With an Airbnb for your elopement, you have the freedom to choose any space that fits your needs and style. You can choose from a large variety of sizes, amenities, and locations. These rentals offer the perfect opportunity to escape the hustle and bustle of everyday life and reconnect with nature.
Depending on your preference, you can also find rentals located close to popular trails and attractions, as well as those tucked away in secluded spots, which is perfect for an elopement! Plus, you can keep the cost of your wedding down by avoiding the cost of having to rent out a traditional venue. With an Airbnb or a VRBO, you can make your elopement day truly unique and memorable, which is why I love it when my couples rent one for their elopement! In this blog, we will go over why you should rent an Airbnb for your elopement and why it's a great option!
On arrival to your rental, you can expect to be surrounded by beautiful sights and sounds – from the sights of wildlife to the sound of a nearby river. Inside, cozy up with a book or a movie while savoring a cup of hot cocoa. No matter the type of Airbnb rental you choose, you can be sure of a unique experience. With stunning views, fresh air, and plenty of time for relaxation, you'll be sure to have a memorable time.
Airbnb's Give You A Unique Space
Airbnb's give you the space for just you two and any guests if you bring any, and they allow you to have your own unique space for your elopement. It's awesome because you can search for rentals for specific group sizes, and then decide from there. A lot of Airbnb's are also pet friendly which is huge if you couldn't leave out your furry friend! If you aren't sure about if your rental allows dogs, you can look for places that are dog friendly on bringfido.com!
Planning Tip: Getting Ready Photos
Usually if you go all out and rent an Airbnb, you've likely scheduled in time for getting ready photos (which I think are super important for the story telling aspect of your day)! For getting ready photos in rentals, I personally always like to make sure there are plenty of windows for natural light.
You can also look through the listing photos and see if there's minimal décor in the photos. You don't want busy decorations on the walls (too distracting for photos). Look for nice, clean spaces with lots of windows so that the focus of the photos is on you, and not on the crazy wall décor.
Airbnb's Have Many Options For Themes
Leading into picking the right Airbnb for your elopement, what's the theme/feel of your elopement? Are you eloping in the woods? Maybe then you'd go with a rustic/cabin feel with a fireplace, and maybe a hot tub on the back deck. What's the property look like? A lot of the time, if you get a gorgeous property, it's also a great spot to do a first look! When you are both done getting ready, you can walk right out onto the property and do the first look there.
Imagine if you rented a beach bungalow on the coast. You step out onto the deck overlooking the ocean right after you put your dress on. You feel the wind blow through your hair and you can smell the salty air and you hear seagulls flying overhead. The photos show the view from the Airbnb, which gives you a feel of the photos as you look through the final photo gallery!
This is also great from a family member or friend's viewpoint when looking at your wedding photos for the first time, because they can envision what it was like to be there, especially if they weren't there for your elopement. Whatever style or theme your elopement is, there is sure to be the perfect Airbnb to go along with the theme of your elopement, and in turn the photos to always look back on.
Use The Provided Airbnb Amenities To Plan Your Elopement Activities
Now we are gonna talk about how Airbnb amenities can play a part in what activities you pick for your timeline! Many rentals offer outdoor activities such as hiking and biking, as well as amenities like hot tubs and fire pits. If you want to spend the evening roasting s'mores over a fire, then you'll probably want to find a place with either an outdoor fire pit (make sure fires are allowed if it's during the summer) or an indoor fireplace that you could roast marshmallows in. Or maybe you want to spend the morning with a relaxing soak in a hot tub in the midst of pine trees, or even a beautiful indoor bathtub by a window. These amenities make for amazing and unique photos of your day, and it's a great way to spend quality time together!
Elopement Activity Planning Tip:
Visualize the photos you want while you are in the planning process and pick the right Airbnb with the needed amenities and activities for those photos!
The Airbnb Acts As A Backup Location
Another great reason for renting an Airbnb for your elopement is the fact that it can act as a backup location in case the weather isn't ideal for our original plan. It gives you flexibility in case you need to switch the timeline around, or if you need to wait out the bad weather for a little bit longer. Especially if you rent a place with a gorgeous property and other amenities, then you have an ideal backup location with things you still wanted to do.
Planning Tip: Consider Drive Time To & From Your Airbnb
Another thing to consider is depending on what other activities you have planned, how far is the rental away from those activities? Maybe you rented a place by a national park. You'll then have to count the drive time from your rental location to the activities within the park you planned out. You'll just have to consider drive time and the coverage in the timeline you agreed on with your photographer.
From a photographer's standpoint, it's industry standard to include drive time as part of the coverage you decide on, so if you don't want to spend more money on more coverage, then finding a rental closer to the activities you have planned will open up more time. Especially if you want to come back to the rental for more photos in the evening, all of that time driving back counts. But don't skimp out on activities or a place you really want because of drive time. I truly believe in investing your dream day, and you won't be left with any regrets!
Depending on the time of year you plan on eloping, you'll also want to make sure if your Airbnb is accessible, mainly during the winter months. Are the roads plowed and maintained in the winter? Is there help nearby if you get stuck? Do you have cell service and/or internet? These are all just worse case scenarios, but it never hurts to be prepared and to ask questions if you can't find anything in the description of the listing.
You Can See What's Included With The Airbnb Before Booking
There's also a list of what's included in the rental in the description. See if the rental has what you need, or if you need to buy it yourselves (things like plates and utensils, a fridge to store food/flowers, hair styling tools, if you can watch tv or movies, etc). If you forget something is there a town nearby with a store? Knowing if you can access these things will bring peace of mind as well.
Planning Tip: Airbnb Host Communication
Communication with your Airbnb host is also super important! See if they have quick response times. Read the reviews from previous renters to see if there's anything you need to ask about. See if they are listed as a Superhost on Airbnb. Superhost means that they provide outstanding hospitality by being highly rated, experienced, reliable, and responsive.
You'll also want to ask your host if they allow photos at the rental, if you can have a ceremony on the property, and/or have a mini reception. You can ask before renting by messaging the host. I would make sure to let them know what you plan to use the property for just so everyone is on the same page. It's usually fine for elopements since they aren't a giant party with tons of people. You can also ask if you can have more guests there just for the reception part of the day (and not actually staying the night in the Airbnb) if you're having any guests there with you.
Airbnb's Provide A Place For Guests
Since we are talking about guests, seeing if there's room in the Airbnb for a reception spot can help you while planning your day out. Is there a kitchen to prep or cook food? Is there a place to set up food/cake on a nice table so it looks good for photos? Having an idea of what you want to do for your elopement will help when picking a place to stay!
Your guests are also able to hang out and relax at the rental if you planned in other activities for just the two of you. That way they can be content with a comfortable place to relax, and you can enjoy the adventurous part of your elopement day without any stress!
Planning Tip: Getting To And Parking At Your Airbnb
What's the parking situation? Is it best to carpool, or is there room for a few more cars to park, enough to accommodate all of your guests?
Do your guests need a high clearance vehicle to access the rental?
Is there clear signage on where to go if it's a long drive up?
You could send your guests the directions your host provides for you as well! This also goes for any vendors you hired that need to come to the rental.
Airbnb's Are More Budget Friendly Compared To Traditional Venues
In comparison to renting out traditional venues, Airbnb's offer way more specific styles and themes, at a fraction of the cost! You are even able to make an entire weekend out of it, instead of splurging a huge part of your budget for one day at a traditional venue. Plus you can pick more specific locations that will work best with your elopement plans.
Planning Tip: Select Price Range To Narrow Down Your Search & Stay In Budget
On Airbnb.com, you can select your dates, amount of people, and narrow your search even more by selecting a price range! Under filters on the right hand side at the top of the screen, you can select a minimum price range up to a maximum price range. This is a super helpful feature if you are wanting to stick to a budget!
Airbnb Elopement Examples
Now that we have gone over some awesome reasons to rent an Airbnb for your elopement, I thought I could go over some examples of places that my previous couples have rented! Visually seeing how the photos can turn out, and how they can add to the storytelling of the day can give you some ideas and examples of places to stay! Also, there are so many unique places out there to rent! If you find one that perfectly fits your vision, like a yurt in the woods, a glamping tent in the desert, a secluded A-frame cabin in the woods, or a Hobbit House themed place in a quiet forest, how perfect would those be if your elopement vision fell perfectly in line with those!
Keep in mind the functionality of the Airbnb's or VRBO's while you look through the photos. Rentals can provide things like:
A place to get ready
A place to prep, make, and eat food
An exciting and personalized elopement experience
A place for your guests to hang out while you are out adventuring
A place for reception to celebrate with your guests
A backup location in case of inclement weather/waiting out the weather
Mikalynn and Bob's family rented a house right on the beach in Rockaway Beach, Oregon! Everyone was so thrilled when we pulled up to it for the first time! Walking inside and seeing the amazing view of the ocean right from the living room was so exciting, and we all thought to ourselves, "We get to stay here for the weekend?!" It's always exciting to get to stay in a new place, especially for your wedding weekend! If you include guests, renting an Airbnb for a few days is the perfect place to hang out before and after the elopement! And it gives your guests a place to stay while you are out on your adventure.
This Airbnb near Mt. Baker in Washington was the perfect place for Lauren and Matt's elopement! It had beautiful large windows, which was perfect to hang her dress in! You could see the moss covered trees through the window, adding to the feel of being cozy and in a forest near Mt. Baker. With this rental too, the property was gorgeous, and we took some stunning photos when we got back from our adventure. The mossy trees and lush forest floor made for perfect detail photos, and a few bridals to finish the day off!
Who wouldn't love the view of snow-capped Sawtooth Mountains out their log cabin window? This rental made the perfect place for Laura and Brian to get ready at sunrise for their ceremony in Stanley, Idaho. I was able to take photos of the sun just starting to come up lighting up the peaks of the Sawtooth Mountains through the large dining room window facing the mountains. If you keep scenery a focal point of planning your elopement, finding a rental to encompass that will reflect what was important to you in the photos!
Savannah and Tyler rented this place down in Lowman, Idaho nestled in the forest for their Stanley elopement. It featured a back patio which was the perfect place for them to start their day with a yummy breakfast and mimosas! There was abundant wildlife as well, which really showed how much the day consisted of being in the outdoors. This cabin in particular didn't have cell service or internet, so if you're really craving being in the outdoors and disconnecting from technology to focus on your elopement day, this is a great option for that!
Airbnb Elopement Packages
Interested in booking an Airbnb for your elopement? How exciting! Did you know that as your elopement photographer, I can help you find the perfect Airbnb or rental to fit your elopement vision?
Here's what's included in my Airbnb elopement packages!
- Booking Gift
- 72 Hour Turn-Around Time for Sneak Peek Images
- Idaho Location Guide For Elopements in Idaho
- Beautifully Edited Full Resolution Images
- Access to High Quality Print Products
- Free Phone Consultation or Zoom Call
- Day of Elopement Gift
- Timeline Creation
- Leave No Trace Guide
- 30+ Page Planning Guide
- Vendor Recommendations
- Unlimited Planning and Assistance
- 6 Week Turnaround Time for Full Elopement Gallery
- Travel & Accommodations are Covered for Photographer
Airbnb Elopement Photographer
I've photographed several elopements where my clients have rented an Airbnb as part of their elopement day! I can personally say they can add such a fun, creative, and unique flare to your elopement. With their functionality and available variety, you can't go wrong with renting an Airbnb for your elopement day! Whether you want to elope in an A-frame in the woods, a lookout tower on a mountaintop, or a beach bungalow in the tropics, I am available worldwide to capture your special day!
As you can see, no matter what type of elopement you are planning, there is the perfect place out there for your elopement vision! I wanted to include plenty of photo examples so you could envision it for your own elopement in an Airbnb! I hope that this blog was able to show you why you should rent an Airbnb for your elopement day and why it's a great option!
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