Mar Lodge Estate

(19)
£5,000 - £20,000 for Venue Hire
Up to 160
20 Bedrooms
Exclusive Use
Wedding Licence
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Limited-Time Offers & Deals

Late Availability
Last Minute Dates Available
Autumn 2025 availability
Bridebook Deal
Seasonal Offer Available
Winter weddings

Description

If you’re looking for a scenic venue in Scotland to hold your wedding then Mar Lodge is the ideal venue for you! At Mar Lodge you’re spoilt for choice - you can choose between exchanging vows in the bright and airy Drawing Room or find the perfect outdoor location. Then choose to dine between the beautiful Craggan Ballroom or the elegant Dining Room - both with exquisite decor. Once dinner is over, you can head to the Stag Ballroom (where 2,500 stag antlers are exhibited, some from the Victorian era!) for some evening festivities. You and your guests are also welcome to take part in some outdoor activities. No matter what you’re searching for, Mar Lodge guarantees you an unforgettable experience.

Personal Message from the Manager

Name of Wedding Contact: Louise Kelly
Mar Lodge Estate is a unique and magical place, and we'd love to welcome you for the weekend. We offer great flexibility to create your dream wedding. As a local resident, I can offer expert local advice and put you in touch with the best regional suppliers. Mar Lodge Estate is cared for by the National Trust for Scotland, a charity dedicated to protecting Scotland’s exceptional nature, beauty and heritage. Income generated from weddings goes back into looking after this beautiful place.

Experience

Year Business Was Established
1995
No. of Weddings Hosted
More than 50
Public Liability Insurance
Yes
No. of People In Team
2

Overview of Mar Lodge Estate

Wedding Venue Type
Country House / Manor House
Wedding Venue Capacity
Dining Capacity
160
Reception Capacity
200
Wedding Venue Accommodation
No. of Bedrooms
20
Sleeps No. of People
45
Bridal Suite
Honeymoon Suite

Wedding Ceremony & Reception

Fireworks Permitted
Wedding Licence
Church Within Walking Distance
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Wedding Venue Details

Bridal Changing Facilities
Exclusive Use
On-Site Parking
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Wedding Catering

External Catering Permitted
Alcohol Licence

Cultural Specialists

Other

Pricing for Mar Lodge Estate

Venue Hire Only

Prices Start At
£5,000
Maximum Price
£20,000
Exclusive venue hire
What is included in this pricing:
Exclusive use
Non consumables (e.g. linen, lights etc.)
Day before set up available
Couple accommodation included
Guest accommodation included
Furniture included
Private room(s) included (non-exclusive use)
Wedding coordinator available on the day

Reviews for Mar Lodge Estate
(19)

Mel and Gen
Happy couple married in October
November 2024
Perfect natural setting

We are so happy we chose Mar Lodge for our wedding. It was amazing to have everyone on site through the weekend, with so many different spaces for guests to enjoy. We valued the flexibility to bring in our own suppliers and to DIY parts of the event. It's a gorgeous venue in beautiful surrounds and we loved the autumn colours.

Jo & Pete
Happy couple married in June
September 2024
The perfect Scottish Highland wedding venue

We had the perfect wedding weekend at Mar Lodge. The Mar Lodge team were incredible and so helpful every step of the way in planning the wedding and especially amazing on the weekend itself. We loved that Mar Lodge is so flexible as a wedding venue to enable you to create your own unique wedding. We absolutely loved the fact we had the whole venue for the weekend and all our friends could stay on the estate. It really felt like there were no hidden costs as the venue comes with all the furniture etc that you need and even has its own store of wedding decorations for anyone to use which was fantastic. We would definitely recommend.

Robert
Wedding: August
August 2024
A very special place

Dear Louise First and foremost, thank you very much for your superb organisation at Graham and Casey’s wedding last weekend. Mar Lodge itself is a very special place but it was your calm manner and your meticulous attention to detail which made it just extra special for both our families. The National Trust is very lucky to have you! Many thanks once again for everything - we hope to see you again soon. Yours aye Robert and Janice

Sarah
Happy couple married in May
July 2024
The perfect venue

We had our wedding here in May 2024, the venue was perfect for a small wedding party of 30, with exclusive use of the lodge from the Friday to the Monday. Everyone was blown away by the venue and surroundings. The team at the lodge were incredible, both leading up to the day and on the day, they had prompted us to think about every detail and this meant the day went so smoothly, I was suprised at how relaxed I felt. I would 100% recommend as a wedding venue.

Carol
Wedding: February
June 2024
What an incredible place!

A truly wonderful apartment in an amazing location. The service provided by Louise and her team was second to none. She was quick to respond to email queries before the visit and provided a friendly welcome as well as being on hand during the week to ensure that we had a wonderful holiday at Mar Lodge.

Gary
Wedding: February
June 2024
Welcoming and friendly staff

Amazing place and stunning location, the on site staff very friendly and made us and our dogs very welcome

Matthew & Cahir
Wedding: December
June 2024
Magical place

We absolutely love Mar Lodge - it is a very magical place, and the apartments are extremely spacious and well equipped

Katie & Thomas
Happy couple married in September
December 2023
Unbelievable weekend wedding!

Mar Lodge was the most unreal wedding venue!! It provided us with such a large multifunctional venue for a weekend full of fun - from swims in the river, running around the grounds, different function rooms for pub quizzes and brunches and dinners, to the truly iconic stag ballroom - perfect for a Scottish wedding. The lodge are SO flexible and accommodating of any suggestion or plan, and have so many brilliant suggestions themselves. There is even a beautiful little chapel for a small service, or do as we did and have the ceremony just outside the chapel! What was so important for us too was that everyone could stay somewhere, most of our guests on the estate itself. It’s also surprisingly affordable and absolutely stunning - an absolute “must view” if planning a wedding!!!

Bethany and Daniel
Happy couple married in October
December 2023
Perfect wedding venue

Everything about our wedding at the Mar Lodge was wonderful. We wanted an autumn wedding and the Mar Lodge is perfect for this - the colours around Braemar are absolutely gorgeous in October, and the Lodge itself lends itself perfectly to the season. We had a small to medium size wedding of about 55 guests, with the wedding in the Drawing Room and the reception in the Craggan room - we did not book the Stag Ballroom, which is best for a bigger party than ours. The function rooms we used were the perfect size for our party, they were big enough to fit us without feeling cavernous like some bigger venues would feel with such a party size. It was extra special having the accommodation on-site for the whole weekend, which let the families spend time together beyond the big day. The accommodation is set up as a series of self-catering apartments and you really feel like you are staying in a National Trust property, they are beautifully decorated. Louise the venue coordinator and everyone else on site were all super helpful, everything went off without a hitch - thank you again to everyone on the team! We really appreciated the Lodge's recommended suppliers list, we went as local as possible and it was super helpful as all the suppliers knew the venue and knew what would work best. We were organising from a distance down in Edinburgh so it was great to be able to trust the suppliers and the local Lodge team between our visits up north. We would wholeheartedly recommend the Lodge for a wedding - all our friends and family raved afterwards how wonderful it was. We had a beautiful day we'll never forget!

Kerry & Idwer
Happy couple married in May
August 2023
Relaxed and welcoming atmosphere

Dear Louise and the team at Mar Lodge Thank you so much for hosting us over our wedding weekend at Mar Lodge. It was such a special weekend for us, and all of the guests were blown away by Mar Lodge and the grounds. It was such a lovely relaxed and welcoming atmosphere over the whole weekend and the sun coming out at the BBQ on the Sunday was the cherry on top! Best wishes Kerry & Idwer

Location & Contact Details for Mar Lodge Estate

Wedding Venue Address
Braemar, Ballater, Aberdeenshire, AB35 5YJ, Scotland, United Kingdom
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FAQs
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Describe the best wedding that happened at Mar Lodge Estate?

Autumn weddings are stunning at Mar Lodge and we had a really special wedding here last October. The bride and her family holidayed at Mar Lodge every year since she was a child, and they were so excited to share this special place with family and friends.

What is your No. 1 wedding planning tip for couples?

We’ve got so many beautiful locations on the estate for wedding photography, so I’d suggest going out and having a recce to find your favourite spots. ‘First look’ photos are proving popular and a great way of getting all your photos out of the way before your ceremony so you can spend as much time with your friends and family as possible.

What’s your favourite personal touch you’ve seen at a wedding?

I love brides that are really into crafting – they create and add lots of wonderful personal touches on the day. We’ve got a cupboard full of bit and bobs from previous weddings which couples are welcome to use and recycle.

Describe Mar Lodge Estate in 5 adjectives

Royal Historic Countryside Scenic Flexible

Where’s the best photo spot at Mar Lodge Estate?

There are so many to choose from, but I really love where the Lui and Dee waters meet. A symbolic place for our wedding couples.

Have you had any celebrity guest or wedding at Mar Lodge Estate?

We like to treat all our couples and guests as celebrities for the weekend. Mar Lodge was of course built for royalty by the first Duke of Fife and his wife Princess Louise, Queen Victoria’s granddaughter.

What’s your favourite canapé?

It must be haggis from our local, award winner butcher. Haggis bon bon’s with a whisky dipping sauce is the perfect ‘wee taster’ for those who haven’t tried this traditional Scottish dish before... and always goes down a treat!

What’s your favourite midnight treat?

A juicy venison burger! Just don’t tell all the local deer roaming on the estate.

What is Mar Lodge Estate most unique feature?

The Stag Ballroom, a truly unique timber building displays some 2,500 stag antlers dating from the Victorian era. This spacious and flexible event space allows you to create the wedding of your dreams!

What part of your business are you most proud of?

Working in hospitality it goes without saying that we do what we do to see happy, smiling customers. And after every wedding I've had the pleasure of hosting here at Mar Lodge I've had guests tell me that it was the best wedding they've ever been at!
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