10 Reasons to Elope

What is an elopement?

When a couple chooses to elope, they are choosing to focus all their wedding planning energy into an extremely intentional and intimate wedding experience. Today, the term “elopement” refers to an intentionally small wedding where the focus of the day is centered around the experience the couple and their guests have. Just think of the phrase, “experiences over things!” Because after all, a wedding day should be focused on the couple and how they want to be celebrating this chapter of their story together! And let’s be very clear about one thing…your wedding day, IS YOUR DAY! It deserves to be celebrated in the way you want!

There are many reasons why a couple may choose to elope.

For some it is a very personal reason while for others it may be more of a logistical one. There is no right or wrong reason to want to elope, just like there is no right or wrong way to elope. I think many couples get into going with the flow and enduring outdated wedding traditions simply because they feel like they have too (I know I did when I got married!), and I’m here to say that doesn’t need to be the case anymore. I wish I had someone who could have educated my now hubby and I on how to plan a wedding that felt like us. I wish we had had the resources then to explore non-traditional celebrations as well as someone who could have simply outlined the fact that not everyone has to get married in the same way.

So, I’ll say it again, there are many reasons why a couple may choose to elope! And I’m excited to break down some of the more popular reasons as well as some reasons that might have you surprised! Maybe one, or more, of these reasons will resonate with you, or perhaps you’re leaning towards eloping because of something unique to your story, but whatever it is,

my hope is that you find the courage to be fearlessly authentic on your day!

1. Planning a traditional wedding is stressing you out

If planning a more traditional wedding has you totally strung out and causing your relationship, family, job, or mental health to suffer it might be time to take a step back and reassess what is really important to you and your partner. Because who really wants to get married when all you can think about is how you can’t wait for it to be over?

Eloping allows for a much more relaxed wedding planning experience! With vendors (like me!) who completely understand your reasoning behind wanting to elope they are better able to help take over some of the stressful planning objectives. All of my couples receive custom location planning, timeline curation, and unlimited elopement consultations throughout their planning process. I am essentially their own personal elopement resource!

2. Skip the family drama and foster a “Just Us” experience

When I was getting married, I wish someone had been there to tell me that I didn’t have to plan a wedding around the opinions of family. So guess what, YOU DON’T HAVE TO PLAN YOUR WEDDING AROUND THE OPINIONS OR EXPECTATIONS OF YOUR FAMILY.

You also don’t have to include your family if you don’t feel connected with, close to, or encouraged by them. Family drama can be very complicated, and if that is something that you just don’t want to have to deal with on one of the most important, intimate, and special days of your life, then don’t.

There are also many ways to incorporate family into an elopement day without having them be physically present, and I love going over these options with my couples who are torn between wanting their loved ones to be a part of it, but are also concerned about how having them be present would affect the experience they have on their day.

If family is causing you and your partner to feel overwhelmed, I would encourage you to look at fostering a wedding experience that is solely focused on the two of you.

3. Still want to include those close family and friends?

Then do!

Imagine being able to fully enjoy the company of every.single.guest at your wedding! When you bring your guest count down to a more intimate number, it allows more opportunity for connecting with each guest.

A quote from one of my sweet, 2020 COVID brides, “Every one of our guests was able to meet each other and have genuine conversations. This was so special since most of our family had not met before. It ended up being more perfect than either of us could have guessed!”

Elopements don’t have to be just the two of you if you don’t want that! I have photographed elopements with up to 20 guests and they were still filled with all the same intention as those where it was just the couple eloping. Every couple is different and I don’t believe there is one “right way” to elope.

4. You want to save money

Did you know that the average cost of a wedding is around $30,000?! And that doesn’t even include the honeymoon (mind blown!). Think about it, if you spent even a fraction of that cost, investing into vendors who know how to make your wedding experience out of this world, you could literally have the adventure of a lifetime! You’d be able to come away from your wedding day (or wedding week for that matter!) with a kick-ass experience, somewhere freaking epic, with absolutely amazing photos documenting your entire journey.

Basically think about spending that money on YOU rather than your 300 guests who probably won’t even eat their dinner and are just there for the open bar.

5. Eloping is more fun!

Because your day will be centered around exactly what you want to be doing, you will naturally have more fun! There won’t be any aspect of the day that you won’t be looking forward too!

Want to rent a party-bus to take you and your closest friends and fam to your ceremony location just like this rad couple did?! DO IT! I promise you won’t regret it!

6. You are a very private couple

For some couples, they just simply cannot imagine themselves sharing their personal vows in front of all their friends and family.

A wonderful thing about eloping is that your entire day can be as private and intimate as you would like. You don’t have the stress of saying your most personal words in front of 150 people, instead you can put all your energy in being fully present in that moment and in all the moments of your day.

So, big regret #2, from when I got married: My husband and I chose to not share personal vows because I was so nervous that I might mess up or say something wrong while in front of all our 150 guests. And to be completely honest, I didn’t feel comfortable being that personal in front of everyone. Now looking back, almost 7 years later, I wish we had either just gone ahead and shared personal vows even though I was nervous, or that we had taken time outside of our ceremony to share them with each other.

I now ALWAYS recommend to my couples that they take time during their day to share private words with each other.

7. You want to splurge on an epic adventure together

Eloping opens up so many opportunities to splurge on adventures that you might otherwise never have the opportunity to do! Maybe you want to take a helicopter tour through the Alaskan Mountains to say your I Do’s? Maybe it’s staying in a fancy hotel room at a bougie resort in Sedona? Or perhaps your splurge is taking more time off work to adventure through Yosemite’s backcountry for your multi-day elopement!?

Whatever your splurge is, I’m such a big believer in experiences over things and what better time to invest in an adventurous experience (that you’ll remember for the rest of your lives) than on your wedding day?

8. Amazing Photos

Let’s be real, who doesn’t want totally EPIC wedding photos?!

The best part is that I specialize in a documentary style of photography that allows the couple to be able to soak in the moments of their elopement day as they happen. It’s definitely unlike any traditional photoshoot you may have had in the past or might be dreading for your wedding.

I guide my couples through our time together with the use of subtle prompts and fluid actions that are completely natural. All the while, my goal is being genuine storyteller of their day.

9. You value the experience you have on YOUR WEDDING DAY above everything else

Eloping is a way to escape the mundane of tradition and instead do what really feels like YOU! This is your wedding day after all and I’m a huge advocate for ditching whatever tradition doesn’t feel true to a couple’s story, and instead opting for a more meaningful way to celebrate their love. Buh-bye garter toss!

10. Because you want to get married NOW!

And I don’t blame you! When my hubby popped the question I didn’t want to wait a second longer to make it official. Believe it or not, weddings are still happening during the pandemic, and they are happening because of the insane resilience of rad couples like you! Eloping is the perfect way to intentionally celebrate this exciting new chapter in your story together, and the best part? You can do it right now!