Are you considering eloping at The Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah? We are Grace and Christian, a traveling husband wife adventure elopement photography and videography team that specializes in Utah and Arizona elopements! The Salt Flats is one of our favorite destinations, and were here to give you all of the info on how you can plan your elopement at the Bonneville Salt Flats!
The Bonneville Salt Flats are located about 2 hours from Salt Lake City, Utah, and yes – they literally are salt. As you walk on the flats, you can hear the crunch of the salt, and you'll definitely end up taking some home on the bottom of your shoes! You can even drive on the Salt Flats to a more remote spot for a private ceremony and portraits.
The Bonneville Salt Flats are the perfect place to elope! With the gorgeous Utah mountains in the background and the blank canvas landscape, you can design an elopement true to your style. The Bonneville Salt Flats also don't require any hiking! Surprisingly, there is a parking lot off of the highway with access to the Salt Flats, and there is even a public restroom.
CHOOSING YOUR DATE
Summers and the fall in Utah are the perfect time of year to elope at the Salt Flats! During these seasons, the Salt Flats are dry: meaning you can see the salt patterns and walk across the flats without worrying about any flooding. During the winter and spring, the Salt Flats are typically flooded. This is another stunning option if you love the look of the reflection of the water! When the Bonneville Salt Flats are flooded, it can be more muddy and messy, but if you're down for the adventure, you'll have no issues!
CHOOSING THE TIME OF DAY
Both sunrise and sunset are amazing times of day to elope at the Bonneville Salt Flats! Shooting near either of these "golden hours" will give you that soft morning light followed by golden rays as the sun comes up over the horizon. We are partial to sunset at the Salt Flats because the sun goes down over the mountain backdrop, so it looks AMAZING!
PERMITTING AT THE SALT FLATS
Permits are required in order to have your wedding or elopement at the Bonneville Salt Flats. You can find the special use permit HERE.
Before filing your permit, you will want to take a look at the Bonneville Salt Flats calendar of events to be sure no events are taking place on the date of your wedding.
MARRIAGE LICENSE
You will also of course need a marriage license in order to get married at the Salt Flats! You can apply for your Utah marriage license here. I did this when we got married in Utah and it was really easy to do online!
NAVIGATION: HOW TO GET TO THE BONNEVILLE SALT FLATS
In order to navigate to the Bonneville Salt Flats, you can use a GPS easily. You will type in "Bonneville Salt Flats Eastbound Rest Area," or you can use the coordinates: 70.73756 N, 113.85632 W.
WHERE TO STAY
We are big fans of AirBnB for elopements! There are so many beautiful, fun and unique AirBnBs that you can use for your elopement weekend stay near the Bonneville Salt Flats! You will want to look for AirBnB's that have a lot of natural light and space. That natural light will help take your photos to the next level!
If you want to stay closer to the Salt Flats, you can choose an AirBnB closer to Tooele County, Utah. Or, if you want access to restaurants, shopping and entertainment, you can stay closer to Salt Lake City! There are tons of options available for 2, and for more if you are having more of an intimate wedding with guests.
CLOSER TO THE SALT FLATS
SALT LAKE CITY
Bright and Airy Home (6 guests)
LOCAL VENDORS
Looking for local wedding vendors for your Bonneville Salt Flats elopement? Here are some options!
Forevermore Events - Planning, design and rentals (my wedding planner! she is AMAZING)
Utah Vintage Cars (worked with them in summer of 2022! They are wonderful)
Okay, are you totally sold on eloping at the Bonneville Salt Flats? Or maybe you have a few more questions before deciding on where to elope? We would love to hear from you, so reach out to us HERE!