How To Tell Your Family You’re Eloping in 2023
How to Announce You’re Eloping
You’re engaged! Congrats! You’ve found your partner, your person, and that is rad! But a show of hands, how many of you already have friends and family bugging you about details? They might expect the traditional ceremony, the giant reception, or stuff that just isn’t you. So how do you break it to your loved ones that your ceremony is going to be less about the hoopla and more about the experience? How do you tell your family that you’re eloping? It can be daunting, but give yourself permission to create the wedding you want—one that stays true to your story as a couple and as an individual.
It takes a lot of courage to announce that you’re eloping. But you’ve never been a boring couple, so why should your wedding day be anything less than epic? Whether that’s an adventurous day in the mountains or an intimate location with close family and friends, remember: it’s your day. Celebrate it the way you want!
If you need ideas for announcing your elopement, keep reading for my best tips on how to tell your family you’re eloping!
REMEMBER THIS WHEN ANNOUNCING YOUR ELOPEMENT
The most important thing to remember when you tell your family you’re eloping is that this day is yours! Put you and your partner first, and everything else is secondary. Some people may not get it, whether it’s because they love big parties, or they’re more traditional, but someone who cares about you will respect your decision, work to understand you, and come to terms with it. Your friends and family will eventually come around to being loving and supportive of your big decision!
WHEN SHOULD YOU ANNOUNCE YOUR ELOPEMENT?
This is easier said than done, but there’s no rush to tell everyone about your epic wedding day! You may even decide to wait until you’re officially wed. (Hey, then you’ll have some epic photos of the day to share with your announcement!)
Do what works best for you and your partner and be confident you’ve created a day that is truly unique to you. In the end, that’s what this is about, right? It’s not about family expectations of a traditional ceremony or friend expectations of a ten-deep bridal party. This is about you, your partner, and sharing your vows in some of the most breathtaking locations on this planet. Announcing your elopement after getting married is a great way to avoid the guilt and ride into your day without the stress and anxiety of what your family wants you to do.
But, telling your family you’re eloping before it happens can have some perks too. You can include them in the planning process, ask them for advice, and share the excitement! And of course, if you want to invite your family, they’ll need to be in the loop.
WAYS TO ANNOUNCE YOUR ELOPEMENT AND TELL YOUR FAMILY
When you’re ready to break the news and announce your elopement, here are some ideas for telling your family you’re eloping!
1) TELL YOUR FAMILY YOU’RE ELOPING IN PERSON
For some couples, nothing can beat telling your family you’re eloping face to face. Let them see all your excitement for this next big adventure! It’s a good idea to give them specifics too—they may not be on that mountain top or next to the alpine lake with you, but they can still be plenty involved in your exciting decision.
I bet you’ll be surprised by the love and support you get for your decision to tell them in person!
2) WAIT UNTIL AFTER YOU GET MARRIED
This is easier said than done, but there’s no rush to tell everyone about your epic wedding day. Maybe you even decide to wait until you’re officially wed. (Hey, then you’ll have some epic photos of the day to share with your announcement!)
Do what works best for you and your partner and be confident you’ve created a day that is truly unique to you. In the end, that’s what this is about, right? It’s not about family expectations of a traditional ceremony or friend expectations of a ten-deep bridal party. This is about you, your partner, and sharing your vows in some of the most breathtaking locations on this planet. Announcing your elopement after getting married is a great way to avoid the guilt and ride into your day without the stress and anxiety of what your family wants you to do.
3) BE OBVIOUS
Some couples always knew they wanted to get married this way. You can even tell your parents you’re eloping before you’re engaged! You can also bring it up as an idea, or field the all-too-common “when are you getting married?” questions by talking about the fact that eloping seems more like your jam. You can show them elopement photos from your favorite photographer, show them some beautiful spots you think would be fun to share your private vows, you can just drop the bomb on a random day of the week.
Whatever works for you to drop some subtle (or not-so-subtle) hints leading up to the big day!
4) EXPLAIN TO YOUR FAMILY WHY YOU’RE ELOPING
This isn’t the time to be vague! Choosing to get married without family means you’re a rad couple who isn’t afraid to be bold. Focus on the positive and be clear when you tell family you’re eloping.
It’s a personal decision, after all, and it doesn’t detract from the way other people choose to get married. (Did your sister go the Cinderella route? That’s amazing for her and it’s awesome she got to live out her dream wedding… and you deserve your dream wedding too.)
There are tons of reasons why couples choose to elope, so come up with a small list when preparing to tell family you’re eloping. They may just not understand yet, so help them get on the same page.
Here are some reasons couples gave when they announced their elopement!
- We want to have a day that truly represents our love
- We want to spend our time together on something we love doing together
- A wedding would be too costly
- We want to buy a house with the money we will spend on the wedding
- Planning a wedding will be too stressful for us
- We want to have a private and intimate wedding day
Just remember to be confident and proud when you tell family you’re eloping. No one is expecting a speech, but be prepared to answer questions and make your loved ones feel involved in the process.
5) MAKE THEM A PHOTO ALBUM
Do you plan on waiting to tell your parents you got married until after the knot is tied? That’s totally understandable and will make your elopement experience truly intimate. One amazing way to announce your elopement is with your epic photos! Stunning photos that capture your genuine joy will allow family and friends to feel like they’re right there with you, and will show them the incredible story of your day.
Sure, it’ll be a huge surprise, but being able to show them just how special your day was will help them get over the shock.
6) THIS DAY IS “YOURS”
Put you and your partner first, every other thing is secondary. Some people may not feel happy and comfortable when you tell them you eloped because they love big parties or they are more traditional but someone who cares about you will respect your decision, understand you and come to terms with it. Your friends and family eventually will come around to being loving and supportive of your big decision.
7) INVITE THEM TO HELP
Just because you’re eloping doesn’t mean you can’t involve your close family and friends.
Remember, there are no rules to eloping—do what works best for you! There are some amazing, intimate locations to accommodate family yet still feel surrounded by nature for those who want their family with them at the ceremony, but there are also ways to include them in the planning process – even if they won’t be there on the big day. You can ask for advice, share your plans, have them go shopping with you, and make them feel included as you prepare!
Check out this blog for inspiration: how to include your family in your elopement!
8) FILL THEM IN ON THE DETAILS
Your photographs make for the perfect invitation. (Check out these cute elopement invitations on Etsy!) Just like you did on your wedding day, your party doesn’t need to conform to anyone else’s idea of a “wedding reception.” Have a backyard barbeque or a lavish dinner at a great local restaurant. Include the traditions you love—a first dance, maybe, or toasts—and feel free to re-wear your wedding clothes (how many brides or grooms get to do that?).
Whatever you decide, including your elopement photographs will help all your family and friends truly celebrate your marriage and understand why the decision to elope was important and special to you.
9) THROW A PARTY!
Your wedding day focused on you and your partner. Include everyone else with a party after the fact! Maybe it’s the next weekend or even the next year, but don’t hold back celebrating this epic commitment you’ve made to each other. This is a great way to put a cherry on top of your wedding experience. The biggest benefit to throwing a party after the fact is the expectations are much lower at this point. You’ve already gotten married, so at this point, you are just celebrating! It’s the best of both worlds.
Just like you did on your wedding day, your party doesn’t need to conform to anyone else’s idea of a “wedding reception.” Have a backyard barbeque or a lavish dinner at a great local restaurant. Include the traditions you love—a first dance, maybe, or toasts—and feel free to re-wear your wedding clothes (how many couples get to do that?).
10) ANNOUNCE YOUR ELOPEMENT ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Look, you’re not going to be able to tell everyone face to face about your epic elopement. Use social media to your advantage and share your gorgeous photos from your day! Great-Aunt Sue can find out on Facebook, and your college friends will see on Instagram how cool you are—it’s honestly the perfect and modern way to announce that you eloped!
I’LL HAVE YOUR BACK WHEN YOU ANNOUNCE YOUR ELOPEMENT!
My name is Sean, I’m a free spirit who has dedicated my life to exploring this wild world and connecting to the people in it.
I know firsthand what an important and personal decision this is—my wife and I eloped to Northern Ireland. You’re trusting me to capture this amazing day, and I make it my responsibility to make sure you have an incredible experience from start to finish.
My passion has led me here, where I can follow my heart and share my love for the outdoors with others on their wedding day. It’s truly an awesome experience, and I’m stoked every time I get to document your day.
When I’m not photographing couples, I love to go exploring with my wife and our corgi. Our dream is to own an Airstream and take Vows and Peaks on the road!
Sound like the perfect match? Check out my packages and reach out so we can get started on your epic elopement!
Last Updated on November 3, 2022 by vowsandpeaks
Well done post here! I think the more we talk about elopements the more they will be easily accepted 🙂
These are some great tips for telling your family you’re eloping. Beautiful photos like yours will definitely help!
Loved this! We’re currently planning an intimate wedding and some family hasn’t taken it too well, thank you for your tips!
I love this! Such a great advice!
This is very useful information for elopers! I love it. Also the content of this blog post is amazing!
I love your work so much! Great job on this educational post. Elopements are THE BEST!
So many great tips on how to tell family and friends you’re eloping! And I agree – having rad photos of the day helps bring it to life for your loved ones!
This is SO important. I seriously want to share this with all of our couples. Thank you!