Western dress is a fashionable choice for many Chinese weddings. (Photo: China Daily) Photo Gallery>>>

    "Nowadays, young people who come to my company all have their own ideas and are eager to try something unique for their weddings," said Shu Fang, head of the Beijng Fuchao Wedding Consultants Ltd Co.

    "We must take into account their needs as also their financial situation to come up with a special wedding plan."

    Among the several hundred weddings that Shu's company planned last year, more than 80 percent charted a different course.

    Recently, a wedding in Tianjin caught the public eye.

    With the help of spectacular sound and light effects, the hall for the wedding in a hotel was decorated as a fairyland.

    To give the bride "a big surprise", the groom did not tell her what their wedding would be like. "My bride is a fairy-tale lover, who is very cute and sweet," said the groom who declined to reveal his name.

    "I hoped our unique wedding could give her a terrific Cinderella experience," he said.

    Only when the bride was led into the "dreamland" and seated in a crystal carriage did she realize that she was the main character in a real-life fairy tale.

    She could not hold her tears when the groom, escorted by 12 "angels", approached her, knelt down and helped her put on a pair of "crystal shoes".

    Their wedding is a sweet memory they will cherish forever, said the couple.

    However, such fancy weddings come with a substantial price tag.

    "Most of the cost comes from renting the venue place such as a park, a bar, a villa or an underwater entertainment center," said Shu, boss of the wedding consulting company.