How to Plan a Thousand Islands Elopement
The international border, the Ontario and New York rules, boat access, and building the day around the river. The full sequence, and the part I run for you.
Couples plan a Thousand Islands elopement like any other Ontario day.
Then they hit the one thing no other Canadian destination has: a border running through the channels.
The first decision is which side of the border your ceremony is on, and it shapes everything after.
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For an Ontario ceremony you need an Ontario licence, about $145, no waiting period. For a ceremony at Boldt Castle on the American side, New York State rules apply and you and your guests need passports. Make that call first.
The border and the licence
For an Ontario ceremony you need an Ontario licence, about $145, no waiting period. For a ceremony at Boldt Castle on the American side, New York State rules apply and you and your guests need passports. Make that call first.
An Ontario officiant experienced with boat-access and waterfront ceremonies is the standard choice on the Canadian side.
The day around the water
A common structure is a shoreline or estate ceremony, then a boat excursion to the islands for portraits in the long golden river light. The charter and the dock logistics shape the timing, and the water adds a weather dependency, so I build in buffer.
The sequence I run
Confirm the day first, then the officiant, then lodging, then the boat, then details. Reverse it and the border and charter windows start dictating everything.
My part: I settle the border question, plan the sequence, charter the boat, file the permits, and both photograph and film the day. Twelve years and 240+ couples in, the couples who ran it in order found even the border straightforward.
See how the tiers cover planning, boats, permits, photo, and video →
