Getting married in Zion National Park

Weddings in Zion National Park

Getting married in Zion National Park is one of the best ideas a couple could have, but it is not as easy as getting married in your local city park. The National Parks Service allows each national park to manage weddings and special use permits for weddings. Getting married in Zion National Park will take a little more planning, but it is well worth it. 

Photo by kylelovestori.com

In addition to the normal elopement planning steps, you will need to pick your spot (making sure the location allows weddings), apply for your special use permit (this must be done well in advance), plan transportation (sometimes shuttles are the only way to get to your location), and make sure you have an officiant ready and able to get to your location (most will not hike or drive on a dirt road). This blog will cover some of the basics for you. If you need more help, you can hire me as an Adventure Elopement Coordinator, and I can directly assist you and make sure you are all set. You can also hire a professional local photographer that offers elopement coordination.

Let me start by quickly clearing up the top questions I get from couples looking to get married in Zion National Park.

This will make the rest of the planning easier because you are probably thinking about some of these questions. First, couples often ask me I will perform an elopement on Angel’s Landing or Canyon Overlook. I would love to, but I explain that weddings are not allowed at those locations. I usually get the reply “but it’s not a wedding, just an elopement”. I then explain that elopements are still weddings, and they are not allowed. I am then told that they have seen pictures on Pinterest of people getting married in Zion National Park on Angel’s Landing (or other epic vistas). What you actually saw were photos of a couple, not a ceremony.

These photos, sometimes called bridal portraits, are taken before or after the ceremony, but they are not the ceremony.  Being able to take photos in Zion National Park is one of the top reasons to have your wedding in Zion National Park. Even though you can not get married in these locations, being close enough to get to then is a game changer.

Photo by kylelovestori.com

Locations inside Zion National Park to get married.

When getting married in Zion National Park you have six designated locations that weddings are allowed in to choose from. Five are in the Zion Canyon area and one is in the Kolob Canyon area. Zion Canyon is the main park canyon and is where the Zion Visitors Center, campgrounds, and museums are located. Kolob Canyon is not accessible from the main park by road.  You access the Kolob Canyon side from a separate entrance off Interstate 15 near Cedar City, UT.  When picking your location make sure it is one of these locations.

Photo by kylelovestori.com

Timber Creek Overlook

Of these locations my personal favorite is Timber Creek Overlook in the Kolob Canyon. You can learn more about Timber Creek Overlook on by blog post about it.

Whether you choose Timber Creek Overlook or one of the locations in the main park, you will need to have a Special Use Permit to have a wedding in Zion National Park. You can read more about getting a Special Use Permit under the resources tab under “Required Permits”. Some key points to remember about National Parks Special Use Permits are: 1- apply a few months before (at least 3-4 weeks), 2- remember paying the $100 application fee does not mean you will get your permit, its an application fee and it is non-refundable, 3- holiday weekends are not usually approved for permits, so try to avoid them and other super busy times, 4- consider where in the park you want to do photos after the ceremony.

Maximize your photography time.

You are paying for a set number of hours with your photographer so maximize the time by minimizing the travel by selecting a location for the ceremony near your photo location. If you are unfamiliar if the park you can always ask your photographer for suggestions.  This is another reason it is so important to hire a local photographer. They will have been in and out of Zion National Park many times in the days leading up to your wedding and will know when the park starts turning people away because the park is at capacity. Often the park has been turning people away as early as 8:00 AM. You will really want to keep this in mind when coordinating your travel, especially if you have guests and they are traveling separate. Some of the locations that allow weddings require you to ride a shuttle because the upper canyon is closed to vehicles during the busy seasons.  Check with the park and your photographer (again, LOCAL photographers can help, out of state photographers have no firsthand knowledge) to find out what the travel times are and the best times to travel.

Locations outside of Zion National Park

If your application for a Special Use Permit is not approved, it is not the end of your Zion National Park wedding.  There are many locations just outside the park that are just a beautiful as Zion itself and are close enough you can still travel into the park for portraits later. It is important to know permitting works differently outside the park. If you are not on private land your officiant is most likely required to have Special Recreation Permit to legally conduct a wedding. This is the case for BLM lands. So make sure you hire a reputable officiant that knows the different rules that relate to Forest Service lands, BLM lands, State lands, and local lands.

Photo by dallinandnikki.com

Choose an Officiant that will go where you go.

When you look for your officiant, make sure they know where you plan to get married. If you say “…in or near Zion National Park…” that could mean an indoor venue in downtown St George or a mountain top that is a six plus mile hike. The quote you get will most likely be for a downtown wedding or a wedding in the park that does not require walking or driving on dirt roads or paths. Outland Officiant and all my subcontracted adventure officiants are always willing and able to hike the trails with you make your special day happen in the way that you want it to.

Photo by kylelovestori.com

To learn more about Outland Officiant and our services check out our about page.  I look forward to working with you.

Outland Officiant

“Have boots, will travel”