Walt Disney World Fairy Tale Weddings - Wishes Collection Tips & Tricks

On this page I've gathered some great tips, tricks and ways to save on a Wishes Collection Wedding, Commitment Ceremony or Vow Renewal through Disney's Fairy Tale Weddings at Walt Disney World.

All prices on this page are subject to change at any time. Unless otherwise indicated, prices do not include 20% service charge on catering plus 6.5% sales tax, which is applied to all services, catering, optional "enhancements" and fees.

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The Biggest Savings Decisions

I realize I'm just stating the obvious to most people, but these decisions will have the biggest effect on the cost of your Wishes Collection event:

• To keep your overall minimum down, pick a weekday event (Monday-Thursday). Fortunately, most of your guests will probably plan on making your Disney World celebration into a multi-day vacation for themselves, so it's usually not a hardship for them to attend a weekday wedding.

• If you absolutely cannot have your wedding on a weekday, try to have it in Low Season (January, February, August, September). However, of those months, I highly recommend avoiding August and September for outdoor events -- it is terribly hot and humid at that time of year! The weather is usually cool and pleasant in January and February.

• You'll save by having a daytime reception, such as a brunch or lunch, because of the lower per-person minimum cost.

• You can save quite a bit if you avoid the Wedding Pavilion and the Grand Floridian reception locations, since they cost more than the other locations.

• Avoid holding your ceremony and/or reception in the theme parks. Theme park events cost more because you can't use any outside vendors for anything that happens inside a park, because you have to pay a site rental fee, and because you have to pay for bus transportation to take your guests in through a back entrance.

See the topics below for some less-obvious savings!

Understanding Minimums

There are definitely some ways to save money on a Wishes Collection event at Walt Disney World. However, keep the following facts in mind:

• You must meet the overall minimum, which means you'll be spending AT LEAST $10,000 for a weekday event (plus 20% service fee on catering x 6.5% tax on everything -- and yes, the service fee is taxed!).

• You must pay a ceremony location rental fee of AT LEAST $1500 plus tax. Some reception locations also have a site rental fee, but not all. (Location fee(s), not including tax, count toward your overall minimum.)

• You must meet the catering minimum, which means you'll be spending AT LEAST $75 plus service fee & tax on food & drink for each person who attends your reception. (But the catering fee, not including service fee and tax, counts toward your overall minimum.)

• You can't bring in any outside food or drink, including wedding cake. (But the cake cost, not including service fee and tax, counts toward your catering minimum.)

What all the minimums really add up to is this: given the high cost of the location rental and the catering, it is VERY easy to hit your overall minimum just on the basics. For example, let's say you'll be having a relatively small event (50 guests) on a weekday. You have an overall minimum of $10,000 to meet. Here's how easy it would be to exceed that minimum in 2007 without adding any major "extras":

• Ceremony at any location other than the Wedding Pavilion ($1500 fee).

• Lunch reception at any location other than Grand Floridian ($75 catering minimum per head, for a total of $3750).

• Photography (minimum package starts at $2665)

• Flowers ($720 minimum for bride's bouquet, bridesmaid's bouquet, two boutonnieres and two altar arrangements)

• Music for the ceremony ($425 minimum)

• Entertainment for the reception ($425 minimum)

• Limo for the wedding party ($584)

That takes you to $10,069 (plus service fee and tax). If you want anything extra, like Mickey at the reception, upgraded linens on the tables, etc... well, you get the picture. In other words, you'll probably have trouble staying close to your minimum.

Obviously the more guests you'll have, the more the required minimum-per-head cost of catering will eat up your budget. (I can't see any way to have a $10,000 event with a guest list bigger than 50.) So there is a big incentive to keep your guest list down!

Use Outside Vendors

The minimums can't be avoided. What CAN be avoided is paying Disney's inflated prices for the non-required "extras." You'd be wise to bring in outside vendors, which charge a lot less than Disney for the "extras." Specifically, as long as your wedding and/or reception are not in a theme park (i.e. Epcot) you can use outside vendors for:

• Floral
• Decor
• Favors
• Entertainment
• Transportation
• Photography
• Videography

Reportedly you can use an outside florist for your "personal" flowers (bouquets and boutonnieres) even if you are holding your event in a theme park. That is the only exception on the rule against outside vendors for theme park events.

Coming soon - outside vendor recommendations.

Small Wedding, Big Reception

There is a very big gap between the price of an Escape Collection event (as low as $4000 including service charge and tax) and a Wishes Collection event (starting at $10,000 plus service charge and tax). The problem for those who want a bigger event is that the Escape Collection package is limited to 20 people, including the couple who are getting married.

Here's a way around that problem. Make the guest list for the actual wedding small, including only your nearest and dearest, and hold the ceremony through the Escape Collection program. Then have a big "reception" in the form of a restaurant dinner and/or IllumiNations Dessert Party. You can invite as many people as you want to that event!

It's actually not that unusual for people to have a small private wedding for family only, followed by a big party for their extended circle of friends. Other than fewer witnesses, you're not missing out on that much by having an Escape Collection event. You get access to most of the same perks as you'd get with a Wishes Collection event. For instance, you can still get married in the Wedding Pavilion. You can arrive at your ceremony in Cinderella's Carriage (for a price). You can still buy the Magic Kingdom Portrait Session package, which allows you to have pictures taken in front of the Castle in your wedding finery.

So why does the "small wedding, big reception" idea save you money? The main reason is that by opting for an Escape Collection event, you're no longer subject to all the minimum expenditures required by the Wishes Collection package. That can bring big savings.

Some of the best restaurants at Walt Disney World can be booked directly for a "wedding celebration dinner" by someone who just had an Escape Collection event. By working with the restaurant directly, you can throw a beautiful event and pay less than you would have paid for a Wishes Collection reception. For instance, you could do a total "buy out" of Citricos (meaning the whole restaurant is reserved for your party) on a Monday or Tuesday evening and be subject to only a $5000 minimum. A fixed price dinner menu there can be as low as $75 per person (plus alcohol, gratuity and tax).

Even if you're "only" having an Escape Collection wedding for 20 people, Disney's Fairy Tale Weddings will be happy to arrange a big IllumiNations Dessert Party for 100 or more guests. An IllumiNations party would be a very elegant and memorable one-hour reception, and the cost is quite reasonable.

By the way, as long as your wedding celebration dinner or dessert party takes place on the same day as your Escape Collection event, you can wear your wedding attire to the event!

Here's are a couple of examples of savings (based on 2007 pricing) using this idea:

Save on Last Minute Weddings

If you can plan a wedding at the last minute, Disney's Fairy Tale Weddings sometimes offers incentives to fill "holes" in the schedule. These are only offered 6-8 weeks in advance and you will have to be extremely flexible as to time and location.

If you're willing to go with these restrictions, the savings can be considerable. Disney waives the room night requirement and offers 10% off your food costs and sometimes a similar discount on other parts of the wedding package, such as suite accommodations for the couple getting married.

Check DisneyWeddings.com (when available, the incentive offer usually appears in the form of a pop-up) or call Disney's Fairy Tale Weddings at (321) 939-4668 to ask if this offer is currently available.

Unpublished Benefits & Associated Savings

The following are unpublished benefits for Wishes Collection events:

• The happy couple each get a FREE Annual Pass (sent with the final countersigned contract paperwork, in the form of a voucher). The total cost of two Annual Passes is over $924, so this adds a lot of value to your package!

• Guests of Wishes Collection events are offered discounted admission tickets. These are exactly the same as convention tickets. In some cases they may be a good deal, but usually your guests can save more by ordering from an online ticket broker.

• As long as they meet their required room night minimum, the happy couple get their wedding night FREE at their choice of any of the Disney resorts. Hint: for 2007, the "rack rate" (full price) for a standard room at the Grand Floridian is $379-$579 per night, depending on season, plus 12.5% tax. Sometimes Disney will upgrade newly married couples to a suite at no extra charge, but this is not guaranteed.

• Wishes Collection participants are offered discounts for their own and their guests' hotel rooms: usually 10% off Value Resorts; 15% off Moderates, Wilderness Lodge, Animal Kingdom Lodge and Polynesian; and 30% off Contemporary, Boardwalk, Beach/Yacht Club and Grand Floridian. Depending on the time of year and other factors, it may be cheaper use a different discount such as AAA, Annual Passholder or Florida resident. You or your guests can even use DVC points to book rooms. Regardless of the discount applied, all reservations at Disney owned and operated resorts at Walt Disney World count toward your required room night minimum.

• You have the opportunity to do a Planning Session at Walt Disney World in advance of the wedding (about 4-6 months prior). This allows you to pick out flowers, decor, cake and catering in person, and it includes (if you ask) a tasting session at which you'll get to try a number of appetizers, entrees and desserts. If you can afford to visit Orlando for a Planning Session, this is a lot of fun and adds value to your package.

Go back to the main Wishes Collection page.