Missing couple found safe in WA after eloping to outback

The couple had last been seen eloping to Kalgoorlie in the Kimberly region. Photo / Facebook.com

The desperate hunt for German newlyweds missing in the Australian outback has been called off, after the couple phoned police.

Nathalie, 26, and Benjamin Kress, 29, had eloped to Kalgoorlie-Boulder and had last been seen on July 21.

A friend of the couple said the pair were due to return to be heading home to Germany. Photo / Instagram.com

They were identified in a photo from Kalgoorlie Weddings and Events which had been posted to Facebook, captioned: "Today could not have been any more gorgeous for this Young German Couple Tying the Knot in Australia."

They had told family they would be driving through Western Australia on the Gibb River road, according to NCA NewsWire, but since then they had not made contact for two weeks.

After sparking a nation-wide campaign to locate the pair, the couple responded their own missing persons notice calling police on Thursday to confirm they were both well and would turn themselves in at the next police station.

Mid week Elopement ✨ Today could not have been any more gorgeous for this Young German Couple Tying the Knot in Australia 🇦🇺 👌🏼👏🏻

Posted by Kalgoorlie Weddings & Event Hire on Wednesday, 8 July 2020

Friends of the couple had expressed their concern.

"Everyone is so, so worried," wrote Don Gungey, who posted a missing persons photo to Instagram.

"Can everyone please share the photo. I'm so worried and concerned about my dear friends. Cheers everyone and please, please keep an eye out."

Nathalie and Benjamin had been due back in Perth and had been planning to return to Germany.

Nathalie, pictured, was last seen with Benjamin on July 21, after eloping to a town in Western Australia. Photo / Instagram

The Gibb River Road is a 660km route inland from the Kimberly region, popular with 4x4 drivers. However it is not to be undertaken lightly, with experience and a more heavy duty car than the couple's Nissan Patrol recommended.

Phone reception is lacking in some stretches, which might not excuse the couple's lack of communication. Though it was fair for the eloping German tourists to say they had "lost themselves" in the outback when they contacted WA police about their missing persons notice.