Beautiful pictures! One question: Did you get any hassle from Disney staff about taking wedding-type pictures without purchasing a vow renewal package through them? We would love to do this for our parents' 40th but the cost of a Disney vow renewal is a bit prohibitive.
No, all of the Cast Members went out of their way to make us feel very welcome and special for our anniversary. Afterall, Disney is in full advertising blitz encouraging folks to come and "celebrate" with them. It would be pretty hypocritical to invite us to come celebrate our special occasions and then fuss at us for doing that very thing!
We were not disruptive with our photos, but respectful of the fact that the resort is open to everyone. All of our photos were taken in publicly accessible spots and without interfering with the activities of other guests. In fact, other families took photos in front of the Christmas tree together after we did. It also helped tremendously that we selected a photographer who knew Disney policies and was thoughtful of those around us. All of our vendors were selected from a list of Disney-approved providers.
There are certainly big differences in the day we had versus the Disney vow renewal packages. We wanted our ceremony in a church, so our actual renewal was perfect for us. But, if I had dreamed of a "fairy tale" wedding, then we would have gone with the Disney package. Also, if I had ever considered wearing actual wedding attire (which never even tempted me), then we would have gone with the Disney package. Our cake was just what we wanted, but I believe you can get something much more customized and/or elaborate with the Disney package. We enjoyed our lunch very much, and the Cast Members made us feel like royalty... but we also went on a very good day for this. The restaurant was somewhat empty when we were there and we ordered right off the luncheon menu. Since there were many empty tables around us, the Cast Members were able to provide us with the extras we enjoyed... a separate table for the cake and space for our photographer to move around and take great shots. He even took photos of the folks around us that we emailed to them later (we collected their email addresses as he took them... it was really a friendly atmosphere around us!). But, what if our anniversary had happened to fall on a very busy day? Then, it could have been a very different experience. Booking a Disney package avoids that uncertainty. So, if you want to guarantee a perfect day, and certainly if your anniversary falls sometime that isn't an Adventure or Choice season, then you would probably be better off with a Disney package rather than a self-planned event.
HTH! Evey =)
How lovely! Thank you for sharing your beautiful day and belated congratulations. My DH and I will celebrate a significant anniversary in 5 yrs. and I am thinking it will be at WDW. Only thing, it is in August and with the heat at that time I just don't know how that would work. Again, thanks for sharing!
What a beautifully romantic family event! Thank you so much for sharing! 
). Anyway, you have certainly given me lots of ideas!!!! Thank you!!
