Dubai: Inflation is adding its own costs to hosting a wedding in Dubai - but for the couples and their families there is no holding back as the city reinforces its status as the place to do big budget nuptials.

In fact, this Eid and the coming weeks will see more of them before the wedding season slows down - slightly - for summer. For now, though, it’s all about booking venues, hotels in full, and splurging on trousseau and jewellery in Dubai.

“We raised our prices slightly due to inflationary measures compared to pre-pandemic charges,” said Stefanie Heller, Managing Director of Jam Events, Entertainment and Weddings. “However, people are willing to pay any amount to have their dream come true.”

On average, this year, couples (or their families) are spending a minimum of Dh150,000 for a basic wedding. Mid-sized wedding dos start at Dh400,000 - and cross over into the Dh700,000 range. And then there are, of course, the uber-expensive ones.

“The most expensive wedding I threw post-pandemic was for a Bangladeshi family,” said Stefanie. “They spent Dh5 million on a four-day wedding party at the Four Seasons Hotel in Dubai.”

This wedding season, Stefanie organised 50 events, of which more than 20 were mid-sized in scale. And the next season is looking just as good, with market feedback saying that all the major venues are already fully booked from November to March next year. It sure does help to plan to advance…

Full backing from Dubai Tourism

Geography is also having a hand in stoking the boom in Dubai/UAE hosting weddings planned down to the last detail. Then, there is the already established ‘infrastructure’ - hotels and ballrooms - that come across as a major factor in helping couples decide where to get hitched.

Laila Suhail, CEO of Strategic Alliances and Partnerships Sector at Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism, said, “Dubai is home to more than 794 hotels, providing the perfect stay and space for guests to celebrate their union.”

According to Laila, “Since the pandemic, there has been an increasing demand for more intimate weddings, ranging from 50-100 guests. Same with larger scale weddings.

“While Dubai caters to each couple’s budgets, in general, we are not seeing any tightening of budgets with couples keen to leverage the emirate’s value-for-money offerings.”

Europe’s loss works to UAE’s gains

There are other advantages that are working in UAE’s favour. “There is still an ongoing struggle to get visas to Europe,” said Ronika Jinadra, founder of Awesome Events. “However, such issues don’t exist in the UAE.

“This is a huge blessing for cross-cultural weddings like Indian ot Pakistani weddings.”

Moreover, under the new expat family laws, couples of mixed faiths can obtain a civil wedding license in 24 hours. “The new law allowing non-resident couples to get a civil marriage in Dubai is transforming the UAE into something of a major attraction for quick-decision weddings,” said Stefanie.

More to follow...