TAT and partners host Grand Lanna Thai wedding ceremony

The Tourism Authority of Thailand’s Paris office continues on its quest to tap into the lucrative market for overseas weddings and honeymoon travel.

Each year, it is estimated that some 300,000 couples in France embark on a search for a dream destination for their wedding, or honeymoon travel. Each is said to spend 2,100 Euros (approximately 100,000 Baht) during the trip.

TAT Paris has been working in partnership with the national carrier, Thai Airways International (THAI), and the Mandarin Oriental Dhara Dhevi in Chiang Mai to organize a magnificent traditional Northern Thai or Lanna-style wedding ceremony for 15 lucky couples in the process of planning their wedding.

The Northern Thai provinces that were once part of the ancient Lanna Thai kingdom are noted for their cultural Splend our, artistic refinement and the gentle ways of its people. The natural and cultural landscape provides an enchanting setting for intimate one-of-a-kind wedding ceremonies and romantic holidays.

To be eligible, couples were only requested to purchase air-tickets from THAI. All other arrangements such as accommodation, cultural activities, and health and wellness package, were sponsored by TAT.

This tempting invitation, announced on the TAT Paris web site www.tourismethaifr.com, attracted much media interest, especially among online media such as Le Point, OUI, Tour magazine, Tour Hebdo, and others. News of this extraordinary Lanna Thai wedding extravaganza got around, resulting in extensive media coverage and free publicity for Chiang Mai, TAT and partners, and Thailand.

TAT Paris did not stop at that. To raise the visibility and awareness of Thailand as one of the world’s finest destinations for weddings and honeymoon travel and achieve the broadest coverage and widest reach possible, TAT Paris worked on a plan to ensure more ‘talk-of-the-town’ and media coverage for Thailand.

TAT Paris’ list of distinguished guests included celebrities such as Miss France 1999 Celia Jourdheuil, Soledad Franco presenter for French cable television channel CAP, and Top Model France 2009 Melanie Rodriguez, as well as leading travel operators and high profile media representatives specializing in the weddings and honeymoon travel niche markets, as well as industry representatives, from France, Belgium and the Netherlands. All were witnesses at this breathtakingly beautiful Lanna Thai wedding ceremony held during June 18 – 20, 2009.

TAT Paris embarked on its first major venture in the weddings and honeymoon travel niche market in 2008 when it partnered with Galerie Lafayette to stage a wedding fair and hosted the first TAT-sponsored traditional Central Thai wedding ceremony at The Rose Garden Riverside Resort.

TAT Paris is set to repeat its success in hosting these traditional Thai style-wedding ceremonies. Couples who missed the chance to participate in this TAT-sponsored event in June 2009 were still keen to learn more about the Lanna Thai wedding ceremony and contacted TAT Paris for further details. In the process, several have decided on Thailand for the 2010 wedding date. Each wedding couple is expected to be accompanied by 30 family members as they make their trip to Thailand and embark on their journey of discovery.