Eloping instead of a big ceremony?

My fianceé and I were thinking of eloping to Hawaii and getting married there, instead of having a huge, expensive wedding here. Because we have a lot of family, and I feel like they will make the wedding more about them and not about us.
I know a lot of our family probably won't care, but i'm nervous about how some will react. I don't want to let anyone down, but at the same time it's our wedding day and we should be able to do what we want, right? 
Did you elope? What was your experience? Did your family care?