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The Balmoral Hotel wedding venue is one Edinburgh’s finest. Located at 1 Princes Street, Edinburgh, EH2 2EQ, this multiple award-winning 5-star hotel has been an Edinburgh landmark since 1902.
I love this unique wedding venue as I’ve met many clients, and photographed many weddings and receptions here over the past ten years. It offers everything – the finest service, delicious food, fantastic attention to detail, an excellent location, exquisite interior and magnificent views across Edinburgh.
Situated next to Waverley Railway Station, The Balmoral Hotel was originally, and for most of the 20th century, called The North British Station Hotel, or ‘N.B.’ for short, and was acclaimed as one of the great railway hotels in the United Kingdom.
In 1991, a major refurbishment of the hotel was completed and Sir Sean Connery re-opened the newly-named ‘The Balmoral Hotel’.
Balmoral is Gaelic for ‘majestic dwelling’. The perfect name for such a beautiful building. Finished to the highest standards, the hotel has many features which make it an enticing wedding venue.
The Balmoral Hotel has many different sized event rooms allowing it to cater for everything from small intimate weddings to grand weddings with up to 280 guests!
The generously proportioned rooms and suites are ideal for the pre-ceremony photos of the Bridal Party or the Groom and Groomsmen.
All of the event rooms offer brilliant views of Edinburgh, looking west towards Edinburgh Castle. With large Victorian-era windows, plenty of natural light allows photography of your wedding without the distracting use of flash, on even the dullest winter day.
Due to its city centre location, the hotel doesn’t have grounds or gardens of its own, but that doesn’t mean it lacks beautiful backdrops and spaces for creating beautiful wedding photos. If the Scottish weather stays fair and you do fancy a bit of greenery in your newly-wed photos, you’re conveniently located with only a short walk from Calton Hill and Princes Street Gardens.
The red-carpeted main entrance of the hotel is an excellent place to begin the newly-wed photos – make sure to bring your Piper if you’d like to have them in one of your pictures!
A must-have backdrop for all newly-wed photos is the grand staircase. Featuring a beautiful stained glass window, a baby grand piano, gorgeous light and space, it’s one of my favourite spots in the hotel for newly-wed photos!
Book your wedding at The Balmoral Hotel and benefit from one of the best views of Edinburgh’s unique cityscape by having a few photos taken up on the roof! Escorted by your Master Of Ceremonies, let’s benefit from a beautiful sunset, or the instantly recognisable clock tower, to create a unique and rare photo of the two of you.
The photo of Andrew and Jenna and the Red Arrows was the most popular wedding photo of the year – find out more on my blog post here.
Bear in mind that there are many exquisite wedding venues across Scotland, and in my years as a photographer I’ve photographed weddings and events at many of them. What strikes me about this beautiful wedding venue is the consistently high level of service provided by the staff. Whether I’m meeting clients at Palm Court (the hotel’s award-winning afternoon tea is fantastic) photographing a Balmoral Hotel wedding, or enjoying a birthday dram at the hotel’s Whisky Bar, (aptly called ‘Scotch’!), the service and attention to detail set The Balmoral apart from other venues.
Some of the rooms and suites at The Balmoral Hotel that I’ve enjoyed photographing:
Sir Walter Scott Suite
The Sir Walter Scott Suite is the most spacious of the ten suites at the hotel. For larger weddings, this grand suite can accommodate up to 280 guests. Beautiful floor to ceiling pillars surrounds the large wooden dance floor. Located on the ground floor and offering magnificent views of Edinburgh Castle and Scott Monument.
Holyrood Suite and Waverley Suite
Situated on the ground floor of the hotel, The Holyrood Suite is essentially a smaller version of the Sir Walter Scott Suite, offering space for up to 130 guests. Featuring beautiful floor to ceiling pillars, magnificent views across to Edinburgh Castle and with the bonus of views across to the Old Town.
The Waverley Suite is adjacent to the Holyrood Suite and offers a spacious reception area for your guests to enjoy a canape and drink prior to being invited into the Holyrood Suite.
Beauly Suite, Annan Suite and Esk Suite
The Beauly Suite, Annan Suite and Esk Suite are perfect for smaller intimate weddings. Located on the second floor of The Balmoral Hotel, the Suites offer unrivalled views across to Edinburgh Castle and Princes Street. Featuring open fireplaces, the Beauly Suite, Annan Suite and Esk Suite offer comfort in beautiful surroundings.
Adrienne and Mark – The Balmoral Hoteltrue professionals and such lovely people, we cannot recommend them highly enoughWe cannot thank Jonathon and Claire enough for their talent and dedication to their photography and film for our wedding at The Balmoral. They are true professionals and such lovely people, we cannot recommend them highly enough.
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Ashleigh and Matt – Edinburgh Castle and Balmoral HotelYou helped make our wedding day and have enabled us to capture many fantastic memories.Thank you for your work and professionalism. We are truly grateful. You have an incredible eye for detail and covered absolutely everything that I had in my mind for the day. You helped make our wedding day and have enabled us to capture many fantastic memories. I will certainly be recommending you in the future!
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Emma C. – Royal Yacht Britannia and Balmoral HotelThe whole family is absolutely thrilled with the end photographic resultsWe commissioned Jonathon Fowler for my Mothers 70th birthday in Edinburgh. Photographs were taken over 2 nights, one night at the Royal Yacht Britannia, the following night at The Balmoral Hotel. Jonathon is a very professional and personable guy to deal, the whole family felt at ease in his company, which is half the battle and made the experience effortless.
However now to the most important part, the whole family is absolutely thrilled with the end photographic results. Thank you for a top-quality service and product.
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Jenna and Andrew – Balmoral HotelWe were thrilled at the response to the photo (Red Arrows photo taken from the roof of the Balmoral Hotel)- made everything even more magical and so pleased for you to get the recognition for your fantastic talent. Crazy the amount of people who have spoken to both Andrew and I about it since going back to work! You are famous! We could not have chosen a better photographer for our wedding. Thanks again, we are overwhelmed by your kindness.
Read MoreWe are very happy with the great service and video, we've even nominated you for the VOWS awards. My parents and the flower girl have the DVD on repeat! Hope to see you at weddings we are going to in the future as we've recommended yourself. Thank you!
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From our first meeting with Jonathon we knew he was the right choice to photograph our wedding day. He was very easy to get along with, passionate about his work and the examples of his previous work were of a very high standard. My husband and I had never done a photo shoot before so were a little nervous about our pre-wedding shoot but Jonathon put us at ease straight away and we were delighted at how these photos turned out! On the day Jonathon was very professional and efficient, he organised the group shots quickly and put everyone at ease instantly. Our newly-wed photos turned our amazing and our guests commented that we weren’t away from them or the party too long while these were being taken. Jonathon was excellent at communicating with us before and after the wedding, keeping us up to date on timescales and progress. Our album has just been received and we are absolutely delighted with how it turned out! If you’re currently looking for a wedding photographer look no further than Jonathon Fowler – you won’t be disappointed!
Read MoreThe Balmoral Hotel Wedding Venue Photos
A few photos of our favourite weddings at The Balmoral Hotel. Click on the images below to view real wedding photos taken at key locations in and around (and on top of!) the hotel building.
