The Yarra Valley is hands down my favourite place in the world to photograph weddings. The scenery, the changing seasons, the unique local beer and wine, and the bonus that it’s all right in my backyard. Most Yarra Valley wedding venues are just 15 minutes from home for me, which means I know the area (and the light) like the back of my hand.
What truly makes the Yarra Valley such a sought-after wedding destination is the sheer number of amazing wedding venues here, each with its own charm and setting. The region is mainly spread across three key highways: Maroondah, Melba, and Warburton.
Maroondah Highway is the most well known, running between Lilydale and Healesville. It’s home to many of the iconic commercial wineries and larger Yarra Valley wedding venues, including standout locations like Re’em Yarra Valley and Boat O’Craigo.
Melba Highway connects Yarra Glen to Yea and winds through rolling hills and open valleys. It’s here you’ll find stunning venues like Fergusson Winery, Acacia Ridge and Immerse, all firm favourites for Yarra Valley weddings, with Fergusson in particular one I end up shooting at again and again.
Then there’s the Warburton Highway, often overlooked, but a hidden gem when it comes to Yarra Valley style weddings. This stretch is full of smaller, family-run wineries where you’re treated more like a friend than a client.
It’s also worth mentioning the pocket around Warrandyte, right at the gateway to the Yarra Valley, home to two more of my regular haunts: The Farm Yarra Valley, all rolling paddocks and barn facade charm, and Potters, with its six acres of native gardens, waterfalls and wisteria-draped courtyard.
Here’s a list of what I consider to be some of the best wedding venues in the Yarra Valley, each one worth checking out for your big day.
(in Alphabetical order)
- Acacia Ridge
- Boat O’Craigo
- The Farm Yarra Valley
- Fergusson Winery
- Immerse
- Killara Estate Winery
- Potters
- Re’em Yarra Valley
ACACIA RIDGE
One of the most common questions I get asked by couples still on the hunt for a venue is “where’s a Yarra Valley wedding venue with a marquee?” Your answer is right here, at Acacia Ridge.
Just on the outskirts of Yarra Glen, Acacia Ridge boasts premium vineyard views with that relaxed, rustic energy the Valley’s known for. The permanent marquee is the standout, clear-roofed, fairy-lit, and surrounded by vines, it caters for sit-down or cocktail receptions and gives you a brilliant blank canvas to make your own. For wet weather (or an over-35-degree scorcher), ceremonies move into the Vine Room, which doubles up later in the night as the dance floor once the reception’s in full swing. The 1850s Miner’s Hut rounds things out as your bridal suite for the day, the perfect spot to get ready or steal a quiet moment away from it all. Cathy and Lachlan run things with a genuinely flexible approach, including catering for multicultural weddings, so the sky’s the limit on what your reception actually looks and tastes like.
With acres of vines, rustic sheds and that marquee as a backdrop, you’re spoiled for choice on both ceremony and photo locations here. And on a warm summer’s day, they run misting throughout and around the marquee, so refreshing, so good, your guests will thank you for it.
You really can’t beat partying the night away at your Yarra Valley reception under that marquee, lit up and surrounded by vines. It’s no wonder Acacia Ridge has remained one of the most consistently loved venues in the Valley, year after year.
BOAT O’CRAIGO
One of the newer additions to the Yarra Valley wedding scene, and it’s already making waves. Boat O’Craigo in Healesville is a fully renovated, contemporary venue overlooking vineyards, forest and the Black Spur ranges from pretty much every angle, modern design meets that classic Yarra Valley backdrop.
Ceremonies happen in The Pavilion, an open-air space with a dramatic sweeping roofline framing views straight out to Mt Riddell, while the reception moves into the Glasshouse, an architectural standout with floor-to-ceiling windows, a stone fireplace, black steel-framed doors and a pink-marble bar that brings a proper hint of glamour to the night.
It’s only hosted a handful of weddings so far, but the early feedback says everything you need to know, couples and their guests raving about the venue itself and especially about Caity and her team, who keep coming up by name for going above and beyond on the day. If you’re after somewhere fresh, polished and a little bit different to the more established wineries in the Valley, Boat O’Craigo is well worth a look.
THE FARM YARRA VALLEY
The Farm Yarra Valley sits just on the outskirts of Ringwood, yet you’d swear you were so much further away. A hundred acres of vines, paddocks and that classic homestead feel, antique fixtures, an open timber veranda, vineyard views for days, it’s the kind of place that makes you forget the city’s only a 30 minute drive back the other way.
This is genuinely a food and wine lover’s haven. Everything’s grounded in the property itself, locally grown wine, seasonal farm-to-plate menus, turning out some properly good food for your guests. If you want your reception to feel like a proper paddock-to-plate experience rather than standard wedding catering, this is where you come.
You’re spoiled for choice on spaces too. There’s a rustic outdoor ceremony area near the barn, with the option of speeches and dancing outdoors as well if the weather’s playing nice. Or for something more intimate and atmospheric, the Barrel Room puts you right in the heart of the winemaking process, surrounded by ageing oak barrels, and comfortably seats up to 120 guests if you want that cosier, tucked-away reception feel.
Whether you’re after wide-open paddock views or a moodier indoor setting wrapped in wine barrels, The Farm gives you genuine variety without losing that relaxed, grounded character that makes it stand out from the bigger commercial wineries in the Valley.
FERGUSSON WINERY
If you’ve ever wished a venue could just handle everything so you can stop stressing and actually enjoy your wedding, Fergusson is that venue. Sarah runs the show on-site, and she’s hands down one of the most approachable, switched-on wedding coordinators I’ve worked with, the kind who makes even the trickiest logistics feel completely sorted.
You’re spoiled for choice on ceremony locations here, four in total, including two indoor options, so wet weather is never the headache it is at other Yarra Valley venues. The Forever Chapel brings proper old-world charm with traditional pews and stained glass, right next to the Secret Garden with its wisteria-draped bridge and pond. If you’re after something more rustic, the Barrel Room delivers oak barrels and fairy lights as a stunning backup ceremony or reception space, while the Sandstone Gazebo gives you that classic outdoor vineyard backdrop everyone pictures when they think Yarra Valley wedding. And the food, it’s some of the best you’ll find at any winery wedding in the valley, full stop.
For photos, the combination of vines, gardens and rolling hills gives me heaps to play with no matter the time of day, and having great indoor backup options means I’m never scrambling for a plan B if the weather turns on you.
I actually ran my first wedding photography workshop here in 2025, because when I needed a venue that looked incredible but was completely zero-hassle to deal with, Fergusson was a no-brainer.
IMMERSE
Immerse has got two pretty big selling points for couples looking for a Yarra Valley wedding venue. First, accommodation on site, so you and your partner can get ready on the morning of your wedding and quickly walk back to your room after letting loose on the dance floor all night. Perfect.
Second, you’ve got two ceremony spaces to choose from on site, the proper indoor chapel if you’re after something a bit more traditional, or the garden chapel (really a gorgeous gazebo set among the garden by the lake) if you want that classic outdoor Yarra Valley feel. Having the indoor chapel there also means you’ve got a brilliant wet weather backup if the garden option doesn’t quite go to plan.
The grounds here are enormous, giving you heaps of different photo locations, from the lake and its bridge to a gazebo swing tucked into the gardens. If you’re keen on a first look, there’s also plenty of room to get well away from prying eyes, whether that’s guests staying on-site or others who’ve arrived early.
A quick two minute drive up the hill to the back of the property gives you 360 degree views and absolutely killer sunsets, some of the best in the Valley.
And there’s no shortage of room, indoor or outdoor, for your reception in any season, this is a venue that’s been getting it right for over 20 years, and it shows.
KILLARA ESTATE WINERY
I’m going to be a little (a lot) biased towards Killara Estate, because our wedding was held there in 2014. I was photographing weddings back then, but nowhere near as many as I have now. After being to hundreds of other venues since my own day, if I had the choice again, I’d still pick Killara.
The new crew, Amy and Adrian, bring a trove of experience with them and are already taking things up another level. And Kev’s still kicking about the place too, an absolute legend who’s been part of the Killara story for years.
Killara boasts some of the best views in the Yarra Valley, especially as far as Warburton Highway venues in the upper Valley go. You’ve got the option of two different decking areas for your ceremony, or the wet weather option undercover in the barrel room is just as good.
There are acres upon acres of fantastic landscape for photos, rolling hills, bushland, dams, beautiful romantic long grass areas, and of course, vineyards, 140 acres of the stuff in total.
Killara’s food and wine are bloody amazing, and there’s plenty of menu options to customise depending on your taste and budget.
Inside you can seat over 100 guests, plus there’s plenty of space for a rocking dance floor, with capacity up to 150 for bigger celebrations.
Killara will only ever have one wedding per weekend too, meaning maximum attention and customer service for you, especially that week. At Killara, you’re family from the moment you walk in, not just another couple on the wedding factory wheel. I cannot recommend this venue enough for anyone planning a Yarra Valley wedding.
POTTERS
You’re only 5 minutes off EastLink at Ringwood here, but worlds away in terms of relaxed country vibes.
With accommodation on site, six acres of native gardens and waterfalls for photo opportunities, and a chapel as your indoor wet weather option, you’re spoiled for choice. The wisteria-draped courtyard is a particular favourite of mine, it’s one of those spots that photographs beautifully no matter the season.
The top of the property backs onto Warrandyte State Forest, giving you that proper Australiana bush feel, and it’s well worth ducking up there for a few cheeky couple sunset photos too.
Indoors, you’ve got an epic amount of room for a dance floor and for all your guests to sit down, eat and relax on your wedding night, with capacity for up to 220 guests if you’re after a bigger celebration.
RE’EM YARRA VALLEY
(HELEN & JOEY ESTATE)
Yes, it really does have two names, which trips up almost every couple I mention it to. The venue itself is Re’em, sitting on the grounds of Helen & Joey Estate in Gruyere, so don’t be confused if you hear locals or other vendors call it one or the other, they’re talking about the same place.
Confusing name aside, this is one of the only wedding venues in the Yarra Valley with an actual proper hotel on site, sixteen boutique rooms with vineyard views, so your wedding party and out-of-town guests can stay right where the celebration is happening rather than driving home or booking somewhere nearby.
The food here is a genuine standout too. Helen & Joey’s restaurant carries a One Hat rating, and the wood-fired menu leans into Asian flavours inspired by the owners’ own heritage, it’s some of the best food you’ll find at any winery wedding in the Valley, and it pairs beautifully with the estate’s own cool-climate wines.
Ceremonies happen out on the deck overlooking the vines and the estate’s lake, giving you that classic rolling-hills Yarra Valley backdrop, with the architecturally designed buildings adding a sleeker, more contemporary edge than a lot of the rustic barns and barrel rooms elsewhere on this list. If you want your wedding to feel a little more boutique-hotel-meets-vineyard than full-blown country barn, Re’em (or Helen & Joey, take your pick) is well worth the visit.
