BE OUR GUE$T

If you’re planning on going to a wedding this year, you better check your bank account balance first because being a guest certainly hasn’t gotten cheaper. Wedding guests anticipate a cost of $539 per wedding they attend in 2013, up 59 percent over 2012, according to the most recent American Express Spending & Saving Tracker, which surveyed more than 1,500 U.S. adults. Travel is among the largest anticipated expenses at $167, with new apparel and accessories closely behind at $161. Here’s how some of the other expenses stack up. Gifts Wedding guests say they’ll spend $108, on average, for gifts, but relationship to the couple plays a factor on that. For close family members, the average cost of a gift rises to $179, while it’s just $66, on average, for co-workers. Slightly more guests (35 percent) will give a gift off the couple’s registry versus giving them cash (32 percent). Fourteen percent of guests will give the couple a gift card. Party People Perhaps all too obviously, being a member of the wedding party increases the expense associated with the wedding. Bridesmaids and groomsmen expect to spend an average of $577, up from $377 last year, on everything from pre-wedding parties to gifts to ceremony attire. Though about a third of bridesmaids (34 percent) expect to rewear their bridesmaid dress.