Riddle's Court

About

Riddles Court is tucked off Edinburgh's Royal Mile, a 16th-century courtyard house within the UNESCO World Heritage Old Town. The restored townhouse dates from the 1590s and was once home to wealthy merchant Baillie John MacMorran. Cobbled courtyards, oak-panelled chambers and vaulted cellars give it a rare sense of intimacy and history. It is one of the most characterful places to marry in Edinburgh. A great choice for culture-loving couples who want a one-of-a-kind setting in the historic heart of the city.

Riddle's Court is run by the Scottish Historic Buildings Trust, a charity that spent 2015 to 2017 conserving the building before reopening it as a venue. It sits at 322 Lawnmarket, a few minutes' walk from the Royal Mile registry office and St Giles' Cathedral, and it is licensed for civil ceremonies in its own right, with ceremonies held in rooms such as the Geddes Room.

The full package gives you exclusive use of four rooms (Geddes, Seton, McMorran and the Library), along with the venue's furniture, linen and decoration and a dedicated coordinator. The largest room seats up to 80. That package is priced on 60 full-day guests, and smaller weddings can ask for a bespoke quote, while ceremony-only hire is also possible. For the smallest weddings there is an all-inclusive elopement and micro wedding package run with Wildling Weddings from Monday to Thursday for up to 15 guests, and limited late midweek dates do come up.

Food comes from one of four appointed caterers, Howies Events, Culinarians, Saltire Hospitality and Pinkerton's, all of whom have experience of working in the building, so you have a choice of styles and menus while still using a team that understands the rooms and how a day here runs.

There are no guest bedrooms, which is the main practical point, so your guests will be booking city hotels. Full venue hire does include two nights in the King's Chamber, a self-contained apartment under 16th-century painted ceilings, subject to availability. Getting there is easy: the building has full lift access and the main railway station is about five minutes away on foot. Trams and buses run to Edinburgh Airport.

What makes it special

• 16th-century UNESCO World Heritage courtyard in Edinburghs Old Town — history woven into every stone
• Intimate, exclusive-use setting with a sequence of atmospheric chambers and a cobbled inner courtyard
• Rare architectural authenticity on the Royal Mile — a venue unlike anywhere else in Scotland

Features

Venue style