‘Gilmore Girls’ inspires an October elopement at the Mayflower Inn

The decision of where to get married came together at the last minute, but the idea of eloping had been on Shannon Assenza and Nicholas Bon’s minds for months.

The couple had already booked a photographer and venue and sent out save-the-date cards for a 100+ person wedding when they called it all off.

“The whole time we were planning, it felt a little too overwhelming,” says Shannon, a magazine editor. Her husband is an electrician. The two, both 27, went to the same high school, but didn’t meet until 2020.

“When we brought up the idea of eloping, we both smiled,” she recalls. “It was like we read each other’s minds, and we knew that it felt right.”

So, they took a breather and decided they would marry when the time and place “unfolded organically.”

That moment arrived after a Gilmore Girls binge-watch led to the perfect location: the Mayflower Inn & Spa, Auberge Collection, in Washington. 

Shannon loved the TV show so much that she began researching it online. She discovered that creator Amy Sherman-Palladino stayed at the Mayflower in the ‘90s and used the quintessential New England inn’s cozy atmosphere and the surrounding Litchfield County area as inspiration for the look, feel and premise of the show’s fictional town and inns. That sealed it.

As fall leaves began to change, they booked the inn’s “Elopement Package,” and worked with one of their wedding planners to create the day they envisioned — all in just three weeks.

“We loved the simplicity of the process.”

They hired a local officiant/minister and photographer, and with one week to go, Shannon went wedding dress shopping.

“I always dreamed of wearing something classic and timeless,” says Shannon. “When I found a Mikado dress by Amsale on the rack at Saks Fifth Avenue, it fit like a glove and felt like it was made for me. I did my own makeup because I wanted to feel and look the most like my authentic self.”

It was so last-minute, she says, that her veil by Ofrenda Studio arrived at the inn the morning of the wedding.

On a perfect “golden” day, October 17, 2024, Shannon walked in the sun through the grass to the inn’s Shakespeare Garden to meet her groom. She carried a bouquet of Canterbury Bells, Queens Lace and white spray roses, designed by florist Lily Toussaint of Bantam Blooms.

“My beautiful wife’s angelic walk towards me in the garden is a moment I will never forget,” says Nicholas.

The intimate celebration was just the two of them reading their vows and basking in their togetherness. They didn’t even notice all the guests who were taking photos and videos from the inn’s balconies. “We felt blessed the whole day,” says Shannon.

Even though her mother wasn’t in attendance, she was there in spirit. “Before I left, my mother gifted me ‘something old’ (a pendant of the Mother Mary given to my mom from my grandma), ‘something new’ (a cosmetic bag with a personal note printed on it from my mom), ‘something borrowed’ (a pearl bracelet handmade by a family friend who had passed away), and ‘something blue’ (a handkerchief with another letter from my mom on it).”

“That way, I was able to bring pieces of her with me down the aisle in the pockets of my wedding gown.”

After the ceremony, the couple celebrated with a private dinner in the inn’s library, with mussels, beef tenderloin, wedding cake and a champagne toast. “I actually ate my dinner that night; a lot of brides can’t say that!”

They spent the night in a beautiful balcony suite, and the next day the inn arranged a horseback riding excursion at Mustang Meadow in Oxford, CT. It was followed by time at the inn’s spa.

Now, back home in Rockville Centre on Long Island, they plan to house hunt near Mystic. And they dream of celebrating a future anniversary back at the Mayflower.