Clionadh and Sam came over to New York with both sets of their parents as guests for their wedding in the Ladies’ Pavilion. They flew over from their home in Dublin in early May for the wedding. Sam was 34 and Clionadh was 33 when they got married in Central Park.
The couple had met in a nightclub. Sam was out with some friends, one of whom had been an old school friend of Clionadh’s. She was chatting to the old school friend and Sam starting talking to her too. They had been together for thirteen years before getting married.
They both share a love for travel and enjoy visiting the USA. They got engaged in Yosemite National Park, which they consider to be the most beautiful place they have ever been to. They were on vacation in California, and Yosemite was high on their list of must-see places. While exploring El Capitan Meadow, with the infamous granite peak behind them, Sam proposed. He had picked the spot knowing it would be a memorable place to pop the questions. And so their engagement began in the USA, and ended in the USA, albeit in a very different park on the opposite side of the country.
I asked Clionadh and Sam why getting married is important to them. “It’s a way of committing to each other fully — not just in words, but in life,” Clionadh told me. “Getting married is about making a promise to grow together, look after each other, and share all the little and big moments that make up a life,” she said.
After a year of being engaged, Clionadh found me and got in touch. “We knew from the start that we wanted a small, intimate wedding,” she said. “We chose New York, a city we’ve spent a lot of time in over the years, and invited our parents to share in the ceremony, making it a truly meaningful experience,” she explained.
Clionadh and Sam felt sure that Central Park was the perfect backdrop to hold their wedding ceremony and to celebrate their relationship. “We chose to get married in Central Park because it’s a place that captures the heart of New York — iconic, beautiful, and timeless,” Clionadh said. “It’s a setting that feels both intimate and magical, with natural beauty all around, yet it carries the energy and history of the city we love,” she added. I couldn’t agree more, I don’t know how Central Park pulls it off sometimes.
Clionadh said that she does think that destination and smaller weddings are becoming increasingly popular. She and Sam think that more couples are choosing this over the big, traditional wedding close to home mostly because of rising wedding costs and also because of evolving trends.
I asked if they had had any concerns about getting married in Central Park or New York beforehand. “Any concern we had, went away with Claire’s guidance and advice!” she said, which is of course the goal for me! I always welcome questions from our couples, I like everyone to feel completely clear about what to expect on the day, and it’s my job to guide couples through the process of planning this big life event with as little stress as possible. “For us, our wedding in Central Park created memories that will last a lifetime,” Clionadh said.
We held the ceremony in the Ladies’ Pavilion. We had the officiant talk a little about their relationship to date, and she read and an Apache Blessing for Clionadh and Sam, which I’ll put at the end of this post. They exchanged traditional vows before exchanging rings. “Our favorite pictures were taken at the Ladies’ Pavilion and at Bethesda Terrace,” Clionadh told me. “Bethesda Terrace has been the backdrop for countless TV shows and movies. It’s always fun to see it on screen, and it brings back such great memories for us,” she said. Me too, Clionadh, I never get tired of it.
Clionadh commented that while the Ladies’ Pavilion is a standalone structure, it is quite open, and there is an open space around it, bedside the Lake. She said that the people in the area were extremely polite and were as quiet as they could be. For them, the people nearby in the park were not a distraction, which I hope is comforting to know for anyone else considering getting married here. Their parents were their only guests at the wedding, and for the trip as whole. I think this is a lovely way of truly joining the two families. I asked what their parents though of their non-traditional wedding. “They thought it was a brilliant idea!” Clionadh said.
Clionadh wore awhite midi dress from Odd Muse and Sam wore a navy Hugo Boss suit. I had arranged for their flowers to be delivered to their hotel in the morning. They had white, pink and purple roses and peonies in the bouquet and bouttoniere, “they were the most beautiful flowers!” Clionadh said. She had professional hair and makeup done by Metro Look. After the wedding and photos in Central Park, Clionadh and Sam, and their parents went on to the Rockefeller Center with their photographer to take some photos at the Top of the Rock. After that, the six of them went for a celebratory dinner at Smith and Wollensky.
The whole group stayed for a total of three days in New York. They stayed in the Hard Rock Hotel, which is just off Times Square. After their time in New York, Clionadh and Sam continued on to Nashville, New Orleans and Orlando for their honeymoon. I asked if they had any regrets about their choice to get married in Central Park. “None whatsoever!” Clionadh said.
I asked how we did. “Claire made the whole experience stress free and seamless! 10/10 would recommend her services.” Thank you for your kind words, Clionadh, and thanks for sharing your story. I wish you and Sam the very best of luck for your future together. If you would like me to help you with your own Central Park wedding, whether you plan to elope, or bring close family to New York with you as this couple did, visit our website. Keep updated with our news and see lots of beautiful photos, follow us on Instagram, follow us on Facebook, follow us on TikTok, and follow us on Pinterest.
Apache Blessing
Now you will feel no rain,
for each of you will be shelter for the other.
Now you will feel no cold,
for each of you will be warmth to the other.
Now there will be no loneliness,
for each of you will be companion to the other.
Now you are two persons,
but there is only one life before you.
May beauty surround you both in the
journey ahead and through all the years,
May happiness be your companion and
your days together be good and long upon the earth.
Treat yourselves and each other with respect, and
remind yourselves often of what brought you together.
Give the highest priority to the tenderness,
gentleness and kindness that your connection deserves.
When frustration, difficulties and fear assail your relationship,
as they threaten all relationships at one time or another,
remember to focus on what is right between you,
not only the part which seems wrong.
In this way, you can ride out the storms when
clouds hide the face of the sun in your lives – remembering that
even if you lose sight of it for a moment, the sun is still there.
And if each of you takes responsibility for the quality of your
life together, it will be marked by abundance and delight.
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