Taranaki Elopement on New Zealand's North Island

The short version

They came to Taranaki for the mountain. The mountain stayed home.

HuiQi and Victor flew across the world for a Taranaki elopement built around one view: Mount Taranaki standing behind them as they said their vows.

Then it rained. For three days. We did not see the mountain once. Not on our walks, not at the waterfalls, not during the ceremony. We knew it was back there somewhere, hidden in the cloud. We just had to take its word for it.

And it was one of the best elopements I have ever photographed.

HuiQi and Victor walking in the rain during their Taranaki elopement

Why here

Why Taranaki is a real one for an elopement

Taranaki is the part of New Zealand most couples drive past on their way to somewhere more famous, and that is exactly why I keep sending people there. One near-perfect volcano, a national park of dripping green forest wrapped around its base, a wild black-sand coast, and almost nobody around. You can have a waterfall to yourselves on a Tuesday.

For a Taranaki elopement it gives you range in a tiny radius: alpine ridges and suspension bridges up high, mossy goblin forest in the middle, mirror lakes and sea stacks down low. And because the whole region sits in the path of every weather system the Tasman Sea can throw at it, no two hours look the same. We had snow, hail, wind, sideways rain and, eventually, sunsets that made all of it worth it.

HuiQi and Victor laughing in the rain at their Taranaki elopement ceremony

What made this one

What I loved about HuiQi and Victor’s Taranaki elopement

Most couples would have spent three days refreshing the forecast and quietly panicking. HuiQi and Victor just decided the weather was part of it. Their ceremony happened under steady rain, the mountain completely gone behind the cloud, and they spent the whole thing laughing.

In between, we geeked out about Lord of the Rings the entire trip, which paid off later when we got to Hobbiton and lost our minds a little. We closed the first day with homemade burgers back at their place, soaked through and very happy.

My one regret is fully my own: I wore sandals. All three days. In the snow. I have never been so cold and I would do it again.

“We never saw the mountain. We knew it was there, behind the rain, watching them say yes. Somehow that was the whole point.”

Boots on the ground

My honest take on these Taranaki elopement locations

I plan and shoot these spots in every kind of weather, so here is what is actually worth your time, and what each one gives you on a grey day.

01

Dawson Falls and the Goblin Forest

An 18 metre waterfall ringed by ancient moss-covered totara and kamahi, the trees that give the Goblin Forest its name. The walk down takes about ten minutes and rain only makes it better here: more water over the falls, more drip and glow in the moss. This is the easiest place in Taranaki to feel like you have stepped into another world.

02

Lake Mangamahoe

On a clear day this is the classic Mount Taranaki reflection shot. On HuiQi and Victor’s day it was a moody mirror of cloud and bush, and I loved it more for it. We held the ceremony here at sunset, mountain fully hidden, and the light still broke through at the end. Park outside the gates and walk in.

03

The coast: Three Sisters and Waikawau Tunnel Beach

North of New Plymouth the coast turns dramatic. The Three Sisters sea stacks and Elephant Rock are best near low tide, and Waikawau is reached through a hand-dug tunnel that opens onto an almost private black-sand beach. We had our picnic here with the place entirely to ourselves. Check the tide times before you commit.

04

The Spellbound glow worm caves

A private tour through the Waitomo caves, drifting under a ceiling of thousands of glow worms on a silent underground river. It is genuinely one of the most surreal things you can do in New Zealand, and as a private experience it stays calm and intimate. A perfect rain-day plan, since you are underground anyway.

05

Hobbiton

If either of you loves Tolkien, build this in. After three days of talking about it non-stop, walking into the actual Shire was a real moment for all of us. It photographs beautifully and the set is kept in immaculate condition. Easily the most fun we had with a camera on the whole trip.

Taranaki elopement portrait of HuiQi and Victor in the forest

Taranaki elopement landscape on New Zealand's North Island

Leave No Trace

A three-day Taranaki elopement itinerary

Here is how the days actually flowed. I keep the exact spots vague on purpose. A lot of these places are small, fragile and quiet, and they stay that way when we do not pin them on a map. If you book with me, you get the full version.

Day oneNew Plymouth and the national park