Is this wedding too expensive?

Question

Okay so i am having my wedding in Natchitoches Louisiana, the entire wedding is going to cost $5,000. The $5,000 is going to cover EVERYTHING. Cake, decorations, all of the rentals- stuff like china, water glasses table cloths, 10 tables, 100 chairs, a climate controlled lit tent for outside, completely renting out the entire bed and breakfast for two nights breakfast included. The bed and breakfast has 5 rooms in the house and a garden suite that sleeps six people! And we get it all, plus breakfast provided access to all of the grounds, the house rental fee is $2000. I thought that was cool, food is going to be $900 and rentals $900 as well. Some people in the grooms side of the family think that this is too much to spend on our wedding. I have tried to explain to them that most weddings these days cost $10,000 or up. What do you think ladies, and if it is okay please include how much you spent/spending on your wedding. Thanks! :)

Answer 1

That sound like a very luxurious wedding, for an amazing price!  You should be proud of yourself for planning such a lovely event for your guests and not even spending close to what the average wedding costs these days (I know it's like $27,000 in Canada).

Now people are entitled to spend as much or as little on their wedding as they want, but it's always great to get a good deal and have a lovely event on budget.

I think the only thing you need to worry about is having the wedding you can afford.  If you can afford this wedding, then it isn't too expensive.  I can see family worrying about newlyweds starting off in debt or something, but as long as you are fine for paying for everything, then enjoy your day and tell your family to rest-assured about the budget!

Congrats!

Answer 2

That actually sounds pretty reasonable. As long as you are comfortable with the amount you are spending and you are making the decisions instead of someone else making them for you, you are golden. I decided to opt-out of a wedding, me and my husband eloped. We did not tell anyone about our plans besides our two witnesses. We spent $300, have been married for a year and a half, and have never regretted our decision. Just make sure you are doing this for your relationship, don't worry about putting on a show for anyone else, you and your partner are the only ones who truly matter in this decision. And don't let your perfect day be ruined by stress, don't worry about all the details, make sure you have a great day!

Answer 3

Good for you!! I'm a BTB in a smaller town in Ohio with the same budget, and I'm already thinking I'm gonna have to do alot of penny pinching. (Although I've got at least twice the quests it sounds like you're going to have...guessing 100.) If your inlaws continue to give you grief about it, just TiVo an episode of Platinum Weddings, invite them over, and have them see the $20,000 that one of the couples spent on the dress ALONE....lol.

Answer 4

I think that's very reasonable for a wedding, especially these days.

i heard that the average wedding costs $20 000,  so you're doing really well!

Congrats!

Answer 5

No thats a great amount really. Most weddings these days are costing couples anywhere between $20,000 and $30,000. Its ridiculous! Thats a down payment on a home for us! We are getting married in 6 weeks and we still have a few people to pay. By the time we have paid for everything, we should be between the $10,000 and $12,000 mark. Congrats to you and have a lovely wedding.

Answer 6

When all is said and done, i will be past $20k on my wedding and i am planning a small low-key no-frills wedding. unfrotuantely in my area, costs are a bit higher, and i splurged on my photographer. I am below average for my city though. i forget the exact url, but there is a website that gives an average of how much weddings in your zip code cost.

Fiances family thought $10k was too much, so i stopped trying to please them and planned a wedding we want and we are paying for it ourselves. So they are welcome to attend, but if we hear any complaints from anyone, they will be asked to leave.

Answer 7

5g for a wedding these days...I'd say very reasonable and congrats!

Answer 8

That's totally reasonable. If you can afford that, then great. It's actually quite cheap compared to the average wedding. By the way, you live in my town's sister city! I live in Texas. Surely you know what town I'm referring to!

Answer mine?

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?...

Answer 9

It all depends on your taste. Personally I wouldn't spend all of that.

It would be me, my husband, our parents...on a beach at sunset...

simple white dress and a priest....its supposed to be an intimate moment.

Answer 10

not at all... its your big day and you should do what makes you happy! a wedding is (supposted to be) only once in a lifetime!

Answer 11

One of my friends is also preparing her wedding, and she will spend about $20000. She told me that the average is $30000. So I think yours is quite reasonable.

Answer 12

so if it was cheap...then his parents would help?? that doesn't make sense. it is not to expensive and I'm super budget friendly!! i am making everything for my wedding. I'm doing my invites, decor, flowers, alterations on my dress, EVERYTHING! i am getting married in Jamaica and I'm also staying there for my honeymoon. then we are returning to have a cake and punch reception. there will be a dj, choc fountain, and o'hordurves. I'm paying just barely over $5,000.  

Answer 13

That's an awesome price! Most people spend way more, and it's ridiculous. Our budget is $5000, and thank God we're able to keep it under that!

Answer 14

I got married in New Iberia, LA.  Our wedding cost around $25,000!  It wasn't huge (less than 100 guests) or fancy.  But everything is just so expensive.  The wedding is about you and the groom.  Do what you want and as long as you can afford, don't worry about anything else.  It sounds like his family has a different idea of what a wedding should be but they need to respect your fiance's and your choices.  From now on, it will be the two of you making choices and they will need to get used to that.

Good luck and enjoy your special day!!!

Answer 15

Heck yeah it's affordable! Kudos to you for what sounds like what is going to be a very lovely wedding and a great deal! There is a show on WeTV called Platinum Weddings where they think $400,000 is nothing. The dress alone is easily more than your entire budget. Everyone writing about $30k being the average price across the U.S. is correct.

I'm also planning a wedding and we will probably end up spending around $9,000. I think the naysayers need to get updated on the costs and realize that your wedding is VERY reasonable. Good Luck!!!

Answer 16

First of all thats an awesome deal. It's always better to do a one stop shop as much as you can....there are discounts involved with most places. I paid a little over 8000 and that didn't cover where we stayed that night...food for that morning and everything. That's why you should always go with your gut...and yahoo answers...and NEVER with people who probably have NEVER planned a wedding and if they did obviously didn't hav e a nice one like you're going to have. I say go for it.

Answer 17

That's not as expensive as they may think. They have to think about the over all average cost which could be upwards of $10,000+. I'm only going to have $3,000-$4,000 to work with, maybe a little more If I'm lucky. Well Done, it sounds great.  

Answer 18

The average cost of a wedding is between $20 000 and $ 40 000 dollars. One question: Is your family paying. If they are, they kind of have a point. Congrats by the way. I am not married and have never been, so I can't really tell you but it sounds reasonable and as if you are a good and sensible spender.

Answer 19

We are having a rather simple wedding but a killer menu at the reception.

We are spending about $10,000 on the wedding, $4500 for food alone, and $4500 on the rings. Our venue is a historic hotel that is just wonderful.

All together we are at about $15,000 This is the second marriage for both of us and we want it to be an amazing party.

Answer 20

My wedding was $3500 for everything altogether.  I thought I was getting a really incredible deal as well because I've known people who've paid 10 times that for a wedding.  I managed to find caterers who offered a full meal for a quarter of what I was told was a good, reasonable price in the area.  Then one of my in-laws saw the bill for the caterer and complained about how incredibly high it seemed to her.  Of course, she is the same person who claimed she was able to put together an entire wedding which gave a full meal for everybody and have it cost less than a $1 per head.  I think weddings just differ really greatly between different families and different social circles.

Answer 21

I think you found yourself a bar-goon and a half.  I don't know how your're getting food for $900 but that is a real deal.

The whole thing for $5000 is a great price. Enjoy the day!  

Answer 22

That's entirely inexpensive!! Mine's costing over 15,000! Of course, we're in CA so things are just more expensive in general, but... I think that's well below the national average for a wedding (5,000)

Answer 23

That is AWESOME!!  Don't let his family put down this wonderful deal.  

Answer 24

If bride and groom are mature enough to wed, then they are mature enough to pay for the wedding themselves.

If mom volunteers to assist . . . great!  You can gladly accept her help.

If groom's parents do not want to help?  That is okay too.  Then bride and groom must quietly accept their decision, and not pressure them in any way.  (And maybe stop telling them the price of things too?  After all, if they don't want to pay for anything . . . then prices are none of their business.)

So you ask:  is this wedding too expensive?

My answer is no . . . not too expensive if bride and groom can comfortably afford it . . .  without going into debt.

And $5000 is way below the national average.

So in my opinion?  As long as you are not taking out loans to pay for it, then you are doing fine.

Answer 25

No! I think that's a great price! :-D  Weddings are horrifically expensive these days.  We spent $6500 on ours.  Try showing your family this website... it'll show you the average cost of weddings in your area.

http://www.costofwedding.com/

Answer 26

Are you kidding me?  We are spending that on 32 guests!  You got a steal!  It sounds wonderful, don't pay any attention to those nay sayers, enjoy your wedding and enjoy the peace that comes along with not taking any money from relatives to have your wedding.

Answer 27

Wow, Thats amazingly cheap..

I wish my wedding was $5,000.

I'm planning my wedding as i type.

I have a budget of $6,000, but we are at $8,000.

your lucky.

Answer 28

Nope.  That is pretty good for the amount of people.  Mine was $6500 for 100 people.  We had a sit down dinner.  Sounds like you are getting a lot for your money.  I'd say you did great.   Good luck.

Answer 29

It really doesn't matter what we think.  It's not our wedding and it's not our wallets.  Personally, that's super cheap by the standards I've seen.  But, I just have my own opinion.  I'm not planning a wedding yet, but I know most people around here spend $15,000 and up.