Got Money, Will Have A Philippine Church Wedding
/
Our Lady of Atonement (Baguio) Cathedral (Photo by Rene Astudillo)
For many Filipinos, a church wedding is a must, despite its cost. The accompanying reception -- the venue, program, ambiance, accoutrements and the humongous guest list -- all add to the final, hefty bill.
Church weddings are never free. The fees — or in the words of Church authorities, “offering” — could be a pain in the wallet, not to mention the auxiliary cost of dressing up the entire entourage.
Is it any wonder that more than half of Filipino Catholics have shunned church weddings altogether because of cost? This is according to a 2012 “truth survey” conducted by Radio Veritas, a Catholic-run radio station.
The survey results showed that 50.2 percent of respondents had no answer (NA) when asked if they were married in churches, while 7.5 percent openly admitted that they were not married. Only 42.3 percent of the couples replied that they were married in a Catholic Church.
So what does it cost to have a church wedding in the Philippines?
It varies from church to church depending on location, but the fee could range from a low P5,000 to as high as P20,000. Some churches charge extra for more elaborate church decor, air-conditioning, or professional musicians. The wedding party could also be charged a penalty fee for “overtime“.
At the famed Baguio City Cathedral, weddings are allowed only on weekdays. The marriage “donation” is P5,000 for parishioners and P8,000 for non-parishioners. A non-refundable P1,000 reservation fee is required to secure a date for the wedding. It is applied towards the final bill but forfeited if the reservation is not consummated.
“The traditional religious thinking is that a civil nuptial with no church wedding is akin to “living in sin.””
Miscellaneous fees include P1,000 electricity fee for an hour and thirty minutes, with a P500 per 15 minutes in overtime fees. If the couple decides to use the Cathedral choir, that’s an extra P3,000.
In addition, each of the wedding sponsors will be asked to “donate” P100. Then there are seminar and special seminar fees of up to about P1,700.
In Makati City, the schedule of fees is much higher. At the Saint John Bosco Parish, the basic wedding fee is P20,500, unless the wedding party decides to have air-conditioning, in which case the fee increases to P25,000.
To ensure that the wedding ceremony starts and ends on time, the Church imposes a late penalty of P5,000 over and above the basic fee.
Baguio Cathedral Wedding Fee Schedule (Photo by Rene Astudillo)
Other Metro Manila Venues
Santo Domingo Church in Quezon City is one of the largest churches in the Philippines and in Asia. It is an ideal venue for a bride wanting to have a long processional march to the altar. Wedding fees run around P15,000 during ordinary months. The fee increases to P20,000 during the La Naval (feast of the Church’s patron saint), Christmas and New Year seasons.
Santuario de San Antonio in Forbes Park is considered a wedding venue for the rich and famous. Wedding fees range from P40,000 to P50,000, but the Church also charges wedding planners accreditation fees of up to P50,000 per year. Charged as well are florists, musicians, photographers and videographers (P10,000 to P30,000 per year).
At the Lady of Remedies Parish in Malate, Manila, expect to pay anywhere from P5,000 to P24,000, depending on the day of the week and time of the wedding. Luckily, if one is a member of the parish, a 50 percent discount is offered for economy weddings and 10 percent for grand weddings.
Then there’s the Parish of the Holy Sacrifice, better known as the U.P. (University of the Philippines) Chapel where a wedding package of P12,000 includes administrative charges, stipend for the officiating priest, flowers, carpet, electricity, and marriage registration fee at the local civil registrar. It also includes musicians, unless the wedding is a weekday, in which case the wedding party needs to bring its own choir.
Reception
Budgeting for a church wedding is only half the battle. Add to that the cost of the post-wedding reception. One can choose between budget restaurants and plush five-star hotels.
If you want to go high-end, say the Shangri-La Hotel in Bonifacio Global City (BGC), prepare to cough up between P700 to P1,000 per head -- that’s at least P70,000 for 100 guests. And that’s just for food.
Family-style dinners at budget restaurants could save you a lot of money. Kowloon Chinese Restaurant in Quezon City, for example, offers a wedding package beginning at P41,000 for 100 guests, and includes basic amenities like a wedding cake, sound system, guest give-away items, flower arrangements, among others.
December Wedding In Baguio
Jim and Ellen (not their real names), have planned for a Baguio Church wedding in December this year. The couple estimates the total basic cost of the church wedding at P10,000, inclusive of fees and seminar costs.
Their planned reception would cost them a whopping P100,000 for 200 guests, and that doesn’t include miscellaneous expenses like sound system, flower arrangements, emcees, wedding cake, LCD projector, photo/video coverage, or the fees for a professional wedding planner.
Jim says a civil wedding before a judge would cut their expenses ten-fold.
This is not to mention that Jim’s family lives in Canada and the United States, so imagine the travel costs to the Philippines for at least nine of his family members.
Wedding Getaway
For some who can afford the cost, having a getaway wedding in exclusive resorts is increasingly becoming the norm.
Balesin Island Resort is the undisputed top venue for celebrity weddings, the most recent of which were that of TV personalities Billy Crawford and Colleen Garcia, as well as actress Heart Evangelista and Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero.
Billy Crawford and Colleen Garcia (from Billy Crawford’s Instagram account: Balesin)
The member-only island resort destination is a few miles off Manila and the only way to get there is by plane — approximately P9,000 round-trip, per person.
So, in addition to the cost of the wedding ceremony and reception, the total cost will have to reflect airfare and overnight or several days accommodation for the wedding guests, which they can shoulder on their own or could be paid for by the wedding party.
Assuming that the wedding party shoulders all costs, including those of invited guests, the total bill could reach at least P8 to P9 Million for 250 guests, inclusive of airfare, accommodation, wedding chapel and reception venue and food.
Of course, few people can afford this kind of destination wedding, and they do it just because they can.
Meanwhile, others try to work within their very limited budget, or skip the church wedding and reception altogether.
Rene Astudillo
Rene Astudillo is a writer, book author and blogger and has recently retired from more than two decades of nonprofit community work in the Bay Area. He spends his time between California and the Philippines.
More articles from Rene Astudillo