Sandy Pena, a wedding planner and an owner of Ultimate USA Weddings, based in Manhattan, said she has seen an increase in flash weddings by couples who are “less detail oriented and more spontaneous.” Of the 90 weddings booked through her last year, more than half came from last-minute inquires. “Many couples have said, ‘We’re coming to New York next month. We want to get married. Can you help?’”
Venues, too, are receiving calls from couples inquiring about short-notice availability.
“Because Covid made it difficult for people to marry, and because so many venues became filled so far in advance, couples now call hoping for an unexpected opening or cancellation they can step into, which is a great way to utilize an unsold date for us,” said Kelly Carrigan, an owner of Carrigan Farms, a 275-acre fruit and vegetable farm in Mooresville, N.C. “We’ve become very good at filling those requests.”
Requests from couples have included finding an officiant, a florist, a photographer, a catered farm-to-table meal and entertainment for anywhere from 10 to 300 people. Prices vary from $100 to $170 per person, with additional services extra.
“We have a lot of industry connections and can pick up a phone and have people here in three days,” Ms. Carrigan said. “As farmers, we’re not high-strung people, and these kinds of weddings are no longer considered unusual.”
Jennifer Rowe, the director of event sales and services at the Fairmont San Francisco, said that because “short-term weddings,” as she calls them, are usually smaller, there’s more flexibility in where they are held. They “can happen in more unique spaces in the hotel, like our penthouse, which offers amazing views and can accommodate 60 people,” Ms. Rowe said.
