DVC construction near Wedding Pavilion ?

[MiaSRN62]

Hello all,
My daughter finally made the leap to go ahead with a DFTW. Initial paperwork filed April 4 for a wedding April 2014.

One of the concerns we had during the tour with Joe from Francks was the DVC construction at the GF. It's VERY close to the Wedding Pavilion which is her choice for the ceremony. Joe assured us the construction would be over in the Fall of this year for the GF villas.

We are DVC Members and now just starting to hear some rumors of a Polynesian DVC or bungalows in plan to be built out over the water with construction started this year. This would surely go in to 2014 if this turns out to be true. These are only rumors/speculation at this point I'd like to point out. But having been a DVC Member for 13 years, I can tell you, these rumors surface as truth quite often. So I am a bit nervous. Anyone hear anything about this ???

My daughter is not on DIS, so I hope no one minds me as the mother-of-the-bride posting here on her behalf. I lurk often !

[rphelps27]

I was just married on Thursday (April 4) at the WP and even though there was construction, I don't think anyone really noticed it. It did not seem to be in the way and all eyes were on us and the carriage so people were not really looking at it. I know when you walk from the GF to the WP it is sort of in the way, but I honestly wouldn't worry about it being in pictures or in the way of the wedding. From my experience, Disney does everything to make the day an absolute dream come true.

[MiaSRN62]

Originally Posted by rphelps27

I was just married on Thursday (April 4) at the WP and even though there was construction, I don't think anyone really noticed it. It did not seem to be in the way and all eyes were on us and the carriage so people were not really looking at it. I know when you walk from the GF to the WP it is sort of in the way, but I honestly wouldn't worry about it being in pictures or in the way of the wedding. From my experience, Disney does everything to make the day an absolute dream come true.

I just know my daughter---she worries more than I do about things like this. I will probably not even mention this to her since it's a rumor anyway right now and she doesn't need any added stress or concerns on top of wedding planning.

Thank you so much for those encouraging words. And much congrats to you in your new married life !

[DCTooTall]

Originally Posted by MiaSRN62

I just know my daughter---she worries more than I do about things like this. I will probably not even mention this to her since it's a rumor anyway right now and she doesn't need any added stress or concerns on top of wedding planning.

Thank you so much for those encouraging words. And much congrats to you in your new married life !

On the flip side.... I seem to recall there being a few brides who had booked pavilion weddings LONG before construction was started on the GF DVC and who had their weddings impacted by some of the more intrusive portions at the beginning on DVC Construction. I remember there was at least one bride who was posting here because Disney was basically almost at the point of completely screwing her over until the story went viral and a deal was reached.

(Ah! Found one of the old articles posted about this... http://blog.touringplans.com/2011/08...ding-pavilion/ )

Due to the drama the original DIS posting started, as well as to the bride-to-be's attempt to not hurt her ability to have Disney make things right (It was going mainstream and couldn've quickly escalated to the point where Disney's Lawyers got involved), The Bride ended up requesting that the original thread on the DIS get deleted.....


But, I just wanted to throw out there that when it comes to DVC Construction, While Fairytale Weddings may do their best to try and make the event as painless and magical as possible, We've seen in the past where the corporate ATM (DVC) has had communication issues and ended up adversely impacting other Disney departments.

[MiaSRN62]

Originally Posted by DCTooTall

On the flip side.... I seem to recall there being a few brides who had booked pavilion weddings LONG before construction was started on the GF DVC and who had their weddings impacted by some of the more intrusive portions at the beginning on DVC Construction. I remember there was at least one bride who was posting here because Disney was basically almost at the point of completely screwing her over until the story went viral and a deal was reached.

(Ah! Found one of the old articles posted about this... http://blog.touringplans.com/2011/08...ding-pavilion/ )

Due to the drama the original DIS posting started, as well as to the bride-to-be's attempt to not hurt her ability to have Disney make things right (It was going mainstream and couldn've quickly escalated to the point where Disney's Lawyers got involved), The Bride ended up requesting that the original thread on the DIS get deleted.....


But, I just wanted to throw out there that when it comes to DVC Construction, While Fairytale Weddings may do their best to try and make the event as painless and magical as possible, We've seen in the past where the corporate ATM (DVC) has had communication issues and ended up adversely impacting other Disney departments.

Wow...just read that link and about 50% of the replies to the article there. Quite insane situation. I wonder what Disney's stance was prior to the DISboard thread coming down ? Wonder how accommodating or not they were. Looks like after the thread was deleted Disney came to a mutual agreement with the bride ?
Very interesting. I can tell you, we heard hammering and such on March 5 during the site tour and this is why we asked Joe about it. Not sure how significant or not that was compared to what this bride heard/experienced. Wonder if any 2013 brides have addressed this issue or find fault with it at all. Maybe we're just being a little over-concerned/picky about it ?? Thank you so much for the link and comments !

[mb187143]

Originally Posted by MiaSRN62

Wow...just read that link and about 50% of the replies to the article there. Quite insane situation. I wonder what Disney's stance was prior to the DISboard thread coming down ? Wonder how accommodating or not they were. Looks like after the thread was deleted Disney came to a mutual agreement with the bride ?
Very interesting. I can tell you, we heard hammering and such on March 5 during the site tour and this is why we asked Joe about it. Not sure how significant or not that was compared to what this bride heard/experienced. Wonder if any 2013 brides have addressed this issue or find fault with it at all. Maybe we're just being a little over-concerned/picky about it ?? Thank you so much for the link and comments !

Hi -

Hoping to put you at ease here. First, our wedding was on a Friday at 5PM in November, while construction was full throttle, and we saw/heard nothing. Our guests didn't even ask us about what was going on at the WP. The planners submit the schedule of weddings to the construction crews so that, if possible, they can plan around the weddings. And thats for the DVC next door to the WP. The purported DVC at the Poly will be further away, and I cannot even fathom them being at a point where you'd even see progress a year from now. Also, from the initial rumors i heard, I thought the over-sea bungalows were going to be closer to the ferry and TTC than the WP, though anything related to this DVC is conjecture at this point.

As to the situation quoted in the TP blog... to be honest, the blogger only captured the bride's very emotional side of the story. The thread went viral as my DH and I were just about to sign our contract, so I paid very close attention to it. The reason for the situation was that dredging needed to occur on the beach next to the WP on the date of the bride's wedding, and at first, DFTW offered to move her to a different location (i believe it was top of the world lounge at BLT, i remember them saying it still offered MK views and had never before been used as a venue). The bride was very emotional, as anyone would be a month before her wedding. Well, her thread went viral, and then she used a lot of social media, so those went viral too. She had developed a list of things she was going to request from Disney, again in an emotional state, and posted them here. DFTW contacted her (the DFTW staff monitors the boards) and she chose to have the thread removed so as not to impact her ability to reach a positive outcome with them. In the end, she and Disney came to an amicable resolution, and she did get married at the WP, and I believe it was even on the same date, maybe just earlier in the day.

If I remember correctly, the whole thing was resolved in a matter of days. At no point was Disney completely screwing her, at first they offered her several other options that she didn't want. After that didn't go anywhere, she removed her thread on here, met with DFTW, and came out with a resolution that she was happy with. DFTW was honoring the contract that she signed, stating that if they had to move her event due to forces beyond their control (there is even wording relating to construction in that clause in the contract now, though i don't know if her contract specifically mentioned construction, as the DVC may not have been known at the time she signed it), they would. Every single one of us has that protection clause in the contract, for every venue. If they have to move you because of something out of their control, they will. That's a risk you take with absolutely any venue you book for any reason, not specific to Disney. Granted, being moved from my location one month before my wedding would have upset me, so i could definitely understand her initial emotional reaction, i personally would have handled the next steps differently than she did, but different people react differently to those situations. She did get resolution from DFTW, which at the time i believe she said she was verry happy with. The thread just got out of control after a few days on here, as happens.

I don't think this is something you or your daughter need to stress about.

[MiaSRN62]

mb187143~
Thank you SO much for posting such thoughtful comments and reassurance.

I agree, there is no way my daughter or myself would have reacted had this happened to her, but who are we to say that bride's state of mind and emotional stress at the time. I am putting this way off to the back burner now. I appreciate all the advice everyone

[mb187143]

Originally Posted by MiaSRN62

mb187143~
Thank you SO much for posting such thoughtful comments and reassurance.

I agree, there is no way my daughter or myself would have reacted had this happened to her, but who are we to say that bride's state of mind and emotional stress at the time. I am putting this way off to the back burner now. I appreciate all the advice everyone

Yep. It's an emotional time for sure. I don't think it's something to keep in the forefront of your mind though. And the point is, Disney did reach an agreement with her and she's reviewed her day positively on other social media. I also happened to see her on a Disney cruise, so I can assure you it was not enough to sour her from patronizing Disney as a company.

Enjoy the planning process . We had a lot of fun and our day was absolutely perfect. I can't think of one thing that I would have changed. Let us know who your daughter's planner is, and keep us informed about her event, now that mine is over I live vicariously through everyone else's yet to come! It was a wonderful experience, something that as a 9 year old when the WP was built I never dreamed was a reality. It will fly by though.

[MiaSRN62]

Originally Posted by mb187143

Enjoy the planning process . We had a lot of fun and our day was absolutely perfect. I can't think of one thing that I would have changed. Let us know who your daughter's planner is, and keep us informed about her event, now that mine is over I live vicariously through everyone else's yet to come! It was a wonderful experience, something that as a 9 year old when the WP was built I never dreamed was a reality. It will fly by though.

I will absolutely keep you all updated. My husband and I have taken the kids to WDW since the youngest was 2 1/2 to 3 yrs old. Brittany (the bride-to-be) was 4-5 yrs old on her first trip and visited 1-3x a year ever since. She will be be 23 (close to 24) at the time of her wedding and it's amazing to think back and realize how significant a part in our family memories WDW has been. Seems only natural to have the wedding there.

I am enjoying the planning as much as my daughter--maybe more ! The ceremony, of course due to my line of questioning about construction, will be the Wedding Pavilion and the reception is planned for Ariel's. Our guest list is at 73 now, but we know many will not be able to attend, so we're guessing about 50-60 in these early stages. Stay tuned....and thanks again !