What it’s like to postpone a wedding amid coronavirus pandemic
- We talk to some Hong Kong brides- and grooms-to-be about how they are navigating last-minute rescheduling for themselves and their guests
- Given 2020 is a double-spring leap year – particularly auspicious for newlyweds – anyone changing dates might need to consider weekdays
Emma Stone, Princess Beatrice, Dennis Quaid, Katy Perry and Orlando Bloom are among the international celebrities who have cancelled, postponed or scaled back weddings, as events large and small skid to a halt in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.
In Hong Kong, where cases began popping up in late January, couples started postponing their big days soon after news broke that some early virus victims transmitted the illness at weddings.
“We were mostly concerned about our guests’ safety, especially as we had them flying in from all over the world,” Yu says. “Some of them had already booked everything – hotels and flights – and unfortunately they couldn’t get it all refunded. [We also had to] contact each of our guests individually, because some don’t check email or are not very good with replying. We had to make sure no one would turn up on the original wedding date.”
As Yu runs event and catering companies, he is familiar with the difficult position it puts both parties in.
“To throw another wedding banquet, I would think it will cost 20 per cent extra [for couples] to reschedule,” he says. “Some of the items that we paid for cannot be refunded while some deposits we can extend – but given the current situation, with companies closing one by one, it’s hard to say if all of the vendors can survive after this.”
From a business point of view, he is understanding. “We try to be [relaxed about it] and reach an agreement [with couples] in good terms, to go through our hardest time together.”
Those who decided to cancel weddings earlier, before the coronavirus going global, may have been both prudent and prescient, but likely suffered higher cost penalties.
Hong Kong-based Eleanor Dench, whose wedding in the UK was intended for May, was able to postpone everything without penalty with the country going into lockdown.
“The venue, band, DJ, florist, photographer, videographer and so on have all allowed us to postpone with no charge. In terms of cost implications for guests, as far as I’m aware everyone has been able to cancel their flights for free, as most overseas guests were coming from Hong Kong and Cathay has been great with free cancellations during this time. We are still waiting to hear back from British Airways, and we could end up losing the deposit for our honeymoon [flights],” she says.
“The emails [vendors] sent us have been so thoughtful and kind. Although this is their livelihood they have always put our feelings first and asked if there is anything else they can do to help at a time like this. One thing I have noticed with UK vendors is that they are encouraging people to ‘postpone not cancel’ – I have seen a few social media posts discussing the importance of supporting small businesses at this time.”
What we’ve seen is couples choosing to do a small tea and vow ceremony on the original auspicious day, and then there is a little bit less pressure on the choice of banquet date
Hong Kong is traditionally quieter in the first half of the year for nuptials, while year-end weekend wedding dates at popular ballroom venues are often booked up to 24 months in advance, particularly on auspicious days in the lunar calendar. That means couples who want to postpone their date could struggle to do so at their chosen venues.
“Given that 2020 is also a double-spring leap-month year [seen as particularly auspicious for newlyweds], anyone changing dates might need to consider weekdays,” says Vicky Chan, founder and chief wedding stylist of Hong Kong-based The Theme Wedding Design, a mid- to high-end wedding planner.
“We have to maintain our quality also, so we can’t compromise our existing December weddings in order to move other clients and overburden ourselves, which would hurt the execution. If I have a wedding on December 12, I can’t take one on 11 or 13 – it’s not fair to either party.”
Chan also points out there might be costs associated with cancelling or finding new vendors if the original team is not available on the new date. In addition, many venues offer promotional prices during low seasons such as the summer, while charging a premium for year-end dates.
“What we’ve seen is couples choosing to do a small tea and vow ceremony on the original auspicious day, and then there is a little bit less pressure on the choice of banquet date. But this will incur slightly higher costs in terms of hiring some vendors for two events instead of one,” Chan says.
For those still in the earlier planning stages, some things are business as usual.
Pre-wedding shoots overseas are naturally on hold, Chan says, but most couples are understanding – more so than they would be of a rainy wedding day.
Some couples are feeling a double whammy following Hong Kong’s anti-government protests last year.
“The airline hasn’t officially cancelled flights yet but I already know I won’t be going,” she says. “We will reschedule, of course, but the feeling will be different in 2021. We won’t be newlyweds, we’ll be an old married couple!”
