Indian weddings are very grand here in North America. When guests are coming from all around the world, couples try their best to find the most suitable dates. Long weekend wedding dates might seem like the easiest option for Indian weddings. However, long weekend wedding dates come with their own set of challenges.
There are 8 long weekends in Canada. Out of which 4 summer long weekend dates are the most preferred weekends for our Indian wedding couples. Yes, it makes perfect sense to find a weekend where you have an additional day off. That way our guests have an extra day to spend time with your families. However, some guests might feel that you are taking away from them their long weekend (see this article on cosmopolitan.com for one wedding guest’s perspective).
July Canada Day and Labour day are two long weekends shared by the US and Canada. Therefore, making these two of the most popular days to get married for Indian wedding couples. As the guests from across the border can also easily be part of your grand Indian wedding celebration.
Why a long weekend wedding might be challenging for Indian couples
- Low venue and vendor availability – Planning an Indian wedding on long weekend high demand dates can really be stressful for brides. Getting the venue or the top of the line wedding photographer or makeup artists might be tough. From our personal experience, we generate about 34 wedding photography inquiries for the Labour Day long weekend alone.
- No room for negotiation – Most vendors and venues know that long weekend wedding dates are in high demand. Therefore, you will have a really hard time getting those premium services without paying extra.
- Higher cost for you – From our wedding industry knowledge, you are looking for your wedding budget to take a hit for another $10,000 on an Indian long weekend wedding. Whereas some vendors and venues might even charge a premium for those prime long weekend dates.
- Higher cost for your guests – It is generally more expensive and hectic to travel on long weekends from airfare, hotel accommodation and car rental. Note that some guests might already also have pre-existing commitments that they can’t cancel as well.
- Date conflicts for guests – On average, an Indian family gets invited to 4-5 weddings each summer in Toronto. Therefore, your guest might already have another wedding to attend on the long weekend you are planning to host your grand Indian wedding.
Now after facing all these challenges, is it even worth planning your Indian wedding on a long weekend? For some it may not be worth it and others not so much.
Planning tips for an Indian long weekend wedding
- Opt for a long weekend wedding date outside the summer – Easter long weekend in April and Remembrance day in October in Canada are much easier to plan. If February Family Day works for you, it may be even more easier to get your guests and vendors available.
- Start early – If you really want to get married on a summer long weekend, then start your planning early. On average, we get booked about 11-14 months in advance for a summer Indian wedding. If you are planning a long weekend wedding in the summer months, consider starting your planning about 14-18 months before your wedding day.
- Book your artists first – Remember your artist vendors like your photographer or makeup artist can be only at one place at a time. Whereas your florists or cake vendors can service multiple locations per date. Therefore, it’s better to first book vendors who can only serve one or two clients on these long weekends.
On a final note, Indian weddings are already very grand. At an Indian wedding, we are working with more vendors than the average non-Indian wedding. Finding a Gurdwara for your Sikh wedding and Pandit Ji for a Hindu ceremony and pairing it with your perfect venue might already be challenging enough. Planning this all on a long weekend can only make things more difficult for a Indian bride and groom.
The question you need to ask when planning your Indian wedding is: Will people who really care about us be there by our side on our wedding day even if it is a long weekend or not?
If you think your guests who really actually matter to you will travel and be there on any day you decide to marry. A long weekend wedding might just add more planning challenges and costs to you and your guests than there already are.
Wish you all the very best planning your wedding and here is a list of some venues in GTA which might work for you perfect Indian wedding reception.