Elopement or Microwedding: Which One Fits Your Day?
The line between the two is fuzzier than the wedding industry pretends. A walkthrough of the real differences and how to figure out which one actually fits your day.
The wedding industry treats "elopement" and "microwedding" as if they're clearly distinct categories. They're not. Both involve small guest counts, intentional choices, and a day built around the couple rather than the spectacle. The line between the two is more about scale and shape than about anything fundamentally different.
That said, the differences that do exist matter. They affect what venues work, what permits you need, what timeline makes sense, what coverage you'll want, and what the day feels like. This post is a walk through of where the line lives, why it matters, and how to figure out which one fits your day.
What is an elopement vs a micro wedding?
Let's get the language out of the way first. There's no industry standard, but here's how we use the terms.
Microwedding
APPROXIMATELY 10 TO 30 GUESTS
Family and a small group of close friends
Often a real reception with toasts and dinner
Officiant is common, structured ceremony
Day shape closer to a traditional wedding, just smaller
Multiple vendors: florals, hair and makeup, dinner reservations
Permit limitations come into play (RMNP caps at 30 at most sites)
Budget typically $8,000 to $25,000
Elopement
USUALLY 10 GUESTS OR FEWER
Just the couple, or with a handful of immediate family or closest friends
No reception in the traditional sense (often just dinner)
Often no officiant (Colorado allows self-solemnization)
Day shape is flexible: hike, drive, ceremony, dinner
Minimal vendor coordination
Permit-friendly at most ceremony sites
Budget typically $2,000 to $8,000
The line at 10 guests isn't sacred. We've shot weddings of 11 or 12 people that felt like elopements (couple plus parents and siblings) and weddings of 8 people that felt like microweddings (couple plus close friends, with a real reception). The number is a useful starting point, not a binding rule.
How will these differences show up?
Even with these relatively distinct categories some couples land between the two. Maybe 12 to 18 guests. A real ceremony but a casual dinner. An officiant but no DJ. It’s fine not to fit perfectly into either category. You can pick and choose elements from both. You might do an elopement-style adventure session day one (just the couple at Emerald Lake) and a microwedding-style ceremony day two (with all 18 people at a venue in Estes). You can have the best of both worlds. That’s why our Summit package is built around exactly this kind of split.
Permits + Venue Options
For an elopement (under 10 guests), almost every Colorado outdoor venue and ceremony site is open to you. RMNP has 13 designated sites, all of which work for groups of 15 or fewer. National forest land, state parks, and most private venues are easy to use.
For a microwedding (10 to 30 guests), the universe of options narrows. RMNP still works, but only at sites with the higher 30-person cap (Moraine Park, Upper Beaver Meadows, Hidden Valley, Lily Lake Picnic Area, Copeland Lake, Sprague Lake in winter, and the west side sites). Some smaller sites (3M Curve, Lily Lake Dock) won't accommodate the group. Estes Park venues become more attractive for the larger end of microweddings. Check out our full Rocky Mountain National Park Elopement Guide for more details.
Timeline Complexity
Elopements run on the couple's clock. The timeline can shift by 30 minutes without any consequence. There's no one to coordinate beyond yourselves and the photographer.
Microweddings run on a shared clock. Guests need to know where to be. Vendors need to arrive on cue. Dinner reservations need a confirmed time. If the ceremony runs 20 minutes long, the rest of the day shifts. Timelines become more real with schedules that must be (at least mostly) adhered to.
Locations
An elopement day can be wildly varied: hike to an alpine lake, ceremony at a different site, drive Trail Ridge Road, dinner in town. Each part of the day can happen at a different location because transportation is easy.
A microwedding day is usually more contained. Getting ready, ceremony, cocktail hour, dinner, dancing. Often all at the same venue or nearby since there are more people and more vehicles involved.
Photography Coverage
Elopements are completely focused on you. Your gallery will tell the story of you two: from getting ready and the details that you each choose to your intimate ceremony, couples portraits, and candids of the two of you existing how you love to with each other.
Microweddings introduce more characters. We capture not just your story, but your interactions with your loved ones. We still cover your details and intimate moments, but now we also capture candid guest reactions, family portraits, and all the love shared with you and your people.
Real Scenarios to Consider:
Here are five real situations couples have come to us with, and which version we recommended.
SCENARIO ONE: "Just the two of us"
Couple in their late 30s, second marriage for both, neither has family they want involved in the day. Want to spend their wedding day hiking somewhere beautiful and saying vows alone.
Verdict: classic elopement. 4-hour photography package, ceremony at Sprague Lake, dinner alone at a private chef booking.
SCENARIO TWO: "Our families and one or two friends"
Couple with both sets of parents, three siblings between them, and three close friends. Total 11 people. They want a real ceremony with parents giving readings, a real dinner together, but nothing more elaborate than that.
Verdict: small microwedding. 8-hour photography, ceremony at Moraine Park (30-cap, can hold 11 comfortably), private dinner reservation at the Stanley.
SCENARIO THREE: "Our 24 closest people"
Couple wants their immediate families plus a tight group of friends. 24 people total. They want hair and makeup, florals, a DJ for the dinner reception, and a real wedding feel.
Verdict: full microwedding. 8-hour photography possibly with an extra hour add on or second photographer. RMNP ceremony at Hidden Valley followed by reception at Della Terra Mountain Chateau.
SCENARIO FOUR: "We want both"
Couple wants a private adventure day in RMNP for the photography, and a separate ceremony and reception with 22 friends and family members in Estes.
Verdict: two-day spread. Day one is a private adventure session at Emerald Lake (just the couple). Day two is the ceremony at an Estes venue with the full guest list. The Summit package handles this.
SCENARIO FIVE: "My family is huge"
Couple wants a small wedding but every count of "the people we can't leave out" lands at 45 to 55. Big families on both sides.
Verdict: this is a small wedding, not a microwedding. RMNP isn't the right venue (30-person cap is firm). A traditional Estes Park venue (the Stanley or Della Terra) with a real coordinator becomes the better path.
How to decide which fits your day
Three questions usually settle it.
Who do you actually want there?
Make a list of the names. Not categories ("immediate family"), but actual people. The list either lands at 10 or fewer (elopement), 10 to 30 (microwedding), or more (small wedding territory). Resist the urge to pad the list with people you feel obligated to invite. Eloping or microwedding-ing means actively choosing who you celebrate with. These are the people who matter to your day, not just your relationships.
What does the day need to feel like?
If you want to be alone for the ceremony, with quiet portraits afterward and a long dinner just the two of you, that's an elopement. If you want toasts, dancing, and the energy of your closest people in one room, that's a microwedding.
What's your tolerance for logistics?
Elopements are simple. You, your partner, maybe an officiant, a photographer. The logistics fit on one page.
Microweddings are still small but more complicated. You start considering vendors, larger dinner reservations or catering, group transportation, and guest coordination. If logistics drain you, you might prefer to stay closer to the elopement end. If you don't mind orchestrating, a microwedding gives you more of a "real wedding" feel.
The hybrid: an RMNP ceremony with an Estes Park reception
One of the most satisfying versions we shoot is a hybrid: a small ceremony inside RMNP, followed by a microwedding-sized reception at an Estes Park venue. The ceremony is intimate while the dinner is celebratory. The day offers the best of both worlds. You can even have a private ceremony or just a sub-set of guests invited for the ceremony followed by the dinner or reception with a broader guest list.
Still figuring it out?
If you're stuck between the two, send us a note with your situation. We'll talk through what fits and where the line should land for your day.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Yes. This is sometimes called a "secret elopement" or a "two-part wedding." You elope just the two of you (or with your closest people), then host a larger party afterward. It's a great option for couples whose families are far apart geographically or who want to celebrate in multiple ways.
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Yes. This is one of our favorite formats. Just the two of you for the ceremony, then a private dinner that night with 12 or 15 people who don't witness the vows but get to celebrate. The intimacy of an elopement plus the warmth of a small reception.
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A microwedding usually needs more vendors. Hair and makeup, florals, an officiant, a dinner venue or private chef, sometimes a coordinator. An elopement can run with just a photographer, sometimes with a florist or hair and makeup added.
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At that point you're in small wedding territory. RMNP isn't an option (the cap is firm). Estes Park venues like the Stanley, Della Terra, or YMCA of the Rockies become the move. We'd recommend hiring a coordinator separately for groups over 30, since orchestrating that many people is more work than a photographer can responsibly take on alongside shooting.