I got married at Disney World. Here's what it was really like, from early ceremonies to epic bachelo

Publish date: 2024-06-26

2021-11-10T21:40:33Z

I got married in Walt Disney World in March, and we had an immersive and memorable experience.
The venue is a perk of getting married here, though sticking to park hours was tricky.
We had our wedding at Epcot's Italy Pavilion and enjoyed a family-style brunch after.

I loved getting married at Walt Disney World, even though our wedding timeline was a bit unexpected.

Although we had to adjust our wedding to Disney's schedule, we were able to have an immersive and unique event that we wouldn't have experienced elsewhere.

Here's what my wedding at Walt Disney World really looked like:

Day one: The bridal party had a night tour in Disney Springs

On Sunday, March 28, we had a welcome celebration with our bridal party and their significant others. This was a great way to receive everyone to our favorite place in the world.

We headed over to Disney Springs where the guys enjoyed Ragland Road, an Irish pub with live music and dancing.

I took the girls to Wine Bar George which offers over 100 wines and amazing food. We got to do a tasting and enjoy the views of Disney Springs.

Day 2: We had our bachelor and bachelorette parties in the parks, then a welcome dinner

The bachelors made lightsabers at Savi’s Workshop. Tyler Maness

On Monday, March 29, we headed out bright and early to the bachelor and bachelorette parties.

I took the girls to Magic Kingdom and gifted them Loungefly backpacks I purchased in advance from resale sites to save money. I treated them to lunch at the Be Our Guest restaurant, which is modeled after the Beast's enchanted castle.

The bachelor party headed over to Hollywood Studios for a day in Galaxy's Edge. My husband, Mike, and his crew built lightsabers at Savi's Workshop, which was a fully interactive building experience.

They also got drinks at Oga's Cantina, a bar modeled after the watering hole from the films.

We had our welcome dinner at the Tamu Tamu courtyard in Animal Kingdom. Tyler Maness

We later met our family and friends for a welcome dinner at the Tamu Tamu courtyard in Animal Kingdom. Park times kept fluctuating so we decided to skip a rehearsal for the ceremony.

At 6:30 p.m., we met all 27 of our wedding guests at the front gates of Animal Kingdom. A park attendant escorted us back to our venue location, which was one of my favorite parts. Guests in the park cheered us on and made us feel like VIPs.

There was a buffet for us when we arrived and waiters provided wine pairings. We ended the meal with Tiffins' Lion King dessert.

After the buffet, we finished the night with Tiffins' Lion King Dessert. Tyler Maness

The park usually stays open an hour after the posted schedule so most people were gone by the time we were done. We were escorted over to Pandora — The World of Avatar in Animal Kingdom.

Our park attendant let us capture photos before escorting us through the fast-pass line of Flight of Passage.

We were able to capture a few photos before going through the Flight of Passage. Tyler Maness

We had to wait a few minutes for the ride to be cleared of guests but we were able to get some shots in the line.

Because my husband and I paid for this extra perk, our entire guest list got to ride Flight of Passage. At the end of the night, we handed out our welcome bags and everyone headed back.

The bridesmaids and I stayed at the same resort to coordinate hair and makeup and Mike stayed at Swan and Dolphin to be near the groomsmen.

Day 3: We had our ceremony at Epcot's Italy Pavilion, then we slept and ended the night with a dessert party

I was able to make a grand entrance. Mystee Ipong

In-park weddings typically come with a very early wake-up call to adhere to park schedules.

At 5:00 a.m., my hair and makeup artists arrived. They worked on me and my bridal party, then we enjoyed mimosas together before our limo came at 8:00 a.m. to take us to Epcot's Italy Pavilion.

The groomsmen arrived at the ceremony location at 7:00 a.m. to take their pictures.

Our limo took us through the backstage area of Epcot because the park was closed. We entered through the American Adventure Rotunda. Our planner hid Mike in the back of the pavilion so he couldn't see me taking bridal photos.

Four days earlier, The International Flower and Garden festival installed new structures on top of the pavilion where my ceremony was supposed to be, so we had to completely readjust our plan.

Fortunately, my planner made it so I was allowed to use the stairs to walk down during the ceremony.

I waited in a storage room as my guests arrived.

We had to adjust some of our plans because of the Flower and Garden festival. Mystee Ipong

The ceremony concluded by 10:00 a.m. right as parkgoers were allowed inside Epcot.

We took our family and bridal photos as our guests were shuttled backstage to our reception venue at Sea Breeze Point at the Boardwalk.

We still had plenty of time to take photos. Tyler Maness

Even though we had a short amount of time to take photos, they came out amazing.

At the reception, we had an assortment of pastries for our guests instead of a cocktail hour as they waited for us to arrive for brunch.

As part of our ceremony fee, a violinist joined us at Sea Breeze Point at no additional cost. By noon, it was hot and our guests were ready to cool off. Many went back to their resort and our wedding party headed to Universal.

Mike and I had huge plans to go to Epcot and spend the day drinking and eating around the world — instead, we slept in, relaxed, and enjoyed a moment to breathe.

If you want a wedding in the park, you are likely to have a gap in your day. I would recommend enjoying the time. You'll have a chance to spend time with your partner. It's also hot in Florida and my guests loved the opportunity to cool off.

Instead of watching fireworks, we enjoyed pastries. Mystee Ipong

At 7:00 p.m., Mike and I headed to the Grand Floridian for our dessert party. There were no fireworks since they were suspended at the time, but we did have plenty of pastries.

We decided to save money by setting up a speaker ourselves. Later, Mike and I moved to a separate room with a tasting tray of all the desserts offered.

We had our grand entrance, first dance as a married couple, and the special dances with our parents. Dessert parties usually have a strict schedule and are typically an hour and a half to two hours.

We had a 15-minute break after dances before the cake cutting. I surprised Mike with a meet and greet with Steamboat Willie and each table got to take pictures with the character for about 30 minutes.

Mike and I danced to "Happily Ever After," the song that is usually played during the nighttime fireworks, and then thanked our guests.

Day 4: We said goodbye with a farewell brunch

We had a delicious, colorful brunch the day after the wedding. Mystee Ipong

On March 31, we had a farewell brunch at Chef Art Smith's Homecomin' restaurant for a chance to relax and say a final goodbye to our loved ones.

We enjoyed a family-styled brunch on the patio with our favorite moonshine flights. After, many of us headed to World of Disney to shop.

Mike and I ran to Gideon's Bakehouse to get in the virtual queue for cookies, which was a perfect way to end an amazing week.

Finally, we headed to our Magical Express service to begin our trip back home.

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