Trump set to tie the knot

Donald Trump was marrying Slovenian model Melania Knauss tonight in a “fantasy” ceremony of glamour, glitz and gold.

The setting for the opulent reception will be Trump’s newly unveiled $42m Versailles-inspired ballroom at his Mar-a-Lago estate and club in palm Beach, Florida, complete with 24-carat gold mouldings, custom-made crystal chandeliers and marble floors covering 11,000sq ft.

The guest list offers a mix of European royalty, Hollywood celebrity and Palm Beach money, including “The Apprentice” producer Mark Burnett and singer Tony Bennett.

“It will definitely be over-the-top in terms of opulence. It is a fantasy wedding. Donald is a superstar and everything Donald does is over-the-top. His wedding is just going to be like the rest of his life, lots of glamour, glitter and the best of the best,” said Rhona Silver, a New York caterer who has planned parties at Mar-a-Lago.

The nuptials will mark the third trip down the aisle for Trump, 58, and - coincidentally or not – comes just days after the start of third season of his TV show.

Trump insisted he wants to keep details of the wedding to Knauss, 34, private. But much has been leaked by Trump, his bride-to-be and his staff.

Guests will include politicians including New York Gov George Pataki and former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani; celebrities like Billy Joel, Regis Philbin and Katie Couric; and possibly royalty.

Prince Albert of Monaco reportedly received an invite.

About 400 have RSVP’d to attend, said Pat Saylor, Mar-a-Lago’s catering and special events director. The wedding will take place two miles away at a classic, garden-studded stone church, the Episcopal Church of Bethesda-by-the-Sea, next to the Breakers resort golf course.

Hors d’ouevres will be made by celebrated chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten, whose restaurant Jean-Georges is in the Trump International Hotel in New York. Guests will dine on steamed shrimp salad, beef tenderloin and individual Grand Marnier chocolate truffle cakes that mirror the towering 50lb, seven-tier wedding cake topped with 3,000 white-icing roses.

Music during the three-course dinner will be provided by a 36-piece string ensemble, with “surprise entertainment” to follow.

But what’s typically among the biggest surprises for the guests and groom - the wedding gown – has already been seen.

Knauss posed for a traditional pre-wedding portrait in the gown and her $1.5m engagement ring, and untraditionally shared it with the world on the cover of Vogue magazine. The Christian Dior original, which reportedly cost $200,000, has 300ft of satin and a 13ft train that took 550 hours to embroider. It weighs 50lbs – so much that the bride will slip into a lighter Vera Wang dress after the couple’s first dance.

Trump’s look for the big day might not come as a surprise. He has said he’s doing his own hair.

Guests are nearly as concerned about their own ensembles. Sami Alpark, a boutique owner says he has sold 40 dresses to invitees that cost up to $26,000.

“Everyone is going to see a precision first-class wedding,” said Robert Wyner, chairman of Barclays International Realty here.

Wyner, who also attended Trump’s last wedding to Marla Maples in 1993, says this one won’t be ending with Trump’s well-known catch-phrase, “You’re fired!”

“After five years together, those of us who are fortunate to have seen them, know they are truly a match made in heaven,” Wyner said. “They are absolutely best friends and absolutely on the same wave length.”