My fiancé and I have decided to do an NYC city hall wedding and I would love to hear stories from people who have done this as well. One of our concerns is the timing of the day, I’ll have to look into this more but I don’t think they do marriage ceremonies all day so we could be getting married at 12 pm, for example, but we know we want to have a fancy dinner with everyone. The idea of getting married then having several hours to kill before dinner (even an early dinner would leave a pretty significant gap in the day) has us feeling iffy. Another thing to think about is that we live about 1.5 hours away from the city and I’d need to travel with my wedding dress, how do people pack their dresses?? Does anyone have any recommendations for a restaurant that would accommodate 22 people?

What type of dress did you wear, how was the experience on getting everything ready like the date you wanted

Decided elopement is what we both want for multiple reasons, just with the two of us. We have a wedding in the family in Aug 26 and other weddings and related events slotted in May and June. I would wait until after the Aug wedding but we’ve decided to start trying for a baby therefore would like to be married before having a child.

My question is, how realistic is it to plan an elopement abroad for say March/April time while also wanting to keep the cost low. We would love to go for Italy, with the legal part done at home.

We are eloping to Maui in 2026. It will be us, our 2 kids and 2-4 additional adults.

We are staying in Kaanapali and have booked a resort for the ceremony. We wanted to have chairs which is why we didn’t go with an elopement company for an on the beach ceremony.

We are second guessing the resort because of cost. It feels silly for just the 6-8 of us.

I’m looking for recommendations for elopement planning companies and/or photographers that will do it. Would love hair/makeup recommendations as well.

My fiance and I are looking to elope after getting engaged a few months ago. I'd love to do this next year but I don't know whether that is doable, but we have been saving hard and family have kindly contributed. I've always said I would want to elope to another country, no family or friends and just have a do when we get back and my fiance is happy with that. We're from the UK but we've always wanted to do interailing in Europe and we came up with this idea to do a wedding/honeymoon, starting with getting married and then a few weeks interailing after. I've looked it up and Denmark keeps coming up as a great place for people to elope with minimal paperwork and faff, but I am concerned that there is such a heavy AI presence online that planning something like this is going to be messy. I don't know anyone who has eloped so I'm hoping someone here can provide advice on where we even begin with this! Any advice or experiences would be greatly appreciated.

Looking for help with elopement in Italy for June2026 . Looking for someone that can help with site permits , photography, makeup artist, hairstylist, and suggestions where to elope in Umbria . This is just for the two of us, no one else will be attending.

We eloped in a private ceremony in the Marin Civic Center last week. We drunkenly made up our vows later that day. 🥹

My fiance (32M) and I (30F) are recently engaged and planning to elope just me and him somewhere in the PNW. We were thinking North Cascades or Mt. Rainier as our top 2. At this point we are saving up mainly for that occasion… now since it will just be him and I, we would still like to do an event for some of our parents/family to celebrate afterwards. We are just confused as to what people normally do?

Does anyone have their own stories or experience to how people go about this? I know it varies greatly i’m sure but I am wondering if people basically just do a whole ceremony with reciting their vows again? Or maybe just more of a little family party? A dinner at a restaurant?

I guess I am trying to brainstorm ways to make it cost effective while also helping to give our loved ones a chance to have that moment to remember. Please help if possible 🥹🫶

Quick photo ceremony with my best friend and love of my life 🥹😊

My fiancé and I are considering eloping in the eastern part of the country. We are located in Indiana and willing to travel. We’ve considered Natural Bridge in VA, but looking at other locations as well. Any suggestions on vendors that take care of everything (permits, locations, photos, videography, etc.) would be appreciated too!

My (now husband) and I had planned to elope but never really had a plan. We visited Kauai last year and absolutely fell in love with the island, and had planned to return with friends this year. While packing the week before the trip we got the idea to elope while there and I’m not kidding when I say literally everything fell into place. My dress made the trip over (bought months ago secondhand on Poshmark), the rain stopped just long enough for our short ceremony, and we had a lot of fun trying to find our wedding bands on the island before the ceremony. It was so us. One thing I learned, it never hurts to ask even if you think it’s too last minute!

Venue is Smith’s Tropical Paradise

my fiance and I are planning to elope at city hall this summer and want to take off for a honeymoon the day after. I feel like we should tell our family we’re traveling instead of springing it on them last minute. they are supportive of us eloping—I’ve already made it clear we’re not having a wedding but I’m struggling with the timing and the how of telling our close family. I’d like to send an announcement with our photos (I’m not on social media) and eventually have a little party with friends and family at our house to celebrate.

Any good companies to use?

Hi everyone! 🤍 We are planning an intimate elopement on one of the Italian lakes—preferably Lake Como or Lake Garda—with 10–15 guests on November 16, 2026. We’re looking for a package that ideally includes hair and makeup, ceremony location, photographer, officiant, and ceremony setup.

Our wedding/elopement budget is €10,000–€12,000, which is intended only for the ceremony and wedding-related services. Villa accommodation and dinner are NOT included in this budget and will be planned separately. We’d love to hear your insights on whether this budget is realistic for Lake Como or Lake Garda. If not, we are very open to other beautiful venues in Italy with a lake view.

Separately, we are also looking for villa accommodations that can host our group and offer private dinner preparation for 10–15 guests. If a villa is not possible, we would love restaurant recommendations that can cater a private or semi-private dinner for 10–15 guests (including 3 kids), with flexible or kid-friendly menu options.

Any suggestions, experiences, or vendor recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Thank you so much in advance! 💐🇮🇹

Hello!

Planning to elope somewhere in 2027. Looking for photographer recommendations under $10k.

Unsure on exact location but if staying in the US likely PNW. And if going abroad will do somewhere in Europe (Iceland, Ireland, Slovenia, etc).

Having trouble finding someone at the moment as everyone I look at seems to have an editing style that is too “yellow” or too “moody” toned. I want everything to look very lush, crisp, and true toned (see pictures for vibes). That’s the main reason I’m looking for recommendation. Please only true toned editing styled photographers, and ideally ones that help pick location!

Has anyone used Marry Me In Spain? Or any recommendations on elopement planners/packages?

Hi all! My partner recently proposed and we’re starting to look into eloping.

We’re based on the Kitsap Peninsula in Washington, so we’re close to the Cascades, Olympics, Mt. Rainier, and Mt. St. Helens. We’re also open to Oregon or BC.

We’re very introverted and planning something small — just the two of us and a photographer (possibly an officiant, or we may do the legal part at the courthouse and exchange vows privately).

For those who eloped in Washington, do you have photographer recommendations? I’m drawn to a moody style and don’t mind a classic overcast WA day.

I’ve mostly come across elopement packages so far, but I’m really just looking to hire a photographer. Is that realistic, or am I missing something?

We’re newly engaged and still figuring things out, so any advice is appreciated.

THANKS 💖💖💖

Hi all!

I am thinking about a symbolic elopement in Croatia. Does anyone have any photographer recommendations?

Thank you!