Every luxury elopement looks and feels different for each couple.
And truthfully–that’s kind of the point.
Luxury elopements do not fit in a singular box–they make you and your partner feel alive, in love, and understood.
They are a collection of moments that are all yours. Unfolding precisely in ways that make you feel simultaneously bursting with joy and grounded in peace. They are for you and your partner to feel aligned, celebrated, and overcome with love.
But what do luxury elopements that feel like these truly embody? What pieces need to come together to unlock a day like this?
And, maybe most importantly, what matters most when it comes to planning your own luxury elopement?
In this blog, I’m sharing the five things I believe are the most important considerations for every couple’s luxury elopement.
In this article:
Pictured: Bride dressed in a strapless silk Eleanors Bridal gown with jewelry by A.B.Ellie and White Diamonds on her wedding day in Amangiri in the southern Utah desert. Planned by Kailoha Co Events.
Planning Your Luxury Elopement: What Every Couple Should Know
The true beauty of a luxury elopement is in its intention–to slow time, even as it’s passing.
No matter what a couple is chasing in their elopement, at the root of it all, I believe it comes back to reducing the whirlwind of everything to embrace every second.
Moments–especially moments like your wedding day–are meant to be memorized.
So much of our lives whisk by us in a flurry of feelings and details.
Being able to pause, breathe, and slow these precious seconds down gives us the gift of time. The gift of outlining all these moments in our minds. We can trace them over and over as they’re happening.
It’s All About Slowing Down
When we consciously slow down, we get to imprint these big, beautiful moments. That means remembering how it all really felt and transporting back there–not just recalling a faint whisper of it later.
There’s a common misconception that if an elopement day takes a slower route, you’ll miss out on activities and opportunities that a packed-out wedding day could give you.
This couldn’t be further from the truth.
Embracing an elopement focused on slowing down means you’re not overcomplicating it; you’re prioritizing what matters to you. It also means you’re creating space in your day for your creative vendors to serve you best and cultivate the experience you’ve envisioned.
As a luxury elopement photographer, I know that a day with more focus on time and intention, enables me to work more thoughtfully.
Those in-between, quick moments that make up your experience are all part of that, too. But with more time, I can help meaningfully and creatively paint a picture of your wedding day.
But this doesn’t just apply to creatives like me. When a couple is focuses on intentional time throughout their day, other creative wedding vendors can also craft their experience more thoughtfully.
A hair and makeup artist can slow down and not just deliver the look you want but a meaningful experience. Your catering team has time to work a bit slower with fewer guests. They won’t worry about shuffling everyone through a buffet line–they can create and serve artfully.
Things can be more detailed, more creative, and more about you when it’s about being slow and intentional.
Pictured: Intimate wedding reception in Amangiri in the southern Utah desert. Planned by Kailoha Co Events. Florals by Terra Floral Design. Event rentals from A&R Event Design and Anna Grace Ceramics. Cake by Lustr Creative.
Including Creative Wedding Vendors Can Elevate Your Luxury Elopement
Luxury elopements can (and in my opinion, should) include creative wedding vendors. Professionals like wedding planners, luxury elopement photographers, content creators, and floral designers can help you refine and execute the vision you have for your wedding day.
These creatives are experts in their fields–but more than that, they’re service providers.
There’s something magical and luxurious about being able to set aside your worries and stress. Shift the responsibilities of the day to an incredible expert and float through every moment.
You will not worry about setting up your wedding table just right, arranging the details of your desserts, or trying to perfect your hairstyle.
It feels luxurious, elevated, and just plain good to relax and let your day unfold around you effortlessly.
Pictured: Couple on there wedding day in Amangiri in the southern Utah desert. The Bride is in a strapless silk Eleanors Bridal gown with jewelry by A.B.Ellie and White Diamonds. Planned by Kailoha Co Events. Florals by Terra Floral Design. Event rentals from A&R Event Design and Anna Grace Ceramics. Cake by Lustr Creative.
Quality Time is the Focus
I mentioned before that elopements are truly all about intentional time. How you choose to spend that time is completely up to you.
That’s the beautiful thing about luxury elopements and micro-weddings. How you spend your time and who you spend it with are all within your control.
You get to choose the how, the where, and the why of it all.
- Quality Time with Ones You Love Most: A luxury elopement can be an opportunity for just you and your person–but it can also be a moment in time for you and your people. There’s no rule that says an elopement has to be only you and your partner. You can find ways to involve your guests in your elopement day and spend intentional, quality time with them. This can look and feel however you want it to. I’ve loved elopements where couples carve out intentional time just for themselves, then carve out just as much time to spend with guests. I’ve seen couples include their guests in their ceremonies, letting them pass their rings around so everyone there could hold them, wishing good vibes and love with each touch. I’ve also seen couples forgo a photo hour after their ceremony–instead, choosing to immediately spend time with their people at a long dinner table, soaking in the beauty of it all.
- Quality Time in a Place You Adore: This can be time spent with your partner in a place you love or a place you’ve been eager to experience together. This can be time and excursions just for your partner or moments of exploration you share with your guests. There really are no rules for how or where you spend your quality time.
- Quality Time That Lasts Longer Than One Day: Quality time can stretch any length that makes sense for you. I’ve had couples turn their wedding days into wedding weekends and wedding weeks–all in the name of more quality, intentional time.
Pictured: Scenes from an intimate wedding day in Amangiri in the southern Utah desert. Florals by Terra Floral Design.
The Details Can Be Beautifully Immersive
Luxurious elopements offer you a beautiful balance: the chance to pare down what doesn’t matter to you and the opportunity to embrace the meaningful, artful details that matter to you.
This kind of wedding empowers you to lean into and thoughtfully consider each and every detail of your day. This extends to where you’re staying, what vehicle you’ll drive, the food, the drinks, the outfits, and the activities.
Luxury elopements allow you the opportunity to be free of the complexities of a traditional wedding and a large guest list and instead give you a chance to focus on the details you’ve dreamt about.
Imagine being able to invest in and embrace the whimsical floral design you’ve envisioned, like Whitney + Levi did. The charcuterie picnic for you and your guests by the coastline, or the custom cocktails a talented mixologist created for your elopement dinner.
Every little detail, every little layer, can be immersive and embody the look and feel that aligns with your vision.
Pictured: Couple on their wedding day in Amangiri in the southern Utah desert. The Bride is dressed in a strapless silk Eleanors Bridal gown with jewelry by A.B.Ellie and White Diamonds. Planned by Kailoha Co Events.
Your Wedding Day Can Become a Wedding Weekend
One of the greatest realizations about luxury elopements is that they don’t have to fit neatly into the limits of a single day.
Your elopement day can become your elopement weekend, your elopement week, or your elopement month.
So often, couples who choose luxury elopements ultimately decide on a destination-style wedding. Choosing to stretch their celebration over more than one day means a chance to embrace a new place and experience it wholeheartedly.
And when this happens, they often find they’re able to celebrate in meaningful ways, experience the place they’re getting married, and lean into those feelings of celebration, peace, and bliss.
Pictured: Couple on there wedding day in Amangiri in the southern Utah desert. The Bride is dressed in a strapless silk Eleanors Bridal gown with jewelry by A.B.Ellie and White Diamonds. Planned by Kailoha Co Events. Florals by Terra Floral Design.
Capture Your Elopement Intentionally with a Photographer Specializing in Luxury Elopements
As a luxury elopement photographer, I wholly believe that photographs of your wedding day are not to just be memories. They are vehicles that transport you back to the feelings of your wedding day.
When you’re able to slow down, soak in, and invest quality time and intentionality into your wedding day, the photos that document your day are a chance to time travel–to feel it all over again as clearly as you did when it happened.
If you’re ready to relentlessly chase what matters most to you–the details, the feelings, and the way your day is captured–I’m here to help capture it all.
