Eureka Springs: Your Solution for a Low-Budget, Low-Stress Destination Wedding

So you're getting married. Congratulations! Now get to work. You've got a lot of planning ahead. You'd like to have a nice wedding, but you don't have a lot of time or money; or maybe you're looking to add some quirky charm to your ceremony; or maybe you don't care about "nice" so much as you want quick and convenient--but even an elopement requires a modicum of forethought.

Where do you go to get a lot of wedding bang for your buck, without all that stressful hard work?

If you answered "Vegas," you probably don't live in the South. If you did, then your answer might just as likely have been "Eureka Springs."

Eureka Springs, Arkansas, is often referred to as the Wedding Capital of the South. Also known as the Jewel of the Ozarks, it's a small town with a funky mix of down home mountain charm and downtown urban flair, nestled in the heart of Arkansas' Ozark mountains, about an hour's drive south of Branson, Missouri. Surrounded by lakes, rivers, hot springs and stunning mountain views, there's enough natural beauty to bring out the romantic in even the most devout of cynics. Add to that a downtown featuring beautiful parks, gazebos and Victorian architecture, and it starts to seem like the entire town was created for the express purpose of hosting weddings.

That's not quite the case. Eureka Springs was first founded as a hospital and curative spa, where the waters of its hot springs were believed to have healing properties. From there it quickly grew into a popular vacation spot for Victorian-era tourists, many of whom settled in the spot, giving the town its distinct Victorian flavor. Over the years it has become such a hot destination for weddings and honeymoons that the town and surrounding area boasts a booming wedding industry.

Last year on Valentine's weekend alone, the Eureka Springs courthouse, a picturesque historic building located at the heart of downtown's Main Street, issued 115 marriage licenses. Over 6,000 weddings are performed in Eureka Springs each year, according to the Eureka Springs Advertising & Promotions Commission web site at Eurekasprings.org. It's sister site, Eurekasprings.com, lists about 30 wedding venues that offer a wide range of options to fit any taste, style, or budget, from the contemporary and austere architectural wonder of the famous Thorncrown Chapel, to the quirkiness of a cowboy style wedding on horseback, to a traditional ceremony and reception held at any of the town's many upscale hotels, B&Bs, or wedding chapels. Even a simple civil ceremony has the option of being conducted against the backdrop of any one of the dozens of scenic wonders that the mountain location has to offer.

One of the best things about planning a wedding in Eureka Springs is that this town really knows weddings. Many sites come complete with wedding planners who take all of the guesswork -- and a lot of the actual work -- out of it for you. Even if you don't have a professional planner, almost anyone you ask in town is able to point you in the right direction to find what you need to plan your perfect wedding. Die-hard do-it-yourselfers can find practically everything they need to know with a quick Internet search; Google turns up 678,000 web sites for the search string "Eureka Springs Weddings."

My own wedding took place in Eureka Springs in September, 2006. My betrothed and I were ready to tear our hair out trying to find a local venue that provided the floral garden setting we wanted within our limited budget. Someone suggested Eureka Springs, and after a quick Google search I knew that this was the answer. Right away we found a lovely Victorian style bed & breakfast offering entire wedding packages, including a two night stay in the honeymoon suite, at prices that wouldn't break our budget. Better yet, it had a beautiful floral garden that boasted its own wedding chapel, set amidst a lush mountain wood. Perfect!

The staff also made my life a million times easier by being willing to handle as much--or as little--of the arrangements as I wanted, from providing the cake and champagne for the reception to the flowers and music for the wedding to hiring a minister and a photographer. We ended up having exactly the wedding we wanted: a small, intimate ceremony in a lush garden setting with our closest loved ones in attendance. The B&B even arranged a horse-drawn carriage to carry us off into the sunset when it was all over.

One might expect that a town that sees so many weddings throughout the year would become a little jaded and grow tired of all of the pomp and circumstance; but the townspeople seemed almost as invested in our wedding as we were. As our carriage paraded us through the streets, everyone we passed waved to us and shouted congratulations. Throughout our entire stay, locals who found out we had just gotten married went out of their way to make our weekend memorable by offering warm wishes, friendly advice, the best seats in the house at local restaurants, and even the occasional freebie.

Whether you're hoping for a beautiful wedding that won't break the bank; seeking a fast, no-frills ceremony in a romantic atmosphere; looking for a venue that incorporates the beauty and splendor of nature; or even if you want to elope but aren't sure Vegas is quite your style, Eureka Springs might be just what you're looking for. It offers a booming wedding industry, Victorian charm with a bohemian twist, friendly locals, and breathtaking scenery. Hotels, cottages and B&Bs provide plenty of options for a romantic getaway. But be careful. This town is so geared toward romance that even if you go there with no intention of getting married, you just might end up that way by the time you leave.