The Best Season to Say "I Do"

Before enjoying wedded bliss, a couple must plan carefully and navigate wedding planning challenges, especially when considering the best season to get married. However, the city of St. Augustine makes part of that struggle easy as every season is the best season for tying the knot here!

Spring Weddings: March, April, May

In the springtime, nature presents the best weather and showcases top-notch beauty. By viewing all that’s blooming, designers are inspired to create spring-like themes and styles. All About Events and Coastal Celebrations are event planning companies that produce wedding concepts and designs and can add a spring to your step - and your big day.

The Peña Peck House Gardens hosts a wedding reception during sunset.

Springtime pastels and florals add flare and flavor to a St. Augustine wedding. The spring holidays, such as Easter, can also inspire the venue selection as so many of them are blooming along with the season. An outdoor wedding pops at lush, idyllic garden venues such as the Llambias House Gardens, the Oldest House Gardens, and the Peña Peck House Gardens.

Local Tips

Spring is known as "Festival Season" and you may want to consider transportation and parking on big festival/parade days if your wedding is downtown.

• The Celtic Festival is held the weekend before St. Patrick's Day.
  • Parking may be tight downtown from Friday afternoon to Sunday afternoon.
  • Some downtown streets will be closed that Saturday morning for the St. Patrick's parade 
• Easter Weekend
  • The Easter Parade is held on the Saturday morning of Easter Weekend snarling downtown traffic.

Summer Weddings: June, July, August

Summer is a preferred season for weddings due to one thing - ocean breezes! (Plus, Independence Day can spark fireworks between a bridal pair, too.) Ponte Vedra Beach, Vilano Beach, St. Augustine Beach, Butler Beach, and Crescent Beach have panoramic views, gentle breezes, and gorgeous backgrounds for photos. Your St. Augustine Beach Wedding and Ocean & Racquet Resort Weddings can help plan a beach wedding from start to finish.

A bride and groom walk hand in hand in the surf.

If you’d rather have your ceremony on the water instead of next to it, consider being a buccaneer and a bride at Black Raven Adventures - St. Augustine Pirate Ship Cruises or set sail on the high seas with St. Augustine Sailing: Weddings on the Water.

However, if you don’t want sand in your toes, and you haven’t got your sea legs yet, consider a wedding with a water view instead. Sanchez House Weddings and the St. Augustine Lighthouse suit landlubbers who like their (clean) feet planted firmly on the shore.

Local Tips

St. Augustine's popular Fourth of July fireworks are shot off on a barge in front of the Castillio on July 4 every year. Street parking downtown is limited and traffic after the fireworks can be very slow. If you're considering getting married in conjunction with the 4th of July, stick to July 3 or 5.

Fall Weddings: September, October, November

Fall even more in love during the autumn season as temperatures are comfortable, the summertime crowds have gone, and the local farms are magical. Halloween and Thanksgiving can inspire designers to experiment with vintage designs, festive colors, and seasonal patterns, shapes, and textures. Endless Possibilities Event Planning and Make My Day - Wedding and Event Planning creates themed weddings through their design work and distinctive flower arrangements that can even include pumpkins.

Recognized on The Wedding Wire and The Knot for its historical significance and its unique and elegant weddings, the Ximenez-Fatio House has an open courtyard adorned with lush foliage, which evokes a timeless ambiance – perfect for fall.

Loved ones gather for a daytime — soon to turn night — wedding at the Colonial Quarter.

Additionally, consider a two-acre open-air amphitheater nestled among majestic oak trees – that twinkle against the nighttime sky – at the Colonial Quarter wedding venue. The oaks and the lanterns make for a gorgeous evening celebration.

Alternatively, the rustic appeal of barn weddings is especially in demand during this season. Hope Pavilion, Kelly Farm Events, and Tringali Barn have modern amenities while preserving the natural charm of a farm setting. Or, consider Sykes Family Farms - if you time it right you can have some gorgeous photos in the sunflower fields!

Local Tips

• Be mindful of the Francis Field Showcase during the Sing Out Loud Festival. Held at Francis Field on Friday and Saturday, the inaugural event in 2023 brought more than 20,000 people to St. Augustine and filled the downtown hotels and parking lots. The event will be held yearly on the third weekend in September.
• In November, Nights of Lights begins at 5:00 p.m. at the Plaza de la Constitución on the Saturday before Thanksgiving. Parking downtown will be challenging, restaurants will be full, and traffic will be slooooow.

Winter Weddings: December, January, February

Scintillating scenery from the Nights of Lights makes holiday-season weddings in the Oldest City a “winter wonderland” minus the snow and cold. The soft radiance of candlelight and the comforting crackle of a fireplace create a cozy wedding ambiance.

The holiday season inspires wedding planners to use eucalyptus, juniper, ferns, mistletoe, olive branches, and pine for reception decor. Mercer & Smith Events and Hello Lovely Weddings can help with this among other wedding planning tasks.

Bridesmaids smile hard for the camera in the Plaza during Nights of Lights.

End-of-year/beginning-of-year weddings are elegantly exceptional with grand and opulent ballrooms. Treasury on the Plaza, an award-winning venue with more than 500 reviews, exudes sophistication with its 1920s art deco style. Situated in the heart of St. Augustine, it boasts a grand ballroom, private bride and groom suites, and a bar ingeniously located inside the original bank vault. This inviting, glamorous haven provides a perfect setting for savoring artisanal cocktails celebrating the nuptials. Or, consider Gilded Age glamour in The Lightner Museum. The extravagant first-floor space is perfect for elegant celebrations that will make the bride and groom feel like a princess and prince for the day. Be sure to get photos on the bridge above the koi pond in the interior courtyard.

The Renaissance-Historic Downtown Event Rooms, with the charm of its Victorian-style exterior, can comfortably host 370 guests. Inside, modern amenities seamlessly blend with the historic ambiance. The spacious entryway offers the perfect spot for the bridal party to assemble for group photos.

Want to get married on Valentine’s Day? We love that for you! Go big at the White Room which has hosted more than 2,700 St. Augustine weddings, or, try an intimate setting (and maybe even elope - we won’t tell!) at the Villa Zorayda Museum - a Moorish masterpiece.

Local Tips

Nights of Lights runs from the Saturday before Thanksgiving through January, and traffic can be slow -- especially on December weekends and from Christmas through New Year's Day. You and your wedding planner will be able to work around much of this, but there are a few days that bring additional challenges.

• The Christmas Parade is held in Historic Downtown in the morning on the first Saturday in December. Streets are blocked and traffic before and after is very slow.
• The Regatta of Lights takes place in the early evening on the second Saturday in December. Parking spots are blocked and traffic slows getting into downtown.
• New Year's Eve fireworks are held on St. Augustine Beach at 8:30 p.m. on December 31. Driving will be challenging before and after.

And no matter what the season…

Want to be the coolest cats on the wedding scene? Be sure to book Old Town Trolley’s private, chauffeured wedding trolley. Yes, it’s white and decorated in more white, so it perfectly suits your white wedding - no Billy Idol required! And, it's a great way to leave the driving -- and parking -- to someone else!

Take your wedding party around town in style courtesy of the wedding charter provided by Old Town Trolley.

We hope your mind is now at rest knowing that St. Augustine is ready for your wedding no matter what season you choose. If you need more inspiration, visit our wedding section and know that as long as you’re in St. Augustine, your wedding will be a beautiful one.

This article was originally written by Shalisha Bynoe in October 2023.