How to Plan a Disney Wedding

Congrats! If you landed on this website, it means you either want to plan a Disney wedding, or you want to help a loved one plan a Disney wedding.

Either way, I’m thrilled you’re here! Having a Disneyland wedding was one of the happiest decisions of our lives, and I love to help other couples have the same magical experience.

There are so many aspects to consider when planning a Disney wedding! Here is everything you need to know to get started.

This article may contain affiliate links, which means I may earn a commission if you make a purchase.

How to Have a Disney Wedding

Let’s start at the very beginning. Planning a wedding is complicated, and if you have never planned a large scale event before, you are no doubt feeling overwhelmed.

It’s okay. That feeling is totally normal.

When you start out with wedding planning, there is just one thing you really need to figure out before you dive in.

Your Budget.

Yes, talking about money can be uncomfortable but I can’t stress this enough …. You need to have a very clear idea of your budget before you do any serious planning.

Your budget will determine your wedding’s venue and the guest count – two very important factors in your event.

I cannot tell you what your budget “should” be for a Disney wedding. But, the type of Disney wedding you have will be dependent on how much you have to spend.

And, if you haven’t decided on a budget yet, reading through this resource guide may give you some realistic expectations for what you will need to spend to have your dream Disney wedding.

Keep in mind the prices listed here are only what you’ll be spending with Disney’s Fairy Tale Weddings. They do not include things like your wedding attire, photography/videography, DJ, and smaller items like your guest book or unity candles.

I hope this guide answers a lot of your questions about having a Disney wedding. However, if you chat further, please contact me!

What Do Disney Weddings Cost?

This is the main question, isn’t it? Disney weddings have a wide range of costs, but I can give you some basics:

Walt Disney World weddings start at $15,000.
Disneyland weddings start at $15,000.
Disney Cruise Line weddings start at $3500.
Disney’s Aulani Resort weddings start at $5600.

These are the overall event minimums for the most basic weddings, and the exact price will depend on many factors, such as your venue, the day of the week, whether you choose lunch or dinner, and your guest count. Items such as decor and entertainment will also raise the price of your Disney wedding.

Keep in mind pricing is subject to change at any time. For the most up-to-date info, always reference the official Disney Weddings website.

What Does a Disney Wedding Include?

A Disney wedding will include all of the basic elements of a wonderful celebration, including a 3o minute ceremony at one of their many venues, and a 2-4 hour reception (depending on your package) at a different venue. The reception will include a meal and cake for your guests, attendants to serve the food, and a dance floor. 

Disney Weddings also has their own floral & decor department, who will work with you to bring your beautiful wedding day vision to life within your budget.

Most Disney venues have a Preferred Vendor list, where they recommend local wedding vendors such as officiants, DJs, musicians, photographers, and videographers. In most cases, the couple hosting the event must hire these vendors separately; they are not provided through Disney.

It should also be noted that you cannot use an outside caterer for a Disney wedding. 

Are Disney Weddings Worth It?

This is a question I hear a lot, and perhaps I’m biased but I say … yes! If you’re a fan of visiting the Disney Parks & Resorts, then choosing one of their locations for your special day is a great idea. 

And as far as pricing goes, when we were looking into venues in the Los Angeles area, we found that the costs of a Disneyland wedding was comparable.

Some of our guests rolled their eyes at our venue choice at first, but everyone ended up having a great time, and they all got REALLY excited when Mickey and Minnie showed up at our reception!

Disneyland Weddings

The Park that started it all! Disneyland holds a special place in my heart because it’s my “home” Park, and it’s where I got married!

Disneyland is a smaller property than Walt Disney World and doesn’t host as many weddings and events as the Florida resort. But they have many beautiful venues available to couples who want to have a Disneyland wedding!

Rose Court Garden gazebo decorated with flowers and greenery for a wedding ceremony

Pricing

There are two price minimums to keep in mind while calculating the potential cost of your Disneyland wedding.

The first is the overall minimum expenditure for your event, based on the day of the week and time of day.

The second is the food and beverage minimum per guest.

To put it simply, the Ceremony Fee + Reception Food & Beverage Minimum = Overall Minimum.

However, the overall event minimum must be at least $15,000.

The ultimate price of a Disneyland wedding depends on many factors, including (but not limited to) ceremony venue, day of the week, reception venue, food & beverage minimum, and guest count.

After that, any additional elements you would like, such as entertainment, transportation vehicles, or character visits are an additional fee.

The Disneyland Resort Hotel Weddings

All three hotels at The Disneyland Resort can host wedding ceremonies and receptions. Hotel events have much lower price minimums than in-park events, and therefore are a popular option.

Ceremony Venue Fees for Hotel Locations

Monday through Thursday: $2,600 – $4,000
Sunday and Friday: $2,800 – $4,500
Saturday: $3,000 – $5,000
Holiday: $6,000 – $10,000

Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure Weddings

12 Ways to Make Your Disney Wedding Reception Extra
Photo credit: White Rabbit Photo Boutique
In-park weddings (Animation building, Stage 17, Sleeping Beauty Castle Forecourt, Fantasy Faire, etc.) are highly customized and specific pricing is not available. However, you can expect an early morning castle wedding at Sleeping Beauty’s Castle to start above $62,200++, after hours in-park evening receptions to start above $82,485++, and after hours in-park evening ceremonies and receptions to start above $100,000++.

Note: It’s possible to have your ceremony at a hotel venue, and your reception inside one of the Parks!

++ indicates the price is not inclusive of sales tax and service charge.

Reception Food & Beverage Minimums

Brunch: $165* per person
Lunch: $185* per person
Dinner: $210* per person

*Plus 23% service charge and 7.75% sales tax

Walt Disney World Weddings

Unquestionably, Walt Disney World Resort is the most popular Disney destination for weddings. The bulk of Disney’s Fairy Tale Wedding’s estimated 4000 annual events take place here.

Nicole and Chuck's Magical Walt Disney World Wedding
Photo credit: Disney Fine Art and Photography
The great thing about Walt Disney World is, there are so many wedding venues available that you are sure to find something that you love. However, the most popular venue, by far, is Disney’s Wedding Pavilion, a wedding chapel located on its own island at Disney’s Grand Floridian Hotel.

Pricing

Walt Disney World does not have specific packages, but couples will have to meet the “event minimum expenditure.” The event minimum is determined by the ceremony venue, the day of the week, and the time of day.

Smaller ceremony venues tend to have a smaller price tag verses larger locations. These smaller venues start at $7000 for the ceremony fee. Disney’s Wedding Pavilion currently has a ceremony fee of $8000. The highest priced ceremony venue is inside Magic Kingdom after the Park closes; the current price is $40,000. (Prices are always subject to change; check the Disney Weddings website for current pricing.)

Keep in mind that aside from the ceremony venue, you must also meet the event minimum expenditure. The lowest event minimum is $15,000. On top of this, an additional 6.5% sales tax and 25% labor and gratuity service charge is added. Tax and gratuity is not counted as part of the services or the event minimum total.

Weekends and evenings tend to be more expensive than weekday mornings. For example, a Saturday evening wedding will have a higher event minimum expenditure than a Tuesday afternoon wedding.

The event minimum can be met with food & beverage, floral, decor, transportation, photography, and/or entertainment.

Aside from the overall event minimum, you must meet a per person minimum for your food & beverage service. The current prices are:

Brunch – $140 per person
Lunch – $175 per person
Dinner – $210 per person

Jennifer and Robert's Walt Disney World Boardwalk Escape Wedding
Photo credit: Disney Fine Art and Photography

Pricing Examples

Doing some quick math based on the information provided on the Disney Weddings website, we can estimate the following wedding expenditures. Please be advised these are just estimates and only a representative from Disney’s Fairy Tale Weddings can give you a final price. Also, these estimates do not include tax and service charge, which is not included in the event minimum.

Tuesday brunch wedding at Crescent Cove with 10 guests (12 people total) with $15,000 event minimum expenditure:
$7000 ceremony venue
$1680 food & beverage
$6320 miscellaneous
+ tax and gratuity

 

Saturday evening wedding at Disney’s Wedding Pavilion with 100 guests (102 people total) with $35,000 event minimum expenditure:

$8000 ceremony fee
$21,420 food & beverage
$5,580 miscellaneous
+ tax and gratuity

As you can see, the number of guests you have can determine how close you will be to meeting the overall event minimum.

 

Disney Cruise Line Weddings

All of the Disney Cruise Line ships offer weddings and vow renewals on-board and potentially at ports of call. The only port that has dedicated wedding ceremony locations is Disney’s Castaway Cay in the Bahamas.

Due to the nature of cruising, Disney Cruise Line weddings tend to be smaller and more intimate. They also have less flexibility than weddings at Walt Disney World or The Disneyland Resort.

Dominique and Jonathan's Castaway Cay Disney Wedding // Jessica Lea Photography
Photo credit: Jessica Lea Photography

Packages and Pricing

Disney Cruise Line weddings offer two packages, both for up to 16 guests plus the couple. The price is the same even if you have less guests.

Onboard Celebrations start at $3500 and include the following:

  • On-site ceremony coordinator
  • Choice of personal fresh floral for the couple
  • Officiant and solo musician (pianist)
  • Cake & Champagne Celebration onboard the ship
  • Dinner for the couple at Palo
  • Steaming for the couple’s ceremony attire
  • Keepsake engraved Cake Knife and Server set
  • Commemorative Disney Cruise Line Wedding Certificate
  • A $100.00 onboard stateroom credit for the couple (Any unused portions are non-refundable and non-transferable)

Upgraded Celebrations start at $4500 and include the following:

  • On-site ceremony coordinator
  • Choice of personal fresh floral for the couple
  • Officiant and solo musician (pianist)
  • Cake & Champagne Celebration onboard the ship
  • Dinner for the couple at Palo
  • Steaming for the couple’s ceremony attire
  • Keepsake engraved Cake Knife and Server set
  • Commemorative Disney Cruise Line Wedding Certificate
  • A $100.00 onboard stateroom credit for the couple (Any unused portions are non-refundable and non-transferable)
  • For Castaway Cay ceremonies, round trip island transportation provided to and from wedding venue.

Note the packages do not include a formal meal; however the couple and their guests may choose to have a separate celebration, on their own, at one of the ship’s dining locations. They also do not include a photographer. You may inquire about hiring one of the ship’s PhotoPass photographers for your event, or bring your own photographer.

Please visit the Disney Weddings website for additional, up-to-date information about pricing.

Disney’s Aulani Resort and Spa Weddings

Disney’s Aulani Resort and Spa may possibly be the ultimate wedding spot! There’s no better place for a destination wedding and honeymoon combination.

They offer several beautiful ceremony and reception venues, some with views of the Pacific Ocean.

Ama Ama Patio set up for a wedding ceremony
Photo credit: Disney

Packages and Pricing

Aulani offers two wedding packages.

Pilialoha Package is for smaller events with up to 18 guests, plus the couple. This package offers a ceremony only. No reception is included.

Each experience includes:

  • Ceremony venue for the couple and up to 18 guests.
  • Up to one hour of professional photography
  • White garden chairs
  • Officiant to perform your ceremony
  • Bottled water for the guests

The starting price for a Pilialoha celebration is $5600.

Lōkahi Package offers a tailor-made ceremony and full reception. Aside from the venue fee and food & beverage minimums, you must also meet the overall event minimum expenditure.

Each experience includes:

  • Ceremony: One hour in length
  • Reception: Up to 4 hours in length
  • Professional Photography: Up to 2 hours in length
  • Amplification system with microphone (includes audio technician)
  • Officiant and ceremony rehearsal
  • White garden chairs with white wedding arch or white pedestals
  • Refreshing citrus water station for your guests
  • Indoor Ballroom Reception space with white chair covers

Lōkahi celebrations start at $16,500.

The current prices for food and beverage are:

Lunch – $125 per person
Dinner – $175 per person

The pricing above does not include tax and service charge, which is not included in the event minimums.

International Disney Destination Weddings

Disneyland Paris Weddings

Disneyland Paris started offering weddings in 2017.

Disneyland Paris Now Offering Weddings and Vow Renewals
Photo credit: Disney
Three packages are available:

Once Upon a Time Collection is available at the Disneyland Hotel and Disney’s Newport Bay Club.

Romance Collection is available in the Disney Parks.

Royal Collection invites you to “live your own Disney legend” but beyond that is a bit of a mystery.

Disneyland Paris also offers separate Vow Renewal packages, called the Happily Ever After Collection.

According to the Disneyland Paris website FAQ, weddings start at 25.000 Euros for a celebration with around 20 guests. Interested parties are encouraged to email a Disney Wedding Planner at [email protected] for more detailed rates.

Their website has quite an extensive FAQ section. It may not look like much on the surface, but when you click on one of the questions you’ll be presented with many more “related questions.”

Otherwise, you can visit the Disneyland Paris weddings website for more information.

Can Americans Get Married in France?

The short answer is yes, but it’s a bit complicated. In order to have a legally binding ceremony, the couple must have resided in the town/city where you are planning to be married for at least 30 days. Two proofs of residency are required. (Source)

A laundry list of documents are also required, including birth certificates (acquired within the last three months and “apostilled”), Solicitor’s certificate, certificate of capacity to marry, Certificate of Law, and Declaration. Also, if any of the documents are in English, they must be translated by an official translator in France. (Source)

My advice is to get legally married at home, then look into their Happily Ever After Collection for vow renewals.

Tokyo Disneyland Weddings

The Disney’s Fairy Tale Weddings website for Tokyo Disneyland is very basic, but it looks like they offer three locations: Cinderella Castle at Tokyo Disneyland, Disney Ambassador Hotel, and Tokyo DisneySea Hotel Miracosta. Based on a 2010 article from Disney Travel Babble, it sounds like packages are available and they are not customizable … even your wedding attire is rented through Disney!

If anyone has any recent experience planning a wedding at Tokyo Disneyland, please contact me. I would love to know more about weddings at this resort.

Hong Kong Disneyland Weddings

Unlike Tokyo Disneyland’s website, the Disney’s Fairy Tale Weddings website for Hong Kong Disneyland is extremely detailed! There is even a weddings brochure you can download.

Based on the information on their website, it appears you can choose a ceremony package OR a banquet package. The ceremony package offers 2 hours for the ceremony plus a small celebration including champagne and cake.

Banquet packages include a two hour lunch banquet with a Western style menu and a five-tier mock cake for cutting. The dinner banquet does not specify a time limit, but includes the same menu (or a more traditional Chinese family-style menu option) and the cake, plus a few extras. Dinner seems like a much fancier option overall.

As far as themes, couples can choose from four set themes: Royal Wedding, A Touch of Fantasy, Mickey and Minnie, or Cinderella.

Shanghai Disneyland Weddings

Shanghai Disneyland Resort also offers weddings celebrations, but they are a little different. It doesn’t appear to include a formal ceremony and instead is simply a “wedding banquet” which sounds a lot like a traditional reception. They offer two packages: “Vow • In the Name of Love” Package, and the more luxury “Heart • Faith in Eternity” Package. Both packages offer a wedding banquet at the Shanghai Disneyland Hotel.

You can view additional details about planning a wedding at Shanghai Disneyland on their website.

At-Home Disney Themed Weddings

Many couples, for many reasons, cannot have their wedding at a Disney destination. Having a Disney themed wedding in your hometown is a great way to show your love of Disney during your special day, and there are so many ways to accomplish this!

Laura and John's "Happily Ever After" At-Home Disney Wedding
Photo credit: Christina Whittaker Photography

Choosing a Theme

Disney is such a varied fandom that there are literally hundreds of different Disney inspired themes you could choose for your wedding. Popular themes include:

  • Beauty and the Beast
  • Cinderella
  • Up
  • Tangled/Rapunzel
  • The Little Mermaid
  • Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse
  • Disney Parks
  • Star Wars

How subtle or over-the-top you want your theme to be is totally up to you! You could simply incorporate some “hidden Mickeys” into your wedding theme, or choose your wedding colors based off your favorite movie. Or you could have a full-blown costume/cosplay wedding dedicated to your favorite characters.

Courtney and Allen's UP Themed At-Home Disney Wedding // Chris + Jenn Photos
Photo credit: Chris + Jenn Photos
The main thing I want couples to know is – there is no right or wrong way to plan your wedding. Whatever you want to do and however you want to celebrate is completely up to you!

Music

One way to incorporate your love of Disney into your wedding is through music! Walk down the aisle to an instrumental version of your favorite Disney ballad. Or do your first dance to a Disney song that means a lot to you. One fun way to incorporate Disney music is to play your favorite Disney Park background music during the meal.

Click here for more Disney wedding music suggestions.

Vendors

When choosing vendors for your wedding, ask if they are Disney fans! Hiring vendors who are genuinely excited for your Disney themed wedding will make planning that much more fun. They may even have some additional ideas on ways they can add some Disney fandom to your day!

Disney Wedding Gowns

A very special way to pay tribute to your favorite Disney princess is to choose a Disney wedding gown!

Bride wearing wedding gown inspired by Disney Princess Aurora
Photo credit: Allure Bridals
Disney’s Fairy Tale Weddings has teamed up with Allure Bridals to create beautiful gowns inspired by the Disney princesses, including Snow White, Belle, Cinderella, Jasmine, Rapunzel, and many more. Click here to learn about the current line of Disney wedding gowns.

Truly there are endless ideas to be discussed regarding having a Disney wedding! Cheers to your happily ever after!

How to Plan a Disney Wedding