Hailed in the headlines as the economic savior for California, legalized gay marriage is looking to be a boon to hotel operators and ancillary service providers. In fact, one study being touted shows as much as an additional $684 million would pour into the state’s economy during the first three years alone.

Already same-sex couples are getting married and hotels are starting to cash in on all the new celebrations taking place.

“The potential is incredible," says Richard Markal, director of the Sacramento-based Association for Wedding Professionals International, a wedding industry trade group. "It will be a boon to California's economy, no question. The impact's going to be in the millions, easily."

Travel observers might assume California’s new same-sex marriage law would have the strongest impact on hotels catering to weddings, but that may not be true, says James O. Abrams, President & CEO of The California Hotel & Lodging Association.

“Many hotels have made weddings a key area of their work but I don’t think its impact will be just on those hotels. It’s going to be a big benefit even for those hotels that don’t cater to weddings,” he says. Abrams’ organization has 1,800 member properties with 170,000 guestrooms. It is already the largest state lodging association, and Abrams expects it to grow even more.

He says it is impossible to exactly “quantify” the economic benefits to the hospitality business under the new law. But its impact is obvious and goes well beyond the wedding industry to create an entirely new mini-tourist business sector.

The wedding business alone, however, represents a $65 billion industry, according to The Wedding Report. There are expected to be 2.3 million weddings in 2009. Their average cost was set at $30,860 by The Wedding Report.

When San Francisco started allowing gay marriages in 2004, the typical wedding was costing about $15,000, hosting an average of 40 guests, reported wire services.

“Those are serious overnight stays,” Markal says. “They will buy gifts here, go to amusement parks here. Dollar-wise, it can grow tremendously from there.”

“This time around, one study expects over 100,000 gay couples will tie the knot, providing a boost to California’s ailing economy hit hard by the real estate foreclosure meltdown,” says Jim Goldman, CNBC Silicon Valley Bureau Chief.

A UCLA study found that gay couples would spend a projected $684 million on hotels, cakes, flowers, photographers and other wedding services over the next three years.

The study done by the Williams Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles School of Law found that over three years about half of the state’s 100,000 same-sex couples will wed. Another 68,000 out-of-state couples will travel to California, according to the study by college professors M.V. Lee Badgett and Brad Sears.

Badgett said same-sex weddings will prop up the state’s tourism industry, which has been hit by skyrocketing fuel costs and the slowing economy.

Researchers used Massachusetts to develop their projections, as well as a handful of other states which allow same-sex couples to enter civil unions or domestic partnerships that afford many of the rights of marriage. But the California court ruling gives the state a monopoly on all marriage rights. Massachusetts is the only other state to come close, but they have a residency requirement that California does not. Couples can travel to the “Golden State” for the single purpose of marriage.

The authors of the study said their findings in dollar amounts were “conservative.”

The authors used a three-year time frame because they found same- sex marriages began to taper off after that period in Massachusetts. Same-sex marriages in California are expected to have more impact on California than Massachusetts because of the latter’s residency requirement.

UCLA’s Badgett sees all wedding-related businesses getting the biggest economic bump from the move. “Florists, jewelry, hotels, restaurants, photographers, bakeries, caterers, clothing -- all these will probably see a significant boost,” she says.

The impact of the change on hotels will certainly depend on whether the property caters to the new market and on what type of packages are developed. But already some hotels are moving in that direction.

“In San Diego, some hotels, caterers, florists, bakeries and others that offer wedding services are mounting marketing campaigns or putting together special packages to capture the new business,” reported the San Diego Union Tribune.

Bill Evans, operations manager for the three Evans Hotels in California, says his company already has booked 25 same-sex weddings in recent days.

Highlands Resorts is among those offering new wedding packages. The predominately gay resort’s “Honeymoon Package” includes two nights in an individual cabin with a private porch under the Redwood forest. Rooms include a two-person soaking tub and a gas fireplace. The package also includes breakfast in bed, massages and a gourmet picnic for two. The price is $625 plus tax.

Zoe Caratas, Sales Director of the Ramada Plaza hotel in West Hollywood, said that occupancy rates had soared since the California Supreme Court overturned the same-sex marriage ban on May 16. "It has definitely increased the occupancy rate," Caratas said. "Normally, our occupancy is not as high during the week." Caratas said the hotel was offering a special $599 "Honeymoon Package" which includes two nights’ accommodations, a complimentary bottle of champagne and free parking.

State tourism officials are also helping to promote the development. Cities that are known for being particularly friendly to gays - including West Hollywood, San Francisco and Palm Springs - are all taking steps to expand their market.

“West Hollywood is THE place for weddings and honeymoons,” pronounces an ad being placed in national gay magazines.

In Palm Springs, Mayor Steve Pougnet has been deputized by Riverside County to perform wedding ceremonies. “Certainly it’s going to have a huge economic impact on the city,” he says of the move which went into effect June 17.

The gay wedding march could still be cut short, however. California voters will vote on a November 4 ballot initiative that would overturn the court ruling and ban same-sex marriage.

Meanwhile, other states are now eyeing this new business. The New Jersey Civil Union Review Commission, when exploring the impact, heard testimony that same-sex weddings would pump $248 million into the state’s economy. That was a “very conservative” economic analysis, testified UCLA professor Sears.

Of course, that could be only the beginning if other states join the bandwagon. A recent study by the Congressional Budget Office found that if all 50 states and the Federal government extended the rights and obligations of marriage to same-sex couples, gay weddings would generate almost $1 billion in revenue each year.

David Wilkening is a writer specializing in travel and business-real estate writing. His work has appeared in dozens of publications and dot coms. He never met a trip he didn't like. He is a former newspaperman who worked in Chicago, Detroit, Orlando and Washington, DC, where he was a writer and editor covering a wide variety of subjects ranging from politics to feature stories.