The Best Places to Elope in Muskoka
Cottage country two hours north of Toronto: granite, white pine, a thousand lakes, and grand old lodges. Ten places I take couples, all shot by me.
Muskoka is where Toronto goes to get married outdoors. Two hours north the city gives way to the Canadian Shield, granite and white pine and a thousand lakes, and in autumn the maples set the whole region on fire. I have photographed elopements across cottage country, and these are the places I take couples, from grand old lodges to raw provincial-park granite.
Every frame is mine, shot in Muskoka. Pick a base that fits the day you want and I will handle the rest.
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Killbear Provincial Park. Wind-bent white pines on pink granite over Georgian Bay, the Group of Seven landscape made real. The most iconic wild ceremony spot in the region and my first choice for raw Muskoka.
Killbear and the wild Georgian Bay
Killbear Provincial Park. Wind-bent white pines on pink granite over Georgian Bay, the Group of Seven landscape made real. The most iconic wild ceremony spot in the region and my first choice for raw Muskoka.
Sherwood Inn, Port Carling. A classic lakeside inn on Lake Joseph, white clapboard and Muskoka chairs at the water. The definitive cottage-country wedding setting, warm and self-contained.
Muskoka Soul / Cliff Bay, Gravenhurst. A private cliff over a quiet bay, dramatic rock and open water. For a couple who wants height and a bit of edge to the frame.
Northridge Inn, Sundridge. A boutique lakeside inn on Lake Bernard, understated and design-forward, with a long dock into still water.
Limberlost Forest and Wildlife Reserve, Huntsville. Ten thousand acres of protected forest, lakes, and trails near Huntsville. Genuine wilderness with the space to disappear into it.
The Wood House, Coldwater. An architectural forest home, timber and glass in the trees. A modern, intimate base for a small elopement in the woods.
Arowhon Pines, Algonquin Park. A storied log-lodge resort deep inside Algonquin, reachable by a dirt road and worth every kilometre. Old-Canada wilderness at its most romantic.
Trillium Resort and Spa, Port Sydney. A quiet resort on a small lake near Huntsville, gardens and forest and water. Calm and unhurried.
Severn Lodge, Port Severn. A historic Georgian Bay resort at the south end of Muskoka, docks and pines and sunset water. Easy to reach from Toronto and beautiful at golden hour.
Touchstone Resort, Bracebridge. A hillside resort over Lake Muskoka with wide views down the lake. Comfortable, scenic, and central to everything.
How I run a Muskoka elopement
Tell me whether you want a grand lodge or a bare granite point, a summer swim or October colour, and I will book it, plan the day around the light, handle the licence and officiant, and photograph and film the whole thing myself.
Twelve years and 240+ couples in, Muskoka is the classic Ontario wilderness elopement, and the couples who let me match the base to the feeling are the ones who got it right.
