THAI WEDDING CEREMONY PACKAGES AT THE ORIENTAL, BANGKOK

Traditional Thai weddings have long been admired and noted worldwide as being graceful and time-honoured, an exquisite mix of ancient tradition, sacred Thai culture, and Buddhist religion. The Oriental, Bangkok – considered one of the world’s most romantic escapades - is offering an exclusive series of traditional Thai wedding ceremony packages.

Combining the hotel’s international reputation for outstanding service with the completion of a luxurious US$28 million room renovation of The River Wing in Summer 2001, The Oriental provides the perfect setting for a memorable occasion. As part of the hotel 125th anniversary celebrations, the hotel is inviting wedding couples to also celebrate, with the following options that respect the traditions and customs of Thailand (see Notes below):

The Buddhist Wedding Ceremony

An early morning ceremony officiated by nine Buddhist monk held in a private room at the hotel, beginning at 6 am. The ceremony includes:

Room rental - room and flower decoration and two wedding garlands for the bride and groom

Food for nine monks - flower offerings, candles and joss sticks; nine Thai breakfasts to be taken at the hotel; nine lunches especially prepared for the monks to take back to the temple

A donation for nine monks and transportation to and from the temple

Buddhist Merit Making

In this ceremony, the bride and groom offer food to the nine monks in front of the Marble Temple at the hotel in the morning from 05.30-08.00 hours. The ceremony consists of the following:

· Food for nine monks, flower offerings, candles, joss sticks

· Two wedding garlands

· Donation for nine monks

· Bird-releasing ceremony

Rod Nam Sung Ceremony (or Lustral Water Pouring Ceremony)

Considered one of the most sacred traditions in a Thai wedding, this ceremony involves adults and elder relatives taking turns to bless the bride and groom by pouring water on the hands of the couple. This package consists of the following :

· Private room rental with room setup and flower decoration

· Two wedding garlands for the bride and groom

The wedding couple and party have an extensive choice in room accommodation and prices for the wedding ceremony plus accommodation are available upon request. For further information or reservations, please contact the hotel directly on (66 2) 659 9000 ext 3342 or 3350.

Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group is the award-winning owner and operator of some of the world’s most prestigious hotels, including The Oriental, Bangkok, Mandarin Oriental, Hong Kong and Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park, London. In total, the Group operates 19 luxury hotels in key leisure and business destinations, with two hotels under development, one in New York (opening late 2003) and the other in Tokyo (opening 2006). In total, Mandarin Oriental employs almost 9,000 staff in three continents with 10 hotels in Asia, six in North America and three in Europe.

Notes:

Nine monks - The Thais typically regard the number nine as an auspicious number, in almost all merit making ceremonies. The word itself in Thai translates as "to move forward” or “to prosper". In addition, Thailand’s current reigning King is King Rama 9, which has an even far greater significance.

Donation for nine monks - As Buddhist monks do not have any form of income, the temples and monks generally rely on donations from the public in order to buy necessities for the temple and themselves. Therefore in most merit making ceremonies, Thai people will include a donation which is part of the ceremony - to help give support to the temple and to the monks.

Bird releasing – A popular ceremonial component, Thais often buy birds sold in cages to free them - symbolic of giving life and freedom to animals, which in turn will warrant the releaser with more merit in this life and the next. Other animals such as fish, turtles, etc are also sometimes used in these ceremonies and are released into the river.