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

[rastahomie]

There's a lot to unpack here, lol.

First, the writer of that article mentioned a customer with a bad experience. And while what happened to him was regrettable, the author didn't write about the hundreds of DFTW customers who are satisfied. There's no story there. It's the same reason the news tells you about plane crashes but doesn't tell you about the tens of thousands of planes that landed safely that day.

Second, a hundred grand for a wedding? Well, from where I sit, spending more than the cost of the marriage license and a courthouse ceremony ($51 here in Iron County, Missouri) is extravagant, but as the old saying goes, to each his own. If you have a hundred large to blow on your wedding, well, that's your business, not mine. I heard about an Indian businessman who spent $161 million just on wine for his daughter's wedding, so, you know.

Third, I imagine that carriage is super hot. But if you're all about capturing that moment for eternity, then it's going to be expected that you'll be uncomfortable for a few minutes while the cameras snap.

Bottom line, it's not something I would do, but I don't judge anyone else for doing it.

 

[diznygirl]

Living next door I've been to a few WDW weddings. The bride who got the rotten consultant is really not the norm. One wedding we went to a groomsmen lost his lower after the wedding. Most weddings, well no worries cuz it lasted for the important part. Disney Wedding? A call was made on a walk-talkie and a new boutonniere appeared for the reception. Small child peed his pants? Parents stop at the Boardwalk gift shop to pick up a new outfit - consultant has the cost waived. Pixie dust everywhere!

The cost is outrageous, but I've always been impressed that the consultants were so on top of every little thing, and that's what you are really paying for. The location is also a plus! LOL

 

[bcla]

Well - I didn't necessarily get the wedding I imagined in my youth, but it wasn't too bad. It didn't have to be fancy or anything. Mine was at my county clerk's office, since marriage licenses are a county function in California. I didn't really bring too many people - just my parents and one friend who served as a witness. The office itself was relatively new, and they had a private room that was essentially a wedding chapel complete with flowers. It think it could have held at least 30. For a government office it was pretty classy. Probably the most popular government wedding location around here is San Francisco City Hall. They do it there because San Francisco is a combined city-county government. I didn't go, but a coworker's future wife wanted to have it there. My only suggestion to him was that he didn't have to go all the way to San Francisco to pick up his marriage license since they can get it from any county clerk. Weddings are performed out in the main rotunda, which makes for some pretty nice photos. There have even been some big productions there, which I'm pretty sure cost more than the $90 for a quick wedding.

My parents insisted on a fairly big wedding reception though. That was about two months after we were married. In my extended family we've had some pretty big wedding parties. My cousin (from Southern California) got married in what she called a "wedding factory" near Pasadena. Apparently that Saturday they had five weddings scheduled. The reception was on the top floor of the Sheraton Universal, which is right over the Hollywood Freeway. That was a pretty nice setting. I'm not sure if she was thinking of Disneyland though.

 

[BigAlsGal]

Ugh. Weddings.

 

[ols386]

What is DFTW? What is a gurilla wedding?

 

[DLgal]

What is DFTW? What is a gurilla wedding?

Disney Fairy Tale Wedding

A Guerilla wedding is when people have a "down low" wedding on Disney property without officially being sanctioned by Disney (which is pretty risky...Disney can ban people for life for doing that if they decide to).

 

[ols386]

Disney Fairy Tale Wedding

A Guerilla wedding is when people have a "down low" wedding on Disney property without officially being sanctioned by Disney (which is pretty risky...Disney can ban people for life for doing that if they decide to).

Thank you.

 

[arminnie]

DH and I drove from New Orleans to Defuniak Springs, FL. We walked to the courthouse and got married. No fuss, no muss.

We then went to Tampa where our wedding was announced at a huge party for our state at the presidential convention being held there. After the convention we spent a week at BLT for our honeymoon. My DH did refuse to wear wedding Mickey ears. But it was perfect in my eyes.

 

[bcla]

Disney Fairy Tale Wedding

A Guerilla wedding is when people have a "down low" wedding on Disney property without officially being sanctioned by Disney (which is pretty risky...Disney can ban people for life for doing that if they decide to).

Has anyone really been banned for doing that? I thought it was pretty much only for fighting or deliberately trespassing in employee-only areas. The stories told about such guerrilla weddings is that sometimes CMs even play along. I heard one couple even called ahead to say when and where it was going to happen. It sounds like Disney's biggest concern is that a group may be dressed like they had a wedding or they're interfering with other guests.

 

[aristocatz]

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.

The funny thing is, I really don't think DFTW's are any more expensive than many other non-Disney weddings. I thought I once read that the average cost of a wedding in the US is $35K. I think the average cost of a DFTW is between $25K-$35K, depending on what package & enhancements you choose. Yes, that article cites $100K, but I do not think that is the typical DFTW bride.

I used to be hooked on that show "Four Weddings" & I remember seeing price tags far larger than that.

 

[RedAngie]

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

Yes, but that couple's love "deserved" such a wedding. Hopefully they didn't charge guests a fee to pay for the "customized projection cake, which lit up with scenes from their favorite Disney films."

 

[2disneywego]

I've always been an anti-extravagant wedding, anti-bridezilla type person.
I was a bridesmaid in too many weddings that failed in less than a year, or in my sister's case, less than 10 weeks (after dating 5 years!).

When my late DH and I married 21 years ago, we had it in our living room with 12 people, including both of us. It was magical to us, and we had 16 wonderful years together.

Now, if I had unlimited funds, I'd love to have a DFTW including the Carriage and ponies, GF wedding pavilion, rehearsal dinner at Epcot, pictures in MK complete with me in a big ballgown and DH in a tux on the carousel, huge blow out reception complete with characters and a room with activities just for the kiddies, lots of food, free flowing drinks virgin and not, amazing sit down meal, a "midnight" buffet, complete with candy bar. And, no guests would have to spend a dime.

We all can dream, right?

 

[bumbershoot]

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).

They didn't have phones they could communicate with? Wouldn't the groom realize the issue when the officiant wasn't there either?

As for the visit, I feel there's something else going on there like a kid. Like maybe she had already visited and this was an extra. Not being able to "host" her is weird wording.

 

[mi*vida*loca]

The funny thing is, I really don't think DFTW's are any more expensive than many other non-Disney weddings. I thought I once read that the average cost of a wedding in the US is $35K. I think the average cost of a DFTW is between $25K-$35K, depending on what package & enhancements you choose. Yes, that article cites $100K, but I do not think that is the typical DFTW bride.

I used to be hooked on that show "Four Weddings" & I remember seeing price tags far larger than that.

I think with DFTW's you get less for your buck. A friend had a 30K wedding and had 200 guests. I wonder how much that would cost at WDW. I sometimes peak at the wedding board and it seems like most people have 100 guests or less and it's still running around 20K+.

 

[wilkeliza]

I think the 100K is the tops out of Disney weddings. We looked into it and could have had more people for less then it is costing to have our wedding where we live. Too bad we were told anywhere but Disney haha.

 

[aristocatz]

I think with DFTW's you get less for your buck. A friend had a 30K wedding and had 200 guests. I wonder how much that would cost at WDW. I sometimes peak at the wedding board and it seems like most people have 100 guests or less and it's still running around 20K+.

Agreed, though it depends on how one chooses to spend that money & what is important to them for their wedding day. For DH & I, we didn't want 100 guests. We wanted to keep it small, intimate, & fun. & we wanted to spoil our guests as a thank you for flying out for our wedding.

With DFTW, what you are paying for is the privilege & experience of getting married at WDW-whether its on a resort beach, the GF Wedding Pavillion, A country in Epcot, or in the MK itself. For me, the memories and magic of getting married at WDW was worth every penny.

That all said, your thought process is why I opted to go with the Swan. I still got the WDW wedding, but I did not pay the WDW prices. I got way more for the money & got to book alot of really special extras for us & our guests, such as an Illuminations Fireworks Dessert Party, characters visit for the young children at the reception, & a welcome dinner.

 

[Westcoastwild]

Here's something I'm wondering...based on some Asian trip reports I've been reading.

How do wedding amenities differ from park to park? Are you required to to purchase a minimum night stay at the hotels? At what level? How much does Disney actually provide? Food? Food and flowers? Food and flowers and dress? Food and flowers and dress and bridal party clothing?

How do local expectations shape the Disney experience? Is Disney catering to the American ideal of a fairy tale wedding in both Asia and Florida? Or are they catering to their individual markets?

How long have weddings on property been a thing? I mean, did Disney create a demand or see a bunch of guerilla weddings and go let's cash in on this.


I've got no real strong opinion on the subject. I wouldn't spend $100, 000 on any wedding. And it just would not have occurred to me to get married at the parks. But in my family doing anything less than a full catholic wedding mass is is considered exotic, so there's that.

So the whole thing is like a strange sort of sociology case study to me...

 

[DekrRini]

When I was staying at BWV the first week in May this year, I walked by that little pavillion on the boardwalk between BWV and Epcot and there was a small wedding taking place. It seemed lovely from a distance. The bride wore a white gown with train and I assume the groom was in a tux. There were only a few guests and attendants, but it seemed the perfect setting for an aficiando of WDW.

My nephew got married in the Chicago area a few years ago and his wedding was very expensive--around $40k if I remember correctly. There was a fabulous sit down dinner reception, but there weren't more than 100-150 guests I'm sure. It seemed crazy expensive to me, a small town girl whose early experiences with weddings was a recpetion in the church basement with cake and punch.

 

[aristocatz]

Here's something I'm wondering...based on some Asian trip reports I've been reading.

How do wedding amenities differ from park to park? Are you required to to purchase a minimum night stay at the hotels? At what level? How much does Disney actually provide? Food? Food and flowers? Food and flowers and dress? Food and flowers and dress and bridal party clothing?

How do local expectations shape the Disney experience? Is Disney catering to the American ideal of a fairy tale wedding in both Asia and Florida? Or are they catering to their individual markets?

How long have weddings on property been a thing? I mean, did Disney create a demand or see a bunch of guerilla weddings and go let's cash in on this.


I've got no real strong opinion on the subject. I wouldn't spend $100, 000 on any wedding. And it just would not have occurred to me to get married at the parks. But in my family doing anything less than a full catholic wedding mass is is considered exotic, so there's that.

So the whole thing is like a strange sort of sociology case study to me...

I don't know the answers to most of your questions, as I got married through the Disney Swan, which is completely separate from DFTW, but I can tell you that you are not required to to purchase a minimum night stay at the hotels. It makes sense to stay on property the night before your wedding, to make for a less stressful morning, but you are not obligated. With some DFTW packages, you actually get a complimentary night in any WDW hotel (standard room) as part of the package. This includes the deluxe resorts.

I'm pretty sure WDW has offered wedding packages since the early 1990's, but they have gotten more expensive and elaborate since then. Again, I don't think $100K is the norm.

Here is the link to the DFTW packages to get a better idea on what they offer & cost:
https://www.disneyweddings.com/my-wedding-space/dream-wedding-maker/florida/

 

[bcla]

I suppose the first "Disney weddings" or at least receptions were at the Disneyland Hotel, even though it technically wasn't Disney property. Of course that's not all that unusual since large hotel ballrooms tend to be used for such purposes. However, it would have been a way for people to get some of the feel of a Disney environment even if the Walt Disney Company didn't necessarily have direct control over the property but rather licensed the name and some use of trademarks.

I hasn't really heard of anything like this until a few years back hearing about the controversy over shark fin, which is a traditional Chinese food item at wedding banquets. I've had it before and there's nothing all that special about it other than it's expensive. However, the news stories on how it was received noted that Hong Kong Disneyland declined to allow it to be served at wedding banquets hosted on its property.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/25/b...-is-off-the-menu-at-hong-kong-disneyland.html