WedStay Data · Updated September 2026
The 2026 Wedding Weekend Report
WedStay couples book their wedding venue a median of 267 days ahead (about 9 months), while the typical inquiry arrives 361 days out. September and October are the busiest months at 43% of weddings combined, the 50 to 100 guests count is the most common band at 40.0%, and every booked wedding so far has spanned multiple days. It draws on 70 booked weddings and 3,353 inquiries from live WedStay data. Price your own weekend →
- Booked couples reserve their venue a median of 267 days out (about 9 months).
- The median inquiry lands 361 days out (about 12 months).
- September and October are the top wedding months, 43% combined.
- Most common size: 50 to 100 guests (40.0% of weddings).
- 100% of weddings span multiple days, with roughly 18 to 22 guests staying overnight.
- Top demand: California, Florida, Texas lead the country.
Companion dataset: pair this with the Wedding Venue Cost Index for what those weekends actually cost, by state, venue type, and country.
Methodology
The figures come from real WedStay activity, as of September 2026: booking windows and guest patterns from 70 booked weddings, and demand and inquiry timing from 3,353 venue inquiries. This is a deliberately small, honest booked sample, so treat the booked-wedding cuts as directional rather than precise. Every cell shown is backed by at least three weddings or inquiries; anything below that floor is omitted rather than padded with thin data. We exclude cancelled and refunded bookings, spam inquiries, and any record where the wedding date precedes the inquiry. Because thin cells drop out and some records lack a guest count, shares within a section may not sum to exactly 100%. The report refreshes monthly, and no individual booking, name, or price is ever exposed. It complements the Wedding Venue Cost Index.
Cite this dataset
The 2026 WedStay Wedding Weekend Report, September 2026. www.thewedstay.com
Download CSVBooking windows
How far ahead couples book
Two clocks tell the story. The moment a couple books lands a median of 267 days before the wedding, while the moment they first inquire runs longer at 361 days out. The gap is the shopping window: couples research for months before they commit, so the earlier you look, the more of the calendar is still open.
Booked weddings
| Location | Median lead | Typical range (25th to 75th) | Weddings |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States (national) | 267 days | 200 to 344 days | 70 |
| California | 254 days | 198 to 342 days | 45 |
| New Jersey | 222 days | 210 to 239 days | 5 |
All inquiries (broader coverage)
| Location | Median lead | Typical range (25th to 75th) | Inquiries |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States (national) | 361 days | 233 to 472 days | 3,353 |
| California | 340 days | 220 to 438 days | 1,164 |
| Florida | 358 days | 236 to 472 days | 484 |
| Texas | 359 days | 237 to 473 days | 251 |
| New Jersey | 339 days | 183 to 465 days | 190 |
| New York | 390 days | 182 to 472 days | 106 |
| Michigan | 366 days | 264 to 422 days | 80 |
| Tennessee | 300 days | 116 to 490 days | 71 |
| Ohio | 408 days | 306 to 487 days | 53 |
| Georgia | 399 days | 300 to 497 days | 51 |
| North Carolina | 372 days | 245 to 506 days | 48 |
| Utah | 222 days | 133 to 375 days | 42 |
| Colorado | 325 days | 221 to 452 days | 35 |
| Arizona | 323 days | 224 to 465 days | 30 |
| South Carolina | 380 days | 304 to 526 days | 21 |
| Montana | 366 days | 315 to 388 days | 19 |
| Illinois | 409 days | 312 to 472 days | 13 |
| Connecticut | 447 days | 247 to 533 days | 12 |
| Idaho | 394 days | 269 to 415 days | 8 |
| Indiana | 77 days | 66 to 263 days | 5 |
| Iowa | 476 days | 451 to 547 days | 5 |
| Pennsylvania | 358 days | 333 to 393 days | 4 |
Only locations with at least three records are listed. Lead time is the number of days between the booking or inquiry and the wedding date. For a precise estimate for your dates, use the wedding venue cost calculator.
Guest count and lodging
How big estate weddings actually are
Estate weddings skew intimate. The 50 to 100 guests range leads, and across every size a core group stays onsite for the whole celebration rather than driving to a hotel. That is the defining pattern of the wedding weekend: guests move in, not just show up.
| Guest count | Share of weddings | Median staying overnight | Multi-day |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 50 guests | 35.4% | 18 guests | 100% |
| 50 to 100 guests | 40.0% | 20 guests | 100% |
| 100 to 150 guests | 16.9% | 22 guests | 100% |
| 150 or more guests | 7.7% | 22 guests | 100% |
"Median staying overnight" is the typical number of guests who sleep at the property. "Multi-day" is the share of weddings booked for two or more nights. Planning by headcount? See wedding venues by guest count.
Seasonality
When couples get married
Wedding demand is seasonal and front-loaded onto the fall. September and October together take 43% of the calendar, which is exactly why those weekends are the first to sell out. Share of booked weddings by month:
| Month | Share | Weddings |
|---|---|---|
| April | 10.0% | 7 |
| May | 12.9% | 9 |
| June | 12.9% | 9 |
| July | 7.1% | 5 |
| August | 4.3% | 3 |
| September | 21.4% | 15 |
| October | 21.4% | 15 |
| November | 4.3% | 3 |
Months with fewer than three booked weddings are omitted rather than shown as zero, since a thin month is not the same as an empty one.
Regional demand
Where the demand is
Share of wedding-venue inquiries by state. California, Florida, Texas together account for about 71% of all interest, a coastal, warm-weather tilt that mirrors where destination-style estates cluster.
| State | Share | Inquiries |
|---|---|---|
| California | 43.2% | 1,164 |
| Florida | 18.0% | 484 |
| Texas | 9.3% | 251 |
| New Jersey | 7.1% | 190 |
| New York | 3.9% | 106 |
| Michigan | 3.0% | 80 |
| Tennessee | 2.6% | 71 |
| Ohio | 2.0% | 53 |
| Georgia | 1.9% | 51 |
| North Carolina | 1.8% | 48 |
| Utah | 1.6% | 42 |
| Colorado | 1.3% | 35 |
| Arizona | 1.1% | 30 |
| South Carolina | 0.8% | 21 |
| Montana | 0.7% | 19 |
| Illinois | 0.5% | 13 |
| Connecticut | 0.4% | 12 |
| Idaho | 0.3% | 8 |
| Indiana | 0.2% | 5 |
| Iowa | 0.2% | 5 |
| Pennsylvania | 0.1% | 4 |
Only states with at least three inquiries are shown. Explore inventory in the leading markets: California, Florida, and Texas.
What it means for couples
Five takeaways from the data
- Give yourself about 9 months. Booked WedStay couples reserve their venue a median of 267 days before the wedding.
- Start looking a year out. The median inquiry lands 361 days ahead, so the best dates are claimed by couples who shop early.
- Plan for fall, or dodge it on purpose. September and October alone account for 43% of weddings, so an off-peak date buys you more choice.
- Right-size the guest list. The 50 to 100 guests wedding is the most common at 40.0%, with roughly 18 to 22 staying overnight.
- Think in nights, not hours. Every booked WedStay wedding has run multiple days, so budget and plan for a full weekend rather than a single ceremony slot.
Questions
Wedding weekend data, answered
- How far in advance do couples book a wedding venue?
- As of September 2026, couples who booked a WedStay estate reserved it a median of 267 days ahead, roughly 9 months before the wedding, with most booking between 200 and 344 days out. Across 3,353 inquiries the median lead time is longer at 361 days, about 12 months, because many couples start researching well before they commit. The practical takeaway: begin the venue search about a year out and expect to book roughly eight months before the date.
- What is the most popular wedding month?
- September and October are the most popular wedding months in WedStay's data, together accounting for 43% of booked weddings. Fall is the clear peak: crisp weather and reliable conditions make September and October the seasons couples compete hardest for, so those dates book first.
- How many guests attend an estate wedding?
- The most common WedStay wedding falls in the 50 to 100 guests range, at 40.0% of weddings. A median of roughly 18 to 22 guests stay overnight at the property, depending on the size of the wedding. Every booked wedding in the dataset spanned multiple days, so estates are booked as full weekends rather than single-day events.
- Which states have the most wedding-venue demand?
- California (43.2%), Florida (18.0%) and Texas (9.3%) draw the most wedding-venue demand in WedStay's inquiry data, together making up about 71% of all venue interest. Demand is coastal-led, with warm-weather and destination regions pulling the largest share of couples.
- Where does the wedding weekend data come from?
- Every figure is computed from real WedStay activity: 70 booked weddings and 3,353 venue inquiries, as of September 2026. Every cell shown is backed by at least three weddings or inquiries; anything below that floor is omitted rather than shown with thin data, and the report refreshes monthly. No individual booking, name, or price is ever exposed.
Plan your own wedding weekend
Price a full-property buyout for your state, guest count, and season, then browse the estates behind these numbers.
Related reading: Wedding Venue Cost Index, wedding weekend planning guide, and the multi-day wedding guide.