Let’s decide where to get married. UK or Thailand?
Hi there,
If you are planning to have your dream wedding somewhere far from home, I am sure there are numerous comparisons in your head. Despite all the hassles, your heart is still thrilled with the rare experience you can’t find in your hometown, somewhere unique, different and memorable.
To make your wedding planner easier, we have gathered some information about two of the most popular wedding destinations: UK and Thailand! Let’s first talk fashion: wedding gowns in UK and Thailand.
I believe brides planning a destination wedding would love to try local designers’ gown, especially if they can help you spare some more budget for your later honeymoon. So let’s talk about the prices of wedding gowns.
Prices
In UK, most of the dresses are made to order and sold. Moreover, there are numerous picks for the ready-made gown you can purchase off the rack or even through online platforms. However, in Thailand, it’s more common to hire a dress and have some basic alterations to fit your shape, which explain a much lower price point for a huge gown. Prices to acquire a wedding dress in Thailand can start from 10k THB (200 GBP) and the cons is that you won’t be keeping the dresses.
However, if you are planning to buy and keep the dress, take a look at our comparison between two country’s prices. Note that these are only the minimum prices of each brand/store.
UK
| Local brand | Halfpenny | Ellis | Jenny Packham |
| Min price (GBP) | 2,000 | 800 | 2,000 |
| E-commerce | ASOS | Prim & Clover | Needle & Thread |
| Min price (GBP) | 100 | 800 | 300 |
| Global brand | Liz Martinz | Anna Campbell (Aus) | Vera Wang |
| Min price (GBP) | 5,300 | 1,800 | 7,500 |
| Vintage | ELIZABETH AVEY | Annie’s vintage costume and textiles | Rock the Frock |
| Min price (GBP) | 200 | 300 | 100 |
Thailand:
| Local Brands | POEM | Valit itthi | Calista | Emotions | Nhoo Mathew | Kwangun |
| Min Prices (GBP) | 1,400 | 2,000 | 1,600 | 2,000 | 1,400 | 1,400 |
Well, one thing I can confirm is it’s much more fun to hunt for your dream dress in the UK. As one of the most influential fashion hubs in Europe, there are more options from affordable – high street wedding gown, such as ASOS or Needle & Thread, to over-the-top global brands like Vera Wang. On the other hand, it cost around 100K THB to acquire a made to measure dresses in Thailand, and there are fewer options for lower price ranges unless you would like to include unbranded dresses imported from China.
Design
UK fashion is known for being experimental, so do expect some vintage-inspired, artistic or over the top couture dresses from local designers. Many brands are proud of their ‘made in UK’ tag which explains the higher price point.
UK Brand: Halfpenny, 2017
In Thailand, most bridal designs are more traditional and conservative as the clients are not as experimental. There will be fewer flowy vintage styles to show your natural curve and more princess ball gown that gives an illusion of hourglass body shape. Oh, the fun thing about Thailand is you would have a chance to try on traditional Thai wedding dresses!
Thai Brand: Calista
Purchasing methods
As mentioned earlier, there are more online presences for brands in the UK which make it easier for you to have a preview of what the dresses look like before making any appointment. Note that you will need to pay around £25 for almost every appointment made in the UK. Moreover, you can also easily purchase a wedding dress online through ASOS and return them if you don’t like them. Easy peasy.
Needle&Thread online store
In Thailand, most of the studio doesn’t have a website as e-commerce is still in its growing phase in the region. Social media like Facebook and Instagram are the primary contact point. No prices are shown, so a phone call is a must.
Services
Both countries offer made to measure services but Thailand do have more options for hiring. You can either have the dress made to your size, hire it for a day and return to the store. This way, you would save almost half of the cost and yet have a total new dress made just for you…and some other brides after you.
Vintage brides
Ok, so I haveSome extra info for my lovely readers. Vintage is a thing in the UK. Other than usual RTW vintage store, some stores cater to the niche vintage-loving brides. So if you are planning a 60’s theme wedding, maybe it’s worth the visit in London just to get a dress or two.
UK: Annie’s Vintage bridal collection, image from http://thelondongirl.blogg.no/m_062015.html
Thank you for reading!
Image courtesy of Half Penny, Calista, Needle and Thread.
Written by Contributing Fashion Writer/Illustrator – Mee Jong
