Weddings need not necessarily unfold beneath chandeliers in a traditional hotel ballroom. The Hari Hong Kong is setting the scene for the occasion of a lifetime with an intimate new wedding experience at contemporary Japanese restaurant Zoku and lush alfresco space The Terrace overlooking Wan Chai.

Couples select eight of Zoku’s signature Japanese canapés, with choices including deep-fried beef brisket maki, mini octopus skewer with sesame

‘The Hari Ever After’ package, priced at HK$50,000 (USD 6378) for 50 guests, affords couples exclusive use of Zoku and The Terrace for four hours, replete with eight varieties of handcrafted Japanese canapés, three hours of free-flow drinks, a whimsical The Hari Candy Trolley and a complimentary night in a luxurious Corner Room for the newlyweds.

For couples marking proposals, anniversaries and other special occasions, the hotel offers the ‘Romance in Style’ stay in one of the hotel’s three elegant suites with their own balconies and sweeping vistas of Wan Chai, Causeway Bay, The Peak and Victoria Harbour, as well as bespoke floral arrangements, and The Hari Gift Cards.

Weddings need not necessarily unfold beneath chandeliers in a traditional hotel ballroom

The wedding ceremony and cocktail reception party move between Zoku, meaning “clan” in Japanese and characterised by leather fluted booths and crimson velvet banquets under a dramatic origami-inspired ceiling of angled timber slats, and open-air The Terrace, framed by greenery and a striking triple-height living wall.

Couples select eight of Zoku’s signature Japanese canapés, with choices including deep-fried beef brisket maki, mini octopus skewer with sesame, Atlantic salmon kushiyaki, pork belly taco, shrimp and avocado tart, shrimp tamagoyaki with karasumi, mini sesame crab cake and wasabi prawns.

In addition to unlimited red and white wine, Asahi beer and non-alcoholic refreshments for three hours and The Hari Candy Trolly brimming with the likes of macarons and marshmallows, elegant venue decorations and complimentary value parking for up to two vehicles, subject to availability, are also included.

For couples marking proposals, anniversaries and other special occasions, the hotel offers the ‘Romance in Style’ stay in one of the hotel’s three elegant suites

After the wedding, the newlyweds head upstairs for their complimentary room night in a Corner Room, with a 10% privilege to upgrade to a luxurious suite featuring a private terrace, a rarity in Hong Kong.

“The greatest luxury for a wedding, in my humble opinion, is forgetting about the stress of orchestrating such an occasion yourself and leaving that to our team so you can focus on the person you are marrying and the people you have chosen to celebrate with,” said The Hari Hong Kong’s general manager Edward E. Snoeks.

“Zoku and The Terrace offer something remarkably different to the traditional hotel ballroom: two singular venues entirely for the wedding, with atmospheric Zoku seamlessly flowing into the open air and greenery of The Terrace. Our team takes care of every detail behind the scenes, right down to the little touches people remember, leaving the bride and groom-to-be free to forget the logistics and lose themselves in a day nothing short of extraordinary.”

In addition to unlimited red and white wine, Asahi beer and non-alcoholic refreshments for three hours and The Hari Candy Trolly

The Hari Hong Kong’s Romance in Style package couples a one-night stay in a suite with breakfast for two, a chocolate strawberry bouquet and a romantic turndown with rose petals, a bubble bath and a choice of Champagne, red wine or white wine. Couples also receive 15% off food and beverages at Lucciola, The Lounge, Zoku & The Terrace, as well as early check-in and late check-out, subject to availability.

For wedding enquiries, contact The Hari Hong Kong’s events team at eventshk@thehari.com or +852 9502 0955. For further information about the hotel, visit https://www.thehari.com/hong-kong/weddings/, email askme@thehari.com or call +852 2129 0388.

The Hari Ever After package is priced at HK$50,000 (USD 6378) for 50 guests and subject to a 10% service charge. Each additional guest costs HK$800 (USD 102) + 10% service charge.

The post The Hari Hong Kong Says ‘I Do’ appeared first on Asian Itinerary.

November to February might mean snow and ice to many people across the world, but in tropical Southeast Asia the “cool season” is upon us (if you call 30 ° C “cool”, that is) and so we usher in the traditional time of year to say “I Do”.

Here is a selection of breathlessly romantic venues where you might consider tying the knot — be it by sunset under the palm trees on a white beach in Thailand or overlooking the green terraced rice paddies of Vietnam.

Elope to Tropical Paradise on Koh Samui

Idyllic Banyan Tree Samui is tiered into a tropical landscape and offers seclusion and intimacy, with each of its 88 majestic villas including a private infinity pool and plunge pool. This romantic resort is surrounded by lush greenery and has a private beach flanked by coral reefs. An award-winning spa offers massage and hydrotherapy treatments, while the choice of three restaurants includes Saffron, located at the crest of the resort and commanding spectacular vistas across the sea. Saffron is a fine-dining venue offering contemporary Thai cuisine and was listed in this year’s MICHELIN Guide. Other options include Destination Dining, a romantic experience for two under a canopy on the beach with a candlelit atmosphere, as well as floating breakfasts in the guests’ own pool villa.

Say I Do in Chiang Mai

“Say I Do at Meliá Chiang Mai” is a year-round promotion at one of Chiang Mai’s premier venues and the newest 5-star hotel in this city, which is famous for elephants, rainforest and charming Buddhist temples. Northern Thai nuptials include the choice of Thai Traditional, Western Ceremony, Vow Renewals and more. Wedding Packages at the hotel’s Khom Room start from just THB 150,000 net (US$4,600) and provide everything from traditional Thai ceremonies to intimate Western-style vow renewals, each celebration is beautifully crafted with elegant decor, floral arrangements and personalised service. Meliá Chiang Mai has two restaurants, one of which is Mai Restaurant & Bar, an intimate venue on the 21st floor, offering contemporary Northern Thai dishes with Mediterranean influences. The restaurant complements the rooftop MAI The Sky Bar as signature spaces for pre-wedding photos and after-party celebrations.

A Blissful Thai Beachfront for Brides and Grooms

Sporting an intimate Wedding Deck, elevated high above the beach and commanding a spectacular view of the sapphire Andaman Sea, Banyan Tree Krabi is a dream-come-true location for those seeking a tropical beach wedding. The Wedding Deck is accessible by electric funicular, escorting guests to new heights above this stunning 5-star resort where all 72 rooms face the sea and the sunset, and each has its own infinity pool and plunge pool.The resort is surrounded by nature on three sides: a forested national park with stunning viewpoints to the north and east, and one of Thailand‘s most iconic scenes – the uninhabited limestone cliffs of a the national marine park – to the west. Dining options include Afternoon Tea at the resort’s exotic Bird’s Nest tables, snuggled among the canopy of the trees. Banyan Tree Krabi also features Saffron, a fine-dining contemporary Thai restaurant, and an award-winning spa with the Banyan Tree brand’s signature Rainforest hydrotherapy experience.

Seaside and Riverfront Nuptials in Vietnam

Azerai Resorts has unveiled new premium wedding packages at its award-winning properties in Vietnam. The oceanfront Azerai Ke Ga Bay and historic Azerai La Residence, Hue both provide scenic natural beauty alongside Azerai’s signature hospitality, including flexible indoor and outdoor arrangements for weddings of all sizes. Azerai’s wedding packages are all individually tailored to ensure that every celebration is as unique as the bride and groom. Azerai Ke Ga Bay, an all-suites-and-villas oceanfront resort in southern Vietnam, around 2.5 hours east of Ho Chi Minh City, offers a stunning backdrop for weddings for up to 100 guests. Azerai La Residence, Hue, situated in Vietnam’s former imperial capital, offers a historic yet vibrant setting for weddings with up to 300 guests. The hotel’s themed wedding packages, with poolside dinners overlooking the fabled Perfume River, are especially popular.

12 Swimming Pools Ideal for Wedding Setups

Alma Resort, commanding 30 hectares on scenic Cam Ranh peninsula, is anchored by 12 swimming pools that cascade down to one of Vietnam’s most stunning stretches of sand, Long Beach. Whether an intimate ceremony for two or a larger event, loved-up couples can tie the knot under an arch festooned in seasonal flowers either poolside or on the beach. Two of the pools are home to the hotel’s Pool Bar and Beach Bar, with the latter, with submerged seating, adjoining a big beach lawn area that makes for a spectacular tropical wedding setting with its backdrop of traditional sampans and coracles plying the aquamarine waters and islands strewn just offshore. Surrounded by vast pool terraces, the swimming pools offer various surprises such as contemporary floating gazebos, with the largest pool some 75 metres long. 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.

Wedding Bliss in Cam Ranh

The Anam Group cut the ribbon last year on Axi Plaza, a striking multipurpose convention centre with a design inspired by the country’s ubiquitous coracle boat. The largest multipurpose convention centre in the region’s remarkable facilities that cater to weddings include a vast state-of-the-art conference hall, a 360-degree rooftop venue and a stunning outdoor beachfront event space. The 1,197sqm conference hall and ballroom area on the third floor accommodates up to 1,000 people. Dominated by a high ceiling with timber beams fashioned in a fan formation, the hall features a cutting edge 75sqm LED screen and panoramic vistas encompassing swimming pools, a manicured lawn and the ocean. Totalling 1,077sqm, the fifth floor rooftop area has been designed for receptions. The outdoor event space is underpinned by the capacious lawn that fronts three picture-perfect swimming pools. The exterior of the building is crisscrossed with wood set to last at least 100 years. By night, Axi Plaza changes colours in an elaborate lighting display.

Timeless Weddings in Vietnam’s Capital

Charlie Chaplin honeymooned at the Metropole in Vietnam in 1936, and today the hotel’s Heritage Wing boasts a suite honoring the iconic Hollywood star. Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi provides three elegant venues for wedding receptions: the chic, French-inspired Thang Long Hall, the refined La Veranda, and the picturesque open-air Le Balcon du Metropole garden. A lavish wedding at Metropole Hanoi features exquisite Vietnamese and Western dining options, bespoke floral designs, professional photography services and more. The Heritage Wing, with its 103 carefully restored rooms and suites, underwent a 21-month renovation before reopening last year and includes suites named after other notable figures too, including Graham Greene and Somerset Maugham.

Love in Ancient Angkor

Raffles Grand Hotel d’Angkor, the luxury heritage hotel near ancient Khmer archeological sites in Cambodia, offers the ultimate in memorable weddings: the chance to exchange vows at the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Angkor Wat. The bride and groom can travel to their ceremony by private helicopter, alighting from the nearby Royal Gardens. Raffles Grand Hotel d’Angkor only offers bespoke weddings – no pre-planned packages. Guests orchestrate the tiniest details to craft their own perfect day. The hotel also offers luxurious accommodations in addition to Khmer fine dining at 1932 restaurant, a host of relaxing spa treatments and much more.

Make a Vow by the Sea in Pattaya

Perched above the waves with sweeping Gulf of Thailand views, Meliá Pattaya’s rooftop is the city’s most romantic stage for a sunset wedding. Exchange vows as the sky blushes pink, then celebrate under the stars with family and friends. Couples can choose from Thai or Western ceremony packages—from traditional water-pouring rituals to modern vow exchanges—each elevated by themed floral décor, personalised touches, and a dedicated events team. The experience includes luxurious perks such as a night in The Level One Bedroom Suite, signature mocktails or tea ceremonies, and bespoke wedding favours. Whether it’s an intimate elopement or a 40-guest celebration, Meliá Pattaya transforms the day into a tropical fairytale framed by sea breezes and golden light.

The post Winter Weddings in Southeast Asia appeared first on Asian Itinerary.

The Anam Cam Ranh doesn’t necessarily expect to be the same setting for any couple’s proposal, wedding, honeymoon and renewal of vows, but a host of remarkable new packages invites such a possibility.

The experiences leverage a storybook setting on Vietnam’s Cam Ranh peninsula, replete with uninterrupted views of toast-brown sands, turquoise waters, dramatic headlines and islands offshore

The experiences leverage a storybook setting on Vietnam’s Cam Ranh peninsula, replete with uninterrupted views of toast-brown sands, turquoise waters, dramatic headlines and islands offshore that come together as one of Vietnam’s most picture-perfect seaside enclaves. Since its 2017 grand opening, the 12-hectare resort has celebrated countless proposals, weddings and honeymoons.

The Anam Cam Ranh’s proposal experience is anchored by a private candle-lit dining set-up on the resort’s beach, by one of its three unusually compelling swimming pools or in the privacy of a private-pool villa. A four-course menu is cooked by a private chef and served by a private waiter, with two Asian menus and two Western menus to choose from. The ‘Romantic Dinner’ menus feature the likes of entrees ‘Banana flower salad with Bay scallops, oyster Florentina’ and ‘Field mushroom cappuccino with pancetta wrapped scallops and garlic crostini’ and mains ‘Steamed fresh grouper with shitake mushroom sauce and spring onion’ and ‘West Coast pink roasted rack of lamb with Mediterranean vegetable timbale garlic candies’.

Weddings range from an intimate ceremony for two on the beachfront or vast lawn to a larger formal dining arrangement for up to 500 family and friends

Weddings range from an intimate ceremony for two on the beachfront or vast lawn to a larger formal dining arrangement for up to 500 family and friends. Sweeteners for the bride and groom include a live guitarist and violinist during the ceremony, all sorts of exquisite flower arrangements, and a three-tier wedding cake.

“Our resort’s meticulous wedding planner sees to every last detail for the occasion of a lifetime, saving the bride and groom the often immense stress of orchestrating a wedding themselves,” said The Anam Group’s commercial director Martin Koerner.

“There is also scope for wedding ceremonies and receptions to be staged at the adjacent beachfront Axi Plaza, a multifunctional convention centre with a design inspired by Vietnam’s ubiquitous coracle boat. A state-of-the-art conference hall, a 360-degree rooftop venue, and a stunning outdoor beachfront event space are among Axi Plaza’s highlights.”

Axi Plaza, a multifunctional convention centre with a design inspired by Vietnam’s ubiquitous coracle boat

With a design inspired by Vietnam’s Indochine era, the 180-square-metre ‘Honeymoon Villas’ are both set on 400 square metres of lush hillside land located adjacent to the grounds of the resort’s tranquil 10-treatment room spa. The picture-perfect one-bedroom villas each feature a separate living room, jacuzzi, steam and sauna room and private terrace with sun loungers overlooking a glassy-surfaced 40-square-metre private pool. The villas’ romantic appeal draws on the Indochine period with the likes of imperial style roofs, big-bellied water vases, lanterns, and customized mosaic tiles.

A private BBQ in the villa, a romantic ritual at The Anam Spa including a body scrub, Sothys Paris facial and moisturizing milk bath, and movies on the beach are among the honeymoon experiences on offer.

Sweeteners for the bride and groom include a live guitarist and violinist during the ceremony, all sorts of exquisite flower arrangements, and a three-tier wedding cake

The Honeymoon Villas come with complimentary daily afternoon tea, served either in the privacy of the villa, at The Colonial fine dining restaurant that features a quaint courtyard or a scenic spot such as amid the resort’s verdant gardens or on Long Beach. Like the wedding packages, the renewal of vows packages also feature a night’s stay in a Premium Room or Garden View Villa, with free upgrades depending on availability.

A myriad of lush settings across the resort, including reflecting ponds, manicured lawns, and cobblestone pathways framed by established greenery, make for striking pre-wedding and wedding photo backdrops.

For further information or to make a booking, visit.theanam.com, email The Anam Cam Ranh’s event team at mice@theanam.com or call +(84) 258 393 9496.

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