What heatwaves mean for summer weddings – and how to plan for one

Aimie and Ryan had to make some last minute preparations to deal with this summer's heat on their wedding day

"As soon as I put my dress on, my makeup was just falling off my face."

Aimie Seale is one of hundreds of brides whose weddings landed in the middle of a heatwave this summer.

She had chosen a July weekend in the hope of avoiding any wet weather. Instead, she faced 30C heat with her ceremony in a sweltering West Yorkshire church, predominantly made of glass.

"It was just unbearably hot," says Aimie. "I remember looking at my husband at one point, and he was just dripping with sweat, so everybody kept passing him tissues halfway through the service."

Aimie and her now-husband Ryan had to book an emergency marquee to offer extra shade and an ice-cream van to keep their guests cool.

An additional cost on an already expensive day with the average wedding in the UK costs more than £20,000., external

But this last-minute battle to cope with the heat is only going to get worse. Half of the years between 2015 and 2024, saw temperatures above 35C - up from one in ten - as climate change increases the risk of heatwaves.

Ice cream vans and fans have been last-minute cost additions to this year's weddings

Zoe Burke, head of brand at wedding planning app, Bridebook, says the behavioural data - what people are talking about online - shows this is an issue couples are increasingly concerned about.

"On platforms, like Reddit, people are discussing what they are going to do to navigate the heatwave," she says.

Searches by brides for fans were up five times last sumer what they had been in 2019, she says.

Sourcing some additional fans might feel like a relatively minor cost overall, but for those hosting, catering and supplying weddings, the financial impact of coping with this summer's heatwaves have spiralled.

"It has affected the industry massively. You are talking into the thousands [of pounds] for businesses," says Michelle Miles, board adviser to the UK Wedding Association and founder of the Sustainable Wedding Alliance.

One of the biggest costs wedding venues are facing is the equipment and energy costs of trying to keep a space and food cool, she says.

"[Some] venues are having to bring in air conditioning units; they are at a premium when everyone else is wanting those units to keep their houses cool and businesses."

Guests are also drinking more water - which brings another issue for venues.

"There has been a massive hit on alcohol sales. Venues would quite often rely on these to boost their profits, and people are...not drinking alcoholic drinks as much as they would on a temperate day," says Miles.

It is not just the wedding party wilting in the heat but also the flowers. Peonies and roses - some of the most popular choices for a British wedding – saw their flowering window narrow from two months to two weeks.

"It has been an extremely tough growing season with water shortages, drought, no rainfall, slow germination in the heat, flowers going over too quickly," explains Rebecca, from Lilac and Lace Floral Design.

For a recent wedding, she had to go to three times as many growers to get enough stems.

"For now, it's more a time cost than a direct financial one. But using more growers often [has] larger delivery costs - I would estimate it costs £200 more in delivery."

Roses and other traditional wedding flowers have suffered under European heatwaves

Sarah Haywood has been a wedding planner for more than two decades and says she's seen a shift in the calendar.

"Over the last decade we have been advising people to avoid the heat of July and August [particularly] for destination weddings. And we're busier on what we call the 'shoulder season' which starts earlier and finishes later in the year."

Typically, the shoulder season would be June and September, but she said this is now reaching into October.

The 2026 UK Wedding Report from Bridebook showed that there are significant increases in October weddings in the year following a hotter than average summer.

Couples book their weddings on average 12 to 18 months ahead and some already locked are now looking at shifting the date.

Marie Cavanagh is due to get married in Kent at the start of July.

"The recent heatwaves have made me think a little bit differently…we will definitely be factoring [the heat] into what we are selecting to wear," she says.

Sophie Miller, a stylist at Dotty Bridal in West Yorkshire, said suggestions they have previously made to brides getting married in hotter, overseas locations, can also be applied to the UK.

"We would recommend against a sleeve, lighter fabrics…and with ballgown [dresses] we would suggest putting a hoop in the dress to hold it off your skin."

She said some designers are now innovating fabrics with zinc oxide to make the material feel cooler to the touch.

Sales for wedding fans have increased as couples and guests try and keep themselves cool

While temperatures in the UK have peaked this summer in the mid-30s, in Europe they have repeatedly broken the 40C mark.

Samantha Bottomley is a wedding planner in France and says Europe has previously been a popular wedding destination for UK couples looking for guaranteed sunshine - but this summer has changed things.

"It has been a very difficult season so far heat-wise. We have changed to late afternoon ceremonies, for the first time ever this year, we have moved outdoor cocktail receptions indoors."

Her company is looking to offer different locations altogether.

"We are going to be offering northern European destinations in Denmark, Sweden and Norway which are beautiful with lower temperatures."

For those running wedding venues in the UK they are having to adapt their barns, orangeries and stately homes.

James Matthews is managing director of Xenia Venues which runs two wedding sites in Essex and Suffolk.

A couple of years ago they decided to have a French company construct their orangery because of their experience with higher European temperatures. It was built with an air-to-air heat pump that cools the building, and vents to let hot air escape.

Matthews says if they had not invested in these cooling measures he would be "extremely confident" they would see bookings drop.

"The weather isn't necessarily driving people out of summer weddings, but the weather will drive people out of venues that aren't equipped on an unpleasantly warm day."

Crockwell farm, Miles said, has introduced more foliage to keep venues cool

1. Dress cool: Grooms ditch the three-piece suit and brides opt for lighter fabrics

2. Avoid the hottest time of day: Push the start time for your wedding to early evening if you can to peak heat typically between 12:00 and 16:00

3. Provide shade: if outdoors use marquees with sides that can open, parasols (umbrellas will do), or a tree-lined spot avoid guests standing in direct sun