elopement services

What does a wedding planner do for an elopement?

intimate adventure elopement

Skye and Spencer travelled to the Sunshine Coast from Alberta for their adventure elopement. After having to postpone due to Covid they realized an intimate wedding was more their style.

the location

Loving adventure, these two opted for an adventure elopement to Chatterbox falls followed by sunset boat photos & charcuterie from Good Friday’s on the new Coastal Weddings adventure wedding boat.

At Chatterbox, the falls were a bit strong so because of the glacial melt so we could not get to the base without getting wet, but instead they were not afraid to get their feet wet and crossed the creek to day their “I do’s” with the falls in the background. Every time we arrive in Princess Louisa we never quite know what Mother Nature will have in store for us, but it also means each and every time is unique to each couple!

VENDOR TEAM

Planning & Florals: Coastal Wedding & Events //Photographer: Paige Lorraine Photography // Hair & Makeup: Fuzhan // Transportation: Sunshine Coast Air & Coastal Weddings Boat // Charcuterie: Good Fridays

Maria and Brian had plans to be married in May 2020. But like so many, they had to postpone their wedding due to the pandemic. So, after postponing their original wedding plans, they decided to re-imagine what their wedding celebration would look like. As a result, they opted for a magical beach elopement on Thormanby Island.

May 7th was chosen as their elopement date as it was close to their original wedding date. By eloping on Thormanby Island in the spring, we avoided any crowds that can often come to the island in the summer months. It was to our surprise that there was not a soul in sight when we arrived on the island, and we had the island to ourselves! How magical!

Arriving At Your Beach Elopement

As Thormanby Island is only accessible by floatplane or boat, Maria and Brian opted for an adventure elopement package. This wedding planning package included transportation, a commissioner, a photographer and many other details.

Our couple wanted to include a first look into their day. So, our team and Paige from Paige Lorraine Photography worked together to ensure the couple did not see each other in advance. Melissa picked up Maria from their Air BnB, while Brian headed off to the Sunshine Coast Air dock where he met Paige. After an emotional first look on the dock, the two read their vows to each other. We love it when our couples write personalized vows and encourage exchanging these in an intimate setting as much as possible!

Once our vendor team was ready, we loaded into the Sunshine Coast Air floatplane and took off over the Sechelt Inlet. This sunny day in May provided spectacular views of the coast from above; the Sunshine Coast truly never disappoints. After a quick flight over to Thormanby Island, we landed in Buccaneer Bay Provincial Park, a beautiful little sand spit on the southern end of North Thormanby Island. With spectacular sandy beaches, Buccaneer Bay is the perfect place for an intimate beach elopement in British Columbia. Since there is no dock on Thormanby Island, our couple had to get their feet wet when unloading and loading the plane, but it all adds to the fun and adventure!

On The Island

After an intimate beach wedding ceremony, our couple celebrated by popping champagne and heading off for a romantic walk on the beach. Paige Lorraine Photography did an incredible job at capturing the beauty of the day. From the candid photos leading up to the ceremony to the romantic newlywed portraits on the beach, it was absolutely perfect! 

For this magical beach elopement, our bride Maria wore a simple and elegant white beach wedding dress and held a delicate bouquet with neutral-toned florals and grasses. Melissa designed the bridal bouquet with white roses and blush pink roses, which complimentary the ruffled sleeves on Maria’s beach wedding dress. Brian’s boutonniere was designed to match the bridal bouquet and included delicately dried florals. 

After enjoying their time on the beach during newlywed portraits, our couple continued their celebrations with a petite wedding cake by Nougatine. We couldn’t think of a more magical way to celebrate the first moments of your marriage than watching the sunset on a beautiful BC beach!

If you were hoping for a destination beach wedding and have had to adjust your plans, look no further than an intimate beach elopement on Thormanby Island! The beautiful sandy beaches and picturesque views of the Pacific Ocean provide the perfect destination wedding setting without the hassle of flying internationally! Unsure what to expect with your adventure elopement? Check out our blog on what to expect with your adventure elopement day!

VENDOR TEAM

Planning & Florals: Coastal Wedding & Events //Photographer: Paige Lorraine Photography // Hair & Make-Up: Fuzhan Artistry // Cake: Nougatine //Float Plane: Sunshine Coast Air

Thinking bouquets?

So many questions right? What colour, how big, what style?

Grab a cup of tea (or wine) and just search wedding bouquets on Pinterest and start clicking on a few you are drawn to. Pinterest has a great feature if you scroll down that says more like this. Just keep clicking and looking and make a board of all your favourites. Sleep on it a few days and then go back and add a few more and delete a few you can’t remember the reason why you added them.

Once you have an idea about the style and colour time to think about flower choices. Is it important to you that all the flowers are from a sustainable and local source? Do you want to try to use all local Sunshine Coast flowers? These are our favourite bouquets to make but we can also source blooms from all across the globe to use a favourite pinned photo as an inspiration jumping-off point.

Photography: Paige Lorraine Photography

Also, any favourite must have flowers to mean a lot to you – be sure to incorporate those blooms into your bouquet plans. Last but not least trust your florist! Don’t try to exactly recreate a photo, they are just for inspiration – it is next to impossible with a live product to perfectly replicate flowers and I find my favourite bouquets are the ones where you let the flowers tell you where they want to go!

Now, these may not be wedding venues in your typical sense of the word; consider them more some of our favourite BC destination wedding locations. These Sunshine Coast beach wedding locations are ideal for small weddings and elopements and will get you into the heart of nature. Again, we may be biased, but we think they are the perfect beach wedding venues in British Columbia.

Baker Beach

Baker Beach near Madeira Park is an excellent location for a secluded beach wedding with unobstructed views across the Straight of Georgia. This sandy beach is only a short forested walk from the parking area, but it can feel like a private piece of paradise on the right day. The sunsets here are absolutely breathtaking and can be the perfect backdrop for any beach wedding or elopement. The renowned Painted Rock Resort is only a short distance away from Baker Beach and can be booked for a wedding reception and guest accommodations.

Fish Hook Beach

Fish Hook beach is nestled in a quiet corner of Sandy Hook on the Sechelt Inlet. The end of this gorgeous spit is the perfect intimate location for your Sunshine Coast beach wedding. With an authentic Westcoast backdrop of the ocean and surrounding hills at this beach wedding location, you can often catch a glimpse of porpoises coming in from the Skookumchuck Narrows. This body of water flows north to Egmont near the Narrows, where it connects back to the Pacific Ocean. This beach wedding location in BC does not require any advance booking, which adds to the flexibility of having your dream beach elopement here.

Thormanby Island

Known as one of the Sunshine Coast’s best-kept secrets, Thormanby Island is an absolutely serene piece of paradise within a short boat or floatplane ride from Sechelt. With endless kilometres of pristine sandy beaches, there are several locations for a perfect beach wedding right on the Pacific Ocean. At low tide, Thormanby displays its stunning sandy beaches, ideal for any beach wedding or elopement. The island has no regular ferry service; thus, it can genuinely feel like your own private island.

Chatterbox Falls

Chatterbox Falls is situated at the end of the famous Princess Louisa Inlet and is accessible by boat or short floatplane ride from Sechelt. These 45-meter waterfalls are a magical backdrop for your ceremony, while the rocky beach at the base of the waterfalls is a beautiful location for your beach wedding photos. Framed by 7000-foot high granite walls, the falls at the end of the Princess Louisa Inlet offer breathtaking views and a once-in-a-lifetime experience. The waterfalls are only a short 800m walk on elevated boardwalks from the Provincial Marine Park dock, which can be accessed by float plane or boat ride. 

Gibsons Pier

Situated at the end of the Gibsons Marina is the gorgeous Gibsons Landing pier and one of our favourite local spots for a beach wedding on the Sunshine Coast. The natural wood gazebo offers 360-degree views of the surrounding harbour and marina. As the pier is nestled within the marina, you are sure to enjoy some wildlife and spectacular views. Keats Island and the Shoal Channel are the perfect backdrop to an intimate exchange of vows here on a clear day. The Gazebo can be booked in advance and is provides shelter should it rain, making it an excellent choice for a BC destination wedding any season of the year.

This is only a short list of some of our favourite locations for your beach weddings on the lower Sunshine Coast. Be sure to check out our list of favourite small wedding locations on the Sunshine Coast at this link here. We’d also be happy to brainstorm unique locations with you when you contact us to coordinate your Sunshine Coast destination beach wedding. So contact us today if you are thinking of planning a destination beach wedding on the beautiful Sunshine Coast! 

Lynn and Sean contacted us to help plan their intimate beach elopement with their family this past summer. We enjoyed working with the couple to plan their destination wedding on the Sunshine Coast while the couple resided in Kamloops, BC.

For this destination wedding in BC, we worked with the couple on all their wedding planning details. Our team helped scout their elopement location, arranged the wedding photographer, designed the florals, and sourced the remaining vendors involved with their day.

The couple opted for a quiet family beach elopement in Sandy Hook at Fish Hook beach. Nestled in a quiet corner of First Hook beach the couple said their I Do’s at the end of a rocky spit with gorgeous views. Our team lined the beach with glass lanterns, it was the perfect yet simple wedding ceremony decor for this couple.

Spring was in the air as this beautiful couple as they said their vows with their children as witnesses to their love. As part of Lynne & Sean’s destination elopement package, we designed the florals for the day. This included a beautiful bouquet for the bride, a miniature bouquet and a floral crown for her daughter. The flowers in the bridal bouquet included white and pink roses with white peonies that embodied the seasonal vibes. Lynn’s daughter absolutely loved her floral crown and did not want to take off! This was a rare occurrence, as most flower girls want to take their flower crown off immediately.

After the ceremony, the family celebrated with a petite wedding cake in which the kids could not get enough of! We toasted to the newlyweds with a champagne toast while the kids enjoyed some sparkling apple juice served in champagne glasses. When working with small children it is always helpful to have special items for them to enjoy while still making them a part of the festivities.

Following the celebrations, Lynn and Sean joined Paige Lorraine Photography for some intimate portraits together down the beach. With the beach to themselves, the rocks in the foreground and the Pacific Ocean behind them, their photos were the definitions of the perfect BC beach elopement. While the newlyweds were off taking photos their son loved exploring the beach and turning over rocks to find small crabs. It was such a great form of entertainment for the children while their newly married parents enjoyed some alone time.

We want to help you have an intimate beach elopement on the Sunshine Coast just like Lynn & Sean! Check out our small wedding and elopement packages to see which is the best fit for you. Then reach out to book your complimentary consultation call to get the process started!

Vendors

Planning & Florals: Coastal Weddings and Events
Photographer: Paige Lorraine Photography
Hair and makeup: Fuzhan Artistry
Marriage Commissioner: Pat Carswell

With travel being so uncertain these days we love seeing couples exploring locally. With an endless list of picturesque landscapes to explore, British Columbia is the perfect destination wedding location. Whether you had a tropical beach wedding already planned and you needed to pivot your plans or you’ve always dreamed of a destination wedding the Sunshine Coast is the ideal location for you!

Some of our favourite reasons

why a destination beach wedding on the Sunshine Coast is right for you!

1.) The Sunshine Coast is a close destination wedding location for those from the lower mainland

Accessible by a quick 40-minute ferry ride from West Vancouver, you can travel to the Sunshine Coast easily and quickly. Once you arrive on the Coast you will easily feel relaxed and at ease, ready to enjoy your destination wedding.

 2.) The Sunshine Coast has a variety of locations and venues

With so many different landscapes to choose from you are guaranteed a unique beach wedding. From a rocky beach setting to a gorgeous sandy beach that reminds you of Hawaii, we want to help you find the ideal landscape for you and your fiancé.

3.) You can jump right into your destination honeymoon

After a magical beach wedding on the Sunshine Coast, there is no need to travel further. You can soak up nature and start your honeymoon right away!  With so many amazing towns to visit, adorable Air BnB’s as well as gorgeous resorts you can still have a romantic getaway where you got married. Use this guide to help book your Sunshine Coast accommodations.

4.) Consider a remote beach wedding location

We love to help our couples find unique and remote beach wedding locations. Imagine taking a floatplane or boat to a remote location where you are completely surrounded by nature. With an adventure elopement, you can have a truly private and intimate beach wedding at a remote location on the Sunshine Coast.

5.) Combine your destination wedding with an adventure experience

With an endless list of things you can do on the Sunshine Coast your time here is guaranteed to be exciting! From renting kayaks or ATV’s, to floatplane tours and an endless list of hikes. Whatever your adventure experience needs are the Sunshine Coast most likely offers an option for you!

Not looking for an adventure experience after your beach wedding? Spend your time relaxing at the spa and then enjoy the vast restaurants, breweries and distilleries the coast has to offer. For more ideas on how to embrace your time on the Sunshine coast check out the Sunshine Coast Tourism Website for a complete list of things you can do!

The possibilities are truly endless when planning a destination beach wedding on the Sunshine Coast. From large celebrations with oceanfront views to initiate elopements on the beach. If you are looking to plan a beach wedding in British Columbia and don’t know where to begin, we want to help you! Yes, you can have your dream destination wedding without all the hassle of international travel. Reach out to see how we can get started planning your destination beach wedding on the Sunshine Coast today!

VENDORS

Planning & Design: Coastal Weddings and Events // Photography: Paige Lorraine Photography