Planning a wedding on the beach? North Myrtle Beach SC now charges for a permit

Betsy Schlehuber
·3 min read
2

About 100 weddings are held on the beach each week in North Myrtle Beach, city officials said.

With the soft sand beneath their feet, couples can say their “I do’s” in a casual setting, while the waves crash behind them.

Up until a few months ago, commercial wedding vendors and wedding photographers didn’t need a business license to operate these events. But with an influx of business on the beach, including weddings, kayak rentals and yoga classes, the city passed a law requiring these activities to obtain a business license.

This year, wedding vendors can get a business license for free. But next year, there will be a cost applied.

A permit fee will cost $25 per wedding.

Margo Ross Sears, photographer and co-founder of Beach People Weddings in Sunset Beach, North Carolina, said on top of a business license, vendors also have to rent a space on the beach to hold the wedding, which comes with an additional fee per wedding that is tacked on to the business license. Sears has to pay the fee herself rather than the marrying couple, a practice used for Wilmington, North Carolina, beach weddings.

She said she has never seen a beach give this many regulations.

“What you sign off on as a vendor will make your jaw drop,” Sears said.

In Myrtle Beach city limits, commercial beach weddings are banned, which means the wedding has to be casual and doesn’t require hiring vendors or renting services.

Gloria Mitchell, co-founder of Together Forever Weddings, has been in business in North Myrtle Beach since 2001. She doesn’t have a problem with the North Myrtle Beach wedding regulations and permit fee, she said, but it would mean either higher prices for wedding packages or the business paying money out of pocket for beach permits.

As the 85-year-old is planning to end the business that she shares with her husband, Mitchell acknowledges the good relationship she’s had with the city and is understanding of the restrictions.

“It’s everybody’s beach,” she said.

Here is what to know for engaged couples looking to get married on the beach

According to North Myrtle Beach’s beach wedding regulations.

  • When getting married in city limits, the wedding vendor and photographer must have a North Myrtle Beach business license. This rule still applies even for vendors based outside of the city that have clients getting married in North Myrtle Beach.

  • Ministers who are not being paid, such as ministers who come with the couple from home, do not need a business license to carry out the marriage.

  • The wedding must be held at least 25 feet from public beach access points in order to make room for emergency vehicles and people trying to access the beach.

  • Weddings cannot be held near sea turtle nesting areas.

  • Wedding vendors can start setting up 30 minutes at most before the wedding. There can be no more than one battery-operated speaker, one portable arch with maximum footprint of 16 square feet, two small tables and 24 folding chairs. Everything must be taken down immediately following the wedding

  • Rose petals and seashells are the only objects that can be thrown on the sand around the marrying couple due to environmental concerns. Bubbles can also be blown and bells can be rang.

  • Chinese lanterns cannot be released into the air.

  • Catering and receptions are not allowed on the beach, only the actual wedding.

  • Financial transactions for services cannot be done on the beach

Here are some wedding vendors that are licensed in North Myrtle Beach.

North Beach Resort and Villas also allows weddings to be performed, and even has some available wedding packages. When calling, ask for the event planner.

If you are a North Myrtle Beach wedding vendor and we missed you, please email bschlehuber@thesunnews.com.