We have a diverse range of wedding ceremony locations at Markovina Estate, all unique in their own way, with various benefits and reasons why they are so popular. Each of them feels like its own world, despite being all contained within our 10-acre Auckland wedding venue. Furthermore, we have won several wedding awards for the diversity of these stunning ceremony locations. However, with so much choice, it can be challenging to decide which ceremony location to choose for that lifelong commitment. In this blog series, we go through each location one by one and highlight their main features, seasonal changes, as well as the rich history behind the venue and each ceremony space. In this piece, we’ll be going through the Pebble Beach.
The Pebble Beach, a beach situated around the back of the Markovina pond, is its own unique area of the Estate. You and your guests will feel tucked away in another world with luscious green grass and beautiful trees surrounding you. Just imagine: the music begins, and the bridal party makes their way to the ceremony location, popping out from around the corner to walk down the aisle towards the beach. The sun will glisten off the pond's water as your guests admire the beach and the pond's stone centrepiece. Your entire ceremony, vows, and lifelong commitment will be performed on the pebbles as if your ceremony were hosted on a beach.
The History
The Markovina Pond was designed around 20 years ago, and each end of the pond has a key feature: one is the jetty that sits behind our two kauri trees, and the other is a small pebble coast on the pond, which creates our Pebble Beach. Initially, it wasn’t one of our featured ceremony locations, but a great spot for wedding photographers to capture photos with the bridal party. However, many years back, a couple wanted to get married on the pebble beach, which revealed to us its stunning beauty as a wedding ceremony location. Besides being beautiful, it reminds the Markovina family of the beaches on their home island of Korcula, Croatia. These beaches are similarly all layered with pebbles and small rocks, unlike the sandy beaches of New Zealand.
Seasonal Considerations
The Pebble Beach is stunning all year round, with little impact from the seasons. The pond remains unchanged year-round, and many of the trees are evergreens, such as the palm trees surrounding this space. There is a Ginkgo tree with yellow leaves to the side of the pebble beach that blooms between September and December. This can add a pop of colour, which is excellent for wedding photography as the backdrop for the bride walking around to the aisle as she becomes visible to guests.
Other Considerations
One benefit is its position tucked away from other areas of the venue. It creates a nice separation between your ceremony and reception, as you utilise various spaces across our wedding venue for each formality.
Alongside the beach are the palm trees, which is another ceremony location. However, they can also be an excellent backdrop for group photos, meaning your guests can enjoy canapés, bubbles, and each other's company while capturing memories in front of the palm trees.
This is one of our smaller ceremony spaces, perfect for intimate to medium-sized wedding parties. You may want to consider this when choosing the ceremony space for your special day.
Final Thoughts
The Pebble Beach is the perfect blend of beach wedding with the natural beauty of the Markovina gardens. With our pond’s stone centrepiece and the intimacy the secluded space brings, it's no surprise many couples opt for the Pebble Beach all year round. If you’d like to check out the Pebble Beach and explore all our other ceremony locations at our Kumeu wedding venue, contact our team to book a viewing at Markovina Estate.
