Laura and Joel Gando were the first couple Payton organised the wedding for at Woodlands. Photo / The Official Photographers
Laura and Joel Gando were the first couple Payton organised the wedding for at Woodlands. Photo / The Official Photographers
The Waikato is THE place to get hitched - this is what a whopping 11 wins for the region at this year's New Zealand Wedding Industry Awards show.
One of the local winners is Woodlands Estate in Gordonton which was crowned outstanding wedding ceremony venue.
Woodlands was nominated alongside CoromandelTown-based Hush Accommodation, The Waterlily Gardens in Waihi, Dunedin's Lochend Woolshed and Napier's Meadowood House.
The annual Wedding Industry Awards recognise New Zealand's wedding industry professionals and their achievements across 22 categories with the Waikato taking home half of the awards this year.
Woodlands' wedding and event coordinator Estelle Payton says one of the reasons the venue stands out is its history.
The estate in the Waikato District, north of Hamilton and east of Ngāruawahia, is a 15-acre (about 6 hectares) historic homestead that was established in 1872 and also features stunning gardens.
"The people that owned Woodlands celebrated their family weddings here before it became a [public] wedding venue."
Another reason why Woodlands is special is that couples have several options of where the ceremony can be held, Payton says.
"We have multiple spaces you can choose from. We have what we call the Wisteria Room and Music Lawn, the Oaks Glade, the Village Green, the Long Lawn or the Kauri Room - for more of a courthouse-style wedding.
"It's quite a diverse venue. On the property, we have a lake, forest, Victorian and rural backdrop. Essentially, the only thing we don't have is a beach."
Woodlands Estate wedding and event coordinator Estelle Payton at the venue's Long Lawn. Photo / Danielle Zollickhofer
The wedding awards judges also highlighted Woodlands' resilience during Covid as one of the reasons for the win saying the estate had shown that "they grow from strength to strength".
"They managed to work with their customers through Covid-19 lockdowns ... ensuring the ... often stressed nearly-weds were well informed at every new Government setting and how the venue would navigate through to ensure their clients' dream weddings were still magical," the judges said.
"Woodlands Estate demonstrated they're a one-stop-shop for all things wedding. They clearly understand their market and customers, making the whole process seamless."
Getting married at Woodlands costs between $1000 (for a small courthouse-style wedding) and $4750 (for a full-day venue hire) - not including things like catering, flowers, decorations or photography.
Payton, who was nominated in the outstanding wedding planner category, has been organising weddings at Woodlands for four years. During that time, she has helped more than 100 couples to tie the knot.
The Kauri Room at Woodlands is often used for small, courthouse-style weddings. Photo / Supplied
"I just did my first Mr and Mr wedding [last month]... I had a connection with Matt and Glen that lasted longer than others. They booked their wedding here just before the first lockdown [in 2020] and I had to reschedule them twice."
She says the wedding was "very white and very crisp" and emotional - even for her.
"I cried which I hadn't in a long time. You could just see the love they had for each other. They were marrying their best friend."
Other weddings that stood out to Payton were two special-themed weddings.
"We had a Harry Potter wedding ... The couple had Harry Potter in their wedding vows, wands in the centrepieces and a wand as a signing pen. They ended up having the ceremony under a tree in the gardens which reminded them of the Whomping Willow [from Harry Potter]," Payton says.
"We also had an Alice in Wonderland wedding where the celebrant [Terri Bull] dressed up as the Mad Hatter and married them like that."
Matt and Glen Bradford got married at Woodlands last month after Covid postponed their wedding twice. Photo / The Official Photographers
She says organising weddings - and other events - was her dream job.
"This is gonna sound cheesy, but I love love, and I love being a part of it."
How long it takes Payton to plan a wedding varies, she says, but on average it takes eight months. The smallest wedding she organised included the couple and two guests while her biggest wedding included about 200 guests.
Despite her passion for weddings, Payton says Woodlands has been "stigmatised" as a wedding venue.
"We are more than [that] ... We also do other functions like Christmas dos, conferences, 21st birthdays, anniversaries ... and funerals. Funerals are huge, we have about 15 a year ... our biggest one was about 400 people."
Payton says funerals and weddings have more in common than one might think at first glance.
Woodlands Estate includes 15 acres including stunning gardens. Photo / Danielle Zollickhofer
"[They both] show the strong love for a person."
Although Woodlands is mastering events, you don't need to wait for a special occasion to wander through the estate and gardens.
Woodlands Estate, managed by the Gordonton Woodlands Trust on behalf of Waikato District Council, is open to the public every day and also has a cafe.
The Wedding Industry Awards were founded by Pete Duncan and his wife Valeta in 2014 to formally recognise wedding industry professionals and their achievements.
Together, the Duncans run the Rotorua-based wedding business The Love Company (formerly known as The Wedding Guy Company).
The 2022 awards received nearly 2000 nominations across 22 categories. For a full list of the winners visit the Wedding Industry Awards' website.
Image 1 of 7: Laura and Joel Gando in Woodlands' gardens. Photo / The Official Photographers
