yes, when we were looking to give some tzedekah for our wedding, we looked at the possibility of sponsoring a wedding in Eretz Yisrael, perhaps one the same day as ours. The cost of one of those weddings was higher than our wedding! My bride was reticent to sponsor a wedding much nicer than our own. She felt more comfortable sponsoring something more practical, like kitchen utensils, etc., for a new bride.
One thing I noticed, too, is that when you are shopping for simcha components, the price goes way up when you mention the word WEDDING.
We told the hotel where some of our guests were staying that it was a family reunion (well, it was that, also!)
When I needed some rented transportation for a friend’s wedding a few years ago, I called a limo service that specializes in weddings, and I also called a funeral director who had a few nice cars usually reserved for mourners.
Guess which one was 1/2 the price of the other?