I am looking to get married in Vegas during this New Years (2004), do you know how long it takes to get the license? Can I get it the same day at the County Clerk's office? Which standalone chapels would you recommend? Are there good (with certification, etc.) diamond jewelers in Vegas?
-wayne

You can get the marriage license the same day you're getting married. I believe you go to the county courthouse downtown to pick it up. Try looking around on a county website or any Vegas site for more info on that. I've heard the lines can get quite long, but the office is open until midnight and they sometimes extend their hours on holidays.
There are some very good jewelers in town. In any casino with shops, there's a jeweler. There's even a Tiffany's in the Bellagio if you want the top of the line. There's other independent jewelers in town as well. Try searching in bestredyp.com - the local phone book online.
As for wedding chapels, it really depends on what you want. There's cheesy to super romantic and each package has a different price and different features. I think most of them have websites with pictures. Once you narrow it down, look at the area of town. Some chapels are right next door to adult motels but are nice inside.
Good luck and congrats! If you narrow your choices down but can't decide, let me know.

Amanda

Try these websites to get started:
http://www.co.clark.nv.us/clerk/marr...nformation.htm
www.vegas.com
www.lasvegas.com

Just try to get the license during the morning preforably several days before New Years. Lines can be several hours long as it is the busiest day of the year for ceremonies. The prices for diamonds will be sky high in Las Vegas. It's best to do your research and buy the rock beforehand. Otherwise, I would only trust the well known established jewelers in the shopping malls of the Forum, Grand Canal, etc. Hubby & I used Little Chapel of the West when we eloped & got married at Red Rock Canyon. Little Chapel gets a lot of TV coverage for marrying famous people. Congrats & warmest wishes

Thanks to both of you - amanda & travellingwifey. I was particularly concerned about the long lines, however, I guess I won't have a choice because I don't arrive Vegas till late afternoon 12/30. I was planning on getting the license with my fiance on 12/31 & then getting the ceremony on 1/1/04. I am leaning towards the "Little Chapel in the West" based on reading a few articles. Seems their prices are good and the packages are good for what I am looking for. Just hope the location also up to snuff.
-wayne

I'm pretty sure the County Clerk's office is open until the AM if not 24 hrs. I'd suggest going to the clerk's office upon arrival on the 30th. The chapel location is along the north strip area (LV Blvd?) where you are surrounded by many more wedding chapels. It's fine. There are a few other nice ones around there but I don't remember the names unfortunately.

Go the whole way and get an Elvis impersonator to do the ceremony.

I was planning on going to the County clerk's office on 12/31 (New Year's Eve), & go to the chapel on 1/1. How bad are the lines? Is it whole day or can i expect less than 5 hours? I would like to plan another activity in the afternoon, do you think I can be out of there by noon if I go for 8am? or is it really crazy on NY's Eve?
-wayne

I went to the courthouse at 5PM on a Friday. We were out in 5 minutes, literally. You can speed it up a little by downloading the forms ahead of time from here: http://www.vegasweddings4u.com/MarriageLicense.pdf

I think the courthouse is open until midnight on weeknights and it's open 24 hours from Friday morning until Sunday Midnight. I wouldn't sweat the lines.

As for the chapel, I think the place you're talking about is "The Little Church of the West". It's probably the most reputable standalone along with Little Chapel of the Flowers. It's on the south strip, just south of Mandalay but on the opposite side of the road. The location is good because the chapels on the north end of the strip are in some shady areas but this one is not.

As for diamonds, DO NOT buy a stone in Vegas, you will get cranked. If you're looking to spend $10k plus, you might be able to work a reasonable deal out at one of the places in the Forum Shops but you're not going to get a deal on a smaller stone. If you are not very knowledgeable in stones, I'd recommend buying from bluenile.com as their prices are good so even if you buy a crappy stone, you'll pay an accordingly cheap price whereas many other places will charge you "nice stone" prices for a crappy stone. The most important part of a stone is the cut and you kinda have to know what you're looking for or bring a woman along with you. An beautiful, ideal cut round brilliant will run around $6k for a 1 carat.

Good luck in Vegas, I was married there this past summer. You'll have a blast.