Why Choose the French Riviera for your big day
One of the most significant moments in your life as a couple, planning your wedding is also one of the most exciting. A day to bring together your friends and family to celebrate your love for one another, with its glorious sunshine, picture-perfect scenery and wide range of venues available for hire, the French Riviera will be the perfect backdrop to your wedding ceremony.
Whether you live locally and want to celebrate your big day in your neighbourhood or you’re planning a destination wedding and are flying your guests to the sunny South of France for a few days, the French Riviera has wedding venue options to suit all tastes and budgets ranging from restaurants and villas to traditional stone bastides or even a Medieval castle set in its own grounds
Easily accessible by car, train or plane, while you do need to be a resident to get legally married in France, lots of couples choose to have a civil wedding in their home town and then hold a second ceremony on the Riviera. By hiring a wedding venue with accommodation, you could also hold a rehearsal dinner and/or a post-wedding party to turn your destination wedding into a fun getaway for you and your guests.
Tips before booking your venue
To help you choose a wedding space on the Riviera, we have a few tips you might want to consider before booking your venue:
- To ensure everything runs smoothly on your big day, we recommend that you take a step back from the planning and work with a local wedding planner. Bringing a wealth of inside knowledge to the table, a wedding planner can not only recommend and liaise with suppliers, they can also oversee the set-up at your wedding venue leaving you free to enjoy the day with your loved ones.
- Before renting a venue it’s important to consider the way you want the day to unfold. We suggest booking a venue with separate indoor and outdoor spaces for the ceremony, reception and wedding dinner to make sure your guests have plenty of room to mingle.
- We also recommend hiring a wedding venue with inside space so you can keep the party going after the 22h noise curfew or on the off chance that you pick one of the Riviera’s rare rainy days for your ceremony.
- With over 300 days of sunshine every year, choosing a wedding venue in the South of France means you don’t have to stick to the summer months for your big day. A year-round destination, why not take advantage of the Riviera’s warm Mediterranean climate and hold your ceremony a little earlier or later in the season to enjoy a larger choice of venues and more advantageous rental rates at your chosen space.
Finding the Perfect Venue:
When it comes to finding your perfect wedding venue, the French Riviera has a fantastic selection of spaces to choose from. Whether you’re dreaming of a boho chic beach wedding, an evening ceremony in a private villa overlooking the Mediterranean or a huge white wedding in the grounds of a fairytale castle, the options are endless.
To help you make your decision, we’ve put together a shortlist of some of our favourite wedding spaces currently available to rent across the Riviera.
Villa With Beach Access
This beautiful beach villa in exclusive Cap d’Antibes is the ideal venue for an unforgettable outdoor wedding. Set on the waterfront with direct beach access, privatise the entire villa to enjoy an evening in paradise with your closest family and friends. Featuring a living space of 140m², the villa has 4 bedrooms which can be used by the wedding party, plus a large open-plan lounge which opens directly onto the terrace. With space to welcome up to 150 guests, hold your open-air ceremony on the upper terrace then enjoy cocktails around the pool or down on the private beach before dancing the night away against the fabulous backdrop of the Mediterranean.
18th Century Mas
Set in front of an 18th Century Mas in the pretty village of Mougins, La Terrace du Mas is a sensational space to rent for your Riviera wedding ceremony. Tucked away behind large metal gates, a private road winds up to the 300m² property which has several different areas for socialising and entertaining during the evening including a large terrace in front of the Mas. The centrepiece of the venue is a huge infinity swimming pool which features a magnificent modern sculpture plus a poolside lounge area surrounded by mountains, a truly romantic setting to your big day .
Oriental Villa
A magical wedding venue for hire in Juan les Pins, this magnificent Oriental villa is set in a 1200m² tropical garden overlooking the Mediterranean. Built in the early 1920’s, the El Djézaïr Neo-Moorish villa was listed as a national historic landmark by the French Government in 1999 and features a beautiful bar and restaurant with multiple outdoor lounge spaces for your guests to enjoy. With capacity for up to 500 people, the villa has a covered and heated pergola for your ceremony and is fully equipped with a sound system and air-conditioning for the hot summer months on the Riviera. Just 20 minutes away from the Nice Côte d’Azur airport, the villa offers limited valet parking onsite with a large public carpark just a few metres away.
Chateau Saint Georges
A fairytale castle set high in hills above Grasse, take your wedding ceremony to the next level by renting the Chateau Saint Georges for your big day. Built by a famous French perfumer at the end of the 19th century, the chateau has accommodation for up to 40 guests with outside space of over 600m² including a large pool and a private boules court. Offering a full range of services including spa and beauty treatments, the chateau is equipped with a full sound system and can also provide you with a DJ and a wedding organiser who will be onhand to oversee everything on the day so all you have to do is enjoy the magnificent views of the Mediterranean with your family and friends.
Modern Villa In The Hills
Tucked away in the hills around Cannes, this stylish villa is available to hire for a romantic wedding ceremony on the Riviera. At 450m² and with 6 bedrooms for use by the bridal party, the villa has capacity for 150 guests when enjoying a full sit-down dinner and up to 400 guests for cocktails. Set in a beatifully-landscaped garden with a huge pool, the villa has multiple outdoor lounge and dining areas plus a fully-equipped kitchen for use by the caterers. Extremely experience when it comes to hosting big events, the villa can also provide a full range of services to keep your guests entertained during the day from babysitters and children entertainers for the kids to a private wine tasting session for the grown ups.
Stunning Stone House
Overlooking the foothills of the Préalpes d'Azur national park, this stunning stone house in La Penne has recently been renovated to create the ideal wedding venue. Stylish and open, why not privatise the entire house to host a romantic rustic-style wedding in the beautiful Riviera countryside. Finished in chic modern style, the property features 17 bedrooms to accommodate friends and family during your stay and is equipped with a professional kitchen for use by catering companies. Surrounded by 9 hectares of private grounds, the house opens onto two terraces of 100m² and 300m² and also has a large open-air swimming pool with views of the surrounding mountains.
Magnifique villa dans un parc national
Set in one of the most picturesque national parks in the South of France and perched high over the Mediterranean, this magnificent villa offers sweeping views of the Riviera coastline from Nice right down to Monaco. Set over 3 floors, the villa has 6 double bedrooms with accommodation for up to 14 guests, a large lounge and dining room plus a games room, private cinema room and sauna. Surrounded by 5 hectares of land, the villa has a private helipad for easy access from Nice and Monaco plus a heated seawater pool, a tennis court, soccer field, and children's play area, Surrounded by olive trees and scented with lavender from the villa’s herb garden, an aisle leads from a stunning rose garden to a stone amphitheatre with breathtaking views of the mountains, the perfect venue for your romantic outdoor wedding.
Villa In St Jean Cap Ferrat
The ideal venue for a chic ceremony, rent this elegant modern villa in St Jean Cap Ferrat to turn your wedding day into a truly unforgettable moment. Located on a private road just minutes away from the beach, the contemporary villa is set over four floors and features oversized windows with panoramic views of the Mediterranean from every room. With accommodation for up to 10 guests, the villa comes with a two-storey living area, an open-plan kitchen and a private cinema room. Sliding glass doors lead into the grounds which boast an outdoor gymnasium, rooftop infinity pool and heated outdoor swimming pool with multiple outdoor lounge and dining spaces for your reception plus private parking onsite.
If you want any more information about these spaces or you would like to rent one of them, do not hesitate to contact us.