His wedding took place at the beginning of October 2025 with some 1,000 guests, most of them friends of his and his wife’s parents; their own close friends were few in comparison.
A week before D-Day, Viet decided to test his luck and posted his wedding photos on TikTok with the caption: “We’re getting married on October 3, but don’t have many friends to celebrate with because both of us are very introverted. Come join us, netizens”.
The post quickly received thousands of comments as people sent their blessings and registered to attend the wedding. Viet was moved and surprised to see how many people wanted to share his happiness.
After saying yes to more than 10 of them, Viet personally delivered invitations to each of them as a demonstration of his gratitude. At the wedding they split into two groups: the women attended as friends of the bride and the men sat on the groom’s side.
Viet says: “Some of the girls even prepared gifts and hand-written notes for me and my wife. Thanks to them, our wedding was so fun and memorable”.
Quang Viet and his bride with netizen guests at their wedding on Oct. 3, 2025. Photo courtesy of Viet |
A similar invitation from Xuan Huy, 23, attracted more than three million views and almost 10,000 comments. To his wedding held on Binh Ba island, central Khanh Hoa province, Huy invited 20 strangers from neighboring areas.
“I also received a lot of requests from people in the north and south [to participate]but I had to turn them down because of management and financial difficulties”, he says.
Over the last month social media has been flooded with thousands of posts in the same vein: young couples aged 20–27 inviting strangers to their wedding.
Thuy Linh, 21, of Hanoi was one of Viet’s guests. While she did not think much when commenting under Viet’s post, saying “[Me and my two friends] are very polite and good-looking people, and we’re hoping to join you!” the three were pleasantly surprised to receive an invitation.
Thuy Quyen, 25, of Khanh Hoa traveled more than 100 kilometers to join the wedding of two strangers.
“[When they reached out,] the couple were so genuine and enthusiastic that I really wanted to give them a complete, fulfilling wedding day”, she says.
Afterward she has remained in contact with the happy couple.
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Netizens attended Xuan Huy’s wedding and raised their glasses to the bride and groom on Oct. 3, 2025. Photo courtesy of Huy |
HCMC mental health specialist Le Thi Minh Hoa believes one of the main causes for this phenomenon is the loneliness epidemic among urban youths.
Despite having lots of online friends, young people are struggling to develop and sustain genuine connections, she says.
This has been amplified by the rise of remote work and a greater desire for personal privacy, with business ties becoming more professional and neighborly bonds gradually ceasing to exist, she says.
This trend also points to the experimental mindset of Gen Z-ers, who enjoy challenging the definition of “normal” and creating unique experiences.
For them, weddings are more than a mere ritual to performed, they also need to be special and trendy.
To Pham Ngoc Trung, head of the culture and development faculty at the Academy of Journalism and Communication, it is proof that Vietnamese culture has become less rule-bound and, consequently, more open and inclusive.
At most traditional weddings, he says, guests are limited to close family friends and reciprocity is expected: it is mandatory to attend and to give a gift of similar worth as they had given them earlier.
But young people increasingly prefer simpler ceremonies that prioritize emotional connection over material exchange, he says.
“However, this trend might lead to generational conflict, especially when parents of the bride and groom help pay for the wedding”, he warns.
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