Eloping in Austria: Beautiful snow chaos in a winter wonderland
Sometimes, life doesn’t go to plan. But often, it still ends up perfectly beautiful! This is the story of Mona’s and Lukas’ incredible elopement in Austria.
Our initial plan was to shoot the first look close to the hotel. Then, we planned to drive to the registry office in Hall in Tirol for the ceremony. Perfect, because this would mean we could spend some time in the cute city, visit a café for a little break and some cute pictures, and then visit the Dalfazer waterfall. We chose this place for the couple to exchange their vows as it’s absolutely wonderful. Then, we’d take the Karwendel railway up up up to the top of the mountain to see the sunset and hike back down in the dark. We planned to wear head torches and were hoping to take some epic pictures with the starry sky in the background. So much for our plan. The day before, it started to snow. And it kept snowing and snowing - everything turned into a magical winter wonderland. It looked absolutely incredible but of course, this meant a change of plans. We kept brainstorming for alternatives but we couldn’t make a final decision yet because we had no idea what the next day would be like.
We didn’t sleep much and got up at 6 AM to check out the situation. Many people were already in the streets, busy to free the streets from the impressive 50 cm of fresh snow. I went with the cliche thinking the bride would take significantly longer to get ready. Therefore, I went over to the groom to shoot some get-ready pictures. Attaching his suspenders was a bigger challenge than expected. When I got to see the bride, her hair and makeup were done already, and she simply threw her dress on within 2 minutes - damn those cliches got stuck in our heads deeper than one might think…
The bride voiced some concerns that with the weather, we possibly wouldn’t be able to stick to the original plan. Luckily, I had plan B (and a plan C, just in case…) figured out already. We packed our things and started shooting the First Look in front of the hotel. Lukas was waiting for Mona with an umbrella and the two of them looked at each other for the first time in the middle of a snowstorm - what a surreal and beautiful scene!
Our way to Hall wasn’t an easy one. Multiple times, we got stuck in traffic and the original appointment had to be postponed by 30 minutes, all because of the snow. But we made it! The registry office in Hall is one of the oldest in Austria and a stunning location with old, painted wooden benches. After the short ceremony, we returned to Pertisau and started our planned hike.
Mona and Lukas took their dog Carlos, who was mostly covered in snow. Every once in a while, he would hop out of the snow, shake it all off, and give us a little laugh. We walked 1,5 h in knee deep snow, a magical experience! When we arrived at the waterfall, it looked straight from a fairytale: The trees wore little hats of snow and sparkled against the sky. Noone else was around. We built a little plateau in this sea of snow and started shooting. Mona was brave enough to take off her jacket to let the beautiful dress have its moment! She looked stunning! Lukas’ light coloured suit looked wonderful against the snow as well. This was the perfect place for their vows. Both had prepared their parts in little books and gave each other an emotional speech on what they love about their partner. It got quite emotional and there were tears involved… Damn I had to fight them back as well. Meanwhile, dog Carlos found a cozy spot on Mona’s dress, a beautiful picture. The newlywed pair with their dog in front of an icy waterfall in the snow.
Every time I witness a moment like this, it all makes sense: Planning multiple scenarios, creating a perfect scene for the couple and giving them time and space to exchange their vows and fully enjoy this wonderful moment!
Even the weather played its part: During the vows, it stopped snowing and fog and clouds made space for the stunning view of the Achensee. Even though it was almost too beautiful to leave, we decided to head back to warm up a little. It started snowing again. After this long march, dog Carlos was tired, so we dropped him at the hotel for a nap, got changed into dry shoes and headed to Pertisau. Here, a very special surprise awaited Mona and Lukas. On this very special day, I handed them over a little letter with the gender of their baby! Of course, they celebrated with alcohol free prosecco. And we had to shoot some pictures here as well before we warmed up with some hot cocoa and some apple pie. The two finished off their day with a tasty dinner to talk about the day and its little adventures.
Even though the initial conditions didn’t look promising, the two got to spend a wonderful day in a very special winter wonderland. We even managed to incorporate the hike and see the waterfall. The fairytale view couldn’t have been any better! Especially when deciding to elope in the mountains, it can get even more adventurous than expected. Planning ahead is important but keeping your plans flexible will allow you to go with the flow and embrace the beauty of the moment as our couple did.
