Elope in Texas-The Ultimate Guide for 2023

So you think you want to elope in Texas.

You say, “We’re thinking of eloping.”

Your parents hear, “I’m running away in the middle of the night to get married in Vegas and you’ll never see me again.”

But that isn’t what it means anymore.

You’re not Romeo and Juliet (thank God, they both end up dead). Gone are the days of secret weddings performed by monks.

More and more couples are choosing against a traditional wedding and opting to elope instead.

What is an elopement?

These days an elopement is an intentionally small and intimate wedding. They buck tradition so that couples can have the wedding of their dreams.

Why elope?

Make your day more meaningful

Traditional weddings aren’t for everyone.

With an elopement you can pick and choose what is meaningful to you and get married the way you’ve always envisioned. If you want to sit around with friends and family, if you want to hike to the top of Enchanted rock, if you want to be alone with your fiancé to avoid family drama, if you want to read each other poems and listen to your favorite records, you can do that.

Less stress

All the planning involved in getting married sometimes robs couples of what should be a joyful event. A wedding shouldn’t be about stressing out and planning a wedding can feel like a full time job.

There can be a lot of pressures and expectations around large scale traditional weddings. Seating charts. Timelines. Wedding colors. Bridesmaids dresses. Floral arrangements. If reading those words made you a little uneasy, an elopement may be for you. Wedding days are meant to be enjoyed and an elopement may help you to relax and enjoy your wedding day.

Lower cost

A common reason couples opt to elope is the lower cost.

There’s two ways an elopement may lower the cost of your wedding.

One is that you have less things. No need for floral centerpieces, or hair and make-up for bridesmaids, or a big venue to host a lot of people.

The other is that you can make the budget you do have go further. You could take 20 people to the nicest restaurant in Houston for the same price to feed 250 people dry chicken. You can have the designer dress of your dreams if you’re not renting chairs and tables for a larger wedding.

The bottom line is that eloping is about doing your wedding however you want.

5 Ways to Elope in Texas

Because elopements are all about doing things your way, they can take countless forms. But they can be grouped into a few popular trends.

Adventure Elopements

An adventure elopement may be what you envision when you hear the word elopement.

These are for couples who love being outdoors and want to exchange vows somewhere with a breathtaking landscape.

An adventure elopement is a wedding created around the experience of being outdoors. So the options are limitless. Mountains, forests, waterfalls, desserts, beaches, campsites, caves, glaciers, and anything else you can think of. Find a place meaningful to you as a couple. Do what you want through the day, and exchange vows and sign your marriage license to make it official.

Destination Elopement (in Texas and beyond)

Another option for adventurous couples is a destination elopement. If you love to travel, then a destination elopement might be right for you.

Since elopements are typically only the two of you (they don’t have to be, more on that later) you can go anywhere in the world to tie the knot. You can go crazy and get married on the black sands of Reynisfjara in Iceland. Or go to New Zealand and get married in the Shire. You could also elope at a resort in Cabo or private villa in Italy.

Micro-wedding

Backyard Wedding

A backyard wedding is a micro-wedding, but we love them so much that we’re including it as its own category.

You can host your wedding at your childhood home. You could do it on the property the two of you are building your new home on. Hell, you can ask a friend who has a dope backyard.

Typically people’s homes can’t accommodate as many people as a wedding venue (but more power to you if it can!), so these end up being micro-weddings.

Set up a white tent in the backyard, cater your favorite restaurant (or bring in some food trucks), and party into the night.

One note, since these usually take place completely outside, we don’t recommend backyard weddings in Houston summers.

Courthouse Weddings

A courthouse wedding is when a couple has a Justice of the Peace perform a non-religious civil ceremony to legally marry them.

These are closest to what people traditionally think of as an elopement because they don’t require as much planning and the MAXIMUM number of attendees in Harris County is six people.

In Harris County you can’t schedule your date until AFTER you’ve obtained a marriage license, so you’ll have much less control over your date.

You can schedule your wedding ceremony in a Harris County Municipal Court on this website.

But a courthouse wedding doesn’t mean your wedding can’t still be amazing. Get married in private and then invite your closest friends and family for a private dinner at one of Houston’s nicest restaurants.

Best places to Elope in Houston

You don’t have to go far to elope. There’s beautiful locales or intimate venues right here in H-Town.

The Julia Ideson Library

Beautiful and classic architecture make every photo taken here dreamy and romantic

McGovern Centennial Gardens

These are beautiful kept gardens in the heart of the museum district. Hotels, easy parking, and some of the best restaurants in Houston are all right by

1910 Harris County Courthouse

This historic courthouse takes an entire city block downtown and easily the most beautiful courthouse in Houston.

Best places to elope in Texas

As any Texas can (and will proudly) tell you, Texas is the largest of the lower 48 states. Because it’s so huge it has a variety of landscapes.

From the forests of East Texas, to the beaches on the coast, to the Hill Country, mountains in the west, and plains in the panhandle, there are many beautiful locations in Texas. Here are a few of our the most popular spots to elope in Texas.

Palo Duro Canyon

This is the second largest canyon in America (guess what the first one is) and is out in the Texas Panhandle, which is close to our hearts.

Its famous for its red slopes and Lighthouse Rock.

Big Bend National Park

The canyons cut by the Rio Grande make this one of the most breathtaking places in all of Texas

Marfa

This is a small, but famous, city in the West Texas desserts. Known as an art hub, there is a lot of cool places to visit here, like the famous Prada installment. It’s also a dessert, so a very Texan look for your elopement.

Texas Hill Country

This, to us, is quintessential Texas. Float the river, eat some BBQ, enjoy Texas.

Enchanted Rock

Just 100 miles outside Austin, you can spend the weekend in the city and get married in the afternoon.

Monahans Sandhills State Park

3,840 acres of Sand Dunes in west Texas will make your elopement seem otherworldly

Any State Park

Texas has 89 state parks covering 640,000 acres of land. Any one of these would be a great place for your Texas elopement. Permits are likely required.

You can use this state park map to find the park that suits you best.

Professionals to Hire for your Texas Elopement

An elopement doesn’t mean less important. Your wedding deserves to be celebrated!

A wedding planner

While elopements by their very nature take less planning, there’s still going to be moving parts to handle. And since they’re untraditional you may not find answers on your own as easily as you’d expect. One of the primary benefits of an elopement is the low stress, so hiring a planner to make sure its stress free is a no brainer.

An experienced wedding planner can help you with permits, transportation, and budget. Micro-weddings especially benefit from a planner.

An elopement photographer

Elopements are meaningful and intimate events. Because of this, they are beautiful days full of emotions. You’ll want to make sure that you have a photographer to capture the day so you can remember how beautiful it was forever. If you choose to elope privately, its even more important to hire a photographer. You’ll want great photos to share the day with others who couldn’t be there.

Hair and make-up artist

There may not be a lot of people there, but you’ll still have the most important person in the world there. And since you hired a photographer you’ll be sharing these photos with everyone. Unless you’re hiking 6 hours before you get married, professional hair and make up is a great idea.

A florist

You don’t need a floral arch or centerpieces, but a bridal bouquet and a boutonnière are great additions to your elopement photos.

An officiant

If you don’t opt to have friend or family member officiate your wedding, you’ll have to hire an officiant to elope in Texas. Having a qualified officiant is a legal requirement.

Texas Elopement Packages

Our Houston elopement packages begin at $3500. We have custom Texas Elopement packages and beyond. Contact us for a full quote.

FAQ about Eloping in Texas

Some Elopements and Micro-weddings for Inspiration

Next Steps

Once you’ve decided to elope or have a micro-wedding the next step is to begin planning your dream elopement.

We’d love to connect with you to talk more about your decision to elope in Texas and to celebrate your relationship with you.