Initial Planning questions

[DisneyAddicT6]

Good day all,

Looking for some expert advice with planning a fairy tail wedding. My fiance and I have just started looking and are a bit overwhelmed

Our initial ideas are: ceremony, dinner & dessert party. So basically a pretty common idea from what I can tell. We initially liked the UK courtyard, but always loved the wedding pavilion especially if we get stuck going in the summer (we normally vacation in WDW in late Aug.- her hair & the humidity do not play well together - ) so the pavilion being inside is a big plus. She also likes that the ceremonies at the pavilion can be later in the day and not as early as the park venues so there wouldn't be as big of a time gap between ceremony & reception.

We want it small , just immediate family so 12 people including us. From what we can determine though that really limits us on venues when it comes to reception/dessert party.

One of the major must haves for her is pictures with the fireworks & the dessert party is something we always wanted to do for our families. Gotta say though after watching the soft open live stream of Harmonious last night we're pretty disappointed & contemplating dropping that idea and doing something at GF or even a lagoon cruise during Enchantment instead.

So I guess my questions are :
Suggestions on time of year?
Is there hard set minimum requirements on all venues for a reception or dessert parties?
Possible ideas for such a small party?

And after all that hopefully by next year travelling from Canada won't be as nerve-racking or expensive as it currently is.

Thank you in advance for any help you all can provide!

 

[lurkyloo]

Congratulations!

Regarding the gap in the day, many MANY of us have had one in order to hold our ceremony in EPCOT and a dessert party during fireworks later that night. The gap is actually great, because it gives your guests time to do what THEY want and you get to take a nap! Shorter gaps are more awkward, especially if guests are staying off-site, because there might not be enough time for them to return to their resort and change. I also think that guests appreciate the specialness of the dessert party more when there is a gap than when it is just one more thing they're being carted off to directly after the reception.

I would suggest watching Harmonious in person before you decide to drop the dessert party, if you're able. None of the shows look good on live stream, even my beloved IllumiNations! An in-park dessert party is unlike anything your guests have ever experienced, and it gives you the chance to do a ride mix-in.

For time of year, my favorite is always the cooler, less popular months. We got married the first week in February, and the weather was great, crowds were low, and hotel prices were cheap.

The venue minimums are kind of just suggestions. If you're willing to pay the full food and beverage minimum, you can usually book any venue you want. Some exceptions are Amerian Adventure Rotunda and the larger fireworks-viewing spots at EPCOT, like Italy and Mexico. But even if Disney says you can only book Canada, Rue de Paris or Vikings Landing, they will let you switch to a larger venue closer to your date if it doesn't get booked by another group.

If you're feeling overwhelmed, check out this episode of the Disney Wedding Podcast, which covers how to get started planning!

 

[DisneyAddicT6]

Thank you so much for your reply! We'll definitely give that episode a listen (she may have already) We have downloaded and read your book, it's so helpful. There's still so many questions especially with the whole covid situation. It's not easy getting to across the border at the moment to go see the new show or the venues we aren't as familiar with, really hope that may change soon. I think seeing Harmonious in person would help but yeah definitely can't come close to being what Illuminations was, that was my favorite nighttime show.

February sounds like it has more pros going for it than cons, we will have to seriously consider that. Normally we can't make it to WDW outside of summer holidays or Xmas time because she's teacher but for our wedding she's able to get it off so that gives us a lot more options. We were thinking maybe around May for the Flower & Garden festival.

 

[lurkyloo]

Glad to help! COVID is definitely making things way more complicated! I have a page where I'm tracking Disney's COVID policies for weddings, if that helps.

 

[SandyinMonterey]

We got married at the wedding pavilion. We were staying at the GF so a lot of our pictures were done there. Our reception was a buffet, we choose the food we wanted it. After the reception, we went to Epcot (Italy) for dessert. We had chartered a bus to take us all there together. We were taken in through a gate right at the end of the parade. So, we went in and walked at the end of the parade to Italy. The crowds were amazing to us....clapping and saying Congrats...very cool. We had pictures take there and they turned out great. Afterwards, the bus took as everyone to their designated hotel. (We all had the bus pick up our guests)...we had a limo after the wedding. We had 20 wedding guests.