Central Park weddings: Event Calendar

Don't forget to check the Central Park Event Calendar when planning a park wedding. On Saturday, the free Bon Jovi concert starts at 8 - 60,000 people on the Great Lawn. But they're letting them IN starting at 2pm. We're having a small wedding at 11 - and plan to be long gone.

Always watch for the marathons, the 1/2 marathons, the walks, the concerts -- the parades and holiday celebrations - it makes for delays with your taxis, crowds, and of course concert noise. It's a big park, so you can always get away and find room, but it's best to be aware of what else is happening.

UPDATE: So the park was frozen (locked down) at 4am. When we got there, the cattle gates were up from 86-59. Always be very nice to NY cops - you never know! We chatted with the men on gate duty, explained that the bride and groom's parents were coming from Tokyo, and that we had the location booked. They were very sympathetic, asked their super, who thought it was romantic, and they sneaked us in the barrier, and we had a great wedding in the Shakespeare garden - completely private. They posed with the wedding party, one of the cops asked me if I'd renew his wedding vows, and all the cops along the root shouted 'congratulations' as we left. They were also mad, because this was an unscheduled event, and they had to work double shifts. And somehow, everybody in NY loves weddings - we've had lots of cooperation through the years from strangers. Give it a try.