If I am posting my daughter's Swan and Dolphin wedding budget on the wrong post, I apologize. This may be helpful for folks like us that want a Disney escape-type wedding, but have more than 25 guests. We had 50 guests total, including the wedding party. The ceremony was held at the Crescent Terrace, followed by a reception in the Osprey room.
$1550---basic ceremony package, paid to Michele Butler Events
$4748--paid to the Swan for catering. This price included a small dinner buffet with two types of salad(green and caesar), herb-crusted chicken, pasta primavera, seasonal vegetables, and rolls. The wedding cake was our only dessert as each layer was different: top layer was red velvet with cream cheese filling, middle layer was flourless chocolate with mousse filling, and the bottom layer was white cake with strawberry mousse filling. This price included the hosted bar as well. We offered wine and beer for 36 guests over 21 at a cost of $30 per person. For the 14 guests under 21, the price was $14 per person. This was for 2.5 hours of service. Of the $4748 charge, $245 was an "upcharge" for the cake. Also included in the $4748 was a charge for the arch used in the ceremony...I don't remember the actual cost. The 23% gratuity was added to EVERYTHING, and everything that was gratuitized was taxed afterward.
$1200--DJ Miles. I wrote this check with a BIG SMILE on my face! He was worth every penny! He provided music for the ceremony and entertainment for the reception.
???--photography--David and Vicki Arndt. I can't remember exactly what I paid them, but their prices were very competitive. I opted for the basic 4-hour package with CD and copyright release (no album, etc.) I don't have the CD yet, but I have no doubt we will love the pictures. They arrived at 5:30 pm and stayed past 9:30 pm. They were absolutely wonderful, and worth more than I paid.
$300---Floral---The groom's mother is a former florist, so she volunteered to do the bouquets and boutineers for the wedding party. She and the couple went to a floral shop in Orlando and purchased fresh flowers the day before the wedding. This amazing woman whipped up my daughter's bouquet in 5 minutes and texted a picture of it to me for approval! She made 6 bouquets and 7 boutineers that she stored in a cooler until the ceremony. I will be honest, I was not expecting anything spectacular for $300, but I was so surprised! My daughter's bouquet consisted of lillies, roses, hydrangeas, baby's breath, and some type of leaves. The bridesmaids and junior bridesmaid's bouquets were a little smaller, but just as lovely. The groomsmen wore ivory rose boutineers with baby's breath. The in-laws are Dutch, and thought the fresh floral here was expensive, but I paid more than $300 for flowers at my wedding over 2 decades ago! I would LOVE to see what my MIL could do with $300 in Holland!
$550-600---centerpieces, menus, invitations, programs, ribbon wands, and favors
I thought the food and bar was as expensive as Disney is, but I was able to save money elsewhere. The centerpieces were "simply elegant" as one guest said, and we provided them. Michele Butler's assistant helped us set them out. The Swan staff lit the candles and provided water for the vases. We placed the six fresh-flower bouquets from the ceremony in vases in the center of each table, surrounded by pedestal votive holders in varying heights. At the end of the night, the staff placed the empty vases and votives on one table for us to pack up(it took 10 minutes at best). We did that while the staff boxed the cake, which we had to request they box for us. I made menus for each place-setting, which the staff graciously set out for me. They also had a small table placed beside the door for the Swan favors that held chocolate kisses and served as table assignment cards. I think the food and decor was exactly what my daughter wanted. The only thing we did not like was the cake. Originally, we were to have buttercream frosting,and that was written on our banquet order. I don't know if that was changed to fondant later for a reason, or if the catering manager just made a mistake. I am sure we paid extra for it, whether we wanted it or not.
I am too lazy to look for the actual dress and tux receipts, but I remember the approximate costs of everything. For our family, which included the bride, 2 maids of honor/sisters of the bride, a groomsman/brother, father of the bride tux rental and mother of the bride dress, we spent approximately $1600, which I did not think was too bad. I also bought a jr. bridesmaid dress($90), and my daughter bought matching shoes for three bridesmaids as gifts($90).
I do not have a clue what the rings cost...
$600--Hair and nails--My husband paid for Beaute Speciale(6 hairdos at $65 each, and bride's makeup at $60 plus tip) the day of the wedding and nails at a nearby salon the day before.
$275--Limo to take bride and 5 bridesmaids to the Boardwalk, then come back to OKW and take one family of 6 to the Swan. (I would skip this next time...the driver was not good)
$250--Rehearsal "lunch" for the bridal party. The bridal party wanted Olive Garden for dinner, but the restaurant did not accept reservations, and our rehearsal was a little late for the kids(7-8:30 pm). So 20 of us went to Olive Garden for a late lunch before the nail appointments. For the rehearsal dinner, we did something a little unconventional--a cook-out at the pool at OKW. We requested that our group all be near each other in the Turtle Pond area of Old Key West. My sister, mother, and one of our friends prepared dinner for us at the Grand Villa while we went to the Swan for the rehearsal. My sister and family friend grilled chicken breast and hamburgers while my mother made salads, chili, beans, and cut up fruit. One of the bridesmaids is a bartender who mixed up drinks. It sounds wierd I know, but it was great. The groom's family did not join us, but his friends/groomsmen did, so we had a total of @ 25 people. We spent about $200 total. My 8-year-old nephew has been showing all of his friends his picture of him in the hot-tub with 4 bridesmaids in their 20's after dinner...now where else could he have done that?
We are DVC members and used all of our available points to book rooms for our family and as many guests as we could. Anyone in the wedding got at least one free night with my points, then I rented points from other members for the rest of the nights for them, which they paid for. In all, I paid for 14 studio nights(spread out over 4 families) and 1 night in a 1-bedroom at Old Key West. We had a 2-bedroom for 8 nights, followed by 3 nights in a Grand Villa for our family and a few guests. About half the guests booked rooms nearby: my mother, brother, sister and nephew were at Bonnet Creek using my mother's Wyndham points, 5 young guests(in their 20's) were in 3 rooms at the Comfort Inn on Palm Parkway, and the folks from Holland and Germany booked houses nearby. I just wouldn't know how to figure the cost of rooms.
I apologize if this is too much information for some, and hope it helps others. I found a lot of useful information on this board when I was researching and would like to return the favor.
$1550---basic ceremony package, paid to Michele Butler Events
$4748--paid to the Swan for catering. This price included a small dinner buffet with two types of salad(green and caesar), herb-crusted chicken, pasta primavera, seasonal vegetables, and rolls. The wedding cake was our only dessert as each layer was different: top layer was red velvet with cream cheese filling, middle layer was flourless chocolate with mousse filling, and the bottom layer was white cake with strawberry mousse filling. This price included the hosted bar as well. We offered wine and beer for 36 guests over 21 at a cost of $30 per person. For the 14 guests under 21, the price was $14 per person. This was for 2.5 hours of service. Of the $4748 charge, $245 was an "upcharge" for the cake. Also included in the $4748 was a charge for the arch used in the ceremony...I don't remember the actual cost. The 23% gratuity was added to EVERYTHING, and everything that was gratuitized was taxed afterward.
$1200--DJ Miles. I wrote this check with a BIG SMILE on my face! He was worth every penny! He provided music for the ceremony and entertainment for the reception.
???--photography--David and Vicki Arndt. I can't remember exactly what I paid them, but their prices were very competitive. I opted for the basic 4-hour package with CD and copyright release (no album, etc.) I don't have the CD yet, but I have no doubt we will love the pictures. They arrived at 5:30 pm and stayed past 9:30 pm. They were absolutely wonderful, and worth more than I paid.
$300---Floral---The groom's mother is a former florist, so she volunteered to do the bouquets and boutineers for the wedding party. She and the couple went to a floral shop in Orlando and purchased fresh flowers the day before the wedding. This amazing woman whipped up my daughter's bouquet in 5 minutes and texted a picture of it to me for approval! She made 6 bouquets and 7 boutineers that she stored in a cooler until the ceremony. I will be honest, I was not expecting anything spectacular for $300, but I was so surprised! My daughter's bouquet consisted of lillies, roses, hydrangeas, baby's breath, and some type of leaves. The bridesmaids and junior bridesmaid's bouquets were a little smaller, but just as lovely. The groomsmen wore ivory rose boutineers with baby's breath. The in-laws are Dutch, and thought the fresh floral here was expensive, but I paid more than $300 for flowers at my wedding over 2 decades ago! I would LOVE to see what my MIL could do with $300 in Holland!
$550-600---centerpieces, menus, invitations, programs, ribbon wands, and favors
I thought the food and bar was as expensive as Disney is, but I was able to save money elsewhere. The centerpieces were "simply elegant" as one guest said, and we provided them. Michele Butler's assistant helped us set them out. The Swan staff lit the candles and provided water for the vases. We placed the six fresh-flower bouquets from the ceremony in vases in the center of each table, surrounded by pedestal votive holders in varying heights. At the end of the night, the staff placed the empty vases and votives on one table for us to pack up(it took 10 minutes at best). We did that while the staff boxed the cake, which we had to request they box for us. I made menus for each place-setting, which the staff graciously set out for me. They also had a small table placed beside the door for the Swan favors that held chocolate kisses and served as table assignment cards. I think the food and decor was exactly what my daughter wanted. The only thing we did not like was the cake. Originally, we were to have buttercream frosting,and that was written on our banquet order. I don't know if that was changed to fondant later for a reason, or if the catering manager just made a mistake. I am sure we paid extra for it, whether we wanted it or not.
I am too lazy to look for the actual dress and tux receipts, but I remember the approximate costs of everything. For our family, which included the bride, 2 maids of honor/sisters of the bride, a groomsman/brother, father of the bride tux rental and mother of the bride dress, we spent approximately $1600, which I did not think was too bad. I also bought a jr. bridesmaid dress($90), and my daughter bought matching shoes for three bridesmaids as gifts($90).
I do not have a clue what the rings cost...
$600--Hair and nails--My husband paid for Beaute Speciale(6 hairdos at $65 each, and bride's makeup at $60 plus tip) the day of the wedding and nails at a nearby salon the day before.
$275--Limo to take bride and 5 bridesmaids to the Boardwalk, then come back to OKW and take one family of 6 to the Swan. (I would skip this next time...the driver was not good)
$250--Rehearsal "lunch" for the bridal party. The bridal party wanted Olive Garden for dinner, but the restaurant did not accept reservations, and our rehearsal was a little late for the kids(7-8:30 pm). So 20 of us went to Olive Garden for a late lunch before the nail appointments. For the rehearsal dinner, we did something a little unconventional--a cook-out at the pool at OKW. We requested that our group all be near each other in the Turtle Pond area of Old Key West. My sister, mother, and one of our friends prepared dinner for us at the Grand Villa while we went to the Swan for the rehearsal. My sister and family friend grilled chicken breast and hamburgers while my mother made salads, chili, beans, and cut up fruit. One of the bridesmaids is a bartender who mixed up drinks. It sounds wierd I know, but it was great. The groom's family did not join us, but his friends/groomsmen did, so we had a total of @ 25 people. We spent about $200 total. My 8-year-old nephew has been showing all of his friends his picture of him in the hot-tub with 4 bridesmaids in their 20's after dinner...now where else could he have done that?
We are DVC members and used all of our available points to book rooms for our family and as many guests as we could. Anyone in the wedding got at least one free night with my points, then I rented points from other members for the rest of the nights for them, which they paid for. In all, I paid for 14 studio nights(spread out over 4 families) and 1 night in a 1-bedroom at Old Key West. We had a 2-bedroom for 8 nights, followed by 3 nights in a Grand Villa for our family and a few guests. About half the guests booked rooms nearby: my mother, brother, sister and nephew were at Bonnet Creek using my mother's Wyndham points, 5 young guests(in their 20's) were in 3 rooms at the Comfort Inn on Palm Parkway, and the folks from Holland and Germany booked houses nearby. I just wouldn't know how to figure the cost of rooms.
I apologize if this is too much information for some, and hope it helps others. I found a lot of useful information on this board when I was researching and would like to return the favor.
