Custom Wedding: So many questions :)

[SRUAlmn]

Hi So I guess we decided to go with a custom after we polled our family members. It looks like we would probably have around 40-45 that would come out of the 90 or so that we would invite. Is there some kind of stipulation as to how many you can have with a custom like there is with an intimate?

We are trying to keep it pretty close to the $10,000 minimum. How and where could I cut costs to make it better? Can you bring in your own photographer/videographer? We have friends that do that professionally.

We will be having our ceremony prior to 2:00, so the 'reception' will just be a lunch. Is it possible to just all go to lunch somewhere in one of the resorts (so I can wear my dress) instead of having a formal reception and then having an Epcot dessert party later that night as our 'reception?'

How do I get started? Just call the 321-939-4610 number? Thanks SOOOOO MUCH!!! Everything for the past year has just been hypothetical dreaming, but now I have to really start planning!


ETA: One more question. Do you have to put a deposit down when you book your location and date? We will be doing so in the next week or two and I didn't know if it was a large chunk, a percentage, or nothing initially. Thanks!!

 

[stitch626_in_time]

Hi So I guess we decided to go with a custom after we polled our family members. It looks like we would probably have around 40-45 that would come out of the 90 or so that we would invite. Is there some kind of stipulation as to how many you can have with a custom like there is with an intimate?

We are trying to keep it pretty close to the $10,000 minimum. How and where could I cut costs to make it better? Can you bring in your own photographer/videographer? We have friends that do that professionally.

We will be having our ceremony prior to 2:00, so the 'reception' will just be a lunch. Is it possible to just all go to lunch somewhere in one of the resorts (so I can wear my dress) instead of having a formal reception and then having an Epcot dessert party later that night as our 'reception?'

How do I get started? Just call the 321-939-4610 number? Thanks SOOOOO MUCH!!! Everything for the past year has just been hypothetical dreaming, but now I have to really start planning!


ETA: One more question. Do you have to put a deposit down when you book your location and date? We will be doing so in the next week or two and I didn't know if it was a large chunk, a percentage, or nothing initially. Thanks!!

I will try and answer some of your questions. We are going through the process of booking our wedding right now. You can bring your own photographer, but there is a fee for an escort for your photographer. If you do not do a reception, I don't know if you will meet your minimum. A large chunk of the $$ seems to come from the food and beverages at the reception (at least in our case). Plus Disney does not allow you to walk through the parks in your dress. However there are reception locations in EPCOT if that is where you wish to have your reception. You will be transported (by bus/limo that you pay for) through the Behind the sense entrance fo the park.
Yes you can call that number or go to their website http://www.disneyweddings.go.com
I hope this information helps.

 

[AnimalPrincess]

To answer some of your questions:
When you sign your contract (which guarentees your date and location) then you must pay a $1000 deposit that must be a check. When you first call ftw they will give you a sales manager and they will do all of this with you. Go online though and check out the wishbook etc.

The major difference between intimate and custom, besides the guest count is that with custom you get a reception. I am not really sure that you could meet your min by just doing a dessert party, or that you would be allowed to. You will have to ask ftw about that. Just remember though if you are going to a lunch somewhere else and will be paying for your guests (I assume) that will cost a lot of money as well, which would be on top of the $10K. hth

 

[SRUAlmn]

Thank you! I knew you couldn't walk through the park in your dress, but I thought custom brides could wear their dress to the dessert parties. I did the wishbook, and I meet the $10,000 without the reception stuff on there, but if it went slightly below, couldn't the dessert party count toward the minimum, or do they not let you do that?

Also, do you happen to know what the fee is for the photographer escort?

 

[ead79]

Let me see if I can help with some of your questions.

Hi So I guess we decided to go with a custom after we polled our family members. It looks like we would probably have around 40-45 that would come out of the 90 or so that we would invite. Is there some kind of stipulation as to how many you can have with a custom like there is with an intimate?

With a custom wedding you can invite as many people as you like. You just pay a per person food/beverage amount.

We are trying to keep it pretty close to the $10,000 minimum. How and where could I cut costs to make it better? Can you bring in your own photographer/videographer? We have friends that do that professionally.

Yes, you are allowed to use outside photographers. Disney charges an escort fee, but I'm not sure how much that is. The fee would be well worth it if your friends were charging you substantially less than Disney Photography. In terms of other cost cutting ideas, keep your reception decoration to a minimum as well as floral for your ceremony. If you don't drink, consider eliminating the bar at the reception.

We will be having our ceremony prior to 2:00, so the 'reception' will just be a lunch. Is it possible to just all go to lunch somewhere in one of the resorts (so I can wear my dress) instead of having a formal reception and then having an Epcot dessert party later that night as our 'reception?'

I am pretty sure that for custom weddings Disney requires you to have a formal reception. Otherwise, it would be very difficult to meet your food/beverage minimums of $75 per person (plus tax and gratuity) for a reception beginning before 2 pm. The lunch food at a resort restaurant would not count toward your overall minimum or your food/beverage minimum since it's not provided by Disney's Event Services. If you do have a dessert party at Epcot the day of your wedding, the food/beverage there would count toward your minimum.

How do I get started? Just call the 321-939-4610 number? Thanks SOOOOO MUCH!!! Everything for the past year has just been hypothetical dreaming, but now I have to really start planning!

Sure, you can just give them a call. They will assign you to a Sales Manager who can answer your questions and give you ideas about locations. The planning really is fun!

ETA: One more question. Do you have to put a deposit down when you book your location and date? We will be doing so in the next week or two and I didn't know if it was a large chunk, a percentage, or nothing initially. Thanks!!

You put down a $1000 deposit in the form of a check. The remainder isn't due until closer to the wedding date. My memory is a little fuzzy, but the remainder might be due around 30 days before the wedding. Hopefully a more recent bride with a better memory can confirm, LOL.

 

[ead79]

Also, as far as wearing your dress to your dessert party, here's the deal. If you are a custom bride you can wear your dress to your dessert party if you pay for private transportation like a chartered bus. The reason is because the chartered bus will take you backstage at Epcot and you'll enter World Showcase close to your dessert party location. If you don't have reserved transportation, then most groups enter at the International Gateway entrance. Disney won't let you walk very far through the park in your wedding gown, so they don't let these brides wear their gowns.

 

[SRUAlmn]

Thank you so much!!! It's all starting to make a little more sense. Does anyone have a ballpark figure they'd like to share for the dessert party? Thanks again. I love you girls!

 

[mhcueball2]

For illiuminations in Lower UK...I believe the prices were around $18 per person, then another $13 for each person if they didn't use their ticket to get into the park.

 

[sarah_n_brian2006]

Ok, you can have your reception at several different places in Epcot as your reception. Living Seas, American Adventure, France's Bistro de Paris, China, room in Norway, and a few others. The islands where the dessert parties are are also available for receptions, so regular food can and will be offered. The only downside to the dessert party locations, is there is no music or entertainment allowed. Hope this helps

 

[Laurafoster]

For a dessert Party, there is (depending on location) a $19.50 food and beverage minimum per person, plus $12.50 per person viewing fee for illuminations (unless they use park tickets to get in) you then have a $200 site rental fee, $75 setup charge and $90 host charge (you have to have 1 host per 50 guests!)


Like others have said, regardless off how much you spend on other things you still have a $75 MINIMUM food and beverage for a custom wedding.

 

[SRUAlmn]

Ok, so if we had 45 guests our Dessert Party would cost us $1805.00

$877.50 for food ($19.50/person)
$562.50 for Illuminations (assuming no one has park tickets which won't be the case) ($12.50/person)
$75.00 set up
$90.00 host
$200.00 site rental

Total: $1805.00

Hmm....not sure if that is really worth it since we don't even really like Illuminations that much! I wonder how much those Wishes cruises are??

 

[ead79]

Ok, so if we had 45 guests our Dessert Party would cost us $1805.00

$877.50 for food ($19.50/person)
$562.50 for Illuminations (assuming no one has park tickets which won't be the case) ($12.50/person)
$75.00 set up
$90.00 host
$200.00 site rental

Total: $1805.00

Hmm....not sure if that is really worth it since we don't even really like Illuminations that much! I wonder how much those Wishes cruises are??

Be sure to remember that you have to spend $19.50 per person on food at the Illuminations party PLUS tax and gratuity. At the time of my wedding (2.5 years ago), tax was 6.5% and gratuity was 19%--that may have changed since then.

The Wishes cruises are definitely less expensive, but I'm not sure there would be a way to reserve enough boats for an entire guest list. Of course, not everyone wants to do an Illuminations party. It was our favorite thing we did, but your guests would have an absolutely wonderful time without it too.

 

[chipscinderelly]

For a dessert Party, there is (depending on location) a $19.50 food and beverage minimum per person, plus $12.50 per person viewing fee for illuminations (unless they use park tickets to get in) you then have a $200 site rental fee, $75 setup charge and $90 host charge (you have to have 1 host per 50 guests!)


Like others have said, regardless off how much you spend on other things you still have a $75 MINIMUM food and beverage for a custom wedding.

We were just informed that the new venue fees (ok not that new but within a year) cover the set up fees and host charges.

 

[dsnyfan6/18]

We wanted to do the dessert party, but what we did was have the rehearsal dinner @ EPCOT, and we finished the rehearsal dinner with Illuminations. That way we got the best of both worlds....

We also wanted to pay less per-person, so we had a 12noon ceremony and the pre-reception started at 1pm. In the long run, we spent more money per person that it would've been to have a night wedding, so we should've just done it later anyway.

whatever you choose, it will be so much fun! Enjoy your planning!

 

[SRUAlmn]

That's what I'm trying to figure out too! If we are saving $25/person to have a lunch reception rather than a dinner one, but we want to have a dessert party too, it might be smarter to do an afternoon wedding and connect it like you did to Illuminations. The ceremony cost doesn't change based on the time, does it?

 

[twojo21]

custom weddings have no guest count limits. all events (ie floral, ceremony & reception, dessert party, etc) through disney the day of your wedding count towards your $10k minimum. fyi the minimum is higher on the weekend.

the outside photo & video fee is $90 but isnt charged consistently bride to bride, i was not charged an outside vendor fee for my photographer & videographer.

our uk dessert party was around $2100 for us & 50 guests, it was so worth it for the memories, photos & awe of our guests. it was the perfect way to end our evening.

also fyi disney will not reserve all the wishes or illumination boats for a wedding. i wanted to do that originally but was told no by dftw.

best of luck with your plans!

 

[SRUAlmn]

the outside photo & video fee is $90 but isnt charged consistently bride to bride, i was not charged an outside vendor fee for my photographer & videographer.

best of luck with your plans!

Thank you! That's so helpful to know because I think our friends will cost more than $90 less than DFTW charges and they do a GREAT job!