The busiest months for weddings.
October gets 15% of wedding-venue searches across the 20 destinations. April, May, June, September, October together take 59%.
- Weddings cluster in two seasons. September and October take 27% of searches; April, May and June take 32%.
- October is the busiest month at 15%, then September and May at 12% each. January is the quietest at 2%.
- Nine of the 20 destinations peak in September or October. Seven peak in April, May or June. Key West and Miami peak in March and April, ahead of hurricane season.
The data come from Same Wedding, Big Discount, our study of these 20 destinations.
Wedding season, by destination.
The busiest month for wedding-venue searches in each destination.
- March Key West
- April Austin, Miami, St. Augustine
- May Asheville, New York City, Temecula
- June Hawaii
- July Newport, San Diego
- August Santa Barbara
- September Boulder, Chicago
- October Charleston, Las Vegas, Napa Valley, Nashville, New Orleans, Savannah, Virginia Beach
What hotels charge by month.
Hotels across the 20 destinations average $184 a night in January and $262 in October.
October is one of the cheapest months in Hawaii, Miami and Temecula, and one of the priciest in New York, Napa and Nashville. The month to book depends on the place.
The cheaper month, by destination.
Each row pairs the peak search month with the cheapest month within two months that clears the weather bar. Booking the cheaper month drops hotel rates 21% on average.
| Destination | Peak search month | Off-peak alternative | Savings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Napa Valley | October | December | 43% |
| New Orleans | October | December | 37% |
| Charleston | October | December | 37% |
| Newport | July | May | 35% |
| San Diego | July | September | 32% |
| New York City | May | July | 29% |
| Savannah | October | December | 26% |
| Key West | March | May | 26% |
| Boulder | September | July | 23% |
| Nashville | October | November | 21% |
| Virginia Beach | October | November | 20% |
| Temecula | May | April | 14% |
| Hawaii | June | May | 12% |
| Las Vegas | October | November | 12% |
| Santa Barbara | August | October | 11% |
| Chicago | September | August | 10% |
| Miami | April | May | 10% |
| Asheville | May | April | 9% |
| St. Augustine | April | February | 9% |
| Austin | April | May | 8% |
Each destination's chart, weather months and trade-offs are in Same Wedding, Big Discount.
How we did this.
DemandWedding-venue searches on Engine for weddings dated in 2026, counted by the month of the wedding, not the month of the search. We pooled the 20, so the curve leans toward destination weddings.
RatesThe average nightly rate hotels in each destination showed in Engine searches that month. It is the going rate for the city, not a wedding-specific rate and not Engine's negotiated rate.
The 20 destinationsTaken from wedding-planning lists like The Knot's best U.S. destination wedding spots, narrowed to places with enough search and rate data. Aspen and Banff were too thin and were swapped for close substitutes.
The cheaper monthThe cheapest month within two months of the peak that scores at least 83% of the destination's best weather month. Weather is a 0 to 100 score from temperature, humidity and storm or fire season. Hurricane-belt destinations never use June through November.