Moraine Park Amphitheater Micro Wedding - 2025 Guide
A wedding couple outside of Moraine Park amphitheater.
Published 1/2/21. Updated 2/22/25.
Everything You Need To Know & Updated For 2025:
A Beautiful Amphitheater In The Heart Of Rocky Mountain National Park
Photos by partner company Colorado Photographer Squad
The amphitheater next to Moraine Park is perfect for a Colorado micro wedding. Standing in Moraine Park itself, you are surrounded by meadow and mountain as far as the eye can see. Glaciers once occupied much of this valley, carving its wide floor and then retreating west to carve the jagged peaks you see in the distance. The result is this big vista that brings invokes peace and the desire to breathe a bit more slowly and take it all in.
A great place for after-ceremony photos, Moraine Park is just a two-minute drive from Moraine Park Amphitheater where you can have your ceremony. Then hop over to romp and play in the meadow with this amazing backdrop for “just the two of you” photos. Take in the beauty of Rocky Mountain National Park as you let “Wow, we’re married” settle in…
I’m Lisa Hunter - wedding officiant, elopement expert and mountain girl at heart - and my team has been taking couples to elope at Sprague Lake for more than a decade now. We love guiding these gorgeous and heartfelt mini adventures, and if you want to know all about Sprague Lake, you’ll find every detail below!
With Love,
Officiant Lisa
Table Of Contents
Spotlight: Our latest trail notes from the amphitheater
Best time to elope at Moraine Park Amphitheater
Laws, Rules, Permits & Fees
All the details about the location itself
A Moraine Park Amphitheater micro wedding photo story
Local tips and tricks for the amphitheater
Our Moraine Park Amphitheater micro wedding packages
February 2025 Spotlight: Boho Micro Wedding
(After the spotlight, read on for my comprehensive Moraine Park Amphitheater Micro Wedding Guide & Packages)
Our Latest Trail Notes From Moraine Park Amphitheater
Here’s a little peek at a summer micro wedding at the amphitheater to inspire ideas for decor. Many of our couple have the ceremony very simply without any kind of decoration because the forest is so beautiful on its own. And, it also dresses up nicely when you add a bit of your style - in this case, Kassie and her mom created this bohemian backdrop, and what fun to have a ceremony in front of it!
Kassie & Brock brought around 25 friends and family members with them, and not only did they have beautiful decor, we also planted a baby seedling tree into a pot to symbolize the care and nurture of their marriage to come. They’ll continue to tend to the tree over the years and eventually plant it in the ground back home when it’s ready.
Did You Know?
Moraine Park Amphitheater is one of the few spots in Rocky Mountain National Park where you can set up an arch like Kassie & Brock have for their ceremony. Chairs and structures are not allowed on most RMNP land. That’s just one of the things that make the amphitheater such a cool spot for a micro wedding.
Moraine Park Amphitheater
Micro Wedding Guide & Packages For 2025
Let’s Start With The Best Time To Elope At Moraine Park Amphitheater
Best Time Of Day
As always, the two hours after sunrise and the two hours before sunset are the golden hour for photos with light that is the most soft, dreamy and romantic. The two hours before sunset is our default best time, and even though the amphitheater is surrounded by trees, the setting sun shines between them creating all sorts of light magic in the ceremony circle. We don’t typically see sunrise ceremonies at the amphitheater because, if you think about it, who wants to wake their entire group of guests in the middle of the night to get the ceremony spot before sunrise. Lol.
Best Time Of Year
I recommend mid-June through mid-October as the best time to elope at Moraine Park Amphitheater simply because that is when the weather is most stable with warm temperatures and really nothing to consider but afternoon thunderstorms that move quickly through. Come late October and all the way through early June, the weather can be quite variable with anything from sunny and warm to rain to snowstorms and everything in between.
Another amphitheater perk is that you don’t have to worry about crowds since it’s a private spot, so eloping during busy park seasons won’t affect your intimate experience at the amphitheater. The one thing to think about though - the lines at the entrance station! Long lines during busy season are not uncommon, so for that reason you may choose to elope during a slower time in the park.
Also, here are the perks and challenges that each specific season brings at Moraine Park Amphitheater…
Spring
Typically March through end of May to mid-June. You can see in this photo that late spring brings so much water melting and rivers flowing that the meadows are a bright lush green.
Summer
Typically Mid-June through mid to end of August. Summer and warmer temps mean that the shaded amphitheater circle is cooler than the surrounding area. Not bad to have mother nature on your side if it happens to be a hot sweltering day!
Fall
Typically early September through mid November. Fall can be bright, sunny and warm or it can bring rain and a chill. Luckily, our photographers have clear umbrellas so the photos are still sweet and picturesque. The great thing about rain is that it saturates the colors in nature, so the tree bark is a nice deep orange and the ground is a rich brown.
Winter
No snow in this colder weather shot! Colorado winters don’t mean all snow all the time. It usually comes and goes and sometimes doesn’t stay around too long because of all the sun. How nice of this couple to have warm green blankets on hand for their guests to snuggle up in.
Laws, Rules, Permits & Fees For Sprague Lake
Legal and Permit Requirements For Sprague Lake & Rocky Mountain National Park
RMNP Wedding Permit: You need this permit to have a wedding ceremony in the park. I am an official RMNP vendor, so I’m able to get and issue your permit for you, plus it’s $300 when you apply yourself, but is included in your elopement package with us for a much lower fee. You can apply for an RMNP permit here or I’ll do it for you!
RMNP Photography Permit: Make sure you work with a photographer who has an RMNP photography permit. For my packages, all of the photographers from the photography company I’m partnered with already have their permits in place.
RMNP Timed Entry Permit: You need this permit to get through the entrance station. RMNP has timed entry to assure that a steady flow of visitors enters the park throughout the day, rather than a big glob all at once. This minimizes lines at the entrance station. You can learn all about timed entry here, or if you work with my team, we have a wonderful step-by-step document with all the tips to ensure you acquire your timed entry permit in a timely fashion because it can be a little bit like trying to get popular rock concert tickets ;)
RMNP Entrance Fees: You’ll pay a small amount to get your Timed Entry Permit, plus know that you’ll still also need to pay the entrance fee itself at the entrance station. A one-day pass for each vehicle is $30 and a 7-day pass for each vehicle is $35. We always have our couples do a practice drive the day before their elopement, so we recommend getting the 7-day pass when you do your practice drive, then use that same pass on your elopement day.
Marriage License: If you want to sign your license with an officiant or self-solemnize on your day, you’ll need to obtain and bring your Colorado marriage license. You can read highly detailed Colorado marriage license guide here, plus download a PDF with the step-by-step to get and sign your license.
All The Deets About The Location Itself
All The Deets
Best Time Of Year: Mid-June through Early October is ideal for weather, but it is also accessible year-round.
Group Size: Just the two of you, or bring a micro wedding of the two of you plus up to 26 guests.
The Drive: The Rocky Mountain National Park entrance is a 20-minute to 45-minute drive from Estes Park depending on traffic, then another 10 to 45-minutes drive from the entrance to Moraine Park Amphitheater and Moraine Park itself.
The Walk: It’s just a walk from a parking lot to Moraine Park Amphitheater for your ceremony, and then Moraine Park is accessible from the road for after-ceremony photos. You’ll want comfortable shoes to walk in the meadow for after-ceremony pics and you can wear your fancy wedding shoes for the ceremony itself.
The Amphitheater
The amphitheater itself is such a sweet spot. A mini venue right in the middle of Rocky Mountain National Park! It doesn’t get better than that when you want a micro wedding with a substantial number of guests. Wedding venues in Colorado typically cost thousands and thousands of dollars, but here we have a quintessential Colorado nature venue for the cost of the $300 RMNP wedding permit. (And if you elope with one of our packages, that cost of the permit is even less!)
After-Ceremony Photos At Moraine Park
There are more than enough beautiful photos to take in the amphitheater itself, and then often couples like to schedule additional photo time to head across the road to Moraine Park for a romantic “just the two of them” portrait shoot. This basically means romping in the meadows and next to the river while the sun sets and the iconic Rocky Mountains are your backdrop. It’s a nice combo to pair with your photos at the amphitheater.
Photo Story: Krista & Kreg’s Magical Summery Micro Wedding
The Ceremony At The Amphitheater
Photo from the Rocky Mountain National Park website.
Additional Photo Shoot At Moraine Park
Moraine Park Amphitheater meadow after the wedding.
Other Fave Views At Moraine Park
Here’s another photo shoot at Moraine Park when the sunset was simply blowing us away…
Walk a little farther into Moraine Park and you get to explore dreamy meadows, flowing rivers, little forests and even wildflowers if the season is right. A playground for your romantic portrait shoot!
Sweet romantic moment in the meadow.
Explore The Meadow
There are several paths and bridges to explore and wander as your photographer takes pics. You get to just have fun and enjoy the beautiful view…
Light rain didn’t stop the beautiful views.
And… the kiss :)
Local Tips & Tricks For A Moraine Park Amphitheater Micro Wedding
Date Timing
Moraine Park is a very busy part of the park, so planning your elopement or micro wedding on a weekday is ideal if you can. And super early in the morning or near sunset are quiet times in the park, plus also the best time for photography and light.
Cell Service Tip
It’s good to know that once you drive about 5 minutes into the park from the Beaver Meadows entrance, you’ll lose cell signal, then it’s another 20 minutes to Sprague where there is mostly no cell service.
A nice benefit is that you won’t have your cell phone to distract you from all the fab nature, but make sure that you take care of all your communications with officiant, photographer and guests before you enter the park, plus make sure that everyone has great driving directions because if they get lost they won’t be able to call you.
Park Wedding Permit Tip
Due to high volumes of visitors to the park each year, the park has limited the number of weddings to 250 max in 2025 and only so many weddings can happen at each spot on any given day.
So you want to apply for your park permit sooner than later. Permits cost $300, and you can either apply yourselves here or secure a package with us and we’ll do it all for you - we can obtain your permit within a week because of our relationship with the park, plus we’ll pay for it too!
Photos by partner company Colorado Photographer Squad
To see other elopements at this location: Moraine Park Amphitheater Summer Magic
Meet the officiants and photographers who I’m partnered with Here
Moraine Park Amphitheater Elopement Packages
You can read all about our Colorado Elopement Packages at this link here where you’ll find detailed information about how we support you every step of the way in the months and weeks before your elopement, plus guide you for the smoothest, easiest and most beautiful experience on the day-of.
Our Sprague Lake packages not only include all of our typical elopement package services, they also include all our local intel for lodging and dining in Estes Park, plus step-by-step how-to’s for worry-free entry into Rocky Mountain National Park and your RMNP wedding permit is included since I’m a vendor with the park. Or, if you’ve already got your RMNP wedding permit, that works as well!
Officiant Lisa- your elopement guide.
Let’s make it happen!
Hey it’s Lisa :) I’m an officiant, elopement expert and mountain girl at heart. I can’t wait to tell you all about these sweet mini adventures and how it all works.
Reach out using this handy form and I’ll send all the info to make your elopement day real, see if we’re a fit and hop on a call to lay out your dream day and package quote. Can’t wait to get to know you!
