If you'd like to bring witnesses along on your elopement, it's entirely up to you; a mini destination wedding has its own particular type of magic, and though your event won't be a complete secret, you'll still be minimizing the number of people who know about it in advance. The rule of thumb is 12 guests or less – more than a dozen people, and you're hosting a full-fledged destination wedding, not eloping.

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You can issue a handful of clandestine invitations or reach out to your prospective guests by phone or in person. Many online stationers will allow you to customize the wording of a standard wedding invitation to reflect an elopement, and can turn your order around quickly if you opt for rush delivery. We recommend having all of your travel plans and elopement details in place before you invite others so you can provide the information at the time the invitation is issued. You can outline the general information on an insert with the invite, including:

 

• General destination information

• Ceremony and celebration locations

• Local lodging options

• Level of event formality and/or dress code

• Request for discretion about your elopement plans
   

You're under no obligation to pay for guests' travel and lodging, but if it's within your spending limit, it's a thoughtful and considerate thing to offer.

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Get all the dos and don'ts of inviting guests to your elopement now!