Getting Married in Goa ? Tips to Calculate your Own Wedding Budget
SAMPLE WEDDING PACKAGES IN GOA
Weddings by Garima Kumar
Hosting a dream wedding in Goa on the serene beaches is a dream of many couples from across the globe, when you travel down to India from various parts of the world to enjoy a fun filled and relaxed wedding, we make honest and sincere attempt to make life simpler for you. There is a lot of trust involved in hiring anyone to let them handle your big day flawlessly.
I am sure when this dream is being planned the very first thought is around affordability. As and when you start venturing out on web and get a google attack (☺ - Just Kidding), you tend to get confused than sorted. To make life simpler and choice easier for you, we have made an attempt to put together some sample wedding packages and a checklist to get you started.
Well the aim is in simple words to bring your dreams to life and trust me “it’s all possible “in Goa!
Some General pointers to start with!
Getting to Goa:
Domestically – Goa is very well connected by all metro cities, Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai by air and road as well, however drive from Mumbai to Goa is quiet hilly. You can also take a train from Mumbai in case budget is a constraint.
Internationally: Seasonal Direct flights from Russia and Dubai are available at reasonable fares.
Season & Offseason:
This is a very tricky question for the client to understand, so let me make it simple for you. Having worked in Goa for years, it is very simple for us to understand this bifurcation.
Offseason: May to September
Mid Season: October & April
Season: November to March
Peak Dates: Christmas to New Year Period, Russian New Year, Diwali/ Dusherra week, Thanksgiving Week, Valentine’s Day, Holi Weekend and long weekends.
This is important to know information as hotel and logistics rates double from off season to season. I know that is difficult to digest information, but that fact lies in the demand and dynamism of the destination.
So ideally if you book a 5 star hotel in the offseason and 10000-12000 + taxes per night, the same hotel in Mid Season will cost you nearly 12000-14000 + taxes per night and in the season might go up to 20000-24000 + taxes per night inclusive of breakfast of course.
The rates that you get from the hotels inclusive of meals are not appropriate for weddings on their own and exclusive meals, hence we end up paying a premium in form of Supplement for Starters , Live Counters and Venue charges. However a lot of Hotels these days offer rates inclusive of all meals.
Luxury 5 Star Hotels - INR 30000 TO 35000 + Taxes ( Average between a few categories)
Premium/ Standard 5 star Hotels - INR 17000 -25000 + Taxes ( Average between a few categories)
These rates will include a Buffet Breakfast/ Buffet Lunch/ Buffet Dinner but Starter/Canapes/ Live Counters / Sea food/ Premium seafood like prawns, Lobsters , expensive fishes come at a premium.
Hotels in Goa do not allow Catering or Alcohol to be brought from outside & Alcohol Bottle rates can vary from 150% to 200% over the MRP and even Higher incase of Hotel likes of Leela, ITC Grand Goa, W, Grand Hyatt, Taj Exotica Etc.
The Wedding Rates rise in the season and fall in the offseason, By offseason i mean Monsoon as you are restricted by the rains on your venue choices.
Hotels & Accommodation:
Hotels and beaches ideal for weddings are located towards the south of Goa instead of the north. North is crowded and also more touristy and hippy. South is calmer and cleaner and has decent option for mix and match if the venues.
5 star hotels are categorised between 3 categories themselves (Hilarious, but factual)
5 star Luxury, 5 Star Deluxe,5 Star Standards – So remember to compare “Apple with and Apple “.
These 5 Star during season time will vary from anywhere between INR. 25000 ++ to 30000++ a night
Boutiques: A lot of nice beache and non beach boutique hotels with 2 to 50rooms are available, these are not always economical but offer spactular Views , locations& experiences and Ofcourse Privacy, please check with your planner if this is your choice.
4 Star and 3 Star will usually be nonbeach or walk away from the beaches. A lot of options are available all over the internet and then is your budget category.
A lot of Homestays & Air BnBs are also available in Goa.
Most of the hotels except the luxury segment normally allow an extra adult in the room, at an additional cost of course. Kids below 5 years are always complimentary on a sharing basis with parents and kids below 12 are chargeable.
Our team will be happy to make recommendations once we fix up a consultation call.
Healthy Advice: Google attack as i mentioned above simply refers to the low prices of the hotel that you will come across when checking for 1 to 9 Rooms online, these are rates for a few rooms and not for groups. Once you book these 9 rooms, the price for next 9 rooms will automatically increase, there is dynamic pricing on these websites like airlines, the hotels end of the day will get an average room rate for all categories but from different pockets, this is a simple marketing strategy.
Also please note that when you contact these hotels and resorts directly, your agent or wedding planner loses a chance to negotiate the best deal. Before you appoint a planner, remember they will invest their time and experience in you, respect these resources and give them an LOI ( Letter of intent) to negotiate on your behalf and Have Faith!
Venues:-
My favourite topic – of course has to be!
Do not get duped into someone telling you that any hotel has a “Private Beach”. Beaches are a property of the state and the hotel has a say in permitting or not permitting an activity on the beach, however not exclusive rights. You need to procure a license from the state government which costs nearly Rs 1,00,000 to Rs 1,25000 + Rs 25000 security deposit and the process takes a minimum of 90-120 days. The coast guard rules are simple & must be adhered to. The panchayat License for outdoor events costs Rs. 10,000/- and the Sound NOC from the office of the Deputy Collector needs a lot of time and patience and paperwork with a physical copy of your wedding card. There is also the underlying cost of procuring these license - Welcome to India :)
Most of the good 5 star hotels have lawns overlooking the beach and the sea and they come at a venue charge varying from INR 1,50,000 to Rs 5,50,000 a day (Morning and evening slot).
Indoor venues/ Poolside venues are also chargeable @ Rs 50,000 to Rs. 2,00,000 a day.
With a larger inventory requirement, these of course can be negotiated.
Now the fun with Goa is that a lot of beach shacks around for evening hangouts and small casual parties during October to April. We also recommend that you stick to South Goa for a Wedding Celebration as compared to North
I will cover a sample itinerary here itself :-
A 2 night 3 days itinerary will not be recommended for Goa as the travelling distance and the check in times nearly eat up the first day. So it is advised that guests arrive a day prior to the start of main festivities:-
3 Nights/ 4 Days
The most idealistic situation:-
Day 1 : Arrive in Goa, transfer to Hotel, Check in, Relax
: Lunch – Buffet Lunch right after/ During Check in
: Welcome Dinner & Drinks / Engagement at a Poolside or Indoors/ Lawn/ Beach
Day 2 : Breakfast at the Coffee shop of the Hotel
: Beach sports/ Pool Party
: 4:00 pm Mehendi with Indian High Tea
: 6:00 pm Sangeet followed by Dinner and Dancing
Day 3 : 9:00 Pooja’s, Haldi, Chooda, Sainth, Mandavo, Ganesh Pooja as per customs.
: Breakfast / Brunch
: 3:30 pm Procession and high tea
: 5:00 pm Jaimala followed by feras
: 5:30 pm Couple and family photos
: 7:00 pm Cake cutting and cocktail hour, speeches followed by dinner & dance.
Day 4: Farewell breakfast and check out.
This is just a sample itinerary and can be modified as per your needs. You can of course add a youngster’s night, yacht trip, day trip, casino night, cards party, Qawalli, Sufi or mujra night... Well the options are endless.
2 Nights/ 3 days
If you really wish to cut this short, we can replace the welcome dinner with Mehendi & Sangeet and the wedding and reception next day, it of course keeps a check on the budget but becomes a bit too back to back.
4 Nights/ 5 days
A lot of hosts like to keep the wedding very relaxed with just one event a day. In such cases we keep an event either in the morning or evening and the next slot is kept free. In such cases the guests get time relax on the beach, use the spa and enjoy Goa as well.
BUDGETING
Sample size: 50 Guests
Hotel Category: 5 Star luxury
Period : Season
Itinerary: 3 Nights/ 4 Days
Accommodation ( Variable)
Scenario: Host not paying for accommodation for all rooms but for 10 rooms of family
10 Family Rooms X 3 Nights X 25000 = Rs 7, 50,000 + taxes
Meals ( Variable)
Day 1 Dinner @ Rs 2000 + taxes
Day 2 High Tea @ 750 + taxes & Chaat style Dinner @ Rs 2500 + taxes
Day 3: Wedding High Tea @ 1000 + taxes & Gala Dinner @ Rs 3500 + taxes
Approximate per person food pricing: Rs 10000 + taxes x 50 Guests = Rs 5,00,000 + taxes
Soft beverages, juices, alcohol, mineral water are billed on actual Consupmtion.
Venue Charges ( Variable)
Taking an average of Rs 1, 25,000 per day x 3 days = Rs 3,75,000 + taxes
DECORATION (for 50-70 Guests)
Minimalistic décor for a pre wedding event indoors will cost nearly Rs.2, 00,000 to Rs. 2, 75,000
However outdoor this may go up to Rs. 3, 50,000
For the wedding day however this may go up to Rs 5,00,000 – 6,50,000 for wedding and about 7,00,000 – 10,00,000 for the wedding clubbed with reception if you go extensive with flowers,
However we ideally recommend you to put aside a lump sum of Rs 10, 00,000 to 14, 00,000 for (Welcome dinner, Mehendi cum Sangeet, Wedding cum Reception)which can then be worked backwards upon.
The decoration normally includes Tentage, florists, fresh flowers, ambient lighting, and power back up and labour costs. ( These are not base category costs)
ENTERTAINMENT ( Constant)
The ideal budget for the Entertainment is anywhere between Rs 75,000 to Rs 80,000 per event if your plan to use local entertainment options. Licenses of DJ & Live performances have to be procured separately which you wedding planner will do for you.
Feel free to discuss these options in more detail with your planner.
OTHER ELEMENTS ( Constant)
Makeup artist ( Local – MAC / Airbrush) for Bride
Mehendi artists ( for bride and guests)
Priest/Celebrant for Pooja and wedding with Pooja material
This will sum up to another Rs 2, 00,000 approximately.
Photography & Cinematograohy ( Variable)
: The most Important element after the venue
Ideally Keep aside Rs 1,00,000 to 1,50,000 per day for professional photography & cinematography. Of course there are much better and much cheaper options but this is an idea; budget for best in class candid coverage.
Licenses for venues / Licenses for entertainment/Alcohol on actual/ Fees/ Vendor logistics etc...
Approximate cost for a wedding with the scenario as above will be
Rs 45, 00,000 or GBP 45000 or $70000 + taxes
Of course this is with 10 Rooms and a property like
SCENARIO 2
Sample size: 100 Guests
Hotel Category: 5 Star Deluxe( 2nd Category)
Season: Mid Season
Itinerary: 3 Nights/ 4 Days
Accommodation ( Variable)
Scenario: Host not paying for accommodation for all rooms but for 10 rooms of family
10 Family Rooms X 3 Nights X 15000 = Rs 4, 50,000 + taxes
Meals ( Variable)
Day 1 Dinner @ Rs 2200 + taxes
Day 2 High Tea @ 800 + taxes & Chaat style Dinner @ Rs 2200 + taxes
Day 3: High Tea @ 800 + taxes & Gala Dinner @ Rs 3000 + taxes
Approximate per person food pricing: Rs 9000 + taxes x 100 Guests = Rs 9,00,000 + taxes
Soft beverages, juices, alcohol, mineral water are billed on actual consumption
Venue Charges ( Variable)
Taking an average of Rs 1, 50,000 per day x 3 days = Rs4,50,000 + taxes
DECORATION (for 100-120 Guests) - Customised/ themes
Minimalistic decor for a pre wedding event indoors will cost nearly Rs.2, 50,000 to Rs. 4,00,000
For the wedding day however this may go up to Rs5,00,000 – 7,50,000 for wedding and about 6,50,000 – 10,00,000 for the wedding clubbed with reception.
But for a gathering of 100 guests and 3 major events 1. Welcome dinner, 2. Mehendi & Sangeet, 3. Wedding cum Reception, we will recommend you to put aside minimum Rs 10, 00,000 to 12, 00,000 for a decent set up.
The decoration normally includes Tentage, florists, lighting, and power back up and labour costs.
ENTERTAINMENT ( Constant)
The ideal budget for the Entertainment is anywhere between Rs 50,000 to Rs 75,000 per event if your plan to use local entertainment options. Licenses of DJ & Live performances have to be procured separately which you wedding planner will do for you.
Feel free to discuss these options in more detail with your planner.
OTHER ELEMENTS ( Constant)
Makeup artist (Local – MAC / Airbrush)
Mehendi artists (for bride and guests)
Priest/Celebrant for Pooja and wedding with Pooja material
This will sum up to another Rs 2, 50,000 approximately.
Photography & Cinematography ( Variable)
: The most Important element after the venue
Ideally Keep aside Rs 1, 00,000 to 1, 50,000 per day for professional photography & cinematography. Of course there are much better and much cheaper options but this is an idea; budget for best in class candid coverage.
Licenses for venues / Licenses for entertainment/Alcohol on actual/ Fees/ Vendor logistics etc...
Approximate cost for a wedding with the scenario as above will be
INR 45, 00,000 to 50, 00,000
The example of Hotels for the above would be :-
Cidade de Goa - IHCL SeleQtions
SOME BEAUTIFULLY LOCATED BUDGET HOTELS INCLUDE :-
BELEZA BY THE BEACH
ROYAL ORCHID
BOGMALLO BEACH RESORT
BAMBOLIM BEACH RESORT
PRAINAH BEACH RESORT
AND MANY MORE……..
The Above is based on Current scenarios based in 2021-2022 and change by 8-10% every year.
