Is it sad, interesting or simply a fun chance for grown women to play dress-up?
The Internet isn’t sure how to react to so-called solo wedding ceremonies but for about $2,500 you can have one yourself.
Cerca Travel Co., a tourism agency based in Kyoto, Japan, is offering its female clients a special package that offers “the feeling of being a princess in a beautiful and charming city,” according to the company’s website.
The “Kyoto Solo Wedding” package includes either a wedding dress or bridal kimono, makeup, hairstyling and finally a photo shoot to forever capture the moment in all its decadent glory. For an extra $448, they’ll even throw in a Japanese man to pose as your groom.
It’s cheaper than a real husband, at least.
But who would actually pay for such a service? According to Japan Today, at least 10 women have walked down the fabricated aisle.
Cerca, whose Facebook page describes them as a company specializing in travel services for women, recommends the solo wedding service for several types of client. “You are single and you don’t know if you would be able to get married and have a wedding ceremony … but you would like to have some pictures of yourself in a wedding gown … when you are young and beautiful,” one description reads.
“Or you are already married, but didn’t have a proper ceremony with a beautiful dress and you find this fact to be quite regretful,” another description reads. “Or you did wear a dress … (but) you were too busy with the wedding preparations to enjoy yourself fully during your special day.”
The online community hasn’t been kind to the service, with some commenters calling it “pathetic.”
“Wow. I can’t think of a sadder way of saying, ‘I give up,’” wrote one user on the Japan Today article. “Good God, there can surely be nothing sadder — or more narcissistic,” another wrote.
The company also offers a “Broken Heart Taxi” tour, aimed at people who’ve recently gone through a traumatic breakup. For about $273, clients will get a 7-hour taxi tour around Kyoto, including shopping, lunch and an optional tarot card reading, “to help you overcome your painful experience and move forward.”
Clint Davis is a writer for the E.W. Scripps National Desk. Follow him on Twitter @MrClintDavis.
