Las Vegas has long been the world’s go-to when it comes to getting spliced in a hurry – you can arrive single in the morning and be married before the sun sets.However, a new – significantly classier – pretender to the ‘quickie’ wedding throne has emerged, and it’s much easier for Brits looking for low-key nuptials to get to. Thanks to its liberal wedding laws, Denmark has quietly become a European hotspot for elopement – and while same-day weddings aren’t yet possible, overseas couples can often marry within just a week or two of applying to do so. Unlike other destination wedding locations, such as Italy, Greece and France – and indeed the UK, which often require proof of single status and birth certificates, you can marry in Denmark with just a passport and an online application. Let’s get married: City Hall Square in Copenhagen, close to the scenic Nyhavn canal (pictured), has become a hotspot for international weddings with couples wanting a quick wedding heading to the Danish capital to say ‘I do’ The country has become so popular for its cut-price, low admin weddings. Pictured: British Slovakian couple Lenka and Simon, who were wed at Stevns town hall in the country’s southCouples simply request a Certificate of Marital Status via the country’s Agency of Family Law, Familieretshuset, or the local municipality – and then choose from a huge range of ‘fairytale’ venues. According to Getting Married in Denmark, which helps organise weddings for overseas couples, more than 98 per cent of marriage applications are approved within just five days, with a lifetime (hopefully) of commitment costing around £250 in the Scandi country. The number of couples seeking a quick wedding has risen sharply – mostly through ‘word of mouth’ and social media – since 2019, says the Director of Getting Married in Denmark, Rasmus Clarck Sørensen.The Danish businessman told the Daily Mail that he decided to start the company after having to jump through admin hoops ahead of his marriage to his Iranian wife in 2011.After he blogged about Denmark’s less stressful wedding opportunities, inquisitive couples asked him to help them and the company was born. But eloping to Denmark is nothing new, he explains. Functional but also fairytale: The tiny island of Ærø, two hours south of Copenhagen is a magical place to tie the knot ‘In the Second World War, it started because American soldiers lived on bases in Europe and didn’t have access to live there or visas. If they met someone outside of the base and wanted to stay – then they needed to find a way to get married.’They realised it was much easier to go to Denmark and do it. The reasons people choose to marry here today are pretty similar!’ Rasmus says he’s seen around a 30 per cent increase in international brides and grooms marrying in Denmark over the last seven years. The Agency of Family Law, Familieretshuset, reported that 5,000 of the 8,000 weddings taking place at Copenhagen City Hall in 2024 involved non-Danish couples.Plenty are from the LGBTQ+ community and opt for Denmark if they can’t get married in their own country to have their relationship officially recognised. On the Getting Married in Denmark website, couples who’ve tied the knot include same-sex couple Jagvir and Martino, fashion designers based in India and Lenka and Simon, who wed at Stevns town hall in southern Denmark. Lenka is Slovakian and Simon is British – the couple live in the UK. Copenhagen City Hall, where 5,000 out of 8,000 couples who wed in 2024 were from overseas – one company who helps organise weddings, Getting Married in Denmark, says it’s seen a 30% increase in bookings since 2019When it comes to witnesses, the chosen venue can usually provide the two people required by Danish law to be present. The Scandi country’s fast nuptials aren’t just functional though – couples can say their vows in some breathtaking spots, including the ‘secret’ island of Ærø – pronounced ‘air-rue’ – which lies just two hours by car from Copenhagen. The trend for international weddings started at Copenhagen City Hall, a Romantic masterpiece right in the middle of the city, but has grown so quickly that other venues across the country are now also seeing a rise in international weddings, say tourism authority Visit Denmark. In the country’s third largest city, Odense, 19th century Odense Hall exudes fairytale charm in Italian Gothic red-brick style. And Aalborg City Hall, in Jutland, which handles thousands of overseas weddings each year, is a striking yellow-painted late-Baroque era building completed in 1762.Locals though aren’t necessarily thrilled by the influx of betrothed tourists flocking to the country, with 40 per cent of City Hall appointments now solely reserved for Danish residents. Kasper Iversen of tourism authority Visit Denmark told the Daily Mail that the trend has grown completely organically. ‘Denmark hasn’t done anything to actively attract tourists but its liberal laws in terms of what it takes to get married here has since foreigners discovered it.’It’s not quite like in Las Vegas, where you can basically just be tipsy and drop in and get married on the spot – you have to book it and arrange it a few weeks in advance.’He says because Denmark is an inclusive country, many same-sex couples feel very comfortable getting married there and can do so easily, in a beautiful setting. Says Iversen: ‘Denmark is a fairytale country, basically. It’s where Hans Christian Andersen wrote his famous fairytales – and what could be more of a fairytale than a wedding?’He advises that more and more couples are attracted to the idea of getting married in Denmark, with Copenhagen in particular requiring a little more lead-in time these days.’In high season, it’s often more of a wait time – up to six to eight weeks – at least a couple of months in advance would be my advice.’He adds that considering lesser known destinations is a way to wed more quickly. ‘Because it’s been so popular in Copenhagen, couples now look at other parts of Denmark, where it’s even easier, because there’s not that waiting time. ‘It’s gone from being a Copenhagen trend to being all over Denmark.’