Venue guide · 3 min read · Updated
Weddings in Madrid hotels:how to get good light without a garden
With no garden at dusk, a hotel wedding is settled indoors. How to plan it.
A wedding in a central hotel is decided indoors: halls with artificial light, narrow corridors and no garden at dusk in which to rescue the session. It is solved with craft and well-placed lighting, not with luck.
What changes at a hotel wedding
- There is no last light of the afternoon to count on. Planning works backwards: the couple's session is sought in the best interior of the building or in the street, and decided in advance.
- One works with one's own light from the start, without setting up equipment in the middle of the banquet.
- Spaces are smaller, so discretion matters: a few people who move well.
- Logistics are the advantage: guests do not take to the road, there are rooms in the same building and preparations happen upstairs.
Weekdays and off-season
Hotels host weddings all year round, including dates that an estate cannot cover. A weekday or off-peak wedding usually finds more availability.
The half hour that does exist
A hotel has no garden at dusk, but the street has its good hour. If the building faces a square, a rooftop or a wide pavement, there is a window of light that can be used without the celebration noticing. These are the times in Madrid:
| Date | Good light begins | Sunset | Light ends |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15 May | 20:47 | 21:26 | 21:45 |
| 15 June | 21:06 | 21:47 | 22:07 |
| 15 July | 21:05 | 21:45 | 22:04 |
| 15 August | 20:37 | 21:14 | 21:32 |
| 15 September | 19:49 | 20:25 | 20:42 |
| 15 October | 18:59 | 19:36 | 19:53 |
Ten minutes at the door at that hour change the entire film. It is best decided beforehand: in a hotel those minutes must be taken from the cocktail hour, and someone needs to know.
The street session: what the city council says
If the couple's session takes place on the pavement, in a square or in a nearby park, Madrid City Council regulates photographic reports on public roads and in municipally managed gardens and parks. There is a simplified procedure, the "acto comunicado", and according to the council its conditions are these:
- A team of up to fifteen people, with a camera on the shoulder, tripod or monopod, and no electrical equipment.
- A maximum of six hours and up to five square metres of space, without hindering pedestrians or vehicles.
- It is notified before the day of the session, at no charge, and the receipt must be carried on the day of the shoot.
If the set-up needs its own lighting with a power supply, takes more room or is larger, it no longer falls under this arrangement: ask the council which procedure applies and who handles it before the day.
A July night in Madrid
The average July minimum at the Retiro is about 19 degrees, and average humidity is around 38 %. It is a dry heat that weighs during the day and gives several degrees of relief at night. As general advice, if the hotel has a terrace, it tends to be better used after sunset.
Questions specific to a hotel
- Is there a preparation room separate from the guests' rooms?
- Until what time can music play in the hall and on the terrace?
- Is there a service lift or a route for the team to cross the building without passing through the banquet room?
Two hotels for reference
- Hotel Santo Domingo, in central Madrid.
- NH Madrid Eurobuilding, in the Padre Damián area.