How To Organise A Wedding Elopement In Christchurch, New Zealand In Three Weeks

We organized a spontaneous wedding elopement in Christchurch, New Zealand, in just three weeks. Our wedding was an elopement in the traditional sense of the word: just us, a celebrant, and two witnesses.

It was so easy and the best way we could’ve ever married, and we highly recommend it.

Our wedding was super-simple and chilled out, but intimate and just perfect for us. I’m sharing everything we did so you can do similar and plan your dream elopement wedding in New Zealand.

In this article

• What’s important for your wedding elopement?
• Choosing the right celebrant for you
• Popular locations around Christchurch, New Zealand for wedding elopements
• The paperwork and marriage license
• Bridal bouquet
• Wedding hair
• Wedding photographer
• Wedding rings
• Wedding dress and suit hire
• Where to stay and celebrate your wedding elopement
• Additional resources to help your Christchurch elopement
• Christchurch wedding elopement FAQs

What’s important for your wedding elopement?

The beauty of a wedding elopement, especially if it’s a true elopement (just the two of you) is that you have only two people to please.

Now is the time to get real about what you want your day to look like.

Stew and I decided the wedding essentials for us were:

• A celebrant we liked
• A beautiful venue
• A photographer
• Wedding rings

That’s all we needed.

However, the list grew to include

• Hired wedding attire because this was more practical than anything else. As we cycled around the world, we didn’t want to carry any extra clothes.
• Flowers were mostly for the pictures. I’m glad we decided to get flowers.
• Bridal hair and a haircut for Stew, so we looked and felt our best
• Accommodation for the night of the wedding to bring closure to the day. We weren’t going to bother with this, but I do think ending the day with dinner and a hotel room rounds the day off perfectly.

Choosing the right celebrant for you

The first thing you want to organise is your celebrant. The reason for this is that they will help you with everything you could ever need.

If you’ve got anything you’re unsure about or feel nervous about the process, the celebrant will put you at ease. After all, they do this all the time.

Most celebrants will meet with you via Zoom, or for a coffee if you’re in the area. The idea is that you can meet and see if you get on.

We tried to arrange calls with three celebrants, but as soon as we met Sean Joyce, we didn’t need to meet with anyone else.

Our chosen celebrant

Sean Joyce was our chosen celebrant. He was just lovely. I think we were his 701st wedding, so he’s well-versed in weddings. He was such a big help and made us feel super calm about the entire elopement wedding process.

Find Sean on Google

The reason why I was drawn to Sean was his reviews. A lot of people were saying things like

• “I can not speak highly enough of Sean.”
• “He made us feel relaxed.”
• “He assisted us every step of the way in planning our wedding from half a world away. “
• “Sean is a wonderful celebrant with a delightful sense of humour.”

Here’s the review that we left.

Popular locations around Christchurch, New Zealand, for wedding elopements

When we decided to marry in New Zealand, we had no idea where we’d do it.

We’ve now cycled the length of the country and can confirm it is the most beautiful country we’ve ever been to and we’ve cycled through 29 countries.

What I’m trying to say is you’re spoiled for choice.

We relied on Sean to suggest a location. He asked what we were after, and I said if I could get a balance of the outdoors, water and mountains, I’d be really happy.

He recommended The Sign of the Bellbird, and it was perfect for us.

The Sign of the Bellbird

The nice thing about The Sign of the Bellbird is that across the road, you’ve got John Jameson Lookout, which is stunning.

Here’s how it looks without the edits.

And here’s one of my favourite pictures (edited) from the wedding day. I saw something similar and wanted this image. I love it.

Aside from the gorgeous, gorgeous views, you’ve also got a shelter just in case the weather isn’t as perfect for you as it was for us. This is another reason why we chose this location.

See the building on the right? If it rained, we could’ve got shelter there. The building was built in 1914 as a rest house. For us, it made a really nice photoshoot! I’ll add some to the gallery so I don’t weigh this section of the article down with too many images.

On the way up to The Sign of the Bellbird you drive up the Port Hills and Sign of the Kiwi. To be honest, anywhere on Port Hills would be a dream.

Godley Heads

Godley Heads is a 37-minute drive from Christchurch even the drive past Lyttelton will be gorgeous!

It’s a perfect wedding venue thanks to its breathtaking coastal views. You’ll have a picturesque backdrop for beautiful wedding pictures and I’m pretty sure you’ll capture Lyttelton Harbour, too.

You can see some wedding photographs from the area here. I love the ruggedness of the New Zealand landscape against the feminine white bridal gown.

You can pretty much get married anywhere outdoors in New Zealand. It’s really amazing, and like I said earlier, it’s a beautiful country through and through. You can’t go wrong.

One thing to be mindful of: you can’t get married everywhere. Some places/locations are privately owned and may require additional planning for a wedding. You might need to pay a fee or ask permission.

The paperwork and marriage license

It’s so easy to organise the paperwork to get married in New Zealand. There are two phases:

1. The marriage license (permission to marry)
2. The marriage certificate (proof of marriage)

The marriage license

You apply for your marriage license online. It’s so simple. Fill out the form and wait three days.

There are two things to note:

• You must have your marriage license sorted three working days before you plan to marry. It takes three days to process. I suggest doing this a little earlier if you can.
• Once you’ve got the license, you must marry within three months because it expires.

The marriage license application is a series of very simple questions. You will know the answer to all of them. Examples of questions include

• The planned date of your marriage
• The location where you plan to marry
• Your celebrant name (they’ll be registered, so you’ll find them in a dropdown.)
• Your name and details, such as birth date
• Family details such as mother’s and father’s name

Nothing scary at all. Then, you pay online with a debit or credit card.

The marriage certificate

After your wedding, your celebrant will register your marriage.

You will need to visit Births, Deaths, and Marriages and order your marriage certificate. You can order your certificate online, or you can have it posted to your home for NZD $33.

We did post ours, it just makes sense to me that you’d post your marriage certificate, but I can’t lie; it’s not very beautiful. Just a basic certificate: plain boring on cheap A4 paper.

Bridal bouquet and buttonhole

I almost didn’t bother with flowers or a buttonhole. To be honest, I thought it was an unnecessary layer. This was my thinking until we tried on our wedding attire. The woman, Trudy, who fit our wedding attire, suggested that a bouquet and buttonhole would bring the outfits together and help the photography.

As soon as she said this, I could see the point.

You’re spoilt for choice when it comes to florists. In our typical practical approach, we picked a florist close to Port Hills and where we were staying (with our celebrant).

Our chosen florist was Foxglove Florist Cashmere. The owner there, Kath, is really lovely, and she did a beautiful bouquet and buttonhole at pretty short notice. She was also amazing when we had to rearrange our wedding due to a landslide at Haast Pass.

On Google, it says it’s closed, but they’re posting on Insta regularly, which makes me think Google is wrong.

Wedding hair

My wedding hair was perhaps the most important part for me. I can’t/don’t wear makeup and had no vision for my wedding dress.

If my hair looks good, I feel good.

I went for a half-up, half-down look, and again, being practical, I looked for a hairdresser close to the Port Hills.

My chosen hairdresser was Savvy Hair Design. Heather styled my hair, and she was amazingly patient! I have a lot of hair, and she did a great job.

The salon is super clean and tidy. The staff were really nice, and like the florist, Savvy was flexible when I had to change the date. In fact, they were very tolerant of my date changes and tardy replies! I contacted them and organised everything via their Facebook.

Wedding photographer

Our wedding photographer, Chris Jones, was amazing. He had such a good vision and helped me feel comfortable in front of the camera. I’ll add some of the pictures to the gallery.

He took a mixture of formal images alongside some fun ones. He even had us dancing outside!

I would recommend speaking with your celebrant about wedding photographers, as you might find it positive to work with two people who already vibe really well. Chris was Sean’s friend, and they’d worked together before. I think that dynamic played into the entire wedding, as everyone was so comfortable with each other.

We only experienced one photographer, so I can’t really make any recommendations, but a quick Google and you’ll find a load of options! Again, spoiled for choice

Wedding rings

We can give you a couple of options here and a strong preference. We went to two jewellers. Initially, we just wanted two wedding bands made with whatever gold from whatever jeweller.

We first visited Michael Hill Jewellers, then found ourselves in Goldfields, Queenstown, and I’m so glad we did!

It’s worth noting here that we sorted our rings and wedding attire in Queenstown since that’s where we were when we arranged everything. Goldfields are not in Christchurch, but Michael Hill is.

Goldfields, Queenstown

We ended up in Goldfields, Queenstown, by pure luck. Basically, we were advised to go to Michael Hill on Facebook (more on them below). We went to their store, picked out two rings and were ready.

The problem? Michael Hill could not resize the rings as they have a rule on how many sizes they’ll reduce a ring by. Knowing this was an issue for us, Michael Hill advised they sold us the ring, and we went to Goldfields to resize it.

We agreed this was a good idea, but before paying, we insisted we’d pop into Goldfields to make sure the ring could be resized by them.

As soon as we walked into the shop, we were met by a lovely woman behind the counter and a quaint jewellery store that was way more soulful.

We started talking about the ring size and got talking about rings, their rings, and buying the ring directly.

The nice thing about Goldfields is that they use New Zealand gold, so our wedding rings will forever have that very special memory in them.

The staff were lovely, and I felt like we were handing over our money to a small business, which felt good.

Trond, the Master Jeweller, made my ring from scratch and resized Stew’s chosen rings in a matter of days! He was amazing.

When the rings were made, I panicked that mine was too small. It wasn’t.

Trond and the team were super calm about this and suggested that I wear the ring for a few days and come back for a resize/stretch if it needed it. As I’m quite sure they expected, the ring did not need a resize, and it fits beautifully.

I am so glad that we ended up in Goldfields. I often look at my ring and think how special it is to be made locally and with New Zealand gold. We’re not the only people to love them, reviewers say:

• “Absolutely incredible for ring resizing.”
• “The craftsmanship and attention to detail displayed in the [wedding] rings are truly remarkable”
• “I came away with a ring I’m excited to wear for the rest of my life.”

Here’s the review we left.

Michael Hill Jewellers

Michael Hill Jewellers was recommended to us via Facebook groups in the area. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t have anything negative to say about Michael Hill. We just didn’t love it.

The staff were nice, the jewellery was nice, and we felt we were in good hands there, but as a jewellery chain, it didn’t quite have the magic that Goldfields did.

The salesman was patient with us and let us try on different rings. He was nice and quite funny, too.

I have no complaints about this jeweller and wouldn’t not recommend it, but let’s say we’re glad we ended up in Goldfields.

I had a quick look at Goldfield’s reviews versus Michael Hill, and people are a lot happier at Goldfields.

Goldfields have 37 reviews and 4.7 stars, whereas Michael Hill have 34 reviews and only 3.5 stars.

Wedding dress and suit hire

Wedding dress and suit hire might be where our journeys are quite different because Stew and I travel by bicycle.

Our bicycle travel meant that we would arrive in Christchurch way too close to our wedding date to be faffing around with dress and suit hire, so we organised everything in Queenstown and shipped our attire to Christchurch.

We went to Nemo Workroom.

We found the staff at Nemo were really nice. I emailed them in the morning, and they booked us in for a fitting at 2 pm.

Trudy handled everything, and I found her to be so helpful. She really made our wedding pictures lovely. I was honestly going to attend my own wedding in a pair of black Keen sandals until Trudy made me try on a pair of white shoes, which obviously elevated the outfit; what was I even thinking?

It was also Trudy’s advice that made me order flowers, and I’m so glad I did. These little touches, thanks to Trudy, made the day, and I think about that quite a lot.

Because we were travelling by bike and didn’t want to carry any wedding attire or additional clothes, we hired everything: a top and skirt, Stew’s suit, and shoes for the two of us. Trudy organised postage to where we stayed in Cashmere; everything was a breeze. She handled a return label and made everything easy to return.

When asked what I needed, I said:

• A practical style skirt or dress that I could easily walk in since we were getting married on the hills.
• Something with sleeves to cover my awful cycling tan!

The selection at Nemo, I felt, was quite small, but I found what I needed, and I felt really good in it on the day. The seamstress at Nemo had to extend the skirt a bit and did a great job, too.

The only downside of hiring everything in Queenstown was that we had to pay extra for the hire since it was being shipped. We paid a day and a half. This was a very reasonable request, of course, but if I had more time, I would’ve shopped around some more.

For those with time, I also contacted To Cherish, a bridal outlet store where you can buy dresses for as little as NZD $650. I didn’t have the time to risk it, but the team seemed nice via email. They are based in Christchurch, so it’ll be worth popping in if you’ve got the luxury of time.

One tip for visiting Nemo: if you’re at the other end of Queenstown, as we were, do not get in a taxi! It cost $40, and the bus was about $4! With the spontaneity of everything, we got the taxi for convenience, but if I had known the price, there’s no way I would’ve done that.

Where to stay and celebrate your wedding elopement

Originally, we planned to get married and then cycle to our next destination. But, we felt that the day needed some closure, so we booked a hotel for a three-course meal and cocktails.

We were glad we did!

Carnmore Hotel, Christchurch

The hotel we chose was Carnmore Hotel. We picked it mainly because they had a tasty-looking restaurant, the Hoi Polloi Bar and Bistro. To be fair, the restaurant and the staff there were absolutely delightful.

You’ve got to remember we had just eloped, so we turned up at this hotel in our wedding attire and were the only people dressed like that. We didn’t want to remove our lovely clothes so we went to the bar in them!

The staff had left us a note and some chocolate as a welcome/congratulations gift, which was a really nice touch.

We started with cocktails and some snacks from the bar menu, which, from memory, were a little cheaper during Happy Hour. Everything was perfect.

Some of the waitresses asked if we were just married and clapped excitedly when we confirmed we were. They bought over cake and a free cocktail, which really made our night.

Dinner was delicious. It was the sharing dish that got our attention. That is basically why we booked here, to be honest! It included an eight-hour slow-roasted Lumina lamb shoulder, and it was as good as it sounds.

Breakfast the next day was really great, and the same staff greeted us as the night before. It was a really lovely experience, to be honest.

To be honest, I probably wouldn’t recommend people go to this hotel after a wedding. I don’t have a single negative word to say about it. It’s lovely and clean, and the staff really made the experience. We had a few conversations with other diners, too. Naturally, you attract a lot of attention in bridal dresses and suits!

The thing is, this hotel is very much more of a business hotel, and the vibe, in general, isn’t quite right for a wedding. As we were cycling around the world, we didn’t think our wedding hotel would matter too much to us; we stayed in hotels every night.

In hindsight, the hotel on the wedding night is important. I recommend going all-in!

I’m happy to share Carnmore Hotel here because it was part of our experience, but here are a couple of other places you could go.

The Mayfair

The Mayfair looks lovely! It’s really well-reviewed, with an overall score of 9.2 from 852 guest reviewers, not bad! Reviews on Google are just as good.

It looks cosy and comfortable. Plus, there’s a bar with great cocktails, too!

When we were booking our hotel, one of the things we wanted was a good bar for drinks. What more would you want?

One reviewer who stayed after her wedding said, “I stayed at the Mayfair after my wedding and they absolutely spoilt us! We had a lovely cake waiting for us in our room, alongside a card signed by all staff. Made us feel so special. The downstairs cafe/bar is so lively too, with great coffee and cocktails.”

Sudima Hotel, Christchurch City

Sudima Hotel could be a perfect hotel to celebrate an elopement. It’s got fancy suites, good food and a relaxing vibe.

It’s a five-star boutique hotel, and if you stay a few nights, you can enjoy the spa on-site. The spa is described as relaxing and fantastic, and one reviewer said the spa treatments are some of the best they’ve had.

Although not a wedding, one couple recommended this hotel for their wedding anniversary. They said, “We stayed in an executive suite for our wedding anniversary, and we both really enjoyed our stay. The food was lovely, very nice menu. Very good value for money and brilliant service. Total relaxation.”

Good food and total relaxation sounds pretty good to me!

Additional resources to help your Christchurch elopement

There are loads of online resources about eloping in Christchurch, so you’ll find answers to all your questions.

One resource I found especially useful was this Facebook group: Christchurch Brides & Grooms NZ Ideas, Advice & Support.

Sean, our celebrant told us about this and kindly dropped a request in there on our behalf before we even told him he was hired. The comments were just lovely and one woman even offered me, a total stranger, a veil if I wanted to borrow it.