wedding costs

[jediknight]

[This message has been edited by jediknight]

let me give you an idea of what i'm looking at for my wedding next year. keep in mind that the exchange rate plays a BIG part in your calculations. guys that have gotten married for under $2000 or $1000 may have done it when the dollar was close to $3000 pesos. a wedding that cost $2000 back then will now cost you $2500.

having said that, it also involves where the reception will be. including everything and i mean EVERYTHING for 100 people, except liquor and photographer, the prado comes to $2,200, the royal $2,020, american golf $1,935, casa ideal $1,410, barranquilla plaza $1,800, puerta del cielo $2,170. the liquor will depend on what we want, they like buchannan and old parr, that seems to be the expensive stuff. as far a photographer, that wont be too much so in barranquilla you can do this between $1,600 and $3,000.

the wedding dress may be rented, my fiancee doesn't see the need to buy or have one made since it cost alot more. the cost of flowers at the church will be divided among the 3-4 couples getting married that evening, weddings occur at night in barranquilla. the ceremony will be 45 minutes long so between 6-9pm there will be different weddings all using the same flowers, but the couples will coordinate ahead of time to choose the flowers and share the expense.

the prices above include food, served not buffet, cork fee, soda, waitstaff, table decorations(table cloths, seat covers etc) wedding cake, music, flowers at the reception, if at the hotels it includes the honeymoon suite for a night plus 3nights a year later for the anniversary and the IVA(tax)

the church will have air conditioning so that is extra but not much, i forget how much the church fee was, something like $80 with a/c, it may be more or less but i'll ask my fiancee.

the engagement ring was under $300, closer to $200 and my fiancee loved it. i had planned on $500-$600 but knowing where to go and speaking spanish helped, you can always talk someone down to a lower price in colombia, its expected, so do not accept the price they quote you, haggle the way the locals do.

all in all, this is dirt friggin cheap, for all that we are getting i don't know how anyone could say this is expensive
JK

[Heat]

... in response to wedding costs, posted by jediknight on Aug 29, 2005

Well Let me say this.   This all sound great if that's what you want but what's in it for YOU? This whole wedding thing is a bunch of crap if you ask me.  

Go ahead and flame me if you want but I would think that you could use this money to invest in the stock market or a down payment on a property.

Hey but maybe you make over six figures and you don't care.

Maybe then you won't have to work  until you are a hundred and five.

Just more chick brainwashing.  I would tell her size that puppy down to nice dinner and coke.  Slap her butt and tell her to start washing the laundry.

[Ray]

... in response to Re: wedding costs, posted by Heat on Aug 29, 2005

ROFL! You cheap-ass bastard!

Yes Heat, weddings are not on the typical man’s priority list. That’s why you can do a drive-thru wedding in Las Vegas and never get out of the car. I’m still waiting for them to open a drive-thru divorce court (LOL).

I tried the “Heat” wedding my first time through. This was many moons ago, but it cost me $14 ($4 for the license and $10 for the JOP at the city hall) in Las Vegas. The whole thing took about 30 minutes.

For the “reception”, we treated our two witnesses to lunch at one of the casino $1 buffets. Even if you throw in the cost of gas to drive to Vegas and back, with dinner at Jack-In-The-Box in Barstow, I still spent less than 40 bucks. What did I do with all that money I saved? I spent it all on beer and pissed it down the drain :-)

Ray

[Heat]

... in response to The "Heat" Wedding, posted by Ray on Aug 30, 2005

Well I didn't get rich by being stupid.  So I hate giving it some chick who has yet to prove herself.

I want something besides the cuca to seal the deal.

But I'm not cheap.  You are talking to the guy who had a penthouse in Cali for two years and lived the life of a dog in a slaughterhouse

I just love being a machismo Mother bucker.

LOL....

Best at Ray!  You always make me smile!

[jediknight]

... in response to Re: wedding costs, posted by Heat on Aug 29, 2005

i can afford a $3000 wedding, but i cannot afford one that is 30,40,90 thousand  dollars like the ones i've seen on bridezillas.
what's in it for me?  i don't do things to get something out of it, only a selfish person thinks that way. i do it because i want to please my fiancee. if you can't see beyond what is in it for you, then i can only feel pity for the woman that gets involved with you.
JK

[Hoda]

... in response to Re: wedding costs, posted by Heat on Aug 29, 2005

I have no reason to doubt that most men & DEFINITELY ALL THE FATHER-IN-LAWS in the world, would probably take a psss on the  whole wedding thing, if they had a choice :-) Weddings, are a woman thing! No disagreement with you there. But it's here to stay....so guys getting married whether here or anywhere are just gonna have to deal with it...

I told my daughter, that I wouldn't be upset in the least, if she decided to elope....shit, I'll buy the tickets to Vegas, no problema

[Ray]

... in response to wedding costs, posted by jediknight on Aug 29, 2005

Jed,

My experience was in another country but very similar.

When we married in the Philippines 5 years ago, we went first-class all the way. This was in a medium-sized town and we had the ceremony at the Catholic Cathedral where they will do a package deal including all flowers, decorations, organist, choir, an outstanding singer, etc.

We had the reception at the best hotel in town. The hotel has a wedding coordination staff that is superior in every sense.  We had a first-class five-course lunch with 210 guests, with soft drinks and beer, plus 3 roast pigs. We hired two “limos”, a van and car with drivers for the wedding party, the best photographer and videographer in town, and the best hair stylist/makeup “woman” (LOL).

The wedding gown, bridesmaid gowns for 5, flower girls’ dresses for 3, mom’s gown, and all the bridal accessories were custom made. The photos and video came out perfect and everything ran smoothly. Too bad the churches don’t have air-conditioning!

The total cost was right around USD $3,000. By comparison, my neighbor’s daughter had a very similar traditional Filipino wedding here in San Diego the same year, with about 300 guests, and they spent $42,000, or about 14 times what I spent. Even still, some guys say I spent too much (ROFL!).

Even in the larger cities in the Philippines, a first-class wedding with 300-400 guests will seldom go above $6,000. BTW, 200 guests is a “smaller” modest wedding by Filipino standards. One hundred guests would be a small private family gathering :-)

My personal view is that you should give your bride the best you can afford while trying to conform to the standards in her country. I think that the wedding day is much more important to most of these brides than they may be willing to admit. Don’t make them beg and grovel for a nice wedding! If you can afford it, do it right and consider it a bargain by American standards. If you’re really on a tight budget, let her work with a set amount and see how creative she can be. If she can do it her way, she will be happy and remember it forever.

Ray

[Looking4Wife]

... in response to wedding costs, posted by jediknight on Aug 29, 2005

You mentioned photos, but are you doing video as well... I was just curious, not so much about the cost, but if you were doing it at all?

[jediknight]

... in response to Are you doing video?, posted by Looking4Wife on Aug 29, 2005

not sure, maybe... but it is not a priority. if i feel that we've found someone professional and affordable then i will consider it, otherwise pictures will be enough. my fiancees cousin got married last year, had a video done and hated it, it wasn't lit properly so it came out dark and grainy. i would first look for someone that has had experience filming at the same church and same reception hall and see samples of their work.
JK

[Looking4Wife]

... in response to maybe, posted by jediknight on Aug 30, 2005

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[Looking4Wife]

... in response to wedding costs, posted by jediknight on Aug 29, 2005

Great Post!  Thanks for the detailed info.  I am still in the information gathering stage, but I will keep you posted on the details as things unfold.