Anyone get their BEO and get a shock? We are having our VR in Nov. and I just got our BEO and DH and I are really shocked at some of the prices they charge for things. $2385 for tulle canopy in the Whitehall room! $3195 for the wedding pavilion! I asked how much it would be to just do the ceremony on the Whitehall Patio and was told it's $2000 and we'd have to add sound and music. I saw on here someone only paid $900 for their ceremony there? I have also seen while looking at other brides BEO's that I am being charged a lot more for the wedding pavilion than others. I don't want to go broke on our vow renewal, but I am having to cut so much that now I am feeling like it's not going to be what we envisioned. How did you all get through the shock of the prices, and making cuts to stay on budget while keeping your vision?
BEO, shock and disappointment....
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lurkyloo
The Attic was just perfect!
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If it makes you feel better, I think this happens to a lot of people. 
In fact, I'd heard about it so much that I spent most of my planning session demanding to know the prices of everything we talked about so I wouldn't get sticker shock later.
Prices for many elements change all the time, which is why they can't guarantee any pricing until 6 months from your date and may help explain why your quotes differ from those of brides who may have been given pricing months earlier. The other thing that increases prices is time of year - they can double during certain holidays. Is your event near Thanksgiving?
At any rate, there are many ways to save money on a Disney wedding, and we can all chip in our ideas. A lot of it depends on setting priorities and making tradeoffs. See if you can brainstorm your top 3 most important elements (maybe that would be photography, food, music) and 3 least important elements (maybe that would be floral, transportation, and video) and budget accordingly.
Here are some money-saving ideas I've brainstormed - not all of them may be applicable, but it's a start...
Major things:
- Fewer guests
- Move event before 2pm
- Shorten reception
- Pick a reception venue that doesn't need as much decoration (ie, not a ballroom)
- Brunch instead of dinner
- Use rehearsal dinner menus instead of reception dinner menus
- Don't serve alcohol
- Cut down (or cut out) floral: altarpieces, centerpieces, smaller bouquets or rose wands for attendants
- Move ceremony floral to reception (if move fee is less than separate floral for reception)
- Use outside vendors for photography and videography
Smaller things:
- Use items from the dinner/lunch/brunch buffet as your pre-reception food instead of ordering extra
- Serve half glasses of Champagne for toast or eliminate Champagne toast all together and toast with drinks in hand
- Chair covers instead of chiavari chairs
- Provide less transportation for guests
- Ride your charter bus to the ceremony site before it picks up your guests instead of having a limo/Rolls/etc.
- Eliminate chargers under the plates, gobos on the walls, and other things no one will remember
In fact, I'd heard about it so much that I spent most of my planning session demanding to know the prices of everything we talked about so I wouldn't get sticker shock later.Prices for many elements change all the time, which is why they can't guarantee any pricing until 6 months from your date and may help explain why your quotes differ from those of brides who may have been given pricing months earlier. The other thing that increases prices is time of year - they can double during certain holidays. Is your event near Thanksgiving?
At any rate, there are many ways to save money on a Disney wedding, and we can all chip in our ideas. A lot of it depends on setting priorities and making tradeoffs. See if you can brainstorm your top 3 most important elements (maybe that would be photography, food, music) and 3 least important elements (maybe that would be floral, transportation, and video) and budget accordingly.
Here are some money-saving ideas I've brainstormed - not all of them may be applicable, but it's a start...
Major things:
- Fewer guests
- Move event before 2pm
- Shorten reception
- Pick a reception venue that doesn't need as much decoration (ie, not a ballroom)
- Brunch instead of dinner
- Use rehearsal dinner menus instead of reception dinner menus
- Don't serve alcohol
- Cut down (or cut out) floral: altarpieces, centerpieces, smaller bouquets or rose wands for attendants
- Move ceremony floral to reception (if move fee is less than separate floral for reception)
- Use outside vendors for photography and videography
Smaller things:
- Use items from the dinner/lunch/brunch buffet as your pre-reception food instead of ordering extra
- Serve half glasses of Champagne for toast or eliminate Champagne toast all together and toast with drinks in hand
- Chair covers instead of chiavari chairs
- Provide less transportation for guests
- Ride your charter bus to the ceremony site before it picks up your guests instead of having a limo/Rolls/etc.
- Eliminate chargers under the plates, gobos on the walls, and other things no one will remember
honey2741
DIS Veteran
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- Oct 14, 2007
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- 858
I am so sorry to hear about that. I can't share any information. I'm doing an Escape vow renewal in December. I had my meeting with Rosie this week, so I haven't received ours YET. I just wanted to lend support and agree for certain things Disney is overpriced. I would say are there alternative ways to envision your day and substitute items? For example, instead of white tulle perhaps Japanese lanterns (with lights) or something like that to cut down on cost? Things will get better.
Thank you both for the advice! The VR is on Monday November 9th. Ceremony at the WP, reception at the Whitehall room and patio. For reference, here is my BEO, I haven't gotten the Floral BEO yet.
Ceremony
Wedding Pavilion $3195
confetti Cannons $500
rose petal canons for staged exit $500
Cindy's coach $2700
limo $282.48
motorcoach $781.20
Total $7958.68
Reception
tulle canopy $2385.00
pipe and drape with changing lights $3136.00
43 package beer wine soda bar 4 hours $1662.36
7 soft drink package(kids) $184.93
3 vender meals $53.93
cake 65 people $1130.80
7 kids meals $207.47
43 dinners $5818.25
50 crudite display(cocktail hour) $579.89
Entertainment
DJ $1035.00
Mickey $800.00
Total $16993.63
Grand total $24,952.31
I have to cut a lot because I am just not comfortable spending that much money especially when I have to add about $9000 for outside venders, and misc. stuff. My total budget was $20000.
Here is what I am cutting:
Both confetti canons
Cindy's carriage
Tulle Canopy
Pipe and Drape and lighting
Glass slipper sorbet
Omitting those things and correcting the amount of adults(38) we have the new total I come up with is $12,951.66. That total is without the cake because we are going to change it. I don't want to spend $1000 for cake.
Ceremony
Wedding Pavilion $3195
confetti Cannons $500
rose petal canons for staged exit $500
Cindy's coach $2700
limo $282.48
motorcoach $781.20
Total $7958.68
Reception
tulle canopy $2385.00
pipe and drape with changing lights $3136.00
43 package beer wine soda bar 4 hours $1662.36
7 soft drink package(kids) $184.93
3 vender meals $53.93
cake 65 people $1130.80
7 kids meals $207.47
43 dinners $5818.25
50 crudite display(cocktail hour) $579.89
Entertainment
DJ $1035.00
Mickey $800.00
Total $16993.63
Grand total $24,952.31
I have to cut a lot because I am just not comfortable spending that much money especially when I have to add about $9000 for outside venders, and misc. stuff. My total budget was $20000.
Here is what I am cutting:
Both confetti canons
Cindy's carriage
Tulle Canopy
Pipe and Drape and lighting
Glass slipper sorbet
Omitting those things and correcting the amount of adults(38) we have the new total I come up with is $12,951.66. That total is without the cake because we are going to change it. I don't want to spend $1000 for cake.
lurkyloo
The Attic was just perfect!
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I think you've made some good choices on what to cut.
I checked the Wedding Pavilion fee, and that is correct - it's $3,000 plus tax. Probably the reason they quoted you $2,000 to use Whitehall is that it's the standard fee for any non-WP venue... I'm not sure why someone else got to use it for $900....
Money-saving ideas:
Regarding the cake, you might want to have them price a 2-tier version of your current cake if you're at all attached to it. You can easily feed 50 people (especially when some are kids) with a 2-tier cake.
My other suggestions would be to cut the crudite display and have them serve whatever appetizer comes with your dinner menu instead. If there isn't anything appropriate on your menu to use, talk to your wedding planner about reducing the crudite offerings or modifying them in some way so it comes in cheaper per person.
Also, a billed-on-consumption bar almost always saves money over a package bar. Only once have I ever read that people owed Disney money after the wedding b/c their guests drank more BOC than estimated. Usually you hear that people got money back.
At the very least, I'd cut the soda packages for the kids (I seriously doubt they're going to drink $26 worth of soda apiece, no matter what your planner told you about them opening drinks and setting them down and going back for new ones
) and do BOC for them. Maybe they could even do pitchers of juice the way they do pitchers of ice water. 
I checked the Wedding Pavilion fee, and that is correct - it's $3,000 plus tax. Probably the reason they quoted you $2,000 to use Whitehall is that it's the standard fee for any non-WP venue... I'm not sure why someone else got to use it for $900....
Money-saving ideas:
Regarding the cake, you might want to have them price a 2-tier version of your current cake if you're at all attached to it. You can easily feed 50 people (especially when some are kids) with a 2-tier cake.
My other suggestions would be to cut the crudite display and have them serve whatever appetizer comes with your dinner menu instead. If there isn't anything appropriate on your menu to use, talk to your wedding planner about reducing the crudite offerings or modifying them in some way so it comes in cheaper per person.
Also, a billed-on-consumption bar almost always saves money over a package bar. Only once have I ever read that people owed Disney money after the wedding b/c their guests drank more BOC than estimated. Usually you hear that people got money back.
At the very least, I'd cut the soda packages for the kids (I seriously doubt they're going to drink $26 worth of soda apiece, no matter what your planner told you about them opening drinks and setting them down and going back for new ones
) and do BOC for them. Maybe they could even do pitchers of juice the way they do pitchers of ice water. 
tiggerrifficheidi
DIS Veteran
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- Aug 23, 2004
- Messages
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I know it doesn't seem major, but I would drop the package drinks. We did and it saved us a TON! We even had BOC with the premium offerings, and it was still SIGNIFICANTLY under what the package would have cost. You could save $1000, which would put you a bit closer to keeping the coach!
Also, I would drop the motorcoach. For us, I don't think anyone would have used it anyway. So many people merely drove to the WP and parked.
Your cake price seems really high. Is that the Mad Hatter? We had the Destination Castle and it was $8.50pp (plus the castle and floral). They have yours at $17 a slice!
One idea with the food: we ended up with a custom plated meal. We went with salad, duo plate (beef filet and mahi mahi) and the chocolate slipper dessert. We opted to dispense with the sorbet, because I honestly didn't think it tasted that amazing. Plus, the chocolate slipper has just as much WOW factor for guests that aren't expecting either. The three courses were $72 pp for lunch. After my TS, they had it as $96, and I called asking if that was right. She checked with the chef, and he had quoted the dinner price instead of lunch. So, we saved $24 pp just because it was lunch.
I dont' think you'll miss much of what you're cutting (except for the coach), so maybe some of these other ideas will help!
Also, I would drop the motorcoach. For us, I don't think anyone would have used it anyway. So many people merely drove to the WP and parked.
Your cake price seems really high. Is that the Mad Hatter? We had the Destination Castle and it was $8.50pp (plus the castle and floral). They have yours at $17 a slice!
One idea with the food: we ended up with a custom plated meal. We went with salad, duo plate (beef filet and mahi mahi) and the chocolate slipper dessert. We opted to dispense with the sorbet, because I honestly didn't think it tasted that amazing. Plus, the chocolate slipper has just as much WOW factor for guests that aren't expecting either. The three courses were $72 pp for lunch. After my TS, they had it as $96, and I called asking if that was right. She checked with the chef, and he had quoted the dinner price instead of lunch. So, we saved $24 pp just because it was lunch.
I dont' think you'll miss much of what you're cutting (except for the coach), so maybe some of these other ideas will help!
tiggerrifficheidi
DIS Veteran
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Whoops! Looks like Lurkyloo and I were writing at the same time! Forgive my redundancy!
Thank you both so much!
The cake we chose was the Aurora. We took away one tier so it is 3 tiers and changed the colors and added a fresh floral topper. The cake does seem too much and when we questioned the planner she said that was the right price. We have to change the cake! The menu we chose is tomato and mozzarella with balsamic for appetizer, caesar salad plated table side, glass slipper with mango sorbet, dual plate of filet mignon and chicken marsala with garlic mashed potatoes and veggies. If we take out the slipper we save $20 per person. I have to be careful not to take too much out of the food planned because we have to spend $125 per person for that room.
I am going to consider the BOC bar instead of the package. At least I can do that for the kids, thanks for that idea!
The cake we chose was the Aurora. We took away one tier so it is 3 tiers and changed the colors and added a fresh floral topper. The cake does seem too much and when we questioned the planner she said that was the right price. We have to change the cake! The menu we chose is tomato and mozzarella with balsamic for appetizer, caesar salad plated table side, glass slipper with mango sorbet, dual plate of filet mignon and chicken marsala with garlic mashed potatoes and veggies. If we take out the slipper we save $20 per person. I have to be careful not to take too much out of the food planned because we have to spend $125 per person for that room.
I am going to consider the BOC bar instead of the package. At least I can do that for the kids, thanks for that idea!
Nikisha421
i'm the mom thats hoping and praying that my Disne
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Sorry for my off topic question but what are BOCs?
honey2741
DIS Veteran
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lurkyloo
The Attic was just perfect!
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BOC stands for "Billed on Consumption" - meaning that you are only charged for the actual number of drinks (alcoholic and nonalcoholic) people take. The alternatives are Package Bars, where you pay a flat fee per person for unlimited drinks, and Cash Bars, where people pay for their own drinks.
When you do BOC, they estimate how many drinks they think people will have so that they know what to charge you up front. Then you get money back or pay the difference after the event. Since people usually have less than the standard estimate, you generally end up getting money back.
When you do BOC, they estimate how many drinks they think people will have so that they know what to charge you up front. Then you get money back or pay the difference after the event. Since people usually have less than the standard estimate, you generally end up getting money back.
lilonstitch12008
Mouseketeer
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I know that the initial price of a disney wedding is enough to give someone a heart attack. I got married Jan 2008 on a sunday. We came within $100 to our minimum, it also helped that there was only 34 of us, including myself and my husband. We had our ceremony at the yacht club gazebo, which was nice because it didn't need too much dressing up, as it is in a rose garden. All they did was put ribbons on the gazebo itself, so that was a huge savings. We had our reception at the Cali Grill, which was a lil plain I will admit, but with the nightly fireworks display was fantastic and was perfect.
I wish you lots of luck!
I wish you lots of luck!
Personally, I would keep the carriage if at all possible. That was one of the items I cut out immediately when we found out how much ours was adding up to, and I still regret it. So many couples have such awesome photos with the carriage...and to me the carriage and the MK shoot are what screams "I got married at Disney and I was the princess for the day. !" We did go ahead with the MK shoot, though my DH wanted to cut it due to cost, but has repeatedly said he was glad we did and that I stood my ground on that. We have an awesome 16x20 on our livingroom wall...now if I only had a carriage shot to go with it...
I am thinking it will be a must do for our VR. Maybe we won't do another MK shoot and do the carriage the second time around.
Just my opinion and regret...
I am thinking it will be a must do for our VR. Maybe we won't do another MK shoot and do the carriage the second time around.
Just my opinion and regret...
Skylarr29
DIS Veteran
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We received about a $1,500 refund from our BOC bar after the wedding. I would have been so mad to be charged 1500 extra bucks because of what Disney assumed we would drink or with a package bar. I would definitely consider changing it. We only had 30 people and even with 2 signature cocktails we spent significantly less than what Disney said we would.
Have you considered using an outside florist? Your floral bill seems very high. I used an outside vendor for the Whitehall room and it turned out wonderfully although I have heard a few bad reviews lately.
Have you considered using an outside florist? Your floral bill seems very high. I used an outside vendor for the Whitehall room and it turned out wonderfully although I have heard a few bad reviews lately.
orangetiggs
Married my sweetheart in DISNEY!!!!!
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we had the tulle canopy in our first beo but that soon came off as it was so expensive
Nikisha421
i'm the mom thats hoping and praying that my Disne
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Beer on consumption I believe...
BOC stands for "Billed on Consumption" - meaning that you are only charged for the actual number of drinks (alcoholic and nonalcoholic) people take. The alternatives are Package Bars, where you pay a flat fee per person for unlimited drinks, and Cash Bars, where people pay for their own drinks.
When you do BOC, they estimate how many drinks they think people will have so that they know what to charge you up front. Then you get money back or pay the difference after the event. Since people usually have less than the standard estimate, you generally end up getting money back.
Thank you ladies for the responses!
Thank you everyone! I have to talk to DH about maybe changing the package bar to BOC. We will definitely change the cake.
What is really scaring me is we didn't even get our floral BEO yet!! I still have linens, centerpieces, and flowers to add to the total! Also I wanted a candy bar and dessert table. I can only imagine what they will charge for that!
I don't want to use an outside florist because I don't want to take a chance. I'd rather have Disney take care of the floral.
As for Cindy's carriage, that was something I went back and forth with for a while and decided against it. Then when we were just at our planning session we added it just so I would have it booked incase I changed my mind. I just can't justify spending that much for 30mins. in the coach. DH said it's up too me. I just think I could use that money for something else.
What is really scaring me is we didn't even get our floral BEO yet!! I still have linens, centerpieces, and flowers to add to the total! Also I wanted a candy bar and dessert table. I can only imagine what they will charge for that!
I don't want to use an outside florist because I don't want to take a chance. I'd rather have Disney take care of the floral.
As for Cindy's carriage, that was something I went back and forth with for a while and decided against it. Then when we were just at our planning session we added it just so I would have it booked incase I changed my mind. I just can't justify spending that much for 30mins. in the coach. DH said it's up too me. I just think I could use that money for something else.
Try to prioritize what's important to you. I had a wedding with open bar for 150 people and my BEO was just about $2000 more than yours. My wedding was a blast but I didn't have a lot of the add ons.... but man did I have a great party.
Just prioritize what's important. You can do it!!!
Just prioritize what's important. You can do it!!!
Ember
<font color=blue>I've also crazy glued myself to m
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Be upfront and honest about your budget. (Even a tad forceful...) I told my wonderful planner I wasn't spending anything over the 10K minimum, it just wasn't possible. She worked magic and prices suddenly started fitting my budget.
My went back and forth on having a cake and finally said I only wanted a two tier. She told me this couldn't be done for a wishes wedding. So I axed the cake. Then I got an email with examples of two tier cakes and all of a sudden it was possible to do and at a "reasonable" price of $425. I also wanted wooden chairs for the ceremony. First there was talk of fees and a sliding price depending on how many chairs I needed. I pushed a little and got them for $5 with no other fees.
Anyway, I know it can be frustrating to budget with Disney. You really just need to accept that they are drastically over priced. They charge a small fortune for things that anywhere else you could get for half or even a quarter of the price. That said, the service you get is top notch (at least I found it so). For my ceremony I had three planners running around making sure everything went off smoothly. Then my planner was there at my reception to make sure not a thing wasn't up to standard. I don't regret a cent I paid, even though I could have gotten a better deal somewhere else.
My went back and forth on having a cake and finally said I only wanted a two tier. She told me this couldn't be done for a wishes wedding. So I axed the cake. Then I got an email with examples of two tier cakes and all of a sudden it was possible to do and at a "reasonable" price of $425. I also wanted wooden chairs for the ceremony. First there was talk of fees and a sliding price depending on how many chairs I needed. I pushed a little and got them for $5 with no other fees.
Anyway, I know it can be frustrating to budget with Disney. You really just need to accept that they are drastically over priced. They charge a small fortune for things that anywhere else you could get for half or even a quarter of the price. That said, the service you get is top notch (at least I found it so). For my ceremony I had three planners running around making sure everything went off smoothly. Then my planner was there at my reception to make sure not a thing wasn't up to standard. I don't regret a cent I paid, even though I could have gotten a better deal somewhere else.
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