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Destination Wedding Packages & Advertising Suggestions for

The Taj West End, Bangalore

History of weddings @ The Taj West End

•  Mainly local weddings •  High profile weddings •  Not many weddings based on themes •  Most weddings are based on color combinations, but can offer themes ( but need to work with better event management companies) •  Many people stick too traditional north/south Indian weddings styles •  What’s more important than theme is representing one’s families culture, traditions, and heritage in the wedding

•  Many weddings are mixed cultures of north & south Indian or different origins of India

•  Many weddings are Inter religious •  Its common for many clients who are getting

married at the hotel to chose to do their wedding at The TajWest End because their parents got married at the hotel.

Suggested Wedding Planners

•  Eventiasles •  Rings & Roses •  Avenues Hospitality •  Divya Vithika Wedding Planners

Wedding Planners enhancing the experience of Destination Wedding

•  Set up hotel accommodations for family and guests

•  Set up accommodations for transportation to and from the airport-in fancy car

•  When arriving at the hotel make sure to offer them flowers and maybe typical Indian drink-coconut juice /mango lassie

Wedding Contacts Information •  Eventaisles (Wedding & Event Planning) is owned by wedding

planners Madu Naidu and with partner Preeti Shah. The phone number to contact these wedding planners is 91-9008774774 & 9731598283. You can also contact them by e-mail which is madhu@eventaisles.com. To find out more information about their business you can visit their website which is www.eventaisles.com.

•  Rings and Roses are owned by wedding planners Rosemary and Christopher Ratnam. The wedding planning company is located at 9 Haudin Road Ulsoor 560042 Bangalore, India. The phone number to contact these wedding planners is 91-80-42127312/91-96638-24415. There email is info@ringsandroses.in . To find more information about what exactly Rings and Roses provide as a wedding planning company you can visit www.ringsandroses.in.

•  Avenues Hospitality is owed by wedding planners Ashwin U G and Yassir Siraj. The phone number to contact these wedding planners are 918025484532 and 919880744454. You can also contact them by e-mail which is info@avenueshospitality.com. To find out more information about their business you can visit their website which is www.avenueshospitality.com.

•  Divya Vithika wedding planners is owned by Vithika Agarwal and Divya Chauhan. The phone number to contact these wedding planners are 919900239080 and 919845228614. You can also contact them by e-mail which is divya@divyavithika.com / info@divyavithika.com. To find out more information about their business you can visit their website which is www. Divyavithika.com

Destination Wedding Package

•  Making The Taj West End a wedding Experience •  Destination Wedding-Instead of having just one or

two days to celebrate a wedding, a couple will have several days of quality time together so …..

•  The guest list is smaller and the whole experience becomes focused on spending time with friends and family

Therefore…..

•  I believe the most important part of a destination wedding is creating nostalgic value and

so incorporating experiences at Taj, tourism of Bangalore, and

the wedding events itself will make a memorable event.

So…… •  Wedding Planner along with the hotel have to enhance

the experience of a Destination Wedding •  Pre wedding events/ rituals, Wedding events, and Post

wedding events/ rituals – the wedding planner have to offer things that are out of the ordinary

•  Use the experiences offered at The Taj West End •  Tourism of Bangalore •  To create a Destination Wedding Package

Wedding Planners enhancing the experience of Destination Wedding

•  Set up hotel accommodations for family and guests

•  Set up accommodations for transportation to and from the airport-in fancy car

•  When arriving at the hotel make sure to offer them flowers and maybe typical Indian drink-coconut juice /mango lassie

•  Help arrange pre wedding parties, wedding, and post wedding parties – entertainment, food, venue, decorations, video & photography etc.

•  Ask the bride and groom if they would like to participate in any local Karnataka costume per-wedding ceremonies / rituals

•  Help bride &groom with wedding certification details. Make sure to take care of any passport issues and make sure that that the marriage will be legal when they go back home.

•  Provide bride, groom, and main wedding party with a professional designer for wedding attire and jewelry

•  And, provide a professional hair and make up artists •  Offer a grand entrance for the bride and groom

when entering the wedding venue, for example the groom could enter on a horse or elephant

•  Entertainment – Hire a choreographer so that relatives and close friends can do a dance for the reception or teach the bride and groom their 1st dance before the wedding.

•  Can also hire singers, dancers, DJ, orchestra, and pianist

What the hotel could offer for a destination wedding package

•  Bachelor Party/ Bachelorette Party- offer to do this at the hotel in either Blue Bar, Blue Ginger or Masala Klub , set up exclusive entertainment ( Dj/ bar tender) , provide food ,alcohol, and cake.

•  Set up a rehearsal dinner at Mynt, Blue Ginger or Masala Klub . A nice dinner with only close friends and family member the night before the wedding officially begins.

•  Ask the bride and groom if they would like to participate in any local Karnataka costume per-wedding ceremonies / rituals –offer the ballroom

•  Or ask the bride and groom if they would like to conduct their own family pre-wedding ceremonies/ rituals like a Mehandi ceremony or Sangeet- offer the ballroom or a open venue at the hotel

•  For any per wedding ceremony or ritual- provide entertainment ( Mehandi artists of high quality with different color mehandi, classical or modern Indian music, food, decorations, and pundit ,(if needed), and help the bride / groom find designer attire and accessories–(wedding planners responsibility)

•  Kari Kulture & Korporate Kurry •  Two different types of cooking classes that family and close

friends could enjoy doing together. Maybe have he chef teach them the bride and grooms favorite meal.

•  Paradise Blue Ginger •  Could be offered to the bride and groom as an romantic

dinner for two before the wedding. •  This will finally give them some alone time together away

from all the crazy wedding havoc.

•  Breakfast under the Raintree •  This could be offered just to the bride and grooms

family. •  A nice family breakfast together before the wedding

starts. With a typical Karnataka breakfast served on a banana leaf.

•  Champagne Lounge •  The could be offered to the groom and he’s friends

or the families and close friends of the wedding party.

•  This could be a fun get together before the wedding as a way to talk and catch up with friends and family.

•  Art of afternoon tea at Mynt •  This could be offered to the bride and her close

friends and family. •  A way for the ladies to catch up, talk , and get

together causally before the wedding.

Honeymoon Package

•  Dinner Under the Stars •  After the wedding is done the bride and groom will

be able to relax and have a peaceful dinner celebrating their nuptials just the two of them .

•  Spa •  I think the bride and groom should be offered some

kind of massage at a special rate or special type of massage.

Advertising Suggestions-Taj West End virtual Magazine

•  Show casing various articles written by the hotel or blogs about various activities/events that take place at the hotel.

•  http://magazine.fourseasons.com/ •  The Taj West End online Magazine could be linked

and featured on the Taj West End website.

Taj West End virtual Magazine

•  The online magazine should be interactive so that the public can twitt and comment on the different articles / blogs.

•  Have a recommendation page so that the public can contribute to what they would want to see at the hotel or what they like / don’t like about the hotel.

•  Show case articles & pictures on the different wedding taking place at the hotel and explain their theme or concept around the wedding.

•  Have articles & pictures of the type of food served at a wedding or an event – different types lunch, dinner, cakes they have created for weddings .

•  Have articles & pictures on interview taken from the bride and groom on how the felt about the wedding being done at the Taj West End and their experience.

•  The magazine could also feature articles on wedding planners in Bangalore- (who are the wedding planners the past bride and grooms have worked with, who are the wedding planners the hotel recommends working with in Bangalore).

•  Have article how to incorporate tourism in a destination wedding, ( how Bangalore could be incorporated to your wedding experience).

•  Have an article on advice on how to go about planning a destination wedding at the Taj West End .

•  Other articles in the magazine could include advice how to get married at Taj West End legally if the couple is from abroad.

•  Another article could be about what the hotel could offer the bride and groom if they choose to have their wedding at Taj West End

•  There could be an article about tips on what are the best typical Karnataka foods to be featured in your wedding lunch /dinner.

•  Articles about what are some unique theme’s a bride and groom can do at the Taj West End.

•  An article about what are the best decorations and flowers that can be used for a typical Karnataka wedding.

Social Media

•  In my opinion social media may not be the greatest way to advertise for Taj West End unless its done to a certain degree of privacy or limitation. Because, this is a luxury hotel where only certain people can afford this luxury and offering it to everyone on facebook will make it seem ordinary , no longer luxury and less exclusive.

•  So, I think a better way to advertise weddings at Taj West End is the online magazine, blogs, through wedding planners, local magazines, local new papers, and wedding fairs.

Improving the wedding page on Taj West End website

•  There should be a photo gallery/ pictures of past wedding done at the Taj West End, especially show casing the high profile clients.

•  There should be information about what are the general catering information such as the hotel caters vegetarian and non vegetarian, how many people it can cater too , caters lunch and dinner only, buffet etc.- then include a photo gallery of food served in other wedding parties

•  There should also be a photo gallery/pictures of the cakes done for past wedding at the hotel and information about what type of cakes the hotel offers.

•  The website should include information about all the venues that can be used for all pre-wedding/wedding/ post wedding events.

•  There also need to be information about the bride and groom being able to take a tour of the venues .

•  The website should include information about what the hotel can offer a couple looking to do a destination wedding at the Taj West End.

•  The website page should also include information of any type of wedding or honeymoon package offered by the Taj West End not just other Taj hotel’s.

•  The website can also include pictures of different lighting done at a wedding.

•  There should also be information about various wedding vendors in Bangalore that Taj West End has worked with and recommendations on who to work with.

•  The website should also include information about being able to take care of any per-wedding / wedding/ post-wedding celebrations or rituals.

•  There should be information about what are the terms and conductions used for having the wedding party stay at the hotel, how to take care of those accommodations, and who to contact.

•  There should be information about who should be contacted if a couple is interested in having their wedding at the Taj West End.