Check out someone like Jalopy Pizza, serving gourmet pizza from a Peugeot J7 van.

EMBRACE AN ECO-FRIENDLY ETHOS

Eco-friendly weddings are becoming more and more popular in the UK right now. It’s high time too – the average wedding has a pretty staggering carbon footprint in and of itself. The rustic, relaxed feel of a festival themed wedding makes it easier than ever to plan your wedding with sustainability in mind at every step of the way – especially if you’re tying the knot in a stunning countryside or woodland setting. For more on keeping your wedding as green as you can, check out our super helpful blog on eco-friendly wedding ideas.

IT’S ALL ABOUT THE MUSIC

A festival isn’t a festival without music. The success of your festival themed wedding will stand on the quality of the wedding band you book to entertain your guests. Luckily, we represent some of the very best festival style wedding bands and entertainment you’re likely to find. Here’s a few ideas from us on how to pack your wedding day with music and give it a genuine festival feel.

THE WEDDING CEREMONY – SOLOIST – LUCY

Start your festival themed wedding off as you mean to go on by featuring live music during your wedding ceremony! A solo singer/guitarist is a great way to do this – they’re soulful, subtle, and great at creating the gorgeously romantic atmosphere you’re looking for. Someone like Lucy would be absolutely perfect – a peerless soloist with a beautiful voice and fantastic setlist to match.

THE DRINKS RECEPTION – ROAMING BAND – THE ROAMING TONES

The drinks reception is a tricky stretch of time to get right. Whilst you’re off getting your photos taken, you can make sure your guests stay thoroughly entertainment by booking a roaming acoustic wedding band. These totally unplugged, high energy bands wander around your wedding venue playing tunes directly to your guests. The Roaming Tones are one of the best in the UK – you’re guests are bound to absolutely love them!

THE MAIN EVENT – FESTIVAL-STYLE BAND – FESTIVAL NIGHTS

Think of your evening entertainment as your festival headliner. You want a band that can match those levels of expectations. Festival-style wedding bands have become an incredibly popular booking for weddings of all different styles, but they’re truly at home on the stage of a festival themed wedding.

Festival Nights are the UK’s most popular festival-style wedding band, with bookings across the continent. From their acoustic-driven opening set to their brilliant indie-rock finale, they’re the perfect addition to your festival wedding!

So there you have it! If you’re still not feeling fully equipped to get to grips with your festival themed wedding, you can give our team a call and chat a bit further. We’d love to hear from you!