A barn wedding in South Devon
The Grain Store
A barn wedding in South Devon: a simple weekend timeline (Friday to Monday)
A Friday to Monday wedding is not just “more time”, it changes how the whole celebration feels. Instead of arriving, rushing through the day, and leaving straight after, you get time to settle in, enjoy your guests, and let everything unfold naturally.
At The Grain Store Weddings, the venue is exclusively yours from Friday 3pm until Monday 10am. Below is a simple example of how that weekend can flow, built around the way couples often choose to use the space.
Explore the venue here: https://www.thegrainstoreweddings.co.uk/the-venue
If you’re searching for barn wedding venues in South Devon, this is the sort of weekend flow many couples want:
Before the weekend: Wednesday set up (optional, but incredibly calming)
If you would like extra time, you can begin setting up in The Grain Store from the Wednesday before. For many couples, this is the moment the whole weekend starts to feel easy.
It gives you breathing room for the details that can otherwise pile up. Décor can be placed slowly, supplier access is straightforward, and you can make choices as you go, rather than doing everything at speed the day before the wedding.
You can see The Grain Store space here:
Friday: arrive, unpack, and let the place feel like yours
From Friday 3pm, the venue becomes yours.
This is the day to arrive without pressure. People drift in, bags are dropped, and the farmhouse starts to fill with the kind of pre wedding excitement that feels calm rather than chaotic.
The farmhouse has seven bedrooms and sleeps 14, which makes it ideal for your closest people to stay on site across the weekend.
Friday is often the quiet favourite. Not because it is big or busy, but because it is where the weekend begins to feel real. A relaxed supper, a drink in the courtyard, a slow walk down to the beach, maybe for a drink or meal at The Cricket Inn at Beesands with friends who have arrived in the area. You are not “on show” yet. You are simply together.
Saturday morning: the best kind of build up
When you are staying on site, the morning has a different rhythm. It starts with breakfast on the terrace, music in the background, and everyone getting ready for the big day ahead.
This is also a lovely window for a few quiet moments. A walk to clear your head. A look at the ceremony space. A quick check in with the people you care about most. It is the sort of morning that feels grounded, not rushed.
Ceremony time: three licensed locations, one clear choice
At The Grain Store Weddings, there are three licensed ceremony locations:
Some couples love the warmth of the barn. Some prefer the softness of the garden. Others want that coastal feeling, wide skies, sea air, and a ceremony with the landscape doing the talking.
If you are planning readings or a few words outdoors, there is a portable PA system available, which can be used in the walled garden or at the beach for ceremonies, speeches, or readings.
Explore the beach option here.
After the ceremony: drinks, garden games, and the start of the celebration
This is where a venue really earns its keep. The best weddings have natural spaces for guests to gather, chat, wander, and take photos without it feeling staged.
It is also where you get to enjoy the small moments, the hugs, the laughter, the “can you believe it’s today?” conversations, and the feeling that there is time. A weekend format gives you that, and guests feel it too.
The barn wedding celebration in South Devon: dinner, speeches, and dancing
The Grain Store is set up for a proper celebration. There is seating for up to 150 guests for the wedding breakfast, with the option to invite up to 30 additional evening guests if you wish.
As a dry hire venue, you can choose your own caterers and bar provider. There is a dedicated catering space with separate access, and if your suppliers have not worked at the venue before, they can be shown around in advance.
One detail couples often love: there are no corkage fees, which can make a significant difference to the overall budget and gives you more freedom in how you plan the day.
Saturday evening: the wedding party
Barn weddings are made for evenings. Warm lighting, music, and everyone together in one place. As the night builds, it tends to feel like the most natural kind of celebration, the one where the dance floor fills and people stay because they want to, not because they are watching the clock.
Celebrations finish by 12am, with carriages by 12.30am.
Sunday: the part that makes it feel like a weekend
Sunday is where a Friday to Monday wedding really comes into its own.
People wake up slowly. There is time for coffee, stories from the night before, and that gentle glow that comes from knowing there is no sudden rush to pack up and disappear. It becomes a day for reconnecting, for lingering chats, and for enjoying your favourite people without a schedule running the show.
For some couples, Sunday is quiet and restorative. For others, it is a soft extension of the celebration, with relaxed food, a walk to the coast, and the kind of togetherness that feels rare in everyday life.
Monday morning: a calm goodbye
By Monday 10am, it is time to say goodbye and head home.
It can feel surprisingly emotional, in the best way. A weekend gives you more than a ceremony and a party. It gives you the before and after, the settling in and the winding down. The experience feels fuller, and the memories tend to feel deeper because of it.
If you are picturing a barn wedding weekend in South Devon
If you are drawn to the warmth of a barn celebration, with countryside calm and the coast close by, a Friday to Monday format is one of the best ways to make the whole wedding feel relaxed and personal.
