They say planning a wedding is one of the most stressful experiences of your life, but what about planning one during a cost of living crisis?

The phrase ‘budget fairytale wedding’ isn’t one you often hear, but with global fuel and food price increases, it’s one that’s becoming necessary.

It is anticipated that 2022 will be a boom year for weddings as couples come out of the shadow of lockdowns and finally plan their nuptials. Searches for ‘castle weddings’ on Google in the UK have seen an increase of 23 per cent during April.

However, searches for ‘cheap weddings’ have also increased by 44 per cent, and ‘budget weddings’ went up by 53 per cent. Not surprising when searches for the ‘cost of living’ have seen a 133 per cent increase from January.

So as people everywhere start to tighten their belts, you have to wonder whether it’s possible to tighten your wedding bells too. To this end, jewellery brand Warren James has revealed the most cost-effective castles to hire for a dream wedding.

These fairytale locations in the UK can all cost under €3000 to rent. Warren James undertook a careful cost/beauty analysis based on their number of Instagram followers and hashtags.Castle costs were taken from Coco Wedding Venues, an online wedding venue directory, with the lowest available price taken.

Here are the castle wedding destinations which cost the least while looking the best.

5 – Blackfriars Priory, Gloucestershire
Price – from €1,500

Beauty Score – 2,263

This castle is found at the heart of Gloucester’s city centre, not far from the historic dock. It boasts a beautiful combination of ancient and modern design. This multi-award winning venue features a glass wall from which you can view the ruin of the 13th-century priory.

Home to the oldest and best-preserved mediaeval library in Europe, Blackfriars Priory offers packages priced between €1,500 and goes to €6,171 your post-pandemic special day.

4 – Auchen castle, Dumfries
Price – from €646

Beauty Score – 4,806

The Scottish Borders are a place of beauty and in the heart of Robert Burns’s country you can find the idyllic Auchen castle. Hidden away in the Moffatt Hills and surrounded by a stretch of 13 acres of private gardens and stunning moorland, Auchen is the perfect low-cost intimate wedding venue.

Low packages start at €646 and run up to €9,400

3 – Highcliffe Castle, Dorset
Price – from €1,034

Beauty Score – 11,053

It’s difficult to think of many venues where you could use one of the most important surviving buildings of the Romantic period and venerated medieval French masonry for €1034, but Highcliffe Castle pulls it off.

The castle was designed for eccentric and lavish parties of the 18th century, and you can bring some of that glamour to a budget big day at this picturesque castle.

2 – Rowton Castle, Shropshire
Prices – from €2,345

Beauty Score – 11,683

The rolling Shropshire countryside is where you’ll find this gem of a wedding venue. The classic rustic castle provides the quintessential English wedding experience with woodland walks, walled gardens and hidden pools.

Here, you can experience the joys of the British upper class living with your nearest and dearest for a fraction of the price at €2,345.

1 – Strawberry Hill House, Twickenham
Price – from €2,940

Beauty Score – 15,466

Named London’s Romantic Wedding Venue of the year back in 2016, Strawberry Hill House is ideal for any aspiring-newly weds wanting to experience the leafy area of Twickenham.

The gothic castle was once home to famed English writer Horace Walpole, and could play host to the wedding of your dreams for between €2,940 and €6,465.