What I really spent on my 2024 Long Island wedding 

Tying the knot on Long Island isn’t easy on the wallet.

The average wedding here runs $62,000, according to Heather Cunningham, the founder and owner of wedding planning resource Brides of Long Island. Cunningham sees hundreds of Long Island brides experiencing the highs and lows of local wedding planning each year. 

While 2024 "didn’t represent the biggest bump," in terms of increase, rising costs are a fact of life, she explains. "Every year, prices go up. Brides know to book before Jan. 1 because that’s when it happens."

Yet expense doesn’t seem to be a deterrent for folks who choose to marry here. Esther Lee, deputy editor at global wedding resource The Knot, says, "Long Island is set to be one of the hottest U.S. locations to celebrate ... nuptials in 2025, according to searches on The Knot Vendor Marketplace."

As for how rising costs play into it, according to The Knot’s Worldwide 2025 Wedding Trends to Watch report, "85% of engaged couples report that inflation has affected or will affect their wedding plans. Forty-one percent are cutting down on their guest list, while 30% are adjusting their budgets, often by increasing their spending."

Despite the price, many couples are navigating the heavy financial lift by celebrating on weekdays, calling in favors, seeking out unexpected venues and, generally, using their creative chops to add luster to their grand affairs. Have a look at the details of some of those clever duos who couldn’t be more delighted with their recent 2024 nuptials — and somehow managed to come in close to or under the average price.

Jessica, 37, and Cletus Seldin, 38, Bay Shore

The bride and the boxer: Jessica Seldin believes that her husband, a professional boxer nicknamed "The Hebrew Hammer," (a light welterweight ranked eighth in the world by the WBA), was the first to propose in the ring after a fight at Madison Square Garden. And just six months later, the couple married at the Long Island Aquarium. The boxing theme followed all the way through to the wedding day with "boxing ticket" save the dates and invitations calling out "the match of a lifetime.". Even the cake was adorned with decorative boxing gloves. And although the wedding was interfaith, the couple tapped Rabbi Ron Csillag, of Syosset, to officiate — a fan who just happened to be at the bout when Cletus popped the question.

Vibe: "The aquarium wasn’t a cookie-cutter bridal factory and we wanted people to walk in and have an experience beyond just sharing our love," says Cletus. The goal was to have guests dance the night away, and it worked. "We played every genre of music from all different eras. Our DJ understood the assignment and people are still talking about it," says Jessica, who took six weeks of dance lessons with Cletus. "We danced the whole night."

Special touches: Flowers in a joyous riot of colors were inspired by a photo of a fish tank that the couple showed their florist. In a cave at the aquarium, an old-school video cam recorder was set up for guest’s "'Real World' confessionals," an opportunity for them to deliver personalized messages to the newlyweds. And in an emotional and personal move, the couple had two inscribed stones installed at the facility’s koi pond honoring beloved family members who had died with the words, "Forever Here Where Our Forever Starts."

Joanne Amante, 63, and Tim Finnegan, 68, Kings Park

The singer and the drummer: When Joanne  Amante met Tim Finnegan nine years ago in the band Illusion: Tribute to Women Who Rock, she, a lead singer, thought to herself of the drummer, "Why can’t I meet a nice man like that." Apparently, they made something beautiful together. The original plan was to have a small wedding. "We started to think about it and, being older, we realized that every year we’re losing more friends and family and only get together for funerals. We wanted something joyous," says Amante. "It was like a family reunion, with people coming from Arizona, California and Texas." Adds Finnegan, "When you leave wakes and funerals you always say, ‘I wish we could get together under better circumstances," These were better circumstances." The bride, "being an old hippie," she says, wanted a boho flair to the event, hence the big, bell-sleeved wedding gown ($100 from Amazon, but $900 for alterations). Truth told, Amante admits that she "naively" thought she could pull the whole wedding off for $10,000, though the hall alone was $17,000.

The vibe: "It felt wonderful," says Finnegan. "Everybody was having the time of their lives and the love in the room was formidable." And Amante notes, "One of the best parts was seeing the smile on the face of my 96-year-old mom, Annette," who donned a sparkly shirt for the occasion. The only disappointment was the absence of Amante’s daughter, son-in-law and two grandkids due to illness. The kids were slated to be the flower girl and ring bearer. "We were in tears." But ever resourceful, the couple pasted big photos of the family on serving spoons and twirled with them on the dance floor.

Special touches: Pre-ceremony, the couple’s wedding rings were passed around to the guests in a "ring warming ceremony," an old Irish tradition to infuse the rings with love and blessings. "Everybody touched them and they were filled with good wishes and prayers," says Amante. And, ever the performers, the duo along with their band took to the stage for two songs (courtesy of their wedding band, the Times Square Orchestra, friends of the couple who allowed them to use their equipment) and did their rendition of Cindy Lauper’s "Time After Time," and The Bangles’ "Walk Like an Egyptian." Amante sums it up: "It was a blast."

Emily, 32, and Rick Sanabria, 33, Commack

A DJ affair: For 15 years, Rick Sanabria worked as a high-energy DJ under the name of DJ Slick, and only a year ago, morphed his skills into becoming a wedding content creator co-opting his handle into Slick Creations. For this, he films and edits highlight video clips that run from 12 seconds to a minute that he says, "capture the excitement," and can be shared on social media the very next day. So, to say he knows the wedding scene — he calculates he’s DJ’d 1,000 of them — is an understatement. And the wedding scene apparently knows him.

For his big day, Rick called in the favors. "If it weren’t for the hookups, my wedding wasn’t going to be on Long Island. I would’ve done a destination wedding with fewer people," says Rick, who did most of the planning, calling himself "a nice groomzilla." He estimates he saved close to $40,000 with industry friends cutting him a break on prices. And to that end, this wedding was bursting with bells and whistles.

The vibe: "I wanted it to look like a music festival, so the first thing you saw when you walked in the room was a 13-foot LED wall and crazy lighting all around the room to give it a lot of energy." There were four mounted CO2 cannons blowing cool smoke into the space, and another two handheld versions that the couple gleefully shot onto the dance floor. "The crowd went nuts, head-banging, hands in the air, mosh pitting. It was insane, like a rave," explains the groom. Add to that, two 8-foot party robots that mingled with the guests. Even the couple’s transportation had a bit of edge. "Everybody does a Rolls-Royce," he says. But instead, he procured a fiery red Ferrari F8 to match with the couple’s Louboutin shoes and, after an outfit change, their sneakers.

Special touches: The wedding, held on a Thursday, cost less than a weekend, and allowed for some 40 colleagues, all DJs who had to work the next day, to follow the bridal party into the room. Rick and his bride walked down the aisle to the "Top Gun: Maverick" anthem (their favorite movie) and later danced to the film’s theme song, Lady Gaga’s "Hold My Hand." Rick surprised his bride with the release of butterflies at the ceremony in honor of her departed grandmother, a sentimental move to represent her at the event. And despite all the party trimmings, emotion was at the heart of it. "I cried the whole day," he says. Especially so during the first look at Emily and his stepdaughter, Madison, 7. "That was the best part."