Las Vegas expects this New Year's Eve will set a wedding record — and a pop-up airport license bureau is helping with the rush
If you're having a destination New Year's Eve wedding in Las Vegas, you could get your marriage license as you step off the plane.
Clark County has taken an unconventional step to help handle the thousands of weddings expected to be held in the city on New Year's Eve by opening a temporary marriage license bureau at Las Vegas' Harry Reid International Airport.
The thousands of weddings expected on what is normally a big holiday could even set a record — thanks in part to the date, which this year creates a repeating numerical sequence of 1-2-3-1-2-3.
In the industry, that repeating date is known as a "specialty date," according to the Associated Press. There were similar lines on April 3, 2021 (4/3/21) and Dec. 13, 2014 (12/13/14), according to county clerk Lynn Goya in a 2021 interview with the Associated Press. These dates are "always immensely popular," said Goya, noting that more than 1,800 tied the knot on Dec. 13, 2014.
The number to beat this New Year's Eve is 4,492. That record was set on July 7, 2007 - or 7/7/07.
The Associated Press said that since 2018, the city typically records between 450 and 550 New Year's Eve marriages, but multiple wedding venues and planning companies said they are expecting far more ceremonies this year.
A pop-up Marriage License Bureau will open at Harry Reid International Airport from Dec. 26 to Dec. 31 to capture travelers looking to get married on New Year’s Eve for its double whammy of a holiday and the date’s rare numerical sequence of 1-2-3-1-2-3. pic.twitter.com/ULwznlIYmE
— City of Las Vegas (@CityOfLasVegas) December 26, 2023
"It's a double whammy," said Melody Willis-Williams, president of Vegas Weddings in an interview with the Associated Press. "Anytime you get these specialty dates, they're always hugely popular. But tie that in with New Year's Eve and it's a showstopper."
Willis-Williams said the company expects to marry more than 120 couples on New Year's Eve, with some of those couples waiting for the final countdown to midnight to say "I do." Willis-Williams said that the company's multiple venues are all fully booked at midnight.
The pop-up marriage bureau at the airport is a simpler affair, located in one of the airport's terminals near a baggage pickup carousel. Those looking to get their marriage licenses or vow renewal certificates there can do so between Dec. 26 and Dec. 31, with the pop-up closing at 5 p.m. local time each evening.
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- New Year's Eve
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Kerry Breen is a reporter and news editor at CBSNews.com. A graduate of New York University's Arthur L. Carter School of Journalism, she previously worked at NBC News' TODAY Digital. She covers current events, breaking news and issues including substance use.
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