Have you ever wondered how much it would cost to get hitched in Beijing? Well, according to CNReview, here is a list of expenses which a respectable couple would expect to pay for their nuptial bliss:
1. Decent housing near the 6th Ring Road (80 square meters and above) with an average price of RMB 20,000 per square meter: RMB 20,000 x 80 = RMB 1,600,000.
2. Renovation and interior design for a 100-square-meter floor area: RMB 150,000.
3. Household appliances and furniture: RMB 80,000.
4. Standard car: RMB 120,000.
5. Wedding banquet with 200 guests (20 tables) in a 4-star hotel: RMB 200 x 200 = RMB 40,000. Subtract from that the RMB 2,000 wedding money (hongbao) you will get per table on average. And you might just break even.
6. Honeymoon. Unlike Shanghaiese, Beijingers refuse to go to local favorites like Hong Kong or Macau or Hainan. Instead, they go to Australia or Europe, spending around RMB 10,000 per person. So the total honeymoon trip will cost around RMB 30,000.
7. The courting stage (for 2 years). Well, you didn’t think that a girl would say yes to the marriage proposal without this crucial stage, did you? This includes going out on dates, buying gifts, entertainment, travel and, yes, giving gifts to girlfriend’s parents. It’s an average of RMB 2,000 per month. So for 2 years: RMB 2,000 x 12 months x 2 years = RMB 48,000.
In summary, the total cost is RMB 1,600,000 + RMB 150,000 + RMB 80,000 + RMB 120,000 + RMB 30,000 + RMB 48,000 = RMB 2,028,000.
Although this may seem like an awful lot of money, don’t forget what they say about having a dream wedding of a lifetime:
Priceless.
(and for everything else, there is MasterCard, .. or your Chinese credit card).
