Georgian royal residence and 100 acres of gardens at Royal Hillsborough, County Down, Northern Ireland
Hillsborough Castle is the official royal residence in Northern Ireland, a Georgian house of the 1770s with State Rooms licensed for civil ceremonies and 100 acres of gardens for marquee weddings of up to 350.
Hillsborough Castle is a Georgian house of the 1770s at the centre of Royal Hillsborough, a conservation village in County Down. It serves as the official royal residence in Northern Ireland and is cared for by Historic Royal Palaces. The State Rooms include the gold Throne Room, the State Drawing Room and the State Dining Room, with the Red Room and the Gallery alongside, and a Victorian glass Conservatory faces the gardens. Around the house lie 100 acres of lawns, borders and trees, with a Walled Garden, the Yew Tree Walk, Lady Alice's Temple and the Lake.
The castle is hired privately for a small number of weddings each year. Civil ceremonies are licensed in the Red Room and the Throne Room, and couples can also marry in the gardens. Around 120 guests can attend a ceremony and around 80 can dine in the State Rooms, while marquees on the South Lawn and West Terrace extend the day to as many as 350. Catering comes from approved caterers. There are no bedrooms on site, so guests stay in the village or in Belfast and Lisburn, about 15 minutes away.
Hillsborough Castle and Gardens
Images courtesy of Hillsborough Castle and Gardens
Hillsborough Castle is a Georgian house of the 1770s and the official royal residence in Northern Ireland. Historic Royal Palaces, the charity that also cares for the Tower of London and Hampton Court, looks after it today and opens it for a handful of weddings each year.
The Throne Room, hung with chandeliers and dressed in gold, leads through to the State Drawing Room and the State Dining Room, with the Red Room and the Gallery alongside. The rooms are licensed for civil ceremonies and set for candlelit dinners beneath the portraits.
Beyond the house lie 100 acres of lawns, borders and specimen trees. Marquees can be raised on the South Lawn or the West Terrace for up to 350 guests, so the day can be as intimate as a State Rooms dinner or as large as a garden ball.
A Georgian royal residence of the 1770s, Northern Ireland's royal residence, managed by Historic Royal Palaces.
The ResidenceThe gold Throne Room, the State Drawing Room and Dining Room and the Red Room, for the ceremony and the dinner.
The Rooms
A Walled Garden with a fountain, the Yew Tree Walk, Lady Alice's Temple and the Lake, with marquees up to 350.
The GardensAt the heart of Royal Hillsborough, about 15 minutes from Belfast and Lisburn, with accommodation nearby.
The Setting
The Throne Room, dressed in gold and lit by chandeliers, the grandest of the State Rooms, opening in an enfilade through to the State Drawing Room, for the ceremony and a candlelit wedding dinner.
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The Red Room, its crimson walls and Georgian proportions set with rows of chairs for a civil ceremony, one of the licensed rooms of a royal residence.
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The State Rooms, the Conservatory and the marquee sites in the gardens are hired privately for the wedding.
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Hillsborough Castle stands at the heart of Royal Hillsborough, a Georgian conservation village in County Down, about fifteen minutes from Belfast and Lisburn and within easy reach of Belfast's two airports. The village offers accommodation and restaurants on the doorstep, and Belfast, with its hotels and the international airport, is a short drive away, so guests from home and abroad reach a royal residence effortlessly.
Hillsborough Castle, The Square, Royal Hillsborough, County Down BT26 6AG, Northern Ireland
Lisburn (Translink NI Railways) is the nearest station, about 4.0 miles from the venue in a straight line.
Marquee sites from around £3,000 plus VAT
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It stands at the centre of Royal Hillsborough, a Georgian conservation village in County Down. Belfast and Lisburn are about 15 minutes away, and both Belfast airports are close.
A civil ceremony can welcome around 120 guests and a dinner in the State Rooms around 80. A marquee on the South Lawn can host up to 350.
Civil ceremonies are licensed in the Red Room and the gold Throne Room, and couples can also marry outdoors in the gardens.
Yes. The State Rooms, the Victorian Conservatory and the marquee sites in the gardens are set aside for the wedding. Historic Royal Palaces looks after the residence and hires it for a small number of weddings each year.
Catering is supplied by a list of approved caterers, who can prepare anything from a seated dinner in the State Rooms to a marquee banquet, with dietary and cultural requirements covered.
No. It is a working royal residence without bedrooms, so guests stay in Royal Hillsborough village or in Belfast and Lisburn, a short drive away.
The 100 acres include a Walled Garden with a central fountain and a Victorian glasshouse, the Yew Tree Walk, Lady Alice's Temple and the Lake.
Hire of the State Rooms starts from about £2,100 plus VAT, and marquee sites from around £3,000 plus VAT. Each wedding is priced individually by Historic Royal Palaces.
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