Few celebrations feel as timeless as an al fresco wedding—especially one with a picturesque natural backdrop in a beautiful tropical setting. With destination weddings back on the rise, here’s a look at six of Southeast Asia’s most stunning locations for outdoor nuptials. A Mythical Backdrop in Bali Tanah Gajah, a resort moored in the rice
Few celebrations feel as timeless as an al fresco wedding—especially one with a picturesque natural backdrop in a beautiful tropical setting. With destination weddings back on the rise, here’s a look at six of Southeast Asia’s most stunning locations for outdoor nuptials.
A Mythical Backdrop in Bali
Tanah Gajah, a resort moored in the rice paddies of Bali, is offering brides- and grooms-to-be a fantasy wedding with unparalleled nuptial backdrops, and the chance to buyout the entire resort for the ultimate private wedding. Spread over a lush six hectares of land in the spiritual hub of Ubud, the property is an oasis of beauty with a myriad of mythical sculptures and an impressive art collection. The amphitheater is home to one of the property’s most iconic structures, a towering stone-sculpted candi bentar (a Balinese gate) with hand-carved elephants, that has become the most popular place to say “I do.” The Elegant Wedding Package covers all a couple could need such as a pre-dinner cocktail party and dinner reception, as well as added perks like a romantic solo violin performance and a couples spa treatment.
Say ‘I Do’ on Ho Tram’s Buttermilk Shores
Meliá Ho Tram Beach Resort is situated a two-hour drive from Vietnam’s bustling metropolis Ho Chi Minh City and yet it feels like a world away on Ho Tram’s sandy shores. The 17-hectare resort’s stunning ocean frontage, stretching 500 metres, lends itself to the ultimate beach wedding ceremony set-up that caters to up to 250 guests, with a wedding arch and aisle elegantly decorated with fresh flowers, as well as Tiffany chairs adorned with ribbons. The beach area is all the more spectacular as the sun rises to the left and goes down to the right in an incredible arc over the East Sea each day.
A Beach Lawn Big on Romance in Cam Ranh
Commanding 30 hectares on scenic Cam Ranh peninsula overlooking one of Vietnam’s most stunning stretches of sand, Long Beach, Alma Resort is big on romance. Basking in 300 sunny days a year, the resort’s lush beach lawn makes for a spectacular tropical wedding setting. Whether an intimate ceremony for two or a larger event, the loved-up couple ties the knot under an arch festooned in seasonal flowers to a backdrop of traditional sampans and coracles plying the waters and islands strewn just offshore. For the wedding reception, the Alma Convention Center features a majestic ballroom that caters to up to 300 hundred guests as well as a lobby bar and reception areas.
Sharing Nuptials in an Ancient Forest in Vietnam
Alba Wellness Valley by Fusion is making the most of its verdant location in the rolling foothills of the Truong Son mountains, and its nourishing natural hot springs, with new wedding packages that invite guests to say ‘I do’ in a majestic hidden forest location. Ideal for intimate weddings of up to 40 guests, the resort has launched three different wedding packages: Standard, Superior and Deluxe. Inclusions vary but all feature a ceremony location amid lush tropical woods with decorations that honor the natural surroundings, wedding certification, two nights in a one-bedroom bungalow for the bride and groom, daily 80-minute spa treatments at Alba Spa, and lots more. Couples and their guests can also take advantage of the property’s authentic Japanese onsen spa and range of wellness activities, from sunrise yoga to water meditation. For more information email reservation@albawellnessvalley.com
Amid Banyan Trees in the Mekong Delta
An enchanting setting for an outdoor wedding in southern Vietnam, Azerai Can Tho is situated on a lush private islet in the Mekong Delta. Weddings are held on the resort’s lawn among mature banyan trees and feature a memorable setting with elegantly decorated tables and chairs and lights strung overhead. Azerai Can Tho’s wedding package also includes upscale culinary offerings, options for pre-wedding photography, a private pool party (before or after the celebration), and, of course, an overnight stay for the bride and groom. Azerai also offers memorable wedding packages at its two other properties in Vietnam: Azerai La Residence, Hue in the former imperial capital and the beachfront Azerai Ke Ga Bay on the southeastern coast.
Thai the Knot in Spectacular Koh Samui
Banyan Tree Samui’s team of onsite wedding planners, or Romance Concierges, caters to every whim for couples who dream of getting hitched on a tropical white-sand beach. The resort is totally secluded within a private palm-fringed bay, and guests will have the added luxury of staying in magnificent hillside villas, each with its own infinity pool and 24-hour butler service. This resort specializes not only in white weddings on the beachfront, but Thai Buddhist ceremonies where groom and bride are dressed in traditional Siamese robes.
As destination weddings once again switch from dream to possibility, hotels and resorts across Asia are making sure weddings are the grandest of affairs. From Tokyo to Ho Chi Minh City and beyond, Asian cities offer a vibrant backdrop for celebrations of love. Here is a look at five of Asia’s most extraordinary hotel wedding venues right in the heart of the action.
A Taste of Milan in Saigon
One of the most sought-after event spaces in Ho Chi Minh City, the majestic La Scala ballroom at The Reverie Saigon is a pillarless 618-square-meter space featuring glamorous interiors inspired by the grand décor of Milan’s legendary Teatro alla Scala. Weddings at The Reverie Saigon are highly personalized, extravagantly decorated and able to accommodate up to 400 guests. In the La Scala ballroom’s foyer stands the hotel’s pièce de résistance, a 19th-century Bechstein grand piano that has been re-imagined and transformed by the Florentine company Baldi into an opulent masterpiece. Dating back to 1895, the still-pitch-perfect instrument’s original veneer has been refinished with precious malachite stone in a striking, Russian mosaic-style with chiseled, gilded bronze accents.
Regency Romance in Phnom Penh
The Hyatt Regency Phnom Penh, the newest international-branded luxury hotel in Cambodia’s charming capital, has all the right ingredients for a fantastic wedding. Prime among its attributes is its Regency Ballroom, which measures 459sqm: enough to host 300 seated guests. Another nine multi-functonal spaces filled with natural daylight expand customizable options for organisers. Indeed, it’s the extra attention to detail that makes a wedding here special. Dedicated wedding planners can help you map out the big event from hiring Cambodia’s best wedding photographers to selecting wedding gowns. The hotel offers three different packages ranging from a simple, classy affair to a lavish “royal” blowout that includes a luxurious set up and an extravagant celebratory menu.
A Regal Backdrop in Tokyo
With a location just across the moat from the Imperial Palace Gardens, a wedding at Palace Hotel Tokyo is a regal affair. The sought-after, on-site wedding chapel features wall-to-wall, floor-to-ceiling windows directly looking out over Wadakura moat, the Imperial Palace gardens and the Marunouchi skyline. To complement, and to accommodate both western and eastern traditions, the hotel also has its own Shinto shrine, featuring spectacular kumiko saiku sculptural woodwork designed by multi-faceted artist Jotaro Saito and exquisite kirikane gold- and platinum-leaf artistry by Mimari Yasukawa.
Outdoors but Indoors in Hanoi
Le Balcon, a stunning open-air garden at the 120-year-old Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi, offers an elegant al fresco venue that sets the perfect romantic scene for declarations of love. Featuring a dazzling white background with green shutters overlooking the hotel’s lush courtyard, Le Balcon is ideally suited for up to 80 guests. Metropole’s wedding packages include high-end Vietnamese or French culinary options, remarkable floral decorations, elegant wedding cakes, world-class photography and, of course, accommodation in the hotel’s most luxurious quarters for the couple on their wedding night. Newlyweds looking for a nostalgic escape can book the very same suite where Charlie Chaplin and Paulette Goddard stayed during their honeymoon in 1936.
An Urban Wedding Setting in the Heart of Chiang Mai
Housed in a striking 22-floor tower fronted by an adjoining seven-floor podium building, the new Meliá Chiang Mai debuted in the heart of Chiang Mai city in April and is already proving to be a popular urban hotel wedding setting. Its extensive conference facilities include an awe-inspiring 185-sqm multi-purpose room perched atop the podium building on the seventh floor, the Khom Multi-Function Room, defined by floor-to-ceiling glass panel walls. The Khom Room opens to a 222-sqm outdoor terrace with panoramic views of Chiang Mai, the Ping River and the mountains, and also adjoins a secret garden that makes for a welcome surprise for the wedding guests.