New River Gorge National Park
West Virginia · National Park · Southeast Region
The deepest river gorge east of the Mississippi, with the 3,030 foot New River Gorge Bridge spanning the canyon 876 feet above the water. The surrounding Appalachian forest turns vivid in fall. It became the US's newest national park in 2020.
- Best season
- May through October
- Permit required
- Yes
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Max group size
- 25 people
- Permit info verified
- April 2026
Permit Information
NPS Special Use Permit required. $75 administrative fee. Ceremonies are limited to 30 minutes including photography. Group size varies by location: most overlooks and boardwalks are limited to 25 including the wedding party, North Grandview Overlook to 15, and Beauty Mountain to 16. During peak season (April through October), overlook ceremonies typically must occur before 11:00 AM so visitor access is not blocked. Decorations, balloons, rice, birdseed, confetti, and bubbles are prohibited. Lia…
Planning Your Day at New River Gorge National Park
One-Spot Day
New River Gorge runs on a tight permit clock: ceremonies are capped at 30 minutes and most overlooks require you to be wrapped before 11am during peak season (April through October) so visitor access is not blocked. That forces a one spot day for most couples. Pick a single overlook, build a 30 minute ceremony window around first light or just before 11am, then spend the rest of the day shooting portraits at other locations across the park under your same permit. Long Point requires a 3.2 mile forested roundtrip hike, so you need to account for 90 minutes of trail time on each side of the ceremony window. Grandview is a short paved walk from parking and is the easier logistical pick. Apply at least 10 business days in advance; the $75 admin fee is standard. Call 304 465 6517 to reserve your date; the park holds it for 10 business days while you complete paperwork.
Ceremony + Portraits Split
The efficient structure: ceremony at Long Point or Grandview before 11am, short drive down to Fayette Station Road (unpaved, one way, seasonal) for riverside portraits beneath the bridge, then up to Diamond Point or the Canyon Rim Visitor Center boardwalk for late afternoon bridge shots. If you are hiking into Long Point for the ceremony, plan on guests peeling off after vows; only the two of you (plus photographer) continue to subsequent portrait spots. Driving between Long Point and Grandview takes roughly an hour, so you generally pick one overlook for ceremony and the other for late afternoon portraits, not both for vows. Rhododendron peak in late May adds pink foreground at Grandview; fall foliage mid October is the marquee visual pay off across both locations.
A Note on Light
The gorge runs roughly north south, so morning light illuminates the bridge face directly from overlooks on the south rim (Long Point), and afternoon light backlights the bridge and throws the canyon walls into golden relief from the north rim (Canyon Rim, Grandview faces southwest). Sunrise on a clear day fills the gorge with warm light that burns off the valley fog roughly 20 to 45 minutes after first light. Fall color (peaking mid October) saturates under overcast or golden hour; do not shoot it under harsh midday sun or the orange blows out. Avoid shooting the bridge at high noon year round; the steel color deadens and the gorge walls fall into deep shadow. Rain and fog are common year round; the gorge is gorgeous in mist but your guests need rain layers.
Ceremony Spots at New River Gorge National Park
- Long Point Trail Overlook — Head on view of the New River Gorge Bridge from a forested cliff overlook
- Grandview Overlook — Sweeping panoramic views of the New River winding through the deepest section of the gorge