Wishes Package: Do you HAVE to have a "reception" or ....

[pixie921]

... can you book a semi-private room for dinner? We're only going to have 13 or so people, so it almost seems a waste to do an actual reception when the semi-private room at the Yachtsman Steakhouse would do. I know you can do that with an Escape, but I'm wondering if DFTW requires that you have the reception with the $125/person minimum or if they're okay with skipping it.

 

[tinkerbell 766]

Would it not be easier/cheaper to go with the Escape package?

 

[sambycat]

my understanding is you must meet the total minimum expenditure for the entire event and the pp minimum expenditure for the "reception" portion - i'm sure there are a myriad of different ways to divy that up, but i think it would have to be a monstrously huge dessert party to meet that!!!

 

[emilymad]

You have to meet the $125/person minimum but it can be broken out over the entire day. Ours is broken out over pre-reception food, dinner and a dessert party.

 

[girli565]

I would think it would be easier to have an Escape wedding and add on a private event like what you want at Yachtsman. Seems cheaper too. I would think it's hard to spend 10-12K on a Wishes wedding with only 13 people.

 

[pixie921]

Thanks for all the replies! And sambycat, you're right -- that would be a MONSTER dessert party, LOL!

I've spent several days comparing pricing on Escape vs. Wishes and with the things we want to do, I don't think we'd have any problem meeting the Wishes minimums, even with such a small group if we do a dessert party.

Of course I'd love to stick to the Escape and keep the price down, but if it ends up being only a small difference, dh wants to upgrade for the extra service and ease of planning things like the dinner and dessert party.

 

[aimeeblonde]

I would just like to add that it's your day so its OK to splurge once in a while! So go for the wishes. I like the idea of a small intimate wedding. My kudos and good luck to you!

 

[pixie921]

I would just like to add that it's your day so its OK to splurge once in a while! So go for the wishes. I like the idea of a small intimate wedding. My kudos and good luck to you!

Thank you so much!!

 

[Skylarr29]

You can use a the Wine Room at Jiko, Narcossee's, Citrico's, V&A's or California Grill and have a private reception that counts for the Wishes minimum.

 

[tinkerbell 766]

Thanks for all the replies! And sambycat, you're right -- that would be a MONSTER dessert party, LOL!

I've spent several days comparing pricing on Escape vs. Wishes and with the things we want to do, I don't think we'd have any problem meeting the Wishes minimums, even with such a small group if we do a dessert party.

Of course I'd love to stick to the Escape and keep the price down, but if it ends up being only a small difference, dh wants to upgrade for the extra service and ease of planning things like the dinner and dessert party.

Understood!!
I too thought about upgrading to Wishes when the Wishes minimum went down and the Escape (with a private catered event) went up, as I was determined not to do without my dessert party. In the end I figured that there is not much you can get with the Wishes package that you can't with the Escape, except the planning session, which, being in the UK, I probably couldn't afford as it would mean two trans-atlantic trips within a year!!
Another thing that made me stick with Escape was the fact that I needed to hit the $10,000 minimum before tax and service were added on. This pumped up my $10,000 minimum to nearer $12,000 and was just a stretch too far for me. I probably would have trouble reaching the room count for Wishes too, as we are only a small party (between 11 and 17) and will probably only stay on-site for about 5 days before moving on to a villa.
I think that with the new Escape minimums, the planners are more willing to help Escape brides with the planning and booking of private catered events. I have two planned (reception and DP) so I certainly hope I will get some help from my planner for my $7500.00!!!
Good luck with your planning!!!

 

[pixie921]

Understood!!
I too thought about upgrading to Wishes when the Wishes minimum went down and the Escape (with a private catered event) went up, as I was determined not to do without my dessert party. In the end I figured that there is not much you can get with the Wishes package that you can't with the Escape, except the planning session, which, being in the UK, I probably couldn't afford as it would mean two trans-atlantic trips within a year!!
Another thing that made me stick with Escape was the fact that I needed to hit the $10,000 minimum before tax and service were added on. This pumped up my $10,000 minimum to nearer $12,000 and was just a stretch too far for me. I probably would have trouble reaching the room count for Wishes too, as we are only a small party (between 11 and 17) and will probably only stay on-site for about 5 days before moving on to a villa.
I think that with the new Escape minimums, the planners are more willing to help Escape brides with the planning and booking of private catered events. I have two planned (reception and DP) so I certainly hope I will get some help from my planner for my $7500.00!!!
Good luck with your planning!!!

You'd better get some *great* help planning, LOL!!! I'm sure you will, too ... it's Disney after all!

I was afraid the room count was going to be a deal-breaker, too, but we literally will need just enough rooms for our group to hit it. And ITA about the service charges ... I'm cringing just thinking about them.

I'm glad we've got lots of time to plan and really weigh what's really important to us and what we can live without.

 

[Skylarr29]

You'd better get some *great* help planning, LOL!!! I'm sure you will, too ... it's Disney after all!

I was afraid the room count was going to be a deal-breaker, too, but we literally will need just enough rooms for our group to hit it. And ITA about the service charges ... I'm cringing just thinking about them.

I'm glad we've got lots of time to plan and really weigh what's really important to us and what we can live without.

Since we are Florida residents we had the room night minimum removed from our contract. If we didn't meet it we just didn't get our free night. We did meet it in the end but at least we didn't have to worry about it. I'm not sure if it was just because we are residents or if anyone can do that, you might want to ask your sales manager about it.

 

[pixie921]

Since we are Florida residents we had the room night minimum removed from our contract. If we didn't meet it we just didn't get our free night. We did meet it in the end but at least we didn't have to worry about it. I'm not sure if it was just because we are residents or if anyone can do that, you might want to ask your sales manager about it.

I definitely will -- thanks for the tip!

I'm not worried about having a free night as we'll be using our DVC points for all the rooms, and we have guests who are FL residents and won't be staying overnight, so I'll see if they're willing to work with us at all in case we end up needing to reconfigure our room plan.

 

[aristocatz]

I just wanted to add that, you should ask your planner for ideas for a really unique and special intimate private dining event.

As a Wishes bride, I think you are allowed to book events in locations that are not accessible to non-Wishes brides (like certain places in the parks). Might as well take advantage of these perks and your planner might have some fun ideas!!