Wedding bells are in the air across Dubai as couples adapt to the challenges of tying the knot during a pandemic.
Some churches have reported a surge in enquiries in recent weeks, with prospective brides and grooms eager to save the date even if their big day proves smaller than first anticipated.
Many couples are choosing to wed in more intimate settings as travel and safety restrictions prevent them from flying to their home countries to marry.
This month, Dubai's government declared wedding receptions of up to 200 people would be permitted, opening up the opportunity for newly-weds to celebrate with a larger party of friends and family.
Since then, several couples have come forward to St Thomas Orthodox Cathedral in Oud Metha to plan their wedding.
Those who would usually go home to get married are now coming to us an alternative
“While guest capacity limits have increased for wedding receptions, religious ceremonies are still limited to 25 people at our church,” said Father Ninan Panackamattam.
“We have two last minute weddings booked in this week, on Sunday and Monday.
"We can only hold two weddings a week as per the current Covid-19 rules.
“Since the announcement was made last week about wedding receptions, we have had about seven couples come forward to book a religious service with us."
Wedding ceremonies at the church are limited to 30 minutes and have a maximum capacity of 25 guests, all of which have to be blood relatives.
Toilet facilities on site will be closed off to visitors and refreshments are not allowed to be handed out to visitors.
“We have seen a surge in enquiries since the easing of restrictions for wedding receptions, but many of the couples are choosing to marry during a pandemic out of necessity,” said Father Panackamattam.
“For the most part, the marriages we are conducting were supposed to take place in Kerala, India.
"They would be much larger gatherings but because of the various Covid-19 restrictions, they are now taking place in Dubai in much smaller numbers.”
At St Francis of Assisi Catholic Church in Jebel Ali, Father Reinhold Sahner, parish priest, said he had seen an increase in the number of couples marrying in the past few months.
“The Community Development Authority in Dubai has permitted our church to conduct weddings during the pandemic,” he said.
"We have of course seen a slight increase in bookings as those who would usually go home to get married are now coming to us an alternative.
“There is a maximum of five people in the church at any one time, including the bride, groom and priest.
"The ceremony lasts just 20 minutes."
This year, Father Sahner said it had mainly conducted weddings for couples from the Philippines and India.
Traditionally, such wedding parties would usually cater to a large numbers of guests but he said many brides and grooms have chosen to forgo big celebrations for the sake of becoming an official partnership.
“Many of those who planned their weddings before the pandemic have still chosen to go ahead, just on a smaller scale,” he said.
“In general, though very different to what they had planned, most have enjoyed the more intimate affairs.”
A parish official at St Mary’s Catholic Church in Oud Metha, the largest Catholic church in the Middle East, said it was still not conducting weddings on site.
As churches have noted more couples coming forward to fast track their wedding ceremonies, wedding planners in the city hoped business would start to pick up as a result.
Sajna Riyas, chief executive of Jovial Events, said October to March was typically a very busy wedding season.
“Because of Covid-19, we had about 10 weddings cancelled this year and many more postponed,” she said.
“We typically cater to large Indian weddings that start from about Dh200,000 for 150 to 200 guests.”
With the Dubai government giving the go ahead for larger wedding parties, she said some clients would have to increase their budget or reduce their guest list to make sure social distancing rules were met.
But on the whole, more people were showing an interest in rescheduling previously postponed events.
“Because of travel restrictions more couples are choosing to stay in Dubai to wed,” she said.
“Our event sizes may be smaller than normal but to counteract that we can expect to see more families booking event planners to ensure strict safety measures are adhered too.”
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Engine: 1.5-litre 4-cylinder petrol
Power: 154bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Transmission: 7-speed automatic with 8-speed sports option
Price: From Dh79,600
On sale: Now
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They must cycle on designated lanes and areas and ride safe on pavements to avoid bumping into pedestrians
List of officials:
Referees: Chris Broad, David Boon, Jeff Crowe, Andy Pycroft, Ranjan Madugalle and Richie Richardson.
Umpires: Aleem Dar, Kumara Dharmasena, Marais Erasmus, Chris Gaffaney, Ian Gould, Richard Illingworth, Richard Kettleborough, Nigel Llong, Bruce Oxenford, Ruchira Palliyaguruge, Sundaram Ravi, Paul Reiffel, Rod Tucker, Michael Gough, Joel Wilson and Paul Wilson.
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
India squads
T20: Rohit Sharma (c), Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Sanju Samson, Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Rishabh Pant, Washington Sundar, Krunal Pandya, Yuzvendra Chahal, Rahul Chahar, Deepak Chahar, Khaleel Ahmed, Shivam Dube, Shardul Thakur
Test: Virat Kohli (c), Rohit Sharma, Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Hanuma Vihari, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant
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6pm: Mazrat Al Ruwayah – Group 2 (PA) $40,000 (Dirt) 1,600m
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6.35pm: Race of Future – Handicap (TB) $80,000 (Turf) 2,410m
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20.20pm: Curlin Stakes – Listed (TB) $100,000 (D) 2,000m
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Dust storm
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China
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Japan
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Norway
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Canada
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Singapore
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5 West Ham 26 12 6 8 45 34 42
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ZAYED SUSTAINABILITY PRIZE
If you go
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Seattle from Dh5,555 return, including taxes.
The car
Hertz offers compact car rental from about $300 (Dh1,100) per week, including taxes. Emirates Skywards members can earn points on their car hire through Hertz.
The national park
Entry to Mount Rainier National Park costs $30 for one vehicle and passengers for up to seven days. Accommodation can be booked through mtrainierguestservices.com. Prices vary according to season. Rooms at the Holiday Inn Yakima cost from $125 per night, excluding breakfast.
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if you go
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Numerous trains link Kolkata and Murshidabad but the daily early morning Hazarduari Express (3’ 52”) is the fastest and most convenient; this service also stops in Plassey. The return train departs Murshidabad late afternoon. Though just about feasible as a day trip, staying overnight is recommended.
The hotels
Mursidabad’s hotels are less than modest but Berhampore, 11km south, offers more accommodation and facilities (and the Hazarduari Express also pauses here). Try Hotel The Fame, with an array of rooms from doubles at Rs1,596/Dh90 to a ‘grand presidential suite’ at Rs7,854/Dh443.
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Sim swap frauds are a form of identity theft.
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South Africa squad
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Getting there
The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly to Johannesburg or Cape Town daily. Flights cost from about Dh3,325, with a flying time of 8hours and 15 minutes. From there, fly South African Airlines or Air Namibia to Namibia’s Windhoek Hosea Kutako International Airport, for about Dh850. Flying time is 2 hours.
The stay
Wilderness Little Kulala offers stays from £460 (Dh2,135) per person, per night. It is one of seven Wilderness Safari lodges in Namibia; www.wilderness-safaris.com.
Skeleton Coast Safaris’ four-day adventure involves joining a very small group in a private plane, flying to some of the remotest areas in the world, with each night spent at a different camp. It costs from US$8,335.30 (Dh30,611); www.skeletoncoastsafaris.com
Abu Dhabi Grand Slam Jiu-Jitsu World Tour Calendar 2018/19
July 29: OTA Gymnasium in Tokyo, Japan
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Nov 16-18: Carioca Arena Centre in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
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ELIO
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Friday Athletic Bilbao v Celta Vigo (Kick-off midnight UAE)
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Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
