Cabins & Airbnbs to Elope or Get Married at in Red River Gorge, Kentucky
Cabins & Airbnbs to Elope at in Red River Gorge
One question I get the more I photograph weddings in Red River Gorge is, “Where can we have our wedding?!” A lot of the couples I work with aren’t having big weddings, so they don’t need a whole wedding venue, but they still want a place to get ready or a place for their families to stay. Or they’re eloping in Red River Gorge and need a little cabin!
A cabin can be super nice to have, even if it’s just for you and your partner. Make a mini-honeymoon out of it! Another thing: a cute airbnb can double as a rain backup plan - it’s nice to have a backup plan to ease your mind!
I’ve even had a couple decide to have their wedding at a cabin because 1) they didn’t want their families to have to hike out to the remote spot that we were taking photos 2) It was hot! Or too stormy 3) If they’re having a small-er wedding, they want to have all their guests in one place in able to spend more time with them.
While I’ve done some research and a lot of reaching out to airbnb hosts to find the cabins will allow elopements and small weddings, please double-check with the hosts to make sure nothing has changed, especially if you’re planning on having more than just a couple of people there. Some places will only allow elopements or for the couple to get ready there or charge a fee if it becomes an “event venue”.
(I’m hoping to grow this list over the next few years, if you have an airbnb in Red River Gorge that allows weddings, shoot me an email. hello@kendrafarrisphotography.com. I really want to highlight hosts that actually live out in the gorge!)
Red River Gorge Treehouses & Dome Town Treehouse by Canopy Crew
Let me tell ya - these treehouses are incredible! If you’re afraid of heights, skip it, but if you want to feel high up in the trees and surrounded by greenery, this is the place. Dome Town has multiple places to stay — it’s 3 little domes in a canopy of trees! You could rent out an individual dome for you and your partner, or the whole place for your family and friends.
This spot makes a unique and gorgeous backdrop for your vows, getting ready or couple portraits (or all three!). The wedding I did there was rainy and I was jealous of everyone who got to stay there & fall asleep to the sound of the rain on the domes.
Blog Post: Sydney & Spencer’s Treehouse Wedding
Website: Red River Gorgeous Treehouses & Cliffhouses
Instagram: Red River Gorgeous
*photo from Red River Gorgeous Cabin’s Website
One more: this is a newer treehouse in the cliffs (or Cliffhouse, I should say!) called Sandstone Drifter - would also be such a cool spot for an elopement!
Instagram: Red River Roost Cabin Rentals
Booking Link: Website for Red River Roost Cabin Rentals
Big Boulder Cabin by Stay Over
Sydney and Spencer, the couple featured above, had a tiny wedding ceremony on the porch at Big Boulder Cabin out in Red River Gorge. The porch provided protection from the rain and was also the perfect size for about 20 people to cozy up together! It’s right down the road from the treehouses, so it made everything super convenient.
It also has a huge living room space, which was perfect for everyone to celebrate together with cake and pizza from Miguels Pizza (of course!).
Stay Over Cabin Rentals has a lot of cabins, so you can book through the same company if you end up needing more than just one cabin for your family and friends to stay.
Booking Link: Stay Over Website All Cabin Rentals
Booking Link: Big Boulder Cabin
*photos provided by the airbnb host
Hideaway Falls
This spot looks like the cutest little cabin to have a tiny wedding or elopement! It’s perfect if you just want a spot for the two of you to stay and you could make a honeymoon out of it, too. There’s even a waterfall on the property, so you wouldn’t have to even leave the location if you wanted to have your elopement there! It’s such a dreamy spot.
Pleasssee someone hire me to shoot their wedding here, I’ve been dying to do an elopement there for years!
Instagram: @hideawayfalls
Airbnb Link: Click Here
photos of Trent & I by the wonderful Kylie Jade Photo!
Cozy Creek Cabin by Stay Over
Speaking from experience, this is one of my favorite spots to stay in the gorge! I almost didn’t include it because I don’t want it to be booked up when I need it - ha- but alas, I’d love to take photos here too, so I suppose I’ll share it. ;)
Trent and I actually got ready here for our little vow renewal in fall of 2023, it’s such a cute little spot. The area surrounding the cabin is really peaceful and quiet and makes a perfect backdrop - which is great if it’s raining too hard to go on a hike but you want to run out for a few quick photos. There’s even a waterfall that I’ve hiked to from the cabin before!
I will say, this cabin is tiny, and there’s no running water and just an outhouse so it’s not the most glamorous honeymoon spot! But if you want to get ready together and have a peaceful spot to take photos, this is great.
Cabin Rental Link: Cozy Creek Cabin
*photos provided by airbnb host
The Manor House
This place is huge! What a perfect spot to have your family and/or friends come together to celebrate. Everyone could stay at the house together. There’s also some beautiful views so you could get married on the actual property. Up to 16 people can stay here, so there’s plenty of room! Pets are allowed too, which is pretty sweet. The host has multiple other cabins nearby as well, so you could even have more guests stay.
Airbnb Link: Click Here
Indian Creek Lodge in Frenchburg
Indian Creek Lodge is another great big cabin that I’ve done several weddings at now! Like the Manor House, it sleeps a lot (20 people to be exact) and would be the perfect place to hangout with your loved ones for the weekend. There are also multiple covered porches which is a great backup plan to a rainy or a hot day. It’s handicap friendly and there are multiple locations that you could pick to have your ceremony. Oh and there are beautiful views of the cliffs all around!
Heads up for my pet loving couples (which is most of you all lol!): no pets allowed here which is a bummer. Frenchburg is also quite a drive from a lot of the popular arches and hiking spots in Red River Gorge. It does provide a beautiful scenic backdrop of the gorge, but keep in mind that if you want to get on any trails, it’ll probably be at least an hour drive.
Cabin Booking Link: Click Here
Kelly & Rick’s Wedding at Indian Creek Lodge: Click here
Devin & Kyle’s Wedding at Indian Creek Lodge: Click here
I also did a wedding in 2023 at Forest View Lodge, which is close to Indian Creek Lodge & has a similar vibe!
Cliffview Resort & Lodge
I photographed Tiffany and Norman’s wedding here back in 2022 (still need to blog that one!) and it was beautiful. There’s a lake close to the lodge that offers a pretty spot for photos. There’s lots of room in the lodge for guests to stay, though it’s not too big and still feels quaint. I will say that it’s not the most private spot as the zip lines are right next to the ceremony spot, but if you want a convenient place with lots to do and individual rooms for all your guests, it’s a great spot.
Cliffivew also has many other cabins as well as an event reception hall space. You could do a big cabin for the ceremony, then the reception hall for the party, which is what Bailey & Colin did, check out their wedding here: A Small Wedding in Red River Gorge
Cliffview Resort, Red River Gorge: Wedding Info Website
Other Location(s)
I will be working at Hemlock Springs soon so I will update this blog when I have the photos!
Elope in the Gorge on a Trail (or in a Waterfall)
Are you wanting to be right in the middle of nature for your elopement? Maybe a cabin wedding isn’t your thing or you’re planning on having the celebration just be between the two of you. If you’re wanting to elope off the beaten path, hit me up!
A mix of 35mm film photos & digital from Fran & Andrew’s and Madeline & Kady’s elopements. We went to multiple beautiful, peaceful locations in Red River Gorge and found a private spots for them to read their vows without having to hike more than 2-3 miles total. This has been a popular request from my couples lately and it’s so much fun, reach out to me to book yours!