With 120,000 wedding licences issued in Las Vegas annually, many brides and grooms are having the same wedding idea. A wedding abroad in this particular city is a great option because Vegas has a lot of practice in making dreams come true for brides and grooms. And with first class hotels, world-class restaurants and a wonderful climate, it's easy to see why so many couples choose Vegas when considering having a Wedding abroad.
The city is designed for weddings - there are over 70 different wedding venues within the city itself, and that's before you look further afield to the Grand Canyon, Red Rock Canyon, Lake Mead or Mount Charleston for spectacular natural locations. In the city itself, you can choose to get married at one of the hotel chapels, or opt for one of the many stand-alone independent chapels that represent most people's image of a Las Vegas as a Wedding abroad wedding venue.
The beauty of a Las Vegas as your Wedding abroad destination is the simplicity of organising it. Choose your chapel, and there will be a range of packages to choose from, incorporating your minister, music, flowers, photography and often videography for a fixed price - though there are always options to upgrade to ensure you get exactly what you want. A lot of chapels also offer webcam services to allow family and friends at home to watch your wedding live so that no-one feels they have to miss out on your big day.
With the entire organisation handed over, all you need to do is step back and enjoy your day. Your only legal requirement is that before your ceremony you need to pick up your wedding licence at the Courthouse - you need $60, proof of identity (passports are fine for this), and after filling in a form you're free to get married. Most of the chapels will provide a limousine to pick up your wedding licence from the Courthouse so you can do it in style.
So where should you get married? Well starting with the hotel chapels, there has been a trend in Las Vegas since the 1980s to build bigger, better and more spectacular hotels. As you might expect, most of the main resort hotels on the Strip (the main street of the city) have beautiful chapels - The Venetian, Paris, MGM Grand, Mandalay Bay and The Bellagio to name but a few - with experienced and helpful staff to help you plan your day. The Wynn Hotel, particularly, has spared no expense in its wedding chapels, offering a new level of luxury to couples looking for a wedding at the higher end of the market. One of their packages has the distinction of being the most expensive in Las Vegas.
If you didn't want to restrict yourself to a hotel chapel, you can get married on the Bridge of Sighs, or in a gondola on the Grand Canal at The Venetian, on the viewing platform of the Eiffel Tower at Paris. Or why not consider the terrace overlooking the lake at the Bellagio for your Wedding abroad - the fountains will play for you at the end of the ceremony.
If you would rather go for an independent chapel, you have a lot of choice. Most of the stand-alone chapels are located in the Downtown area of Las Vegas, and can offer wedding packages at the cheaper end of the scale. A drive-through wedding can cost as little as $25, but a chapel wedding with a minister, flowers and photography can be had from $200. There has been a fine tradition of famous faces who have found the independent chapels just perfect for getting hitched. Joan Collins, Frank Sinatra, Judy Garland, Demi Moore and Bruce Willis were all married at the Little White Wedding Chapel, while Richard Gere and Cindy Crawford, Noel Gallagher and Meg Matthews, and Judy Garland (again) were married at the Little Church of the West.
What about Elvis? Well, he's certainly there if you want him. Appropriate too - Elvis and Priscilla tied the knot in a suite at the Aladdin Hotel in 1967, and he played an 8 year run at the Las Vegas Hilton up to 1977, entertaining 2.5 million people in the process. Elvis lives on in the guise of impersonators who can walk you down the aisle, perform your wedding ceremony, sing for you, or even pick you up in a pink Cadillac for your wedding. True blue Elvis fans can get married at Hartland Mansion - a house that used to belong to the man himself - or at The Little Church of the West, where Elvis and Ann-Margret exchanged vows in the film 'Viva Las Vegas'.
If you want a themed wedding abroad that doesn't involve Elvis, Las Vegas can deliver those too. How about a wedding on a pirate ship in Treasure Island lake, with a pirate swinging down from the rigging with the rings? Or on the deck of the Starship Enterprise (located at the Las Vegas Hilton), followed by a toast with Chateau du Trek champagne? Or how about a visit to an old Wild West town called Bonnie Springs where your minister can carry out the wedding on horseback while your groom can be held at gunpoint by cowboys? If you can imagine it, it probably exists - with everything from James Bond to Austin Powers, and Blues Brothers to Rocky Horror themed weddings very much in existence.
As for reception venues, you'll be spoiled for choice. Like any big city, Las Vegas has a mix of restaurants run by famous chefs, independent gems, and chain restaurants, and the hotels also have all-you-can-eat buffets. Whatever your budget and tastes, you will find something to suit you and your wedding party.
Your options are endless, and your wildest dreams are possible. Las Vegas not only opens opportunities for your special day, but this location then allows you to honeymoon all over the United States. You could simply hop over to Los Angeles or San Francisco, or even fly to New York City or Hawaii. Las Vegas has everything you might want for your wedding abroad, the tricky part is deciding between so many options!
See other Brits getting married in the States with Ultimate Weddings USA: New York
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