Las Vegas Weddings

With nearly 150,000 recorded weddings each year, Las Vegas is proud to claim the title of the 'Wedding Capital of the World.' What makes Las Vegas such a popular wedding spot? To begin with, Las Vegas is one of the easiest places in the world to get married; getting a wedding license takes just a few minutes and has very few 'strings attached.'

Aside from the ease, consider the convenience of a Las Vegas wedding. There are hundreds of wedding chapels to choose from, both stand-alone chapels and chapels right inside the hotels and casinos, and most offer a wide variety of traditional or themed wedding packages. Wedding packages are available to fit almost every budget and absolutely every taste from the simplest to the most extravagant, from the most refined and dignified to the wildest extreme you are likely to be able to imagine. Also, while considering convenience, remember that you need travel no farther than where you are for an exciting, glamorous, whirl-wind honeymoon. No other American city can compete with Las Vegas' world-class lodgings, casinos, shows and sights.

To put the icing on the wedding cake, Las Vegas is easy to get to. There are charter flights, tours and vacation packages available from almost every sizeable U.S. city and then, once you are in Las Vegas, traveling around the city can be as cheap as free - using the free shuttles provided by the hotels and casinos. Even if you come to Las Vegas in a tour group, remember the ease and convenience of a Las Vegas wedding; you'll have more than enough time to get a wedding license, get married, and turn your tour group into your honeymoon entourage.

Any couple intending to get married in Las Vegas, Nevada must file applications (both the bride and groom must complete an application) for a marriage license at the Marriage License Bureau on the first floor of Las Vegas' Clark County Courthouse. The Marriage License Bureau is open continuously from 8:00 a.m. Thursday until midnight on Sunday and then between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and midnight on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.

Applications for a marriage license may be obtained at the Marriage License Bureau or may be downloaded from the Internet but both the bride and groom must appear in person to present their applications and pay a fee of $55.00 (only cash is accepted). There is no waiting period in Nevada nor does the state require the bride and groom to obtain blood tests or reside in the state.

The bride and groom are required to verbally swear that they are not currently married but no documentation to verify the termination of any previous marriage is required. The bride and groom must, however, provide proof that they are at least 18 years of age. If either the bride or groom is 16 or 17 years old, that person must present an original birth certificate and be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian with a valid form of identification. U.S. citizenship is not a requirement to be married in Nevada, as long as the bride and groom have valid IDs that show they are of legal age. Same-sex marriages are not permitted under current Nevada law, nor are marriages between close blood relatives.

Wedding venues are available by the score in Las Vegas and they provide every amenity a bride and groom could possibly desire. From traditional weddings in beautiful chapels or churches or in the privacy of your own hotel suite; to weddings in the great outdoors, in a canyon or valley or on a bluff; to weddings in mid-air, officiated by priests, ministers, rabbis, judges or Elvis-impersonators, Las Vegas offers it all.

By far, Las Vegas' many wedding chapels are the most popular wedding venues for everyday people as well as for the rich and famous (Elvis, Michael Jordan, Clint Eastwood and Bette Midler, just to drop a few names). The primary attraction of Vegas wedding chapel is their convenience; most offer one-stop wedding shopping (after the bride and groom have obtained a marriage license), offering such amenities limousine service from your hotel, flowers, beauty salons for the bride, wedding gown and tuxedo rental, banquet facilities and entertainment for the wedding reception, and pictures/video of the wedding. They will, of course, also provide an officiant to perform the ceremony and the legally required witness . . . unless you bring your own.

The price is right too! Most wedding chapels can provide a no-frills wedding ceremony for around $200.00. Typically a no-frills wedding will take place in a small chapel or in your hotel room; an officiant and a witness will be provided. For around $600.00 a wedding ceremony can be upgraded to include limousine service, a wedding in a beautiful chapel with romantic lighting and appropriate music, flowers for the bride and her attendant, photographs, video and other souvenirs of the special occasion.

LasVegas works hard to uphold it's reputation as mecca for gamblers and people looking for the finest entertainment but the softer side of Las Vegas is a powerful magnet for newlyweds and other lovers who want to visit some of the world's most romantic places. Where else but Las Vegas can you go to stand near the top of the Eiffel Tower and then, within the hour, ride an authentic Italian gondola down the 'Grand Canal,' only to top off the evening with a stroll around the musical, dancing fountains of a 10-acre lake. Romance is certainly in the air in Las Vegas and many thousands of newlyweds have Las Vegas honeymoon memories that will last forever.

Las Vegas hotels have taken understated luxury to new highs. Visit aquariums, art museum, botanical gardens, fountains and roman baths without ever leaving the Las Vegas strip. Eat romantic, picture perfect meals at some of the finest dining establishments in the world, again, without ever leaving the Las Vegas strip. And while still on the strip don't miss hearing and seeing the world's most in-demand entertainers; but definitely DO leave the strip and take a tour.

Las Vegas visitors have a beautiful natural world nearby: visit one of the seven wonders of the natural world on a memorable Grand Canyon tour; see the tallest concrete Dam in the U.S. on a Hoover Dam tour and take a dip in the largest largest man-made lake in the Western Hemisphere on a tour of Lake Mead and the Colorado River. Beautiful sights all . . . but even more so when you are with someone you love.

You have just invested in a beautiful wedding and a Las Vegas honeymoon 'hideaway' and perhaps you even splurged on a memorable night on the town; now its time to take advantage of some of the wonderful free attractions in Las Vegas. Yes, at least some of the best things in life are free and some of these can be found in Las Vegas. Grab your honey and go; following is just a very small sample of Vegas' free attractions.

If you share an interest in cars and history, you can see the car that carried Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow to their demise in Louisiana, in 1934 -- ending their five-state reign of terror to the relief of many and the disappointment of some. Also see the showroom display of over 40 exotic antique cars, each costing well over $1 million -- they're for sale but there is no charge for looking.

Visit a huge saltwater aquarium that provides a home for stingrays, sharks and nearly 5,000 other exotic denizens of the deep; you may even meet the marine biologist at feeding time. Speaking of water, don't dare miss the musical, dancing fountains that put on their show for you every evening in front of a beautiful, quarter-mile long lake or, nearby, the Roman fountain show that is a fitting tribute to an ancient emperor.

What more charming and appropriate place could a newly-wedded couple go than to see flowers. Picture a 14,000-square foot flower arrangement under a 55-foot-tall glass ceiling and you'll be picturing this botanical treasure laid out in a hotel atrium for all to see.

Shopping for your wedding is even easier than 'going shopping' -- most wedding chapels offer a full array of wedding planning services -- literally everything you need to make the special day perfect. They can arrange for flowers, photographers, formal wear, invitations, reservations, receptions and memorabilia.

If you'd rather do it yourself, Las Vegas is the perfect place to shop 'till you drop if you like . . . if you can! Vegas has it all, from the most expensive boutiques to the corner pawn shops. The many themed Las Vegas hotels have similarly themed shopping malls for your convenience; there are desert motifs, Roman showcases, Venetian shops, Hawaiian villages, French boutiques and . . . well, you get the picture -- something for everyone's taste and fantasies. Off the strip, you'll find gorgeous shopping malls and charming shopping villages along with the more hip and earthy establishments that populate the Fremont Street area.

Need something special like matching tattoos to commemorate your special occasion? There are dozens of tattoo parlors with the finest tattoo artists in the country right there in Las Vegas -- mostly in the Fremont Street area. The vast majority of the tattoo parlors are squeaky-clean and sanitary so there is no worry there, but remember that a tattoo can last longer than a marriage -- there are many places in Las Vegas where you can get Henna, temporary tattoos that will last at least as long as the honeymoon.

While in the area, visit a Las Vegas pawn shop. You'll be amazed at the things people pawn to get some extra gambling money or to pay off debts. No, not 'only' in Vegas but perhaps especially in Vegas.

It may not be a “legal” wedding under Nevada's laws, but many wedding chapels and major hotels will accommodate same sex “alternative lifestyle ceremonies”. One very large, “gay owned” wedding chapel even offers special themes for same-sex couples looking to make a spiritual, if not legal, commitment. You may not, at the end of the day have a piece of paper that declares your relationship to be legal but you can, at the chapels and hotels that are willing to perform the ceremonies, get a certificate commemorating your special day. All of the other amenities available to the more traditional married couples are, of course, available to the same sex couple; the flowers, photographs, videos and etc. are all part of the special day for every committed relationship.

One huge hotel chain has stated publicly that same sex couples are welcomed to have their commitment ceremonies in their wedding chapels; according to one wedding chapel manager, their attitude is “What better place to celebrate with your partner than in Las Vegas, the city made famous by non-traditional weddings and celebrity elopements? Vegas wedding chapels have been the scene for many ceremonies acknowledging a committed couple's love."

Las Vegas weddings for all couples run from the traditional to the unusual to the outright outlandish but every couple goes away satisfied. Some of the more imaginative wedding scenarios include a pirate theme, ship-deck ceremony, a medieval themed wedding with knights and fair maidens in attendance, a hearse ride to a grave-side wedding ceremony and, of course, a wedding officiated by “The King” himself.

Some like to keep it simple; a traditional, no-frills wedding in a chapel with just a few close friends and a quiet dinner afterwards. Others, however, like to mix a little fantasy in with their commitment and start looking for a wedding theme. Here are a few tips on selecting and executing a wedding theme.

Make sure both you and your partner are fully involved in the planning and work hard to find that common ground between you. Also consider your guests; while a haunted house wedding officiated by a ghostly presence may suit your wacky nature, it may offend some who are near and dear to you. Also consider that in ten or twelve years you will be showing the pictures and videos to your children - you may want to avoid traumatizing them with something children shouldn't see.

Whatever you choose, however, you can be absolutely sure that Las Vegas can accommodate your wishes. Elvis weddings are so common they are almost almost de rigueur but there is a whole world of other possibilities. Beach weddings, outdoor weddings in a garden or gazebo, you can tie the knot in a helicopter or a pink Cadillac and Rocky Horror Picture Show weddings may never go out of style.

There is also music to select -- music that should go along with your theme and, if you plan a wedding reception, there are menu selections to make, decorations to choose, and entertainment to book. If all that sounds a little too much, consider the easiest way: go to a wedding chapel and let them do all the work. Wedding chapel managers have seen and done it all and are more than willing to incorporate any new twists you may come up with into their repertoire.

You'll find that your way to Las Vegas is well paved by all the major air carriers and bus lines and the expense is very low. You can get package deals that will fly you to Vegas and will include a hotel room for a two-night stay for as little as $150.00. The hotel in question won't be a major strip hotel but it will be a place to keep your bags while you are out enjoying Las Vegas with the money you saved.

Las Vegas is served by fourteen airlines and the Las Vegas airport (McCarran International Airport) is bustling virtually 24 hours a day. Car rentals, taxi cabs, hotel shuttle buses, limousines and city bus service are all options for the incoming travelers to get from the airport to their destinations. Since the trip from the airport to the Las Vegas strip is only one mile, you can expect to be where the action is very soon after landing.

McCarren International Airport, by the way, was named after Patrick McCarran who became a U.S. Senator from Nevada in 1932 (nine years after Amelia Earhart's first landing in Las Vegas). The airport was first known as McCarran field, but in 1968 it gained the status of an international airport.

Once in town, if you are visiting the strip, there is a monorail system now in place that will rapidly take you the length of the strip with stops at every major hotel. You can ride all day for $10.00 or three days for $25.00.

You can walk the strip safely at any time of the day or night and it is also safe to wander around between the casinos in the Fremont Street area. It is reportedly not wise or safe, however, to attempt to walk from the strip to Fremont Street or vice versa.