Think local: These weddings went big on neighborhood pride

Enough with the Portugal destination weddings when neither bride nor groom has any connection to the Algarve. It’s time to show some hometown pride — really, since one of the best things about a wedding is paying homage to the place that built you.

One great way to add some local flair? Root, root, root for the home team.

Jesse Richman-Reing, founder and CEO of Events by Jesse in New York City, recalled the September 2024 wedding of Katelin Kutchko and Andrew Gleason. They hosted 180 guests at Yankee Stadium with the ceremony in the stands and the reception at the Delta SKY360° Suite.

“The couple, especially the groom, are die-hard Yankees fans, and for them it was Yankee Stadium or City Hall,” said Richman-Reing. “They would not have had an actual wedding anywhere else.”

As a lifelong Yankees fan herself, this wedding was super special. One of the favorite details from the day? The bride’s limited-edition Gucci Yankees jacket. “They are very hard to find, and she got her hands on one! I love that she was able to have a fashion moment, which is so important to most brides,” she said.

Keep in mind that if you choose to wed at an iconic venue, a little extra grunt work behind the scenes may be necessary. Notably, weddings at Yankee Stadium can only be on weekends where there aren’t games or for a certain amount of days before or after. Richman-Reing shared that every vendor had to have an extremely detailed list of what they were bringing — the hairstylist had to write down every hot tool, every clip and every mirror.

“It wasn’t impossible, but it definitely takes a lot more work than most vendors are used to,” she said.

In July 2022, Richman-Reing also planned a very memorable NYC transportation-themed wedding at Midtown Loft & Terrace for Kirsten Jones and Ahmed Ismail, who both worked for the MTA.

The couple “used MetroCards with guests’ names and their table numbers, which coordinated with a specific subway line,” recalled Richman-Reing. “We also had the photographer plan out a multihour photo shoot with the couple before they arrived at the ceremony venue, which incorporated all four major ways of transportation in NYC: bus, subway, ferry and cab,” she said.

Many people getting married in New York City are not originally from here which could mean many of their guests are experiencing New York for the first time.

“I encourage couples to always be unique to themselves, and will ask them, ‘What made you fall in love with this city? How do we invoke the same feeling at your wedding to make your guests feel the same kind of emotion?’ ” she said.

Jaclyn Watson of Jaclyn Watson Events in Hyde Park, Vt., recently planned a larger-than-life experience for the August 2025 wedding of Mitch Prevot and Julie Jew for 100 guests at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden inside the Palm House, a glass-walled conservatory.

The evening featured a lion dance performance during the reception as a salute to the bride’s Chinese heritage, a fortune-cookie escort display and candlelight and layered florals for a romantic and warm feel. “The venue choice did a lot of the heavy lifting,” said Watson. “The glass conservatory at Brooklyn Botanic Garden feels like you’re inside a city landmark, but still surrounded by nature.”

For a similarly high-impact wedding wherever you live, Richman-Reing advised zooming in on something specific about your neighborhood.

Additionally, Watson suggests picking a venue that is a local flagship where you can say “I do,” such as a landmark or an iconic room.

Lia Seremetis, founder of the elopements and microweddings planning firm, Cakewalk NYC Elopements, based in Brooklyn, also recommended focusing in on the moments you can make instead of just themed décor that represents the locale.

“Let the pace, locations and built-in energy shape the experience, and don’t overproduce it,” she said.