Take it from a girl who eloped in South Carolina herself, eloping is freaking confusing + often times portrayed in a more complicated way than it needs to be. If I wasn’t an expert South Carolina Elopement photographer who’s done countless elopements all over the country, I would’ve never known where to start. But, friend, you’re in luck because I am here to help! South Carolina is a perfect elopement destination with some of the United States’ most breathtaking views. If you’re in the market for gorgeous green forests, breathtaking coast views, gorgeous mountain landscapes, + some of the prettiest sunsets in the world; this is the place for YOU!
If you’re considering a South Carolina elopement + NEED the how to’s, KEEP SCROLLING!
If you’re reading this, chances are you are either entertaining the idea of eloping in South Carolina or you have chosen South Carolina for your elopement destination already. If you’ve already chosen SC, feel free to skip ahead to the rest of the steps here.
However, if that’s not you, + you’re seeking guidance on the best places in South Carolina to have your intimate ceremony, this is for you!
Let’s start with the easy stuff – in order to begin your elopement planning process, you really need to know where in the East Coast you want to get married. Below, I’ve shared a list of my top 5 places in South Carolina that will give you some seriously breathtaking views!
How to find Your location:
Finding your elopement location can be tricky – simply because South Carolina has SO many beautiful landscapes that it can be extremely hard to choose! Hopefully, my list above makes your decision a tad bit easier, but here are a list of things to consider when you’re deciding what is best for you and your partner.
Some key things to pay attention to when you are finalizing your elopement location are:
After you’ve got your location figured out, the next step is choosing a date and time. No, I don’t mean time of day; although that’s important too! I mean the time of year you’ll be heading to South Carolina to exchange vows. South Carolina has a variety of different types of weather and the four seasons are much different in the Southeast United States than in any other part of the country. By this, I mean that the spring is HEAVY for rain and the late summer-early fall is usually VERY hot. Knowing this is KEY in picking when you want to elope. Most people want to elope in the mountains which is more toward the Northeast part of South Carolina.
This is what the season’s look like for that area of the state:
The Best Time of Year to Elope in South Carolina:
The best time to elope is South Carolina is spring or fall (from May-to late October). This is when the weather is the BEST; the forests are filled with gorgeous greens, wildflowers are in bloom + the trails aren’t bogged down with icy weather conditions. It depends on the weather trends, but often, the mountains are still covered in snow in early March. I know the summer/fall is not everyone’s favorite season, so this is not to deter you from a winter elopement if this is what you’re more interested in. Winter elopements are beautiful and guarantee less populated areas and breathtaking winter landscapes.
How to Avoid Crowds on Your Elopement Day:
Because the spring and fall are the most beautiful times to elope in South Carolina, they are also the most popular times to elope in South Carolina. This is a great thing, but it can make avoiding crowds on your elopement day very tricky. But, lucky for you, I know all the secrets!
Here is my list of ways to get around the crowds:
This is something to be conscious of if you are not comfortable with others nearby during such a special moment.
This is no small feat! There are tons of photographers on the East Coast and that means there’s tons of research to do to find the right fit for you. Here’s a few tips to streamline that process:
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Once you’ve got your date/time, location, + photographer – it’s time for the not so fun stuff to really begin! It’s important to start with your ceremony spot. Figuring out where your ceremony will specifically be held, simplifies a lot of the process. A lot of parks have a list on their websites that includes where ceremonies can be held but photo’s can usually be done anywhere in the park after the ceremony is completed. Make sure to do your research as each park is different. This is something that I help my couples with as well.
Marriage Laws in South Carolina:
Elopements can be done one of two ways: you can choose to legalize your marriage during your ceremony or you just have a symbolic ceremony and legalize your marriage at another time. For example, my husband and I chose to do a private ceremony the day after our “elopement day.” This allowed us intimate vows that we didn’t feel pressured to say in front of anyone but ourselves and our officiant, but still allowed us to get our dreamy images! Both ways are astonishingly perfect ways to celebrate your union.
Regarding South Carolina marriage laws, there are some important things to note.
Finding Lodging:
I highly recommend finding where you’re going to stay as soon as possible once you’ve decided where you’re going to elope. I have tons of recommendations when it comes to different locations and part of my process is helping my couples decide which one is best for them. Wherever you decide to stay, remember these few important pointers.
Activities:
Like I stated at the beginning of this guide, it is important to know what you want to do on your big day! Whether you want to kayak, hike, go swimming, or just stay at your air bnb, we need to know this in advance to the day of so we can prepare your timeline correctly.
It is important to remember that this is not just any other day, YOU’RE GETTING MARRIED! As such, you want to make this an experience to remember and that’s what adventure elopements are known for and the entire reason behind them! What makes elopement days so freaking special is the ability for you to do whatever you want on your wedding day. There’s nowhere you need to be other than with your partner and whomever you choose to accompany you. I challenge you to think about what your dream day would be from start to finish when choosing your activities.
These are some really cool things i’ve seen with elopements:
You do not have to choose any of these, but they are great options!
Timeline:
Once you’ve got the where down, you can start planning your timeline for your big day out! This is vital to a seamless elopement and it’s another service that I provide to my clients. Whether you’re booking me or another photographer, you need a good timeline. A photographer’s help with this is vital because we have a good idea of what photos will be taken when and how many hours we will be together in total.
This is a sample timeline for what your elopement could look like:
4:00 pm – Meet at the location (trailhead before we begin your hike) + begin walking up.
5:45 am – Get to the top + start getting dressed
6:15 am – Sunrise first look + exploring during golden hour
7:30 am – Break (head back to air bnb + have breakfast)
8:30 am – Start heading to second location
9:45-10 am – Ceremony (usually between 15-20 minutes, can be shorter)
10:30 am – Photos (this is the time to adventure!)
11:30/11:45 am – Hike down
1:30 pm – Arrive back at air bnb + start activities (lunch, hot tub or other activities you chose + celebration)
3:00 pm – Photo coverage ends
It’s important to note this is contingent upon the package you choose with your selected photographer. You may opt for full day coverage like this timeline displays or you can have half day coverage which is usually about 4 hours.
If you’re looking to start your South Carolina elopement process, shoot me an inquiry here and let’s get to planning!
xx, Tanner
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This is so helpful!! 😍 what an amazing place to elope!
thank you so much, friend!! <3 it truly is magical!
Such an in-depth elopement blog!!!! I loveee the photo of the couple running through the field <3
thank you so much, friend!! this is so kind <3