"How much does a wedding cost" has no single answer - a marquee-on-a-farm with a buffet costs a fraction of a full-service hotel wedding with a live band. What follows are realistic ranges for a typical 80-guest wedding in Cornwall, starting with wedding venues in Cornwall, so you can see roughly where your own plan sits before you start getting quotes.
| Item | Typical range |
|---|---|
| Venue hire (exclusive use, full day) | £2,000 - £6,000 |
| Catering (wedding breakfast + evening food) | £3,500 - £9,000 |
| Photography (full day coverage) | £1,400 - £2,500 |
| Florist (bouquets, buttonholes, venue flowers) | £800 - £2,500 |
| Marquee hire (if the venue is not already covered) | £1,500 - £5,000 |
| Attire (dress, suit, alterations) | £800 - £2,500 |
| Entertainment (band or DJ, evening) | £500 - £1,500 |
| Cake | £200 - £500 |
| Contingency (roughly 10%) | £1,100 - £3,200 |
What actually moves the number
- Guest count is the single biggest lever - catering, cake and often venue pricing scale directly with headcount, and evening-only guests cost far less per head than full-day guests.
- Day and season - a Saturday in July or August costs noticeably more for venues and photographers than a weekday or an out-of-season date, when the same venue can be a third cheaper.
- Venue type - a licensed venue with catering and staff included can be a similar total cost to a bare marquee-on-a-farm once you add catering, furniture hire and a caterer's license separately.
- How much you DIY versus book as a full service - see what you can actually DIY at a wedding for where this genuinely saves money and where it doesn't.
Book the venue and photographer first
These are the two things that get booked up 12 months or more ahead for summer Saturdays in Cornwall. Everything else on this list can flex around what budget is left once those two are confirmed.
Get a realistic wedding budget
Tell Plan My Do your guest count and what you're planning, and we'll put together a cost breakdown tailored to your wedding, not a generic range.
Get my budget