Best elopement locations in Sedona!
Welcome to our Sedona elopement guide! I’m Katrina Wallace and as a local Sedona elopement photographer, I’ve photographed amazing celebrations of love right here in Sedona for the last 20 years! I love to share the beautiful backdrops I get to call home with my couples and I make planning a Sedona elopement easy!
Check out my elopement packages page to see photo packages as well as all-inclusive elopement planning packages.
The biggest question couples have when planning a destination elopement in Sedona is, where is the best location to have their ceremony? The answer lies in the details of what is important to you. Some locations are easy to get to, like the locations below.
- Bell Rock
- Red Rock Crossing / Crescent Moon Ranch
- Munds Wagon Trail
- Secret Slick Rock
- Cathedral Rock base
- and for more ideas contact us!
Other couples prefer a location that is more private. Some couples don’t mind a hike, others prefer big views and don’t mind a hike or Jeep ride to get to an epic location for their Sedona elopement. We have Elopement Adventure Packages for couples that want to get off the beaten path. A few favorite locations for Adventure Elopements are below.
- Cathedral Rock
- Merry Go Round
- other secret locations we’d like to not get over-run … contact us for more ideas!
Please enjoy our list of the best elopement locations in Sedona. This is our guide to easy access locations which makes it easy for older guests to attend or even just great locations for those of you that are wanting a beautiful backdrop for your wedding or engagement session but don’t want to hike in your dress. There are varying degrees of difficulty and we are happy to chat with you about locations to suggest the best location for your Sedona wedding!
Bell Rock
First on the list is Bell Rock. It is by far the most popular choice by couples. It’s a short 5 – 10 minute walk off the parking lot to gorgeous 360 degree red rock vista views. There are several access points to Bell Rock with different red rock views. Locals tip … the parking lot here can fill up quickly. As with all elopements, we recommend a weekday time to plan your wedding or shoot.
See more Sedona wedding photos and engagement photos at Bell Rock at our website here.
Elopements at the Base of Cathedral Rock
The north side of Cathedral Rock is another beautiful location. While the top of Cathedral is now Instagram famous and very popular with hikers it’s quite a serious hike to get to the top of Cathedral.
The base of Cathedral has beautiful views as well and only requires about a 15-20 minute hike on a fairly easy trail. While it’s not the easiest of the easy access spots, it is not too bad of a hike with beautiful views without having to adventure to the “saddle” ie the top of Cathedral.
Parking here has become very difficult to access because of the limited parking and the large number of tourists trying to hike Cathedral Rock for amazing sunset views. Most of the year a shuttle service is required. As locals, we do have ways to get around taking the shuttle if you are truly just eloping with just the two of you.
We for larger groups of up to 15, the shuttle is an easy way to get to Cathedral. Please note, this is a public space and like with many outdoor trails, you should not plan a wedding with more than a small grouping of guests. There are wedding venues and airbnb’s that are great for a private space and larger guest count.
Once you are there it’s a pretty wide open space on the base of Cathedral and most tourists are working their way up to the top of Cathedral. We can guide you to quieter spots here, away from tourists, where you can have a more private ceremony with beautiful views.
Red Rock Crossing
For couples wanting that iconic Cathedral Rock formation and the lush green of Oak Creek, Red Rock Crossing provides the perfect location. It’s a state park so you will need to talk with your officiant or wedding planner or directly with the park to reserve a time slot for weddings there. There is a paved sidewalk close to the parking lot which makes it very easy for couples and guests to attend small intimate weddings at Red Rock Crossing. For those of you planning a true elopement, there are more private little spots we can guide you to. Red Rock Crossing is also known at Crescent Moon Ranch.
Locals tip … there is plenty of parking at this location but weekends are very busy with people. Weekdays are best to avoid the crowds. This spot really beautiful which is why it’s one of the best elopement locations in Sedona.
As with most locations there are several entry points and because of the large area it encompasses there are several locations for wedding ceremonies and romantic portraits. Let us know if you have questions and we can help guide you to the best location for your wedding ceremony or portrait session.
See more photos from weddings at Red Rock Crossing on our Sedona elopement locations page.
Bottom of Schnebly Hill / Munds Wagon Trail
This outdoor location has 360 degree views and is centrally located making it an elopement location in Sedona. We even take couples who have larger weddings at near by resorts to this location for their wedding photos on the red rocks because it’s so easy to get to and really beautiful.
There is usually plenty of parking and different levels of access to several locations ideal for small elopements. From a very easy flat walk to a little bit of uneven walking out on the rocks this location has a few options for spots with a variety of red rock backdrops.
There are many other stunning outdoor red rock spots at resorts like L’Auberge and Orchard Canyon. And if you are up for an adventure via a longer hike or a Jeep tour, locations like Merry Go Round, Broken Arrow, and the top of Cathedral Rock are also really beautiful and would easily make our list for the best elopement locations in Sedona. Let us know and we’d be happy to guide you to the best location for amazing wedding photos out on the red rocks.
Secret Slick Rock
Well, Secret Slick Rock is not so much of a “secret” anymore so we’re adding it to our online guide for easy access locations (for locations that are still a “secret” please inquire). It’s about a 10 minute walk from the parking lot and while the walk is pretty easy, it is uneven. So you don’t want to be wearing high heels or at least change when you get to the ceremony location. As of the writing of this post, the parking availability is usually open and unlike Bell Rock where you usually need to wait for a parking spot to open up (or hire transportation). It’s a great spot with lots of space. The only down side is that if there is another ceremony there you’d most likely need to wait until it’s finished to start on your ceremony. Bell Rock has a lot of open space so that if there is another shoot it won’t impact your photos at all.
More difficult to access locations – Sedona Adventure Elopements
Below are a few locations we’d recommend for Adventure Elopements. Just because a location is more difficult to get to doesn’t necessarily mean that it will be a quiet spot. The saddle of Cathedral Rock is easily one of the post popular Adventure Elopement and portrait session locations in Sedona.
Cathedral Rock Adventure Elopement
For Cathedral Rock Adventure Elopements, couples hike to the saddle of Cathedral for amazing sunset photos with the most stunning views of the valley below. To the north is Sedona and Oak Creek Canyon and to the south is Red Rock State Park and the Verde Valley along with Mingus Mountain.
The hike is not for the faint of heart. It’s a steep climb that’s best for couples who love to hike. It’s about a 45 minute hike up and we have favorite spots along the way to take gorgeous photos. While the famous “ledge shot” is what attracts couples to this location for photos, there are a TON of gorgeous scenic spots along the way up and around the saddle.
We like to plan for 4 hours round-trip to take advantage of the location. It can also be very busy at the saddle with both tourists and other couples taking photos. Our Cathedral Rock Adventure Elopement package comes with plenty of time to work around any crowds and also takes advantage of all the “secret” spots along the way for gorgeous Sedona wedding photos.
To see more photos from elopements at Cathedral Rocks view our gallery sedonabride.com/cathedral-rock-elopement.
Merry Go Round Adventure Elopement
Another popular location with much less crowds is Merry Go Round Rock … it requires a jeep rental and 1 hour jeep ride up a very bumpy dirt road to amazing red rock vista views. The cliff sides and vistas make this one of the most shared iconic Sedona elopement locations on the web.
To get to Merry Go Round, a high clearance Jeep is required. The road is a dirt road and is periodically filled with dirt but most of the year it is a very bumpy road. There is also a short hike to the popular ledge location. It’s helpful to work with a local that knows how to access the location! We have packages that include transportation and an adventure elopement officiant to marry you. Get in touch via the contact page if this kind of Sedona adventure is something you’d love to experience!
To see more Merry Go Round elopement photos visit sedonabride.com/gallery/merry-go-round-rock-weddings at our website.
For more ideas on best elopement locations in Sedona please reach out! We’d love to chat with you about your specific needs and suggest the perfect spot for you to have your elopement. Many locations we like to keep off the web in an attempt to keep the locations quieter. If you are an elopement photographer reading this page, please keep the locations you find private. We are a very small community and the landscape of our elopements has changed so much because of out-of-town photographers oversharing our intimate locations. We’ve shared the locations above because they have all be overshared and are already on the web. If you are a couple and would like to access more little known locations that are just as beautiful please reach out to us. We’d be happy to guide you to locations that are off-the-grid and off Instagram. Below is an example of one of those locations.
If you are up for a short or long hike to get to amazing locations, inquire about our Adventure Elopements. We’d love to share our favorites with you for your Sedona elopement!
Drop by our website at sedonabride.com/sedona-wedding-venues for more Sedona wedding locations ideas for both elopements and venues for weddings with a larger guest count!