Harbour ceremonies and receptions

Riva above Rose Bay Marina, taken exclusively: 120 seated or 140 for a cocktail reception, with the harbour along one side and the coastal Italian interiors along the other.

With the whole floor yours, the order of the day is up to you — ceremony, drinks on the water side, then a dinner nobody is hurrying.

Sails on the Lavender Bay foreshore takes up to 92 seated or 120 for a cocktail reception, with the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge across the water and guests able to arrive by ferry from Circular Quay.

Seasonal Australian menus and a considered wine list, in a room that needs very little dressing.

The James seats 114 with the dining room reserved entirely for you, and moves from ceremony to reception in the same space. The room is dark, warm and quietly theatrical.

The team runs the day from beginning to end, which is the pleasure of holding a wedding in a restaurant rather than a hall.

Exclusive hire at Chowder Bay takes up to 100 seated or 200 for a cocktail reception, in the old marine depot at Clifton Gardens with the harbour immediately outside.

Modern Australian menus, open air, and a site that feels a long way from the city while being twenty minutes from it.

Ripples Watsons Bay opens in early 2027 inside the heritage-listed Dunbar House, and is taking wedding enquiries ahead of that. Capacities are 110 seated or 150 for a cocktail reception, with the top floor available exclusively.

A balcony runs along the harbour side of the building, where the photographs will be taken.

Summer Salt takes up to 190 seated or 220 for a cocktail reception above the sand at Elouera Beach, with the ocean across the full width of the room.

Local seafood and produce on the menu, and a bar that runs as freely as the afternoon requires.

The Nielsen offers three settings on Shark Beach. The Pavilion seats up to 90 or holds 120, with soaring ceilings and the water at the end of the lawn — the one most couples picture first.

The Kiosk holds up to 120 for a cocktail reception, and the Beach Club, with its own bar and alfresco deck, carries a party from a sunlit lunch through to twilight drinks on the sand.

The Langham does weddings in two rooms. The Drawing Room seats 100 or holds 150 standing, with an original fireplace and collected furniture, and can be divided down to 40.

The Ballroom seats 150 or holds 200, gold-panelled and built for scale, and splits into halves seating 60 each.

SRG's wedding spaces at the Australian National Maritime Museum sit on Darling Harbour with the city lights across the water. HarbourWatch seats 180 or holds 650 for a cocktail reception, its bi-fold glass walls opening straight onto the boardwalk.

The Ben Lexcen Terrace, perched above the boardwalk, seats 270 or holds 400 in the open air, with the skyline behind the speeches.

Lago Cucina can be taken exclusively above the Budgewoi Hotel: Mediterranean interiors, bold Italian cooking, and Lake Budgewoi showing between the buildings.

It is the Central Coast option, ninety minutes north of the city, and the whole first floor is yours for the day.

Ormeggio at The Spit takes up to 90 seated or 100 for a cocktail reception — private and boutique, looking out across Middle Harbour and Pearl Bay.

It suits a smaller reception where the food matters as much as the setting. Enquiries go to groups@ormeggio.com.au.