London has no closed season for weddings, but the months are far from alike. Daylight runs from about sixteen and a half hours in June to under eight in December, and the average daily high from 24 degrees in July to 8 in January. Some of the city’s best-known wedding rooms follow the calendar too: a marquee that stands for seven weeks, a conservatory that opens only from April to September, a glasshouse that works in midwinter. This guide goes through the year with Met Office averages and the facts our listed venues publish, so you can weigh a month on evidence. For the money, read what a London wedding venue costs.
The year in figures
These are the Met Office averages for 1991 to 2020 at Heathrow, on the western edge of the city, with the length of daylight on the 15th of each month. Treat them as a guide to the pattern rather than a forecast for a particular garden.
| Month | Average high | Average low | Rainfall | Days with 1 mm or more | Sunshine | Daylight on the 15th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 8.4°C | 2.7°C | 59 mm | 11.5 | 61 hours | 8h 22m |
| February | 9.0°C | 2.7°C | 45 mm | 9.5 | 79 hours | 10h 01m |
| March | 11.7°C | 4.1°C | 39 mm | 8.5 | 124 hours | 11h 50m |
| April | 15.0°C | 6.0°C | 42 mm | 8.8 | 177 hours | 13h 52m |
| May | 18.4°C | 9.1°C | 46 mm | 8.0 | 207 hours | 15h 37m |
| June | 21.6°C | 12.0°C | 47 mm | 8.3 | 208 hours | 16h 36m |
| July | 23.9°C | 14.2°C | 46 mm | 7.9 | 218 hours | 16h 10m |
| August | 23.4°C | 14.1°C | 53 mm | 8.4 | 202 hours | 14h 37m |
| September | 20.2°C | 11.6°C | 50 mm | 7.9 | 157 hours | 12h 40m |
| October | 15.8°C | 8.8°C | 65 mm | 10.8 | 115 hours | 10h 43m |
| November | 11.5°C | 5.3°C | 67 mm | 11.2 | 71 hours | 8h 53m |
| December | 8.8°C | 3.1°C | 57 mm | 10.8 | 55 hours | 7h 52m |
Two things stand out. London is drier than its reputation: the year brings 615 mm in all, and the driest month, March, has 39 mm. And the gap between months is mostly about warmth and light, not rain. From May to September a month has about eight days with measurable rain, while October to January has between ten and twelve.
March to May: gardens, and a plan for a cool day
Spring warms quickly. The average high is 11.7°C in March, 15.0°C in April and 18.4°C in May, and sunshine climbs from 124 hours to 207. By mid April the day is nearly fourteen hours long, so an evening reception has real daylight at the start.
Spring is the season for venues with gardens, as long as the ceremony has a fallback. The Goring in Belgravia offers its private garden for ceremonies in season, with its private rooms as the alternative. The Lansdowne Club in Mayfair solves the problem differently: its landscaped Courtyard has a retractable roof, and the record describes it as taking an outdoor ceremony in any season, for up to 150 guests.
At Syon Park in west London, the Great Conservatory is an evening venue and is open for weddings from April to September, once the gardens have closed to visitors at five o’clock. April is therefore the first month in which it is available.
June to August: long evenings and the marquee season
Summer in London means warmth and very long days. The average high reaches 21.6°C in June and 23.9°C in July, sunshine peaks at 218 hours in July, and on the 15th of June the sun is up for more than sixteen and a half hours. A late dinner outdoors is realistic. Even so, the average is about eight rainy days a month, so a covered plan is not optional.
This is when the city’s temporary summer spaces appear. At Gray’s Inn in central London, a marquee stands in The Walks, the Inn’s five-acre private garden, for seven weeks in June and July. The record lists it with air-cooling, a dance floor, a feature bar and a terrace, for up to 250 seated guests, from £25,000 a day at weekends from 12 noon to 11pm. The Walks are also licensed for outdoor ceremonies in the warmer months, for up to 250.
Summer is also when the date itself costs most. Syon Park records hire from £16,000 including VAT for a low-season weekday, rising toward £29,000 for a Saturday in high summer: £13,000 for the date alone. Its record also offers a marquee on Syon Woods Lawn, four open acres in the grounds.
September and October: the last of the warmth
September is warmer than May, with an average high of 20.2°C, a low of 11.6°C and 157 hours of sunshine. It has the joint fewest rainy days of the year, 7.9, matching July. The day is still more than twelve and a half hours long on the 15th.
October is a different month. The high falls to 15.8°C, rainfall rises to 65 mm and rainy days to 10.8, and the day is under eleven hours. On the 15th the sun sets at about 6.07pm, so guests arrive at a ceremony in daylight and leave it in the dark. Choose a venue where the evening is the point. Syon’s Great Conservatory closes its wedding season after September.
Autumn is also where seasonal pricing begins to show. The Goring publishes set menus for private dining from £80 a guest in its spring and summer 2026 list, and £95, £110 and £130 in its autumn and winter 2026 to 2027 list. The Corinthia in Whitehall records Ballroom hire from £5,000 with a minimum spend that varies by season, and the record for Eltham Palace says its price depends on the day and the season. Neither publishes the monthly figures, so ask for the rate on your date.
November to February: candlelight and daylight ceremonies
Winter is cold and short: the average high is 8.4°C in January and 8.8°C in December, December has 55 hours of sunshine, and the sun is up for a little under eight hours in the middle of the month, setting at about 3.52pm. Rain falls on ten to twelve days a month from November to January.
The answer is a venue that makes the room the setting. The Hurlingham Club in Fulham holds ceremonies in Palm Court, a glasshouse beneath a barrel-vaulted dome, so they take place in daylight even in winter, for up to 280 guests; at night the same glass roof lights dinner and dancing. The May Fair has an open-air courtyard terrace that is fully heated and opens directly from its Private Dining Room.
Some venues now price for the quieter months. Shangri-La The Shard publishes a limited-time Winter Weddings offer: a minimum spend of £20,000 on food and beverage for up to 100 guests, for dates from October 2026 to January 2027, subject to its terms and availability.
Questions couples ask
Which month is driest?
March, with 39 mm, but it is also one of the coolest. Among the warmer months, July has 46 mm and 7.9 rainy days, and September has the same number of rainy days.
Which month is cheapest?
The records do not say. Venues that price by season, such as Syon Park, show the difference between low season and high summer, but few publish a rate for each month. Ask for the figure on your date, and for a weekday as well as a weekend.
Can we marry outdoors in London?
At venues that have a licensed or designated space, yes, in the warmer months, and at a few in any season. Check the licence for the garden itself, not only the building, and ask what happens on the day if it rains. Browse all London venues, read the London wedding guide, and see which hotels and houses can be taken for exclusive use or where guests can stay.
Updated 31 October 2026
