Las Vegas - not just for drive-thu weddings

I recently got back from Las Vegas, and it got me thinking about how many people get married in Vegas each year.  The answer - 120,000 marriage certificates are granted each year.  Now I can't say how many of those are legitimately from A Little White Wedding Chapel or the dozen other wedding on the fly kind of venues, but to put it in perspective, that is less than the entire state of Illinois - including all of Chicago.  I saw more than one bride in a white gown walking down the strip.  Yep, right there among the drink-in-hand tourists with dollar signs in their eyes.  But this is not the point that I want to make.  In fact it's quite the opposite.

There are the most amazing hotels with the most amazing places to hold a reception, not to mention that the caliber of culinary geniuses that would be creating your food and drink is bar none.  I think that Las Vegas gets a bad rap on weddings because of the old school thinking and the easy humor that Hollywood  creates with these Vegas weddings.  I mean, I dint think anyone thinks that the Hangover wedding was a classy affair, but it absolutely can be.  These incredible dare I even say hotels have the most modern and up to date facilities and hotel rooms.  Intimate ceremony sites and brilliantly unique reception places.  What I most love about having a wedding in Las Vegas is that your guests can actually have a good time during the time that their not at your reception.  Traveling for a wedding is so often a pain in the you know what, but why cant we make a little weekend of it.  Weddings are about good times and celebration with your friends and family.  The view is really a bonus!