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Vegas wedding chapels have had a long history of providing quick, low-stress weddings to celebrities and the masses alike. Las Vegas became known decades ago as the Marriage Capital of the World because of the ease and low coast of marrying in the city. The 1931 wedding of actors Clara Bow and Rex Bell began the still-popular trend of celebrity Vegas weddings, which were made legendary by the marriage of Elvis Presley and Priscilla Beaulieu in 1967.
The number of Vegas wedding chapels has multiplied over the years, as the demand for Las Vegas weddings has increased. Today over 5 percent of all wedding licenses issued in the United States are issued by Clark County, of which Las Vegas is the county seat. - One of the main reasons for the popularity of Vegas weddings is the ease and quickness of obtaining a marriage license and booking a wedding facility. The Marriage License Bureau is open until midnight Monday through Thursday and is open 24 hours on the weekends. Once the marriage license is obtained it can be taken to one of the Las Vegas wedding chapels for an immediate marriage if space is available, or it can be used for a planned package wedding at a chapel.
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With so many chapels to choose from, there are countless ways to get married in Las Vegas. Couples can choose from spur-of-the-moment "quickie" weddings to planned, elegant weddings to Elvis-themed weddings and more.
Most Vegas wedding chapels allow couples to choose from a civil or religious ceremony, with additional costs for ministers or rabbis.
Some of the most basic packages offered by Vegas wedding chapels cost less than $100 for use of the chapel and recorded wedding music. The more elaborate packages available at most Vegas wedding chapels cost around $500 and include music, bouquets and boutonnieres, posed photographs and a DVD of the ceremony.
Other more established Vegas wedding chapels, such as the famed Chapel of the Flowers, offer packages that cost up to $10,000 and include a two-night stay at a luxury hotel, a wedding planner and coordinator, professional organist, unity candle, crystal toasting flutes, a wedding album, more elaborate flower arrangements, extensive photography options, a spa package for two, a gift basket, dinner for two at a fine dining restaurant, show tickets, transportation services, DVDs and Internet broadcasting of the ceremony. - Generally the more extensive, and expensive, the package, the more time is needed to prepare the ceremony. Advance reservations for the Vegas wedding chapels become necessary. The more basic the wedding package desired, the more quickly the wedding can take place. Many chapels have wedding slots every 30 minutes with their basic packages, allowing for spontaneous weddings every day of the week.
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The primary benefits to getting married at one of the Vegas wedding chapels are that there is no wait period to obtain a marriage license and no blood tests are required. A fee of $55 is required to obtain the license, along with proof of age for anyone under 21. The name of one witness to the wedding must also be provided.
In addition to these practical benefits, many couples choose to marry at Vegas wedding chapels for spontaneity or to do something memorable and different.
