Elopements have changed a lot – in the past, an elopement meant running off in secret, but now elopements have evolved to be beautiful intimate celebrations that don’t follow traditional wedding norms. Whether it’s hiking through the mountains, relaxing on the beach, or exploring a forest, modern elopements can be anything you want them to be!

As married elopement photographers who eloped ourselves, we’ve compiled everything you need to know about what an elopement is on this one page.

Let’s get right into it:

Elopement Definition

There are thousands and thousands of couples every year who are embracing the modern idea of eloping, but there can still be a lot of confusion among others about what it means. So to help bring more clarity we decided to write a concise definition of what a modern elopement really is. 

ELOPEMENT
noun – /ih-lohp-muhnt/

Getting married in an intentional way that is true to who you are as a couple, keeping all the traditions you love and letting go of the ones you don’t. Prioritizing a relationally-focused, meaningful experience over material things, and including a limited amount of loved ones to keep the day intimate and special. (Often includes unique, personalized activities to make the wedding an unforgettable adventure!)

At its core, that’s what a modern elopement is. Beautiful right?

Let’s break down each part of that definition:

What Does it Mean to Have an Elopement?

“Getting married in an intentional way that is true to who you are as a couple, keeping all the traditions you love and letting go of the ones you don’t.”

When you elope, you’re throwing out the big wedding industry playbook and starting fresh. You get the opportunity to create an incredible experience by intentionally including the unique things that are true to who you are. The things that give you life.

Do you love the outdoors? Elope in a national park!

Are you both foodies? Have a private chef cook you a meal!

Passionate about travel? Fly across the globe and elope in another country!

We’ll get into even more specifics when we share some elopement ideas later on, but the most important part is stated above. An elopement is true to who you are.

There’s so much beauty in tradition, but only when you actually find it beautiful. If you don’t connect with certain cultural traditions, why include them in your wedding?

An elopement isn’t anti-tradition, it’s just pro-you. So please, exchange those vows, dance that dance, and do whatever wedding traditions speak to your heart. There are so many beautiful ways of incorporating tradition into your elopement, couples often get creative with the elopement twist they put on normal wedding traditions!

• Dancing your first dance in the middle of a forest with no one else around. 
• Spontaneously choosing the spot you exchange vows
• Sharing a “reception” meal with friends and family
• And so much more! 

Celebrating your marriage with an intentional elopement is so meaningful because you are in full control of what you do.

What Do You Do During an Elopement?

“Prioritizing a relationally-focused, meaningful experience over material things”

It’s no secret that the average wedding is a tight schedule packed full of a million things. Centerpieces, color schemes, chairs, cakes, catering (why do all of these start with “c”?) just to name a few. Some people might run toward these with joy, others want to run away from them in fear!

An elopement strips things down to the basics, then lets you add back anything that you actually want. Because when you add back those details that you want, there’s something about it being your choice that makes it less of a burden and more of a blessing. 

Elopements are able to be so much more relationally focused because when you’re so absorbed with all the decorations and schedules of a big traditional wedding, it’s easy to lose sight of why you’re even doing it. It’s easy to prioritize your attention on the event rather than the love of your life.

For far too many couples, the first time on their wedding day that they actually get to slow down, and focus on each other, is when they get in the car and drive away.

When you elope, you can pour all your focus into your marriage. You get to have an entire day or multiple days of slowing down and being present with your love. You get to breathe in every moment, every smile, every tear, every view you see, everything you do. 

Nothing in the way. 

For most couples, this means including activities that bring them joy like going for a hike, taking a boat ride, sipping coffee together, wandering a city, exploring a National Park, traveling to another state/country, etc. We’ll talk even more about that later!

How Many Guests Does an Elopement Have?

“including a limited amount of loved ones to keep the day intimate and special.”

Lastly, a significant factor of what makes an elopement is the number of guests. This is not done to intentionally offend or exclude other people, but because you care so much about your marriage. 

When you have a big traditional wedding with 200+ people, your attention is split between, bridal parties, distant relatives, dances, childhood friends, toasts, your mom’s coworker, and fifty other things. It’s often hard for your focus to remain on you two and the start of your marriage. And as we mentioned before, it’s difficult to have moments of the day that feel intimate.

To have a wedding experience focused on your marriage rather than on the guests, an elopement typically keeps the number of guests under 20, most often even less. 

This will give you two the opportunity to actually connect with each person you choose to include in your elopement, as well as be able to slow down and connect with each other all throughout the day(s).

Some couples choose to only have their parents and siblings at their elopement, others choose to bring all their closest friends, and some have no guests at all. There’s no single “right way” to do it.   

One of the many beauties of elopements is that like a sunset, no two elopements will ever be exactly the same. An elopement is a no-pressure, “100% you” wedding experience from start to finish. 

Now with a clear idea of what an elopement really is, let’s talk adventure elopements!

What is an Adventure Elopement?

When you hear adventure, you might think of something intense like a 15-mile hike or skydiving over a volcano but don’t worry, that’s not what we mean! 

While those certainly are adventurous things, adventures don’t have to be intense or adrenaline-fueled. In fact, we believe the best adventures are found during the moments when you’re unhurried and able to be present with the love of your life, no matter what activity you’ve chosen to do.

What sets Adventure Elopements apart is that they’re filled with completely personalized activities that give you life. From dawn to dusk, every moment of an adventure elopement is an experience that you two share.

Adventure elopements often take place out in nature, but there are plenty of exceptions to that! Don’t let anything hold you back from dreaming about what your adventure elopement could be. 

It’s helpful to think of it like this: If you and your partner could plan a day to do whatever you wanted, with no limits at all: Where would you go and what would you do? 

The “adventure” in adventure elopements means filling your entire elopement with activities that you absolutely love, things that give you life. 

Elopement Activity Examples:

Remember: You’re not living someone else’s adventure – your elopement is your adventure.

Elopement Timeline Examples:

These are simplified versions of the more in-depth timelines we create for each of our couples.

Common Elopement Misconceptions

Misconception: Elopements are last minute and secret

Truth: Nowadays most elopements are planned almost as far in advance as traditional weddings (between 4-12 months on average) and with full knowledge of friends & family. This misconception typically stems from an outdated concept of what it means to elope.

It is possible to plan an elopement in less time if you choose, though your options for photographers and locations will be more limited. And some couples do choose to keep their decision to elope a secret, but it’s often not done out of shame, but in order to avoid stress or create a fun surprise when they announce their elopement! 

Misconception: Elopements happen at the courthouse or Las Vegas

Truth: From what you already read earlier, you can probably guess the answer to this one. You do not have to elope at a courthouse or Vegas, you can actually elope just about anywhere in the world!  

Elopements actually have far more location options than traditional weddings – mountains, private villas, beaches, forests and so many more. Choosing your elopement location is an adventure in itself!

All that’s needed for your elopement to be legal is a simple marriage certificate and the permitting for your location if it’s required. (P.S. We help our couples figure out the logistics of this, so don’t let it worry you at all!)

Misconception: Elopements don’t have any guests

Truth: Elopements can absolutely have guests – bring your best friends, your parents, your pets, and whoever else you want! 

Elopements do have fewer guests than traditional weddings, normally less than 20, in order to keep the elopement intimate. This will give you the opportunity to connect with each person you choose to include, and preserve the ability for you to slow down and be intimate with one another.

The main thing to keep in mind with having guests at your elopement is to only include people who will uplift and support you and your wishes during your wedding. It’s wise to respectfully not invite anyone who will bring you stress, try to take control, or add negativity to your elopement.

If your vision for your elopement is just the two of you, don’t feel any pressure to have guests if you truly don’t want to! There are also many ways you can incorporate your loved ones in your elopement without having them physically present: Reading letters, face timing, celebrating with them at a later date, and so many more.

A common way to have the best of both worlds is to have a two-day elopement where one day you spend one day with your guests, and one day adventuring just the two of you. 

Misconception: People will be upset if we elope

Truth: While we cannot guarantee anything, the bottom line is that the people in your life who truly love you will support your decision, even if it doesn’t make total sense to them. It doesn’t have to make complete sense in order for them to support you!

We see positive reactions from the majority of people when they share their decision to elope with their family and friends. 

Don’t be surprised if people are a bit confused at first, modern elopements are growing in popularity, but most people are still unaware of what they mean! It’s important to explain what your elopement is and isn’t.

Share the reasons why you don’t want a big wedding, and why having an elopement fits your personalities and desires so much better. Take your time, be intentional, act with kindness, and the people that love you will support you.

And remember that at the end of the day: This is your marriage, your wedding, your choice. 

Misconception: I can’t elope because I’m already planning a big wedding

Truth: It’s never too late to decide to elope! If you’re planning a big wedding you may feel stuck with your decision, but you’re not. Many couples that elope were originally planning a big wedding and then at some point in the process decided to have an elopement instead.

If you’re starting to feel that an adventure elopement sounds like a better wedding experience for you, then we encourage you to go for it! 

Even if you’ve sent out the invitations already, many couples in that position have still eloped, some even opting to send out fun elopement announcement cards to follow up on the invitations.

Feel free to reach out to us if you’ve started planning a big wedding but are now considering an elopement instead, we would love to help you understand how possible your dream wedding is! 

Misconception: Elopements are only to save money

Truth: Elopements normally cost less than big weddings, but that is often an added bonus rather than the number one reason. The main reason to have an elopement is to have a wedding experience that feels authentic to you. A wedding where you can be fully present together, in beautiful places, doing things that you love. 

Elopements allow you to spend your money on the things that matter most to you, instead of spending on whatever the wedding industry tells you to. That means your money goes directly to your experiences, high-quality photography, and beautiful accommodations, rather than the cost of a venue, chairs, tables, food, and drinks for 200 people. 

When you elope, your money gets you so much more than it does for a big traditional wedding. You can pull out all the stops and have the most luxurious elopement you can imagine, and it still probably won’t cost any more than the average traditional wedding. Plus it will be a much more memorable, meaningful, and enjoyable wedding experience.

Misconception: We have to hike for our adventure elopement

Truth: Hopefully after reading the section on adventure elopements, you know this isn’t true.

Your adventure is not the same as someone else’s. For some people huge, epic hikes are the adventure they want. For others, it’s a peaceful picnic on the beach, a private chef in a mountain chalet, or wandering through the streets of a European city. 

It’s your elopement, you can do, or not do, whatever you want.

Misconception: Eloping means you don’t care about marriage

Truth: Personal note as a couple who eloped and passionately believes in the value and beauty of marriage, this one is the most important to us.

We care deeply about marriage, it’s at the core of who we are and what we believe. Marriage is an incredible gift from God that is full of meaning, joy, and love. It’s a way for humans to connect on the deepest possible level, and spend their entire life growing their love together.

Having an elopement does not mean you don’t care about marriage. 

Choosing to have an elopement means you care so much about your marriage that you have decided to celebrate in a way that’s non-traditional, and completely unique to who you are in order to make sure you honor your marriage with an experience that is truly meaningful, rather than just doing whatever wedding traditions tell you to do.

Intentional elopements are crafted to have your love, your relationship, and your marriage be the center of focus.

So if you want to have an elopement, please do it, and proclaim to the world just how much you care about your marriage.

The Next Step

Now that you know so much about elopements, the next step is easy: reach out to us so we can start helping you plan!

We’re Sammie and Micah, a married team of photographers who specialize in photographing elopements and adventure weddings. We eloped ourselves so we understand how important it is to have photos that are both beautiful and tell the full story of your experience. We know your photos are your memories and we take that responsibility seriously. 

We help all of our couples with planning, choosing a location, creating timelines, researching permits, and much more in order to make your elopement as stress-free as possible!

We’ve fallen in love with creating intentional elopement experiences while capturing artistic images of real moments. We focus on helping couples make their dream elopement a reality, all while being present in the moment and connected to each other.