PTR - Diary of an Aussie Disney Bride (Feb 2025)

[zanzibar138]

*** Breaking news ***
We have made the difficult but responsible decision to have a local wedding instead of Disney. For those who are interested, there's more information in my final post... Adulting is hard

With the encouragement of some fellow DISers, I have decided to go ahead and start a PTR for our upcoming trip to WDW. Without further ado... introductions!

Here we are at Disney on Ice over the weekend.



I'm zanzibar. 40 years old and a lifetime Disney nerd. Had my first trip to DLR about a decade ago, which began a period of annual Disney travel for a number of years. I've been lucky enough to visit DLR and HKDL a number of times, DLP and even made it to opening day at SDL! Then life happened, as it does. I suddenly found myself single and focusing on rebuilding my life, then of course COVID got in the way of everything. After everything, I decided to move back across the country to be with my family, a move which has set me on a wonderful path!

Enter B. We met at a ballroom dancing class and the rest, as they say, is history! B is 46 and has only been to DLR once for a few hours on a boys trip to the US. They rode a grand total of one ride - Splash Mountain. He is in for quite the shock doing Disney with me

We live in Perth, on the west coast of Australia (about as far away from WDW as you can get ) and have 2 fur kids - Evie (the Kelpie x) and Sabah (the German Shepherd).



Although there has been no official proposal yet, B and I have been talking about getting married since about a week into our relationship It was B's suggestion to start looking into Disney weddings - he's just as much into the fairytale idea as I am! We have decided on a WDW wedding. We'll make it a WDW vacation with the friends and family who are able to join us, and sneak in a mini honeymoon on the way home.

As of now, we are looking at a February 2025 wedding.

 

[zanzibar138]

Travel related content:
Itinerary planning: The final version
Flights: Getting prepared for flight bookings, Poised and ready, 1 down... 6 to go!, Long haul locked in
Pre-Disney: The problem with Vegas, Vegas... back on the cards
Accommodation: Narrowing down our resort choices, Doing the room block shuffle
Park strategy: Park schedule V1

Wedding related content:
Engagement: It's official!, Adding some Disney to our engagement party, One down, two to go!, The engagement parties continue
Disney's Fairytale Weddings: Starting the Fairytale Weddings process, An exciting zoom call!, We're in!
Ceremony: We have a celebrant!
Venues: Ballrooms aren't for us
Dress and accessories: Ideas for a ring, Some thoughts on shoes, The dress search begins, Some dress sketches, Initial consult with dressmaker, Dress is locked in!, The first Shein haul
Beauty: Learning about makeup
Music: The trials of finding a waltz
Photography: The dreaded price hike
Stationery: Spreading the word!

The full itinerary (current at 12 Feb 2024):
Day 1 Saturday:

• Fly Perth to KL
• 1 night KL city

Day 2 Sunday:

• 1 day exploring KL
  • KL Tower
  • Petronas Towers
  • Batu Caves
  • Markets

Day 3 Monday:

• China Airlines flight from KL to Ontario airport, arriving late PM (booked)
• Pick up hire car
• Overnight near Ontario airport

Day 4 Tuesday:

• Begin road trip to Vegas (not sure whether to go via Barstow or Palm Springs)
• Overnight Needles area

Day 5 Wednesday:

• Continue drive to Vegas, via Oatman (Route 66) and Hoover Dam
• Drop off hire car
• 3 nights at Horseshoe Las Vegas (booked)

Days 6 Thursday:

• Spend the day exploring the strip

Day 7 Friday:

• Red Rock Canyon, possible horse riding tour

Day 8 Saturday:

• Fly Vegas to Orlando, aiming to arrive late afternoon
• Pick up hire car
• 2 nights budget motel Orlando area

Day 9 Sunday:

• Day trip to Kennedy Space Center

Day 10 Monday:

• Morning trip to Blue Spring State Park for manatee viewing (not sure if they do kayaking there)
• Afternoon airboat ride
• Drop off hire car
• Transfer to Disney accommodation - first 6 nights at Pop

Day 11 Tuesday:

• EPCOT day 1
• Aim for a Space 220 reservation

Day 12 Wednesday:

• MK day 1

Day 13 Thursday:

• DHS day 1

Day 14 Friday:

• AK day 1

Day 15 Saturday:

• MK day 2

Day 16 Sunday:

• Transfer - next 6 nights at CBR
• DHS day 2

Day 17 Monday:

• EPCOT day 2
• Evening welcome party - maybe Trader Sam's followed by fireworks viewing from the beach at Poly

Day 18 Tuesday:

• Leisurely MK day
• Possible Keys to the Kingdom tour
• Early dinner at CRT

Day 19 Wednesday: Wedding day!

• Family pre-wedding breakfast at Riviera or Boardwalk area
• 2:30pm Ceremony at the Wedding Pavilion
• 7:30pm Dessert Party at Germany Promenade, EPCOT

Day 20 Thursday:

• Leisurely AK day

Day 21 Friday:

• Early morning MK bridal portrait shoot
• Farewell brunch (possibly 1900 Park Fare now that's re-opening!)

Day 22 Saturday:

• Transfer - last 2 nights at AKL
• Wild Africa Trek
• Dinner at Boma

Day 23 Sunday:

• Leave free to enjoy as a leisurely last day enjoying the resort and perhaps one of the parks

Day 24-25 Monday-Tuesday:

• Fly Orlando - LA - Singapore
• Singapore Airlines flight from LAX to Singapore, departing late night (booked)

Day 26 Wednesday:

• Arrive in Singapore early AM
• Overnight Changi area

Day 27 Thursday:

• Fly Singapore - Perth

 

[zanzibar138]

The main reason why I started this PTR is because the waiting is driving me crazy Because we're not planning to have a reception as such, I can't even start the process with DFTW until 12 months out. It's also at about that time that I'll be able to start booking flights etc. In the meantime, I just wanted somewhere to share my excitement, because my friends and family are already sick of hearing about it So here are some initial random thoughts.

Flights
Our plan is to maximise our frequent flyer points by booking as many flights as we can in business class, starting with the longest ones. So definitely the long overnight trip across the pacific. My points are half with OneWorld and half with Star Alliance. I'm really hoping to be able to nab a direct flight from east coast Australia to DFW, or at least as far as LAX. Unfortunately those flights are notoriously difficult to get, particularly for someone with no airline status. As a backup, we will consider flying via South East Asia (Singapore/Hong Kong/Malaysia) or the South Pacific (Fiji/Hawaii).

WDW and Orlando
We're probably planning to spend a full 2 weeks in Orlando. We'd love to stay onsite, but it's so expensive for that long! I did consider the possibility of a split stay, but I don't think we'll want to be bothered to be honest. Not keen on a value for a wedding trip, but we can possibly stretch to a moderate (particularly if the exchange rate improves!). At this stage, the front runners are probably POR, maybe DVC rental for one of the deluxe resorts (would be the most basic studio room type), or one of the offsite hotels in the Disney Springs area.

The rough plan is to arrive on the Saturday and get married on the Tuesday or Wednesday so we have plenty of buffer time in case of flight delays etc and also to give us time to acclimatise a little. I'd like to keep our schedule fairly light with lots of down time, particularly before the wedding. If we can get the 14 day passes available to UK guests (apparently Aussies can get them too), then we'll have a lot more flexibility with our park time, and can just pop in for a few hours on days we'd like to keep light.

While in Orlando, we also plan to spend 2 days at USO (not necessarily in a row) and, at B's request, visit the Kennedy Space Center and attend an NBA game if at all possible!

Wedding and associated events
When B and I were comparing wedding options across the Disney parks, other destination wedding venues and at-home wedding venues, we came up with a list of what we would consider must haves for a magial fairytale wedding. We came up with a few compromises to try to save money and make it easier for guests, but found that we could get the authentic version of most of these things at WDW without having to sell a kidney (well, maybe just one ) and most people we talked to about it preferred the idea of going to the US instead of SE Asia, even though it's further and more expensive.

• View of a castle (any castle) during the wedding ceremony: We looked at some of the GF options, but we're leaning towards just spending the extra and booking the WP. This is our top priority and we don't want to spend all that money and go all that way to risk being rained out of our venue and moved to a ballroom!
• Wedding/honeymoon photos in a Disney castle park, in as close to wedding attire as possible: I discovered that this is not only possible for official Disney brides in full wedding attire, but that it also counts towards your minimum spend. Winning! I'd like to aim to book this 2 days after the wedding, as I can't stand the thought of having to wake up super early and rush around the day immediately after the wedding, but still want it to be close enough to be 'part of the wedding'.
• Fireworks finale to the wedding day: We'll definitely be having a DP with a fireworks view. We'll probably go with Epcot instead of GF for the novelty of being in the park in wedding attire and being able to add a ride mix-in.
• Wedding photos with Mickey: While our wedding plans will not allow for characters, I've come up with a sneaky way to still get photos with them by attending a character breakfast directly after our MK portrait session, while we're still in our wedding attire. Chef Mickey's probably makes the most sense for this, and it can also double as a farewell brunch for our guests.
• Horse drawn coach: While B loved the idea of me arriving in Cinderella's coach, for me it was more about having wedding photos with horses in them. While I would have loved a photo opportunity with real horses, I'm happy to have this covered with Carrousel photos as part of our MK portrait session. This is probably the one thing we could probably have done at home that we can't at WDW.
• Princess wedding gown with tiara: This was really the only thing that we could have done anywhere.

We also plan to do a Wishes fireworks cruise as a welcome party.

We're not expecting a lot of guests since it's such a long way for people to travel and a lot of expense. My parents definitely intend to come along, and there are a few other family and friends who have indicated that they would like to or will try to. I'm expecting a maximum of about 10. We'll be holding a 'Happily Ever After Party' when we get home for everyone who isn't willing or able to travel.

We just want a simple wedding. No bridal party. We'll probably organise town cars for us to get to the wedding ceremony and charter a van for all other transport requirements. We don't intend to have any floral decorations, centrepieces or cake. I'll probably get a small artificial bouquet that I can use for all wedding related events and then use as home decor afterwards. We don't need getting ready photos or anything like that - we'll just start the photography from B's arrival at the WP. Having said that, we'll probably be falling way short of the minimum spend for the WP with so few guests so may actually need to add a few extras! I intend to do my own hair and make up and even make my own wedding dress (although I may change my mind about those things once I've started practicing ).

Honeymoon
We do intend to include a short stopover on our way home - somewhere exotic and relaxing. We did think Fiji would be a good option, but apparently the weather is likely to be terrible at that time of year. Since SE Asia's kind of on the way, we'll probably consider our options in Indonesia or Malaysia. North Sulawesi (Indonesia) looks amazing, but it's kind of out of the way so it will probably depend on what our flight schedule looks like. Penang, Langkawi or even Kota Kinabalu in Malaysia would be more straightforward options.

 

[zanzibar138]

No real update as such (and there probably won't be for a while ), but we have unfortunately had to cancel our trip to Japan in September The plus side of this though is that I get a whole heap of Qantas points returned to me, so hopefully that will open up a lot more options for us for getting to and from WDW and will probably be able to do more of the trip in premium cabins than we first thought!

 

[Marrila]

How exciting! I'm looking forward to reading more as you plan.

 

[zanzibar138]

So this PTR has fallen by the wayside a little (as I suspected it would being so far in advance). However, since we had to cancel our Japan trip, we've decided to bring this one forward to November next year!

I have received all of my refunded points from that trip too, so the balance is sitting at 546,270 Qantas points and 329,488 Velocity points. That should cover what we need, will just be a matter of working through the availability of reward flights.

Since we've changed the timing of the trip, we're also reconsidering honeymoon options. This may depend on what flights we can get. If we have to go through Asia or the South Pacific, we'll probably just stop off somewhere there. Otherwise, we're considering the Yucatan Peninsula or maybe somewhere in the Caribbean since we'll already be in the vicinity. November probably opens up more options to us weather-wise.

Also considering what else we want to try to fit in to this trip 'on the way' or while we're 'in the area'. It's always a bit of a balancing act going somewhere far away, trying to maximise the value of the time and cost to get there, but also trying to avoid trying to squeeze too much in or having to extend the trip too much! We're toying with the idea of flying into Vegas and spending a few nights there with friends in place of bachelor/bachelorette parties, followed by a drive through the desert. There are lots of appealing options for that - Route 66 from Vegas to Salt Lake City, drive down to Phoenix, or just a circle loop taking in some of the many canyons and national parks in the area around Vegas.

I've been working on 4 weeks for this trip, which is probably enough time for a few days in Vegas, 2 weeks in Orlando, and a few days at a honeymoon destination on the way back. If we're thinking of adding in a road trip though, we'll probably need to extend to 5 weeks. Doable for me since I have long service leave owing (and I may consider just taking extended leave to cover November and December), but B has just started a new job so may not work for him.

 

[zanzibar138]

The trials of finding a waltz
Starting to think about some of the detail for our wedding. With ballroom dancing being such a large part of our relationship and our history, we definitely want to incorporate that into our wedding (although will likely be at the after party rather than the wedding day). B has his heart set on doing a modern waltz, which needs a song in slow 3/4 time. And of course this is THE most difficult timing to find... I'm gradually getting together a list of possibilities.

• So This is Love from Cinderella
• Bella Notte from Lady and the Tramp
• At Last I See the Light from Tangled - this normally wouldn't be the right timing for waltz, but I have found a ballroom cover version
• Rainbow Connection from The Muppets (I like the Gwen Stefani version)
• It Is You (I Have Loved) from Shrek

I'm not necessarily sold on the arrangements I've found so far for all of the above, hoping for a modern cover that's not quite so overtly Disney. The last 3 have the advantage of being relatively modern songs as they are but I'm not sure I'm sold on the waltz conversion for At Last I See the Light.

Will run them all by B and see what he thinks. Funnily enough, even though he's a pretty good dancer and is able to dance in time, he doesn't have an explicit understanding of different rhythms so isn't much help in picking out potential waltzes!

Dad will also want to do a modern waltz, but he's got quite a good understanding of musical theory so I'll see if he has any ideas for our dance. I don't mind if he picks something that's not Disney either - generally he's got pretty good taste in music.

 

[zanzibar138]

Ideas for a ring
B has told me that he's planning to get an engagement and wedding ring set custom made by someone we know from dancing. I'm allowed to have input on the design, and he has asked me to show him rings I like when we're passing jewellers etc, but I'm not allowed to be fully involved in the process so there's still some element of surprise.

I have a plain gold wedding band from my grandad's mother (my grandad is 92 and still with us). It's far too big for me (even for my thumb!), and not my style at all so has just been sitting in a box in my drawer for a long time. Dad has encouraged me to consider having it melted down and incorporated into my new rings. I'm pretty sentimental, so I LOVE that idea and was very pleased to hear that the idea of melting it down wouldn't upset anyone. And it works out really well since B was planning to go custom anyway. Only trouble is, I prefer white gold, so now I'm considering the options for two-tone. I think I like something like this, which has mainly white gold, with the yellow gold kind of wrapped around, which to me kind of signifies entering into a new stage of life, but with my family always an inextricable part of that life.

 

[starry_solo]

Have you considered So Close from Enchanted? I don’t know how the timings will work for a waltz, though…

 

[zanzibar138]

Have you considered So Close from Enchanted? I don’t know how the timings will work for a waltz, though…

Ooh I've always loved that song (although it is kind of lamenting that they can't actually be together so maybe not for a wedding dance?). Sadly it is too fast for what we're looking for as well. Although I would LOVE to learn that dance they do in the movie!

 

[zanzibar138]

Finally got some worthwhile updates! Now my big work event is finished for the year, I'll be able to get stuck into a bit more wedding planning.

The first update is that we've decided to revert back to the original timeframe. B thought it would be too difficult for me to plan the wedding, 4-6 week international trip and the annual work conference all at the same time. Fair call!

We've got a few people now who have said they'll be interested in coming along, so will be a matter of trying to figure out who's serious before we have to start making any plans based on numbers. So far we've got my parents, B's step-dad and step-foster-brother, his 2 sisters and one of his best mates.

B has also decided that he wants to get the rings from a proper jewellery store so that they come with all the proper paperwork. It's a bit of a shame that I won't be able to have my family's ring incorporated, but I might be able to find another way.

 

[zanzibar138]

Some thoughts on shoes

Last week I bought some new ballroom shoes. They're not blingy like my latin shoes, but they're kinda pretty and insanely comfortable.



I was thinking that a pair in ivory might work well as a base for wedding shoes. I'd have to get the sole changed out for street soles (instead of the suede soles that dancing shoes generally come with), and would be tempted to add some more bling. Not sure if I'd go with the 2" heels (like these ones) or maybe try the 2.5". I definitely wouldn't go higher than that.

 

[zanzibar138]

The dress search begins!

The dancing shoe shop just happens to be affiliated with a bridal store, so it was a great opportunity to have my first real look at some dresses. It was only a small boutique store with just a few samples, so not a huge variety to choose from, but I did find a perfect princess dress! In Australian bridal stores, they won't let you take photos in the dress until you've put down a deposit, so I've borrowed some photos from the internet.

It's the Rosa Clara Niceta dress.





It's kind of different to what I'd imagined - didn't see myself going for such a lacy, intricate bodice, and thought I'd go for more of a ballroom silhouette. Definitely wasn't sold on the no-lining look for a bodice before trying it on. But when I tried it, it was everything I've dreamed of and I could feel myself tearing up!

I really loved the lacy beaded bodice in the end, the skirt was just the right amount of puffy, and I REALLY love the button back. The back is also just high enough to hide a strapless bra if I want to wear one. The cap sleeves and sweetheart neckline were really lovely too. It also just happened to fit perfectly.

The only real negative is the length of the train - the longest I really wanted was a sweep train. It wouldn't be suitable for dancing as it is (even bustled), so I'd need to either have the train removed or get another dress for our happily ever after party. It also wouldn't be suitable for a dessert party with ride mix-in. It also definitely does not fit in with my vision of having separate pieces that I could fit in with my regular wardrobe. Since I'm not willing to spend $3k (plus alterations!) on a dress that I will wear once for a 20 minute ceremony and a few photos, I'm planning to take these photos to a dress maker and see if we can come up with something that takes inspiration from this while still fitting my vision.

While I was out and in wedding dress mode, I also happened to find this one in a goodwill store for $100! Was my size so I thought I'd give it a try. It actually didn't look bad! It has a tie-up back and I was on my own, so I couldn't get it really cinched in at the waist and it kept falling down every time I let it go. It had also had padding added in the bust area which is definitely not required for me and didn't help with the fit. Ignore the bra straps!



Was definitely an interesting day and a good start to my search!

 

[zanzibar138]

Some dress sketches

Last night I took the plunge and sent an email to one of the dressmakers on the recommended list from the local wedding group on Facebook. I sent some pictures of the Rosa Clara dress, but I also did some sketches of what I initially had in mind for a wedding dress. Just thought I'd pop them in here too. I'm no artist - just traced the outline of a front and back picture from the internet and filled in the detail.




Here are some of the features I've tried to capture that I like the look of:

• Big frothy tulle skirt in soft ballgown style
• Cute and easy to manage sweep train
• Lacey sparkly bodice
• Sweetheart neckline
• Soft basque waistline
• Buttons up the back with or without illusion panel
• Not sure if I prefer the cold shoulder look or the cap sleeve look with a keyhole back

I'm envisioning this being made in multiple pieces that I can combine for different events.

• Petticoat to accommodate soft ballgown style skirt.
• Ankle length multi-layer tulle skirt with lining (which can be worn without petticoat for ride mix-in at DP and dancing at Happily Ever After Party)
• Floor length multi-layer tulle skirt with sweep train which can ideally be somehow attached over existing skirt, although may be difficult to manage with the significant difference in length after adding the petticoat under the ankle length skirt - will consider a separate skirt for this, in which case there's probably no need for a separate petticoat.
• Separate bodice, even wondering if this can be made up of 2 pieces. A plain ivory fitted bodice which could become part of my everyday wardrobe, and an embellished topper to be worn for the wedding.

I also have to think about somehow transporting this thing from the west coast of Australia to the east coast of the US via at least 2 transit points (definitely hand luggage!). Separates could also help with that issue. So will the business class flights if we can get them!

 

[zanzibar138]

It's official!

I'm afraid for a little while this PTR is going to be more wedding than trip related. There's not much we can do about the trip part for another few months, but still thinking about the various options for accommodation, events, meals, parks etc.

The exciting news is that we have now made our engagement official with an engagement ring! We ended up just going for a ready-made ring from a chain store, but I love it! It came with a matching wedding band, so we're all set for my rings now, got a while to decide what B wants to do. Also got my nails done for the occasion





We're planning our engagement party for early December, at the dance studio where we met. The plan is to hire the venue for a private party for our family and close friends from 6:30pm-8pm, when we'll serve some nibbles and put on a bar tab. Then have a half hour basic dance lesson for people who don't know how to dance, and open the venue up for a social dance from 8:30pm (people attending the social dance part pay their own entry and we'll cut off the bar tab at 8pm). We might bring out another cake or something during the social dance. I already have a dress in mind for the engagement party - one I bought years ago that I never really had anywhere to wear. Now I just have to find it among all our boxes (we've recently moved house).

I'm also in conversations with a dress maker to organise an initial consult in the next couple of weeks.

Pretty exciting stuff!

 

[zanzibar138]

Initial consult with dressmaker

I went to see the dressmaker (Beata) the other day. She was the only one who had responded to my email so far, and she was absolutely lovely and really seemed to 'get' my vision. She's also said she can do something within my budget, so I think I'm pretty happy to just proceed with her. I'm going to organise another visit with Mum in the next few weeks when she gets back from her caravan tour around Australia.

After some initial chat about the wedding plans and timelines etc, we discussed exactly what I'm looking for in a dress, and I tried to explain my preference for multiple pieces for maximum versatility. Beata seemed to understand what I was going for and told me about a bride she's worked with recently who she did 2 pieces for - a reception dress with a tea length skirt and a floor length skirt with train for the ceremony. She said she could do something similar for me, but also with 2 separate parts to the bodice for maximum versatility.

While we were chatting, I was eyeing off a sample dress she had, and she offered for me to try it on. It was pretty similar to this.



I absolutely loved it! Made me feel just like a princess and was exactly what I'd envisioned. The lace on the bodice was beautiful with small sequins instead of beads which gave a lovely subtle sparkle and also kept it nice and light, which will be important for travelling! Beata had some great ideas about how we could make it a multi-piece outfit. It would be a sweetheart corset bodice (I'm going to request removable straps for even more versatility), an embellished lace topper with cap sleeves and buttons up the back, an ankle length circle skirt, and a floor length organza skirt with a sweep train for the ceremony. For the ceremony skirt, she can sew in a crinoline trim at the hem to give the illusion of extra fullness but without having to bother with layers and layers of tulle. She can offer polyester or silk fabric. Because I'm planning to include these pieces in my everyday wardrobe after the wedding, we figure polyester is probably better because it doesn't need to be dry-cleaned. It's also cheaper so that's a win all round!

Next we discussed colour. I told her definitely ivory instead of white, but I'm also not opposed to a very pale blue. She only had very small swatches of the blue fabric, so I was having a hard time envisioning what she'd suggested, but I've scoured Pinterest for inspiration and saved a few very subtle blue dresses that I like. I think I'm sold!

 

[zanzibar138]

Adding some Disney to our engagement party

We thought it would be romantic to hold our engagement party at the dance studio where we met. The focus will mainly be on the dancing (we're putting on a basic dance lesson for our non-dancing friends and family so they can join in if they want to), with very basic catering and no real decorating, but I decided to add a few little Disney touches to the invitations



I bought a beautiful ivory silk dress off ebay years ago, which was too small when it arrived and I never thought I'd be able to fit into. I'd tried to on sell it without any luck so it has followed me around every since. 6 months ago I tried it on for fun and it actually fit, so I had kind of planned on wearing that. However, after several months of stress/convenience eating, I've put on a bit of winter weight and it's nowhere near doing up again! I'm back on the straight and narrow now, hoping that I can lose enough weight in time to still be able to wear it, but I'll need a back-up plan! In the meantime, I'll go and get this one dry-cleaned just in case!

 

[Newsies]

Hello from NJ, Zanzibar!

Just now finding your PTR and getting caught up on everything. Congratulations on your now official engagement! All of the planning looks wonderful so far and I'm excited to read more. This wedding sounds like a dream!

 

[zanzibar138]

Hello from NJ, Zanzibar!

Just now finding your PTR and getting caught up on everything. Congratulations on your now official engagement! All of the planning looks wonderful so far and I'm excited to read more. This wedding sounds like a dream!

Welcome aboard Newsies!

Just to add an extra element to all of this, we were reminded over the weekend that the WDW Marathon weekend is usually on in early January... kind of tempting Probably won't happen though - might be a bit much to try to fit in marathon training with wedding planning and we'd have to be travelling at that peak time right after New Year.

 

[rdkeim]

What a dream to be married at Disney! It will be fun to follow along!