Have you ever eloped?

Question

I want to elope in the next year or so with my boyfriend of nearly 7 years. It's not that no one wants us together, it's just that I don't want to plan a stressful and costly wedding. I just want to be with him. I have a huge family and a lot of friends. I figure I can sidestep the headache by getting hitched in Vegas (Elvis-style of course!) and perhaps having a celebration with our loved ones later.

Can anyone WITH EXPERIENCE give me the pros and cons of doing it this way? Any advice or better ideas?

Answer 1

We are eloping in a few weeks to Florida.  We tried planning a traditional wedding but there was to much drama.  The wedding stopped being about my fiance and I and instead about what our mothers wanted.  So I am all for eloping and having a part afterwords.  You get a cheap wedding without the hassles and you get lots of gifts at the party afterwords.

Answer 2

You do nt' have to have a big wedding to be happy. Couples starting out today spend so much on weddings, when they could use the money as a down payment on a home etc. Talk to your families and explain that instead of the huge cost of a wedding, you would rather put the money toward a house or furnishings. My second marriage we put money toward a great honeymoon which we never had the first time because there was no money left after paying for the wedding. Go somewhere like Cancun, get married on the beach, have your honeymoon. Have someone film you ceremony on the beach.Tell you families they can plan a party to celebrate your return as MR and MRS. Then show the film of your wedding to all your guests. The big day is all about the 2 of you ... do what makes you happy, and everyone else will have to deal.

Answer 3

I can say it was the best thing for us.  My husband wasn't too excited about a big wedding, I didn't have to deal with the stresses of having a big wedding.  I had a beautiful reception the week after we got married.  No one's feelings were hurt.  Only our parents were with us when we eloped.  We did the unity candle at the reception so that everyone could experience that with us.  It was wonderful

Answer 4

As an officiant I can say that I enjoy the small weddings more.  It isn't that large weddings can't be nice, but I appreciate that the majority of small weddings the couple is much more relaxed because they aren't worried about every little detail of the event, which means they can focus more on each other and their day together.  

My husband and I 'eloped' to avoid the hassle of a large wedding.  In fact, we had to laugh because my in laws actually thanked us for not making them deal with a big wedding.  No one we knew has ever claimed to be offended by not being invited, and more importantly we were able to focus on building our life together instead of starting out in debt or with no savings.  

As an alternative to eloping out of state is to do a small wedding (only witnesses) in your home state at a location that is important to you both.  

Answer 5

my and my husband eloped because we couldn't afford a "traditional" wedding. Both our mothers balked at the idea and tried to intervene. we ended up doing a small ceremony at our home with our 2 witnesses and our cat.

my advise to you is to do what ever makes you happy since others will try to make your day about them...