Wedding Boom Expected during the 2008 Beijing Olympics
The Wedding boom is about to hit China in 2008 during the Beijing Olympics as thousands of couples want to tie the knot in this auspicious year of the ‘8’s as in 08/08/2008.
Many hotels are already fully booked as the expected 100,000 plus weddings are to coincide with the opening ceremony for the Beijing Olympics.
Chinese couples regard this date as one of the lucky days to get married on as the combination of eight can add up to a potentially successful union.
He-Lina, secretary general of the Shanghai Wedding Celebration Association said, “According to our Chinese tradition, eight is an auspicious number, good for weddings” and the Olympic year is meaningful to all of us.
Over 120,000 young couples are planning to marry next year in Shanghai alone! This is 30 percent more than last year and the big hotels are bracing themselves for the masses of weddings that are to take place.
As well as hotels, most of the prestigious restaurants are also fully booked now until October. They are turning down couples hoping to reserve venues to hold their wedding feasts at a rate of 15 plus daily.
The manager of the Beijing Matchmaking website Zhang Kequin told China Daily “The cost of wedding ceremonies will increase next year, but declined to release his 2008 cost list. He went on to say that “prices will be negotiated with clients. "Matchmaking companies are not allowed to organize collective weddings in the name of Olympic Games.
Lucky Wedding Dates
The marriage registration centre in Guangzhou stated that as well as August 8, other dates such as November 11 and January 11 are popular among couples wishing to get married as these are also regarded as good omens for wedding days.
Not everyone is under the belief of the number superstition, or even the claim that the Olympics have anything to do with the marriage surge. This could well be related to the high birth rate in the 1980s which means 280 million youngsters in China will reach eligible age for marriage.
Traditionally the year of the Rooster (2006) and the year of the Pig (2007) are not considered a good time to get married which has resulted in more couples wanting to get married next year.
Choosing a wedding day in China is as important as the ceremony itself and parents and grandparents all help plan towards the big event.
There are over 200 professional wedding planning companies registered at Beijing Municipal Administration of Industry and Commerce and more than half of the expected wedding couples will use the tailored service provided by the companies, which can offer them unique arrangements and designs for their ceremonies.
The average cost of the wedding ceremony excluding rings, outfits and a photographer in Beijing, is about 80,000 Yuan, £5.500 which could be one of the main reasons that mass weddings are held in China.
