my wife & I got married for less than $3,000 15 years ago...and we thought it was a pretty nice wedding with 100 of our family & friends. I have no idea why you would have to spend 29K...
I agree. I had a $3,000 budget, 21 years ago, and stayed within it, including buying rings and a plane ticket for my maid of honor. We had about 85 guests (would have been another 20 or so without the sudden ice storm), and they had a good time.