Navigating the Forecast for Your Brisbane Wedding

There aren’t many places in the world where weddings can take place in the most beautiful of outdoor locations year-round. One of the reasons we love Brisbane weddings is the incredible climate and how couples can get legally wed anywhere.

In our many years of experience specialising in providing the decor for and setting up outdoor wedding ceremonies in Brisbane, I’m happy to say it is actually quite rare for a forecast shower or rain to coincide exactly with a ceremony time slot. So rare, that only 5% of all our weddings each year relocate to an undercover option.

At ‘With Love’ you aren’t just booking chairs and an arbour, you’re booking us – Cara and Jamie the 2 Directors (and self-confessed perfectionists!) so, we’ll help ensure that whether your ceremony takes place in the stunning outdoors or a beautiful indoor ceremony, your setting is intentional, elegant, and stress-free.

the Forecast in Perspective

What if the forecast shows rain?

Firstly, before feeling discouraged by a rain icon alongside a 30% (chance) on your phone, we strongly recommend looking at the detailed forecast on the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM). There are BIG differences between isolated showers and a widespread weather event, and a short 1-hour slot of possible passing showers and 24 hours of solid rain.

Once you check the detailed timings and the amount of rain expected, you may realise that 30% chance of rain you saw forecast may actually equate to a 2% chance of a drizzle at the time of your ceremony – extremely minimal!

• Check the Timing: A 30% chance of rain for the day might mean a shower is expected overnight or early morning, with a 0% chance during your actual ceremony time slot.
• Isolated vs. Widespread: “Isolated showers” may mean the rain may land “somewhere” in South East Queensland (which could be anywhere between the Gold Coast and Noosa, or inland). In reality, the chance of rain at your specific ceremony location at that exact hour is likely to be very low. But do check!
• The closer to your wedding the more accurate the forecast: Sometimes rain that is forecast days prior, comes earlier or later, falls elsewhere or not at all. If your heart is set on your original outdoor location, it’s ideal if you can wait till the day prior to check the detailed forecast, or even the morning of for an even more accurate expectation before making plans to relocate. We’ll always include in your confirmation email the very latest possible time we need to be advised by if you intend to relocate (usually the morning of your wedding day), to give you an opportunity to make the best decision with the most accurate forecast available.
• Widespread Rain: If the forecast predicts widespread, high-probability heavy rain during your time slot, that is the time to consider your backup options.

If you’re worried about it raining during your location photos, most experienced Photographers will have undercover locations in mind for this. Check with them what the plan is in the event of rain.

Ask your Photographer if they have a rainy-day wedding gallery you can view. Seeing beautiful rainy-day images, they’ve captured can give you wonderful peace of mind.

For your peace of mind

You aren’t just booking decor—you’re booking us

When you book With Love Brisbane Wedding Decorators, you aren’t just hiring chairs and an arbour; you are securing our professional expertise, experience and our exclusive presence on your wedding day.

• Exclusivity: We limit the number of weddings we take to ensure that as dedicated owners, we are personally on-site to deliver, set up, and style your ceremony to our perfectionist standards. We don’t risk our reliability or quality by hiring inexperienced casuals to take more bookings. Instead, we choose to give 100% to fewer bookings, giving our couples the peace of mind of a stress-free experience.
• Reservation of Date: Because we reserve our time, equipment, and logistics exclusively for you (and turn away other couples for your specific date), refunds are not provided for inclement weather impacts. This includes you no longer requiring any of the original decor booked. Instead, you receive something arguably more valuable, our commitment.
• Our Commitment: Your investment secures our commitment to your wedding. If the weather changes, we don’t just cancel – we’ll do our best to reschedule our day to allow for the location change and we work directly with the venue to plan bump in/ out, pivoting your styling if mutually agreed so your alternative location still look beautiful, intentional and elegant.

Your “Plan B” Wet Weather Options

Having backup wet weather options is a great way to ensure you can relax and enjoy the lead-up to your big day, regardless of the forecast. Here is how we manage inclement weather to ensure your ceremony is still beautiful.

If the forecast suggests a high risk of rain, you have several great alternatives:

1. Sheltered Rotundas and Undercover areas: Some gardens and parks like New Farm Park and Roma Street Parkland have sheltered rotundas or undercover areas which are ideal to relocate to in the event of rain. Some couples decide the wet weather location is just as nice as their original option and make the decision to relocate early in the week, regardless, to save a short notice relocation and to allow plenty of time for guests to be advised.
2. Relocate to your Reception Venue: Most restaurants and venues are happy to accommodate a ceremony, providing there isn’t a lunch service, or providing their lunch service has wrapped up. We can maintain your ceremony styling choices, to suit your indoor space by still setting up the arbour or backdrop you have your heart set on, along with our chic white aisle runner, to create a stunning focal point, while utilising the venue’s existing chairs.
3. The Umbrella Plan: Some couples choose to proceed with their original outdoor location if light or passing showers are forecast. A popular plan is to source a bunch of white or clear umbrellas from Marketplace to have on hand, then these can usually be resold afterward. If you proceed outdoors. Most of our collection can still be used should you choose to proceed in light rain. No coloured or dyed bio confetti can be used over our aisle or chairs, as this stains significantly when it has contact with water. If our equipment gets wet, or muddy, providing there is no permanent damage or staining, we do not charge an additional fee for the extra cleaning and drying of all items. We know it’s not a business savvy approach to not charge for our additional labour time, but doing so just doesn’t sit well with us.
4. Nearby Indoor Venues: We maintain a secret list of local indoor venues well-suited for short-notice wet weather backups. If required (typically 1–3 days prior), we can provide these wet weather options and simply set up your chosen décor at the new location. we don’t share these publicly, otherwise on that one rainy Saturday every other couple getting married would also be jumping in and they’d all be booked.

Instead, if you reach out to me a few days prior to your wedding and request this, I’ll send you the list of venues suited to your guest numbers in the same or nearby suburb of your original ceremony location, or reception location.

Council Refunds

If you provide the required notice to Brisbane City Council (usually 48 hours prior, though check your council consent form to confirm), it’s likely you’ll be eligible for a refund of your full park booking fee. This refund can often cover or offset most of the cost of your alternative wet weather option, so you’ll barely be out of pocket.

Costs to relocate

Relocating a wedding at short notice involves significant behind-the-scenes work for our team at With Love, including dropping everything else, and making it our highest priority to focus on rescheduling the logistics and liaising with venue coordinators regarding loading access and timings.

We do not charge an additional fee for this coordination work. As much as possible, we’ll handle the ‘bump-in’ details directly with your venue so you can focus on getting married, knowing your setting will look beautiful no matter the weather.

The Logistics of a Last-Minute Move

To ensure we can deliver the high standard of styling we are known for, even when pivoting to a wet weather location the following logistics apply to all relocations:

• The 5km Rule: To maintain our tight schedule and ensure your ceremony is ready on time, your wet weather backup venue must be located within 5km of your original ceremony site.
• Accessibility: Relocating to a backup venue is subject to safe accessibility and appropriate loading access for our team to unload and set up. Our van requires 2.8m clearance in covered loading zones.
• Timing: If a relocation is required, we may need to adjust your ceremony start or pack-down time to allow for the additional travel and setup requirements at the new location. We completely understand your wedding day schedule has been carefully planned, so we’ll do our best to avoid this.
• Safety & Equipment: While the vast majority of our items are wet-weather friendly, we reserve the right to withhold certain equipment (such as specific fabrics, dried florals, aisle, or delicate items) to prevent damage and ensure the safety of your guests. Please note in the event of significant weather or a storm where it isn’t safe for us to set up, a relocation will be required.
• Owner Presence & Exclusivity: We limit the number of weddings we take to ensure that as owners, we are personally on-site to deliver, set up, and style your ceremony. Because we reserve our time, equipment, and logistics exclusively for your date and turn away other couples for that same slot, refunds are not provided if inclement weather impacts your wedding or location.

A Final Note of Reassurance

While we believe it’s good to prepare for wet weather, it is worth remembering that Brisbane is one of the most beautiful places in the world to marry outdoors. As both Ceremony Stylists and leading Brisbane Celebrants every year, we’re a part of so many ceremonies in Brisbane’s beautiful parks and gardens, and we find that more often than not, the reality of the weather is much milder than the initial forecast.

In fact, wet weather relocations are really quite rare for us – on average, only 5% of our outdoor weddings require a relocation each year. We encourage you to keep your heart set on that beautiful outdoor “I Do.”

The odds are overwhelmingly in your favour, and no matter what, we’ll be there to make it look spectacular.

With Love,

Cara & Jamie

With Love – Brisbane Wedding Decorators

Photo credits: Cover photo & night time images by Lucinda May Photography view this stunning rainy-day wedding here, Leanne Doyle & Wildflower weddings, see more of this rainy-day romance wedding here.