Elopements are a freakin’ blast, and there’s no rule that says you can’t invite a few of your closest peeps to join in on the fun. Sure, traditional weddings may have a guest list the size of a small village, but an elopement is all about keeping it intimate and personal. Imagine exchanging vows with your besties and family by your side. Now that’s a party!

But don’t worry, just because you’re inviting a few guests doesn’t mean the whole shindig will turn into a full-blown wedding. An elopement is still all about the two of you. So, whether you want to have a handful of your closest buds or just your immediate family, the choice is yours. Just remember, the more the merrier, but the fewer the better if you’re planning to make a quick getaway.

An elopement ceremony is a intimate and unique event. It’s all about the couple, their love and commitment to each other. It can take place anywhere, whether it’s a city hall, a beach, or even on top of a mountain (if you’re feeling adventurous). It’s a private and intimate event, no need to worry about seating charts or speeches. It’s your day, make it as simple or as elaborate as you wish.

Yes! Just because there isn’t a room full of guests to witness two people saying their vows to one another doesn’t mean the marriage isn’t real. Couples who decide to elope don’t have marriages that are “less than”. Actually, quite the opposite could be argued! We won’t get into that though. 😉

There are so many reasons why couples choose to elope, and we promise you only a handful of couples choose to elope because they want to climb a mountain on their wedding day. While we love waking up before the birds to summit a mountain or climb to an alpine lake, we understand that’s not everyone’s speed. Whether you want to have a hiking elopement, or you want to do something super mellow, we’ll customize your adventure to you. Like, the real you. If your’re planning on having an adventure hiking elopement, check out this blog on what to pack!

The answer to this question will depend greatly on the couple and what matters most to them. On average couples will spend anywhere between $5k – $25k+ (cause the sky is the limit!). Couples who are deciding to elope are eliminating the traditions like a venue, bridal party, food for a big number of guest, a DJ, and their spending their money on things they care about like traveling to a destination or participating in a new activity. Although the high end of $25k might seem like a lot of money, it’s really not when you look at the average cost of a traditional wedding, being $20k, when that $20k is spent on entertaining your guests and making sure they’re taken care of. What would you rather: spend tens of thousands on a day you likely won’t remember much of, not enjoying the majority of the planning, or experiencing the day. Or would you rather take that money and spend it on an incredible experience and come out of it with your favorite story to tell?

When calculating the cost for your elopement consider these options: traveling expenses, lodging, attire, activities, vendors. Get in contact with us to see our elopement packages, or to get a bespoke elopement package quote.

Don’t stress yourself out by thinking of how you’re going to plan your elopement. Chances are your elopement photographer will do most of the heavy lifting for you. For me, I love taking on most of the planning tasks so my couples can head off into their elopement adventure with the peace of mind they’re looking for.

I’ll take care of things like finding a location, working out a timeline to ensure we have plenty of time to soak in the views and get to the best scenery during the perfect time for the best photos, helping you with what to pack for your elopement, getting the proper permits for that location, telling you exactly where you should go to get your marriage license, mapping out the terrain, and so much more.

Why do I do this? Because when your elopement day, location, and timing come together perfectly, your photos will be incredible. It’s all apart of the experience when you work with In Love and Adventure!

But there are just a few things that are required to put on an elopement. These things are the two of you, your wedding vows, and a signed marriage license (a maybe a few witnesses, and officiant depending on the marriage laws of the state you’re getting married in). Pretty simple, right? We like to keep things easy peezy around here. But of course, yes, 100 times yes, we will help you with whatever you need. Literally, there is no task that is out of our scope when it comes to helping you plan your day. Why? Because we also eloped, and we know how incredibly special it is to have a day you can look back on and be super proud of, and be super happy about. We’re talking no ragrets. Not even one letter.

YES! Eloping is a real marriage! Marriage laws vary by state, but 100% elopements are completely legal. They are also legally binding. Two people who choose to elope are legally getting married by signing a marriage license.

Abso-freakin-lutely, an elopement is a real wedding. Do two people sign a marriage license? Yes. Is that marriage license a legally binding agreement? Yes. Then elopements are real weddings, and if anyone else tells you otherwise, send them my way because I have 100+ wedding galleries to show them of real weddings that were elopements. 😊

It certainly can be! The national average cost of a traditional wedding in 2020 was $20k. So unless you’re planning on spending tens of thousands on your elopement, eloping is more affordable.

When you’re thinking about the question of what is eloping, and what do you do during an elopement, just remember to think of an elopement as a blank canvas, where you draw your relationship straight onto the crisp white paper. Eloping is all about escaping the traditions of a traditional wedding day. We have some advice for our couples when brainstorming what their elopement could/should look like. It’s about a 50/50 split between couples who come to us knowing exactly what they’re envisioning for their elopement, and couples who really don’t know, or maybe they’re feeling overwhelmed by all the options. Our biggest piece of advice is to do what we like to call the Random Memory Game. Essentially, you’re just looking back through memories the two of you had together and picking apart why they were so special and so meaningful. What did do during that time that made it the best day ever? Did you sleep in, or wake up early? Did you have a fantastic meal you can’t stop daydreaming about? What was the vibe of the day? Was it easygoing, or did you follow a schedule? What activities did the two of you do together? Did you experience something new, or were you doing something you’ve done dozens of times before together? Knowing the answers to these questions will be able to help you start to map out what your elopement should look like, and to make your day special. There are no right or wrong answers here. Escape the traditions, and create a day that is a representation of the relationship you’ve built.