Ashley and Nate's Disney Dream Planning Journal 4/10/15

[CaliMermaid]

Trip Report- Day 3 Castaway Cay, Part 1

I woke up to the sound of the phone ringing at 7 a.m. on wedding day. It was Brent, the wedding coordinator. I had left a note about our cake topper which the groom's brother made for was which was not in my possession at our meeting on Day 1. Also, he still needed our CD. Don't forget to bring these items to the legal ceremony or you too will get the 7 a.m. wakeup call. When I hung up the phone, I laid in bed and contemplated who was to be murdered for buying me shots in Evolution the night before. We grabbed breakfast in Enchanted Garden, trying to avoid seeing people knowing how much we had to do. Breakfast was good, but I would recommend not deviating from your cruise morning routine on wedding day. Like training for a triathlon, do nothing new on race day. The newness of it just added to the nerves. Would the waiter ever return with my cranberry juice? Would the family at the next table who saw me receive the cranberry juice stop explaining to their 5-year-old son what a UTI was? None of this would have happened at Cabanas.

After breakfast, we returned to the room to get dressed. There was a knock on the door about once every five minutes, so I put my mother on door duty and sent the groom off with the groomsmen. My sister came in to start taking pictures. The wedding coordinators dropped off the floral and came by at least two additional times to verify details. The flower girl and her mother stopped in. My grandmother stopped in. A little after nine, my bridesmaids returned from their hair appointments. I had extensions so I hadn't needed a hair appointment. They demanded that I put on additional makeup (thank God)--it was so light in the pictures. I'll digitally enter it in later. The wedding coordinators called the room several times to inquire about missing guests (including groom and groomsmen). Some had taken it upon themselves to go down to the gangway. Just realize that a good 20% of those you travel with will ignore all printed information and plan accordingly.

I am including some photos here. All are unedited proofs, but we agreed to do the photoshopping (later), since my sister took the pictures and hubby is an Art Director.

 

[CaliMermaid]

Day 3- Castaway Cay Part II

At 9:45 or so, Brent came to retrieve us to get in the golf cart. I gave my ID and key to the world card to my mother--don't do this--you will end up back at the ship with no ID. We took the elevator to the gangway and hopped in the golf cart. We had not gone 100 yards when we learned one of our guests was still at the gangway. We stopped the golf cart and waited for him to jog over and hop on.

The weather on Castaway Cay was divine (April 12th). We had done our research cruise in September and it had been oppressively hot. We were relieved to find that it was a delicious 80 degrees and clear.

When we arrived at the beach, I was relieved to find that it has some of the best packed sand. I was wearing 6" platform wedges and was terrified of falling! Luckily, I made it up the aisle without incident. My brother, who just returned from a tour of east Africa, walked me down the aisle.

Another important tip: don't forget to put on sunscreen on your wedding day. You will be on the island taking pictures for a while.

 

[Disneyducks12]

OMG you looked so beautiful I loved your dress and the hair in your flower its so elegant and it all came together so well and your extension look really good! and good advice on not deviating from routine I have been trying to plan out how I want that day to go! and that helps get a feel for the day so about how long was the ceremony and did you have time for your own vows? and I will make a note to remember to bring everything to the meet and greet! Can't wait to hear more about the reception and more pictures!! everything really looked great

 

[CaliMermaid]

Thank you! The ceremony was about 7 minutes long and the perfect balance of humor, tradition and romance. We would definitely have had time to do our own vows, but the groom really wanted traditional vows which I was really grateful for as I really didn't feel like speaking up there. Our officiant (groom's friend) read the vows and we just said "I do." Added benefit of a short ceremony: not one kid, neither with us nor in the adjacent area, interrupted. It was a beautiful moment and everyone was truly engaged (or taking pictures). Speaking of pictures, my photographer had a difficult time getting landscape shots because so many people were crowding the aisle to take their own bad pictures which, of course, have already made it to social media.

 

[CaliMermaid]

Day 3- Castaway Continued

Our ceremony was gorgeous. Unlike our first visit to the island when family beach was teeming with children, this morning proved perfect. I walked down the aisle to the appointed song on a flat portion of beach. Luckily, the men face the sun. A few minutes later it was all over. There was a brief delay before our recessional music started but it did start. We hugged our friends and Disney passed waters all around. I would recommend sticking around for a few minutes for pictures on the island. I now realize we don't have nearly enough pictures with our guests. After a few minutes we hopped on the golf cart because I didn't want to make our guests wait too long for us at the reception. As we were riding back, Mickey Mouse spotted us and waived us over for a picture. My sister told him that he was my first crush.

 

[Disneyducks12]

OMG I love all of your pictures you look so pretty!! I love the way your dress fits so beautiful! and how fun to get a picture with the big mouse everything really looks so wonderful! I am so glad your ceremony was the way you wanted and thats so cool to know your officiant I am a little nervous about that part of it! so excited to hear how the reception went!

 

[NikkiEla]

Oh My!
You're ceremony looks absolutely breath taking!
I'm so glad it turned out so beautiful for you!

Your pictures make me more and more excited for my Castaway Cay ceremony!

I cant wait to hear about your reception and the rest of your trip!​

 

[CaliMermaid]

OMG I love all of your pictures you look so pretty!! I love the way your dress fits so beautiful! and how fun to get a picture with the big mouse everything really looks so wonderful! I am so glad your ceremony was the way you wanted and thats so cool to know your officiant I am a little nervous about that part of it! so excited to hear how the reception went!

Oh My!
You're ceremony looks absolutely breath taking!
I'm so glad it turned out so beautiful for you!

Your pictures make me more and more excited for my Castaway Cay ceremony!

I cant wait to hear about your reception and the rest of your trip!​

Thank you! It was really special. I wouldn't change a thing about the ceremony. I had been worried about the location on family beach, but this trip the location was serene.

 

[CaliMermaid]

Day 3- Reception

After snapping a few pictures on the island, we returned to the ship for our reception in the D-Lounge. We were told to wait outside in the hall while they assembled the rest of the guests. We congregated in a porthole for about 5 minutes. It was only after several minutes that I realized they had left a live microphone in the porthole. Our guests could hear everything we were saying! Luckily we didn't say anything too personal or horrible about anyone.

Brent came out to confirm the song choices on our CD. He originally thought the pianist was playing the cake-cutting song. I told him we had added it to the CD. He went in to inform the pianist. Just FYI, they expect you to cut the cake before the first dance. We were still in the hallway when the pianist began playing the first dance song (which was on the CD). We weren't sure how this miscommunication had happened, but we entered at that moment and invited our guests to the dance floor to join us for the Jewish circle dance song that the pianist was playing. As everyone got up, the pianist switched songs. So we looked around and went over to cut the cake. The music didn't start. After we cut the slice, the music came on. We shared a bite of cake and the best man gave his toast. We we chatted with our guests and took pictures for about 20 minutes. Everyone was restless so I grabbed the mic, thanked everyone for coming and said "let's get to the beach" which got a round of applause. I was no longer in the mood for the first dance. It's nerve-wrecking enough when the music comes on, much less when you would have to ask to have it replayed. Additionally, the dance floor they had set up was not sufficient for a circle dance for 35 people. It's also worth noting that the D-Lounge is a very challenging place to take pictures since the lighting is really wacky.

 

[CaliMermaid]

After the reception, we took the wedding party outside on deck 4 for pictures.

Then we released the wedding party for another 30 minutes of photo time onboard. If I had it to do all over again, I would not have had the reception. It was such a waste for our group to be herded back to the ship for an untimely piece of cake and champagne. We should have gone straight to the beach and had cake and champagne at dinner. If it were a sea day then I could understand it. But unless you have choreographed the best first dance in the history of the universe, I recommend staying on Castaway Cay. Several guests mentioned that they wished the reception had been at the beach.

 

[CaliMermaid]

Day 3- Back to Castaway Cay

Serenity Bay was WONDERFUL. We had lunch at Cookies Too and waded in crystal clear water with our friends. Then we lounged in the shade. Perfect.

Afterward, we returned to the ship for spa time. Once again, groom and groomsmen were out of hand and could not be left unsupervised. So, I took them to Senses. They overflowed the hot tubs and crowded some single ladies. I wanted to drowned. Next, we laid in the heated lounge chairs while we watched the staff squeegee the flooded deck.

We napped in the room and went to join our group at Royal Palace. We were shoved in a corner near a wait station. Valerie had insisted that a group of our size would be unhappy in the section that included the large round (table 82). Go for 82! Insist on it. The configuration was so cramped that I could hardly leave my seat (and I'm roughly 130 lbs). The duck was great. I should also mention that our server, Katia, was superb the whole time and our guests really looked forward to interacting with her.

After dinner, we packed and had one last cocktail on the Meridian patio and went to the night club. The groomsmen were in rare form and began a shirtless, Magic Mike routine which devolved into a dance battle with some Germans:

My mother danced with them. Most of us sat in awe. It was epic. People congratulated me on the "best wedding ever." We shut down the club and went to bed.

 

[CaliMermaid]

Day 4- Orlando

Seconds later, we got a seven a.m. knock on the door from the room steward to wake us up. We had packed the night before which an hour with the added secret Disney presents. One last breakfast in Royal Palace and then off the ship.

We went to lost and found and were shocked to find that the groom's backpack- complete with his Surface Pro 3- was waiting for us. I forgot my garment bag with the dress in the terminal, but Disney shipped it out . We boarded our Escot bus for return to the airport. After about an hour, my brother-in-law pointed out that we had passed the airport. We were headed for the wrong Hyatt AGAIN! Our driver (from Boston) was super cool and made a very gentle U-turn back to the Hyatt at the Airport.

Many of our guests bought a day pass to the Hyatt and laid by the pool in advance of their flights. We headed to Disney for a comical mini-moon fail.

***Skip this section to avoid the worst case scenario***

They couldn't find our reservation and refused to look at it on the Expedia app on my phone because "they don't use Expedia." No room upgrades available, but the cast member tried by putting us on the top floor of Wilderness Lodge (with double beds). We tried to nap, but someone was walking on the roof. We decided to nap by the pool, but construction workers were shouting at each other on the scaffolding.

We proceeded with the next part of the plan-- bar hopping on the monorail. We took the boat to the Contemporary and couldn't find the monorail entrance...because their was no monorail. It had been down all day, but no one bothered to tell us. The lobby staff said there was a bus running on a 20-minute loop between resorts. We boarded a bus which picked up dozens of screaming children at Magic Kingdom and dropped us off in a rainstorm 200 feet from the Polynesian. We went to Trader Sam's and they told us they were on a wait and no, we could not have a cocktail while we waited.

We returned immediately to Wilderness Lodge (it had taken us 1.25 hours to get to the Polynesian) for dinner at Artist's Point. The groom loves Artist's Point. Our food came out at the wrong times, but otherwise, it was just fine. After dinner, the monorail was back up so we rode it to Grand Floridian to watch the Wishes fireworks. We returned to Wilderness Lodge and found that the elevator was broken. We climbed six flights of stairs to our room. Our return time for the Magic Express had not been slipped under the door as promised. As with dinner, they did NOTHING to the room to acknowledge we were honeymooning at Disney. I called the desk to inquire about our departure time. I was transferred 3 times and could not get an answer. I descended the six flights back to the desk and burst into tears. Everything that had gone wrong with our day was completely preventable. They could have put us in a section of the hotel that wasn't under construction. They could have told us the monorail was down. They could have acknowledged our celebration in some way (I was wearing ears with a vail and a Just Married DCL pin for God's sake). True bridezilla meltdown ensued. The manager was very understanding and allegedly refunded our room (refund has NOT posted yet) will update this when posted. I would recommend taking a back-to-back DCL mini-moon instead. 24-hours at WDW was not worth it at all.

 

[CaliMermaid]

Overall, I was extremely pleased to have elected to marry on the Disney Dream. Val and the onboard coordinators were extremely caring. Our guests had a fantastic time. The ship was immaculate. Lisa Reese, our vacation planner, was exceptional. We had booked our room before contracting with her, but the rooms she acquired for our guests were AMAZING. I cannot recommend her highly enough. My sister is planning on working with her to plan my niece's 2nd birthday party on the Dream next year.

White Apple Designs on Etsy (gift bags) was a solid, affordable vendor.

I asked the groom if he had any advice for future DCL brides. He said their husbands should take away their computers. Also, he says remember it's "all you should eat" if you want to fit in your dress. And they lived happily ever after.

 

[Disneyducks12]

Aww I am so sad that your report is over now!!!! But your wedding day looked so beautiful I am sorry to hear you had such a fiasco with your first dance and the cake cutting music I will definitely make a note of that to talk to my onboard coordinator about! But at least you have beautiful pictures to remember everything by! and I think I would have just died if my groomsmen started doing Magic Mike impersonations! but I am sure you shut that place down and the cast members and your guest will not forget that! and glad you guys got to enjoy the beach I just love serenity bay it is so peaceful! I am sorry to hear your WDW day turned out not as you excepted they definitely should have done something to celebrate your honeymoon I mean thats a no brainer! and they should have thrown in dinner with your room comp, make sure you stay on them and get your refund! Hopefully you guys can do another cruise soon to do a proper honeymoon ! Glad Lisa was so great, and you had so much luck with your vendor! Thank you so much for sharing your wedding journey with us! It has been so great to follow along with someone so close to my wedding makes us DCL sister brides !!

Melissa

 

[CaliMermaid]

Thanks, Melissa. We had a blast. At the end of the day, we were laughing through the WDW tragedies. I called customer service this morning and they said they processed the room credit while I was on the call. We shall see.

It's been great planning with you! I'll continue following along through your PJ and let you know the next time we're in La Jolla (probably June).

 

[Seia]

Your wedding photos are stunning!! My favorite is the close-up of you two on the beach with the Dream in the background.

 

[Disneyducks12]

Thanks, Melissa. We had a blast. At the end of the day, we were laughing through the WDW tragedies. I called customer service this morning and they said they processed the room credit while I was on the call. We shall see.

It's been great planning with you! I'll continue following along through your PJ and let you know the next time we're in La Jolla (probably June).

That's true you will always have a funny honeymoon story and hopefully you see the credit today! Dido it has been so much planning along with you too and thank you I can't wait to just get on the cruise! and absolutely you will have to let me know will do a meet up!

 

[CaliMermaid]

Your wedding photos are stunning!! My favorite is the close-up of you two on the beach with the Dream in the background.

Thank you! I can't wait for DH to start photoshopping. Your wedding is coming up fast. Best of luck!

Ashley

 

[CaliMermaid]

 

[mlegerto]

Just joined in!

Your meeting story is so incredibly cute. And meeting up in the Ocean like that...wow. Truly meant to be. Of all the places within the Ocean, he had to paddle up to your spot

Your ring is beautiful. What a great job Nate did in picking out something so classic and elegant, but personal at the same time. Simply wonderful.

WOW, just like your meeting, your dress was meant to be - it's amazing that you are so close to a sample size as it REALLY makes picking a dress so much easier as you can get a real visual of what it will look like when it is on. I am not most definantly not a sample size and I am okay with that, you gotta love who you are, but I did find wedding dress shopping a little demotivating because NOTHING fit like a glove. I have to hand it my bridal consultant though, she was WONDERFUL and made me feel like a million bucks! Was this the FIRST dress you tried on and it was the one????

OMG, your save the dates and so cute. I love that you had fun with them and made them personal - I am just not a fan of the traditional very formal invites and such so I think you guys did a marvelous job!


My DF and I are planning a wedding at home and honeymoon in WDW. Check out my PJ in my lilnk .

Can't wait to read more about your beautiful plans.