For those of you who think a cash bar is tacky, I don't think you realize the culture in this part of the country. Memphis is in the Bible Belt and many weddings do not serve liquor period. Many that do take the position that my parents take, my parents don't drink (don't believe in it. they would never stop someone else from doing this however they will not pay for someone else's alcohol when drinking alcohol is against their principles. This is such a common idea that most hotels think it is the norm and don't even have open bar available unless you pay after the wedding. You can't buy the alohol and bring it into a hotel yourself and the hotel won't charge you up front. The only alternatives at the hotel I want o use for the reception are a cash bar for the guests (other than champagne pass) or give drink tikets to the guest to cash it at the bar. The "happy couple" is then billed after the wedding for the number of drink tickets turned in. talk about tacky, I think tickets are OVERLY tacky. As this is the norm and an accepted pratice in the area no one thinks it strange. Actually I would guess that probably way less than half of my guests will even have any alcoholic beverages at all!

Sorry forgot to say for those who are questioning the $70/person for food. This number is based on including not only the cost of the food and aering but also the price of hired help including waitstaff as well as the horrid "hotel tax" charged and sales tax and also figures in the gratuity for the caterer and waiters. So all in all it is not that high. I don't know but I would guess the actual price of the food is about $50/person, a wedding planner budgets in all the extras though so the "happy couple is not suprised later when they are tacked on.

Talk to one of the Disney coordinators after you have sat down with financee to discus how large or small wedding will be and whether formal or informal. When you know what you want, the coordinator can give you a guesstimate of what that wedding would cost and you'll know then whether or not its worth it. talking to one of the coordinators on the phone will be informal and free. They will give you the basi skinny if you know what you want.

If you're worried about tacky, this is the WRONG thread to participate in, I think!

But a cash bar isn't the only tacky trend in weddings. I'm so old-fashioned that I think registering at local stores in the Bridal Registry is presumptuous and tacky, so you can imagine how much I love getting invitations with suggestions of presents or amounts of money to give, e.g. "Bob and Bunny are dying to go to Hawaii so any contributions would be welcome" or "Bob and Bunny are furnishing their new boat, so think nautical!" or some such.

Then there are the A-list and B-list wedding guests, some of whom are not asked to the ceremony but only to the reception or v.v., or two receptions, one with a sit-down meal and one without.

I'd say live and let live -- I certainly got my own come-uppance when I got a wedding invitation that told me to bring enough food for 10 people. I thought that was a serious breach of hospitality for a wedding, but it turned out to be a lovely sort of community-sharing potluck and I re-thought my reaction.

But with all the hoopla and drama and tackiness and the divorce statistics in the US, I can't help think some of it is related to a generally weird attitude toward marriage. And I'd take a pot-luck, everyone-sharing wedding on a beach over a $15,000 extravaganza with Goofy and Sleeping Beauty in attendance.

But "that's just my opinion, I could be wrong."

I got married last year and spend about $12,000 on a 100 person wedding in upstate NY, including all rentals, flowers, food, alcohol, clothing, etc. etc. Our company is holding a meeting in Orlando this summer, and I looked into having a dinner event on Pleasure Island. For 60 people, dinner, bar and site rental would have cost nearly as much as my whole wedding, and they put you on a really tight schedule (i.e. you gotta be off the site by 9 p.m. so they can re-open to the public). That's just dinner, not all the other bells and whistles that most people do for a wedding. My suggestion is to get some wedding books and talk to a coordinator about doing a "fairytale" theme wedding someplace other than disney. I'm sure you'll be able to do it for a lot less.

I agree with the previous poster as anything Walt Disney is WAY overpriced. Unless you are using this for a family vacation and/or honeymoon to Orlando and Disneyworld, have your fairytale wedding somewhere else with the same dream theme and props at a much cheaper price!

Will you dressing as Mickey and the bride as Minnie?

The bride will be dressed as "Goofy."

"Minnie" and "Goofy", I know school is out now and you can play, but get off your computer and this website! Mike and Rick want some real input not your childish comments. Anybody have real experience?

Mom, you're giving advice about plannng a wedding at a Disney facility, and you're calling others childish!
Get real, Mom!

There were at least 2 threads about Disney Weddings about a month ago. Each one got numerous responses. do a searh using "disney wedding" you'll find them.

Mom and Mike and the rest of you-First of all this is not Mike's wedding, it's his FRIEND'S wedding. Unless Mike is paying for the wedding, which I doubt, it really is none of his business where his friend gets married or how much money he spent. Mike you are overstepping your bounds here. Unless your friend's fiancee is sleeping with all of his friends or has some mental illness or other serious character flaw, it is none of your beeswax.

Topping!

What is WITH engaged couples having their weddings in vacation spots?????? I am forced to (1)go to a spot that I have no desire to EVER go to (2) pay for airfare, hotel, rental car & the expense of dining out (sans the reception), and (3) using up MY precious work vacation time.
If you want to go to Disneyland, Hawaii, Europe, etc., GO THERE ON YOUR HONEYMOON.
This latest fad/craze is IMHO beyond selfish. Unless you can afford to pay my freight, don't EVEN send me an invitation.

Sorry but I can't resist responding to the previous poster "Gotmarriedathome" and his comments about how "destination weddings" are a selfish trend. I'm not sure you understand this but they have not developed as a trend as a result of "selfishness" but of necessity. Take for instance the wedding of my best I have been asked to be in in April. The bride lives in Indianopolis, her mother in California, her father and step-mother in Iowa, and 3 already married siblings scattered throughout. The groom currently lives in Milwaukee, his parents in Kentucky and close friends are all over. You tell me where her home is and where she should have the wedding without inconveniencing anyone to travel! To make things easier, she is getting married aboard a cruise ship in the Bahamas and has asked 45 of her closest friends and family to attend. It is up to them whether or not they want to travel to the wedding, no one is twisting their arm. I don't think this idea of being spread out over the country is all that unusal today as we live in a very mobile society with families not always choosing to live in the same locale for their entire lives and the at home wedding is not as simple as it used to be. I had a destination wedding as well 2 years ago(not disney though) and older relatives asked me why I was having the wedding such a distance away, I kindly explained to them that I had not lived in my "hometown" for over 10 years and furthermore the grooms family lived 600 miles away and had older relatives wanting to attend as well, so I had the wedding at a more centralized "destination." Please "gotmarriedathome", don't make judgments until you understand the full picture!

Yes, destination weddings are selfish except for the fabulously wealthy who can fly everyone in, or the fabulously wealthy who don't mind the expense.

To the last poster, if you have a far flung family, you pick the town that means the most to you. Some guests will still have to travel. But at least some of your guests won't. Also, the cost of a short visit to most US cities is much lower than a cruise or some such.

Have a destination wedding if you wish. Don't expect me to come, though.

Well Mike you certainly have opened an on-slaught of opinions......you know what....married life is hard enough....get married anywhere you want and worry about the rest of it later! Trust me the wedding is the easy part!

Angie:
In the past year I have been invited to 2 out-of-town weddings when both the bride & groom AND their families all lived in the same city. They were asking EVERYONE to travel out of state just because THEY wanted to be married on some stinking beach. THAT'S what I am referring to. And, brother, you should have heard the ruckus when I declined one of them!! (HAD to go to the other, as it was my sister; otherwise would have declined that one as well.)

All things Disney are superoutrageous and overpriced BUT if that is what someone then do it. Weddings are a one in a lifetime event (should be anyway) do it the way you want!!!!!

I just attended my friend's wedding at Disney. He and his wife both work there, so she talked him into it. They had 300+ guests and spent more than $23,000 just for drinks and snacks. I'd much rather use that for a down payment on a house. I wasn't that impressed with the wedding or reception.