Caroline and Peter’s Wagner Cove, Central Park Elopement

Caroline and Peter came to New York this May from Lancashire in the UK. They eloped for their wedding, but they did not keep it a secret from their family. They met in a local club ten years ago, and they very nearly managed to not get together. They exchanged numbers on the night and by the next morning they had forgotten about each other. About six months later Caroline was going through her phone and noticed the name Pete and texted him to see if he wanted to meet up. It took him a few weeks to reply, not because he was playing hard to get, but because he and his brother had swapped phones around a month earlier and it took him a while to tell him that he had had a message out of the blue from a strange woman!

In September 2011, Caroline and Peter made their first trip to New York City, stopping in Las Vegas beforehand for four nights. After checking in to their Vegas hotel Caroline was in their bathroom when she heard her favorite Beyonce song being played from the bedroom area of the suite. She came out of the bathroom to investigate and found Peter on one knee. It turned out that Peter had originally wanted to propose in New York but they stopped in Vegas first, and he had packed the ring in his suitcase and entrusted it to the airline. So, when they were waiting for their luggage on the carousel in Vegas he decided that he could not take the stress of worrying that it had gone missing all over again so he changed his plans.

They knew right away that they did not want a big, traditional wedding. They discussed going away somewhere and not telling anybody and just coming back married but that did not seem like the right thing to do by their families. They considered Hawaii but decided against it in case it was just the same as a Caribbean island, which they did not think would suit them, and Caroline had fears of her hair going frizzy in the humidity and she does not like sand in her toes.

They ask each other the question “where is our favorite place ever that we would go back to year after year” and they both said New York. So that was decided. They discussed other location in New York City, but they felt that Central Park had the best photo opportunities and that Wagner Cove was the nicest spot for an intimate and beautiful wedding ceremony.

They wanted to go alone, but some friends and family said they would come, some close family members could not, and Caroline and Peter felt that if close family member were not able to attend, then they did not want anybody else there with them.

They had the most common concern of all the couples I work with about getting married outdoors; the weather. When they arrived in New York City three days before the wedding the temperature was 28 degrees C, but, luckily the temperature dropped on their wedding day and they were comfortable, and it stayed dry.

They stayed at the Michelangelo Hotel on West 51st Street for four nights. “The staff were very accommodating and treated us extra specially nice when they found out we were getting married – chocolates, champagne and a note congratulating us,” said Caroline.

Caroline wore a Sincerity bridal gown and Peter wore an Armani suit with a pink tie to match Caroline’s pink roses. On the morning of the wedding Peter made himself scarce whilst Caroline had her hair and makeup done by a professional mobile stylist called Sissi Chan.

After the ceremony they had pictures taken in Grand Central Terminal and Times Square. Their photographer was the fabulous Andy Mars. They popped back to the hotel for a quick drink and change of clothes then had dinner at the Aureole restaurant on West 42nd Street. They both said that it was amazing.

On the day after the wedding, they could relax. They went to the famous Katz’s deli and had a pastrami sandwich that Peter is still talking about now. They walked along beautiful Brooklyn Bridge. In the evening they had tickets to see Jersey Boys on Broadway. They had popped back to the hotel to change into something special for their last night in New York, but realized that they had got the show time wrong and only had ten minutes to get to the theater. Caroline grabbed the nearest pair of pants, threw on some flipflops and a top and they ran through Times Square. They just sat down as the show was starting. After the show, as Caroline bought a drink from a bar and went to put her change in her pocket, she noticed her pockets were inside out, she looked down and her pants were inside out. Ah, well, you can’t always be as glamorous and perfectly dressed as you were on your wedding day, Caroline! They highly recommend the show, though!

I asked them if they would recommend a Central Park wedding to any one else and Caroline said “I would say to anybody who is even thinking of getting married in New York to just do it. Just to think about it shows NYC holds a special place in your heart! Claire, you were great in organizing everything and you always responded rapidly to our queries. All other companies that I contacted were more interested in getting a hefty deposit before they would even talk about the wedding and you were the only one that didn’t put the pressure on!”

Thanks for sharing your story with us, Caroline and Peter, and thank you for allowing me to attend your wedding. You are a lovely couple and I wish you lots of luck for your future together. For more information to help you with planning your own Central Park wedding, visit our website, or “like” us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram and follow us on Pinterest where you will find lots of lovely photos and many more inspiring stories of real weddings.