In this blog post:

What Does it Mean to Elope?
Why Should You Consider Eloping?
Misconceptions about Eloping
What To Do During an Elopement + Sample Timeline Ideas
Steps to Plan Your Elopement
How Much Does it Cost to Elope?

What Does it Mean to Elope?

In the modern world, ‘to elope’ has many definitions.

But no matter which ones you read through your research on what an elopement truly is, I hope you come to the conclusion that the definition is really up to you.

From the foundation, to elope means to get married in an intimate setting where you decide the what, how, where, and why of your special day. It’s free of judgment from outside parties like your family or friends, and free from the added stress of entertaining or pleasing them too.

Think of it this way:

An elopement will be the best of the best date you have been to with your partner. It’s a day meant to be just for you and them.

It's a day to celebrate all the triumphs and challenges you faced together during your dating years; A day for you to feel happy, loved, and calm...and on top of it, a day to get married!

So why could you not make it the most intimate, selective, and fun event for you? After all, it’s got to portray you, your partner, and everything that you love down to a T!

PLAN YOUR ELOPEMENT: Elopement Planning Worksheets | Elopement Photo Packages

Couple that eloped and defined elopement as the best day ever

Who Should Consider Eloping?

The big question you might have right now is if you should elope. Being on the fence about eloping versus having a traditional wedding is a tough spot to be in.

There are some potential advantages to going with the first route, but ultimately you get to choose what’s best for you.

Ultimately, couples have different reasons to elope so your decision will depend on your circumstances and what you value as a couple.

If you’re finding yourself on the fence (but truly curious about the elopement bliss), here are three things that couples consider when eloping:

YOU SHOULD CONSIDER ELOPING IF YOU WANT INTIMACY AND PRIVACY

Choosing to elope can help with taking away the task of inviting guests that you are not close to. If you wanted to invite guests, you’d feel safer and more encouraged to be selective to only include family and friends you truly know and care about.

With an elopement, you also have the absolute freedom to choose to spend the day with just your partner (no guests).

This would allow you to have a much more intimate experience, if that’s what you value, which you’d share with your partner only.

YOU SHOULD CONSIDER ELOPING IF YOU HAVE DATE FLEXIBILITY AND AVAILABILITY

A traditional wedding requires that you and your partner coordinate the wedding day to work out with guests so they can attend. On top of it, it also requires an extensive search for vendors that will be available to help put your day together.

If you have a larger guest count, you also have the frustrating task of finding the right venue to host them.

All these key aspects of planning can quickly narrow your options as you find out what works and doesn’t work for your budget.

Having an elopement gives you flexibility when it comes to this.

You can easily choose to have your elopement on a weekday and at an outdoor place (like a National Park if you get the proper permits) which will only add on to the intimate experience.

YOU SHOULD CONSIDER ELOPING IF YOU WANT TO CREATE A UNIQUE AND PERSONALIZED EXPERIENCE

Traditional weddings come with a lot of expectations from family members and societal norms. Once you share the news of your wedding planning, you start hearing left and right about what you should or shouldn’t do.

It’s a lot of pressure to know how to make your wedding day personal when there’s so many external voices influencing you!

Eloping can also come with its own set of expectations BUT because it’s not common to involve anyone other than your partner in the planning stages, outside influence tends to diminish.

If you’re a couple that values peace, eloping may serve exactly that purpose!

How can you personalize your elopement? Choosing a meaningful location to you, including intimate details honoring a loved one, having a hand-fasting ceremony or reading your own detailed vows to each other.

Pro-Tip: Having an elopement also has a cost benefit but beware because the cost of eloping is not always cheaper than a traditional wedding. The cost of an elopement will depend on your wants and needs!

EXPLORE ELOPEMENTS

Misconceptions and Truths About Eloping

While some couples elope on a whim because they can’t wait any longer or because of financial reasons, it’s OKAY to consider if eloping would be the right choice for other reasons outside of that too.

As soon as you share your thoughts about eloping with friends and family, they may talk you out of it or share about what you might “miss out” on if you don’t have a traditional wedding.

They may even go as far as to treat elopements like they are a sad or uncommon thing to do. But the reality is far from that.

Just remember that their opinions may come from their own predetermined bias about elopements which they may have only heard or read about. It's very likely they haven’t eloped and gone through it themselves.

So remind yourself to take whatever they share with you with a grain of salt.

Despite avoiding all that, you might still not have clarity yourself and that is also okay. If you have any of the following concerns, let me help shed a bit more reassurance on misconceptions about elopements:

FALSE: ELOPEMENT ARE NOT FANCY SO I CAN’T WEAR THE WEDDING ATTIRE OF MY DREAMS.

Truth: This is still your wedding day, so you bet that you should highly prioritize your desires, whatever those may be.

If princess-cut gowns or crispy-sharp tuxes are what your heart wants for your elopement (and what you can budget for), don’t deprive yourself. You may be having a relatively low-key wedding day but that shouldn’t stop you from going all out where it matters most.

Be mindful of your elopement location so you’re not constricting yourself. For example, if you plan to hike up to your ceremony spot, a flowy dress or stretchy formal wear is the best choice. It’s possible that finding the perfect elopement attire will take time but it can be done with enough planning time.

The fun part? You can go with a traditional style or a ‘create-your-own' option which gives you full liberty to pick what makes you most comfortable!

Engagement ring photo from couple considering eloping

FALSE: ELOPEMENTS ARE MEANT TO BE SUPER LOW-KEY SO I SHOULDN’T INVITE ANYONE.

Truth: Low-key elopements = no guests, no dinners, no receptions? Let’s rethink that.

It goes back to figuring out what your priorities for your special day are but if having a few guests is one of those, don’t get stuck thinking you can’t or shouldn’t invite them.

Do it if you want to.

Maybe you want to invite a few but don’t really feel they should stick around for the full day—That's okay! You could have a private ceremony (just you and your partner) and invite your closest family members for dinner later that day. Then a few months after, you could consider hosting a reception party for closest friends.

Another option is to choose a fully intimate day without guests BUT if you still want to include their presence, ask them to mail you love letters sharing their excitement and their best tips for a successful marriage.

You and your partner can read them in the comfort of your home at the end of the day.

FALSE: IF I WANT A FULL DAY WEDDING CELEBRATION, I CAN’T ELOPE BECAUSE ELOPEMENTS ARE SUPPOSED TO BE SHORT AND SWEET.

Truth: The most common misconception about having an elopement it’s supposed to be a few hours, cheap, and that they are boring.

If you’re not fully familiar with the concept of elopements, you’ll be easily tempted to compare it to traditional weddings and fall into FOMO (fear of missing out)!

Wedding days are expected to have a structured timeline. But that’s because they have been done and ingrained in society for as long as we can remember so they’re cookie-cutters now-- It’s not difficult to know what to do for the day to be entertaining.

The problem? Those moments are centered on the purpose of entertaining others.

So, if you are not going traditional, and don’t invite anyone or only have a few people for the ceremony only, how do you entertain yourself?

Make it a goal to do 1-2 activities or experiences with your new spouse on your elopement day. You can go small like having a picnic or making breakfast together, or go bigger like taking a paint class, hiking, or doing a helicopter tour of the city.

Truly anything goes and since it’s your day, make sure to treat it like an extremely important date!

FALSE: ELOPEMENTS ARE LESS MEANINGFUL THAN TRADITIONAL WEDDINGS BECAUSE THEY ARE LESS WORK AND THEY ARE CHEAPER.

Truth: You’ve searched through the depths of the internet how much an elopement should cost. Well, it’s likely you are still searching because you’re just as unclear about that as you were before you started.

To help you move forward, I suggest that you clarify your priorities for your special day and then find out what you would like to splurge on and what you’d prefer to save on.

Having an elopement doesn’t mean you have to spend the least amount of money; it just means you must know where to allocate your funds to fits your wants and needs better.

What To Do During an Elopement + Sample Timeline Ideas

So now you have a better understanding that an elopement can last as short or as long as you want it to be.

You might be wondering; how can you make it long? What kind of things would you need to add to make it fun, personal and special?

Let’s talk about what you can do during an elopement such as activities, traditional moments, and what a timeline would look like.

ELOPEMENT DAY ACTIVITIES TO ADD TO YOUR TIMELINE

A few popular elopement day activities are:

Hiking
Taking a hands-on class on a topic you enjoy
Making breakfast together
Having a luxury picnic
Helicopter rides
Kayaking or Camping
Walking around town going to your favorite shops/restaurants
Painting or building something together

TRADITIONAL WEDDING MOMENTS TO INCORPORATE

Just because you’re going the untraditional route doesn’t mean you can’t incorporate any traditional wedding moments that you’d like to have. Some couples choose to incorporate the following into their elopement days:

First Looks by partners, parents, or friends
Walking down the ‘aisle’
First Dance after the ceremony
Reception/Party even if it’s months later

DIFFERENT EXAMPLES FOR YOUR ELOPEMENT TIMELINE DEPENDING ON COVERAGE

The following sample timelines can give you an idea of what an elopement day can consist of. These timelines have been constructed with the idea that an elopement photographer will be with you through those timeframes.

→ The half-day elopement (approx. 4-5 hours)

1:00 PM – Get ready and have Hair and Make Up done by a professional artist at your Airbnb

2:00 PM – First Look in the backyard of the Airbnb with your partner

3:30 PM – Meet at Ceremony spot with officiant

4:00 PM – Do First Dance and Bubbly Spray

5:00 PM – Bridal Portraits

→ The full-day elopement (approx. 7-8 hours)

10:30 AM – Get ready with hair and makeup and dress up

2:00 PM – First Look at the Ceremony spot and first part of bridal portraits

3:00 PM – Ceremony with officiant and close family members (recreate walking down the aisle)

4:00 PM – First Dance with partner, then parents and Celebration + Family Portraits

5:00 PM – Bridal Portraits

6:30 PM – Toast at Airbnb and read family letters or open gifts!

→ The 10+ hours elopement

6:30 AM – Meet for morning adventure at the Airbnb or out in nature

11:30 AM – Back at Airbnb to read love letters or open gifts from friends

1:00 PM – Start getting ready with your partner but finish separately

3:00 PM – First Look at the Airbnb

4:30 PM – Hike into the ceremony spot to meet with officiant

5:00 PM – Set up a small picnic for you and your partner to enjoy with small cake

6:00 PM— Bridal Portraits until Sunset

Pro-Tip: Remember that planning an elopement is a very personal choice. As a couple you can decide to make it shorter than 5 hours or longer than 10. In the end you have to pick what works for your vision and budget!

Steps To Plan Your Elopement

While eloping keeps things simple, it still deserves a little thoughtful planning to make it everything you want it to be.

From choosing your dream location to sorting out permits, there are a few easy steps that can help bring your elopement day to life.

If you're curious what the process actually looks like, I've broken it down step-by-step over here on my elopement planning page!

How Much Does it Cost to Elope?

It's not a secret that elopements are cheaper than traditional weddings, but some couples want to be very intentional about the funds they allocate to their special day.

This means that those who value a budget approach will want to minimize the costs and keep their elopement as simple as possible. On the other hand, couples that value shared experiences may be more tempted to spend more on activities to fill their day.

There are three different categories of elopements and below is a short explanation of each:

Budget Elopement: Costs up to around $5000 and it includes a simple timeline at a location that isn’t too far from home (like another city in your home state). Your elopement would be around 1-3 hours with a photographer.
Adventure/Luxury Elopement The cost will be between $5,000 and $20,000! Yes, you read that right. Adventure or luxury elopements entail much more than the simple timeline. They include ‘adventurous’ experiences like hiking or riding a helicopter to the mountaintop while luxury elopements include stays at 5-star hotels.
Destination Elopement: The cost of an elopement abroad will be relatively the same as a vacation. But of course, it’ll increase with any additional expenses for things you’d need for your day (like wedding photography or videography and attire).

Pro-Tip: Whichever type of elopement you choose, just make sure it’s what you truly want. If you have the means to splurge, don’t feel that you need to compromise for the sake of keeping things simple. But also, don’t feel like you need to go big just for the sake of showing off. Always remember that the best elopement day you can have is the one that is just enough for you!

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