印度興起“婚禮旅遊” 外國人花錢就能觀禮大綱

Weddings are generally considered personal events reserved for family and friends, but some couples in India are more than happy to have total strangers from all over the world attend their traditional weddings, for a fee.

婚禮通常被視爲專屬於家人朋友的私人活動，但印度一些新人卻很願意邀請世界各地的陌生人來參加他們的傳統婚禮——當然是要收錢的。

Paying hundreds of dollars to attend the wedding of two total strangers in a foreign country may seem strange to some, but according to JoinMyWedding, a company specializing in wedding tourism, it’s “the ultimate cultural immersion” for tourists looking to experience as many elements of Indian culture in the shortest time possible.

在一些人看來，花幾百美金去外國參加兩個陌生人的婚禮可能很奇怪，但是一家專門從事婚禮旅遊、名爲“參加我的婚禮”的公司卻表示，對於想在最短時間內體驗最多印度文化元素的遊客來說，這是“終極文化浸入式體驗”。

Clients get to put on traditional Indian clothing, taste exotic food, witness and take part in beautiful wedding customs, and soak up the unique atmosphere. As for the couples getting married, they get to share the happiest day of their lives not just with family and friends, “but with the world” and make some extra money in the process.

客人們可以穿上傳統印度服裝，品嚐充滿異國風情的食物，親眼目睹並參與到盛大婚禮的習俗中去，感受獨特的婚禮氣氛。對於舉行婚禮的新人來說，他們不止能和家人朋友分享人生中最幸福的一天，還能和“全世界”一起分享，在此過程中還能賺點外快。

"If you think about it, there’s nothing more cultural than a wedding because you have every cultural element present: The local people, local food, customs, the outfit, the music, basically every cultural element is right there,” Orsi Parkanyi, the founder of JoinMyWedding, told CNBC.

“參加我的婚禮”公司的創始人奧爾西·帕卡尼告訴財經新聞臺CNBC說：“你想想，沒有什麼比一場婚禮更能體現文化，婚禮包含了幾乎所有的文化元素：本地人、本地食物、習俗、服裝、音樂。”

"Experiencing all the cultural elements at once, meaningfully connecting with the locals in India, that’s a huge motivating factor for the travelers,” the Australian entrepreneur added. “It’s a safe experience. You attend an event with hundreds of people, you’re a distinguished guest, people look after you.”

這位澳大利亞企業家還說：“一下子體驗所有的文化元素，還能和印度當地人建立有意義的聯繫，這對遊客來說是一個巨大的激勵因素。這種體驗也很安全。你作爲嘉賓參加數百人的盛會，人們還會照顧你。”

Tourists interested in attending a traditional Indian wedding through JMW have to pay a fee of $150 for one day’s attendance, or $250 for two days, which covers the entrance to the wedding plus food and drinks, as well as a dedicated person to welcome them and explain all the traditional customs. Transportation to the wedding, accommodation and traditional costume rentals are extra.

有意通過“參加我的婚禮”公司參加印度傳統婚禮的遊客購買“一日票”價格是150美元（1041元人民幣），“兩日票”是250美元。這些費用涵蓋了婚禮的入場費、食物和飲料，以及一個負責解釋所有傳統習俗的迎賓人員的費用。到婚禮現場的交通、住宿和傳統服裝租賃費要另算。

While the idea of attending the wedding of strangers takes some getting used, wedding tourism in India is a growing business, and Parkanyi says that demand among tourists all over the world is high.

儘管有些人還不能接受參加陌生人的婚禮，不過，婚禮旅遊在印度卻是一項蓬勃發展的產業，帕卡尼說，世界各地遊客對婚禮旅遊的需求很旺。

"The first time that we got tourists to attend an Indian wedding was two years ago and since then we have helped scores of international travelers – around 100 at least – attend over 25 weddings in India,” she told India Times. “The demand is growing. There are hundreds of travelers who we know are keen to attend these weddings.”

她告訴《印度時報》說：“我們第一次讓遊客參加印度婚禮是在兩年前，從那以後，我們已經幫助至少100名外國遊客在印度參加了超過25場婚禮。需求量還在增長。據我們所知的，就有數百名遊客很願意參加印度婚禮。”

So far feedback from both tourists and Indian couples appears to be very positive:

迄今爲止，來自遊客和印度新人的反饋都很正面。

"The monetary contribution I made was the best and easiest way to thank the couple for their hospitality and this extraordinary experience,” one Hungarian tourist said.

一位匈牙利遊客說：“金錢是對好客的新人爲我們提供這種特別經歷的最好也最容易的答謝方式。”

Couples, on the other hand, are excited to know people from other countries and the extra money doesn’t hurt either.

另一方面，印度新人也很高興結識外國人，而且順便賺點錢也沒什麼壞處。

Despite the increasing popularity of wedding tourism, entrepreneurs like Orsi Parkanyi are aware that such ticketed weddings are vulnerable to fraud, which is why companies facilitating these arrangements have a validation procedure for both couples and guests.

儘管婚禮旅遊越來越受歡迎，奧爾西·帕卡尼等企業家也意識到，這種出售門票的婚禮很容易發生詐騙，這也是爲什麼安排婚禮旅遊的公司對新人和賓客都有一套認證流程。

"Actually, we talk personally to each couple - sometimes for hours – and make sure our travelers’ need for safety is met. There is a detailed interaction through mails and social media so that everyone is convinced of genuineness,” the founder of JoinMyWedding said.

“參加我的婚禮”公司的創始人說：“事實上，我們會親自和每對新人談話——有時談了好幾個小時——確保滿足遊客的安全需要。各方還會通過郵件和社交媒體進行詳細的交流，這樣每個人都能確認其真實性。”