A destination hotel set in the heart of the Donegal Gaeltacht, An Chúirt Hotel is surrounded by rugged coastlines, idyllic beaches and rich Irish heritage. Nestled at the foot of Errigal Mountain, the hotel was the perfect venue for Senior Auditor Grace Symes and Chartered Surveyor Daniel McGroarty's elopement on the 17th of August 2024. Captured by Emma Russell Photography, we love the laid-back charm of this modern destination wedding. And we think you will, too!
"Daniel and I are both from the southside of Glasgow in Scotland. Before we met, we often went to the same pubs and ran in the same circles, but we had never crossed paths. We even went to the same high school for 6 years but never met! Weirdly, after we had left school, we both went to a festival outside Manchester and, by chance, were camping at the same campsite. That is where we met and realised how close our lives were. Ten years later, we are now married!"
Grace has tied to Donegal, with her mum's family hailing from Thorr, although the couple hadn't been to visit in over ten years! In June of 2023, the pair and Daniel's parents decided it was time to visit and catch up with family. "Not to my knowledge, Daniel had planned to propose while we were there. He had planned to do this at Bunbeg beach, in front of Bád Eddie (a shipwreck), as he had heard so much about this and how often my family would go there." However, his grand plans were halted when the group's luggage got lost on the flight from Glasgow to Derry! After unsuccessfully trying to convince Grace to go to the beach in the clothes she had worn the day prior, the suitcases finally arrived in the afternoon and off they went. After walking on the beach for a few minutes, Daniel got down on one knee! "Initially, I thought he was joking and said, “Are you joking!?” but then I saw the ring! I said yes, and we stayed on the beach for a bit longer to take it all in. Then, we returned to the Air BnB, where the whole family was staying, and popped a few bottles of champagne. The celebrations continued into the evening and for the rest of the holiday!
Grace had booked a bridal facial package with a local aesthetics salon in Glasgow to start her beauty journey. "I met with them for a consultation three months before the wedding, and they created a skincare package tailored to me. I had one facial appointment each month before the wedding and a final “glow” facial a week before the wedding, so my face was ready for smooth make-up application. I would recommend this or something similar to any future bride - my skin felt amazing the weekend of the wedding!"
"I always thought I was decisive until I went shopping for a wedding dress! Initially, I wanted a very plain dress – long sleeves, high neck, and fitted with minimum detail. After trying lots of these on, I didn’t get the “this is the one” feeling I was expecting to get! My mum encouraged me to try styles I wouldn’t usually go for, and that’s when I found my dress. The dress itself was still quite minimalist in detail; however, it had sequined detachable sleeves that I loved! I also opted for an overskirt for walking down the aisle."
"We had a bridesmaids day out in Glasgow, with my mum joining. We had booked three different appointments so the girls could try on different styles and colours! After trying on many dresses, the girls decided they loved a navy halter neck backless dress with a bow on the bottom of the back! They looked stunning – it were verging on upstaging the bride!"
"We got married in the Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Dunlewey, Gweedore. This was special for me as many of my family members on my mum’s side had married there. It was a traditional Catholic ceremony, and my cousins played the hymns and music. We adored Father Brian O Fearraigh; he was so friendly, warm and, not forgetting, hilarious. Some of our guests were of different religions, and he made everyone feel welcome and part of the celebration. Daniel and I were nervous beforehand when speaking to all our friends and family to do our vows. However, as soon as we were at the altar talking to Father Brian, we felt immediately at ease, almost forgetting everyone was behind us watching us get married. A memorable part for us and many of our guests was Father Brian taking a selfie of himself from the alter with the wedding party and guests behind him!"
When the pair returned to Glasgow from their engagement in Donegal, they brainstormed venue ideas, but nothing stood out. Luckily, they had a Donegal tourism magazine from the trip, and one night, Daniel was flicking through the magazine when he came across an advert for An Chúirt Hotel. They went to Gweedore for a weekend with Grace's mum to check out the hotel and fell in love straight away! "I am so happy with our decision to have our wedding there. The staff at the hotel went above and beyond to make it a very special weekend. They were so flexible with our requests, and I couldn’t recommend them more. Thank you to Francis Breslin and Martin Clegg for being so friendly and helpful – a credit to the hotel!"
For the reception, the couple had the band Hi-Fi play after the dinner service. As we are from Glasgow, we didn’t get a chance to go to any showcase shows for wedding bands, so we solely relied on their YouTube videos and websites! With lots of great reviews, we decided to use Hi-Fi. They did not disappoint and kept the dancefloor full throughout the evening!"
Regarding their best decision, Grace had to say, "Deciding to have a 3-day wedding – we had welcome drinks in my cousin’s pub “Teach Hiudai Beag” in Bunbeg on the Friday night where all of our guests got to enjoy plenty of pints of Guinness and traditional Irish music! The wedding was then on Saturday in Dunlewey Chapel and the reception in An Chúirt Hotel. We then decided to have our “After Party” on Sunday on Arranmore Island – we took a ferry with all our guests and topped up the Guinnesses in Phil Bans pub on the island!"
- Gráinne