I am being told that I am being ripped off, and going overboard due to the amount of money we will be spending. I’m not sure if this is honest advice or not.
Our current budget is set at 30,000 for a two night wedding event which is Barat and Valima.
I know this varies based on income and bills… but I could really use some help here.
How much does it cost AVERAGE to have a decent two night pakistani wedding? I know this is based on your budget and income, but if anyone could help me by providing an average number, I would REALLY appreciate it.
I am trying to find an average per head cost (VENUE and FOOD), and an average per night cost which includes everything that has to do with the wedding.
I guess you need to be more specific on what you mean by "average" and "decent" because everyone has different standards. Will you have a professional stage/venue decorator, or will family/friends be helping with that? centerpieces? How many guests? dj? how big do you want your menu to be? will it be a hotel or some other banquet hall? you're not including costs of makeup/video/photo/clothing?
i was also wondering what the price range is for a weddings of different scales in the US. THe pics of weddings in pakistan look pretty fancy but the labor is so much cheaper there i'm sure its a fraction of the cost of US weddings with the same degree of decor.
I think 30K is reasonable for NYC...I know someone who spent more than that just for the Shaadi. The price tag included - the hotel, catering services, decorations, photography, DJ and all other extra stuff. For a two day event the price tag is pretty good.
when is your wedding? it also depends on that. Summer weddings are more than double winter weddings. I am getting married in March in Toronto, and I compared prices to June/July, and I am getting a WAY better deal....Im paying half what people in the summer pay.
Your budget of $30,000 sounds about right, and it may even be more. If you are looking at a summer wedding, usually at a venue that is in the mid-range, with food, its going to cost about $55-65. Although, there are going to be places that will charge you less than this, and places that will charge you more.
Than you have to look at other costs:
Photographer: $3000 - $5000
Videographer: $2500 - $6000
Decorator: you have to set your own budget, and they will work with you
DJ: $500-$1000 (depends on what you want - DJ will usually also provide (on request) smoke and lighting)
Transportation: $500-$2000 (limo/luxury cars, etc.)
Invitations: $500-$2000 (depending on how elaborate you want them)
Favours: $500-$1500 (depends on what you choose)
Makeup: $500 - $1000
Mehndi: $100 - $500
Cake: $250 - $1000 (again depends on what you choose)
Micsellaneous Costs: $1000 - $3000 - different little things that come up in the course of a wedding (corsages/bouquets)
30K is totally reasonable for two nights in NYC! for crying out loud, its NYC! its freakin xpensive to begin with! plus desi weddings dont usually have 100 guests- you'll probably be hosting 200 or so, no?
split your budget into the amount you want to spend for each event, and then split it further into the following categories based on the PDF below- this works all the time for the 3 weddings i have planned.
