Swalphin wedding or DFTW??

[SarahFarra]

My DF and I got engaged in WDW about 7 weeks ago and since then we've decided for sure that we want to get married in WDW too! Until yesterday I had a pretty set (without yet paying deposits) plan to do a ceremony at the Swan and Dolphin Resort (to save money) and went as far as to get a contract with a Just Marry consultant and then come back home for our reception a month later. Well it turns out, this in total would cost about $20,000 so Mother-in-law and Sister-in-law asked why we don't just do everything in WDW? DF and I hadn't even considered this as we thought it would be too much money but since our original plan was going to be so much anyway, now it's an option!

But now I'm in quite a conundrum since I had in my head that we were doing the Swalphin wedding but now we have to determine if a DFTW might be a better option! Will ten years from now we look back and wish we would have had a DFTW?

Just looking at prices shown online we're guessing base Wishes (too many people for Escape) wedding and reception will run us about $15,000. We're pretty good at budgeting ourselves so I *hope* we would be able stay within that and not go over.

We also will probably only have about 30-50 guests and no wedding party.

Our Swalphin ceremony was going to be just under $3000 and included the ceremony site, officiant, wedding coordinator, musician, ceremony arch, floral (1 bouquet, 1 boutonniere, 3 spray arrangements for arch), seating, and water station for guests. I was going to arrange photography, videography, hair and makeup myself.

I can still keep our original plan for the Swalphin ceremony and add on a reception or I can scratch the whole idea and contact DFTW for a completely different wedding. Future M-I-L suggested if it's a difference of $4000-$5000 just go with the DFTW since it is the ultimate Disney wedding. I'm not sure I want to start back at square one with wedding planning.

What would you do? Any experience with either that you'd like to share? This seems like a pretty important decision as I don't plan on doing this again! Thanks!!

 

[princesswendy720]

Which venues do you like better? For me, it was Sea Breeze Point or nothing, so DFTW was the way to go.

 

[Summer Daydream]

I went back and forth. I thought I was going with DFTW. But since we are having a low guest count, I looked into S&D. I love the flexibility of a wedding at S&D, every wedding I have seen was beautiful, the planners seem amazing, and I was very seriously considering it. My fiancé actually talked me back into DFTW even though its going to cost us more by doing the escape package and our enhancements to the package than it would at S&D. He really wanted the photo album that says DFTW (why that was the one important aspect to him, I don't know!). Good luck with your decision!

 

[MickeysStarTrader]

Which venues you like better is definitely something to be considered, another aspect is the rules like minimum expenditures per person, having to book a certain number of nights in a Disney Resort starting on a certain date in relation to your wedding, not being allowed to use outside vendors at certain locations etc. I know for one Swalphin bride on this forum, as much as she wanted a DFTW, she had enough of following their rules and decided to make the switch. But it doesn't bug other bides. Just something to consider there.

Also, would you meet the DFTW mins before adding outside vendors? If you had your heart set on a certain photographer for example, you would need to add that on top of your mins. I know Disney Photography Service can worry some brides and can also be expensive. Do you REALLY want an MK photo shoot? If you do, the only way is to have a DFTW.

My advice would be think about how much you would be happy to spend on your wedding, don't go for a DFTW just because you can. Then think about what you want your wedding to look like, the type of venue you want, if you want any other things like photo shoots, dessert parties, etc. and then see which option will best fit your wedding vision on the budget you set

 

[kkbutterfly]

Which venues do you like better? For me, it was Sea Breeze Point or nothing, so DFTW was the way to go.

Same here. I was set on my venues and I wouldn't have changed them for the world (or a few thousands in savings). Like you said, I know if I did S&D, I would have looked back and regretted it. BUT there have been tons of beautiful S&D weddings and I know they never ever regretted their choice. If you think you'll regret it, go with DFTW.