Contemplating a WDW Intimate Wedding

[dameodie]

Well, the title of this thread pretty much says it all, and yet it says nothing

My fiancee and I have been engaged since right after this past Christmas, but a couple things were holding us back from making any serious wedding plans. One was tied to a possible event in the summer of 2008 which is no longer happening (or more specifically is still happening, but at a different non-local venue) which was just determined this past weekend. The other... well, nothing really had struck us as a good idea yet! But in the past week I've mentioned Disney World, and he hasn't balked yet

Why it would be a good idea for us:

- I was raised a Disney freak... my parents took us down to Disney World literally ever other summer growing up. I know they'd be up for the idea (and more importantly would be more willing to help foot the bill (terrible to think like this, I know, but there it is))
- We want a SMALL wedding. Counting ourselves, if we did this we could limit the number of people in attendance to 13.
- He has two little girls (ages 7 and 4) and we want to get to Disney World before they're too old and snotty to enjoy it. We've even talked about a "honeymoon" there after the wedding, which I know sounds crazy to most people, but as far as I'm concerned this is their life too and they should be involved in the celebration. Plus we can always do a second honeymoon/Nth anniversary trip just to ourselves some other time.
- Given the above, we would already have to figure in things like plane tickets and theme park tickets to the whole budget plan (my folks own a condo in Orlando so accomidations would be moot) so why not just have the wedding down there as well? Yes, I know about the required on-property stay for weddings. If my folks are coming down they'd use their condo anyway, so we'd still have to stay somewhere! If we stay longer than the four nights, which is likely, we can just move our things over there.

Nothing has been decided yet, we're still in the investigation stages of all this. Which leads me to my questions...

1) When the intimate locations state a "limit of 10 guests", what counts as a guest? Do the two of us count as "guests" at our own wedding? What about the wedding party (which would most likely consist of two people)? And what if we want to use his daughters as ringbearer and flower girl? Do they count as guests? Specifically I'm looking at the location at the Polynesian, which has a limit of 10 guests.

2) Does anyone know how much more it is per person for the cake and champagne toast? The website states it includes four people, but with such a small group I'd like to include everyone if possible (and I'd like to see YOU keep the girls away from the cake!!)

3) Does Disney require you to do any of the ad-ons? What about a reception? I don't want the added expense and formality of a sit-down reception, I'd much rather just have us all go out for a nice dinner somewhere.

4) If we do this, we'd probably be looking at October of '07. Is that too soon, or should we maybe shoot for March or April of '08? I'd do the summer so that we don't have to take the girls out of school, but the thought of going at a less crowded time is appealing as well. Related to this, are the weddings cheeper in the off-season, or are the rates on the website/wish book the off-season rates which then go up over the summer?

5) If we don't do any of the fancy ad-ons (save more guests for the toast) would it seem out of place if we made it a less-than-formal affair? I don't plan on doing the bridesmaid thing obviously, and I'd love to either make my own wedding dress or just wear something white and nice, but not a true wedding dress. Seriously, I don't need flowers and favors and all that nonsense - what's included in the standard package is far more than I'd want honestly. The only real thing would be pictures, and I know my father at least loves to take pictures so he'd have that covered

I know this was long-winded - I sincerely appriciate any input anyone can provide!!

 

[goofygal1975]

I think with all you have listed, that a Disney Intimate wedding sounds perfect for you!!!

I don't have all the answers, as I am also in the planning stages of our intimate wedding at the Poly. I did call Disney Weddings last week and am waiting for the call back from the coordinator.

1. I did ask the "guest count" question to the person who answered. He stated that the wedding party was counted as the guest (wanted to have ds as bestman and my sis as maid of honor so we could have 12-14 guests total). I'm still not sure if me and DH2B will cound towards the "10 guests" or not!! I'll post here when she calls us back!

2. I'd like to know the answer to this myself

3. I have read that alot of intimate brides just go to dinner after the reception (this would be somethin you set up on your own, not through disney fairytale wedding).

4. Our wedding will be 11/3/07!!! (I heard a rumor awhile back that at the Poly, they will not be doing weddings from march -end of october....not sure if this was confirmed or not...i'm going to ask the coordinator when she calls. I heard it was because of the HEAT...we were just there 2 weekends ago standing at sunset pointe and it was HOT!!).

5. YOu can wear whatever you like. I want a fancy white wedding dress, maybe even formal, and wonder if it will look out of place at sunset pointe, but I dont care!! LOL I have seen a few pictures of weddings where a nice simple dress was the wedding dress!! Anything that you feel comfortable in will be fine.


I know that more experienced Disney Brides (and brides to be will be able to answer all your questions!!)

 

[JennyandMike03]

Nothing has been decided yet, we're still in the investigation stages of all this. Which leads me to my questions...

1) When the intimate locations state a "limit of 10 guests", what counts as a guest? Do the two of us count as "guests" at our own wedding? What about the wedding party (which would most likely consist of two people)? And what if we want to use his daughters as ringbearer and flower girl? Do they count as guests? Specifically I'm looking at the location at the Polynesian, which has a limit of 10 guests.

2) Does anyone know how much more it is per person for the cake and champagne toast? The website states it includes four people, but with such a small group I'd like to include everyone if possible (and I'd like to see YOU keep the girls away from the cake!!)

3) Does Disney require you to do any of the ad-ons? What about a reception? I don't want the added expense and formality of a sit-down reception, I'd much rather just have us all go out for a nice dinner somewhere.

4) If we do this, we'd probably be looking at October of '07. Is that too soon, or should we maybe shoot for March or April of '08? I'd do the summer so that we don't have to take the girls out of school, but the thought of going at a less crowded time is appealing as well. Related to this, are the weddings cheeper in the off-season, or are the rates on the website/wish book the off-season rates which then go up over the summer?

5) If we don't do any of the fancy ad-ons (save more guests for the toast) would it seem out of place if we made it a less-than-formal affair? I don't plan on doing the bridesmaid thing obviously, and I'd love to either make my own wedding dress or just wear something white and nice, but not a true wedding dress. Seriously, I don't need flowers and favors and all that nonsense - what's included in the standard package is far more than I'd want honestly. The only real thing would be pictures, and I know my father at least loves to take pictures so he'd have that covered

Ok, I'm planning an Intimate for November of this year at Sea Breeze Point, here's what I know...

1. I couldn't tell you whether or not the Bride & Groom count in the total 10 for Sunset Point. Iwould assume that it does not include the Bride & Groom, but does include any Bridal Party Members.

2. The cake already feeds up to 20 guests, plus the top layer for your anniversary. The champagne bottle that comes with the package serves about 6 people. Additional bottles are currently about $60 (more or less), but you can also purchase Sparkling Cider (which is about $25-$30).

3. The only other requirement to the Intimate Wedding is the 4-night stay. Everything else is optional. (Oh!, and the Officiant is not included, so you'd need to arrange for that as well...)

4. I don't think it's too early for you to call for October '07. I think I've read that a lot of other brides called 14 to 12 months prior to their date. (I called 4 months before, and they say they can do an Intimate with 30 days notice.)

5. I decided to use outside photography because pictures are very important to me. I'm swapping the photography package that comes with the package for a Honeymoon Photo Package instead. It's also a better value to go with outside photography. Disney only gives you 20 pics, and the price for the CD with all the photos is $750.

Hope this helps!

 

[jojoandhb]

I had a lot of questions when I started, too. I still can't decide between Intimate and Custom, but I am leaning towards Intimate and a bigger reception at home. Sunset pointe is really small. The 10 people includes the bride and groom. It is also right off a public sidewalk, so it is not too private. You can go to Mousesavers dot com and look it up. The champagne and cake toast includes a large cake, and 1 bottle of champagne. It's supposed to serve 4 full glasses, but I have heard that you can fill the glasses half full and do 8 glasses. You can also purchase another bottle which is around $64 last I heard. You do not HAVE to add on anything. It is a complete package. October of next year is not too soon. We are planning December 2007. I did find a great hotel deal for off season. Plus, I want to see the Christmas parade and go to the shows. The wedding rates remain the same, but you can get great hotel deals and free dining if you go in the off-season. Also, don't worry about how formal is it going to be. I saw a couple's pictures where he was in khakis and a Hawaiian shirt and she was in a sundress. It's your wedding do whatever you want! You get a bouquet, so you may as well enjoy it. Disney does beautiful flowers. A photo package is included, but I am getting an outside photographer. I have seen some pics from Disney photography, and some of them look nice and others look amateur to me. It's up to you if you want to spend more for pictures.
Hope I helped.

 

[starseed]

Congratulations!

I have been planning our Intimate wedding for this upcoming January at Sunset Pointe.

Just to confirm some of the info above: For Sunset Pointe, the total number of people allowed is 10 (includeding the bride and groom). From some of the brides who have inquired about Sunset Pointe in the last few months, DFTW is restricting use of the location in certain months. I believe it's not available between March and October.

There's so much that can be done even with the Intimate package. Feel free to PM me, I'll be more than happy to try and help with any questions you may have!

 

[Funniebunny]

Congratulations

I too am organising an Intimate Wedding.

From what I know the whole party counts towards the numbers so Sunset Pointe is 10 in total but some of the other locations have a max of 18 I think.

We are not planning to add any extra's to our Intimate Package so that we can keep the cost down. There will be 8 of us in total and 2 of us don't drink alcohol so we would just order some sparkling cider for the toasts.

We are planning to have dinner at O'Hana's the night of the wedding. I think you can plan this with Grand Gatherings or with the restaurant itself. I'm then hoping to do a Wishes cruise.

Our Wedding will be the last week of November 07 so it's definately not too early for you to start planning. You can't book an Intimate until you are 1 year out but you can start talking with Disney Fairytale Weddings, give them a call and they will get a planner to either call or email you.

Good luck with your planning and keep us updated please, you will have a great time and pick up loads of tips on this board.

 

[TinkerFairy]

Quick question to those of you already in planning stages, from what I read, unless I read it wrong, the bride and groom count towards the guest total?

We're looking at the pavillion for October 2007, and I'm getting really excited that I'm so close to booking, but now I'm worried that DF and I will count towards our 18 guest total.

Originally we only had 13 guests, but when a few others in the family found out about our wedding plans they really wanted to be able to attend as well. So, we are at the max of 18 guests now, not couting DF and myself.

Can anyone confirm/deny that for the WP ceremony? I'd hate to have to cut two people out of our wedding day, but if that's what has to happen, I guess it will.

 

[disneybridetobe]

Quick question to those of you already in planning stages, from what I read, unless I read it wrong, the bride and groom count towards the guest total?

We're looking at the pavillion for October 2007, and I'm getting really excited that I'm so close to booking, but now I'm worried that DF and I will count towards our 18 guest total.

Originally we only had 13 guests, but when a few others in the family found out about our wedding plans they really wanted to be able to attend as well. So, we are at the max of 18 guests now, not couting DF and myself.

Can anyone confirm/deny that for the WP ceremony? I'd hate to have to cut two people out of our wedding day, but if that's what has to happen, I guess it will.

I'm pretty sure the bride and groom count as guests... stinks, doesn't it?

 

[dameodie]

Thanks everyone for the input

I think the only "larger" location for an intimate wedding (save the pavillion) is the boardwalk one and the Yacht club? The limits on guests and timing for Sunset Point is a real drag... and I really have no emotional attachment to either of those locations. When we went to Disney World we'd always camp at Fort Wilderness, so the boat ride across Bay Lake to get to the Magic Kingdom was always a part of the trip that I remember vividly. I'd really much rather do the Polynesian or the Wilderness Lodge (because an outdoorsy theme would go well with us as well) but which sibling, parent, or child to we tell not to attend to get us down to 10 people? I guess if one couldn't attend we'd be okay, but you can't bank on that now can you? Now if I could get them to count both the girls at one guest...

Of the two "larger" locations, does anyone know which one is preferable? Or would it be better to shell out the extra $1000 to use the wedding pavillion at the Grand Floridian? I'm not too keen on the Monday - Thursday thing either, but we could work around a Thursday I think... how many days before the actual ceremony do you have to or should you arrive?

I'm guessing the four hours of limo transportation only applies to getting people TO the location... what arrangements have you made for getting people back "home" if they are staying off property?

 

[TinkerFairy]

I had to call Disney weddings as I was going into a panic.
I'm really happy with my guests I planned on having, and was going to step up to a custom if I had to.

I just talked to a really nice lady from DFTW and she assured me that the bride and groom do not count as the 18 total.
WHEW!

I had already called my mom, MIL to be, and DF at work to freak out about maybe having to un-invite someone.


I am looking at the WP though, I'm not sure about the other venues.

 

[zdesiree]

What about kids, do they count as guests?

 

[Funniebunny]

I got the following email from DFTW when I started looking at intimate weddings. I hope it helps:

"You may have up to 10 people total at Sunset Point at the Intimate Wedding price. Any additional cost will be incurred for guests for any additional beverages you might need, such as the sodas or bottled water that you mentioned below. For those that do not drink alcohol you might think about non-alcoholic Sparkling Apple Cider. It is actually very good and looks just the same as champagne in photos."

 

[dameodie]

I got the following email from DFTW when I started looking at intimate weddings. I hope it helps:

"You may have up to 10 people total at Sunset Point at the Intimate Wedding price. Any additional cost will be incurred for guests for any additional beverages you might need, such as the sodas or bottled water that you mentioned below. For those that do not drink alcohol you might think about non-alcoholic Sparkling Apple Cider. It is actually very good and looks just the same as champagne in photos."

Interesting. Considering we'd be talking one person (two if my sister brings a boy-toy ) that could be doable. Certainly cheeper than the $1000 difference to use the Wedding Pavilion.

 

[dameodie]

Also (warning, stupid question ahead)

Does anyone know if it's already too late to reserve a date for August? A Monday or a Tuesday is fine... we did some more talking, and if we're going to do the WDW trip for two weeks we want to go before school starts up again. I'm thinking August 13th or 14th.

We're also discussing having the wedding locally on a Saturday and then going down to Disney...