A Spring Desert Adventure With Magical Sunrise And A Private Plane Ride

Alexandria and Michael came all the way from Germany for their Moab elopement and, boy, did they make the most of their time here!

By Vanessa & Chad; ‘The Outlovers’

15 January 2025

Gahhhhh, this day was full of pure magic and we couldn’t be happier for Alexandria and Michael!

When they started planning their elopement, Alex and Michael knew they wanted something BIG, something MEMORABLE, the experience of a LIFETIME. So, they decided to plan an international vacation from Germany to the southwestern US. They rented a motorhome and spent three weeks road-tripping around Arizona, Nevada and Utah, and they chose the Moab desert as the spot they wanted to get married.

We spent nearly 18 months planning this adventure with Alex and Michael, so when the day finally came around it honestly felt like we were hanging out with friends rather than strangers.

We kick-started their day by catching sunrise at one of our very favorite locations within Canyonlands National Park. It has the most incredible views out to the La Sal mountains and watching that soft morning light hitting the vast canyons around you is nothing short of magical. Alex and Michael had two friends join them, who kindly got up at the a**-crack of dawn to help them get ready, and then melted into the background so Alex and Michael could enjoy an intimate first look moment.

Alex and Michael were so comfortable and loving in each other’s presence we barely had to ‘pose’ them at all. Honestly, that’s our biggest mission: to create a space where you feel safe and comfortable to be your truest selves, whatever that may look like. We’re obsessed with the photos of them looking out towards sunrise, gently holding hands and enjoying the feel of that first morning light on their faces!

From there, we all headed out to another gem of a location in Moab. This one involved a bumpy car ride for a few miles, then an easy mile hike out to a killer viewpoint! The best locations might take a little extra effort but it’s ALWAYS worth it, not only for the views but also for the ultimate privacy.

With an enormous sandstone tower as their backdrop, Alexandria and Michael shared vows, exchanged rings and made it official! Their friends, who’d also traveled all the way from Germany to share in this moment, signed as their witnesses which was so meaningful.

In the afternoon of their elopement day, Alex and Michael chartered a private plane to take them out to the edge of a remote canyon with not another soul around for miles upon miles. They tucked into a picnic, read letters from family and enjoyed a romantic first dance. Like we said at the start… Magical.

We LOVE that they treated themselves to this plane excursion. It’s not as expensive as you might imagine (less than $1000 for the whole plane, and about a 3.5hr round trip), and it’s such a great way to really add a little something special – something you wouldn’t do on any old ordinary day – to make your elopement memorable and truly the experience of a lifetime.

To wrap up their incredible day Alex, Michael and their friends hit on one last location to enjoy sunset: everyone was pretty tired after their sunrise start so we kept it super low key, throwing out camp chairs and just soaking it all in one last time.

Congrats Alexandria and Michael, we hope our paths cross again one day whether it be here or in Germany!

We’re a husband and wife team offering elopement planning, photography and ceremony officiation, with an optional video add-on.

We are local to Utah and Colorado, and travel back to Vanessa’s home country of Scotland every year.

If the desert and the mountains sing to you, and you want to share vows against nature’s finest backdrops, we would love to create an epic elopement experience for you!

Get in touch to start brainstorming with us…

Chad & Vanessa, ‘The Outlovers’

Let’s do this thing!

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