The Family Who Eloped in the Margaret River Karri Forest
James, Sarah and their son Arlo — a Margaret River elopement at Boranup Forest, 19 November 2025
James and Sarah got married on a Wednesday in late spring, in the middle of a karri forest, with their little boy Arlo watching from the front row. It was a Margaret River elopement in the truest sense of the word. No guest list. No reception venue. No spreadsheet of RSVPs. Just the three of them, a celebrant named Kate, and the tall karris of Boranup Forest holding the light while they said their vows.
Then a drive to the coast for golden hour, and a slow dinner back at their accommodation. Everything organised, weeks ahead, before they even arrived in the region.
Here’s what the whole day looked like, in a short film.
For another real Boranup Forest elopement story, see James and Gunan’s day.
The Day, In One Sentence
James and Sarah eloped in Margaret River on 19 November 2025 with their son Arlo. Their day began at La Foret Enchantee, moved to Boranup Forest for the ceremony with celebrant Kate, and finished with coastal portraits at golden hour. They booked the Dream Day package — one payment covers celebrant, flowers, hair and makeup, photography, video, and two nights of accommodation.
Getting Ready at La Foret Enchantee
The morning started at La Foret Enchantee, a five-star secluded retreat on a nine-acre private estate along the banks of the Margaret River itself. Karri trees behind the property, still water reflecting the sky, a bit of the world where phones stop mattering.
Why we chose a private estate for morning prep
Getting ready somewhere quiet matters more than most couples realise. Hotel rooms and Airbnbs on busy streets create noise, interruption, and a fragmented feeling to the morning. A private estate with grounds you can walk on gives you a slower start. Sarah did her hair and makeup on the veranda with a coffee. James wandered the property with Arlo. Nothing rushed. Nothing performative. Just a couple getting ready to get married on their own time.
The advantage of pre-ceremony portraits on-site
Because the property itself is beautiful, we shot pre-ceremony portraits without going anywhere. That’s a genuine operational win for an elopement day. It means no travel between getting-ready and portrait locations, which strips out roughly 45 minutes of logistics and keeps the couple relaxed. The suits laid out on the couch, Sarah’s shoes by the window, Arlo eating breakfast in his tiny linen jacket — all of it photographed in the same building we started the day in.
The Ceremony at Boranup Forest
From La Foret Enchantee, we drove south down Caves Road to Boranup Karri Forest. Kate was already there, set up in a clearing under the karris. She’s the celebrant I book for most of my Margaret River elopements, and she’s genuinely brilliant — warm with couples, technically precise with the paperwork, and she reads a room in seconds.
Why the karri forest suits any weather
Boranup is one of the most photogenic ceremony locations in the entire Margaret River region, and its biggest strength is that it works in any weather. Karri trees are so tall , some over 60 metres, that they change the quality of the light on you completely. On a bright sunny day, the canopy diffuses the harshness into soft dappled light.
On an overcast day, the greens and browns of the understory glow. In light rain, the tree trunks take on a luminous depth that most photographers describe as impossible to replicate elsewhere. For a ceremony in November, when the weather can shift from perfect blue skies to sudden showers, Boranup is one of the few locations that doesn’t rely on a specific forecast.
Working with celebrant Kate
The ceremony ran about 20 minutes. Personal vows, a short reading, the legal register signed on a piece of red jarrah bench under the trees. Arlo held Sarah’s bouquet for a moment before wandering off to look at some ferns, which felt exactly right. Kate had pre-organised the meet time and the exact clearing location with me weeks in advance. That’s how these days flow when someone’s coordinating the whole thing.
How ceremony permits work at Boranup
Boranup Karri Forest sits within the Leeuwin-Naturaliste National Park, which is managed by the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DBCA). Couples don’t pay a gathering fee for their ceremony, but every commercial vendor working the day — photographer, videographer, celebrant when operating commercially — needs an active Commercial Operations Licence and minimum ten million dollars of public liability insurance. That’s part of what “handling the paperwork” means when I coordinate an elopement. Couples don’t need to know how DBCA licensing works. They just need to arrive.
Golden Hour on the Coast
After the ceremony and portraits in Boranup, we drove out to the coast. For James and Sarah, that meant a west-facing beach for golden hour. Which specific beach depends entirely on what the day is doing.
Choosing the right beach for the day’s wind
I’ve lived in Margaret River long enough to know which beach offers protection from the wind on any given day, and which one catches the sun best at golden hour. This isn’t marketing language. It’s a practical decision I make on the morning of every wedding, checking wind direction, swell reports and cloud cover before choosing where we’ll finish the day. On a southerly wind, the sheltered bays up north work better. On a northerly, the west-facing beaches further south stay calm. This is one of the genuine reasons couples book a photographer who lives locally rather than one who drives down from Perth.
Redgate, Gnarabup, Bunker Bay, Sugarloaf Rock
The four coastal locations I rotate between for elopement portraits are Redgate Beach, Gnarabup Beach, Bunker Bay and Sugarloaf Rock. Redgate and Gnarabup sit close together on the Central Coastal Corridor, both managed by the Shire of Augusta-Margaret River. Bunker Bay and Sugarloaf Rock are up in the Northern Coastal Corridor near Dunsborough, in Bunker Bay’s case within the City of Busselton, and in Sugarloaf Rock’s case within DBCA jurisdiction as part of the Leeuwin-Naturaliste National Park. Each has different wind exposure, different light angles, and different visual character. Choosing between them is the daily decision that separates local expertise from a rehearsed shot list.
Working backward from sunset
Every elopement timeline I build starts with the sunset time and works backward. In late November, sunset in Margaret River sits around 7:15pm. Golden hour — the hour of soft, warm, low light that photographs like nothing else — starts around 6:15pm. James, Sarah and Arlo arrived at the coast around 6pm, giving them 75 minutes of the best light of the day before the sun dropped behind the ocean. That’s not a rushed portrait session. That’s a slow, unhurried, walk-along-the-sand portrait session with plenty of time to just be together.
What the Dream Day Package Included for James, Sarah & Arlo
James and Sarah booked the Dream Day package, which is my all-inclusive Margaret River elopement offer. One payment covers the whole team. I book every vendor, I pay every vendor, I organise every piece of paperwork. Here’s what that meant for their day specifically:
- 3.5 hours of photography plus video highlights — the coverage that captured everything you just watched in the film above
- Registered marriage celebrant (Kate) — including NOIM lodgement, ceremony writing, and legal registration with BDM WA
- Ceremony flowers — Sarah’s bouquet and James’s boutonniere, chosen to suit a forest ceremony
- Hair and makeup for Sarah — done on-site at La Foret Enchantee
- Two nights of accommodation at La Foret Enchantee — arrival the night before, wedding day, and the morning after
- Access to 4WD-only ceremony and portrait locations — including the coastal spots most other photographers can’t drive to
- Complete permit coordination — with the DBCA for Boranup and the Shire of Augusta-Margaret River for the beach permits
- Weather contingency planning — a backup indoor ceremony option agreed in advance
- A printed piece of wall art from the day — delivered after the wedding for their home
The price for the Dream Day package on Monday to Thursday elopements is $5,800 plus GST. Weekend elopements are available on request. Every element of the day above sits inside that single payment. There are no extra vendor invoices, no gap payments, no chasing suppliers for confirmation. That’s what “one payment covers everything” actually means in practice.
A Family Elopement — Including Children on the Day
Including Arlo in the day was one of the reasons James and Sarah chose an elopement rather than a bigger wedding. He’d have been overwhelmed by a full guest list. But at a quiet ceremony in a forest, with just his parents and one celebrant, he was completely himself.
Why elopements suit families with young children
Elopements are short — usually 3 to 4 hours from ceremony to portraits. That’s about the length of a good afternoon at a park with a toddler. Compare that to a traditional wedding day, which runs 8 to 12 hours from getting ready through the reception, and includes long periods where a child is expected to sit quietly, wait between courses, or entertain themselves during speeches. The elopement structure is genuinely better designed for family participation. There’s less pressure, less waiting, and the parents can actually be present with their child rather than being pulled in twenty directions by hosting duties.
Location choices that work for kids
Not every Margaret River ceremony location suits young children. Exposed clifftops like Sugarloaf Rock and Cape Leeuwin have steep drop-offs and strong swells — beautiful for portraits, but they need close supervision if a small child is present. Sheltered forest sites like Boranup and calm coastal bays like Meelup Beach and Bunker Bay work much better for family elopements because the terrain is safer, restrooms are usually nearby, and the acoustic environment is calmer. Choosing the right location for the child’s age is one of the small planning details I handle as part of the coordination.
Planning Your Own Margaret River Elopement
If James, Sarah and Arlo’s day looks like the kind of wedding you’d want for yourselves, the Dream Day package is the fastest way to arrange it. One conversation, one contract, one payment. I coordinate the celebrant, the florist, the hair and makeup artist, the accommodation booking, the permits, the timeline, and every vendor communication between them. You choose the ceremony location together with me based on your wedding date, wind forecast, and personal preference. Then you show up and get married.
Ready for your own Margaret River elopement? Learn more with our full guide to eloping in Margaret River.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does a Margaret River elopement actually look like on the day?
A Margaret River elopement typically follows a Two-Location Narrative Arc: a morning of getting ready at private accommodation, a mid-afternoon ceremony in Boranup Karri Forest or a coastal landmark, and golden hour portraits at a west-facing beach. James, Sarah and Arlo’s day used this exact structure. All-inclusive packages like the Dream Day handle every vendor booking so the couple just arrives and gets married.
Can you get married at Boranup Forest?
Yes. Boranup Karri Forest sits within the Leeuwin-Naturaliste National Park and is managed by the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DBCA). Couples can hold a ceremony there without a gathering fee, but hired vendors must carry active Commercial Operations Licences and public liability insurance. John Rice Photographer holds current DBCA commercial licensing for ceremony coverage across the region.
How much does an all-inclusive Margaret River elopement cost?
All-inclusive Margaret River elopement packages typically range from $4,500 to $12,000+ depending on inclusions. The Dream Day package sits at $5,800 plus GST for Monday to Thursday elopements. It covers 3.5 hours of photography, video highlights, celebrant, flowers, hair and makeup, two nights of accommodation, and access to 4WD-only ceremony locations. Weekend elopements are available on request.
Can Perth couples elope in Margaret River?
Yes. Perth couples make up around 70% of Margaret River elopements. The drive is approximately 270 kilometres south via the Forrest Highway and Bussell Highway, taking about three hours. The Notice of Intended Marriage (NOIM) can be signed in Perth or remotely via video consultation with a Margaret River celebrant before travel. Two nights of accommodation are usually recommended.
Can you elope with a young child in Margaret River?
Absolutely. Family elopements with young children work well in Margaret River because the day is short, the vendor team is small, and location choices can be tailored to the child’s age. Sheltered forest ceremony sites like Boranup and calm coastal bays like Meelup avoid the safety concerns of exposed clifftops. Extended family can join for a micro-wedding structure if desired.
What are the best coastal locations for elopement portraits in Margaret River?
The best coastal portrait locations depend on wind direction on the day. Redgate Beach and Gnarabup Beach face west and catch strong golden hour light. Bunker Bay and Meelup Beach in the Northern Coastal Corridor offer sheltered bays for windier days. Sugarloaf Rock provides dramatic granite outcrops. Local photographers who live in Margaret River choose between these based on daily conditions.
How far in advance do you need to book a Margaret River elopement?
Legally, the Notice of Intended Marriage (NOIM) must be lodged with a registered celebrant at least one calendar month before the ceremony date under the Marriage Act 1961. Operationally, popular elopement dates in the Margaret River region book 6 to 12 months in advance, particularly for shoulder-season weeks in October, November, March and April.
What is included in the Dream Day elopement package?
The Dream Day package includes 3.5 hours of photography and video highlights, a registered marriage celebrant, ceremony flowers, hair and makeup for one partner, two nights of accommodation, access to exclusive 4WD-only ceremony locations, complete vendor coordination and permit handling, and a printed piece of wall art from the day. Monday to Thursday elopements are priced at $5,800 plus GST.
