Intimate Elopement in Crete Balos Lagoon With a Sailboat – Crete Wedding Videographer

Last Autumn I had the pleasure of becoming friends with two romantic adventurous souls, getting to know them while filming their destination wedding in Crete. Their love story is as unique as they are. Jumi is from the Philippines and Greg is from Brooklyn, New York. They both are food and travel bloggers, living an unconventional life fueled by their shared passions. The couple decided to organize an intimate elopement in Crete reaching Balos Lagoon with a Sailboat. The decision to get married in Crete was very special for them, as it was an opportunity for Greg to introduce Jumi to Crete, an island very close to Greg’s heart. It was also Jumi’s first time traveling to Greece, and the start of their new chapter in life together. I was delighted they had invited me to be their Crete Wedding Videographer and tell the story of their elopement wedding in the picturesque Balos Lagoon.

If you haven’t already enjoyed my other intimate Greece wedding videos in Santorini, Anafi, Kythnos or Paxos go have a look. But first, you should press play right above and watch this emotional story in Crete.

Crete Is Made For Incredible Destination Weddings  

Crete is a destination for the senses. As the largest island in Greece, it boasts a mix of beautiful white sand beaches, stunning mountains for hiking and caves of mythic proportions. Growing up in Greece, I have always enjoyed travelling back to Crete, and Chania is one of my favorite towns where I have spent several summer holidays with my friends. It truly is one of the most beautiful and unique spots of Crete.

Chania sits on the northwest coast of Crete, and is famous for its narrow streets, 14th-century Venetian harbor, and waterfront restaurants. It is filled with historical influence, from a 16th-century lighthouse at the harbor entrance with Venetian, Egyptian and Ottoman influences, to the former monastery of St. Francis which houses the Archaeological Museum of Chania.

Although Chania can be very touristic at times, Anna, the founder and head wedding planner for Crete for Love, still managed to organize a private elopement for Jumi and Greg on this incredible plateau overlooking the Balos lagoon beach. The location was breathtaking, a real gem where you feel connected with nature. There is something unique about Balos, some kind of energy that you feel there. It is an absolutely adventurous and picturesque location for an intimate destination elopement in Crete. 

Crete Wedding Videographer: The Story

Jumi and Greg met seven years ago in New York City just after hurricane Sandy. Greg had just returned from his first trip to Crete three months earlier. Their relationship is rooted in the fact that they balance and complement each other so well. Greg has a very calm personality, which has helped keep Jumi at ease throughout their relationship, and Jumi has really brought Greg out of his shell, introducing him to passions he didn’t know he had. Together they’ve travelled to 19 countries and both feel a deep desire to live life in the moment. They really support one another, pushing each other to reach their dreams. Their next steps in life are to travel full time while chasing their passions of travel, filming and food. Greg’s special connect to the island, mixed with their passions, makes Crete the perfect location for their destination wedding.

Eloping On The Coast Of Crete: Balos Lagoon Wedding

The couple discovered my wedding videography online and loved the storytelling approach of my videos, contacting me shortly after to capture their elopement in Crete. I first met them over Skype where we had a long friendly video call discussing their plans about eloping in Crete around the end of September. We met in Chania the day before the elopement, chatted about their love story and why they decided to elope instead of doing a traditional wedding in New York.

Although the weather was too windy the day before their ceremony in Crete, on the day of it was sunny and quite hot under the Cretan sun. There were no guests apart from myself, the photographer and the planner’s team. We started the day on a small sailboat together, sailing from the small port of Kissamos. Thankfully the weather was perfect for sailing. Living in Greece and working all over the Greek Islands for destination weddings I have found myself filming on boats many times. I always enjoy it because you can connect more with the sea and the Greek nature. It is a very characteristic space of our country and it makes you feel free.

We took a lovely tour of the area by boat, making our first stop at the island of Gramvoussa. Afterward we ate a special lunch the skipper had cooked for us with great Cretan delicacies that both Jumi and Greg appreciated as food experts. They then got dressed in two different rooms of the sailboat and had a romantic first look on the boat  as we neared their elopement location in the hills above the Balos lagoon. It is a unique beach in the northwest part of Crete, characterized by turquoise water & white sand. Access is difficult because you either need to hike (after a 20 minute drive on a bumpy road – a 4×4 is recommended) or sail to the location.

Luckily for us the skipper took us to the shore with a small boat, and we then hiked to the location on foot. You need to be somewhat fit to hike for 45 minutes under the Cretan sun in the afternoon, but it is fully worth it. The view from the spot was amazing and it would become especially unique at sunset. Other tourists hiking from the beach stopped by to admire the couple and the fact that they would be exchanging vows surrounded by nature, but they were also respectful not to disturb the ceremony.

Jumi and Greg were both very laid back, but started feeling more nervous and excited as the moment of the actual ceremony arrived. It was definitely the emotional peak of the day, and one of my favourite moments was hearing their emotional vows right before sunset. Jumi and Greg both got tearful as they shared their vows. Jumi’s vows were exceptionally romantic, sharing with Greg, “You may be a tiny speck of dust in the universe, in this world, but to me you are my world, my home and my adventure, all at once…I vow to go to the ends of the earth with you. We are a team today, tomorrow and always”.

When Clients Become Friends

Later that evening I was honoured to be their only guest for dinner back in Chania after the day was finished. Yes, just the three of us! We had so much fun, a great time discussing our passions and of course we enjoyed delicious food. I think this was really the moment I realized we had become friends that day.

I truly loved working with Jumi and Greg as their wedding Videographer in Crete, and they are definitely my ideal type of couple. Being creatives they think outside the box and gave me the artistic freedom to create something special without any constraints or stereotypes. We also have in common the fact that we have opted to quit a secure office job to follow our mutual passions in life. Because life is short and you should enjoy it.

Jumi and Greg may do everything differently, but they do it well thought out and consistently.  Following their passions and making a profession out of it, they have finally started to host food tours in New York in their free time and regularly blog about their passions. Today, almost 6 months after their wedding they are ready to quit everything and travel to Asia.

I am very happy to call these two my friends.

Planning an elopement in Crete

If you are planning a destination wedding in Crete then finding an amazing team of professionals to help you pull it off is very important. Anna’s team at Crete For Love were very professional and helpful with everything, and as a Crete wedding videographer I was extremely grateful for this. Andreas Markakis, the photographer, was also very professional and discreet while capturing Jumi and Greg’s idyllic Crete wedding. We were very coordinated and we never got in each other’s way. I suggest that you check them out. They are both great people and I would really enjoy working alongside them again in the future as a Wedding Videographer in Crete.

Although I am not a destination wedding photographer, I always love to use a combination of frames from my videos, thumbnails and my pictures to tell the story. All the video frames featured in this article are part of the film.

Destination Wedding Video in Crete

I feel really blessed to be a destination wedding videographer. To be able to travel to iconic places in the Greek Islands, and to film in breathtaking locations overlooking the Aegean sea, like Balos Lagoon. It is amazing to meet new people and to tell the love stories of adventurous couples that decide to get married in Crete. Be it in Chania Harbour, Cretan winery  or the Aradena gorge. The island is full of amazing elopement locations! Feel free to check out some of my other destination wedding films, and go through their complete stories. 

Are you planning to get married in Crete or simply eloping there? I would love to be your wedding videographer in Crete. Having my base in Greece, I can be there in a blink of an eye. Let’s start planning to create some magic for your wedding in Crete, together.