What an incredible wedding season it has been at The Woods at Oakley!
As a unique woodland wedding venue in Wiltshire, we have the privilege of seeing couples create wedding days that are completely personal to them. No two celebrations here are ever quite the same, and our 2026 wedding season has brought some of the most creative, meaningful and memorable weddings we have ever hosted.
From an owl ring bearer and a Viking themed handfasting ceremony to our very first Hindu wedding, a Star Wars celebration and a wedding beneath an eclipse, this year has been a wonderful reminder of just how much freedom there is to create a wedding that feels truly yours at The Woods at Oakley.
If you are looking for alternative wedding ideas or inspiration for a unique wedding day, our 2026 couples have certainly provided plenty of it! Here are some of our favourite moments from this year’s wedding season.
Valerie and Paddy: A Viking themed wedding
We were transported back in time for a spectacular Viking themed wedding, complete with a Viking inspired handfasting ceremony. Handfasting is a beautiful symbolic tradition, representing the joining together of two people, and bringing Viking traditions into the woodland created an atmospheric and incredibly personal woodland wedding celebration.
For couples considering an alternative wedding or looking for meaningful ways to personalise their ceremony, incorporating traditions that have a special significance to you can make the day feel even more connected to your story, and that’s exactly what Valerie and Paddy did.
Poonum and Rahul: Our very first Hindu wedding at The Woods
Another very special milestone for us in 2026 was hosting our first ever Hindu wedding at The Woods at Oakley. It was an incredibly joyful two-day celebration, filled with love, colour and the most stunning outfits. The woodland provided a beautiful natural setting for such a vibrant and meaningful day.
And the groom certainly knew how to make an entrance! He arrived in a DeLorean, creating one of those wonderfully unexpected wedding moments that everyone will remember. Click here to see the highlights of Poonum and Rahul’s wedding on our Instagram.
We absolutely loved hosting our first Hindu wedding at The Woods at Oakley and seeing Poonum and Rahul create a unique celebration that brought together their traditions, personalities and love of doing things differently.
Our Venue Coordinator Rachel was also thrilled to event manage Poonum and Rahul’s two-day celebration and to help make their dream woodland wedding come to life. You can hire Rachel to event manage your woodland wedding – click here to read her brochure.
Kim and Stu: A handfasting vow renewal
This year also saw us welcome a beautiful vow renewal, with an Alice in Wonderland themed tea party. Vow renewals are such a lovely way to celebrate a relationship, and the journey a couple has shared together. Kim and Stu’s idea to have an Alice in Wonderland theme brought an extra sense of imagination and playfulness to their wonderful day.
Surrounded by trees, nature and plenty of magic, it was a wonderful celebration of their journey together so far and we look forward to hosting many more vow renewals in the years to come. In fact, Lindsay and Charlie, our very own Woods at Oakley managers, renewed their vows in the woods this year too, which was incredibly special.
Nalin and Tharanga: A Secret Wooding with guest craft stations inspired by each year of their relationship
We also hosted Nalin and Tharanga’s intimate Secret Wooding, complete with craft stations for their guests that were inspired by each year of their relationship. Secret Woodings are perfect for couples who want something a little more intimate and personal, and this celebration was full of creativity and connection.
Their craft stations were such a unique way of getting their guests involved at the same time as telling the story of their relationship. It added a truly special layer of personality to their woodland wedding. It is these kinds of details that can transform a wedding or celebration from a beautiful event into something that feels completely yours.
If you’re looking for more inspiration for memorable activities to keep your guests entertained at your woodland wedding, read our blog here.
Mithyis and Zoe: A Star Wars themed wedding on May the Fourth
May the Fourth provided the perfect opportunity for one special couple to bring their love of Star Wars into their wedding day. We were delighted to host Mithyis and Zoe’s Star Wars themed wedding, proving once again that themed weddings can be incredibly personal, joyful and memorable.
Their guests came dressed up from an array of sci-fi and fantasy films and television shows, including Doctor Who and How to Train Your Dragon. It was such a special occasion that television crews were there to capture their special day!
Whether your passion is Star Wars, a favourite film, a particular era, a book, a hobby or something entirely unique to you, The Woods at Oakley provides the perfect backdrop to bring those unique elements into your wedding celebration.
Beth and Jack: A spectacular wedding beneath an eclipse
Nature provided one of the most extraordinary backdrops of the entire season when we hosted a wedding on the day of the eclipse this summer. And the photographs were simply breathtaking.
Beth and Jack kept their fingers crossed for clear skies and were lucky enough to watch the eclipse on the day of their wedding, surrounded by our ancient woodlands. The combination of the couple, the woodland backdrop, the changing light and the eclipse created some of the most amazing wedding photographs we have ever seen at the venue!
It was a wonderful reminder of one of the things we love about hosting woodland weddings outdoors: sometimes nature creates moments that simply cannot be recreated.
We have some incredible photographers in our recommended supplier’s brochure, including Captured by Chris who photographed Beth and Jack’s woodland wedding. Click here to read our ‘Friends of the Woods at Oakley’ brochure.
Owl Ring Bearers
We were lucky enough to have not one, but two very special owl ring bearers join us in the woods this year, at the weddings of Beth and Jack and Valerie and Paddy.
Having these beautiful birds take on such an important role in each ceremony created two truly magical and unforgettable moments. Both were great examples of how our couples can bring their passions, personalities and love of the natural world into their wedding day, creating celebrations that are personal, meaningful and wonderfully different.
Our woodland VIPs: Kevin and Marcel
Of course, no list of our 2026 wedding highlights would be complete without Kevin and Marcel, our much-loved rescue donkeys.
Kevin and Marcel have become very special members of the Woods at Oakley family, and this year they have continued to make appearances at weddings, visiting couples and guests during their receptions. They have brought countless smiles to our couples and their guests, and we feel incredibly lucky that they are part of life here at The Woods at Oakley.
We are currently raising money for an animal welfare charity called Nowzad, who provide care and treatment to overworked and injured donkeys and horses in war zones, including Afghanistan and Ukraine. Click here to donate to our JustGiving page.
Looking ahead to 2027 and 2028
As we look back on everything that has made our 2026 wedding season so special, we are already incredibly excited for what the future holds.
We cannot wait to welcome our 2027 couples to the woods next year and see all the wonderful, creative and completely individual celebrations they have planned. We know there will be plenty of new memories to make, unexpected moments to discover and magical days to share beneath the trees.
And if you are still dreaming about your own woodland wedding at The Woods at Oakley, we are now open for bookings for 2028 and are welcoming couples to view the woods in April 2027. Whether you have been imagining a woodland ceremony for years or have only just started looking for a wedding venue in Wiltshire, we would love to hear from you.
Here’s to our wonderful 2026 couples, our exciting 2027 season and all the 2028 couples who are just beginning their woodland wedding journey with us. We cannot wait to see what the next few years bring and, most importantly, to continue welcoming couples who want to create a wedding that is unique, joyful and unforgettable.
To book a viewing of The Woods at Oakley, click here to send us an email. In the meantime, you can check out our virtual tour of the woods here and sign up to our newsletter here to be the first to hear what’s unfolding in the woods. Click here to read our 2028 brochure and find out more about our different woodland wedding packages.
