More questions for my far off wedding...

[Greenepona]

So our theme is Victorian Halloween. We will be getting married in October of 2015 (we want to be able to afford everything!)

2 Questions came up:

If we get married somewhere else in the Orlando area, could we still plan a Disney reception? What would we lose by not having the wedding there also?

We got engaged at the Haunted Mansion so would love to have our pictures taken there. Since my dress will not look like a classic wedding dress(not white, or in a bridal stye of this century) could we go to the halloween party in our wedding attire and either hire a photographer to walk around with us and take pictures?

 

[Disney-Chick]

I believe that you are not able to have a reception without being married through Disney but I could be wrong since that does happen the ODD time

As to your other question, I believe you are allowed in during Halloween with the attire on but they may stop you if they know it's not "dressing up for Halloween", but as you say it's not a standard wedding dress. And again I believe you are not able to bring in the outside photographer and if you are allowed you will have to purchase the ticket for entrance for him as well.

If I were you I would just call them and ask directly. That way you get the answer from them.

 

[MrsDrewsky]

You could possibly look into a honeymoon shoot during MNSSHP? You would have other people that are in the park in your photos, but with most people being in costume, that might be fun.

I love all your photos on your pinterest page. I don't think your dress ideas would tip off that it was your wedding dress. I'm kind of a nerd when it comes to all things victorian/steampunk and I just adore your ideas.

 

[lurkyloo]

If we get married somewhere else in the Orlando area, could we still plan a Disney reception?

As long as you meet Disney's overall minimum expenditure for a Wishes event (starts at $12,000 right now) with your reception, yes. This is what a lot of couples who want to be married in a Catholic church and still have a Disney reception do.

We got engaged at the Haunted Mansion so would love to have our pictures taken there. Since my dress will not look like a classic wedding dress(not white, or in a bridal stye of this century) could we go to the halloween party in our wedding attire and either hire a photographer to walk around with us and take pictures?

No one's going to stop you from going to MNSSHP in your bridal attire, but you may have trouble finding a local photographer who's willing to flout Disney's ban on pro photography sessions in the parks. You can hire Disney Event Photography for a bridal portrait session in the MK before it opens, but that starts at $1,500 (and considering that the price has increased 50% in the last 4 years, who knows how much more it'll be by the time of your wedding... )

Alternatively, you could try PhotoPass, but your chances of getting really good photos are about even with asking a random stranger.

 

[Greenepona]

Lurkyloo, you mention in your book about a Honeymoon/Engagement/Anniversary Portrait session available through Disney Event Photography... Can that be done at MNSSHP? It does say "In Park"...

 

[Greenepona]

You could possibly look into a honeymoon shoot during MNSSHP? You would have other people that are in the park in your photos, but with most people being in costume, that might be fun.

Yes, it's mentioned in Lurkyloo's book, but it says "Casual Attire"... I wonder? The price isn't bad either!

I love all your photos on your pinterest page. I don't think your dress ideas would tip off that it was your wedding dress. I'm kind of a nerd when it comes to all things victorian/steampunk and I just adore your ideas.

Thanks! I really love the Victorian silhouette, and look forward to making my own gown with my MoH! Plus it's perfect for the Haunted Mansion!

 

[lurkyloo]

The "casual attire" bit is just to indicate that you can't wear a full-on wedding gown, tux, etc. (i.e., try to do a bridal portrait session without paying for one).

Lurkyloo, you mention in your book about a Honeymoon/Engagement/Anniversary Portrait session available through Disney Event Photography... Can that be done at MNSSHP? It does say "In Park"...

That's a great question! I mean, if you scheduled the session during MNSSHP hours and had tickets and everything, I don't see why not. Unless Disney Photography just doesn't offer the sessions during party hours. You might give them a call about that and see what they say...

 

[Greenepona]

thanks! I wonder if they'd talk to me if I called now...

New questions:
Has anyone heard of a reception like event being held at Fort Wilderness (not at Mickey's Backyard BBQ)?

And if we were to book a wishes wedding... how long do you get at your ceremony venue for the ceremony and pictures? I can not find this info anywhere...

 

[lurkyloo]

I remember one bride holding her welcome BBQ at Clementine Beach at Ft. Wilderness, but the last time I asked Disney about it, they said it's no longer an option. Things change quite frequently, though!

There is no set time limit with Wishes the way there is with Escape, although generally you're in the space about an hour. The Wedding Pavilion is probably the only ceremony site that's popular enough that there might be some kind of restriction on how early you can show up/how late you can stay, just because other groups will need access to the site. When we got married in Epcot, we were the only wedding there that day. We got to the park at 7:30am to take pictures, had a 25-minute ceremony that started at 9am, stayed after to take pictures with everyone and left around 10 or 10:15am.

What locations are you considering?

 

[Greenepona]

There is no set time limit with Wishes the way there is with Escape. The Wedding Pavilion is probably the only ceremony site that's popular enough that there might be some kind of restriction on how early you can show up/how late you can stay, just because other groups will need access to the site. When we got married in Epcot, we were the only wedding there that day. We got to the park at 7:30am to take pictures, had a 25-minute ceremony that started at 9am, stayed after to take pictures with everyone and left around 10 or 10:15am.

What locations are you considering?

We really like sea breeze point. It's Victorian but not as over the top as the GF. We also liked sunrise terrace but we have 14 guests we know will be attending including us. Are there any other locations you can recommend?

 

[lurkyloo]

Oh, I think you'll like Sea Breeze Point for a Victorian theme! If you wanted to be inside a park, I think the UK is probably the most Victorian of the options at Epcot (natch), but Sea Breeze Point is nice because it's so close to the Attic (also Victorian-ish, in a floral-print kind of way...). Even the ballrooms at the BoardWalk could skew Victorian with the right touches.

 

[Ember]

Just wanted to chime in on Sea Breeze Point. While I didn't actually have a theme to my wedding, I had a Victorian idea in mind when I planned, and had a traditional afternoon/high tea as my reception. The location is beautiful.

Also be sure to get your silhouettes done at MK or maybe even look into having a silhouette artist at your reception to do the favors.

 

[Greenepona]

Oh, I think you'll like Sea Breeze Point for a Victorian theme! If you wanted to be inside a park, I think the UK is probably the most Victorian of the options at Epcot (natch), but Sea Breeze Point is nice because it's so close to the Attic (also Victorian-ish, in a floral-print kind of way...). Even the ballrooms at the BoardWalk could skew Victorian with the right touches.

After looking at copious pictures... I think we have settled on SBP for the ceremony and The Attic for the reception! The Attic and SBP both fit our theme and time period!

My MOH and I even came up with a cool idea for a photo shoot - Victorian swimwear! Since the BW, YC and BC are all late victorian/turn of the century it would be really cute. plus her and I have always wanted to make some for fun

Also be sure to get your silhouettes done at MK or maybe even look into having a silhouette artist at your reception to do the favors.

Good idea! I wonder if we could bring in our hats (top hat for him, riding hat for me) to the park for the silhouettes if we decided not to have one at the reception (depends on $$)


So if we were to have the Ceremony at SBP, Brunch Reception at The Attic and then a DP at Epcot, would we need transportation all day? or just for the DP?

 

[lurkyloo]

I think you could get away with having one-way or roundtrip transportation to/from the BoardWalk before the ceremony and after the reception, since you would walk to the Attic, and then the same for the DP. And if your guests are super Disney savvy, maybe even skip the DP transport.

Depending on how many guests you have, Disney will suggest you charter a motorcoach, which you will then have to pay to sit around all during the ceremony and reception, and then pay for another 5-hour minimum just for the DP. If you can limit your guest pick-up points to just two resorts, you can do round-trip transport for much less than charter. And if you can keep it to one pickup point, you can do a bunch of one-way transport—even cheaper!