The natural beauty of the Great Smoky Mountains, like Laurel Falls outside of Gatlinburg, draws thousands to the area for weddings each year.

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The most popular place in the U.S. to get married is Las Vegas. That’s probably no surprise.

But the No. 2 wedding venue – Gatlinburg – might not have been your first guess.

Sevier County is a hotbed of bridal activity with more than 10,000 weddings performed in the area each year, earning it the nickname “wedding capital of the South.”

Because of the popularity and the picturesque location – especially during prime months of October and June – making a plan is key in securing the right venue and preferred vendors on the desired date.

“October in Tennessee is a crazy month, especially if you’re trying to do a wedding around Knoxville on a bye week when the Volunteers are not playing,” says Lindsay Barrows of Custom Love Events and Gifts in Knoxville. “If you are trying to get married in October, expect to plan early.”

Plus, quickie weddings are big business in East Tennessee. After all, Tennessee marriage licenses can be obtained via the Sevier County Clerk up to 30 days in advance of the wedding day, with couples having the option to be married the same day the license is issued, thanks to no waiting periods or blood tests required.

Nashville is growing in its own right as a trendy wedding destination, not only with people who have ties to the community but to others looking for a great getaway tied to their wedding.

“We’re finding more and more people that don’t live here – maybe their families are here or they went to school here or they grew up here, but they don’t live here anymore – are coming back to Nashville because their guests are going to have a great destination to come to,” says Randi Lesnick of Nashville’s Randi Events. “That’s why it’s so difficult to find space today.”

They are also finding fewer people are saying ‘no’ to attending a wedding in Nashville.

“We used to say if you had out-of-town guests, maybe 80 percent would show up,” says Sarah Ann Miller, director of weddings with Randi Events. “Now it’s almost 100 percent because everyone wants to come to Nashville as a vacation. It’s such a cool city, and there’s so much to do here.”

Shirley Langguth, assistant director of catering at Omni Hotels, says couples looking to book their wedding at the Omni are wanting more hotel rooms than ever before for their guests.

“Most of the weddings that are coming to us, a lot of the guests are coming from out of town,” Langguth says. “They picked Nashville because it is so up and coming. They have some tie to Nashville even if they don’t even live here anymore. A lot of Vanderbilt grads have inquired with us.”

And on a nice weekend, Tod Roadarmel, Director of Sales & Marketing for Omni, says the pool is filled with bachelor and bachelorette parties, not to mention riding down Broadway on the pedal taverns.

“On a typical weekend you’ll see 10 or 12 of them getting on, getting off, getting picked up,” he says of pre-wedding celebrants.