Finding a private elopement location in Yellowstone that isn’t packed with map-holding, bright-eyed visitors can feel like quite the feat. During peak season, our country’s first national park can see up to a whopping 30,000 visitors a day!!! So if you’re not a run-and-jump-into-the-chaos type of couple, you’re likely looking for somewhere tucked away, still beautiful, but infinitely calmer. If that’s the case, this is the Yellowstone elopement planning blog for you! 

The Most Underrated Private Elopement Location in Yellowstone

When everyone else was heading to elopement locations in the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone or Old Faithful, Laurel + Marcello snuck off the path most traveled and headed to the far north. They wanted those wide-open meadow views, maybe a mountain peak, that iconic Wyoming type of scenery. 

Originally considering the Lamar Valley, known for being a wildlife hotspot along the Lamar River Basin, but ultimately decided it made the most sense to stay around Gardiner, which is sometimes called “nature’s favorite entrance” and actually located in Montana!  

That’s because Laurel + Marcello brought along some very special guests to this elopement getaway—their family! Actually, their original plan was to have their ceremony at the Airbnb, surrounded by everyone they loved, before heading off into the park for portraits and a little bit of exploring. But as plans do, they changed and they ended up getting legally married back home before their trip! 

But because Yellowstone was such a special vacation (their families were meeting for the very first time!!), they still wanted wedding photos in the park. So to maximize their time with family and still get their picturesque Yellowstone elopement vibes, we decided to get up before sunrise and head to some elopement locations we could hit with the most privacy and seclusion possible. 

Add Swan Lake Flats to Your Yellowstone Elopement Location List

And I’m very happy to report that, as we headed into the park to catch the sun coming up, the only other souls in sight were about 500 elk. We had our sights on Swan Lake Flats, a sage-brushy meadow with insane views of the Gallatin Range and Swan Lake. As the darkness lifted, the valley glowed and there were absolutely zero other people around to witness it but us—just how we like it. While all of the early risers headed to those iconic locations, we sat back to take it all in, the snow still resting on the mountain in the distance, the June sun glittering on the lake. EPIC if you ask me! And can you believe it only got better from there?

As you drive into the park in that area, there’s an “S” curve in the road with granite boulders littered around everything, actually giving more Yosemite National Park elopement vibes than Yellowstone! If you know anything about me, I’m always up for a little pitstop outside of the plan, so I asked Laurel + Marcello if they’d want to stop. To me, they seemed super up for it, but later I learned they thought I might be a serious level of insane. Laurel’s own words on that day…

“Her creative direction, chef’s kiss! We were basically bouldering at that point in dress shoes and at first, I said to myself, “This lady is crazy, making us climb up these rocks for a photo”, but when I saw us standing there in the early morning sun, I knew she had a vision, and it was beautiful!”

YES IT WAS!!! I might be crazy, but I’m a crazy lady with a vision and have a knack for turning the most unexpected spots into stunner elopement locations! 

The Best Part of Their Yellowstone Elopement 

It’s hard to choose from a lot of best parts—Marcello’s family visiting from India, Laurel’s family meeting them, L+M getting having long-awaited elopement location vision come to life, the unexpected wildlife sightings, the random bouldering excursions, the list goes on!)

For me it was reading their testimonial after getting their elopement photos back. When Laurel inquired, these were some of her words, “We are very awkward in photos, I’m not even going to lie to you.” And from their testimonial? Here’s what she said! “I felt like a princess in my dress- all possible because of her. We will be starting a tradition of getting professional photos taken wherever we go because of such a positive experience we had.” 

If anything is gonna make me cry in the club, IT’S THAT! 

So if you’re like Laurel + Marcello, two sweet lovers who want to choose an epic elopement location but still have enough seclusion and privacy to feel entirely comfortable and completely enjoy yourself, here’s your sign. DO IT! You don’t have to hit up the most photographed spot in a national park. There are tons of private elopement locations with amazing beauty of their own. Let’s get to planning and I’ll prove it to you! Inquire here when you’re ready.

And if you’re reading this thinking, “actually no, I want Old Faithful. I want the spots on every guide and postcard!” Okay, babes. You can have that, too!!!! But first, take a read about Jess + Matt’s Tour-de-Yellowstone Elopement Day. There’s some important advice for you over there!