Disney weddings not all they're cracked up to be?

[bcla]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/ente...390a66-2c24-11e7-be51-b3fc6ff7faee_story.html

I guess the weird thing is the complaint that riding in the carriage feels like being in a greenhouse. I thought these weddings typically happened at night when the parks are closed, although I have heard that they can have them in other venues that can be made private during the day.

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

I was reading the first one. 100 grand. Wow.

 

[kmb584]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/ente...390a66-2c24-11e7-be51-b3fc6ff7faee_story.html

I guess the weird thing is the complaint that riding in the carriage feels like being in a greenhouse. I thought these weddings typically happened at night when the parks are closed, although I have heard that they can have them in other venues that can be made private during the day.

A lot of the fairytale weddings happen during the early morning and afternoon. Sit in front of the Grand for an hour or two and you're almost guaranteed to see Cinderella's Coach go by at least once. If the wedding and/or reception is in a park proper, that's when you'll see the wonky hours.

I feel bad for the second bride. It really sounds like their wedding planner didn't take them seriously and royally dropped the ball. I'd be really upset. There's no need to make guests wait over an hour to start the ceremony ... without telling the groom that there was a hiccup in the timing (instead leaving him to think, perhaps, he'd been stood up).

 

[Rockette]

A lot of the fairytale weddings happen during the early morning and afternoon. Sit in front of the Grand for an hour or two and you're almost guaranteed to see Cinderella's Coach go by at least once. If the wedding and/or reception is in a park proper, that's when you'll see the wonky hours.

Yep, I've seen this a bunch.

2 years ago I crashed a wedding reception at the Dolphin Hotel semi-unintentionally. It seems to be another popular spot.

 

[usnuzuloose]

Some people really want it which is fine. Just not my cup of tea. I guess it may be fun to see.

 

[bcla]

There are some photos of weddings at Aulani. Seems nice enough, but not that different than I'd imagine could be done at various resorts in Hawaii. Now inside a Disney Park seems really unique, like this:

 

[Disneylover99]

Last August we walked through WS in Epcot at 8am and stopped to watch a wedding at the top of the stairs at the Canadian Pavillion. The wedding was very small, less then 10 people, but it was really lovely.

 

[bcla]

I've heard about the guerilla weddings. There's a comment in the following article with a claim about holding one while indicating exactly where it would be and how many people. It doesn't sound like they cared as long as it was unobstrusive.

http://www.lamag.com/askchris/a-couple-secretly-got-married-at-disneyland-howd-they-do-it/

 

[Planogirl]

Some people really want it which is fine. Just not my cup of tea. I guess it may be fun to see.

OT but I love the Sylvester toon. He has always been my number one character.

Back on topic, $100,000? No way ever. I'd rather be at the beach or in the mountains. Just my taste. They do look nice when Disney does them though.

 

[low-key]

I've heard about the guerilla weddings.

dont let @Cantw8 see this

 

[Rockette]

I've heard about the guerilla weddings. There's a comment in the following article with a claim about holding one while indicating exactly where it would be and how many people. It doesn't sound like they cared as long as it was unobstrusive.

http://www.lamag.com/askchris/a-couple-secretly-got-married-at-disneyland-howd-they-do-it/

I even found one recorded...

 

[aristocatz]

I didn't get married through DFTW, but I did get married at Disney-at the Swan. We had a beautiful outside ceremony around 10am, followed by cocktail hour, plated lunch reception, DJ, & hired Mickey & Minnie (through Disney) to visit our reception, since we had a lot of little kids attending. Our wedding had a few Disney touches (ie the character visit, some hidden Mickey's, & our table numbers were vintage WDW attraction posters, obviously the location). Other than that, we had a winter theme. We had a pretty perfect day, that went off without a hitch.

We chose the Swan, as opposed to DFTW, because the cost was significantly lower for the same quality, & the Swan allows for much more customization & flexibility than what DFTW offers. We have zero regrets.

If money was no issue., I would have chosen to get married in Epcot, in the Germany Pavillion, with a reception in the America Adventure Pavilion-WOW!

I do know a number of people who got married through DFTW, though I don't know any who spent $100K. They were all very happy with the service that Disney provided.

 

[bcla]

I even found one recorded...

No big deal really. It's been done so many times. This couple freaked out when Alice and the Mad Hatter noticed them, but they ended up being part of the ceremony. A lot of these guerrilla weddings on Disney property seem to involve being extremely flexible on time and location. They're not going for perfect, but the unpredictability seems to be part of the fun.

http://offbeatbride.com/california-disney-civil-ceremony/

My place would have been Yosemite, but that didn't happen. Apparently the National Park Service requires at least a $150 permit, restricts it to specific locations (if more than 10 participants), and requires at least a 21 day notice for the permit. I think a hotel or the Yosemite Chapel are exempt though. However, there if you do a guerrilla wedding without a permit you're literally breaking the law. However, they at least have a permit process. The only thing that Disney officially has is their megabucks wedding services.

 

[DLgal]

Whatever. Every business has unsatisfied customers. I think the fact that Disney has done SO many weddings over the years (decades) with so few complaints says a lot about how good they are.

We had an amazing DFTW in 2001. It was worth every penny of the $11,000 it cost. Yes, you read that right. These weddings used to be a STEAL. We actually went with Disney because it was the cheapest all inclusive option. We got married at the Pavilion with a reception at Ariel's at the Beach Club. Our wedding was at noon on a Thursday in June.

 

[manning]

OT but I love the Sylvester toon. He has always been my number one character.

Back on topic, $100,000? No way ever. I'd rather be at the beach or in the mountains. Just my taste. They do look nice when Disney does them though.

That would be a nice down payment on a house or pay down a student loan

 

[leebee]

Huh... can't read the article as the website immediately tries to get me to buy their digital subscription. We've seen several weddings in progress at the Grand Floridian over the years. The Cinderella Coach always attracts a lot of attention, but I've always wondered if it's like being in a fish bowl- and is it air conditioned?

DFTWs are crazy-expensive, but if that's what you want for your wedding, go for it! The woman who runs the Cake Chatter threads on the Restaurants board (Lurkyloo) had an AMAZING wedding at the Morocco Pavilion in Epcot, followed by a reception at the BWI. It was a beautiful wedding- enough to make me dream about a Disney wedding for DD! You can see the pictures by following the links in her signature.

 

[sam_gordon]

I don't understand what's the point of the article. As @DLgal said, every business will have some unsatisfied customers. I also don't believe it's shocking that Disney Weddings can cost a lot of money. But that's up to the bridal party.

 

[bcla]

Huh... can't read the article as the website immediately tries to get me to buy their digital subscription. We've seen several weddings in progress at the Grand Floridian over the years. The Cinderella Coach always attracts a lot of attention, but I've always wondered if it's like being in a fish bowl- and is it air conditioned?

DFTWs are crazy-expensive, but if that's what you want for your wedding, go for it! The woman who runs the Cake Chatter threads on the Restaurants board (Lurkyloo) had an AMAZING wedding at the Morocco Pavilion in Epcot, followed by a reception at the BWI. It was a beautiful wedding- enough to make me dream about a Disney wedding for DD! You can see the pictures by following the links in her signature.

No subscription is needed to read an article. There should be a box to select no and it goes away. Or was it clocking somewhere off the ad.

 

[prprincess]

Whatever. Every business has unsatisfied customers. I think the fact that Disney has done SO many weddings over the years (decades) with so few complaints says a lot about how good they are.

We had an amazing DFTW in 2001. It was worth every penny of the $11,000 it cost. Yes, you read that right. These weddings used to be a STEAL. We actually went with Disney because it was the cheapest all inclusive option. We got married at the Pavilion with a reception at Ariel's at the Beach Club. Our wedding was at noon on a Thursday in June.

I agree with you 100%. While I did have one minor glitch at our Disney wedding back in 2003, Disney went out of their way to make it right and compensated us accordingly. So all in all, our wedding was worth every penny! Had we gotten married in NJ, we would have spent twice that amount or more. Ours was $18,000 and we used the same venues--the Pavilion and Ariel's on a Friday afternoon in April. But I have looked at prices now out of curiosity, and the restrictions and prices definitely have increased.

 

[DLgal]

I agree with you 100%. While I did have one minor glitch at our Disney wedding back in 2003, Disney went out of their way to make it right and compensated us accordingly. So all in all, our wedding was worth every penny! Had we gotten married in NJ, we would have spent twice that amount or more. Ours was $18,000 and we used the same venues--the Pavilion and Ariel's on a Friday afternoon in April. But I have looked at prices now out of curiosity, and the restrictions and prices definitely have increased.

Yep. We priced out the wedding in CA and we were looking at approx. $25K. I said, "forget that...let's do it at Disney World instead!"