Rahinnane Castle - Wedding

Hello,

My fiancé and I are travelling to Ireland from Canada this summer and are planning to elope while there. We dream of being married at/near an ancient castle/ruins such as Rahinnane Castle. We are wondering how one would go about contacting property owners of such places in order to set a time and date for the ceremony with an officiant.

Any recommendations for similar locations are also appreciated!

Thank you in advance for all your replies!
Leandra

Hi Leandra,

That sounds so romantic ! In Ireland, you need to give at least 3 months notice to the local office. Here is a link to the legal information : 
https://www2.hse.ie/services/births-deaths-and-marriages/how-to-get-married-in-ireland/how-to-get-married-in-ireland.html
You need a venue that is a registered with that office, as far as I know it has to be a permanent structure so I doubt you could use ruins. Castlewood House in Dingle is lovely, you could get in touch with them to see if they do weddings on site.

Here is the link to the offices in Kerry, you could contact them for specific information : 
https://www2.hse.ie/services/births-deaths-and-marriages/contact-a-civil-registration-service.html#Kerry

Good luck and congratulations!

Sandra.

Hi Leandra,

What a wonderful piece of news, congratulations. Sandra has provided you with a good start there, It is always best to begin by sorting out the legality of it all.
This article goes into everything you need to know in a bit more detail.

There is also a link at the bottom of that page to some of the more popular venues, including castles. You can jump to that here. I realise with your plan to elope, they may be a little larger than you require, but certainly worth a look.

The law has actually changed in Both the UK and Ireland. So you can now get married outside, no matter where on the Island you want to do it. Your castle ruins are therefore definitely an option.

You mentioned you would like some other suggestions, have you thought about a hole-stone. These are standing stones with a hole carved through them. Traditionally there is a handfasting ceremony (ancient wedding ceremony) where you pass a ribbon through the hole and bond the hands of the couple together. Essentially binding them in spirit, earth and heavens. It is worth a thought, there are many stone circles that are popular for such ceremonies too. If you want more info on this let me know as I have locations for quite a few of them, from planning my own wedding. 

I have to ask, why Rahinnane Castle? It is a beautiful old ruin, and I totally get the aesthetic, but with it being such an obscure choice I can't help but wonder if you have some kind of connection to the castle.

Regards,
G.