As a Guest - Your Presence, Appearance, and Presents
The best way to learn about Thai weddings is of course to attend one, and if your own isn’t imminent, consider taking up the invitations that you’ll likely receive in abundance, especially for the October-May dry season.
In fact it’s poor form to turn down an invitation unless you really have a good excuse, like out of town business. This doesn’t mean that you have to go for very long however. Even if you pop in and show your face, this counts as having attended. Otherwise you can stay for a longer time but you can stay with the partying, eating, and drinking guests and don’t have to sit through the ceremonial parts if you’re not keen.
As a guest, you’re expected not to outshine the bride and groom, and what you wear is determined by where the wedding is. Hotels usually mean you have to dress up a bit, while at a home wedding you can get away with jeans and a clean shirt. Older guests still wear their finest, usually Thai silk shirts for men and dress suits for women, plus gold jewellery.
It’s normal to bring a present to a wedding anywhere in the world, but in Thailand most guests these days will choose to sai song, or put money into an envelope for the new couple. In small towns neighbours will toss in 20-100THB while more ‘high-so’ guests, especially at hotel weddings, will give 500-1000THB. This is such a common practice that most weddings include a large, heart-shaped paper box to slip the envelopes into and the presents table is usually a wasteland.
And just in case being entertained, wined, and dined isn’t enough for you, guests are given a small thank you present, a souvenir when they leave. These are normally small and useless collectables to be kept in a showcase memorial to all those good times.
So that’s the Thai wedding in a nutshell! Unless you’re a spurned ex-, these weddings are joyous occasions full of revelry and fun, with just enough ceremony to remind everyone of the importance of the bond being created. Wish your friends happy and healthy lives together, or try a marriage yourself, but just be sure you know what you’re getting yourself into!
Also information about Buddhist marriage here