I never quite understood why Vegas ever became Wedding Central. It could be the city's "What Happens in Vegas..." mantra. Or maybe all the bright lights and special effects just get to people's heads. But whatever the reason, the desire to wed on the Strip is fizzling out. In 2008, Clark County--where Las Vegas resides--issued only 95,888 marriage licenses, the lowest in 15 years. Meanwhile, the Big Apple is looking to take Vegas's place as the number one place to get hitched. In 2008, the city issued some 70,000 licenses, and it has just re-vamped its marriage bureau. NBC reports:Mayor Michael Bloomberg has given City Hall's famously gritty marriage bureau a gleaming makeover, with fewer lines, more space to take photographs, video screens to monitor wait times and wedding chapels with gauzy curtains and walls painted in muted tones.
And in case the newlyweds-to-be forget any essentials, the space features a small shop that sells fresh flowers, disposable cameras, tissues, hairspray and sparkly fake diamond rings for $9 each.
The sleek 24,000-square-foot space officially opens Monday, replacing a grubby, cramped, poorly lit office. It is designed to put some glamour into City Hall weddings while bringing more tourism dollars to the city.
The facility also has iPod hook-ups (so the bride and groom can play their own music), elaborate restrooms, and marble floors original to the 1929 building. Bloomberg hopes to market the bureau to tourists and offer inclusive wedding packages with local hotels and restaurants. Tying the knot in New York might also have certain financial benefits as well--currently, the fee for a marriage license in Clark County, Nevada, is $55. New York's is $35 (plus another $25 to use the new facility).
Do you think New York will ever replace Vegas as America's number one wedding destination?
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Interesting. But, if Nevada has Elvis ceremonies, who do we have to offer? But yay, for glitz and glamour, I guess.
(Of course, all I can do is think of Cary Grant in Arsenic and Old Lace.)
The Naked Cowboy with his guitar?
Although I believe that shotgun weddings in Vegas are never a good idea I have seen a few good ones at the Paris Las Vegas hotel. I think that travelers to that hotel maybe have a little more class and appreciation for the sanctity of marriage. Anyone getting married should visit that hotel.