California Grill Pros and Cons?

mandy_22 · Oct 6, 2015

Hello all,

My fiancé and I are starting to think about our Disney Wedding, and we are looking into having the reception at the California grill in the Napa room. Has anyone done this? Do you have pictures? What are the pros and cons? Can you actually see the fireworks and Magic Kingdom from the Napa Room?

Thanks for the help,

Mandy

lurkyloo · Oct 6, 2015

Here is a recent interview I did with a Napa Room bride that includes lots of photos: http://disneyweddingpodcast.com/2015/09/09/wishes-wedding-spotlight-katie-mike/

You can also see a ton of photos of the Napa Room on my site here: http://disneytravelbabble.com/disney-weddings/wdw-venue-photos/napa-room/

The only real cons are that you can't have a menu tasting if you do an event at California Grill, and they won't modify what's on their set menus except to accommodate dietary requirements. You can see the fireworks from the Napa Room, but most of the time folks go out on the catwalk to get a little closer.

OrlandoDJChuck · Oct 6, 2015

You can see pics of numerous wedding receptions in Napa here.

Hope this helps!

mandy_22 · Oct 6, 2015

OrlandoDJChuck said:
You can see pics of numerous wedding receptions in Napa here.

Hope this helps!

Thank you so much!

mandy_22 · Oct 6, 2015

lurkyloo said:
Here is a recent interview I did with a Napa Room bride that includes lots of photos: http://disneyweddingpodcast.com/2015/09/09/wishes-wedding-spotlight-katie-mike/

You can also see a ton of photos of the Napa Room on my site here: http://disneytravelbabble.com/disney-weddings/wdw-venue-photos/napa-room/

The only real cons are that you can't have a menu tasting if you do an event at California Grill, and they won't modify what's on their set menus except to accommodate dietary requirements. You can see the fireworks from the Napa Room, but most of the time folks go out on the catwalk to get a little closer.

Thank you so much! I actually listened to this podcast through iTunes, and it never even occurred to me to look on the website... duh! These were very helpful!

mandy_22 · Oct 6, 2015

Now I have another question, If we and some of our guests use DVC points to book rooms, can those still be counted toward our 25 room night minimum?

lurkyloo · Oct 7, 2015

Yes! You just have to give the reservation numbers to your Room Block Coordinator. It's all explained in the "Demystifying the Room Block" episode: http://disneyweddingpodcast.com/2013/01/16/demystifying-the-room-block/

mandy_22 · Oct 7, 2015

lurkyloo said:
Yes! You just have to give the reservation numbers to your Room Block Coordinator. It's all explained in the "Demystifying the Room Block" episode: http://disneyweddingpodcast.com/2013/01/16/demystifying-the-room-block/

Thanks! You're awesome!

mandy_22 · Oct 8, 2015

If we want to do a site visit in October, 2016, when can I call to schedule that? I'd like to start planning that trip, especially if we are staying at Disney.

lurkyloo · Oct 9, 2015

When if your planned event date?

mandy_22 · Oct 9, 2015

lurkyloo said:
When if your planned event date?

We would like to have the wedding in December, 2017.

lurkyloo · Oct 10, 2015

They have a 16-month window in which they will work with you, so if you call in August 2016 you'll be within that window. Sometimes they'll talk to you a little bit earlier...

mandy_22 · Oct 10, 2015

lurkyloo said:
They have a 16-month window in which they will work with you, so if you call in August 2016 you'll be within that window. Sometimes they'll talk to you a little bit earlier...

Sheesh. One month isn't a lot of time to plan a trip there. Is there a lot of availability for site visits? Can I book flights and hotels for a certain time earlier and hope that they can do a site visit while we are there? We basically have to fly there, so I think about 3 months in advance is the latest I would wait to book those. Should we do the site visit in November or December so we have time to plan the trip?

lurkyloo · Oct 10, 2015

If you want to be safe, pushing your site visit back will be the best way to guarantee that DFTW will talk to you. But you may still be able to get them to work with you if you call in July. It seems to be up to the whim of the person who answers the phone. Some couples are immediately shut down with the 16-month rule, while others are easily able to begin chatting with a sales consultant well before the 16-month mark.

Which venues were you hoping to see? Most of them you can get into yourself—you'd only need to do a site visit in order to get into the ones that aren't publicly accessible, like Living Seas Salon or Ariel's. If worse came to worst and nobody would meet with you, you could still make a dinner reservation for CA Grill and then stick your head into the Napa Room while you're there.

mandy_22 · Oct 13, 2015

I just talked with my mom this morning, and she really wants to invite more people, so now I don't even think we will fit in the Napa room :-\ The main reason I liked it so much was that you could see the MK and castle, and I loved the idea of watching the fireworks from the viewing area. Also, I've heard the food there is amazing. So now I'm wondering if we could have the reception in one of the Contemporary ballrooms, and then come firework time we could take our guests up to the fireworks viewing area. Is that allowed? I think there is a less private viewing area that anyone at the resort can access, so maybe that's an option.... I don't know, haha!

I really want to have a dessert party in EPCOT the as a welcome party the night before the wedding, so maybe we don't need two doses of fireworks. I am hesitant about a ballroom reception because I could have had that anywhere, so I want to make it Disney unique for our guests, which probably means more money. Maybe my mom is willing to pay for some extra stuff. We'll see.

Mandy

mandy_22 · Nov 7, 2015

I listened to the podcasts about the bridal showcases, and I am thinking now that it would be really cool to go to that and get ideas. I thought maybe we could do a site visit while we are there. I'm assuming it will be in February in 2016? I hope they announce it soon. The sites we want to see are Atlantic Dance Hall, American Adventure Rotunda, and the Contemporary Ballrooms. Can I see all of these on my own, or is it necessary to book a site visit through DFTW? Does anyone have thoughts on the subject?

lurkyloo · Nov 9, 2015

There is no set schedule for the bridal showcases. If they have one at all next year, it probably won't be until later in the year, based on what they were saying at the last one.

You can see all those locations on your own. The Rotunda is the main part of American Adventure where the Voices of Liberty perform and you wait for admission to the show. The Contemporary Ballrooms are open and easy to poke around, especially on weekends, when there's less chance of a convention using them. Atlantic Dance Hall is open every night and has no cover charge.

mandy_22 · Nov 9, 2015

Thanks for the info!

California Grill Pros and Cons?

Earning My Ears

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Earning My Ears

Earning My Ears

Earning My Ears

The Attic was just perfect!

Earning My Ears

Earning My Ears

The Attic was just perfect!

Earning My Ears

The Attic was just perfect!

Earning My Ears

The Attic was just perfect!

Earning My Ears

Earning My Ears

The Attic was just perfect!

Earning My Ears

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