Young bride asks wedding guests to pay for own food and drink

A 19-year-old bride from North Queensland has asked her wedding guests to cover the cost of their own meal, alcoholic drinks and the wedding cake, and it’s rubbed some people the wrong way.

The unusual requests were revealed in a typed letter circulated on Facebook by the bride-to-be‘s cousin.

It reads: “Guests are asked to pay for their own meals, the cost of this is $40 per head. We will provide a few jugs of basic soft drink and water per table however please note alcohol is at your own expense.”

The cousin also shared a text exchange with the bride, who reveals the wedding food includes “platters, main course, cake and a soft drink”, with alcohol costing extra.

One person wrote: “Bless this mess – this is so tacky. If she can’t afford the wedding/reception, then elope for Christ sake. Absolutely awful.”

Weddings are notoriously expensive, with the average wedding in Australia costing between $36,000 and $65,000. The hen parties and honeymoons which often accompany them and can also be very costly – and, at 19, we certainly couldn’t have afforded to cover food and drink either.

The post, however, has divided the internet.

Another person was more sympathetic, writing: “I ‘don’t see anything wrong with it personally. Why does everyone think people need to go into debt for a wedding.”

“I don’t really see the big deal if they’re not expecting gifts or money which will cost a hell of a lot more than $40 at any wedding I’ve been to,” another said.

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