Rain Call?

[Brier Rose]

OK..I am trying SO hard not to get stressed out here. I mean..what's the point..can't control the weather right??

BUT

I admit that I will be beyond disappointed if our DD's parties get cancelled because of rain.

Does anyone know what exactly determines the final call to move everything indoors?

We have one party at the GF Summerhouse and Beach on October 17th. The time listed for the rain call is 1:00-1:15pm.

Our Illuminations Dessert Party is on October 19th, with a rain call time of 4:30-4:45pm.

Right now..both days are calling for rain!!

Our back-up location for the Summerhouse Dinner is the Whitehall Room. I have NO idea where they would put us for the Dessert Party.

Any of you ever been in this same spot..calling for rain..but then it worked out at the last minute??

 

[hmgolden]

Well - this is what I can tell you. EPCOT made the call to move our dessert party indoors. I'm not sure what time the rain call was made as we were told during the middle of our reception, but it was later than 4:00 PM. He told us radar was showing thunderstorms in the area, and we couldn't have the desserts outside.

We were given the choice of either the room above Norway (which really is an UGLY room), or the Wonders of Life Pavilion (which would have been to far to walk so would have meant no fireworks pictures). We opted for Norway so that we could still walk to the Italy Isola for the fireworks if the rain held off. The rain held off (until the start of Illuminations) so after grabbing some desserts, we headed off to Italy. A MASSIVE thunderstorm started just as Illuminations began. Before the show began Disney handed out ponchos to all our guests (for FREE!) which helped some, but it was so wet!

If I were you, I would get them to confirm your back up location for the dessert party and make sure you have a rain plan in place. If I could do it all over again, I would have had Disney let the guests who didn't want to get wet stay in Norway, and we would have gone back and joined them after Illuminations. Rain or no rain, there was no way I was giving up the opportunity for my fireworks pictures!

 

[Brier Rose]

SO..overall were you still happy with your Dessert Party, even with the rain?

Our location is Lower Uk, so I wonder where they would move us to. I did ask when we first started planning about the backup location and was told that it would be decided as needed.

Gosh..I just hope it doesn't rain!!

 

[hmgolden]

Yes, I was still happy with my dessert party. It obviously didn't happen the way we planned, but we all had a great time, had a lot of laughs over how wet we all were, and the pictures we got were fabulous. My photographer (Randy Chapman) was a real trooper putting up with the downpour an captured some of my favorite moments of the day.

I'll keep my fingers crossed for you that the rain stays away!

 

[JaxTeach]

We attended a dessert party on October 1 (not for a wedding, though). The rain was awful that day. Our group was moved to the Odyssey from Italy Isola. Around 8:45pm, we walked with our guide to the Italy Isola. A downpour started as we reached China. We ended up watching Illuminations from the Italy Isola after the rain let up. Disney did provide ponchos to our entire group (and Mickey ice cream bars!) for free.

 

[melanieewr]

Hey Brier! The time is getting close. The brides and brides to be on here are so much help. They know all the ins and outs of these events, even though you and I are not doing weddings...

My Summerhouse Beach Party DID get rained out a few weeks ago! We would have been moved to Whitehall, but there was a wedding. I wouldn't count on Whitehall unless there are no weddings there that day. That shouldn't be a problem since it is a Wednesday. It is a beautiful location.

I was disappointed that we got rained out. Our party was set for 6pm and the call had to be made by GF catering by 2:30. My EP kept in very close touch with me throughout the day...keeping me updated. She said they were watching the doppler closely and if the hour by hour chance of rain was at least 70% anytime during the party, we would be moved indoors. Which is exactly what happened. The weather looked great at 6pm and I was "ticked off". We had decided to try to get some pictures of Minnie on the beach before going inside for dinner. Luckily, we did get plenty of pics before a huge black cloud and a downpour moved in. Minnie came back indoors before dessert for more pics. She was so much fun as was our "balloon guy". He really kept adults and children entertained. I am so glad I went with him. Our Disney Photographer pics were a bit disappointing. No real artistic flair...and there were plenty of opportunities. I will be using Misty Miotto for our Great Movie Ride Dinner next week. I am glad you have Randy booked for your Beach Party.

BTW...the room we ended up with was very small, but worked perfectly for our group of 12. The biggest problem was no windows. Our other option would have been the Key West Room which did have windows, but was too small for the buffet. They would have had to put it in the hall and there was a wedding close by, so lots of people would have been walking by our food.

Don't stress too much about the weather. You will have a blast no matter where you are!

 

[Brier Rose]

Hey Melanie!!

Oh my..I am SO sorry to hear about your party getting rained out!

I'm hoping..praying..calling up the pixie dust..ANYTHING that we can get by with NO rain, but I'm trying to mentally prepare for the possibility.

I know the only way it will be ruined is by my attitude. I just have to make up my mind to make the best of it, and enjoy..NO MATTER WHAT!!

They have our back-up location on our BEO listed as the Whitehall Room, so I would hope they would stick to it. Our EP showed us the room while we were there, and I do love the patio area where you can see the monorail and Castle in the background.

Our little group has grown to 17 now, with lots and LOTS of food, including two action stations, so I don't know where they would put us.

Let's hope we don't find out either!!!

 

[disprincessatheart]

When I was plannign an EPCOT reception for my wedding, about 2 months before my planner sent pictures of the room they were going to use for the backup. It's kind of a blur because we ended up cancelling about a week later, so I didn't keep the pictures, but the room was in France I think (we were booked for FI upper and lower) and looked very much like the other rooms in the france pavilion, so i'm sure it would have been nice. I would think they could tell you now where your backup location is and maybe you can get over there to get a peek before hand to help you visualize it and hoepfully calm your nerves. We were told, as others have said they did, that we could eat inside and then walk down to our location for Illuminations. That show is rarely cancelled, so it'd still be a great party!

 

[lpizzuro123]

Just wanted to let you know that I LOVE your IllumiNations picture with the umbrella. I have taken notice of this picture on more then one occasion and even though you did have rain it is a wonderful picture and I am sure made for wonderful memories.

Linda

 

[Sandye1965]

We were married last Friday, 10/05/07. I understand completely........it rained the whole day!!! It did ease to a mist when we were getting in & out of the limo.

Good luck to you guys!!

 

[Janet2k]

Does anyone know what exactly determines the final call to move everything indoors?

Brier Rose, as you know, I've held a couple of outdoor parties in Walt Disney World. Fortunately, all of them went off without a hitch.

Now, with that being said, for last year's Grand Floridian party, it rained cats & dogs at one point during the day. My daughter & I were on a VIP Tour of the Magic Kingdom with a bunch of my friends and we got soaked to the bone. The rain was heavy enough that the afternoon parade was pushed back for quite a while. When the rain finally ended, the parade was held. We watched it in our wet clothes. I'm sure we were a scary sight, but we didn't care. Our day had been filled with much laughter, rain and all.

After the tour had ended, my daughter & I headed back to the Grand Floridian so that we could shower and change for the party. When we got to our room, a phone message was waiting for me from my Event Manager. She wanted to know if I wanted to move the party indoors to the Convention Center. I immediately called her and asked her what she suggested for a situation like mine. She knew how badly I wanted to hold the party outdoors, and since the Doppler Radar wasn't showing any rain clouds in the immediate area, she told me to take my chances and hold the party outdoors. However, she told me that if it began to rain, the food would be ruined and it would be too late to transfer it to the Convention Center. I told her that was okay with me. As long as my guests got to spend at least 15 minutes outdoors, I didn't care what happened afterwards. And so I gave the final go-ahead to have my party held outdoors as planned.

I'm not going to tell you that it was an easy decision for me to make. After I got out of the shower, I immediately had second doubts. I ran next door to my friends' room and asked them what I should do. They told me to keep things as-is and to simply hope for the best.

After I was dressed, I met up with a few friends in the concierge lounge. As we sat there chatting, I felt the walls beginning to close in on me. And then the butterflies in my stomach began to take flight. Worrying about the weather was obviously getting to me.

I asked my friends if we could move outdoors since I thought the fresh air would help calm my nerves. My friends consented and we took the back elevator down to the marina area. Here is what greeted me about 20 minutes prior to my party : click here. As you can see, things didn't look too good. Since my party's venue was still being prepped, we grabbed a couple of chairs near Gasparilla Grill and sat down: click here. My friends did a good job of cheering me up. I soon began to relax, and before I knew it, it was time for the party to start.

Mother Nature was my friend that night. Not one rain drop fell. My daughter & I went on to have a wonderful evening with my friends: click here.

So, I am hopeful that your event will be held outdoors as planned. But if it isn't, remember, your guests are going to have a wonderful time anyway.

 

[Brier Rose]

Janet -

As usual you always calm my nerves! I'm actually feeling much better this evening.

Keeping busy getting everything ready really helps! I can't believe we're actually leaving MONDAY!! Gosh..time has just flown by!

Looking at your pictures though, I was struck by something unnerving..the buffet tables! We NEVER discussed linens or decor for the buffet tables!

I never asked and my EP never mentioned or suggested anything!

I'm guessing they would just go with standard white linens in this case??

I'm not really worried about it, but your buffet tables look so GREAT! It makes me wish we hadn't overlooked this little detail!

 

[Janet2k]

As usual you always calm my nerves! I'm actually feeling much better this evening.

Brier Rose, glad I could help. My bill is in the mail.

By the way, have that cabana ready for me in case I crash your party. I am SO tempted to book a last-minute trip. And I'd crash Melanieewr's party. I supposed I should warn her, too.

Looking at your pictures though, I was struck by something unnerving..the buffet tables! We NEVER discussed linens or decor for the buffet tables!

I wouldn't worry about it. I'm sure whatever they've picked out for your buffet table will go perfectly with the linens that you've picked out for your dinner table.

You're going to have a lovely time at the Summerhouse. I'm hopeful the weather will behave for your event. But if it doesn't, just drink more. It's amazing how a little alcohol can really calm the nerves.

 

[Brier Rose]

glad I could help. My bill is in the mail.

Well GEEZ!! You would think after you plan a private cabana with all the trimmings for someone they would at least give you free therapy!!

Watch out Melanie!! There's no telling what sort of diabolical plans this party crasher has in store for you!!

I wouldn't worry about it. I'm sure whatever they've picked out for your buffet table will go perfectly with the linens that you've picked out for your dinner table.

You're going to have a lovely time at the Summerhouse. I'm hopeful the weather will behave for your event. But if it doesn't, just drink more. It's amazing how a little alcohol can really calm the nerves.

GENIUS!! Now why didn't I think of that!! That's a plan I can work with right there!