Cloudland Canyon Wedding & Elopement Guide
your ultimate guide to getting married at Cloudland Canyon
Nestled in the rugged terrain of the North Georgia mountains, Cloudland Canyon State Park offers a breathtaking backdrop for couples looking to elope. This hidden gem is known for its stunning vistas, deep gorges, and cascading waterfalls, making it an ideal spot for an intimate, nature-inspired wedding ceremony. The park spans over 3,500 acres on the western edge of Lookout Mountain, providing a serene and picturesque setting that feels worlds away from the hustle and bustle of city life. No wonder it’s one of the best places to elope in Georgia!
Cloudland Canyon’s diverse landscapes range from rocky bluffs to lush forests, offering a variety of stunning locations for your ceremony. Whether you envision exchanging vows on a secluded trail with a panoramic view or near a tranquil waterfall, this park has something for every couple. The beauty of Cloudland Canyon lies not just in its scenery but in its ability to offer a truly personal and unforgettable elopement experience.
How To Plan A Cloudland Canyon Wedding
step by step planning guide
1) To start planning your Cloudland Canyon wedding or elopement, you’ll first need to decide on a date. While Cloudland Canyon is beautiful year-round, each season offers a different ambiance and set of challenges. Spring and fall are the best times to elope at Cloudland Canyon, as the temperatures are mild and the scenery is the best (unlike the humid summer or winter where most foliage is dead). Choose a weekday at sunrise or sunset to avoid crowds.
2) Choose a ceremony location. The best ceremony locations at Cloudland Canyon are the lookout along the West Rim Trail, and the waterfall viewpoint at Cherokee Falls. However, we highly recommend hiring a local photographer or scouting the park in person yourself to find the spot you love most.
3) Hire your vendors. Since there’s no permit or reservation needed to elope at Cloudland Canyon, the next step is to hire any additional vendors for your day such as a photographer, videographer, hair and makeup artist, florist, and officiant. Your photographer will help you create a timeline for the day with the best lighting, to get the best photos.
4) Get married! The final step is to have your wedding at Cloudland Canyon! Remember, the ceremony sites are first come first serve so be sure to have a backup plan in place.
Cloudland Canyon Wedding Cost
permits and requirements
It’s free to get married at Cloudland Canyon in North Georgia! There currently is no reservation fee or permit required for a Cloudland Canyon wedding. The only small costs are the parking passes to enter the park ($5/vehicle) and the fee for your marriage license, which typically costs between $56 and $76 in Georgia.
Of course, you’ll need to account for your personal costs such as your wedding attire, photographer, florist, and possibly an officiant if you aren’t having a family member or friend officiate for you. For a full scope of how much it costs to elope, you can view the full elopement cost breakdown here.
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Cloudland Canyon Elopement Photos
Zoe & Austin
A big, traditional wedding never resonated with Zoe and Austin. It simply didn’t align with their values. For them, the most important things was to be somewhere beautiful and just to have their families present. Our elopement package were exactly for what they were looking for to photograph their Cloudland Canyon elopement wedding.
Once they decided to elope, Georgia was the obvious option since there are so many beautiful places. They had been to Cloudland Canyon a handful of times before and knew it would be the perfect location for their intimate, sunrise wedding. They loved the nature and beauty the state park provided, with the canyon overlook and waterfalls below.
They considered having the elopement be just the two of them, or even just going to the courthouse. But in the end decided they wanted their families to be there to share the experience with them. Their families live in two different states, but they knew their families would be up for the adventure!
Their wedding day started early, arriving at the park at sunrise for their first look. They saw each other for the first time on a cliff overlooking the canyon below with fog covering the valley like a blanket. None of us had seen the canyon so foggy, but we now understand where Cloudland Canyon gets it’s name from!
Their ceremony took place on the main overlook, with only their closest friends and family surrounding them. Their favorite moment of the wedding day was arriving at the overlook to see their loved ones gathered around to celebrate their marriage.
“Surrounded by the gorgeous weather we had at the canyon and such a beautiful group of people that love and care about us and realizing that this is it! All of our planning for this moment where we get to become husband and wife was finally happening and was even better than we imagined it could be. It was very surreal.”
Looking for a wedding photographer?
SATURDAY SUN PHOTO
Saturday Sun Photo is an Atlanta, Georgia based wedding photography studio. They specialize in weddings of all sizes- from big, traditional weddings to intimate weddings and elopements. Whether you’re planning a big wedding in the city of Atlanta or an elopement in the North Georgia mountains, they’ll document your day to memorialize each moment.
