My husband and I eloped last year, and it was incredible. We had always wanted to go to Iceland or Ireland, elope in the wild, and then have our honeymoon right after. Instead, we ended up getting married at Horseshoe Bend in Arizona because it was closer to home, and left us more time to relax. Our elopement was amazing, and I’m so happy we decided NOT to have a traditional wedding. Elopements are my favorite thing to shoot, and a lot of eloping couples have a hard time narrowing down a location. I’m spilling all my secrets today! Here are my top 4 tips to choosing the best elopement location - and they might surprise you!
First, I wanted to explain why we opted for an Arizona elopement instead of heading across the Atlantic. We had picked Horseshoe Bend for our engagement photos. We had never been there before, but it looked amazing and we wanted to go somewhere cool and explore.
On the day of our engagement shoot, it was rainy and a bit stormy, but we started hiking anyway. Within a few minutes it got SO cold, but we went for it cause we were committed! Once we arrived at our pre-planned location, we got set up, and our photographer started shooting.
Me + my hubs on our elopement day. Photo by KMT Photos
For like, all of two minutes. All of a sudden there was a torrential downpour! We ran back to our car while water rushed everywhere around us, lightning struck down from the sky and hit the ground around us, and crazy, tornado-style winds threatened to blow us off the cliff…
I thought I was going to die. It still makes me anxious thinking about it. LOL. We only got about five photos, but since we had planned this whole trip just for the engagement shoot, we said NAH. We went back the next day for a reshoot and got fun, awesome photos.
I didn’t want to have a tainted image of Horseshoe Bend, and we wanted our elopement to be someplace special, so we went back there to get married. On our elopement day, it was the perfect, perfect day. It was so calm, slightly warm with a gentle breeze, and the sun was shining. It was all in stark contrast to our previous visit, and it couldn’t have been a more perfect day.
You may be thinking, “Rebekah, cool story - but what does this have to do with our elopement?!”
Hang tight - and keep reading.
Here are my Top 4 Elopement Location Planning Tips:
Weather
It’s super important to look at what the weather’s going to be like for the location you want to elope in. Obviously if you’re not local to a particular area you won’t know what the weather is going to be like, but that’s why it’s a good idea to do some research ahead of time.
Also - what do you want out of the weather on your elopement day?
Are you hoping for a warm sunny day? Do you want to elope in the Grand Tetons in the snow? Even if you DO want snow, you may not want to be completely snowed out! I lived in Wyoming for a year, and when it snows you can’t get anywhere. A nice fluffy layer of snow is cute and pretty, but most people don’t want to be in a white out or blizzard on their elopement day.
2. Time of the Year
Think about what time of year you want to elope. You have a bit more flexibility when planning an elopement than you do with a traditional wedding.
You don’t have to elope within the month, and you also don’t have to wait 2 years. You can elope anytime you want - just make sure that the time of the year or season works for you.
3. Hiking Elopements
To hike or not to hike?
You may see gorgeous mountain elopements and envision yourself doing just that, but a lot of the time it’s a 14 mile hike both ways. If that’s what you want to do, then totally go for it! But consider how much you might be hiking, and whether or not you’re comfortable with that.
Some people want to drive and then just have a short walk instead of a day-long hike.
Be mindful of the location you’re choosing and how much hiking is involved. Also, is a hike something that really speaks to you and that you want to incorporate into your elopement?
I offer 2 day elopements if you want to hike somewhere awesome, camp out, and then hike the next day and elope at sunrise. :)
This Zion elopement required some hiking, but it was SO worth it!
With hiking in a very specific place, you can always ask your photographer for suggestions. If you’ve narrowed down a general area (for example Zion or Yosemite), you can ask your photographer to help you pick a specific spot to elope in.
Yosemite National Park is a super popular elopement location. It’s beautiful, but it’s SO busy. If you’re comfortable with it not being quite so private, though, then it’s a great spot!
When we got married at Horseshoe Bend, it was so busy! We even ventured off the main stretch to get away from the crowds, but there were still so many people there. Despite the unexpected guests, we still had a gorgeous day! I’ll be the first to admit though, that it was a little distracting. I prefer more privacy for myself, and I like to have privacy for my couples as well. If you’re a very private person and don’t want the world watching while you tie the knot, that’s something to keep in mind.
Popular Elopement Spots
You can also have your ceremony in a secluded, private spot and then go elsewhere for photos. If there’s an epic elopement location that you’ve seen and love, it’s not to say that you can’t go there if it’s busy. It may just be a better option to go there after your ceremony in case you run into hikers or people passing by.
4. Elopement Locations -
A new place vs. someplace special
For your elopement, you have two options:
Pick a place that you’ve always wanted to go to, OR
Pick a place that’s really special to the two of you.
Someplace special to the two of you
For example: If you got engaged while on vacation in Ireland, or Redwood National Forest. If that’s your special spot and that’s where you want to get married, awesome!
If you love Colorado and it’s sentimental to the two of you, then you can absolutely choose that as your elopement location!
Going somewhere you’ve always wanted to go:
I’m a big fan of eloping at a dream destination, because you can just turn it right into your honeymoon!
If you’ve always wanted to visit Morocco, then that might end up being an epic elopement location for you!
You can elope, celebrate, and then immediately start your honeymoon. You can also have your photographer take cute honeymoon photos the next day. Picture the two of you just chilling, playing on the beach together, exploring…
To narrow down your elopement location - you don’t have to pick an exact spot!
Reach out to your photographer and let them in on your must-have list. If you want to hike, but don’t want to hike 20 miles, put it on your list. If you want to get married when it’s cool outside, but not snowing - add it to the list. If you have dream destinations on your list but aren’t sure if it will be perfect for you since you’ve never been, ask your photographer for advice. Elopement photographers are also elopement planners, so you can get way more help with making sure your day is perfect.