Eloping?

My wife and I eloped, because her relatives did not approve of me at the time. Got a married at a courthouse in a nearby state. We've never had a traditional wedding, and it wouldn't have been financially feasible for some time afterwards.

We talked a few times about possibly doing a traditional wedding, but after 23 years of marriage it is rather low on our priority list. The biggest issue may be how other relatives handle the news.

Personally, I like the idea of just getting away for several days.

If I get married again, I will elope. You can always have a party to celebrate with friends and family, afterwards.

I would love to elope. I'm strongly inclined to do that for my wedding because I can't be bothered with all the extra additional hassle.
We are thinking of the Caribbean. We might invite very close friends and immediate family and if they can't attend, we may just go ahead anyways.

I didn't elope. I almost did, but I ended up doing a courthouse marriage. After being in 10 weddings, I had absolutely no desire to plan and go through another one. I totally recommend a no muss no fuss marriage. It's totally true that you barely remember it. Besides, in my situation, it wasn't about having a wedding, it was about being married. Being together. All the fuss just wasn't us. We spent the money we saved on a beautiful honeymoon in Mackinac Island. THAT was all about us. For us, it was the right way to do it.

I'm starting to toy with the idea of an elopement. I found a beeeauutiful hotel in a very scenic area, where we could get married and enjoy a very romantic/intimate suite for 3-4 days for about $1000.

I'm starting to think I just want the fun parts of the day: pretty dress, hair/makeup, marrying the man I love and getting some nice photos and cake. And then just enjoying our time together until we go back to the real world. Rather than scouring venues, trying to stay within a budget, looking for a caterer, worrying about who sits with whom and what my bridal party will wear, getting flowers that won't bankrupt us, etc., etc.

i'm not a big proponent of marriage in general, but if it were me what you describe in what i quoted sounds much better than a traditional wedding. seems like it would be a much more pleasant experience.

in any case, good luck and congrats!!

I hate a ton of attention on me especially while wearing a dress because I can't stand them usually, so my husband and I just went to the courthouse, called up immediate family and went for it!!! A lot of friends and family were upset, but you know what? They are not the ones paying for it, so I don't feel bad, but we do just plan on having a "reception" for our 1 year anniversary, but we aren't doing a wedding, just a reception so everyone can have fun and get together.

Well, you only get one wedding (unless, of course, you divorce or something), so do it the way you want. If eloping feels right for you and you have an awesome place in mind that is meaningful to you and fiancé, then go for it!

You could have a BBQ to celebrate when you return. Check out The Knot wedding boards for tips for planning a smooth and easy elopement. I love that website. I'm planning my own wedding for next summer too!

I'm engaged right now and getting married to my best friend in October. We have been in and out of each other's life since we were sixteen...I turned 50 this year. We toyed with the idea of eloping, but felt it might hurt his mom and dad. They only live 6 block s from us. We also didn't want the huge wedding expense...so we have having a small back yard wedding...simple elegant and fun. Less than 20 people...and then a small honeymoon for a week. We are still discussing where we are going. We had many set backs this year...with the money pit. We purchased a home a little over a year ago. Truthfully even if we could afford the huge wedding anymore I'm not sure it is our thing. As for eloping...I did that with my first wedding over 30 years ago....if its to somewhere like Vegas...I wouldn't ...it took less than 5 minutes from the license to "I do". You and the one you love may get lost in the masses. But there are so many small charming venues if you look that you can have what is truly important....you and the person you love...after all everything else is window dressing....and window dressing is very expensive. Good luck on making your decision.

although the experience isn't so personal, my uncle and his wife (who i am really good friends with) decided to elope. They also counted it as their honeymoon since the took a cruise to the carribean, got married in Key West by the captain before departure and then enjoyed a week of vacation. They both say that if they had to they would do it again because wedding planning was causing her lots of stress especially since members of are family live all over the world and basically their wedding needed to be about them.

My sister got married in Tobago with parents and siblings and both her and her husband took their 2 closest friends. It was beautiful and relaxed and everything that a traditional stressy wedding isnt. My brother eloped and he and his wife took one friend each with them, no family. None of us minded at all. Weddings are and should be about the couple getting married and neither my sister or brother regret eloping. In fact, when it comes my time I will definately be following suit! Good luck x

I did it! I never liked the drama of weddings (that I didn't have to plan), and my parents hate each other. We went to the French Alps for a week, the south of France for a week, and Paris for a week.

We were originally planning a big wedding, but our families were starting to take over everything. This was compounded by the fact that we are from opposite sides of the country, so everyone expected the wedding in their back yard. I was miserable because I couldn't make everyone happy. I finally gave up and told everyone J and I were just going to go do the courthouse thing. My mom freaked and said we would always regret it.

That night, I was sobbing on my husband when a Carnival Cruise commercial showing a happy wedding couple on the beach came on TV. J said, "Let's do that--we'll just elope." Best choice we ever made (I wish I could bold that). We did all the planning without input from our family and friends--planning our dream wedding. I found a great coordinator down in the Caribbean and just told her what I wanted, sent, pictures, etc. and she did everything. I had all the fun, but no stress! Plus, it was super cheap to have my dream.

When I had finished planning, we told everyone else that we were eloping and it was all planned and paid for. They had another uproar, so I told them: "This is what we are doing. You are welcome to be there, but you don't have to come if you don't approve." A bunch wanted to come so I contacted our cruise agent and asked about getting a group booking. She set it up, and I passed on the info, not caring if anyone came or not. We had about 20 people come on the cruise with us. A few (my dad) grumbled the first day, but after that, it was a blast. We have been married for 7 years, and people still say it was the best wedding they have ever been to (around here, weddings are usually a church/ballroom thing--which gets really old). I am so glad we decided to just do our own thing, and don't regret it for a moment!

I would not elope because I am so close to my family. However, I would prefer never to a do big wedding if I were to get married again. I would be perfectly happy getting married surrounded by only close family and friends in a sundress on a beach or by a lake.

My Nana eloped and had a good marriage. My hubby and I didn't elope, but we kept it quick, small and sweet. In the middle of a freak snow storm, we said our vows, in front of my mom, dad and town mayor. Then, we crossed the street for a nice meal and an awesome cake that my mom made us. That freak snow storm made the day even more perfect for us. I planned it all in less than 2 weeks.
My advice to you is that if the wedding is going to make you rip your hair out, then scale it down. There's nothing wrong with keeping it intimate. The day is about the 2 of you and not other people, whether they like it or not.