Frequently Asked Questions

 

Our sail structure is the most romantic spot to say ‘I do’! It boasts panoramic views overlooking the Solent and Isle of Wight. Three beautiful pieces of sail cloth overlap each other to create a soft canopy which can seat 150 guests underneath. Located out on the balustrade and in place from April to September (weather dependent), it is waterproof and also great for those boiling summer days providing some cool shade.

During the winter months, the Drawing Room provides an exquisite space for your wedding ceremony. This is a cosy winter option and is also our wet weather option for summer weddings. This timelessly elegant space is licensed for 130 guests and is available on request for summer weddings too. Our dining room is adjacent and licensed for an additional 50 so can assist with any overflow guests or younger children. 

You’re also welcome to get married in church too. We have a lovely Church at the end of the driveway but please contact the events team and we would be delighted to send across our local recommended churches with further information. 

You will need to contact Hampshire Registrars (if you wish to get married here at Pylewell) to ensure that they are available for your wedding ceremony. You can book your registrar up to 2 years in advance of the wedding date. Slots are available from 11am-5:00pm but we recommend that the ideal time for a ceremony is between 12:30-2:00pm so that you have plenty of time to get ready. Should you plan for an earlier ceremony, please be advised that you may need to consider dining options for your guests as it can be a very long day! Contact details for Hampshire Registrars are as follows:

Hampshire registrars
01329316154
[email protected]

We love that you and your guests have exclusive use of the house, grounds and pavilion for your wedding day – no worrying about bumping into strangers keeping your day super intimate with your nearest and dearest only. You and your suppliers can check into the pavilion from 11am the day before to begin set up, allowing you to go to bed stress free the night before the big day. You and your guests can check into the house at 3pm and it will be exclusively yours for the hire period stated in your contract.

You are very welcome to have music playing during parts of your ceremony. We have a PA system which can be linked to your phone via Bluetooth should you wish to play set tracks whilst walking down the aisle, signing the register and leaving your ceremony. Alternatively, you can also have live music; from string trios to jazz bands, to live singers.

Our outdoor Sail Structure is water proof and the gazebo attached has clear roll down sides. As British weather is deeply unreliable, we aim to make the call on an outdoor or indoor ceremony the morning of the wedding. Rest assured, our indoor wet weather option in the drawing room is a lovely wet weather option.

Yes, we can assist with disabled access to both ceremony spaces and the pavilion. We would ask that you notify us prior to the wedding day about any guests who may need disabled access to give us time to organise entry to the ceremony spaces to allow for easy, smooth access. Unfortunately, the house bedrooms are not suitable for wheelchairs due to the age and grade listing of the property.

We love that no two weddings ever look the same and whatever your style colour palette or vibe- Pylewell is the perfect blank canvas. Both of our ceremony options are utterly gorgeous without styling, however you are very welcome to hire florist or stylists to help you add a personal touch to your ceremony space.

You or your stylist are welcome to provide an aisle runner for your outdoor ceremonyat Pylewell. We ask that you ensure the runner is safely pinned into the ground toavoid trip hazards. The aisle underneath the sail structure is 1400cm length x 175cmwide. 

We advise that you purchase your own alcohol for your wedding day. We often work with Solent Cellar or Majestic in Lymington who can both offer sale on return. Either caterers are delighted to help advise on the alcohol quantities. We have a fridge in the pavilion that can hold up to 200 bottles. The caterers will chill and serve all your drinks for you throughout the day. We charge a small corkage fee per person, not per bottle to all adult guests attending the wedding breakfast and an additional £7 for evening guests. We do not permit external bar companies but you are welcome to provide a donation box or discuss a cash bar with your caterers for evening drinks.

Rather than set catering packages, we work with two brilliant caterers, Kalm Kitchen and The Little Kitchen Company, and we would ask you to use one of them for your wedding breakfast and any catering on the Friday evening. They can offer a wide array of options and offerings; from hog roast, buffet, BBQ, bowl food, canapes, sit down meal or sharing platters etc. All our caterers would be delighted to chat to you about your requirements and put together an initial proposal that outlines menu options, staffing cutlery, crockery and drinks service to ensure that you are comfortable with their costings. We have small local list of evening food suppliers which can provide amore informal offering for late dining. There is an additional fee for bringing in an external evening food van. 

All bedrooms are taken on a B&B basis at Pylewell. We will provide a plentiful breakfast buffet with one hot dish. All allergens must be discussed with the events team prior to arrival to ensure we can cater for all requirements.

We have 2 highchairs which you are welcome to us during breakfast here at Pylewell or for the wedding breakfast in the pavilion.

If you are staying with us for two nights, you have the option to make use of the house for your Friday night dining. You have a wide array of options; from using your main wedding caterer, or one of our local freelance chefs. For something more casual you are welcome to get a takeaway or a swanky drop-off hamper from Forest Foodie. Alternatively, we are happy to give you a list of lovely local pubs and restaurants. Please note there is no self catering option. 

We have a fab list of local and preferred supplier list for anything else you may need, eg florists, photographers, stylists, cars and cakes! However, you are very welcome to source your own suppliers or provide items yourselves.

Yes – we require a full, complete list of your chosen suppliers three months prior to the wedding along with their contact details. We will then get in touch with all of your suppliers to ask for their insurance documents and timings for the day.

We are delighted to welcome you back with suppliers, friends or family for up to two visits ahead of your big day.

Our events team are utterly obsessed with weddings and love being a part of our couples celebrations. One member from the events team will be allocated to each wedding as an event manager to take the stress away from you on the day. We like our couples to meet with their allocated event manager the day before the wedding to have one final run through of timings.

Pylewell has 13 bedrooms in total. 10 bedrooms all with en-suites can be found on the first floor, and a further three bedrooms in a self-contained apartment in the penthouse. Check into the house is from 3pm.

The team at Pylewell love dogs, so we fully embrace the idea of your fur-baby being a part of your wedding day. We allow well behaved dogs who belong to the bridal party to visit Pylewell. A maximum of 2 dogs can sleepover in the penthouse (at an additional cost) but must be accompanied by a responsible adult at all times. Sadly, dogs are not allowed into the main part of the house unless being included in wedding day photography. The Pylewell events team can recommend some lovely, local dog sitters to look after your dogs throughout your stay at Pylewell.

We can accommodate a maximum of 5 children staying with us in the house at Pylewell. We have two bedrooms called ‘Emma’ and ‘Hermione’ on the first floor that are child friendly, along with the penthouse rooms. Both cots and Z-beds can be set up for your arrival and provided to you at a small additional cost. Please note that we can only accommodate a maximum of 2 children in each child-friendly rooms. Z-beds are suitable for children only, and we do not allow adults to stay on a Z-bed.

Whilst we are able to provide disabled access to the ceremony space and pavilion, we unfortunately do not have disabled access to any of the bedrooms in the house due to the nature of the old property.

We would kindly ask that you check out of the pavilion by 10am and the house by 11am on the day of your departure.

To preserve the character of the house and for security purposes it is strictly house guests only who can access the house.

All bedroom allocations are made by the bride and groom who will have access to our bedroom selector prior to their big day. We will ask for all guests names and allergens prior to staying with us. Please talk directly to the bride and groom if you are a guest who wishes to stay in the house.

Please email [email protected] and one of our events team would be delighted to send over a long list of recommended, local accommodation at a range of price points or your perusal.

We have designated parking areas depending on the season, for all of your guests and suppliers to use while here at Pylewell. Our housekeeping couple are on hand on the day of the wedding to direct traffic to the right car parking spot. Guests are welcome to leave their cars here over night and collect them before 11am the following day.

You and your suppliers are welcome to begin setting up in the pavilion the day before your wedding. You will have access from 11am to give you and your suppliers an entire day to set up so that you can go to sleep knowing it is all ready for the wedding day.

Yes – we have a speaker and one microphone available.

Our pavilion can seat up to 150 seated, and 200 people standing. Part of the venue hire fee includes the use of up to 25 rustic trestle tables and wooden cross-back chairs. The pavilion contains a bar, dining area and dance floor all within the same room, providing ample space for a fabulous evening party.

Our pavilion is a semi-permanent structure with beautifully finished, plumbed in loos. No need to worry about using traditional marquee loos while you are at Pylewell.

We do allow naked flame candles within the pavilion to add that glimmer of extra magic to your styling and photographs. We ask that all candles are placed into appropriate candle holders as to not ruin the tables. Should any candles be deemed to be a health and safety hazard due to inappropriate candle holders, we reserve the right to blow out and remove the candle.

You are very welcome to borrow two easels from us, perfect for welcome signage or your seating plans.

We are an agricultural estate and do have to be mindful of noise levels. Throughout your wedding day, we will take regular decibel readings to manage the level of sound. If music is deemed to be getting too loud, we will liaise with your DJ or band and ask for the sound to be reduced slightly. If you are a band or DJ who is hoping to play here at Pylewell, please drop us an email [email protected] and we would be delighted to chat through noise restrictions with you.

You and your wedding party can make use of the pavilion until midnight. Our night porter Mike will then assist all guests to either taxi’s from the front of the house or to their allocated room within the house. We cannot offer a late night license (other than New Year’s Eve).

We do not have a cloakroom, however there are coat rails positioned around the venue for you and your guests to make use of. All belongings brought on site are brought at the owners own risk and Pylewell will not except any responsibility for damaged or missing belongings.

Lymington is a small seaside town and has limited numbers of taxi’s. It is never too early to book your taxi to and from the venue to ensure that you can get here and back without a hitch. Please arrange drop off and collection in front of the main house. A reminder we recommend guests staying between Lymington and Brockenhurst to ensure there are plenty of taxi options.

Please find below our recommended list of local taxi and coach providers:

Lymington Taxis: 01590 688888
Brockenhurst Taxis: 01590 615 141
Keith’s Private Hire Taxis: 07788 665846
A2B Taxis: 07825 372 184
OC Cars: 07789121749
Allports: 01590 679792
New Forest Executive Travel: 023 8084 8312

Minibus Dorset
A family run minibus hire company offering private hire or corporate transport for up to 19 people, in a Mercedes Benz that has the latest technology, including Wi-Fi, USB points and a PA system.
Contact: 0800 061 4751, 07903 547 255, http://www.minibusdorset.co.uk/

South Coast Travel
South Coast have a number or small and large coaches meaning you can get all your guests home at the same time and dropped at various points along the way.
Contact: https://www.southcoasttravel.co.uk/

You are welcome to do a confetti throw outside in the grounds after your weddingreception. There are so many picturesque spots for a confetti shot and the eventsteam would be delighted to offer some recommendations. We would ask that allconfetti is natural and/ or biodegradable. We do not allow confetti or confetti cannons inside the house or marquee under any circumstances. 

Yes, we absolutely love a sparkler photo for the gram! We would advise chatting to the events team about timings for your sparkler shot – leaving sparkler photos until the end of the night when guests have had a few drinks can be chaotic and quite stressful for many photographers. We advise holding your sparkler photo outside the pavilion or the front of the house before your guests take their seats for dinner.

We do not permit smoke machines indoors at Pylewell under any circumstances.