Most elopements are way easier to plan than a full traditional wedding, 100%. However, there are some places that are easier to elope in than others. Whether it be the number of witnesses you need, a waiting period, or finding an officiant, all of these little inconveniences can sometimes add up and make eloping a little more difficult than you originally planned. But you don’t wanna get married someplace boring of course! So I did factor that in as well when selecting states for this list. Here’s all the information you need to know about the easiest places to elope in the U.S.

Bonus tip: I usually recommend eloping where you want to honeymoon! This will make planning so much easier on you AND can save you money. I have a whole other post on elopement costs!

Requirements to Elope in the U.S.?

First, let’s start off with the basics of what to expect when eloping and just getting married in general! The legal marriage requirements vary by state. In most states and counties, there are a few requirements that do stay consistent across the board. These include your age (usually 18), the need for a marriage application and license, and someone to solemnize your marriage. Along with these requirements, many states require you to have one to two witnesses to sign your marriage license. There are exceptions to this rule, however, which I will go into in just a bit!

What Makes an Elopement Easy?

There are a handful of states in the U.S. that make eloping much easier than others. It all varies from state to state. The first factor I considered when researching these locations is whether you need a witness to be present. A second factor was, whether or not you can self-solemnize. The third is the ease of access to epic locations to host your elopement. And the fourth is whether there is a waiting period after you apply for your marriage license. In doing this research I have put together my top five easiest places to get married in the U.S.

The 5 Easiest Places to Elope in the U.S.

Colorado

Colorado is at the top of my list of easiest places in the U.S. to elope for a number of reasons. The first reason is self-solemnization. Self solemnization is a self-uniting marriage or a couple who gets married without the presence of an officiant. This means you and your boo can grab your marriage license and hike up to the top of a mountain just the two of you and end your hike married! On top of that, in the state of Colorado, there is no waiting period for your marriage license. This means you can fly in, pick up your license, and be married by the end of the day.

The second reason Colorado is at the top of my list is the number of accessible scenic views. Colorado is filled to the brim with so many gorgeous overlooks, mountains, and forests. San Juan Mountains, Lake Isabelle, Great Sand Dunes, Garden of the Gods, Crested Butte. And though you can totally go for a 10-mile hike for a gorgeous view, you certainly don’t have to in Colorado!

Bonus reason:  You can have your dog sign as a witness!  How cool is that?!

START PLANNING YOUR COLORADO ELOPEMENT

Idaho

Next on my list of easiest places in the U.S. to elope is Idaho. Idaho makes things just about as easy as Colorado for getting married. However, you will need an officiant to solemnize your wedding. In Idaho, anyone who is ordained can conduct your wedding ceremony, AND you don’t need any witnesses! For a super intimate experience, opt to hire an elopement photographer who is also ordained, like me (wink wink). I can document your elopement experience while also legally marrying the two of you.

On top of that, there are so many beautiful and unique places to get married in Idaho. I highly recommend it for those who are wanting a super unique and intimate experience. Some of my favorite Idaho locations include: the Owyhees, Craters of the Moon, and the Sawtooth Mountains

Montana

I have Montana listed next for the easiest and coolest place to elope. Montana is third in the U.S. for a handful of reasons. One of the first reasons is, much like Idaho, you can have anyone who is ordained marry you! Next, ease of travel is the second reason Montana is so high on my list. Much like Colorado, there are SO many cool locations to elope. Many of which do not require permits to have a marriage ceremony at the location. But if they do, I help you take care of filling that out, plus, any photographer permit fees for locations are complementary in my pricing!

Once again, no witnesses required! So the three of us can head out and hike to some of the coolest places Montana has to offer, such as Glacier National Park, and you two will come back married. WOO!!! On top of that, some of the most gorgeous locations throughout Montana are still not as popular as similar locations in other states like Colorado. This increases the probability of you having the location to yourself, thus creating the perfect intimate experience we all long for when eloping!

Hawaii

I’ll admit, I’m a little biased about adding Hawaii to this list, as I used to live there and miss it like crazy. BUT it is a really easy place to get married. Again, there’s no pesky waiting period. You don’t have to be a resident. No witnesses are required. All you need is someone who is ordained with the state of Hawaii! You can apply for your marriage license online, but you’ll need to pick it up in person together, then you could literally get married that day if you wanted.

Hawaii has so many beautiful places to get married on each island, whether it be black sand beaches, lush green mountains, scenic hikes, breathtaking sunrises and sunsets, you name it. The ease of travel is super nice as well. You could island hop for a super affordable price while you’re there and take in all the state has to offer in one trip! And you better believe I’ll give you allll the travel recommendations with my favorite spots to stay, eat, and explore as your photographer!

Here’s my Hawaii Elopement Guide to help get you started, and we can schedule a free consultation call through the link below!

START PLANNING YOUR HAWAII ELOPEMENT

California

California’s standard marriage license application only requires an officiant and one witness (which I can be one or the other for you!). However, they also have a “non-clergy” application as an alternative for non-religious or denominations without clergy to perform the marriage. This allows you to get married with just two witnesses present instead. That could be me and your mom, your two best friends, or two random hikers near your ceremony spot at Yosemite, Big Sur, Sunset Cliffs, Redwoods, or any other one of the insanely gorgeous spots California has to offer for your elopement! While California does require more people present than the other options, I had to include it anyway since there are so many amazing and diverse elopement locations. And easy ways to follow the legal requirements to marry while still keeping things super intimate and private for you!

START PLANNING YOUR CALIFORNIA ELOPEMENT

What it means to have me as your Officiant

If you’re looking to get married in a state where you do need an officiant, but you were hoping to keep your experience a little more intimate, I am ordained and can act as your officiant AND photographer! It can be as formal or casual as you want, as long or as short as you want. Though some states do require certain things such as both couples saying “ I do” or pronouncing (aka “I now pronounce you…”). But those are easy peasy to toss into whatever you’re envisioning.

We can hike up to your ceremony location, you two can say your vows and marry yourselves for the most part or I can give a whole spiel, and then we can sign the marriage license as soon as we return! After everything is signed, you will mail in or drop off the paperwork. Typically your marriage license will come with instructions on how and where to deliver it.

Where can I elope without a witness?

For couples who want a more intimate feel for their wedding day, but weren’t quite sold on the places listed above, here are the states in the U.S. where you can get married in without a witness. Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusets, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Vermont, Virginia, and West Virginia are all states where you can marry without having another person outside of the person solemnizing you there.

States you can get married on the same day you apply

If you’re planning a destination elopement, eloping in a state without a waiting period is one of the easiest ways to obtain your marriage license. Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, D.C., Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wyoming are all states that do not require a waiting period after obtaining your marriage license.

Prior to deciding on a location for your elopement, I recommend doing some research on your top choices. Research where permits are needed to use the space when looking at locations. If you don’t have any clue where you wanna elope or where to start, I personally help with all of that and compile a list of ideas just for you when you book me as your elopement photographer!

If you’re still looking for an easy elopement experience but the state you hope to elope in isn’t listed above, don’t write it out just yet! There are plenty of options to create an easier elopement experience in any state across the U.S, or even internationally! One of the easiest options is to take the legalities out of the elopement. You can head to a courthouse prior to your elopement day and legally get married. Then on your elopement day, you and your partner have all the flexibility and freedom you could ever want. I would just save your written vows to each other for your elopement day versus the courthouse so that it still feels just as special!

Wherever you decide to elope, it’s going to be so beautiful and unforgettable, because dude… YOU’RE GETTING MARRIED! I am so freaking excited for you and wish you so much love and happiness. For more information on where to start when planning your elopement and what packages I offer for my couples, click the button below and we can start bringing your vision to life!