Planning a wedding later this year or next, but haven’t selected a location yet? We’ve got you. We’d like to share some great places to get married in 2022. This list will offer options that touch on a range of budgets, styles, and climates.
5. Tulsa, Oklahoma
We see you over there, asking “really?! Oklahoma?!” Yes, really! Tulsa actually ranked in the top 5 of best wedding destinations on a list put out by the popular personal finance website Wallethub (Lawler, 2022). Allow us to show you why.
There are a lot of things to love about Tulsa. For starters, they have one of the most extensive park systems in the country (8,652 acres total; 135 parks in a city of less than half a million). One of these is a gorgeous riverfront park called “The Gathering Place”, which earned the title of best city park in the country from USA Today in 2021. It’s also an excellent place for pre- and post-wedding photoshoots.
There are also wilderness areas and nature preserves right outside town (LaGrave, 2021). Why is this relevant for a wedding, you ask? Because despite the fact that it will be one of the best days of your lives, the days leading up to a wedding are inherently stressful. Multiple beautiful spaces in and around Tulsa offer you the opportunity to get away into nature to decompress without having to take too much time out of your day to get there. These also offer some excellent photo backdrops.
There’s no shortage of great wedding venues in Tulsa, but one of our favorites is Harwelden Mansion. Yep, you can get married in a literal mansion. You can tie the knot outdoors in the beautifully-manicured gardens, or indoors in an elegant and historic atmosphere (Merinuk, 2021). Our runner up Tulsa venue choice is actually the Tulsa Zoo. They offer a variety of indoor and outdoor spaces of various sizes, and your wedding might even be attended (from afar, don’t worry) by giraffes and lions. To top it all off, Tulsa is one of the more affordable places in the US to get married.
4. St. Petersburg, Florida
St. Pete has it all: Picturesque resorts, some of the best beaches in the country, and gardens and parks galore. Aside from offering a lot of gorgeous places at which to say ‘I do’, St. Pete is also well-known for its ever-expanding city center full of unique local businesses. The downtown area close to the waterfront features boutiques, cute touristy shops, and delicious eateries, while the Edge and Grand Central districts are famous for unique local restaurants with plenty of flair, craft breweries, live music, and lots of alternative/progressive and LGBTQ+ culture.
The Tampa Bay (which St. Pete is a part of) is one of the fastest-growing metro areas in the country, and for good reason. St. Pete has a special kind of energy; it feels as though there’s always something to celebrate. For this reason, it’s an excellent backdrop for a wedding. St. Pete’s enthusiastic fervor will get you all jazzed up prior to the big day while offering plenty of world-class venues.
A hotspot is Don CeSar’s Pink Palace, which offers stunning ocean views of both St. Pete and the Gulf of Mexico plus 38,000 square feet of space just for you (The Don CeSar, N. D.). For a more affordable but still stunning option, try the St. Petersburg Women’s Club. Their event space is very typical ‘old Florida’, with a beautiful ballroom, quaint garden, and water view veranda. Importantly, their staff is known for being incredibly helpful and will alleviate much of the stress you might feel on the day of due to their seamless expertise. They’re also flexible and willing to accommodate your needs; they can recommend caterers or let you bring your own.
3. Vermont
Yes, we know, this is an entire state rather than a particular city. But Vermont is made up of a patchwork of incredibly picturesque small towns, any number of which are ideal for a wedding. Being in Vermont (especially in the fall) is like being surrounded by a living backdrop–it feels so impossibly beautiful that sometimes you have to look around and make sure it’s actually real and not photoshopped.
A lot of Vermont venues make us go “ooohhh”, but one on our shortlist is the Green Mountain Inn. It’s set in a picture-perfect mountain resort town with fresh, crisp air and the aroma of pine forest in the air. Another favorite is the Tempson Barn, which is very quintessentially Vermont. It’s exactly what it sounds like: a barn. However, it’s a very elegant barn set on 100 acres of private property way up in Vermont’s famed Northeast Kingdom.
If you have time for some celebratory excursions as a couple or with close friends and family while you’re there, you can tour the Ben and Jerry’s factory, go on any number of brewery tours, and of course just walk around admiring the splendor that is Vermont.
2. Lecce, Italy
While the rest of the destinations on this list are domestic, Lecce is our top fantasy wedding destination. It’s an old baroque city in Italy’s southern Apulia region, close to the sea and not far from the famous landmarks of Salento, Taranto, and Gallipoli. Lecce’s stone architecture and vibrant old city full of street music and old-world charm is exceptionally romantic–not to mention that everything in the south of Italy is very, very affordable compared to what we are used to in the US.
In case the mansion in Tulsa wasn’t fancy enough for you, in Lecce you could get married in a castle. In fact, there are at least three different castles to choose from–here, here, and here.
1. Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas was the only domestic destination that ranked in the top 7 trending wedding locations for 2022 (Luo, 2021). It’s our number one because of the sheer number of options it provides. Couples on a budget can choose from a range of wedding and even elopement packages tailored specifically for affordability, while couples wishing to invest a little more also have innumerable options.
Stallion Mountain offers affordable customizable packages and discounts; the site is in the gorgeous Nevada countryside seven miles from the Vegas Strip. Couples marry against a backdrop of rocky red-hued desert mountains. For couples wanting their wedding infused with more of the excitement of Vegas, we recommend Caesar’s Palace. It’s right on the Vegas Strip, but it’s a large property containing several venues to choose from (chapels, manicured gardens, and more) alongside plenty of packages boasting various inclusions such as an officiant, wedding coordinator, live music, and professional photoshoot (Liao, 2022).
It’s also really easy to get married in Las Vegas–the process of obtaining a marriage license is virtually hassle-free, and couples can get the license the same day they apply.
Before and after the wedding, the wedding party and guests can shop, attend shows, explore Las Vegas’ famous nightlife, or hit up the casinos.
Don’t Forget the Most Important Part
Some couples get so swept up in wedding planning that they leave their prenup until the last minute. This can lead to last minute stresses and issues as it’s absolutely crucial to allocate plenty of time and energy to planning your marriage, not just your wedding. Your prenup is one of the most powerful marriage planning tools available; it helps you create a roadmap for your financial arrangements and expectations, it gets you talking in detail about financial and lifestyle goals, and it gives you valuable peace of mind that will benefit your relationship for years to come.
If you haven’t discussed your prenup yet and you’re feeling hesitant about it, here’s how to bring up a prenup without upsetting your partner. Like some of the wedding packages described above, Hello Prenup’s platform also allows you to construct a fully customized prenuptial agreement.
How it works:
1. The two of you are separately guided through a questionnaire about your finances (a prenup requires full financial disclosure from each of you), and various clauses you might choose to include–or not.
2. You’ll be able to compare your answers and negotiate any differences yourselves from the comfort of your home, no attorneys needed.
3. Generate, print, sign, and notarize your prenup!
References
Here Comes the Guide. 2021. Stallion Mountain by Wedgewood Weddings. Retrieved from: https://www.herecomestheguide.com/wedding-venues/nevada/stallion-mountain-by-wedgewood-weddings
In Italy Wedding. 2010. Apulian Castle for Weddings. Retrieved from: https://www.initalywedding.com/italian-wedding-locations/Castle-for-wedding/wedding-venues-in-apulia/lecce-wedding-destinations/%3Elocation-castle_weddings_apulia-details.html
In Italy Wedding. 2010. Wedding in a Castle in Lecce. Retrieved from: https://www.initalywedding.com/italian-wedding-locations/Castle-for-wedding/wedding-venues-in-apulia/lecce-wedding-destinations/%3Elocation-Castello_matrimoni_Lecce-details.html
In Italy Wedding. 2010. Wedding Reception in Luxury Castle. Retrieved from: https://www.initalywedding.com/italian-wedding-locations/Castle-for-wedding/wedding-venues-in-apulia/lecce-wedding-destinations/%3Elocation-castle_apulia_wedding-details.html
LaGrave, K. 2021. Why Tulsa, Oklahoma Should be on Your Must-Visit List. Retrieved from: https://www.afar.com/magazine/what-to-do-in-tulsa-oklahomaLiao, C. 2022. The Best Wedding Venues in Las Vegas. Retrieved from: https://www.brides.com/best-wedding-venues-in-las-vegas-nevada-5215660
Luo, K. 2021. Destination Wedding Locations: Top 7 Trending in 2022. Retrieved from: https://www.dressanomalie.com/blog/destination-wedding-locations-trending-in-2022/
Lawler, O. G. Here are the Best Places to Get Married This Year. Retrieved from: https://www.thrillist.com/news/nation/best-wedding-locations-2022Merinuk, M. 2021. 13 Beautiful Wedding Venues in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Retrieved from: https://www.theknot.com/content/wedding-venues-tulsa
The Don Cesar. N. D. Weddings and Events. Retrieved from: https://www.doncesar.com/weddings-eventsTulsa Zoo. 2022. Weddings and Celebrations. Retrieved from: https://tulsazoo.org/your-events/weddings-celebrations/
Wedding Wire, 2022. Green Mountain Inn. Retrieved from: https://www.weddingwire.com/biz/green-mountain-inn-stowe/26aa79043794d687.html Wedding Wire, 2022. Tempson Barn. Retrieved from: https://www.weddingwire.com/biz/tempson-barn-lyndonville/c6a64192cd5aef92.html
Julia Rodgers is HelloPrenup’s CEO and Co-Founder. She is a Massachusetts family law attorney and true believer in the value of prenuptial agreements. HelloPrenup was created with the goal of automating the prenup process, making it more collaborative, time efficient and cost effective. Julia believes that a healthy marriage is one in which couples can openly communicate about finances and life goals. You can read more about us here Questions? Reach out to Julia directly at [email protected].
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