British man plans a romantic proposal getaway — but a booking mistake lands the couple in a ‘ghost town’ with a bigger surprise
Planning a romantic destination to pop the question may sound exciting, until the location ends up being a "ghost town." 28-year-old British man James Cox was excited to surprise his girlfriend with a romantic proposal, for which he had booked a one-night getaway in Frankfurt, Germany. But one mishap in his booking led the couple (@chloemmcf) to a ghost town, which turned out to be a surprise. Reported by PEOPLE on Tuesday, March 17, 2026, the couple wasn't expecting the twist that made it memorable.
@chloemmcf Engagement gone wrong xxxx Gotta laugh tho going to go explore this rural, tiny village 🤣🤣🤣🤣🖤 #engagement #alttiktok #frankfurt #funny ♬ original sound - peep🎉
While the couple was on the flight, Cox was fast asleep, but his girlfriend, Chloe Hutchinson, could only see fields instead of the city they had planned to visit. When the couple landed at Frankfurt Hahn Airport, 80 miles away from Frankfurt, he realized he had made a big blunder. Cox, who was disappointed by the mistake, had a "meltdown"; however, they decided to make the best of their time there. After exploring the place, they checked in at a local hotel in Lautzenhausen. At an Italian restaurant, Cox finally popped the question, to which Chloe said yes.
Cox and his girlfriend had never been to a place so quiet. He immediately felt sick after noticing the mistake and began panicking. "We didn't see anyone while we were walking through the town. We were having to walk past all these factories and this derelict town," he said. Even though they could not go to their planned destination, the unplanned trip made it more special. "It was something memorable and silly, and I don't think it could be more us," his girlfriend said. Interestingly, the British couple wasn't the first to make the mistake.
According to the staff members at the hotel, many people often end up there after making a similar booking error. Unplanned moments often turn out to be the most memorable. When something is not meticulously planned and unfolds spontaneously, it brings a lot of surprise and thrill. While Cox initially felt upset about not executing his romantic getaway as planned, it ended up being more meaningful than he imagined.
The experience of exploring an unfamiliar place gave them a sense of adventure and left them with a cherished memory; the place where they said yes to each other. In the video shared by Chloe, the couple can be seen exploring the ghost town, which almost looks empty and quiet. Sharing the video in 2 parts, Chloe captioned one of them, "Quite literally, where have you taken me? Lucky to find a nice hotel that felt bad for us and upgraded. They were so nice! They were so kind."
For more such interesting videos, follow @chloemmcf on TikTok.