Park Weddings

Bonita and Joe married in Central Park’s Shakespeare Garden, which is one of my favorite sites for wedding ceremonies.  Other great niches are the Ladies Pavilion, Ramble, Cherry Hill, Wagner’s Cove, Belvedere Castle Plaza (not inside the castle, though), Harlem Meer, Cop Cot, Bethesda Terrace, Gapstow Bridge area, and the Wisteria Pergola.  Do keep in mind the need to obtain the $25 permit if you are having more than twenty guests or if you are marrying on a Saturday.  And if you think you can sneak into the Conservatory Gardens for a quick elopement without acquiring the $400 permit, think again.  One of my couples who thought they could circumvent this policy were astounded when — after I had warned them — a Parks’ Department official escorted us out of the Conservatory Garden on a quiet weekday.  Of course, Central Park is a very busy place, as is the Brooklyn Bridge Park.  Other park sites you may wish to consider include Prospect Park (especially the Grecian Shelter or Peristyle), Fort Tryon Park, Riverside Park, Astoria Park, Flushing Meadows Corona Park, a pier in Red Hook, or even smaller parks like Tompkins Square Park.  If you are looking to have a more private wedding, check out the many community gardens NYC offers, such as Washington Market Garden, 6bc Botanical Garden, the Creative Little Garden, Jefferson Market Garden, and various others.  Finally, you may wish to reserve a more formal garden space at the Snug Harbor Cultural Center (a/k/a Staten Island Botanical Gardens), the Brooklyn or Queens Botanical Garden.  While the BBG is beautiful and convenient, the QBC and Snug Harbor are more flexible with timing.