INGRID DOULTON | Lady Writer | Contact
A local couple has stunned friends and family by breaking with the upper-middle-class tradition of a destination wedding by choosing to get married in a location that doesn’t require anyone to book flights, accommodation, or take multiple days off work.
Pogo and Emily Stick, both lifelong residents of Betoota Heights, are tying the knot at a tasteful venue in our town’s hinterland, much to the relief of their entire social circle.
“We just thought, why make everyone spend thousands of dollars traveling to some converted barn in Byron [Bay] or a beach resort in Fiji, when they could just drive 20 minutes up the hill to Mount Remienko?” said Pogo.
“Plus, all our friends and family live here. Made sense, really. We’re both from here, too.”
To cap it all off, the wedding is taking place on a Saturday.
This bold decision has been met with widespread approval from their guests, many of whom were dreading the announcement of another “wedding holiday.”
Instead, they’ve been given the gift of a no-fuss celebration that doesn’t involve 4 AM airport runs or awkward carpooling arrangements.
“It’s the first wedding I’ve been to in a while where I can just get an absolute load of wine shot down me at the reception and then pouring myself into the back of a hybrid Camry at the end of the night to sleep in my own bed,” said one guest.
“Very refreshing.”
With everyone now free to spend their money on actual gifts rather than flights and hotels, the couple has inadvertently become local heroes, setting a new gold standard for how weddings should be done.
“Hopefully we’ve started a trend,” Emily added.
“Sometimes the best venue is just the closest one.”
More to come.
