Gatlinburg Wedding Chapels - Is it the Right Choice for Me?

When a couple decides they want to get married in the Smoky Mountains, they first think of having a Gatlinburg chapel wedding. But, is that really the best option for you?
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You’ve decided that you want to get married and have chosen beautiful Gatlinburg, Tennessee as your wedding destination. Many couples immediately think that a chapel is what they are looking for. They may open a search engine and type in “wedding chapels in Gatlinburg, TN” or “cheap Gatlinburg wedding chapels”. Many of these same couples end up not choosing a Gatlinburg wedding chapel at all.

In fact, once the couple researches the available options, they instead find themselves opting for an outdoor or a cabin wedding. With our endless beauty here in the Smoky Mountains, it’s not a bad choice at all!

With the options Elope to Gatlinburg has access to, cheesy 1970s decorated Gatlinburg wedding chapels are a thing of the past. We have been offering our wedding services since 2013 and have numerous breathtaking locations for you to pick from. With us, you aren’t limited to a dimly lit and sterile feeling wedding chapel.

Gatlinburg Wedding Chapels - The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

When a couple decides they want to get married in the Smoky Mountains, they first think of having a Gatlinburg chapel wedding. But, is that really the best option for you?

The positives of having a chapel wedding in Gatlinburg are fairly slim. First, we would point out that having a covered or an indoor area could be nice in inclement weather. However, we have some outdoor ceremony locations that offer pavilions that are nice in the event of rain. Going one step further, we even have an outdoor location that has outdoor heaters under a covered pavilion for those chilly fall days.gatlinburg-wedding-chapel-cabin-wedding

If you are concerned about the temperature or the precipitation on your wedding day, though, there are still better options than going with a Gatlinburg wedding chapel. We will discuss those options later on in this page.

Unfortunately, there are many things about the wedding chapels here that you should be aware of. Starting out with the aesthetics; many wedding chapels in Gatlinburg look like they have not been updated since the 1970s. They are often dimly lit and have a weird sterile environment to them.

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The next issue with chapel weddings in Gatlinburg is that many chapels are very demanding. They have a giant list of rules that must be followed or you will be in violation of your contract. Some of these crazy rules are: Absolutely no guest photography, absolutely no guest video recording, absolutely no cell phones, etc.

It’s the 21st century. Elope to Gatlinburg is a full-service wedding company and takes over 150,000 photography shots a year. While we would agree that guests can definitely interfere with the photography aspect, the strictness level it is taken to by the Gatlinburg wedding chapels has more to do with selling you overpriced prints or digital downloads than affecting the quality of your photos.

If you are considering booking a ceremony with a wedding chapel in Gatlinburg, always read the fine print. Be fully informed. Ask how much the digital downloads and print release cost. If they won’t tell you…be worried. Unfortunately, many Gatlinburg wedding chapels advertise low rates to get you into the door.

After that, they can charge up to $2000 just for your photos with a print release. Additionally, it is not uncommon for these wedding chapels to nickel and dime you along the way for the smallest of things.

Ridiculous. But, there are alternatives…

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Elevate Your Love Story with an Intimate Wedding in the Breathtaking Beauty of Gatlinburg.

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Alternatives to a Chapel Wedding in Gatlinburg, TN

Many alternatives to a chapel wedding exist. Let’s go over the options down below.
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At this point, you may be wondering if there is an alternative to a wedding chapel in Gatlinburg. The answer to that is…absolutely! We offer both Gatlinburg cabin weddings as well as many gorgeous outdoor wedding spots. When you are getting married in Gatlinburg or the surrounding area, there is no need for a wedding chapel. Stress and headaches can be a thing of the past while immersing in the beauty that the Smoky Mountains offer.

For our cabin weddings, you rent a cabin for whatever suits your needs. Then, we come to you to provide our wedding services. There is no traveling and no sitting in traffic. Less stress and less headaches make a cabin wedding in Gatlinburg or the surrounding area a lot better option than going with a chapel and being rushed in and out. With many wedding chapels in the area being on the smaller side, mixed with horrible interior lighting, wedding photography inside of a chapel can be quite unappealing.

We also offer outdoor weddings at various spots throughout the Smoky Mountains areas of Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge. You can view our wedding locations here or check out our Gatlinburg wedding packages.

What If I MUST Have a Wedding at a Chapel in Gatlinburg?

We tried to convince you on why outdoor and cabin weddings are a better choice for your wedding in Gatlinburg. If it didn’t work, you may be asking yourself “so, what are my options?” While wedding chapels aren’t our favorite, there is a wedding chapel in Gatlinburg, TN that will rent out the chapel to you for your wedding. While they certainly have rules, they are not nearly as strict with their processes as the wedding chapels that offer pre-set packages.

You can rent this wedding chapel through the Hemlock Hills rental company and we will come out to the location for your wedding services. Since you take care of the chapel reservation/fee yourself, our normal cabin wedding/package prices apply. It’s located right outside of the arts & crafts community of Gatlinburg, so it’s easy to access all that Gatlinburg has to offer. It’s that simple.

While we aren’t personally fans of chapels for weddings in this area, we will do what we can to accommodate your request. Just do your due diligence prior to booking a Gatlinburg wedding chapel to ensure it is exactly what you hoped it would be.

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Highly recommended by couples like you.

Thousands of happy couples have chosen Elope to Gatlinburg for their unforgettable elopement. Here’s what some of them have shared about their experience with us:
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Highly Recommend!

We eloped to Gatlinburg from Florida. Elope to Gatlinburg made our day nothing short of perfect. From our very first email, Danielle was extremely responsive, polite, and professional. Our ceremony was touching and our photos turned out amazing. We couldn’t be happier with how the day went. We would both highly recommend Elope to Gatlinburg. Thank you both!

Melody Kendrick - Jacksonville, Florida
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Amazing!

There are so many wedding options in Gatlinburg but if you want the best, look no further than Elope to Gatlinburg. From the moment of the first communication to our ceremony date, Rev. Adam and Danielle (our photographer) were nothing short of amazing. Foothills Parkway is THE SPOT for mountain views. Our sunset elopement was magical, to say the least. Photos were delivered very fast and they are exactly as we had hoped. We highly recommend this option.

Heather Dobson - Naperville, Illinois
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Spectacular!

Elope to Gatlinburg was spectacular to work with from start to finish. They made everything easy and stress free. They were quick to answer any questions we had. Reverend Adam had the perfect words for our ceremony. Danielle turned around a beautiful sneak peek gallery in less than 24 hours and delivered the rest right on time. I literally have no complaints!

Carmen Higgs - Huntsville, Alabama

Ready to say ``I do!`` in the Smoky Mountains?

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