Winter Holyrood Park Wedding Portraits

A raw January wind was still teasing the last flakes of an overnight snow shower when Melissa and John zipped their down jackets and stepped onto soft, grassy ground of Holyrood Park.

Wedding vows were already safely spoken back in Alaska where they’re from, but they’d saved this wild Scottish cliff for the very first dawn of married life – a “just-us” portrait adventure where breath became steam and city noise faded to a far-off hum.

Why Holyrood Park Works in Winter

• High drama, low crowds – Sunrise is after 8 a.m. in mid-winter; you’ll have the entire crag to yourselves while the rest of Edinburgh clears sleep from its eyes.
• Blue-hour glow – With the sun sitting so low, cliffs stay dusted in cool pastel light for a good 40 minutes.
• Built-in backup – Calton Hill and Dean Village are a 15-minute Uber away if you want to explore the city more.
• No permit hurdles – For a two-person portrait shoot you simply respect the ranger code: stay on paths, leave no trave, no light-stands on cliff edges.

Logistics Cheat-Sheet

Item	Detail
Permit	No permits required for photoshoots; only for elopements and weddings.
Road status	Queen’s Drive may close for ice; and regularly closes at weekends for sports events.
Toilets & café	Sadly none of those anywhere close to the park!
Drone	Sub-250 g only, drones are restricted in the vicinity of the Palace of Holyroodhouse and Parliament for reasons of public safety and security.
Daylight	Mid-Jan: sunrise 08:40, sunset 15:50.

For more updated information on logistics, see Historic Environment Scotland website.

What else?

Holyrood Park sits right next to Holyrood Palace – the path along Queen’s Drive exit brings you to the palace gates in barely five minutes. When the weather cooperates, couples often trade the taxi ride for a slow walk straight up the Royal Mile: Arthur’s Seat and Salisbury Crags fall behind, Calton Hill pops into view, and every few hundred metres a wynd or close offers a quick photo stop. By the time you reach St Giles’ Cathedral at the top of the hill you’ve gathered an unplanned city-street chapter to go with your cliff-top frames, all without ever getting back in the car.

Just beyond the palace railings you’ll pass the Scottish Parliament – an angular splash of modern architecture set against the volcanic cliffs. If the security barriers are open, the landscaped forecourt is a handy pause-point: shallow pools mirror the crags, and the building’s larch-clad panels add a clean, contemporary backdrop that works well with winter neutrals. From there it’s still under a mile to the castle via the Royal Mile, so on a clear day you can fold the parliament stop into a steady uphill walk, collecting Old-Town textures—crow-stepped gables, hanging signs, and cobbled closes

Cold-Weather Styling Tips

• Hand-warmers in pockets for quick finger revivals between takes (I always have those on me so you don’t have to worry about them!)

• Layer merino under dress or shirt; nude leggings are also a good choice for long dresses.

• Chunky boots up the crag, always! No high heels please.

• Clear umbrellas double as diffusers – and we can use them as hiking poles too ;)

Final frames on Dynamic Earth lawns

With toes and camera batteries growing numb, we ended the loop on the lawns beside Dynamic Earth, where the modern glass canopy reflected an almost-hour-old sunrise.

Here Beth Melissa boots for low-heeled velvet shoes, and just before then we captured the final sequence – her in John’s arms, surrounded by brown gorse bushes, moody light, which helped create a beautifully cosy atmosphere.

One click later it came to the natural end of a session that felt more like an wee city adventure than a shoot.

Next Steps?

Ready to trade post-wedding brunch for wind-tossed hair and a view that makes your heart race? Check current winter availability & packages or dive into my full Edinburgh Elopement Guide for city locations, permits and cosy rainy-day back-ups.

Let’s make that frosty skyline the backdrop to your own love-story sequel!