There’s no need to overthink what you will do on your elopement day. It can be incorporating something as simple as starting the morning off with a cup of coffee together to an activity as exciting as skydiving! Your elopement is ultimately about being intentional with your time so you’re prepared to have the best day together. It’s not meant to feel like a full-day photoshoot and I will even set aside my camera at times so you can enjoy private moments. There are endless possibilities for elopement ideas that will best fit your vision!

Guide to Choosing Your Own Elopement Ideas

When planning an adventure elopement, there’s increased wiggle room for what you decide to do and when. Different from the more rigid structure of a traditional wedding timeline, elopements don’t generally follow a template. Space is instead left for spontaneity and doing whatever the heck you want! This is the crucial reason why most couples choose to elope.

I’ve noticed that when it’s time to get into the nitty-gritty of planning to elope, couples start to feel overwhelmed with the options and logistics of it all. That’s where I come in with elopement ideas to fill out your elopement day activities!

Helping you throughout the entire process of elopement planning for a day that is true to both of you is exactly what I do. I’m here to help you create an experience where you can make some new favorite memories, spend quality time together and simply exist in a beautiful space on the day you get married. This includes everything from selecting your location and planning out your activities to helping you navigate the trails on the day itself. I am here for the entire planning process to help bring your elopement wedding ideas to life!

Ready to plan your own elopement ideas? Let’s get started!

There’s an art to choosing a couples adventure that balances leaving space for spontaneity while still filling out the time in the most relaxed way. You should never be left feeling bored or wondering what to do next! Together, we’ll choose activities that are an honest representation of who you are and what you value most. Bringing elopement ideas to life through activities that result in core memories is one of my favorite ways to support my couples!

How to Decide on The Best Elopement Activity Ideas

Elopement activities can include elaborate excursions such as riding horses through the desert or kayaking down a river. But, your chosen elopement day activities don’t have to be over the top in order to hold meaning to you. More often these elopement ideas involve simple ways of spending quality time together exploring your elopement destination. These are my top elopement day activity options to consider incorporating into your day whether it’s with zero guests or involves close family and friends!

Relaxing Low-Key Elopement Activities

• Getting ready and writing your vows together: another fun way to buck tradition and spend even more quality time together.

• Reading letters written by loved ones: includes friends and family members who aren’t attending your elopement in person.

• First look with private vows: this makes sense when you still want to do a ceremony with guests as well as have one with just the two of you.

• Cutting a cake: just because you aren’t having a traditional wedding doesn’t mean you can’t have a small wedding cake! Find a treat to look forward to when you return after a long day of adventures.

• Visiting a local coffee shop or restaurant: the best light of the day and one of the best ways to ensure you have privacy for your elopement ideas is to have a sunrise ceremony. Planning to have coffee together is a great way to stay awake, take a break, and soak in the moment. Not much can beat a good cup of coffee in a beautiful place with the person you love most! 

• Exchanging gifts: surprise your partner with something unique that holds meaning to your relationship and will always symbolize the day you committed to forever together. During Sarah and Nick’s elopement, Sarah gifted Nick a custom record from Freestyle Vinyl with some of their favorite songs. 

• At Meredith and Tom’s elopement, Meredith gifted Tom a handmade journal with letters written by his friends and family members. Tom also gifted Meredith a tiny version of a skateboard he was gifting her later and Meredith was so stoked!

• Get tattoos! After exchanging vows you can head to the nearest tattoo shop to memorialize your wedding day together!
• Stargazing: there are some pretty epic stargazing opportunities all over Texas. Big Bend has some of the best night skies in the country!

Elopement Activities Based on Your Lodging

• Cooking or baking together: if you love to cook together then book an Airbnb with a beautiful kitchen. You can spend time cooking a sweet meal together on the day you get married!
• Find lodging with a private fire pit or hot tub and end your elopement day cozied up by the fire with a blanket or soaking in the water. Bonus points if you roast s’mores! 
• Relaxing in a hammock: imagine cuddling up in a hammock under the sun and listening to the wind in the trees as newlyweds.

• Floating or swimming in a river or lake: this is a great idea for any summertime elopements! Grab some inner tubes and spend the afternoon at the river. There are a lot of Airbnbs throughout Central Texas with private river access to ensure you have privacy.

Have you caught on to how important your wedding lodging is to making your elopement ideas possible? There are so many options for enjoying nature or where you’re staying in a completely relaxed way!

You can read more tips for booking elopement lodging in my Elopement Lodging 101 Guide!

Adventurous Outdoor Elopement Excursions

• Horseback riding or Jeep tours: Big Bend National Park and Palo Duro Canyon both have guided horseback and Jeep tours. Either would be so fun to do on your elopement day that would create an epic memory!

• Doing an outdoor adventure experience: rock climbing, hiking (or driving around to different scenic overlooks), zip-lining, etc.

• Kayaking or paddle boarding: a lot of places throughout Central Texas offer kayak or paddle board rentals. Big Bend offers kayak rentals seasonally for the Rio Grande.

• Having a picnic: easy way to bring your elopement experience to the next level with a fancy charcuterie board and high-end wine. You can also simply throw down a blanket with some of your favorite snacks and sweets after a long hike.

Check out my guide on Elopement Timeline Tips & Examples to better plan your day!

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