Open Bar vs. Bill On Consumption

[fearthisinc]

Trying to figure out the best way to go for our reception.. We are currently factoring in about 90 people.. Of that about 70-75 would be of drinking age.. Disney calculated 78.. We are trying to look at our list but most of the people are just social drinkers that may have 1 or 2 an hour.. But there is never a guarantee.. Then there are those who are professional drinkers lol.. We got the quote back and for 78 people at signature open bar it comes out to 4,290 plus tax.. That is for 4.5 hours of open bar.. Our reception will be from 7pm-11pm.. My thought process is that it is disney and people may not drink as much as they might normally do at a wedding because they will have children to care for and whatnot.. Just wondering for those that also had night receptions what route you went and if you have any opinions or input.. Thanks

 

[DavidG1966]

Its like buying an insurance policy. Go for the KNOWN cost and do the open bar. That way you KNOW your cost and don't have to worry and stress if your guests are drinking you into the poor house. You 'may' pay a little bit more... but then again you can just sit back and not think about it and have fun.

Enjoy!

 

[lurkyloo]

I feel exactly the opposite: Why pay upfront for drinks that may not even be consumed? With bill on consumption, you will only pay for exactly what people drink. If they drink more than estimated, yes, you have to pay a little more after the wedding, but Disney's BOC estimates are high enough that it's not going to be a huge difference. Plus you would only be paying for what they would have drunk anyway. And if they don't drink more than the estimate, you get a nice refund!

With a package, there is no chance for a refund—all that money is just gone, even if your guests don't meet Disney's generous estimate of 2 drinks for the first hour and 1 each hour thereafter. Don't forget there will also be water on the table and any other drinks that might be included in your menu, like coffee and tea.

I've been following Disney's Fairy Tale Weddings for 8 years, and the number of people I've seen get a refund on their BOC bars far exceeds the few I've seen who've had to pay after the wedding. You might be interested in this podcast called "How to Save a Bundle on the Bar" http://disneyweddingpodcast.com/2013/03/27/how-to-save-a-bundle-on-the-bar/

 

[huskies90]

I feel exactly the opposite: Why pay upfront for drinks that may not even be consumed? With bill on consumption, you will only pay for exactly what people drink. If they drink more than estimated, yes, you have to pay a little more after the wedding, but Disney's BOC estimates are high enough that it's not going to be a huge difference. Plus you would only be paying for what they would have drunk anyway. And if they don't drink more than the estimate, you get a nice refund! With a package, there is no chance for a refund—all that money is just gone, even if your guests don't meet Disney's generous estimate of 2 drinks for the first hour and 1 each hour thereafter. Don't forget there will also be water on the table and any other drinks that might be included in your menu, like coffee and tea. I've been following Disney's Fairy Tale Weddings for 8 years, and the number of people I've seen get a refund on their BOC bars far exceeds the few I've seen who've had to pay after the wedding. You might be interested in this podcast called "How to Save a Bundle on the Bar" http://disneyweddingpodcast.com/2013/03/27/how-to-save-a-bundle-on-the-bar/

How is BOC impacted by the new pricing structure? So if guests do not drink as much as disney estimated, I get a refund back but if I do not hit my $125/150/175 per person minimum wouldn't I just have to give it right back?

 

[alyaki]

How is BOC impacted by the new pricing structure? So if guests do not drink as much as disney estimated, I get a refund back but if I do not hit my $125/150/175 per person minimum wouldn't I just have to give it right back?

I think in that case (and I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong), you just don't get the refund for the amount that would have put you paying under whatever per person minimum you had to hit. But, if your pp price was over that minimum, then you'd get the refund back for the difference. I'm pretty sure I'm making this sound more complicated than it is, but essentially, say you pay what would come out to roughly $20 pp for your BOC bar (total cost of your BOC/number of guests), and your total pp price (prior to actual event) was $130. And say your guests only drank what would be $10 worth of drinks on average. If your pp minimum was $125, you would probably get a refund of $5 pp, since you still had to pay the amount that was your minimum.

Again, though, I'm not an expert, and lurkyloo can probably correct any screw-ups I've made in my math, or in my understanding.

 

[lurkyloo]

I think in that case (and I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong), you just don't get the refund for the amount that would have put you paying under whatever per person minimum you had to hit.

^^ This.

 

[huskies90]

I think in that case (and I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong), you just don't get the refund for the amount that would have put you paying under whatever per person minimum you had to hit.

^^ This.

Yes, I understand you wouldn’t get the money back which was the whole point I was trying to make. It appears to me the new minimums are negating the recommendation to do BOC. If you are not going to get the money back anyway, you might as well pay the package and this way you do not have to worry about it.

But, if your pp price was over that minimum, then you'd get the refund back for the difference.

I guess this makes sense though I can’t imagine spending MORE than the minimum on food just for possibility of getting a refund on your BOC when the $125/150/175 per person is already pretty high, right? Are you guys still saying BOC is the best option with the new pricing structure? I guess I am not following the reasoning.

 

[alyaki]

It really depends on what you want. The meals can actually get pretty pricey, and between that and the cake, those can add up. It really all depends on your preferences - we're probably doing BOC, but part of that is because a) the chance for a refund would be nice and b) we're expecting our meal to cost a bit more. We're doing lunch during the brunch time frame, and the steak sample menu we've been looking at is a bit more expensive than a similar brunch option would cost, so I'm actually expecting that we may be a bit above the pp minimum anyways. And, honestly, we're not expecting people to plan on getting hammered that early in the day (though, if they do, at least we paid for what people actually drank!).

It's really up to you - do what you're comfortable with. But you may find that those pp minimums are a lot easier to hit than you think. I just know that we're probably doing BOC, because, after looking at a bunch of BEOs and budgets over the last year, it's probably going to fit our situation best. The new pricing structure really doesn't change stuff around food much, other than the fact that now that and decor aren't grouped together to hit an overall minimum, since even before the pricing structure changes, there were still food/beverage pp minimums to hit.