Outlander Elopements · Midhope Castle
Your Outlander Elopement in Scotland
Midhope Castle. The real Lallybroch.
The archway from the show, half an hour from Edinburgh — and yes, you can say your vows under it. We’re approved by the estate to photograph elopements here.
You know this courtyard
You’ve watched Jamie bring Claire home through that gate more times than you’d care to admit. The stone walls, the archway, the feeling of a story finally putting down roots. Lallybroch may be fiction, but the place isn’t.
It’s Midhope Castle, tucked into the Hopetoun Estate half an hour from Edinburgh — and with the right permissions, you can be married in that courtyard. Not a set tour. Not a photo stop on a bus trip. Your actual wedding, at the actual Lallybroch.
And here’s the bit that makes it easy: we’ve been approved by the estate to photograph elopements and small weddings at Midhope. The permits, the timings and the “wait, are we really allowed to do this?” conversations are ours to sort. You just have to turn up and mean every word.
This page is the guide — what’s allowed, what it costs, how the day works. When you’re ready for dates and prices, they live on our Midhope Castle elopements page.
More than a film set
For millions of people, Lallybroch means something. Home. Belonging. The moment the story stops running and puts down roots. Standing in that courtyard does strange and lovely things to a fan — we’ve watched it happen.
But Midhope was remarkable long before a camera crew found it. It’s a 15th-century Scottish tower house on a working estate, surrounded by woodland and farmland, with the River Forth beyond the trees. No replica, no theme park — the real, weathered, centuries-old thing.
Full honesty, because you’ll want to know: the castle is derelict inside, so there are no tours and no grand hall. Everything happens outside. Which is exactly where you want it anyway — the archway, the courtyard, the light through the trees. That’s the Lallybroch you know.
The bits to know before you book flights
Midhope sits on a private estate. You can’t just turn up with a ring and a celebrant and hope for the best — ceremonies need permission and permits, arranged in advance. That’s the main thing we handle for you.
It’s also not officially an Outlander venue. Fans know it as Lallybroch; on paper it’s Midhope Castle, and weddings are arranged with the estate, not the production company. Jamie will not be attending. We’re sorry. We were disappointed too.
Now the lovely part: Scotland’s marriage laws are wonderfully flexible. A celebrant or humanist can legally marry you outdoors, right there in the courtyard. Or, if you’d rather do the paperwork at home, a symbolic ceremony under the archway gives you every word without the admin. Both count. Both feel exactly the same when you’re stood there.
How a Midhope elopement works
Less complicated than time travel. We promise.
01
Tell us the dream
Season, date, and whether it’s just the two of you or a handful of your favourite people. Flying in from abroad? We’ll help you build the whole trip around it.
02
We sort the estate
Permits, fees and timings, arranged properly and in advance. We’ve done this before — we know who to ask, and when the castle is at its quietest and most beautiful.
03
Legal or symbolic
A celebrant or humanist can marry you for real in the courtyard, or you do the paperwork at home and save the vows for the archway. We’ll point you to people we trust.
04
The ceremony
In the courtyard, framed by the archway you’ve paused the telly on. Handfasting, tartan, a reading from the books — as much or as little Outlander as you like.
05
Then we make pictures
The castle from every angle, the estate’s woodland, golden hour if the skies play along. A piper leading you out? Champagne in Edinburgh after? Say the word.
What it actually costs
Midhope is a private venue, so there are fees. Here are honest numbers, so you can plan properly.
Site hire
Around £500–£1,000 for use of the courtyard and grounds, paid to the estate.
Celebrant & legal fees
£400–£800, depending on who marries you and whether it’s legal or symbolic on the day.
Photography
From £2,000 with us, rising if you add extra time in Edinburgh, videography, exclusive use of the castle or a Glencoe shoot the next day. See our Midhope Castle packages.
Hair, make-up & flowers
£300–£600 to feel every inch of it, from a heather-and-thistle bouquet to the full works.
Somewhere lovely to stay
From around £250 a night for a boutique hotel or country inn nearby — or base yourselves in Edinburgh and make a honeymoon of it.
Flights from the US or Canada
Roughly $700–$1,200 each, return. Edinburgh Airport is 20 minutes from the castle, which still amuses us.
Most couples land between £7,000 and £10,000 all in, travel included — less than half the cost of the average North American wedding, for a day at Lallybroch. We know which one we’d pick.
Make it yours
Tartan, handfasting and the books
This is where Midhope gets really good. A handfasting — older than the show, and about as Scottish as a ceremony gets. A ribbon of tartan, Fraser or your own. A reading from the books, said out loud in the place they conjure. A piper echoing off the stone as you walk out married.
Then build the adventure around it: portraits down Edinburgh’s closes that evening, or keep going north — the Highlands are closer than you think. Your elopement, your itinerary. We’ll help you plot it.
Let’s plan your day at Lallybroch
Tell us the season, the dream, and who’s coming — even if it’s nobody but the two of you. Fill in the form, or message us on WhatsApp or email if that’s easier.
Good to know
Can we just turn up and elope there?
Afraid not. Midhope is on a private estate, so ceremonies need permission and permits arranged in advance. That’s the bit we handle with you, so you’re never left guessing.
Is this an official Outlander thing?
No — weddings are arranged with the estate, not the production company. Fans know it as Lallybroch; the paperwork says Midhope Castle, Hopetoun Estate. The archway doesn’t mind either way.
Can we go inside the castle?
No — the inside is derelict, which surprises people. Everything happens outside: the courtyard, the archway, the grounds. Which, not coincidentally, is everything you recognise from the show.
When should we book?
Early. Midhope is popular with fans and couples alike, and the estate occasionally closes for filming or events. We’ll check availability with them before you lock in flights.
What about the weather?
It’s Scotland: plan for four seasons, get three, laugh about it. Moody skies over a castle photograph beautifully, and we always have a plan B up our sleeve. We bring the umbrellas.
Can we add more Outlander locations?
Yes — Glencoe is the big one, usually as a next-day shoot, and Edinburgh has Outlander corners of its own. If you want to build a proper pilgrimage around the day, we’ll help you route it.
Hey, we’re Jodie & Matt
We met in the Office. We are basically Jim and Pam, except we moved to the Scottish Highlands and started photographing elopements. (Sorry, Roy.)
Parents to 3 kids, 2.5 dogs (we can explain) and 1 cat called Poppy. We love The Office, Outlander (obvs — you’re on this page, we get it), and we are STILL annoyed about the ending of Game of Thrones. Matt is Harry Potter obsessed.
We’ve been doing this for over a decade. On an elopement day we’re your witnesses, your planners, your umbrella holders and the ones quietly welling up behind the cameras. We take it seriously. We also take the piss a bit. The two are not mutually exclusive.
You’ve watched them come home to Lallybroch a hundred times.
The archway is real. The courtyard is real. The vows under it can be yours.
We’ll sort the permits, the plan and the photographs.
All you have to do is come home.
Let’s plan your Outlander elopement
WhatsApp, email or a call — tell us what you’re dreaming of and we’ll take it from there, paperwork and all.