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.
