双语新闻:看美国人办婚礼时省钱的五大诀窍

2014-04-25 14:38:48来源：可可英语

　　尽管平均每场婚礼预请帖的花费(外加邮资)只有不算多的97美元，但许多夫妻还是摒弃了纸质的邮票和卡片。婚礼主题网站theKnot.com 称，2012年，三对夫妻中就有一对夫妻在网上制作和(或者)发送预请帖，与之相比2009年时五对夫妻中只有一对这样做。为什么会有这样的转变?IBISWorld的布伦南认为，是网络购物的崛起帮助人们改变了对婚礼筹备习惯的认知。他说，以前人们认为在网上发预请帖会显得很小气，但现在大家都接受了这种做法。

　　In fact, it's so widely accepted that some well-known designers have started creating electronic save-the-dates. Paperlesspost.com, an e-greeting card website, offers more than 500 different virtual save-the-dates, and some were designed by Kate Spade New York and Oscar de la Renta, among others. Last year, the site emailed 3 million wedding save-the-dates, says its CEO, James Hirschfeld. Many of the designs are free, while some incur a small fee for a virtual envelope and liner. Another popular free e-card site, Evite.com, sent out 2.6 million save-the-date invitations in 2013, says its editorial director, Marilyn Oliveira. Among the more than 95,000 save-the-date events sent via Evite, Los Angeles, Houston, New York, Chicago and Atlanta were the top five mailers last year.

　　实际上，在网上发预请帖确实已被广泛地接受，甚至有一些知名的设计师也开始制作电子预请帖。电子贺卡网站Paperlesspost.com上有超过500种的虚拟预请帖，其中一些设计出自Kate Spade New York和Oscar de la Renta等知名品牌之手。Paperlesspost.com首席执行长詹姆士·赫希菲尔德(James Hirschfeld)说，去年网站共发送出300万份婚礼预请帖。许多请帖的设计是免费的，但虚拟的信封和封套需要花点钱。另外一家热门的电子贺卡网站Evite.com，其网站编辑部主任玛丽莲·奥利维拉(Marilyn Oliveira)说，在2013年他们共发送了260万份预请帖。共有95,000场仪式的预请帖是通过Evite发送的，使用数最多的前五个城市是洛杉矶、休斯顿、纽约、芝加哥和亚特兰大。

　　Get married in the off-season

　　选择淡季办婚礼

　　Traditionally, the demand is high for summer weddings, as are the costs. Venues, bakers, caterers, florists and planners may all charge more during the peak season because their time and services are so stretched. Thus, couples can easily save thousands by getting married when these services aren't in high demand. For example, booking a reception at a venue (particularly in cold-weather states) in the fall when they have more vacancies makes it easier to negotiate a lower price -- and it can help you land the ceremony date of your choice.

　　传统上夏季是婚礼的旺季，成本因此也很高。对于婚礼场地、烘焙店、酒席承办方、鲜花店和婚礼策划公司而言，它们的服务在旺季的时候会供不应求，费用自然也会收得更高。因此，如果新人们选择在淡季举行婚礼，就可以轻松省下数千美元。比如，可以定制一场秋季婚礼(特别是在天气寒冷的州)，这时婚礼场地会有更多的空档，更容易争取到较低的价格，而且还有助你选到自己喜欢的大婚日子。

　　Consequently, fall weddings are growing even more popular, as 32% of couples chose the season, theKnot.com says. So while June weddings still reign supreme -- 291,000 June weddings took place in 2013 -- September has become the second-most popular month to get hitched, according to TheWeddingReport.com. Even October dates are more attractive than April, May and July.

　　结果是，秋季婚礼正变得越来越流行，据theKnot.com称，有32%的新人选择了秋季办婚宴。据TheWeddingReport.com称，虽然六月婚礼依然是绝对的主力军—2013年六月婚礼数量达到了291,000场，但九月份已经成为了第二受欢迎的婚礼月份。甚至10月份也比四月、五月和七月对新人更有吸引力。

　　But off-season weddings aren't the only way to save, says Wendy Kidd, the vice president of the American Association of Certified Wedding Planners. More couples are also opting for Friday ceremonies rather than Saturday or Sunday. While a weekday wedding makes it more difficult for cross-country guests to attend, it's a clear money saver, she says. Take the Indian Pond Country Club, which is located 35 miles outside of Boston, and is a reoccurring best pick by theKnot.com. The club charges $6,000 less for Friday peak-season receptions ($11,000) compared with Saturday receptions ($17,000) in its 500-guest-capacity grand ballroom. Similarly, Friday receptions in the off-season, which runs from Nov. 1 to April 30, cost $8,000 -- compared with $12,500 for off-season Saturday receptions.

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