Free wedding planning tool
What time should your outdoor ceremony start?
Pick your wedding date. We'll show sunset and golden hour in Murrieta and Temecula, the ceremony start time that leaves you an hour of daylight for portraits, and a simple timeline for the evening.
Ceremony time planner
Choose a date to see your ceremony time, or use the month-by-month table below.
Ceremony times by month in Temecula and Murrieta
Times for the 15th of each month. Sunset moves a minute or two a day, so use the planner above for your exact date.
| Month | Ceremony | Golden hour | Sunset |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 3:30 PM | 4:27 PM | 5:04 PM |
| February | 4:00 PM | 4:59 PM | 5:34 PM |
| March | 5:15 PM | 6:24 PM | 6:57 PM |
| April | 5:45 PM | 6:46 PM | 7:20 PM |
| May | 6:00 PM | 7:07 PM | 7:42 PM |
| June | 6:30 PM | 7:24 PM | 8:00 PM |
| July | 6:15 PM | 7:23 PM | 7:59 PM |
| August | 6:00 PM | 7:01 PM | 7:35 PM |
| September | 5:15 PM | 6:22 PM | 6:55 PM |
| October | 4:30 PM | 5:41 PM | 6:15 PM |
| November | 3:15 PM | 4:10 PM | 4:46 PM |
| December | 3:00 PM | 4:04 PM | 4:42 PM |
Questions
Planning around the light
What time should an outdoor wedding ceremony start?
Work back from sunset on your date. Starting about 90 minutes before sunset gives you a 30-minute ceremony, then an hour of daylight for family photos and portraits while guests enjoy cocktail hour, finishing in golden hour. Pick your date above and the planner does the math for Murrieta and Temecula.
When is golden hour in Temecula and Murrieta?
Golden hour here is roughly the last 35 minutes before sunset, when the sun sits less than 6 degrees above the horizon. Sunset ranges from about 4:40 pm in early December to about 8:00 pm in late June, so golden hour moves by more than three hours across the year.
Does daylight saving time change my ceremony time?
Yes. When clocks fall back in early November, sunset jumps an hour earlier overnight, and a spring-forward date in March jumps an hour later. If your date is near either change, check it here rather than going by a neighboring weekend.
Can we have our ceremony right at sunset?
You can, but the light fades fast during a sunset ceremony and portraits after it are done in dusk. Most couples start a little earlier so the ceremony ends with an hour of daylight left. At Hawk Ranch there is one wedding per day, so your timeline is never squeezed by another event.