A boutique Durham country house hotel has won a top wedding award after being voted one of the best places in the county to get married.

Bowburn Hall Hotel, on the outskirts of the city, saw off competition from across Durham to win the wedding venue category at the Hitched Wedding Awards 2023.

With the votes cast by the newlyweds themselves, the win is extra special, as happy couples who had already tied the knot at the hall were the ones to accolade it. 

Bowburn Hall Hotel went up against more than 18,000 other wedding businesses during the awards process. 

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The Hitched Wedding Awards recognise the best wedding venues and suppliers from across the UK based solely on client reviews and, this year, more than 18,000 wedding businesses took part in the awards process.

Originally built as a private home in the 1920s, Bowburn Hall Hotel is licensed for both weddings and civil ceremonies, Couples can tie the knot in at the historic hall - either the hotel’s elegant period ballroom or outside, with a fairytale tree-lined aisle,  a cascading fountain and an ornate pergola.

In the hotel, guests are treated to a choice of 20 individually-styled bedrooms, each with crystal chandeliers, freestanding copper baths and antique furniture.

Alternatively, guests can choose to stay in the five self-contained garden lodges within the Hall's grounds.

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All of the bridal couples that choose to get hitched at the Hall are given complimentary use of the honeymoon suite with its spectacular four-poster bed.

Wedding menus can even made using homegrown produce from the gardens at Bowburn Hall’s sister hotel, Hardwick Hall, where possible.

With all of these amenities, it is not difficult to see why newlyweds voted the Durham hotel as one of the best places to get married in County Durham.

But general manager Callum Gallagher feels that what really sets Bowburn Hall apart from other venues is his team’s willingness to “go the extra mile for each and every couple.

“Bowburn Hall is pretty, it’s luxurious and very well equipped – not to mention in a great position on the edge of the city,” he said. “But I feel where we really stand out is that we make sure every wedding is exactly what the couple has dreamed of.

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“The hotel is endlessly versatile and so are we.”

Zoe Burke, Editor of Hitched added, “We are so lucky in the UK to have so many talented, professional and caring wedding businesses for couples to choose from, and it’s so lovely to read all the glowing reviews couples leave for their wedding vendors on Hitched.

“With an incredible 1350 winning based on excellent customer feedback, it goes to show that wedding vendors in the UK go above and beyond when it comes to helping couples have the best days of their lives.”