Right… in some social circles or cultures it’s a part of a long tradition and is fully expected and welcomed.

When I got married we had (between savings and what was gifted by family to spend on our marriage celebration) about 20k.

We spent about 5k on the wedding (attire and rings included) and the rest on the Honeymoon.

The ceremony was on the beach totaling 30 minutes, and then a reception at a nearby restaurant.

We had people have the option of RSVP’ing to one or the other or both.

We were both on the same page about doing a quick ceremony and spending the bulk on the Honeymoon… 10 years later, it was and still is the best “vacation” I ever had.

No financial worries about spending and having a bunch of expensive random experiences…like getting a penthouse suite at a 5-star hotel for one of our nights there (and then going back to the cozy B&B for the rest of the trip) just to see what that was like once in our lives.