Disney Cruise Wedding.

[livlovelauren]

Hello all,

 

I am hoping to get some feedback on a Disney cruise wedding. My Fiancé and I are looking into a 4 day Bahama Cruise on the Disney Dream in May 2015, we would prefer to be married at Castaway Cay. I'm hoping to book soon as I hear things fill up very quick. I'm interested in hearing about your experiences, estimated cost, and any pros/cons.

 

I've read some good and bad about other cruise lines (Princess, Royal Caribbean, Carnival) I haven't heard much negative about Disney.

 

 

Much Thanks :)

[moki'smommy]

There are whole boards/forums on DCL weddings. Cost begins at $2500. (last time I checked) Be aware that you cannot be legally married on the ship, and I honestly don't remember if this applies to Castaway or if they can bring an officiant from the Bahamas to the island for you. The usual procedure is to be legally married at Cape Canaveral before embarkation and then to have a celebration ceremony (as opposed to a legal one) on the ship or the island.

 

As to filling up quickly, it is purely a matter of chance. Obviously, the sooner you schedule, the better. You will be assigned a shoreside coodinator who will assist you with planning, etc.

 

Other than the cost, I've never heard any negatives about doing it on Disney.

[MizDaisy]

My daughter was married on Castaway Cay, but it's been 10 years, so the prices have gone up quite a bit. I've attended two weddings there in the past couple of years, so I know the ceremony & reception haven't changed much.

 

First....you need to contact Disney weddings ASAP. The weddings book one year in advance, and May might be a busy month. They do two weddings a day at Castaway Cay. One in the a.m. and one in the p.m.

The receptions used to be held in Palo, but are now done in the Outlook bar/lounge. You can use the ships' keyboard player and have your choice of music at both the wedding and reception. You and your guests are escorted off the ship and taken by (guests) a private tram, and bride & father (or whoever will walk you down the aisle) in a specially decorated golf cart.

 

There are packages to choose from that will include how many pictures, type of cake, flowers, etc. The last I'd heard, the minimum was around $3000 up to about $6000....some of which depends on how many "frills" and how many people attend.

 

You are indeed legally married in a room in the port terminal before the ship sails, but after almost everyone else has boarded. You'll be instructed as to how many people can be there with you (usually only 4) and what time to meet your onboard coordinator to leave the ship and go back into the terminal for this ceremony.

They do bring a minister from Abaco, Bahamas to perform the ceremony on the island, and you'll have a Bahamian certificate. The ceremony they do is the same as the standard "Dearly beloved" done in most churches.

 

The ceremony site is near the Head's Up Bar on the island. You can either be married in the sand, facing the water, looking toward the ship, or up on the deck of Head's Up (which is closed during the ceremony).

 

You will most likely have the opportunity to stop and get pictures with some of the characters that are out on the island while you return to the ship (bride and groom in the golf cart, everyone else on the tram) BUT....this is not guaranteed.

 

The pictures they take turn out to be STUNNING. I can't say one bad thing about their weddings at all. The only thing that's sad is how much the cost has gone up....but it's just like everything else, always going up.

 

If you have any specific questions, I'll keep watching this thread and hopefully be able to answer.

[livlovelauren]

Thank You! I'm getting very excited, yet nervous to set it in stone. I hope i will be making the right decision with Disney!!

[MizDaisy]

Thank You! I'm getting very excited, yet nervous to set it in stone. I hope i will be making the right decision with Disney!!

 

If you really want a cruise line wedding, the ONLY one to do it with is Disney.

I've seen some of the others, and they can't begin to compare. And you can trust me on that, because I really do like to cruise on some of the other lines, a lot, and I don't always think Disney has the best of everything, but as far as the weddings go....they ARE the best. And they'll treat you like a princess.

[MagicMike]

Lots of info and pricing here:

https://www.disneyweddings.com/cruise/

[ducklite]

If you really want a cruise line wedding, the ONLY one to do it with is Disney.

 

I've seen some of the others, and they can't begin to compare. And you can trust me on that, because I really do like to cruise on some of the other lines, a lot, and I don't always think Disney has the best of everything, but as far as the weddings go....they ARE the best. And they'll treat you like a princess.

 

 

Having just renewed my vows on the beach in Bora Bora, I have to disagree that DCL is the only way to go. It will come down to who your guests will be and their appetite for where they are willing to travel as well as what you and your guests are willing to spend, but I guarantee that there are other equally good if not better options out there.

[MizDaisy]

Having just renewed my vows on the beach in Bora Bora, I have to disagree that DCL is the only way to go. It will come down to who your guests will be and their appetite for where they are willing to travel as well as what you and your guests are willing to spend, but I guarantee that there are other equally good if not better options out there.

 

 

The young lady was SPECIFICALLY talking about being married on a cruise.

 

And of the many, many cruise weddings I've seen, or been involved in, the BEST is Disney. This couple will have the best of everything.

 

 

Most of the time, there's a huge difference in what we can afford to do for our vow renewals, after having been married for quite some time, built our careers & bank accounts, and what we can afford as newlyweds.

Edited May 8, 2014 by MizDaisy

[ducklite]

The young lady was SPECIFICALLY talking about being married on a cruise.

 

And of the many, many cruise weddings I've seen, or been involved in, the BEST is Disney. This couple will have the best of everything.

 

 

Most of the time, there's a huge difference in what we can afford to do for our vow renewals, after having been married for quite some time, built our careers & bank accounts, and what we can afford as newlyweds.

 

I WAS on a cruise. Given the choice of the ceremony being done on the ship or the beach, we chose the beach. The fact that they are looking at a Disney wedding tells me that money isn't a major concern.

 

Again I say, Disney will do a nice job, but there are others that will be as nice if not nicer.

[MizDaisy]

I WAS on a cruise. Given the choice of the ceremony being done on the ship or the beach, we chose the beach. The fact that they are looking at a Disney wedding tells me that money isn't a major concern.

 

Again I say, Disney will do a nice job, but there are others that will be as nice if not nicer.

 

Somehow, I doubt that a Paul Gauguin cruise to French Polynesia is in the average young couple's budget. But good for you.....

 

 

Trust me when I tell you that it's less expensive to get married on a Disney cruise than it is to have a "nice" wedding at home. I have two daughters, and three weddings between them. We've done DCL, a destination wedding, and now planning a wedding in our home state. The wedding here is costing WAY more than if we'd just done it on a cruise, but that wasn't what the bride & groom wanted. So far, just the venue, food and drinks are at $20,000. We still have photographer, video, flowers, dresses, transportation...and who knows what else....still to come.

It would have been a LOT less expensive for them to have chosen a Disney cruise.

Edited May 8, 2014 by MizDaisy

[ducklite]

Somehow, I doubt that a Paul Gauguin cruise to French Polynesia is in the average young couple's budget. But good for you.....

 

There were several honeymooning couples on our cruise, and dozens staying at the InterContinental where we spent a couple nights pre and post cruise. Many young couples have good careers and plenty of disposable cash these days. You are making assumptions that the OP and her fiance can't afford various things when you know nothing about them. I am only suggesting that she look at other cruise options which will offer as nice or a nicer experience as DCL will.

 

Trust me when I tell you that it's less expensive to get married on a Disney cruise than it is to have a "nice" wedding at home. I have two daughters, and three weddings between them. We've done DCL, a destination wedding, and now planning a wedding in our home state. The wedding here is costing WAY more than if we'd just done it on a cruise, but that wasn't what the bride & groom wanted. So far, just the venue, food and drinks are at $20,000. We still have photographer, video, flowers, dresses, transportation...and who knows what else....still to come.

It would have been a LOT less expensive for them to have chosen a Disney cruise.

 

Many costs for a wedding will be the same regardless of where it is held.

[Carnival_Brides]

Hello all,

 

I am hoping to get some feedback on a Disney cruise wedding. My Fiancé and I are looking into a 4 day Bahama Cruise on the Disney Dream in May 2015, we would prefer to be married at Castaway Cay. I'm hoping to book soon as I hear things fill up very quick. I'm interested in hearing about your experiences, estimated cost, and any pros/cons.

 

I've read some good and bad about other cruise lines (Princess, Royal Caribbean, Carnival) I haven't heard much negative about Disney.

 

 

Much Thanks :)

 

If you decide to go with a Disney Cruise wedding--please consider writing a review of it on the CC Weddings Board. After looking into all of our option, our choice came down to Carnival and Disney and we ultimately went with Carnival. It was more bang for our budget and there were too many unknowns having never cruised Disney. If we'd been able to read reviews from actual Disney brides it might have helped sway us.

 

All we knew of Disney weddings (other than all of the Disney touches) is that if you're having a wedding in a port-of-call they marry you in the terminal before you leave. After seeing Buddy Valastro's (Cake Boss) vow renewal that was all changed around on Castaway Cay, it makes sense to me why they'd do that.

Edited May 8, 2014 by Carnival_Brides

[MizDaisy]

If you decide to go with a Disney Cruise wedding--please consider writing a review of it on the CC Weddings Board. After looking into all of our option, our choice came down to Carnival and Disney and we ultimately went with Carnival. It was more bang for our budget and there were too many unknowns having never cruised Disney. If we'd been able to read reviews from actual Disney brides it might have helped sway us.

 

All we knew of Disney weddings (other than all of the Disney touches) is that if you're having a wedding in a port-of-call they marry you in the terminal before you leave. After seeing Buddy Valastro's (Cake Boss) vow renewal that was all changed around on Castaway Cay, it makes sense to me why they'd do that.

 

I think I'm missing something. Are you saying that (because there weren't any reviews) you didn't know that in order to me legally married in the U.S., that ALL cruise line weddings need to be performed in the terminal before you leave (or another U.S. location)?

 

The other way I'm looking at it is that on Carnival, you didn't have to do this?

 

If you're getting married (not vow renewal), in order for it to be a legal U.S. marriage, don't you have to be married in the U.S.?

[Carnival_Brides]

I think I'm missing something. Are you saying that (because there weren't any reviews) you didn't know that in order to me legally married in the U.S., that ALL cruise line weddings need to be performed in the terminal before you leave (or another U.S. location)?

 

The other way I'm looking at it is that on Carnival, you didn't have to do this?

 

If you're getting married (not vow renewal), in order for it to be a legal U.S. marriage, don't you have to be married in the U.S.?

 

Sorry--I should have clarified that better. We knew that you were married ahead of time in the terminal. When we were planning, we had trouble finding recent reviews of Disney weddings to fill in all the other details (perks, venues, reception options, ease and quality of the product, etc.), so we went with what we knew. We had the potential for up to 50 guests (mostly family) to join us on our sailing and wanted to be able to provide information without having to call a travel professional every five minutes to answer their questions.

 

Carnival does not require you to get married in the port on embarkation day. However, if your ship is diverted due to weather, terrorist attack, etc., than they will do what they can to reschedule, but it's not a guarantee. This is pretty much the same policy for RCI and NCL. Our understanding is that Disney does this for maximum flexibility. In the event your cruise turns into cruise to nowhere, they can still hold a ceremony and reception onboard and you return home legally married.

 

My wife and I had a special set of legal circumstances to contend with, so we were married a few days before our cruise and booked a vow renewal to have a ceremony at-sea. There are some couples that have problems having their weddings from abroad recognized, but that's part of the research you do before you make a financial commitment.

Edited May 8, 2014 by Carnival_Brides

[MizDaisy]

Sorry--I should have clarified that better. We knew that you were married ahead of time in the terminal. When we were planning, we had trouble finding recent reviews of Disney weddings to fill in all the other details (perks, venues, reception options, ease and quality of the product, etc.), so we went with what we knew.

 

Carnival does not require you to get married in the port on embarkation day. However, if your ship is diverted due to weather, terrorist attack, etc., than they will do what they can to reschedule, but it's not a guarantee. This is pretty much the same policy for RCI and NCL. Our understanding is that Disney does this for maximum flexibility. In the event your cruise turns into cruise to nowhere, they can still hold a ceremony and reception onboard and you return home legally married.

 

My wife and I had a special set of legal circumstances to contend with, so we were married a few days before our cruise and booked a vow renewal to have a ceremony at-sea. There are some couples that have problems having their weddings from abroad recognized, but that's part of the research you do before you make a financial commitment.

 

Thanks...got it now.

 

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[moki'smommy]

 

If you're getting married (not vow renewal), in order for it to be a legal U.S. marriage, don't you have to be married in the U.S.?

 

No,the US will recognize a properly documented legal marriage performed in any sovereign country. The issue then becomes complying with the laws of that government. There are places where you can basically walk in and be married; in other places you must establish a legal residence there....and just about everything in between probably exists somewhere in the world.

[MizDaisy]

No' date='the US will recognize a properly documented legal marriage performed in any sovereign country. The issue then becomes complying with the laws of that government. There are places where you can basically walk in and be married; in other places you must establish a legal residence there....and just about everything in between probably exists somewhere in the world.[/quote']

 

But then, if you wanted a divorce, would you have to go back to that country?

 

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[Carnival_Brides]

But then, if you wanted a divorce, would you have to go back to that country?

 

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Forums mobile app

 

The simple answer is no. There are a couple of exceptions, but for the most part, you can be divorced in your home state. This thread has certainly taken an interesting turn :D

Edited May 9, 2014 by Carnival_Brides

[ducklite]

The simple answer is no. There are a couple of exceptions, but for the most part, you can be divorced in your home state.

 

And to further complicate matters, you can get a divorce legally recognized in the US in most foreign countries, provided you can meet that countries requirements for the dissolution of marriage.

[truck1]

My wife and I were married on the Magic in 2010.

 

This is normally how it works. Im not sure on the pricing as I have heard that pricing has gone up.

 

Before you book your cruise, call DCL weddings and they will assign a shoreside assistant to you. She will send you all of the info that you need. Theres only 3 spots available on a cruise to be married. 2 onboard the ship, and 1 on CC. If all 3 are filled, you might need back up sailings.

Once you get the dates nailed down, the price of the wedding is added to your cruise. So say the wedding is 3500, and the cruise is 4000, your total due 75 days before sailing is 7500.

 

In the paperwork they will send you, they will ask you to choose songs from a set list, or you can create your own.

They will give you choices of cakes, toppers, cake cutters, flowers boutonnieres etc.

Unless something has changed, you are also entitled to a free dress steaming, and tux pressing, as well as a comp night at Palos, on the night of your ceremony. You also get champagne glasses, a free bottle of champagne.

You are also guaranteed a ships officer to preside over the ceremony, not necessarily the Capt. We had Walter from accounting and have seen him several times since then on cruises. On our last cruise, this past Oct,we asked where he was an had transferred to the Wonder. Ray the CD on the Fantasy at the time, sent a message to him and Walter not only remembered us, but sent us a picture holding an Happy Anniversary sign, in front of 1 of the lounges from the Wonder. To me, that is what sets Disney apart.

 

What you will pay extra for is pictures. Theres a few different picture options. We ended up with over 300 pictures.

 

You also need a marriage lic, in hand when you board. Youll have a small ceremony onboard and a notary will marry you. Ours was in front of the Walt Disney Theatre on the Magic. Your legally married when the ship leaves port. The actual ceremony for you at least will be at CC. When my wife asks me whens our anniversary, I jokingly reply which one? Its the 16th or 18th of Oct depending on which date(s) you go by.

 

When you board, youll meet with a shipboard asst, who will help arrange any last minute items for you, and answer any questions for you. They will also help arrange a time to meet the photographer before the ship sails. They'll show you a book with standard pictures and ask if you have any other ideas. Which is how we got the 300 pictures. Like on deck 10 with the sunset in the background at sea, against the funnels, with the DCL logo, in front of the statue in the atrium, etc.

 

Other then being cost prohibitive to some people, the down side to a Castaway Cay marriage, is weather, if it rains, or is otherwise inclement weather, (think wind) you have to come back to the ship for your ceremony, and a CC wedding, takes up most of the day, so you lose that time on the island. Which is basically all day when you figure, a 1 oclock ceremony, cake, pictures preparation etc. Even earlier like 11 oclock( I forget what the actual time is) eats up your day.

[grand isle joe]

We had our vows renewed on the Magic off the coast of Italy in 2007. Disney did a fabulous job and can't say enough for their care and logistics. Hope it works out and Good Luck.:)