The Velvet Knot Journal
Wedding planning,
demystified.
Honest guides on cost, timelines, traditions, and what really happens behind a well-planned Indian wedding.
48 Hours in Macau: A Bachelorette and Bachelor Party Itinerary
Two days in Macau is enough for a bachelorette or bachelor party if the plan is tight: arrive and settle into a Cotai resort, a spa and long brunch, an afternoon in the UNESCO-listed old city, a show or club night, and a casino evening for those aged 21 and over. Keep transfers short by […]
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Macau Bachelorette and Bachelor Party by Private Charter: Two Days in the Las Vegas of Asia
Velvet Knot’s Macau bachelorette and bachelor trip flies the group out on a private chartered flight, spends two days in Macau, often called the Las Vegas of Asia, and flies everyone back to India. The two days cover a luxury Cotai hotel, a spa session and brunch, a night out or a show, and a […]
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Trinco Blu Wedding Cost 2026: A Summer Beach Wedding in Trincomalee
Trinco Blu by Cinnamon is a beach resort of about 81 rooms in Trincomalee on Sri Lanka’s east coast, with an outdoor beach and garden setup for around 200 guests. The east coast is dry from May to September, when the south-west is wet. On our planning band of Rs 30,000 to Rs 55,000 per […]
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Heritance Kandalama Wedding Cost 2026: A Jungle Wedding at Geoffrey Bawa’s Masterpiece
Heritance Kandalama is Geoffrey Bawa’s hotel built into a rock face above the Kandalama reservoir near Dambulla, with 152 rooms and a Main Hall that seats 260 for a banquet and 350 for cocktails. On our Sri Lanka planning band of Rs 30,000 to Rs 55,000 per guest, a 150-guest wedding lands around Rs 45 […]
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Cinnamon Bentota Beach Wedding Cost 2026: A Geoffrey Bawa Resort for Indian Weddings
Cinnamon Bentota Beach is a Geoffrey Bawa resort between the Bentota river and the Indian Ocean, rebuilt and reopened in December 2019, with 159 rooms and a grand ballroom for up to 300 guests. On our Sri Lanka planning band of Rs 30,000 to Rs 55,000 per guest, a 200-guest wedding lands around Rs 60 […]
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Shangri-La Hambantota Wedding Cost 2026: Sri Lanka’s Largest Indian Wedding Venue
Shangri-La Hambantota is the only Sri Lankan resort built for a large Indian wedding: 300 rooms and a Grand Ballroom that seats 990 for a banquet and 1,434 for a reception. On our Sri Lanka planning band of Rs 30,000 to Rs 55,000 per guest, a 300-guest wedding lands around Rs 90 lakh to Rs […]
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Sri Lanka vs Thailand vs Bali for an Indian Wedding: Cost, Visas, Venues and the Law
For an Indian wedding of 50 to 150 guests, Sri Lanka is the cheapest of the three at roughly Rs 25 lakh to Rs 70 lakh, Thailand runs Rs 40 lakh to Rs 1.5 crore and has the most large resorts, and Bali runs Rs 35 lakh to Rs 1.2 crore with the closest Hindu […]
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Sri Lanka Wedding Venues for Indian Couples: Five Regions, Real Capacities (2026)
Sri Lanka’s wedding venues sit in five regions: the south-west coast around Bentota and Galle, the deep south at Hambantota, Colombo, the cultural triangle around Dambulla, and the east coast at Trincomalee. The largest is Shangri-La Hambantota, whose Grand Ballroom seats 990 for a banquet. The two coasts have opposite dry seasons, so one of […]
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Is a Sri Lanka Wedding Legal for Indian Couples? The Three Routes, Explained
An Indian couple can marry legally in Sri Lanka, but the Registrar General’s Department asks for a residence period in the area before the notice of marriage and a 14-day wait after it, unless a special licence is granted. Most visiting couples therefore hold the ceremony in Sri Lanka and register the marriage in India, […]
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Cruise Wedding to Sri Lanka: A Night on Cordelia, Then Your Pheras in Sri Lanka
Velvet Knot’s cruise wedding combines one night aboard a Cordelia cruise, with a welcome evening and cocktails under the stars, and one night in Sri Lanka, where the haldi and the pheras take place on the day you arrive. You fly home on day three. Sailing dates and ports are confirmed on enquiry, and the […]
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