Weddings for up to 120 guests, board meetings, business lunches, awards dinners, corporate away days and private parties can be held at Chiddingstone Castle, a castellated country house with a lake and grounds in the village of Chiddingstone, near Edenbridge in the Kent countryside. The castle and grounds close to the public for weddings and can be hired exclusively throughout the year.
Seminars and company events
The castle sells private functions for companies: board meetings, business lunches, awards dinners, gala balls and corporate away days, as well as filming and photo shoots. Individual rooms can be hired for a small meeting, or the whole castle and grounds for a larger event. Event packages start at a minimum of 20 guests. The grounds include woodland walks, a fishing lake and a Victorian orangery, so a meeting day can take its breaks outside.
Weddings and receptions
Ceremonies can take place in the Great Hall for up to 120 guests, some standing, in the Grade II* listed Victorian Orangery for up to 120, or in the White Rose Room for up to 60. St Mary's Church, from the 13th century, is a few minutes' walk away for church weddings. For a full-day wedding, the couple has exclusive use of the castle and grounds: 80 guests during the day in the Great Hall and 120 in the evening, or 120 all day with a marquee. Ceremony-only bookings include three hours of exclusive use with a drinks reception afterwards, on Thursdays and Fridays all year and on Saturdays from October to April. A bride's suite looks over the East Lawn and the lake.
Rooms and capacities
Great Hall: 120 for a ceremony, 80 seated for a wedding breakfast. White Rose Room: 60 for a ceremony. The Orangery: 120 for an outdoor ceremony. Marquee in the grounds: up to 120. Other rooms of the house include the Library, the Study, the Victorian Kitchen, the Four Poster Room and the Servant's Hall.
Catering
Catering is not included in packages. Couples and clients choose from the castle's recommended caterers, who design the menu and serve drinks through the day; dry hire is also possible. The tea room serves light lunches, cream teas and homemade cakes in season and can seat larger groups by arrangement.
History and setting
Chiddingstone Castle was long the home of the Streatfeild family and was remodelled in a castellated Gothic style in the early 19th century. In the 20th century it was bought by the collector Denys Eyre Bower, whose collections of Stuart and Jacobite objects, Buddhist art, ancient Egyptian pieces and Japanese art are shown in the house. The Japanese Room is currently closed for repair after part of its ceiling plaster fell. The castle is a Grade II* listed building, set in grounds with views across the Kent countryside.
Getting there
Chiddingstone lies a few miles east of Edenbridge, in the Sevenoaks district of Kent, with parking on site. The grounds and car park open daily from 7 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., except during private functions. Penshurst and Edenbridge are the closest railway stations.
