Explained: How Vegas became the ‘marriage capital of the world’

The history of Vegas weddings

Las Vegas first came to be associated with quick and easy wedding ceremonies in the 1900s when the state of Nevada eased its requirements for obtaining a marriage license. While it could take up to a few days to get a marriage license in most states, it only took a couple of minutes in Vegas. Quickly, young couples from neighbouring states, including California, began flocking to Nevada to tie the knot.

In 1931, the Vegas wedding became central to the city’s budding tourism industry after officials legalised gambling and also shortened the time in which couples could get a divorce.

Las Vegas first came to be associated with quick and easy wedding ceremonies in the 1900s when the state of Nevada eased its requirements for obtaining a marriage license. (Express photo)

The popularity of these wedding increased during the 1940s, when World War 2 spurred a large number of young men and women to get married before being drafted. About 20,000 weddings took place in 1942 in Clark County, according to a report by Las Vegas Review-Journal.

By the 1950s, a number of Hollywood celebrities — including Francis Ford Coppola and Eleanor Neil, Elvis Presley and Priscilla Beaulieu — were also getting married in Vegas, adding a tinge of glamour to the wedding experience here.

Amid a wave of weddings, the city decided to open a marriage license bureau in the train depot. This office was open until midnight on most days and 24 hours during weekends and holidays — a practice that continued till about 2006.

In 2006, the marriage license bureau announced it was ending the longstanding tradition of remaining open 24 hours on Fridays, Saturdays and holidays — a decision that was expected to save the county around $200,000, according to a New York Times report. Instead, couples can now procure their license 365 days a year between 8 am and midnight.

Dozens of wedding chapels came up along the iconic Las Vegas boulevard over the decades to cash in on the city’s budding 10-minute wedding industry.

Today, wedding tourism accounts for about $2 billion of the city’s annual $58 billion tourism industry, and generates about 18,000 jobs, according to a report by NPR.

But, why Vegas?

It is notoriously simple. A marriage license costs about $102 and can be obtained without a blood test or waiting period. A couple looking to get married in Las Vegas needs to be at least 18-years-old, and must be able to provide government-issued identification to prove their name and age.

These weddings spiked in popularity after coronavirus pandemic-induced restrictions began to be lifted across the US. In June last year, the number of marriage licenses issued and marriages filed in Clark County rose considerably, according to a report in The Associated Press.

Announcing her marriage in the recent edition of her newsletter, Jennifer Lopez wrote: “Exactly what we wanted. Last night we flew to Vegas, stood in line for a license with four other couples, all making the same journey to the wedding capital of the world.

“Stick around long enough and maybe you’ll find the best moment of your life in a drive through in Las Vegas at twelve thirty in the morning in the tunnel of love drive through, with your kids and the one you’ll spend forever with,” she added.  JLo and Ben Affleck aren’t the only celebrities who have opted for a scaled-down fuss-free Vegas wedding in recent years. Celebrity couples like Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker, and Sophie Turner and Joe Jonas, too, have most notably tied the knot at a Vegas chapel.

Pop star Britney Spears also married her first husband, Jason Alexander, during a New Years’ Eve trip to Las Vegas. The marriage lasted all of three days and was eventually annulled on Monday, January 5, 2004.

Getting married in Vegas is about the full experience — after the ceremony (which can cost anywhere between a few hundred to thousands of dollars), couples often flock to the hotels and casinos across the city.

The Elvis connection

Most modern-day references to a quick Vegas wedding include an Elvis Presley impersonator officiating the ceremony. Since the 1960s, Elvis has been indelibly linked to Las Vegas. In fact, the title track of his 1964 film ‘Viva Las Vegas’ became the city’s unofficial theme song. He famously performed the Las Vegas International Hotel for many years.

Presley himself got married in Las Vegas in 1967, which cemented his connection with Vegas weddings, AP reported.

However, last month, the licensing company that controls Presley’s name and image ordered Vegas chapels to discontinue Elvis-themed ceremonies. Multiple chapels received cease-and-decist letters from Authentic Brands Group in June, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

The company has urged these chapels to stop the unauthorized use of “Presley’s name, likeness, voice image, and other elements of Elvis Presley’s persona in advertisements, merchandise and otherwise.”