I sometimes can’t believe it took me this long to blog Nik & Tani’s gorgeous Twin Lakes Wedding. They did the small intimate wedding thing before it was cool to do so. It was a rare warmish fall day with not a cloud in the sky - so gorgeous.

Nik and Tani are Miami natives like me, who took a chance on Colorado and also just got married while living out here. Their wedding was full of memories from home - spanglish, dancing, big emotions - all of the things that I miss about Miami.

They decided to get married at the Wolf Den, an amazing airbnb with stunning views of Mt. Elbert that occasionally allows for small intimate elopements. The Wolf Den is located right in the heart of Twin Lakes, and a 25 minute drive from Leadville. During the summer months, Aspen is about an hour away via Independence Pass, which is a scenic and gorgeous drive. And of course, Buena Vista, which is one of my personal favorites, is about 30 minutes away and another great option for fun outdoor activities in the summer.

This area, while beautiful, is not for the faint of heart. The airbnb sits right at 10,000 feet, so if you decide to elope from sea level, you might want to spend a few days in Denver acclimating, since altitude sickness is no joke!

Nik and Tani each got ready in separate parts of the house (with their adorable golden doodle Donut!) and saw each other for the first time walking down the aisle. Nik seeing Tani for the first time all dressed up is one of my favorite photos of all time. She was stunning, and he was so emotional, it brought tears to my eyes.

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Whenever I think of Kat & Rich’s wedding last February, I think of the last wedding I shot before everything changed. Masks weren’t mandated, people practiced closeness and not social distancing, we weren’t all obsessed with using hand sanitizer every 5 minutes. Times were way less stressful, all things considered, and I haven’t shot a wedding with more than 30 people since.

Their wedding was at the Sonnenalp in Vail and is a must do if you haven’t been. They are born and bred Miami folks, like me, but wanted something drastically different for their wedding. Colorado is near and dear to them, so it was a no brainer to pick one of the most beautiful mountain towns in our state. They are both nurses, and have had a crazy 2020 (as you can imagine), so I was sooo glad I got to capture this momentous and beautiful time in their lives before everything seemed to hit the fan.

We started the day getting ready in the beautiful rooms at the Sonnenalp, then we crossed the street to the beautiful Vail Chapel, and then came back over for a lovely reception/amazing dance party at Ludwigs.

Getting Married at the Sonnenalp

The Sonnenalp in Vail is a beautiful Bavarian inspired luxury hotel in the heart of Vail Village. It is about a 2 hour drive from Denver, maybe 2.5 from DIA. There are things to do here year round - in the summer you can have a swim in their outdoor pool, go on countless hikes, grab a bike and go mountain or road biking, or just have a spa day. In the winter, you are walking distance to the slopes, so if you are an avid skiier or snowboarder this is the place for your winter wedding!

One of the best things about getting married at the Sonnenalp in Vail is that you have several choices when it comes to where you have your ceremony. You can cross the street (yes, literally just walk about 30 feet) and have your ceremony in the Vail chapel, on the lawn just behind the Sonnenalp, or take all of your guests up the gondola and have your ceremony on the Vail Wedding Deck (like this one I photographed)!

For the party portion of the evening, you can host at either Ludwigs (up to 100), which has these gorgeous floor to ceiling windows and doors that can open in summer and allow that fresh summer mountain air in, or if you have more than 100 you can host up to 160 in the gorgeous Grand Bravaria restaurant.

If you chose the Sonnenalp for your wedding, you’ll have endless amounts of activities for your guests to do, and no shortage of pampering within the hotel itself!