Elope in California

COVID-19 came around and shut down our first wedding date which was supposed to be in April 2020. We postponed until August and had to cancel again due to health concerns, and we didn’t think we’d be able to have the wedding we wanted with COVID-19. We wanted to still go on our honeymoon in Lake Tahoe/Napa (we deserved a vacation at this point), so we extended our trip and got married at the beginning of it. We were lucky enough to have our parents join us for the first few days. Such a wonderful experience came out of an unprecedented situation.

I searched the internet for officiants and photographers in the Lake Tahoe area. The idea of them coming as a packaged deal was perfect!

After all the planning and then cancelling of our traditional wedding, postponing, and then cancelling again, it was such a relief to work with Simply Eloped. I can honestly say that by the time we had decided to elope, the wedding planning portion of my brain was fried. I knew that this was the right fit for us because we were able to make a few basic decisions like location and photography package, and the rest was all taken care of.

We had actually decided on eloping in Lake Tahoe before finding Simply Eloped, and it was such a happy coincidence. I had spent a week by the lake the same summer I had met Alex to celebrate finishing graduate school. Although we are both children of beach people, Alex and I are both very much lake and mountain people. He had never been to California before, and I was so excited to show him the most breathtaking place I have ever been. The Lake Tahoe area really has it all, and is a site to consider any time of the year for both scenery and activities. There’s really no bad choice for a ceremony site in the area, and the Simply Eloped team offered great advice on what each location offered.

Alex: I was able to take it fairly easy. Myself, my dad, and my father-in-law went on a drive to Jakes on the Lake so I could convince the staff to get Diana some fish tacos for dinner – and it worked! When we got back to the house we all had a glass of bourbon and relaxed before getting ready. It was a nice calm day and everyone made it so I didn’t see Diana until our real first look down at Emerald Bay. I couldn’t stop smiling to myself the whole way down.

Diana: Alex and I got to sleep in, which was much appreciated! There was some hustle and bustle, but luckily I was able to spend some nice quiet moments on the back deck of the house in the woods with my tea and thoughts. My mother-in-law helped me with my make-up and she did a fantastic job. The day flew by and before we knew it we were standing together on that rock. It was a very special moment for us, filled with excitement, gratitude, and relief!

They offered guidance on getting our marriage license coming in from out of state, created a day-of timeline, and connected us with vendors that we had complete confidence in. We were lucky enough to work with Blake & Irina in the Tahoe area as our officiant and photographer. They communicated with us leading up to the ceremony, including getting our feedback to personalize the officiant’s speech and locations for the best pictures (ditch the heels for those hikes). Our Simply Eloped team let us know that parking was very limited at our location (100% accurate), so we opted to use a car service. Because Alex sat at the front and I was in the back, and with the help of our Simply Eloped team, we were able to have our “first look” at the ceremony site.

We went to Jake’s on the Lake in Tahoe City and had our wedding dinner with our parents by our side. It was a beautiful sunset dinner right on the water. The next day, we got our marriage certificate and drove to Napa Valley to start our honeymoon.

For those seeking an intimate experience in a beautiful space, it’s definitely the way to go. There’s less of the “all eyes on me” feeling enabled us to be fully present with each other. Working with Simply Eloped took all of the guesswork out of the process and made it a stress-free event. Ultimately your ceremony is a very personal decision so I would encourage couples to do what they want to do – especially amid the COVID-19 pandemic when it may not be safe to continue a wedding as previously planned.