‘Despite it not being the traditional wedding, we didn’t miss out on anything’
‘We had so many compliments from our guests’(Image: Supplied)
A West Lothian wedding venue has said they’re seeing a ‘shift in priorities’ for couples as they move towards less traditional ceremonies. Deer Park Golf and Country Club has been hosting more twilight ceremonies and reception-only celebrations.
Bosses have said this reflects couples rethinking budgets and guest lists, and structing their day around ‘moments that feel more personal’. A twilight wedding usually features a later ceremony, between 4 to 6pm, followed immediately with an evening reception.
This way, the sit-down meal is scrapped and leads to more time spent on the dancefloor with guests. Natasha McAllister, general manager at Deer Park, said she’s seeing people ‘move away from a set formula’.
She added: “We’re seeing more couples move away from the idea that their celebration has to follow a set formula.
“Twilight ceremonies allow them to concentrate on the atmosphere and the time spent celebrating with their guests, and starting later in the day often makes planning feel more relaxed and manageable while still creating a really special occasion.”
Chiara Woodhead and Paul Leven recently held their wedding at Deer Park in a twilight format and praised it for offering the perfect balance between an intimate ceremony and a larger celebration.
Newlywed Chiara said: “We decided to have a twilight wedding as we wanted to keep the ceremony intimate but also celebrate with our family and friends, so this was great and kept the costs down too.
“Despite it not being the traditional wedding, we didn’t miss out on anything such as food, speeches and first dance, and we had so many compliments from our guests as it wasn’t an extremely long day and everyone just had fun with no stress or waiting around.”
According to Deer Park, couples are drawn to a twilight wedding for the atmosphere and ‘romantic photoshoots at dusk’ The Bridebook 2026 UK Wedding Report showing couples are inviting 11 per cent fewer guests than in 2024, while one in eight did not have their legal ceremony on the day, instead choosing to separate the legal process from the celebration itself.
The same report found that only 47 per cent of weddings are now held on a Saturday, the lowest on record. Younger couples are now leaning towards midweek ceremonies, to manage costs.
Join Edinburgh Live’s Whatsapp Community here and get the latest news sent straight to your messages.
