Self Catering Wedding Venue

A special self catering wedding venue based near Carsington Reservoir, Ashbourne, Derbyshire. Knockerdown is a DIY exclusive use site which includes use of a swimming pool, games room and fabulous meadow

Social Media Icons

Exclusive Use Wedding Venue in Derbyshire provides complete amenities, including wedding accommodations for a 3-night weekend stay or a 2-night mid-week stay, for up to 93 loved ones and friends.

Book a viewing to see one of the best countryside wedding venues in the UK. Our location is situated near Carsington Water, on the edge of the Peak District National Park, which is about 6 miles away from Ashbourne. If you are unable to visit us in person, then book an online meeting with one of our wedding coordinators. We will take you on a journey of all the wedding site has to offer.

Our wedding planner looks forward to meeting you.

Book A Viewing Wedding Brochure

Wedding Prices

Wedding Reviews

Wedding Gallery

Wedding Spaces

Guest Accommodation

Suppliers List

Perfect Wedding Venue

A truly unique destination, your Peak District wedding venue awaits you and your guests at Knockerdown. Fiona and Justeen welcome you to our wonderful countryside wedding retreat where you will find your every need catered for by our friendly and experienced team, who are here to help you create your perfect day.

Our highly experienced team are on hand to offer advice, support, recommend suppliers and local knowledge to help you create the big day of your dreams. You can appoint a caterer of your choice, choose your own entertainment, decorations, photographer, cake maker, and bring in your own drinks (we are a no corkage wedding venue!!) Read our self catering wedding checklist and our steps to planning your big day.

We can offer as much support as you need or if you are wanting a more laid back affair, with the freedom to enjoy the ‘DIY Wedding’ option, we can step back and let you enjoy the site exclusively for your use. We are able to offer weddings all year round including the cold winter months for special snow coated winter weddings. For those looking a budget wedding venue a winter wedding can be the perfect option. Please contact our team if you wish to discuss the winter options.

Whatever your plans are the team at Knockerdown take great pride in providing couples, their families and guests with a celebration that is truly unique, individual and unforgettable.

What Our Wedding Guests Say

Your Wedding Ceremony

Bride and bridesmaids coming down the street

Say "I Do"

Getting married at Knockerdown means you can create a wedding day that is truly unique and special to you.

You can choose to hold your ceremony outdoors, in the meadow surrounded by far reaching views over rolling hills and open countryside, and we are fully licensed to host civil wedding ceremonies under the specially designed oak framed garden gazebo.

The outdoor gazebo includes a wonderful alfresco aisle, guests benches and registrar table. You can even walk through the avenue of trees, down the meadow and to the gazebo to make for a truly stunning start to your ceremony.

With years of experience, we are super flexible, so no amount of inclement weather will spoil the day, the Brackendale Suite has plenty of scope to be turned into a beautiful space for an indoor civil ceremony complete with the all-important aisle.

The room can be easily reset and transformed for wedding breakfasts whilst enjoying reception drinks on the private terrace.

Our wedding planning team at Knockerdown are always on hand to help with your choice of styling, layout and decoration and each of these areas can be decorated as you wish to suit your style, beliefs and personality. We also have a wide variety of tried and tested suppliers who we will be able to provide you with everything you need to create your special day.

Book A Viewing

Derbyshire Wedding Venue With Accommodation For Up to 93 People

Once you have arrived, you and your guests can just park up, check in and relax for the duration of your stay.

Your guests can choose to stay in one of our 16 individually styled self-catering holiday cottages. We provide towels, linen, iron, ironing board and a hairdryer in each cottage.

We are a dog friendly wedding venue with 4 of our cottages specificaly allocated so you can even bring along your furry friends for a dog friendly wedding!

We are an exclusive use wedding venue and this includes free use of our on site facilities include an indoor heated swimming pool, children’s play area, a communal games area and lots of grounds to explore.

Situated in an idyllic setting of rolling Derbyshire countryside Knockerdown is the perfect hideaway to bring your family and loved ones together for your special occasion. There is a great pub across the road which is dog and family friendly so perfect for anyone who fancies a bite to eat and a pint after arrival.

Knockerdown is 6 miles away from the charming market town of Ashbourne so if any of your guests need to pick up supplies or indeed want to explore the local area whilst they are here then Ashbourne is the perfect place to start!

Book A Viewing Our Location

Follow Knockerdown On Social Media

A Wedding To Remember

Brackendale room set up for wedding reception

After the nuptials, its time to celebrate and at Knockerdown you can create a celebration that will be unforgettable.

We have a variety of options for you to use and enjoy. The large purpose-built Brackendale Room is a large blank canvas which can be decorated as you wish to suit your style and personality. The suite comfortably seats up to 100 guests with a choice of formal or informal layouts to suit. The high windows on two sides, allow natural light to shine through and with a neutral coloured interior, it really lends itself to any style of wedding including rustic, natural, modern and contemporary.

The Brackendale Room also boasts a lovely outdoor terrace area, which is perfect for an open air drinks reception with the perfect backdrop of the Derbyshire Dales.

Food and drink are a hugely important part of any wedding and our experienced team are hand to help you source the best caterers for your needs. Choose to have a formal three course meal or for a more laid back affair why not have a feasting table for guests to help themselves throughout the day. Hire in food trucks, hog roasts, pizza ovens or keep it really simple and provide your own delicious food.

At Knockerdown we love a celebration and that of course means Fizz! We can offer a variety of spaces for toasting the happy couple and can provide drinks reception stations anywhere on site. The wedding garden gazebo and Brackendale terrace are both popular spots for fizz and canapes. We don't have a licensed bar at Knockerdown so we ask that you provide your own drinks, but you can bring as much as you like and there is no corkage charge from us.

Book A Viewing

How to make your wedding more affordable? - A DIY Wedding Venue

Couples choose to tie the knot with a DIY wedding due to costs and personal choice, you can make your wedding more affordable by choosing your own suppliers like caterers, DJ’s, florists, activities which means that you can create your perfect day, unique to you.

Knockerdown is a non traditional and unique wedding venue where we can offer couples the opportunity to choose your perfect day with the flexibility and freedom of using outside suppliers like street vans and food vendors and personal handmade decorations made by your family and friends. You choose your day with a complete do-it-yourself approach to your blank canvas wedding. The Knockerdown wedding coordinators will be with you every step of the way and they can advise on tried and tested ideas such as a street festival wedding to a rustic style gazebo wedding and different layouts for your wedding breakfast room.

We are proud to host same sex weddings, hand tying ceremonies and celebrant marriages and provide the blank canvas for you to let your imagination run wild and host the wedding that you imagined on the day you got engaged.

Book A Viewing

DIY Wedding FAQ's

Planning your DIY Wedding | Self Catering Wedding Ideas

A happy bridge and groom at Knockerdown — Credit: EKR Pictures

Your wedding day is one of the most special and memorable days of your life and while having a packaged wedding can sometimes be the traditional and convenient route, self catering your wedding offers a unique opportunity to add personal touches that reflect you and your partner's styles and tastes.

The team at Knockerdown have put together two really helpful blogs posts providing self catering wedding ideas and a guide on planning your DIY wedding, also known as a dry hire wedding.

Self Catering Wedding Ideas Planning your DIY Wedding