Five years after their wedding, Jody and Alex decided they wanted to celebrate their marriage all over again. This time, instead of planning another traditional event, they wanted the experience to be completely about the two of them.
I had actually known Jody and Alex for years before their safari vow renewal. They are from Minnesota, where I photograph weddings and couples when I am not working in South Africa. I photographed Alex’s surprise proposal to Jody, but I was already booked when their original wedding day arrived.
Five years later, they reached out with a completely different idea. They wanted to put their wedding clothes back on, travel to South Africa, and renew their vows during a luxury safari.
We planned a three-night stay at Lion Sands Ivory Lodge in Sabi Sands. Their experience included private game drives, beautiful wildlife sightings, a couples massage, photography, and an intimate vow exchange in the bush.
It gave them the chance to celebrate five years of marriage while also creating the kind of wedding experience they wished they could have had the first time around.
Why They Chose a Safari Vow Renewal
Jody and Alex had already experienced the traditional wedding day. For their fifth anniversary, they wanted something much more private and focused on their relationship.
A vow renewal gave them the freedom to keep the parts of a wedding they loved without having to recreate the entire event. Jody could wear her wedding dress again, Alex could put his suit back on, and they could exchange written vows without an audience or formal ceremony.
The rest of the trip could simply feel like a luxury vacation together.
This is one of the reasons I think safari works so well for vow renewals. The ceremony does not need to become the entire focus of the trip. It can be one meaningful part of several days spent enjoying the lodge, going on safari, relaxing together, and experiencing something completely different.
Three Nights at Lion Sands Ivory Lodge
Jody and Alex stayed for three nights at Lion Sands Ivory Lodge in Sabi Sands.
Their suite was beautiful and incredibly private, with a plunge pool overlooking the surrounding bush. It gave them somewhere luxurious to relax between game drives while still feeling completely connected to the reserve.
I coordinated the experience in the same all-inclusive way I plan my safari elopements. Their package included the lodge, meals, transfers, private safari vehicle, hair and makeup, flowers, photography, and the planning surrounding their vow-renewal day.
After flying into Johannesburg, their travel arrangements brought them into the Greater Kruger area. From there, a lodge transfer took them to Lion Sands.
Having those logistics coordinated ahead of time meant the experience could start as soon as they arrived.
If you are comparing luxury properties for your own trip, Lion Sands is also included in my guide to the best safari lodges for elopements in South Africa.
A Casual Couple Session Before the Vow Renewal
Because I was staying at the lodge with them, we were able to photograph more than just the vow-renewal day.
The afternoon before, Jody and Alex put on casual clothes and we did a relaxed couple session around the property and during safari.
They had cocktails together and we were even able to photograph them with giraffes in the background.
I loved having this extra session because the photographs felt completely different from what we created the following day. There were no wedding clothes or formal plans involved, so it felt much more like documenting part of their anniversary trip.
For couples doing a vow renewal, this can be such a fun addition. Not every photograph from the experience needs to look like a wedding portrait.
Getting Ready Together Five Years Later
On their vow-renewal day, Jody and Alex got ready together in their suite.
There was no need to hide from each other or create a traditional first look. Instead, they helped each other get dressed and enjoyed the process together.
Alex helped Jody with her dress while she helped him finish getting ready. After five years of marriage, it felt especially appropriate that the day began with the two of them side by side.
Jody kept the overall look simple and elegant. Her white dress worked beautifully against the safari landscape without competing with it.
The flowers also incorporated South African blooms that were available during their February stay, including proteas. The natural florals felt appropriate for the location and added color without making the experience feel overly styled.
A Private Vow Renewal in the South African Bush
Jody and Alex did not need an officiant for their vow renewal.
They had already legally married five years earlier, so this ceremony was simply an opportunity to make promises to each other again.
Both of them wrote personal vows beforehand. When the time came, they found a beautiful location in the reserve and exchanged them privately.
That simplicity is one of the things I love about a vow renewal.
There was no legal paperwork to complete and no traditional ceremony structure they needed to follow. The moment could simply be about reflecting on the marriage they had already built together and what they wanted for the years ahead.
February Brought Green Scenery, Rain and a Rainbow
Their vow renewal happened in February, which falls during the summer season in Sabi Sands.
The landscape was green and alive, and the warmer weather worked perfectly with the safari-lodge experience.
Later in the afternoon, a light rain started falling during golden hour. It was never enough to disrupt the experience, and the sun was still breaking through the clouds.
Then a rainbow appeared.
We were able to photograph Jody and Alex with the sun, rain, and rainbow all happening around them at the same time. Those images ended up looking completely different from anything we could have planned beforehand.
It is another reason I do not automatically consider summer rain a negative for safari weddings or vow renewals. Sometimes the weather creates the photographs you remember most.
If you are trying to choose a season, I go much deeper into this in my guide to the best time of year for a safari elopement in South Africa.
Giraffes, Elephants and Hippos Along the River
Wildlife was a huge part of their three-night experience.
They saw the Big Five along with giraffes, hippos, monkeys, and plenty of other animals throughout their stay.
During the vow-renewal day, we were able to photograph them with giraffes in the landscape. Another stop near the river gave us photographs with elephants in the background.
One elephant also came incredibly close to their suite during the stay.
Those moments were never staged or guaranteed. They simply happened while Jody and Alex were spending several days inside a private game reserve.
That is what makes wildlife such a memorable part of these experiences. The animals are not wedding props. You are spending your anniversary in their environment, and sometimes you happen to be in exactly the right place at the right time.
When Lions Blocked the Road Home
One of their most memorable game drives happened after dark.
We came across an entire pride of lions lying around the road. They were completely comfortable where they were and had no interest in moving simply because we wanted to get back to the lodge.
Dinner was going to have to wait.
Nobody cared.
Instead of worrying about being late, we sat there and watched the lions until we could eventually continue.
That experience captures something I love about private safari trips. The schedule matters, but wildlife sometimes gets the final say.
Missing part of dinner because a pride of lions has blocked your road is a pretty good problem to have on an anniversary trip.
Ending the Night in the Plunge Pool
Once the formal photographs were finished, Jody and Alex decided their wedding clothes had one more job.
They jumped into the plunge pool.
Still wearing the dress and suit.
It was spontaneous, hilarious, and such a fun way to end the night. After five years of marriage, there was no pressure to keep the wedding dress spotless or follow any traditional rules about what the evening was supposed to look like.
They were celebrating themselves, so they did exactly what sounded fun.
Those pool photographs ended up being some of the most playful images from the entire experience.
The Day After Their Vow Renewal
The celebration did not end once they changed out of their wedding clothes.
Jody and Alex still had time to enjoy Lion Sands, continue going on safari, and relax at the lodge.
They also had a couples massage after the vow renewal, which gave them a much slower day after all the excitement.
That is one of the biggest reasons I prefer multi-day safari experiences. You do not have to pack everything into a single wedding day and immediately leave the following morning.
There is time to enjoy the lodge before and after the ceremony.
Why a Safari Works So Well for a Vow Renewal
A vow renewal does not need to look like another wedding.
You have already had the ceremony, signed the paperwork, and celebrated with everyone. The second time around can be completely different.
For some couples, that might mean putting the wedding clothes back on. Others may choose something entirely new.
The ceremony can be as simple as writing new vows and sharing them privately somewhere meaningful. Afterward, the focus can return to the experience itself.
Safari works particularly well because there is already so much built into the trip. You have wildlife, luxury accommodation, game drives, beautiful landscapes, good food, and time together without needing to create a huge event around the vow renewal.
Jody and Alex summed it up afterward by telling me how incredible the experience had been. They even joked that they almost wished they had done something like this for their original wedding, although they were very happy they finally got to experience it for their fifth anniversary
Can a Vow Renewal Be All-Inclusive Too?
Absolutely.
There is no reason a vow renewal needs to become another project you have to plan by yourself.
For Jody and Alex, I arranged their lodging, transfers, hair and makeup, flowers, private game vehicle, photography, meals, and the logistics surrounding their stay.
The main difference from a legal safari wedding was that we did not need to coordinate marriage paperwork or an officiant.
Everything else could still be planned as a complete experience.
This is especially helpful for international couples who want to celebrate an anniversary in South Africa but do not know where to begin with choosing reserves, lodges, vendors, and transportation.
Do You Have to Wait for a Big Anniversary?
Not at all.
Jody and Alex chose their fifth anniversary because it felt meaningful to them, but there is no rule saying vow renewals only belong to couples celebrating 10, 20, or 25 years.
You might renew your vows because you want to mark an anniversary, because your original wedding did not feel like the experience you hoped for, or simply because your relationship has entered a new chapter.
Some couples also use a vow renewal as an excuse to finally take the destination trip they never had after their wedding.
The reason matters much less than what the experience means to you.
Planning a Safari Vow Renewal in South Africa
Jody and Alex had already experienced a traditional wedding. Five years later, their safari vow renewal gave them the chance to celebrate their marriage in a completely different way.
They wore their wedding clothes again, exchanged new vows, saw incredible wildlife, watched a rainbow appear during their portraits, relaxed at a luxury lodge, and ended the evening by jumping into their plunge pool.
There was no guest list to manage or formal reception schedule to follow. The entire three-night experience was built around the two of them.
If you love the idea of celebrating your marriage with something similar, my all-inclusive safari elopement packages can also be customized for a vow renewal.
You can also explore the full South Africa safari elopement experience to see how the multi-day stays work.
You do not need to know which lodge or reserve is right for you before reaching out. Tell me what you are celebrating and what you want the trip to feel like, and I can help build the experience around that.
