We are taking you to the shores of Cornwall today with Cornish Tipi Weddings. A beautiful outdoor wedding venue that comes with a legal ceremony license, a woodland, a stunning lake, a marquee, glamping in awesome North American tipis, a camp site and so much more.

Located just off the coast of Port Isaac, Cornish Tipi Weddings couldn’t be the more perfect venue for a festival wedding. In fact, owner Lizzie couldn’t be the more perfect host of a festival wedding! She used to set up the tipi field at Glastonbury (lucky her) and has also worked at some of the best festivals in the UK so knows her stuff when it comes to helping you create the most amazing day. Her wedding venue has been well thought out so there is pretty much everything you need on site. What’s more, with the accommodation she offers, you and your guests can come and stay for a whole weekend meaning more time with your guests and more time to enjoy what will undoubtedly be one of the best days of your life.

Lizzie shares with us more details on her beautiful corner of the world in our Q&A below.

Enjoy….

Tell us a little bit about yourself?

I was born and brought up a couple of fields away from the venue so there’s not much I don’t know about this beautiful landscape and stretch of coast – this means I can give couples all the info they need about North Cornwall and why it’s the best place for their wedding!

If you had the chance to go to any music festival, which one would it be and why?

I was involved in running the tipi field at Glastonbury for many years as well as taking tipis to festivals like WOMAD and The Green Gathering etc. The GG is a festival I still really enjoy but Pilton is a bit too big for me now. I usually go to Cornwall’s excellent Tropical Pressure with it’s world music line up with family and friends every July, but this year as a special treat we’re taking our campervan across Europe to Bulgaria to the Meadows in the Mountains festival – music & dance in jaw dropping scenery.

Tell us a bit about Cornish Tipi Weddings and how it came to be a wedding venue?

We’ve been running a tipi campsite here for (I can’t believe it’s this long…) over 20 years now – in fact we were the first in the UK when glamping wasn’t even a thing! Then around 12 years ago couples starting asking us if they could get married here – it took a moment for the penny to drop but then I realized it would be a top spot for anyone to tie the knot.

What sort of space is available to hire for a wedding and do you have any facilities on site (toilets, power, water etc)?

Of course we’ve got everything you need to hold weddings, host parties, have great family holidays etc. We’ve got a lovely purpose built marquee on a solid wooden deck in our marquee meadow, with a rose hedge, big lawn & firepit (essential for that camping & festival vibe!) where you can eat, drink & be merry – & then dance until midnight – then wander back down the paths to your tent or tipi – perfect.

Can couples legally get married at your venue?

Absolutely – I realised really early on that there was no point just holding receptions here – lovely as they may be they can be a bit like a party – it’s the ceremony that’s at the heart of the day where the couple exchange vows & then there isn’t a dry eye in the house…Ceremonies usually happen in our wood, willow & canvas wedding pavilion in a leafy clearing next to a little stream, but if a legally binding ceremony isn’t required (the couple may already have got married abroad for example) then we hold very special ceremonies down at the lake, right next to the water – maybe with a bit of acoustic drifting across the water & the bride arriving by  boat before stepping onto the wooden pontoon…

What makes your venue that extra bit special?

We’re the closest you can get to an outdoor wedding in the UK & our freshwater lake in the heart of this secret valley is a magnet for photographers, Instagrammers & Pinners… you’ll get wedding pictures here that most couples can only dream of – oh & don’t forget to decorate your bridal boat – with bunting or ferns or swags of flowers – perfect images every time! Another crucial element to weddings here is that you & your guests can all be together & stay in our fabulous fully equipped tipis here at the venue for the whole weekend – or bring your own kit, tents & campervans & wild camp in our woods & meadow

Do you offer any additional services such as catering or a marquee?

One of our best services is probably one where we don’t do anything at all – we don’t charge corkage! You can bring all your own drinks & it won’t cost you a penny extra – or our lovely caterers will do it all for you – whichever suits you best. Our marquee is the perfect place for a foot stomping party or dreamy dancing after lovely food cooked on site – vegan, veggie or omnivores all welcome.

Tell us about your gorgeous glamping tipis and camp site?

We’ve got around 20 North American style tipis equipped with everything you might need for your stay from Turkish rugs down to the last teaspoon – all you have to bring is your bedding & airbed – & your groceries if you want to, although most wedding guests go to our fantastic seasonal café The Gastropod (@cornishgastropod) for slap up breakfasts, site grown salads, herbs & edible flowers when they’re not actually at the wedding. There’s also the choice of bringing your own kit, tents & campervans so you can wild camp in our woods & meadow. Check out our accommodation w/s: www.cornishtipiholidays.co.uk

If our readers were to book Cornish Tipi Weddings, what can they expect?

When couples first get in touch it’s probably because they’ve seen us online or had a personal recommendation and we start as we mean to go on – with a seriously personal service with dedicated wedding co-ordinators as well as other members of the team who deal with the tipi & camping bookings. No one who gets married here needs a wedding planner as we aim to do most of the work they might do – & it’s all included in the venue price! Weddings prices are based on numbers attending, but the level of service can be more for a smaller wedding than a bigger one, it all depends on the couple & what they’re looking for. We aim to source just about anything from fire jugglers to lamas – & we love a challenge, so however weird & wacky you think it might sound just go ahead & ask!

Testimonials….

The ceremony took place in a clearing in the woods. Guests sat on hay bales and sipped champagne…The band was fantastic, the company even better and we finished it off sleeping in a tipi and waking to a fantastic day of fishing and swimming in the lake.

Jon & Evey

We had an amazing day and so did all family & our friends ’best wedding ever’ is what we keep hearing, so I don’t think it could have gone any better than that! We are still buzzing from it all 🙂 Thanks to you guys for pulling out all the stops, the site and ceremony pavilion all looked absolutely gorgeous.

Rebecca

How do your couples know if Cornish Tipi Weddings is the right venue for their wedding?

That’s quite a tricky one but I think it’s usually clear when we first meet people at a venue visit; sometimes it’s just one partner, usually both, friends come along, or it can be an extended family day out with in laws, children & dogs…(only in the winter please!). Once a couple have been to see us they really understand the potential of our venue & what a wedding based on the natural beauty of woodland & lake water might feel like – and yes the possibility of rain – this is Cornwall & why we’re always so beautifully green…but don’t worry we’ve always got a Plan B up our sleeve.

What’s your best piece of advice for couples who’re trying to choose their wedding venue?

• Think about who you are & what you like doing as a couple & then contact venues that feel right for you – if your style is relaxed boho or country its likely to be a different choice than if  more formal glamour is your thing.
• Make sure you know what you want before you start visiting venues – it should save you time & energy.
• Don’t let family & friends stress you out over your venue choice – it really is your day, not theirs!
• Lastly don’t be frightened to ask the venue questions or check if they can do what you have in mind – it’s what we’re here for.

What are some of your favourite memories from previous weddings/couples you have worked with?

We have held some amazing weddings here at Cornish Tipi Weddings that I wouldn’t know where to start! Over the last 10 years we have done everything ranging from a post-ceremony musical promenade through the woods led by the Bristol School of Samba to a South American wedding complete with flock of alpacas. We’ve had a Victorian circus wedding, a floating wedding with bride & groom exchanging vows not beside but on the lake, a wedding with the most incredible vintage VDub we’ve ever had on site wedding and many many more.

Finally, what’s your quote/motto at Cornish Tipi Weddings?

Cornish Tipi Weddings – wildly romantic weddings for the outside bride

Cornish Tipi Weddings are a member of our Festival Wedding Directory. For more information on their venue and what it can offer for your wedding day, visit their listing: Cornish Tipi Weddings.

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