Your Redwood Elopement: How to Choose a Location

 
During their redwood elopement, wedding couple hug happily in a redwood grove in San Francisco

If you’re looking for an epic location for your wedding that’s beautiful year round, a redwood elopement is perfect for you! You have lots of beautiful options to choose from, in particular along the northern coast of California, where the ocean breeze keeps temperatures cool but moderate all year long. Redwoods are the tallest trees on the planet, growing to heights of over 300 feet, and a walk among these giants is a unique and awe-inspiring experience. Because of their extreme height and how redwoods grow together in small groups, there’s often a lot of shade to be found and spacious paths around them (particularly in old growth forests) which makes them the perfect place for exploring and finding a gorgeous spot to exchange your wedding vows!

Wedding couple share their first look at their redwood elopement with colorful flowers
  1. WHERE CAN YOU FIND REDWOOD FORESTS?

When thinking about location possibilities for your redwood elopement, at first glance the options can seem overwhelming. Redwood forests can be found all along the coast of the western United States, especially in California, starting as far south as Big Sur and continuing north from there. (See map below.)

 
 

With so many choices for your redwood elopement, what factors should you keep in mind when narrowing down your options? The best place to start is to talk about what kind of experience you and your partner want to have on your wedding day.

Related: Check out my post on the best places to elope in California!

Wedding couple celebrate their redwood elopement in Mill Valley near Marin in California

2. HOW FAR DO YOU WANT TO TRAVEL
FOR YOUR REDWOOD ELOPEMENT?

When thinking about your ideal redwood elopement experience, the first thing to consider is how far you’re willing to travel. There are redwood groves that are super close to metropolitan areas and there are redwood forests that are in more remote locations. If you want a totally off the grid experience, then a remote redwood elopement may your preference — so long as you’re willing to drive a bit farther from town. If you want to keep your travel time to a minimum, there are lots of great options close to the Bay Area and other large cities along the coast.

Wedding couple exchange marriage vows during their redwood elopement in Mendocino, California

3. HOW REMOTE DO YOU WANT TO BE?

Another great reason to elope in a redwood grove close to civilization is if you want to take advantage of all the urban amenities. Maybe you want your choice of restaurants for your wedding day dinner, or lots of options when it comes to your day-of vendors (hair and makeup, florist, etc.). It also may be more convenient to be near a major hub if you’re having family and friends traveling in to join you for your redwood elopement.

If you want to elope with less people around, it’s usually best to travel farther afield. This could be as simple as traveling to a lesser known redwood location, plan for some hiking on your wedding day, or booking a vacation rental that has its own redwood trees on the property. Alternatively, you could choose a redwood forest that is tucked away from any major city. The redwood forests far up on the coast of California are good candidates for this as they’re also a fair distance from any major airports.

Pro tip: to best avoid the crowds, plan your elopement ceremony for a weekday!

Also, don’t forget to think about the type of lodging you want to stay in for your redwood elopement. Since redwoods are all over the northern coast of California, there’s a wide array of available lodging: five star hotels, quaint bed and breakfasts, private cabins, beach cottages, glamping canvas tents, Airstreams — you name it.

Related: Check out this camp wedding in the redwoods!

At their redwood elopement, wedding couple kiss under the towering trees

4. What other fun ACTIVITIES are nearby?

Maybe you want your redwood elopement to be remote, but still have other adventurous experiences nearby — there are definitely lots of options for this! Since redwood trees grow along the coast, many redwoods are close to all your favorite water activities like:

  • kayaking or canoeing

  • stand up paddle-boarding

  • fishing

  • swimming

Or, if you prefer to stay dry, there are plenty of fun activities you can do on land during your redwood elopement as well:

  • hiking

  • horseback-riding

  • ATV-ing or off-roading

Depending on your exact location, some other fun things to do might be:

  • take a farm tour

  • go wine tasting or tour a brewery

  • go see live music

  • check out the local art scene

Pro tip: Take some time with your partner (make it a date night!) and talk about what would be the most enjoyable experiences for you both during your redwood elopement.

Just married couple walk holding hands down a path together during their redwood elopement in San Francisco, California

5. sample timelines of THREE different
redwood elopement experiences:

MUIR WOODS REDWOOD ELOPEMENT
(with 20 guests)

Highlights include: ocean views, champagne on the beach at sunset, dinner at a historical pub, and stargazing in your private hot tub.

  • 02:30pm Getting ready photos at cute Airbnb

  • 03:30pm First look on Airbnb’s deck overlooking the ocean

  • 04:00pm Travel to Muir Woods

  • 04:45pm Ceremony under the redwood trees

  • 05:20pm Group photos

  • 05:45pm Leave Muir Woods, head to Muir Beach

  • 06:00pm Champagne + appetizers on the beach

  • 06:30pm Sunset portraits

  • 07:00pm Sunset

  • 07:30pm Dinner at the Pelican Inn

  • 09:30pm Head back to Airbnb, hot tub under the stars

ARMSTRONG REDWOOD ELOPEMENT
(with 10 guests)

Highlights include: starting your day off with kayaking on a local river, staying in a renovated Airstream, s’mores made on the campfire.

  • 10:00am Kayaking on the Russian River

  • 12:00pm Lunch then shower

  • 01:30pm Getting ready photos, hair + makeup on patio outside of Airstream

  • 02:45pm First look

  • 03:15pm Travel to Armstrong Redwoods

  • 03:45pm Ceremony under the redwood trees

  • 04:15pm Group photos

  • 04:45pm Couple portraits among the redwoods

  • 05:30pm Head back to AutoCamp

  • 06:00pm Champagne + appetizers by the fire

  • 07:00pm Dinner under the trees

  • 08:30pm S’mores for dessert

REDWOOD NATIONAL PARK AND STATE PARKS ELOPEMENT
(just you + your partner)

Highlights include: a spectacular hike through old growth redwoods, charcuterie board + champagne as your trail snack, sunset on the coast, and a private chef making you dinner at your beautiful A-frame cabin in the woods.

  • 12:30pm Getting ready photos at A-frame cabin

  • 01:30pm First look

  • 01:45pm Head to ceremony location in the park

  • 02:15pm Exchange vows

  • 02:30pm Champagne + charcuterie board

  • 02:45pm Read letters from friends + family

  • 03:00pm Short hike to explore old growth redwoods, couple portraits

  • 04:00pm Head to the coast for sunset

  • 04:45pm Explore gorgeous coastline, dip toes in the water

  • 06:15pm Sunset

  • 06:30pm Head back to cabin

  • 07:15pm Dinner prepared by private chef

  • 08:15pm Cozy stargazing by the fire

Just married couple walk holding hands together during their redwood elopement in the Santa Cruz mountains in California.

Don’t forget! The first place to start when planning your redwood elopement is for you and your partner to discuss your wedding day experience and what matters most to you both as a couple. From there, you can use the above tips to help narrow down your location choices.

Also, in case it wasn’t apparent in the above timelines, I LOVE planning out itineraries and generating ideas for wedding day activities — contact me when you’re ready to get the ideas flowing!