Getting hitched in Phrae.

[ourmanflint]

Hey all

Finally getting hitched next year, and the girlfriends family are from Phrae area so was hoping to get a bit of advice of where we could have the ceremony etc? We both live in London full time so have to try and organise it from here unfortunately. We will move over there for a few months before the wedding though to tie things up, but need to find a venue etc first. Probably need somewhere for about 50-80 people.

I'm pretty sure Phrae has nothing like the options of CM, so any advice gladly taken.

Cheers

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[WinnieTheKhwai]

If at all possible, see if you can avoid a big hotel wedding but opt for something nicer / more personal.

[uptheos]

How about asking the girlfriend's family or one of the 50-80 people that are going to be there?

If you don't trust this option, then get married in London.

[eyecatcher]

If at all possible, see if you can avoid a big hotel wedding but opt for something nicer / more personal.

The obvious suggestion is to have it in the family village..what a fantastic experience that is and a far cry from western tradition.

Then simply choose another day to legalise it if you wish at a local office.

Organisation will be done by the villagers and family, flowers food music,monks. 4 weeks to prepare everything is plenty.

You just have to do this.....who wants to do the western wedding style again....and again?

[FiftyTwo]

I only married at the Amphur Office.

No ceremony, no sin sot, no aggravation.

Don't understand why so many foreign men get roped into a village wedding ceremony.

It has no benefit to them, just wastes a lot of their money.

You do understand the village wedding is legally meaningless.

Edited April 18, 2014 by FiftyTwo

[villagefarang]

I can’t imagine a village wedding which didn’t include the entire village and at least some of the surrounding villages, so I am guessing your estimate of 50-80 people is for guests flying in from London.

If that is the case, you might want to stick with CM.

[WinnieTheKhwai]

I only married at the Amphur Office.

No ceremony, no sin sot, no aggravation.

Don't understand why so many foreign men get roped into a village wedding ceremony.

It has no benefit to them, just wastes a lot of their money.

You do understand the village wedding is legally meaningless.

Interestingly for me I feel the other way around. The actual wedding ceremony with guests is what mattered to us. Legally it's indeed meaningless, but to us and our family it's all that matters.

The thing at the district office is what feels meaningless to us. My personal conviction is that government should have nothign to do with marriage, and actually the less governemnt interferes (or even knows about) people's personal lives, the better it is.

In the end we did get around to the government registration thing, years and years later, and we did that in between a shopping run to Tesco and getting some noodles for lunch.

The main reason we even bothered was because it saves a couple baht in tax. Other than that.. nothing much to do with the concept of "getting married" which is something we do for us, for family and friends, and perhaps <insert deity here>.

Edited April 18, 2014 by WinnieTheKhwai

[WinnieTheKhwai]

If at all possible, see if you can avoid a big hotel wedding but opt for something nicer / more personal.

The obvious suggestion is to have it in the family village..what a fantastic experience that is and a far cry from western tradition.

Organisation will be done by the villagers and family, flowers food music,monks. 4 weeks to prepare everything is plenty.

You just have to do this.....who wants to do the western wedding style again....and again?

Yup. I know I look forward to other people's village weddings a lot more than some sterile, scripted experience in a hotel function room.

[khwaibah]

If at all possible, see if you can avoid a big hotel wedding but opt for something nicer / more personal.

The obvious suggestion is to have it in the family village..what a fantastic experience that is and a far cry from western tradition.

Organisation will be done by the villagers and family, flowers food music,monks. 4 weeks to prepare everything is plenty.

You just have to do this.....who wants to do the western wedding style again....and again?

Yup. I know I look forward to other people's village weddings a lot more than some sterile, scripted experience in a hotel function room.

Particularly when the other guy is paying for it. Free booze.

[ourmanflint]

Cheers all..

not sure if village wedding is even on the cards, I think my GF is expecting a bit of a swanky bash unfortunately, she is Thai Chinese so not sure if that makes a difference at all, but I went to another friends wedding last year and it was in a very plush resort so doubt I would get away with "shall we just pop into the district office before we go to Big C".

Chiang Mai does seem the better bet if we have a few guests from overseas coming, or Lampang isn't that far away either. Anybody been to Lampang River Lodge? Looks pretty good setting by the river so might be nice option

Thanks

[Chiengmaijoe]

There aren't many decent hotels on Phrae, so it might be worth contacting this hotel and seeing how much they charge. It will be a lot cheaper than you would expect in the UK, obviously. In places like phrae the hotels often depend on weddings and meetings to keep going and since most of the customers are locals, prices are reasonable. They'll probably do most of the arrangements and offer a per person rate for it all.

http://www.huernnana.com/

I'm sure the Maeyom Palace hotel does a lot of wedding parties too. That's an older hotel, so it will be quite experienced and probably a lot cheaper. Contact them direct if you can.

Edited April 18, 2014 by Chiengmaijoe

[FiftyTwo]

The thing at the district office is what feels meaningless to us. My personal conviction is that government should have nothign to do with marriage, and actually the less governemnt interferes (or even knows about) people's personal lives, the better it is.

Thai citizenship, VISA extensions, parental rights over Thai/English children in Thailand, shared marital assets, inheritance rights (including UK private/company pensions and Thai property) are all benefits of Thai Amphur office marriage.

If you aren't interested in any of those, then you are correct.

If you do have an interest in any of those items, then I am correct.

Edited April 18, 2014 by FiftyTwo

[pinkpanther99]

I've just come back from Phrae, my Mrs is from there.

There is a large hotel opposite the bus station, the name escapes me for the moment, but I'm sure Google will be able to help you out, that might be suitable. Other than that, or getting married in the village, I can't think of too many other places. Maybe it's my ignorance but there didn't seem to be a great deal going on in Phrae so your options might be limited.

Best of luck!

[ourmanflint]

There aren't many decent hotels on Phrae, so it might be worth contacting this hotel and seeing how much they charge. It will be a lot cheaper than you would expect in the UK, obviously. In places like phrae the hotels often depend on weddings and meetings to keep going and since most of the customers are locals, prices are reasonable. They'll probably do most of the arrangements and offer a per person rate for it all.

http://www.huernnana.com/

I'm sure the Maeyom Palace hotel does a lot of wedding parties too. That's an older hotel, so it will be quite experienced and probably a lot cheaper. Contact them direct if you can.

Thanks for the link! Looks a half decent place, will pass it on to the Mrs. Best of what Phrae has to offer, proper sleepy town that it is..

Cheers

[jaapfries]

I only married at the Amphur Office.

No ceremony, no sin sot, no aggravation.

Don't understand why so many foreign men get roped into a village wedding ceremony.

It has no benefit to them, just wastes a lot of their money.

You do understand the village wedding is legally meaningless.

@Fifty-Two: You display a total lack of perception and/or understanding of Thai culture, when it comes to the "Village Wedding" phenomena. You should stop looking at this through purely Western Eyes and give some consideration to what Thais prefer.

The 'Village Wedding' may not have any "legal" significance; however it is far more important to the Thai' family (of the bride) than the Amphur legal registration.

To NOT have this Village Wedding (including the very early morning 9 Buddha Monks Blessings !), you will make the entire family of the bride lose face big time, something that would be a blot on the relationship forever !

I have been living/working in this wondrous Kingdom for a bit over 22 years; had the "Village Wedding", as you phrase it and I can honestly say that this was the most magnificent day of my life.

[WinnieTheKhwai]

not sure if village wedding is even on the cards, I think my GF is expecting a bit of a swanky bash unfortunately, she is Thai Chinese so not sure if that makes a difference at all,

Yes, that does make a difference.

So hotel wedding it is. And they will not want to force all guests to go all the way to Chiang Mai.

So it'll be a hotel or resort in/near Phrae.

Really they will have ideas on this already. You could try for a resort a little out of town, if you can find one.

[villagefarang]

After twenty glorious single years in Bangkok, to the shock of all who knew me, I settled down with one girl and we married nearly two years later.

We looked at the big Bangkok ballroom option for our city friends as well as the village option for her family. The reasons for either didn’t seem to fit our reasons for getting married so we eloped and told our families after the fact.

I can confidently say that after fifteen years of marriage, we are still happy with the choices we have made and have suffered no lasting consequences.

I have been less inclined to conform with the norms of society or the expectations of others, it would seem. While I understand many enjoy coloring inside the lines, I tend to ignore them.

I am not lobbying for one option over another, I am simply pointing out that one does have options. You can conform to the expectations of the system or you can manipulate them to your own advantage in other less conventional ways.

There are only two people in the room when we make decisions but I understand not everyone has the same approach.

[Puwa]

After twenty glorious single years in Bangkok, to the shock of all who knew me, I settled down with one girl and we married nearly two years later.

We looked at the big Bangkok ballroom option for our city friends as well as the village option for her family. The reasons for either didnt seem to fit our reasons for getting married so we eloped and told our families after the fact.

I can confidently say that after fifteen years of marriage, we are still happy with the choices we have made and have suffered no lasting consequences.

I have been less inclined to conform with the norms of society or the expectations of others, it would seem. While I understand many enjoy coloring inside the lines, I tend to ignore them.

I am not lobbying for one option over another, I am simply pointing out that one does have options. You can conform to the expectations of the system or you can manipulate them to your own advantage in other less conventional ways.

There are only two people in the room when we make decisions but I understand not everyone has the same approach.

I hope you wore a helmet.

[villagefarang]

After twenty glorious single years in Bangkok, to the shock of all who knew me, I settled down with one girl and we married nearly two years later.

We looked at the big Bangkok ballroom option for our city friends as well as the village option for her family. The reasons for either didnt seem to fit our reasons for getting married so we eloped and told our families after the fact.

I can confidently say that after fifteen years of marriage, we are still happy with the choices we have made and have suffered no lasting consequences.

I have been less inclined to conform with the norms of society or the expectations of others, it would seem. While I understand many enjoy coloring inside the lines, I tend to ignore them.

I am not lobbying for one option over another, I am simply pointing out that one does have options. You can conform to the expectations of the system or you can manipulate them to your own advantage in other less conventional ways.

There are only two people in the room when we make decisions but I understand not everyone has the same approach.

I hope you wore a helmet.

Motorcycle, mountain bike or the latex variety?

[Puwa]

After twenty glorious single years in Bangkok, to the shock of all who knew me, I settled down with one girl and we married nearly two years later.

We looked at the big Bangkok ballroom option for our city friends as well as the village option for her family. The reasons for either didnt seem to fit our reasons for getting married so we eloped and told our families after the fact.

I can confidently say that after fifteen years of marriage, we are still happy with the choices we have made and have suffered no lasting consequences.

I have been less inclined to conform with the norms of society or the expectations of others, it would seem. While I understand many enjoy coloring inside the lines, I tend to ignore them.

I am not lobbying for one option over another, I am simply pointing out that one does have options. You can conform to the expectations of the system or you can manipulate them to your own advantage in other less conventional ways.

There are only two people in the room when we make decisions but I understand not everyone has the same approach.

I hope you wore a helmet.

Motorcycle, mountain bike or the latex variety?

Just a joking reference to your posts in the helmet discussion on the cycling forum (and I know you've started wearing one nowadays).

[villagefarang]

After twenty glorious single years in Bangkok, to the shock of all who knew me, I settled down with one girl and we married nearly two years later.

We looked at the big Bangkok ballroom option for our city friends as well as the village option for her family. The reasons for either didnt seem to fit our reasons for getting married so we eloped and told our families after the fact.

I can confidently say that after fifteen years of marriage, we are still happy with the choices we have made and have suffered no lasting consequences.

I have been less inclined to conform with the norms of society or the expectations of others, it would seem. While I understand many enjoy coloring inside the lines, I tend to ignore them.

I am not lobbying for one option over another, I am simply pointing out that one does have options. You can conform to the expectations of the system or you can manipulate them to your own advantage in other less conventional ways.

There are only two people in the room when we make decisions but I understand not everyone has the same approach.

I hope you wore a helmet.

Motorcycle, mountain bike or the latex variety?

Just a joking reference to your posts in the helmet discussion on the cycling forum (and I know you've started wearing one nowadays).

I thought as much, but cross-forum references can be misunderstood, so just thought I would check. It is so hot and polluted these days, the helmet is on the shelf and the bike is on the trainer in front of the television in an air-conditioned room.

[onthedarkside]

A number of posts by an ex Thaivisa member, and the replies have been removed.

[wolfmuc]

not sure if village wedding is even on the cards, I think my GF is expecting a bit of a swanky bash unfortunately, she is Thai Chinese so not sure if that makes a difference at all,

Yes, that does make a difference.

So hotel wedding it is. And they will not want to force all guests to go all the way to Chiang Mai.

So it'll be a hotel or resort in/near Phrae.

Really they will have ideas on this already. You could try for a resort a little out of town, if you can find one.

Winnie said it: 'Really they will have ideas on this already.' - Just ask your Mrs...

I think this would be the most important point.

Btw MaeYom Palace: 'Best of what Phrae has to offer, proper sleepy town that it is..'

There are some other hotels too. Have a search.

And sleepy town? It's after midnight and some people aren't sleeping.

There are some 'farangs' in and around Phrae too, so might be a good Idea to let us

know here on TV or via PM how / if we could help.

Good luck.

P.S. You might read 'jaapfries' personal post again, concerning a village wedding.

But it seems Mrs Ourmanflint likes the hotel action best. Sure, there are advantages. OK.

[Puwa]

Not every Thai person comes from a village, and this is almost universally true of Chinese Thais, so the traditional village wedding may not be an option. Families of Chinese ancestry are more likely to be people of the "muang" not the "baan." Phrae is a beautiful little town and I'm sure you and the Mrs will have a joyous day.

[Johpa]

Thanks for the link! Looks a half decent place, will pass it on to the Mrs. Best of what Phrae has to offer, proper sleepy town that it is..

Cheers

Phrae is a great town. Reminds me of Chiang Mai 30 years ago. You have bustling main commercial streets and then just a block away you have far quieter somewhat traditional Lanna neighborhoods. The surrounding rural areas are beautiful and very traditional with some of the best traditional Lanna architecture I have seen. Might want to see if the Brit Carl still runs the Teppawan with his wife. Really good people and very well connected in Phrae.

[ourmanflint]

Thanks again everybody for the encouragement and info. I do like Phrae a lot, but if we are having friends ,family over from UK I guess I was just thinking CM would be easier for them. Anyway the GF is over in Den Chai at the minute with her family, so I'm sure I will get the full report on her return.

Cheers