Best Wedding Locations - Southern Highlands
It’s hard not to fall for the Southern Highlands. It’s a dreamy pocket full of stunning country properties, lush gardens (some, secret gardens!) and a cooler climate. No wonder it’s a popular wedding location.
Best Wedding Locations - Southern Highlands
With reminisce of the English countryside, the Southern Highlands makes you want to rug up and sit by a fire. It feels like a world away, yet only a short drive from Sydney, Wollongong and Canberra. It has so much to offer couples who are looking to capture that dreamy wedding day vibe.
Because I really love a highlands wedding, I wanted to share with you the best wedding locations in the Southern Highlands.
Bowral
Milton Park Bowral
Bowral is the heart of the Southern Highlands. With its bustling high street and pretty tree-lined streets, it houses the majority of the wedding venues in the region. It’s a hub where you’ll find plenty of places to stay, to eat and drink, and to shop. One of my favourite venues in Bowral is The Rift Estate, it’s lovely and humble and perfect for intimate celebrations. You can catch a glimpse of Jane & Hugo’s nuptials at The Rift Estate here, photography by the wonderful Maple & June.
Southern Highlands venues are well-equipped for the chilly conditions so winter weddings are popular. Great excuse to wear faux fur! If you’re extra lucky, you might get a sprinkle of snow. Most places have a very decent indoor option for your ceremony, if the garden setting doesn’t suit the weather on your day. If chilly weather isn’t your thing, I say look at hosting your wedding in Autumn or Spring, and even Summer.
Berrima
The Stables at Bendooley Estate, Berrima. Photography: Dean Snushall
Berrima is one of the quaintest historic towns in all of NSW. It’s an absolute must to visit. Not to mention a great to stay and explore; even better, host your wedding there. If you’re after a celebration that’s got heritage and full of yesteryear charm, Berrima is it. The unquestionable Berrima wedding venue is none other than Bendooley Estate. It has two premo spots – one is the Book Barn for your reception with a lake setting for your ceremony. The other is the Stables.
Weddings in Berrima will suit any season, so it comes down to your preference of seasons. Autumn and Spring are clearly the most popular.
Wildes Meadow
Weddings in the Wilde. Photography: Jason Corroto Photo
Wildes Meadow offers a couple of amazing wedding spots, and very different. Weddings in the Wilde is exactly that. You arrive to a forest setting with little pockets of cleared-out land perfect for say, a festival style wedding. It comes complete with a magnificent open-air forest chapel as well as a cosy indoor wooden chapel. It’s pretty special. Given its beautiful nature, you want to make the most of the outdoors in this space. I would recommend hosting your wedding here in Summer or Autumn, and possibly Spring. You and your guests will really feel the cold over Winter.
The Secret Garden in Wilde Meadows is definitely a hidden delight. If it’s a garden wedding you’re into, get yourselves there ASAP. With 8 different gardens including the marque lawn, there’s plenty of creative options when hosting your secret garden wedding. Think Alice in Wonderland!
Robertson
Robertson is a gem of a village. It’s got all the things necessary for a fun-filled highlands wedding…quaint country style venues, beautiful scenery, community feel, the pub (Robertson Public House) and a highlands institution, the Robertson Pie Shop. Robertson is an entrance point to the Southern Highlands. Located at the top of Macquarie Pass, so shows off a panoramic vista of the Illawarra coastline. It has wow factor, I recommend you check it out!
OTHER SPOTS
The Rift Estate Bowral. Photography: Maple and June
There are other places around the Southern Highlands to definitely have on your radar. Places such as Moss Vale (namely, the stunning Mali Brae Farm), Bargo (Kalinya Estate), Alpine (Little Forest Country Cottages which has accommodation dotted around the property), Mittagong (Fitzroy Inn) and Sutton Forest (Montrose House).
Here I’ve jotted down what I consider Southern Highland’s best wedding venues. Take a look for yourself :)
NSW Southern Highlands
BOWRAL
The Rift Estate Bowral
Fairground Follies Bowral
Hopewood House Bowral
Milton Park Bowral
Centennial Vineyards Bowral
MOSS VALE
Mali Brae Farm Moss Vale
BERRIMA
Bendooley Estate Berrima
SUTTON FOREST
Montrose House Sutton Forest
WILDES MEADOW
Weddings in the Wilde Wildes Meadow
The Secret Garden Wildes Meadow
ROBERTSON
BARGO / ALPINE / MITTAGONG
Kalinya Estate Bargo
Fitzroy Inn Mittagong
What to do next? I say, make a weekend out of finding your wedding location. Check out the areas. Explore the venues. And no doubt, you’ll find something that’ll stop you in your tracks. Enjoy :)
Happy ‘Highlands location scouting!
JACQUA
As a celebrant, I’m a big fan of ceremonies in the Southern Highlands. They’re always a treat. If you’re planning your NSW wedding, just get in touch anytime. I’d love to help create a ceremony that is all about you!
BIO:
Jacq AKA Jacqua is a non-traditional wedding celebrant based in NSW. You’ll mostly find her around Sydney, Southern Highlands, Wollongong and the South Coast.
She marries couples who are creative, unconventional and a little quirky—lovers who want a wedding that reflects their distinct sense of style. Eloping? Getting hitched away from home? She’s happy to travel and free to roam!