Lavish wedding parties thrown by wealthy Indians at posh seafront hotels in Turkey have come to make headlines in the local media in recent years. Though Turks themselves are known as big spenders on weddings, the flamboyance of million-dollar Indian celebrations has fascinated the Turkish media, which often recounts the events in detail, from the glitzy decorations and colorful attire of the guests to the entertainment shows and passionate dancing.

Bunyat Ozpak, the manager of a tourism company working with Indian clients, said the target is to attract up to 30 Indian weddings per year to Antalya, Turkey’s main touristic hub in the Mediterranean. “Each wedding in Antalya is attended by 400 to 800 people, and the turnover of a wedding ranges between $1 million and $5 million,” Ozpak said. The Indian clients, he notes, “pay attention to everything, from the quality of accommodation and services to the sound and light system, the variety of entertainment bands, the sea, the beach and historical sites.”

The Indian wedding market, estimated at about $40 billion, is a relatively new discovery for the Turkish tourism sector. Backed by the Culture and Tourism Ministry, the sector is eager to grab a share of that market, especially now that it is struggling to recover from a serious crisis. In an important step to that effect, Istanbul in June will host the International Convention of the Wedding Fraternity, an annual event organized by Indian wedding planners.

Indian weddings may whet the Turkish tourism sector’s appetite, but former Tourism Minister Bahattin Yucel believes the expectations are overblown.