LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – The wedding chapel at the Tropicana has been celebrating love and commitment since the hotel opened 67 years ago.
“Imagine back in the mob days, they were doing weddings here too. It’s kind of cool to think about that, that everyone celebrates love throughout time,” said Allison Pratus, a wedding planner and minister at Tropicana Las Vegas Weddings.
The original wedding chapel building still stands — holding decades of memories inside — a week before the hotel closes for good.
“Everyone that was married at the Tropicana, it was their special time that they were here,” said Pratus. “We wanted a Las Vegas wedding, and Tropicana was it. In the heyday, it was the big thing. It was the Hawaiian feel, the tropical feel of the Tropicana, and people loved that, and they keep coming back for it, and I think everyone will miss it.”
Pratus said the chapel hosted at least 25 weddings just last week, about a 20% increase from a typical week.
“We’ve had a lot more renewals come in, we’ve had a lot more couples that have been married for 20 years, we were married here 15 years, and they want to come back and take pictures and celebrate with us again,” said Pratus. “It’s kind of special.”
Pratus says the frantic calls continue from couples hoping to secure a wedding date before the Tropicana’s closing date on April 2.
“The history is really what it is. People are kind of sad that the history is going away. It’s one of the originals as they say that was here for a long time, and they’re kind of sad to see it go,” said Pratus.
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