VENDOR REVIEWS!
So its taken me a while to figure out how exactly I want to format this. When I was planning my wedding I loved reading planning journals from front to back.. so it’s really important to me to finish this thing completely and in a way that will be helpful to all future brides.
I think I’ll start with detailed vendor reviews, since finding the right vendors always seems to be one of the hardest parts of a wedding.. and it’s even harder with a destination wedding (ratings range from A+ down to an F.. spoiler: no one gets an F
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Disney Fairy Tale Weddings: A
Ahhh Disney… how I love and sometimes loathe you. I think Disney sets itself up for brides to have really high expectations. Just look at their TV show and the marketing they do as far as posting draw dropping pictures on Facebook and Instagram. I can’t necessarily say I was disappointed in Disney because everything turned out pretty much just as I had pictured it, but I also can’t go without saying that the planning process was stressful from the beginning.
I really don’t think I meshed well with my sales consultant from the beginning, and I felt like I had to beg to get something other than a ballroom for my reception. I’m sure it is possible that all of the Yacht Club ballrooms, the Atlantic Dance Hall, and the Grand Floridian ballrooms were blocked by conventions, but at the same time I can’t help but feel like I was being pushed into a ballroom or some other unimportant space because of my low group size. My sales consultant repeatedly told me that several venues would “swallow” my group size, like Atlantic Dance Hall. I didn’t care if my venue looked empty, I just wanted something unique. It was honestly pure luck that we ended up in the GM Lounge.. GM decided to hold their event the weekend before mine, so then my planner reached out to me with the good news that I could book the lounge.
The experience was pretty stress free from the end of May 2017 until January 2018. I had a great planning session with my first planner in October 2017, and I got along with our florist great. She definitely saw my vision even though I couldn’t really explain it. We got our BEO back around Thanksgiving of last year. We were working on remodeling our house, so I put off making changes until after Christmas, which is when I found out that we were getting a new planner.
It was an adjustment with switching planners. I know you are in good hands with any of the Disney planners, but they all do things differently from how they format the total bill, what they put in the BEO as far as level of detail, and how they handle communication. It made the process just a little more stressful, especially finding out about the change a couple of weeks before my 90 day minimum payment was due. Overall, I was happy with both of my planners and everything turned out perfectly even though I was worried up until the day of that everything was going to be completely wrong.
My room block coordinator, Janet Moore was awesome. I really over complicated that whole thing and she was so patient and kind in helping me out with it. She also got our rooms at the Grand upgraded to Lagoon View and made sure we had connecting rooms!! We also got upgraded on our honeymoon stay from Standard Club Level to Water View Club Level. Not saying that you should go in expecting these things, but I was definitely surprised and grateful!!
The contracted transportation through Mears for our charter bus was another disappointment considering how much it cost. The drivers were pretty clueless and sometimes plain rude. The driver for the dessert party threatened to leave the groom’s parents when there was still a minute left from pick-up time. The driver for the reception watched me unload all of our reception items in my wedding dress in the 90 degree heat. Disney should really figure something else out for their transportation contract.
Photography: Root Photography A+
Ahhh.. where do I even begin. Photography and Videography was one of the most important aspects of my wedding. So my selection of photographer was definitely well thought out. The Roots were the first people I booked when I even started considering a Disney wedding. I went back in my emails and saw where I first reached out to them in January 2017! I officially booked them in February 2017. I will forever recommend using outside photography (specifically the Roots) to all Disney brides. I just couldn’t fathom paying upwards of $5k for Disney photography when they won't even guarantee that you get a photographer you request. Why would I pay that much for someone’s work I’ve never seen. The Roots take some of the best photos I’ve ever seen, and they are super nice and genuine people. Plus, they take more candid pictures of the event actually happening versus a bunch of posed pictures - it was like I had no idea they were there, but they captured every detail. The photography decision was probably the easiest decision I made for my wedding
Videography: Switzerworld A+
Videography wasn’t something I thought I would book initially, but I am so glad I did. I’ve already watched our video at least a hundred times. I love how it captures every detail of our day and I love the music and upbeat vibe. One of my favorite parts is that the videographers came to our MK and Epcot park sessions and included that in our video too. Switzerworld was amazing to work with and kept me laughing and smiling through a second (painful) morning in high heels. Their prices is higher than other videographers used by Disney brides, but I think their quality really reflects that price. I’m also supposedly supposed to get all of the raw footage in the mail.
Hair and Makeup: Fairytale Hair and Makeup A+
I really wasn’t sure if I would have someone come in and do my hair and makeup because I’ve never been one to trust someone else with that, but I figured I would probably want to look a little more dressed up than my usual self. Stacie with Fairytale Hair and Makeup was awesome. She made me feel so comfortable and was a great presence to have in the wee hours of my wedding day morning. I had a trial with her when I went to Disney for my planning session in late October, and I would definitely recommend that if possible. We discovered that the fake eyelashes had to be trimmed because of my eye shape (they lifted on the inside corners a few hours after my trial) and I discovered that I didn’t want to do an updo for my wedding day. I actually changed my idea for my hair on the morning of my wedding day, so I showed her the new inspiration picture and she did an amazing job! My hair and makeup lasted well throughout the day. I have naturally straight hair, so I’m used to my curls falling some and it actually ended up looking good with my second, more playful wedding dress.
Disney Floral and Decor: A+
Disney floral really blew me away with my whole ceremony and reception set up. My florist, Laura was amazing to work with. After my planning session I was worried that I didn’t show her enough inspiration pictures - I think I showed her maybe 2 or 3 for the reception tables and sweetheart tables. The rest of the time was me trying to explain my floral and decor vision to her - “rustic” but with no mason jars or burlap. After the planning session I wasn’t sure what I was going to get. But wow she couldn’t have captured my vision more perfectly. I was soooo happy with my bouquet especially - it was exactly what I wanted. I had heard horror stories about brides getting the complete opposite of what they wanted for their bouquet or dead/wilted flowers. Mine couldn’t have been more beautiful. All of my reception decor blew me away as well - the farmhouse tables and vineyard mismatched chairs went perfectly together. I’m so glad I listened to my florist about the vineyard mismatched chairs. I’m also glad I did the Athena candle stands - they went really well with the floral garland centerpieces. The only thing I was disappointed in was that my bouquet was taken to be refreshed right after the ceremony. It was supposed to serve as decor for my cake table. I don’t really understand why it was taken so early when I had the morning ceremony to begin with, so they should’ve had plenty of time to refresh it before 6 am the next morning.
Grand Floridian Bakery: A
My cake was absolutely beautiful. I was expecting a plain white cake because I asked my planner to figure out a way to cut the price down to under $1000, so I figured the lace detailing would have to go. Turns out all she did was cut it down from 4 to 3 tiers, which took it from $1500 to $800. I’m so glad I did this because we had a TON of extra cake even with us saving the anniversary layer. The cake wasn’t as good as I remembered from the planning session. We had almond cake + amaretto mouse and chocolate cake + peanut butter cup mousse. The almond cake was a little too mushy at the wedding, so the chocolate was better, which stinks because the bigger (bottom) layer was the almond flavored, so most people got crappy cake.
Disney Food and Beverage: A+
Disney food is usually pretty good, so I had high expectations that my food wouldn’t be bland like mass servings of wedding food can sometimes be. Our food was great. We had parmesan crusted chicken marsala, braised beef, Manchego cheese grits, potato au gratin, a Mac and Cheese bar, Brioche French Toast, and a Mickey Waffle Action Station. My only regret is that I didn’t get to eat as much as I wanted. My dress was pretty constricting after a couple of bites and then I felt like I needed to go around and talk to all of my guests since we weren't at cocktail hour. I’m glad we didn’t go too crazy with food at cocktail hour - just fruit and cheese. It saved us a ton and our guests didn't fill up before brunch service.
I’m super glad we did the speciality cocktails named after our dogs. They were expensive ($13.50 for the slush and $12.50 for the other), but our guests STILL talk about getting a “Chip” or “Milo.” We even took some of the guests to Epcot the next day to get a La Vie en Rose slush from the France Flower and Garden booth, which is the drink that we renamed “Milo’s Sweet Pink Drink.” My only regret with this is that I didn’t send my planner a picture of what the drink was supposed to look like, so the color was COMPLETELY OFF, but no one knew except me so i didn't make a big deal about it.
Guestbook and Signs: Miss Design Berry A+
We used Miss Design Berry for our Welcome Sign with our dogs, our speciality cocktail sign with our dogs’ portraits, and our guestbook canvas. It is kind of pricey, but totally worth it. The signs and guestbook were the talk of our wedding and it gets a ton of social media attention. Plus, the characters sign your guestbook, so I’m glad I went with something I can display in my house versus just a normal book.
Disney Entertainment: DJ Charles Miles and Characters A+
I was worried about having a DJ for a morning wedding - would it be awkward? Would anyone actually get up and dance? I’m so glad we used DJ Miles though! He kept the reception flowing and provided the perfect mix of interaction and just letting our guests mingle. The reception did start to drag a little in the last 30 minutes after the characters had come and gone, but that was the only time where I think my guests were kind of ready to go.
The characters were definitely a highlight of our reception. We had Stitch come out at the end of the parent dances, which was a surprise for most people. He was so full of energy and everyone was so surprised. Then we posed for a group picture with Stitch and the DJ said, “wait, we are missing a couple of guests,” and Mickey, Minnie, and Pluto came running out! That’s when I really saw our guests’ faces light up. Most of them knew at least Mickey would be there, but I don’t think they expected 3 more to come out. We all danced and then they took pictures with each group and then helped us cut the cake! I think having Disney characters at your reception is definitely something unique to Disney and was one of my “must haves.”
I feel like I'm leaving someone out...
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I'm sure I'll remember eventually. In summary, one of the best things about a Disney Wedding is the fact that they can handle pretty much EVERY element of the wedding if you want them to. Even escort cards and favors if you choose. That was definitely a stress reliever!
Up next: Glad I Did/Didn't and Things I Wish I Did!