2027 wedding dates: bank holidays, easter and the weekends worth knowing.

Picking a date usually starts with a venue and a vague idea of the season. Then someone looks at a calendar and notices that the Saturday you love sits on a bank holiday, or the night the clocks change.

Neither is a problem. Both are worth knowing before you pay a deposit. Here is how 2027 falls, with the dates taken from GOV.UK.

The 2027 long weekends at a glance

For England and Wales:

• Easter: Good Friday 26 March to Easter Monday 29 March
• Early May: Saturday 1 May to Monday 3 May
• Spring bank holiday: Saturday 29 May to Monday 31 May
• Summer bank holiday: Saturday 28 August to Monday 30 August
• Christmas: Christmas Day is a Saturday, with substitute bank holidays on Monday 27 and Tuesday 28 December

Scotland differs in three places. There is no Easter Monday bank holiday, the summer bank holiday is Monday 2 August rather than 30 August, and St Andrew's Day is a bank holiday on Tuesday 30 November. If half your guests live either side of the border, check which long weekend they actually get.

Easter comes early

Easter Sunday 2027 is 28 March, and that is also the night the clocks go forward. So Saturday 27 March still has a winter evening, and Sunday 28 March has an hour more light at the end of the day.

If you are looking at that weekend, plan the photographs around the Saturday light, and expect daffodils rather than peonies. Ask early about indoor space too, because late March can go either way.

Church couples have one more question to ask. Easter Saturday is the last day of Lent, and practice varies from parish to parish on weddings during Lent and on flowers in church. Your vicar will tell you what is possible.

Two May weekends, one month apart

May is the second most popular month to get married, with 13% of weddings according to Bridebook's 2026 report, behind August at 17%. In 2027, May has two long weekends, and they are likely to be among the first dates to go.

If you want one of those Saturdays, start your venue search now. If you are flexible, the Sunday of a bank holiday weekend is worth asking about. Your guests still have a day off afterwards, and venues often have more room to talk about it.

The August bank holiday

Saturday 28 August is the classic late summer long weekend, in the busiest month of the year. Book rooms for your guests as soon as you have the date, because you will be competing with every holidaymaker and festival-goer in the country, not just other weddings.

If your venue is near the coast, or anywhere people go on holiday, give guests more notice than you think they need. A block of rooms held early costs you a phone call now and saves a lot of messages later.

A Saturday Christmas

Christmas Day 2027 is a Saturday and New Year's Eve is a Friday. That makes Friday 31 December a strong date for a party, with the next day already off for most people.

The days between are harder. Trains are limited, some suppliers close, and many guests will be with family. If you love the idea of a Christmas week wedding, ask the venue and your main suppliers about their holiday hours before you fall for the date.

A few other dates to check

• Sunday 14 February: Valentine's Day falls on a Sunday, so that weekend may suit a small winter wedding. Expect florists to be at their busiest.
• Saturday 30 October: the clocks go back overnight, on 31 October. Your guests get an extra hour in bed, and your evening will be dark early.
• School holidays: these vary by council and academy trust, so check the dates for the areas your guests live in. We have a guide to school holidays and wedding dates if teachers or children are on your list.

How to use all this

Before you commit to a date, run it past three questions.

1. Who is most important to have there, and can they make it?
2. Does the long weekend help your guests, or will it make rooms and trains harder to find?
3. What does the venue charge for that date compared with the weekend before?

Saturdays are still the favourite, at 47% of weddings in Bridebook's 2026 report, with Fridays at 17%. So the weeks either side of a bank holiday are often the easiest place to find a good date at a fair price.

Once you have your date, add it to your wedding website and send your save-the-dates. Then everyone is working from the same calendar.