Too many demands are putting off wedding guests

Weddings cost £400 each just to attend – more than an entire wedding with all the works cost in 1971.

The expectations of friends and family of brides and grooms today can be flabbergasting though.

It’s not just about a gift and a new outfit.

There are the series of stag or hen parties, where only a long weekend for 25 in Marbella and a luxury spa weekend will do.

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Then hotel and travel costs for the wedding. Suddenly the £400 estimated by the Travelodge survey seems modest.

It’s not surprising then that a quarter of Britons are declining wedding invitations this year because they simply cannot afford the cost of being a guest.

A wedding is all about the people there, not buying into a spectacle.

It is so sad that people are compelled to turn down invitations because of the gross one-upman – and woman – ship of what is a union, not a show.

There have always been bridezillas but weddings are turning ugly.

A bride was outed last month for writing to a guest who gave £100 gift, saying it was insufficient and asked if she would like to reconsider.

Brides who believe they are princesses are losing sight of what their day is all about.

If people who love them can’t be there because they cannot afford their demands, they need to look at themselves and their priorities seriously.

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