As a child, Stephanie Boden spent her summers at the Hotel Del Coronado. For the Atlanta native, the iconic landmark is quintessentially San Diego — a special place where family fun is had and priceless memories are made. “It became a home away from home for me,” Stephanie says. “When my now-husband and I were dating, I started taking him with me, and it became a meaningful place for us. It’s simply iconic.” So iconic, in fact, that when Stephanie’s husband Nelson first walked into the hotel’s signature Crown Room, he knew the venue was meant to be theirs. “The moment Nelson walked in, he was in awe — his jaw dropped,” recalls Stephanie’s mom Mary. “He said, ‘This is where we have to have our wedding.’”

Once the big day finally came, the Hotel Del once again became a place for Stephanie and her family — old and new — to make precious memories.

“We had our ceremony outdoors on the Vista Terrace overlooking the water, with the hotel’s iconic red turret in the background,” Stephanie says. “We have photos of our family going back to 2000 with that turret. It was a cool, nostalgic moment for all of us.”

From the ceremony on, Stephanie and Nelson’s wedding was truly a family affair, with heartwarming touches that paid tribute to both of their families. “We used the Coronet Room, next to the Crown Room, to set up a ‘Love through the Ages’ display,” Stephanie adds. “We created a huge timeline of our family tree on both sides, going back generations. We had photos dating back to the 1800s and family wedding certificates that dated back to the 1500s.”

The couple honored family in other touching ways, including using small plates from both of their grandmothers, creating a unity sand sculpture with both of their mothers to represent the blending of their families, and inviting the bride’s 90-year-old grandfather to speak about love and marriage during their ceremony. Stephanie even threw a football hand-painted by one of her cousins instead of a bouquet. “Family is super important to us, so we wanted to incorporate our families in as many ways as possible,” she says.

Still, there were some special elements that were uniquely theirs. Stephanie hired an artist to capture the ceremony in a live painting. They had an after-party for “kids only” — anyone under age 30 — complete with a photo booth and late-night chicken tenders and fries. And the couple exchanged private vows for only the two of them to hear.

“That was my favorite part of the day,” Stephanie concludes. “It was just the two of us, and it was a nice moment where we could see each other and just be present without anyone else around us.”