Aravind Ravichandran had his heart set on proposing to Lavanya Venkatesan at Angels Landing, a large rock formation at Zion National Park in southwestern Utah. In the spring of 2024, he managed to get the necessary hikers’ permits for himself and Venkatesan, both nature enthusiasts from Boston, through a lottery system.
Once they arrived at the summit, Ravichandran, 29, a senior design engineer at a software company, reached for the diamond ring tucked in his coat pocket. A nearby Canadian tourist sprang into action, recording the proposal. When Venkatesan, 28, a senior research associate at a biotechnology company, said yes, a gathering crowd erupted in cheers and applause.
“They congratulated and celebrated us in a very beautiful way,” Venkatesan said.
As the newly engaged couple discussed wedding venues, they became drawn to national parks. Both enjoy camping and road trips, and have visited 14 national parks in less than two years. They eventually chose Arches National Park, also in Utah, and married there on April 7, before 25 guests. They picked an outdoor location for the ceremony and rented a local ranch for their guests for two days. Including food, car rentals and accommodations for a few extra days before the wedding, the total cost was $20,000.
About 331 million visitors flocked to the 63 U.S. national parks last year, according to the National Park Service. Some, like Ravichandran and Venkatesan, come to exchange vows against a stunning natural backdrop.
The 2025 application period for weddings and commitment ceremonies is currently underway at many parks. Permit fees vary by locale, and availability depends on ceremony size and guest count.
Erika Hernandez, an owner of the Greatest Adventure, an elopement and wedding planning service based in Leavenworth, Washington, estimated that she has worked on more than 100 national park weddings over the past decade.
She advised couples interested in planning a national park wedding to act quickly. Some parks only issue one permit per day, per location. Flexibility around timing is also essential.
“Don’t have a set date in mind,” Hernandez said. “If the park is where you really want to get married, just go with what they have available.”
There might, for instance, be more availability on weekdays and also in the spring and fall.
At Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore in Michigan, there are four to six weddings every weekend in June, according to Merrith Baughman, the director of interpretation and visitor services. “We have quite a few weddings right now,” she said.
The picturesque lakeshore is the site of 40 to 60 weddings per year, and June, July and August are the busiest months. “Theoretically, somebody could get married in the middle of winter if they wanted to,” Baughman said. “The park does not close down.”
After selecting a park, Hernandez suggests that couples get their guest list quickly finalized to ensure the locale can accommodate everyone. “So many of your location options are going to be dictated by that,” she said.
For many couples, national parks offer a more affordable alternative to traditional venues. According to the wedding planning website The Knot, the average cost of a wedding ceremony and reception in 2024 was $33,000.
Lindsey Bryant, 33, an art consultant from Charleston, South Carolina, and her husband, Steven Alburo, 31, a storekeeper first class at the U.S. Coast Guard, paid $10,000 for their Great Smoky Mountains National Park wedding, which took place on Nov. 28, 2024.
“It was obviously cheaper to get married in a park than it was to rent out a big venue,” Bryant said. But the place was also “close to my heart,” she added.
Bryant grew up in Georgia, and her family frequently visited Great Smoky Mountains National Park, which straddles North Carolina and Tennessee. “I went to college in that area and would go backpacking and rock climbing,” she said.
Hernandez has seen various budgets for national park weddings. On the low end, an intimate elopement of fewer than 10 people with a professional photographer can come in at under $10,000. On the high end, larger weddings of more than 100 guests with all the bells and whistles may cost upward of $80,000.
(Sarah Jane Brown via The New York Times) A photo provided by Sarah Jane Brown shows Kristen and Taylor Migliore's wedding at Mount Rainier National Park, Wash., July 12, 2024. The great outdoors is often where engaged couples find their ideal wedding setting. Some especially have their hearts set on a national park for their nuptials.
Marissa Tabile and O’Neal Ford Jr., both 35-year-old pharmacists from Tacoma, Washington, got married July 24, 2023, at Olympic National Park in Washington state after a few years of delays.
“We were dragging our feet and realized that weddings are really expensive, especially in these times,” Tabile said.
They weighed their options and ultimately decided that they should take advantage of Olympic National Park, about two hours west of Tacoma. “Originally, my husband brought it up: ‘Hey, why don’t we get married in the mountains?’ It took me two years to finally come to my senses,” Tabile said.
Their wedding price tag was $9,100, which included a photographer, park entrance fee and permit, marriage license, custom dress and suit. The sum also included accommodations at an Airbnb in Port Angeles, Washington, and meals.
Most national park weddings are decidedly low-key. No need to bring big floral bouquets, Chiavari chairs or elaborate decorations. (And, in many cases, national park regulations strictly prohibit such accouterments.)
The natural landscape provides all the aesthetics and ambience.
But a national park wedding isn’t always a walk in the park, so to speak. While rules and regulations vary, generally, no drones or pets are allowed. Music must be kept to a minimum and, in certain cases, may not be permitted.
Some sites and venues within the parks offer more privacy than others. The parks remain open to the public, so photo bombs are to be expected, as is rough terrain, spotty cell service and unpredictable weather.
And since national parks are typically located in remote areas, drive times to and from the nearest airport may be lengthy, and accommodations, shops and local services may be more sparse.
“Make sure you’re building plenty of time into your timeline,” said Hernandez, the wedding planner.
For Ravichandran and Venkatesan, who were married in April, the pros ultimately outweighed the cons. Reflecting on the scenery, Venkatesan said, before their wedding, she had “only seen such things in movies.”
“It gives you that ‘wow’ moment,” she said. “To just be there, experience it, and feel like the main character was amazing.”
This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
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