Planning your elopement & trying to figure out how to make it the most special day possible? Here are 10 unique elopement ideas to make sure your day doesn’t just look like everyone else’s that you saw on Pinterest!! We want your day to feel 1000% like YOU, not other couples you’ve looked at in magazines!!

1. Book an epic Airbnb

Who says you have to stay in a boring random hotel for your elopement?? NOBODY!! Except maybe your Aunt Becky who stayed in a sketchy ass motel on her wedding night. . . nah, not gonna happen for you two!

I 10/10 recommend booking an epic Airbnb to stay in not only on your elopement night but for a few nights surrounding your elopement day! (Which I’ll talk about more in the next point)

Find a place that’ll allow you to be comfy, cozy, and super relaxed on your elopement day. 

If you’re big fans of cooking together, get a place with an awesome spacious kitchen! 

If you want to hike as MUCH as physically possible on the days surrounding your elopement, find an Airbnb in the woods with lots of access to trailheads. 

Or maybe you’d rather get some R&R out in nature – find somewhere with a hot tub on the deck, overlooking epic views!

There are TONS of amazing Airbnb’s that have super unique features. So I recommend finding one that offers things that are going to help you have the most special day ever, whether you want a luxurious experience or something a little more like camping/glamping!

Below are some awesome Airbnb’s in the PNW that you def need to check out for your elopement!!

Rad Airbnb’s in Oregon:

• Luxurious Cottage on the Peninsula – Brookings, OR

• Cozy Oceanfront Home – Lincoln City, OR

• Oceanfront Condo with Hot Tub – Lincoln City, OR

• Urban Residential Home – Mount Hood Parkdale, OR

 

Rad Airbnb’s in Washington:

• • Wooded Paradise near Mount Rainier – Ashford, WA

• A-Frame Cabin on the Olympic Peninsula – Port Angeles, WA

• Secluded Tiny Cottage on the Gorge – Stevenson, WA

• Hurricane Ridge Glamping – Port Angeles, WA

• Tiny House Mountain Getaway – Sequim, WA

• Cozy River Cabin at Mount Rainier – Packwood, WA

• Artbliss Hotel Cottage – Stevenson, WA

• Cabin on Lake Crescent – Port Angeles, WA

Check out Taylor + Jayko’s Mount Rainier Elopement for some Airbnb wedding inspo!!

 

2. Make it a 2-day adventure

Going off of point #1, I highly recommend making your elopement a multi-day adventure!! Whether that means 2 days, 3 days, or a week, GO FOR IT!!

 

Your elopement doesn’t need to be boxed into just one single day. I know that’s what weddings are traditionally like – one day of celebration, then off to your honeymoon, and back to real life. But think about it: a multi-day/week-long elopement experience where you get to adventure together and celebrate for sooo much longer. Why freaking not?!

With multiple days to celebrate, you don’t have to pack it allll into one day, which means you can do a ton more stuff! 

Spend one day hiking at sunrise, having a picnic on the mountaintop, saying your vows at golden hour in front of some epic views, and hiking back down at sunset.

Then, spend the next day cooking your favorite meal together in your Airbnb, drinking your fave drinks, and relaxing in your Airbnb’s hot tub.

Finally, spend your last day meeting up with your closest friends, hitting up local breweries, and dancing the night away at a bar!

There are seriously SO many possibilities when you opt for a multi-day elopement versus trying to pack EVERYTHING into one day. You can’t do everything you’re dreaming of in one day, so why not extend the celebration?!

 

A real example:

Taylor & Jake started off with an Ireland-Inspired Oregon Adventure Elopement at God’s Thumb, then met up with me a couple days later in southern Oregon for more couples portraits!

3. Think outside of the box with your food

Traditionally, weddings have some sort of fancy caterer – and that’s it. A little boring if you ask me! So why not get creative with your elopement-day food?!

 

Bring your food TO GO

Pack a picnic, hire somebody to create a charcuterie board, or cook over a campfire. You can eat in the back of your car at the top of the mountain, bring sandwiches to eat on our hike to your ceremony spot, and toast your fav cold drinks that you’ve been carrying in your backpack, at the end of the hike!

You could also buy food from your fav fast food chain (hellooooo In N’ Out)

Hire a private food truck

Or, if you don’t want to take care of the food yourself, hire a private food truck to cater your absolute FAV foods. Seriously, there are food trucks out there for everything!! Burgers, fries, donuts, corn dogs, hot dogs, pizza, the list goes on and on. It would be SO fun to have a private food truck bring you your fav foods at the end of the night!

4. Bring your four-legged friends

This is an easy one: bring your dog(s) along!! Just make sure that you’re prepared to follow rules depending on the location we’re at, & to clean up after them.

Check out my fav blog post on How to Involve Your Pets in Weddings, Elopements, or Sessions for all sorts of fun ideas for this one!!

5. Take a boat to your spot + go fishing

If you’ll be near a calm body of water, get a boat to take out on the water and go fishing! Make sure that you have the appropriate permits for this & know the area’s rules + restrictions, of course. This could be SUCH a fun one – see how Joelle + Adam did it below!

6. Incorporate a fun activity

There are NO rules for this one – it can be whatever you want!! Incorporate some sort of fun activity into your elopement day, maybe something you both love doing together or that you’ve always wanted to do together.

Here are a few ideas to get your creativity flowing:

• Sandboarding

• Skateboarding

• Roller skating

• Surfing

• Boating

• Four-wheeling

 

The opportunities are endless!!

7. Have a dried floral bouquet

Instead of hiring a florist to create a normal bouquet for you, have them create a dried floral bouquet! This means that the flowers are already purposefully dried in a way that you can preserve them after your elopement day.

 

So instead of getting rid of your flowers after they wilt soon after your big day, have a dried floral bouquet & keep the flowers in a frame, incorporate them into some interior decor, or put them into a keepsake album to have forever!

8. Wear a hat

Because why not wear a cute af hat on your elopement day?! Pair a hat with your elopement attire to add some variety to your look!

One of my fav places to get stylish hats is Gigi Pip!

9. Go for a swim

If you’re near some water on your elopement day (a lake, the ocean, a pond, the base of a waterfall), why not hop in for a swim once you’re done saying your vows?! Strip down your wedding attire & change into swimsuits to cool off – it’ll be especially nice if it’s a hot day out! Have fun playing in the water with your boo and celebrating the amazing day you’ve had together!

10. Bring some champagne

And finally, this is an easy one: bring some champagne with you to pop!! We’ll make sure to do it in an area where we won’t lose the cork (no littering over here!) and where it’ll be safe for the champagne to fly everywhere. Don’t worry – my camera will be fine with a little champagne spray! 😉 It’s such a fun & easy way to celebrate the day and just have some fun!

Loved this article?! Be sure to check out my elopement blog for a ton more elopement inspiration, ideas, & helpful resources!