Weddings & Things To Do In Gretna Green, Scotland

Gretna Green in Scotland is a world-famous place for weddings and has quite the history. It’s a nice village to visit to find out more and watch a wedding or two. Gretna Green is also a fantastic destination to get married. We found the town to be pretty dog-friendly, so much so that Henry, our dog, was my best man.

In addition to the weddings, there are a few interesting things to do in Gretna Green. This includes visiting the blacksmith’s shop, the town’s most famous wedding venue. Inside is an interesting museum that tells the story of the home of Romance. There are other attractions in the town to see, including a maze and some nice gift shops for whisky.

I enjoyed our wedding at Gretna Green. We wanted a low-key wedding and considered Vegas; however, the pandemic had other ideas. I jokingly suggested Gretna Green after hearing stories about it growing up, and we agreed it was the right place for us.

Why Gretna Green in Scotland is Famous

Gretna Green is a town in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, near the border of England. Historically, it was the first village a traveller would come to in Scotland when following the old coaching route from London to Edinburgh. Joined to the village is the larger town of Gretna.

The Scottish village is famous for weddings. This is because the Clandestine Marriages Act 1753 prohibited couples under 21 from marrying in England or Wales without parental consent. Because it was still legal in Scotland to marry without such consent, couples began crossing the border to marry. It became the place to be for runaway couples, hence the now-famous attraction they call the home of romance.

Scottish law allowed for what they called irregular marriages, meaning that if a declaration was made before two witnesses, almost anybody had the authority to conduct the marriage ceremony. The blacksmith’s shop became known as Anvil Priests. The most famous was Richard Rennison, the local blacksmith who performed 5,147 wedding ceremonies. He and his anvil became symbols of Gretna Green.

The laws have changed since then. However, the village is still a wonderful destination to get married. There are various venues to choose from, and everything you need for a perfect wedding is available in the village.

Arranging a Wedding

You can arrange a wedding completely online via the village’s website. There are countless options for venues and add-ons. You can also arrange hotels or places to stay, including some dog-friendly options.

Most of the venues allowed pets, which was great for Henry, except he wasn’t a fan of his suit.

Accommodation

There are many options for places to stay in the village and the nearby area in Dumfries & Galloway. We stayed in a pet-friendly suite at the four-star Smiths Hotel, which included access to the hotel’s facilities, including a wonderful Scottish breakfast. Unfortunately, the dog was not allowed in the main hotel for food. The accommodation was great and rather luxurious. To find hotel and accommodation options, search the Booking.com website.

Things to Do For Visitors

Most of the happenings in the village relate to weddings and romance. They have some handy on-site maps to help you find your way around the places of interest.

The Blacksmith Shop

The Famous Blacksmith’s Shop is one of the most popular choices for wedding ceremonies in the village. It’s pretty cool inside and interesting too. The Blacksmith’s Shop also doubles as a museum when there isn’t a ceremony happening. To enter the blacksmith’s shop, you pass through the lucky arch, which is covered with horseshoes.

Thus, tourists can visit and see the anvil, learn about the village and see some other cool stuff. There are also plenty of old blacksmith tools and equipment to see, too.

The historic carriages caught my attention, and Henry seemed to like exploring around them too. It was nice to see all the unique carriages with some information about their history.

The most famous artefact is the wedding anvil, which has been in use for roughly 200 years. The blacksmiths at Gretna Green married couples over the famous Marriage Anvil. To seal the marriage, he would strike the anvil with a hammer. The sound of the hammer striking the anvil is heard throughout the village. This is a sign to announce the marriage.

Watch Some Weddings

Not everyone visiting is attending a wedding, but while in the village, you can watch some. Near the Old Blacksmith’s Shop, you can see many people arriving to get married and posing for photos afterwards.

Some arrive by horse and carriage, which is pretty cool. You also get the chance to hear bagpipes playing and other interesting things. We saw many during our stay, especially when out walking the dog.

Sculpture Garden

Next to the Blacksmith’s Shop is the Gretna Green Sculpture Garden. The Sculpture Garden is where most things happen.

There are quite a few sculptures to see here, some by amateur and some by professional artists. An impressive sculpture is the two hands, which is 13 feet tall and very popular with people taking photographs.

Wall of Love

The Wall of Love is where people hang padlocks to signify their love. It seemed pretty popular with visitors, and we saw a few trying to find their past ones. Henry enjoyed his walks in this area, and we met a few couples returning for their anniversary, which was nice.

Wee Big Shop

For some retail therapy and treats, visit the Wee Big Shop. The Wee Big Shop sells all things cliché Scottish and has a great range. I enjoyed browsing the whisky section and purchased a few small bottles and a new tartan hip flask. They also sell lots of clothing, including various tartan designs.

Gretna Old Parish Church

Gretna Old Parish Church has parts from the 17th century. However, there has been a church on the site since 1170. They built parts of the church with stones from Hadrian’s Wall. Famous events took place at the church, including in 1307, when Edward I Longshanks was laid in state. Nowadays it’s a nice church and also a venue.

Courtship Maze

Near the Love sign and car park is the Courtship Maze, a fun activity for people of all ages. The maze has 2 entrances to signify life before marriage. You can then navigate the maze towards the bridge, where the two paths eventually meet.

Anvil Hall

Another wedding venue to see is Anvil Hall, a short walk from the blacksmith shop. This one is a private venue and is considered one of the top places to get married in the town. Anvil Hall is a former Catholic church that was built in 1917. However, they converted it into a non-denominational wedding venue in 2003. It’s a lovely building to see from the outside.

Watch A Sunset

The village is surrounded by pretty countryside, which is ideal for a walk. A sunset walk is romantic, and you don’t need to go far to enjoy the beautiful red skies; Henry, our dog, loved the late walks.

Where To Eat Out?

Most of our meals were at the Smiths Hotel restaurants, but there are other dog-friendly pubs in Gretna Green. Smith’s Hotel had a great menu with delicious food for evening meals. For visitors to the village, there is a handy food court offering a variety of options.

Smiths Hotel also does a fantastic Scottish breakfast with delights such as haggis, black pudding and tattie scones. The breakfast was buffet-style, so you could eat as much as you liked.

For another meal out, we went to the local fish and chip shop, which had an outdoor bench where we dined with the dog. They had all the Scottish classics available, including battered black pudding, haggis and deep-fried Mars bars.

To complement the meal, we enjoyed a can of Irn-Bru. I really enjoyed the chippy tea and was impressed with what we ate.

Getting To Gretna in Scotland

Gretna Green is near the motorway, so it is very easy to reach by car if passing. You can also arrive by train with a change in Carlisle. We arrived and departed by train and found it pretty straightforward. The principal attractions are less than 10 minutes’ walk from the railway station. You can find various travel options on the Omio website.