The wedding season starts in two months and usually runs until September. The season was largely decimated in 2020 and 2021. That leaves a backlog of weddings that will make venues hard to find this year, particularly in popular places. Demand for these may drive costs to wed above their usual average of $28,000.
People who marry during the wedding season want to have their ceremonies or receptions outdoors. That is easier in southern states, which have more warm days. In places like Maine and Minnesota, the wedding season may not even last through the traditional months.
The recently released 2022’s Best Cities for Outdoor Weddings report from lawn care provider Lawn Love is particularly timely because people are making final plans for many 2022 weddings now. The report suggests the effects of the pandemic have lingered: “Wedding season is on the horizon, and what better way to celebrate love during a pandemic than to exchange vows outdoors, in the open air.”
The ratings have several components. The overall universe of the study was 190 cities. Important yardsticks include the number of outdoor wedding venues, venue quality and affordability, and the professional services available to celebrate a marriage. Among the original sources used were Eventbrite, The Knot, LawnStarter, National Center for Disaster Preparedness, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, TripAdvisor and Zola.
California cities dominated the list. First place was taken by Garden Grove, which scored particularly well on venue access and venue quality. Its population is slightly less than 200,000, and it is perhaps best known for the Garden Grove Strawberry Festival. About 30 miles south of Los Angeles, Garden Grove is in a part of California that stays relatively warm through most of the year.
Orange, which is close to Garden Grove, ranks second, while Glendale, which is part of Los Angeles, comes in third and Fullerton, also near Los Angeles, is fourth.
These are the 20 best cities to get married:
- Garden Grove, Calif. (63.93)
- Orange, Calif. (62.32)
- Glendale, Calif. (62.18)
- Fullerton, Calif. (59.33)
- Metairie, La. (59.13)
- Jersey City, N.J. (58.66)
- Chula Vista, Calif. (57.69)
- Huntington Beach, Calif. (57.29)
- Tempe, Ariz. (56.25)
- Santa Ana, Calif. (56.24)
- Irvine, Calif. (55.66)
- Lakewood, Colo. (55.35)
- Pasadena, Calif. (55.06)
- Escondido, Calif. (54.29)
- Alexandria, Va. (54.21)
- Anaheim, Calif. (54.14)
- Oceanside, Calif. (53.66)
- Newark, N.J. (52.42)
- Torrance, Calif. (51.70)
- San Diego, Calif. (51.68)
Click here to see the states where couples have been married the longest.
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