Ireland vs. Switzerland: choosing destination for an adventure wedding

Swiss Alps

Switzerland is best known for tall mountain peaks and Alpine valleys that define its unique beauty. Outdoor wedding ceremonies are best celebrated in magical elopement spots with views of these Alpine scenes. In Switzerland, your wildest wedding dreams will come true when you get married on a mountain plateau or in the middle of a green valley.

We recommend a specific spot called the Jungfraujoch or more popularly known as "The Top of Europe," reserved only for the bravest couples who do not mind the heights and the icy mountain air. After saying your “I do’s,” ride a cable car near the Alps to witness the iconic tooth-shaped Matterhorn peak! How’s that for an adventure wedding in Switzerland?

If you can’t decide whether to have an elopement between the mountains or next to water, the Swiss Alps can offer you both: between the Swiss mountains there are many beautiful hidden lakes where you can exchange your vows more privately, having the water element next to the stunning panoramic mountain views. Plus it might not be as windy as at the ocean coastline.

Irish cliffs

If you don’t know it yet, the Irish cliffs are some of the top reasons why couples from around the world are flying to Ireland for a destination wedding. In our experience as wedding planners in Europe, more than 50% of couples asking for our assistance are dreaming of the same scene for their wedding - the rugged cliffs at the coast of Ireland!

Obviously, couples who are hungry for a unique adventure find the dramatic cliffs of Ireland with the waves of the Atlantic ocean splashing underneath as a perfect scene for their big day. The cliffs are some of the best points along the Wild Atlantic Way, which is a 2,500-km driving route that passes through nine Irish counties. With the help of our wedding planner in Ireland, you will surely find a perfect spot along the Wild Atlantic Way for an epic clifftop wedding.

Swiss lakeside venues

Whether your wedding date is in summer or winter, lakeside elopement venues in Switzerland will offer an amazing backdrop for your wedding ceremony. Why? Because Swiss lakes are simply stunning all days of the year!

Lake Geneva, the largest lake in the country, is surrounded by mountain peaks that turn icy and more dramatic in winter while overwhelmed with forest greens in summer. The irregularly-shaped Lake Lucerne offers picturesque views of four Swiss cantons with their mountain peaks and traditional villages. Lake Constance, on the other hand, is shared by three European countries, Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, so you can just imagine how glorious the views are from the shores of this lake. From any point of Lake Constance, you’ll see villages, forests, vineyards, hills, and medieval settlements from three different countries!

These are just three of the 1,500+ lakes in Switzerland, and they are all available as the pretty backdrop for your adventure wedding. Along the shores of these lakes are lovely villas, gardens, and outdoor spots where you can recite your vows. However, with the overwhelming number of Swiss lakes that you can choose from, you will need the help of our wedding planner in Switzerland to pick the right spot for you.

Irish beaches and lighthouses

If lakeside venues are great options for a Swiss elopement, Irish beaches and lighthouses are stunning choices for a breathtaking sunset wedding in Europe.

The best thing about Irish beaches is that they are not touristy so you can have privacy on your wedding day. Ireland is home to a total of 80 Blue Flag beaches, most of which are located in Kerry and Donegal. Blue-flag beaches are those certified with excellent bathing water quality and healthy coral reefs. Irish beaches gained this certification mainly because the beaches are not crowded and are well-maintained. For these reasons, they are ideal spots for intimate weddings. Add the lighthouses to the scene and you’ll have a wonderful beach wedding in Europe!

Historic Swiss spots

What’s unique about Switzerland is that it’s a mix of many cultures, traditions, and local customs. Every part of the country is free to celebrate their own culture that is very much alive even up to this day. That’s one thing that adventurous couples will enjoy witnessing if they choose to marry in Switzerland. Geneva gives tourists a taste of Swiss history with its numerous heritage sites, spanning from religious buildings, theaters, and archeological sites. For a more laid back and close-to-nature experience, you can get married in Lucerne which is home to quiet medieval villages, and beautiful lakeside hotels and villas. All these Swiss regions are dotted with elopement venues that will give you a glimpse of Swiss history and culture.

Irish ruins and monuments

From ancient castles, century-old beech trees lining up in an eerie alley, to church ruins reclaimed by nature, you will find many historic spots in Northern Ireland for an extraordinary elopement. In Ireland (Republic of Ireland), the most stunning historic places to get married are derelict churches, abandoned castles, and old monasteries. If you’re history fanatics, you might love the idea of having a handfasting ceremony for your wedding inside these historic Irish spots. It will be a day that you will never forget.

Swiss castles

Many castles in Switzerland are sitting along the beautiful shores of the Swiss lakes, offering great lake views for stunning wedding photos. You can enjoy a tranquil setting amidst a vineyard or wide fields when you choose a Swiss castle as your wedding venue because most of them are located outside of the main cities.

For a more urban setting, you can also find castle hotels in Swiss cities where you can enjoy gourmet food, relaxing spa treatments, and first-rate hotel service on your wedding day. Expect nothing less than elegant interiors with a twist of history when you decide to get married inside a Swiss castle.

Irish castles

While castle ruins are scattered across Ireland, there are so many fully functioning Irish castles too. In fact, operational castles outnumber all other types of Irish wedding venues in our list. These royal residences are mostly characterized by medieval features because they were built as far back as the 16th-century. But because the Irish government is dedicated to preserving these historic places, Ireland still has so many castles that retained their beauty and luxury throughout the years.

Some of them sit along the beautiful lakes, some have an imposing Gothic facade, while some are huge castle estates with wide courtyards, reception rooms, and activity areas.

Swiss mountain lodges

Mountain lodges and exclusive mountain resorts are top venue choices for a rustic wedding in Switzerland. They have reception halls and private terraces for ceremonies that lend a view to the Alps. Swiss village hotels, especially those in Gstaad provide a romantic Alpine setting with their stunning open spaces flooded with natural light, and cozy wooden interiors with five-star accommodations. These rustic wedding venues are located in the serene Swiss countryside and hillside regions.

Irish cottages

Experience the laid back Irish culture when you get married in cottages, lodges, and country houses that host intimate weddings. These rustic Irish venues are found among wide fields and magical scenery that will make you feel like a character in the Lord of the Rings. There’s a unique barn venue near Belfast that offers a wonderful ceremony spot in its 18th-century church with stone walls, vaulted ceiling, and originally exposed beams. For many of our couples, they fell in love with a charming thatched roof cottage in the middle of a nature reserve in Cork and chose it for their rustic destination elopement in Ireland.

The heart of Europe

Switzerland’s location is very ideal since it’s landlocked by surrounding European countries Austria, Italy, Germany, and France. That makes Switzerland a perfect starting point to discover the rest of Europe. After your wedding day here, you can truly have a European adventure and you only need to ride a train to reach your next destination. You can visit the amazing Amalfi Coast in Italy, taste excellent wines in the neighboring French city, and experience the annual Oktoberfest in Germany!

The UK neighbor

Ireland is separated by water from other European countries but that doesn’t mean that your trip to Europe will be any less exciting. In fact, your whole stay in Europe may not even be enough to visit all the breathtaking nature spots in Ireland and Northern Ireland, and the iconic spots in the UK. Stonehenge, the Tower of London, York Minster and Historic Yorkshire, the Lake District National Park, and the Eden Project are only some of the UK sites to fill your itinerary, not to mention the 27 stunning Game of Thrones shooting locations in Northern Ireland! They’re more than enough for an unforgettable adventure in Europe!