I spent $35,000 to get married at Disney. Here's why I'm planning to return for my vow renewal, even if it may cost a lot more.

I never dreamed of a fairytale wedding, let alone a Disney one. When it came time to plan a wedding to my now husband, I couldn't imagine hosting a large event unless it felt uniquely us. We both hail from the Tri-state area — him from Long Island, N.Y. and me from New Jersey — where the standard wedding is an elaborate banquet hall affair with plenty of ice luges and shrimp cocktail, but little-to-no personality.

My family had just suffered the devastation of Hurricane Sandy and an overwhelming YOLO (you only live once) mentality became a part of me. In 2014, when planning our 2015 nuptials, I could have never dreamed a Disney wedding would be possible, but figured I should at least ask for information. We both had family all over the country: Why not have them meet in a place so special to us as a couple?

Walt Disney World (WDW) is a place where I grew up making memories and now, as a card-carrying “Disney adult,” continue to do so with my family and friends. I love it so much that my chosen career path has led me to cover the destination professionally as a theme park journalist.

The average cost of a wedding in 2021, according to The Knot, was $28,000, with those numbers being significantly higher in certain parts of the country, like New York. As I began my research, I was surprised to learn that Disney weddings were much more affordable than I could have imagined. But at a price that seemed fairly average, would it still embody all that same pixie-dusted magic promised on screen by Disney's Fairy Tale Weddings?

It might have been a crazy idea, but I knew I wasn't alone. Disney hosts thousands of weddings a year at its properties all over the world, from Disneyland in Anaheim, Calif. to aboard the Disney Cruise Line. And when you choose Disney nuptials, like the genie in Aladdin, your wish is Disney's command. The big cheese, Mickey Mouse, can attend if desired and you can even get married in front of the iconic Cinderella Castle, but you can also have something more intimate and not so distinctly Disney.

Jason and Samantha Bonsignore, the YouTubers behind Theme Park Foodies, are from the northeast like me, but made the decision to get married in their happy place. "We went with a Disney wedding because we wanted our special day to be something that uniquely represented our relationship," Jay Bonsignore tells Yahoo Life. "Where we lived at the time, church and dining hall weddings were the norm. Our dream wasn't to dance but rather ride Space Mountain after we said 'I do.' When looking up venue prices [at Disney], we were pleasantly surprised to see many affordable options."

So, what's it really like to get married at Walt Disney World? And, more importantly, how much did it cost?

With around 100 guests, my entire wedding cost $35,000 and included a theme park ceremony, two receptions, custom menus, transportation and a ride buy-out, meaning we rented out an attraction for our entire guest list to ride together privately.

Here's a break-down of our wedding and the biggest costs.

Pre-wedding perks

Cost: Complimentary

A Disney wedding begins long before the actual date. As soon as we submitted our deposit, gifts started arriving in our mailbox, including two annual passes good for one year of unlimited visits to all four Walt Disney World theme parks, which had a value of $829 per-person at the time.

Our pre-wedding bonuses also included a one-day planning trip to Walt Disney World, where we met with our wedding planner, florist, cake designer and chef.

Ceremony venue rental

Cost: $3,500

While many get married at Disney's Wedding Pavilion, located on the grounds of Disney's Grand Floridian Resort and Spa, we knew we wanted to do something a little more personal. Luckily, WDW offers dozens of unique venues. With our affinity for Italian food and culture, we opted to get married inside EPCOT at its Italy Pavilion, located within the World Showcase. This place was already special to us because we had gotten engaged in the exact same location.

In-park weddings require guests to get married in the morning, ahead of park opening, and we loved this idea. The early start set the entire tone for our wedding day, which would become an all-day celebration.

While Disney provides photography services at an additional cost, we decided to bring in our own photographer, a friend and celebrity photographer for Getty Images.

As of 2023, the Italy venue rental fee is considerably higher, priced at $7,500.

Wedding flowers

Cost: $2,237

I'm not much of a flower person, so I opted for simple arrangements for myself and my sister, as I did not have a bridal party. Disney's cost for florist services also included tasteful centerpiece arrangements at both receptions.

Transportation

Cost: $2,350

We reserved motorcoaches through Disney to chauffeur guests from our host resort to EPCOT, but my favorite mode of transportation was the use of the park's signature Friendship Boats that whisked guests via water from the ceremony to the reception. We also exited our reception on a themed surrey bicycle, the same ones you may have seen guests pedaling around at Disney’s BoardWalk.

Reception No. 1

Cost: $16,713

After our morning ceremony, we hosted our first reception at Atlantic Dance Hall, a turn-of-the-century, Atlantic City-inspired venue located at Disney's BoardWalk. We thought this was a perfect representation of our roots and it began with a pre-reception of passed appetizers and live violinist music.

There were no characters or horse drawn carriages at our wedding. Instead, our biggest priority was dining. Walt Disney World invited us ahead of the wedding to meet with our chef to design customized menus. We incorporated foods we love in the parks, like the Cobb salad from Hollywood Brown Derby at Disney's Hollywood Studios, and our guests still talk about what was served to this day. The brunch reception menu was priced at $81.00 per guest with an added 4.5-hour unlimited bar package priced $33.50 per guest.

As of 2023, the brunch reception menu is also higher, priced at $140 per person.

Wedding day entertainment

Cost: $5,145

We selected a solo violinist for our ceremony who then joined guests on the boat to our first reception. For our reception, we hired a DJ, also provided by Disney, as we anticipated most of our guests would want to dance. We also had invited guests perform, including friends that sang our first dance.

Afternoon break

Cost: N/A

Guests had a break in the afternoon to retire to their rooms to relax or come to an un-official pool party back at the resort.

Reception No. 2

Cost: $5,026

One of our favorite parts of the day was an add-on evening dessert party. Dessert parties are a WDW signature offering, and we were able to rent the waterside French garden along EPCOT’s World Showcase, known as Terrace Des Fleur.

Guests were treated to desserts, an open bar and private viewing of the park's then-nighttime spectacular, IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth.

Private ride buyout

Cost: $926

After our dessert party, we surprised guests and took advantage of another add-on, a ride buyout. We choose Soarin' Around the World because of its low thrill level and minimum height requirement, both of which made it suitable for most guests. We were surprised to learn that, in the event of a ride buyout, Disney only charges for guests who do not have annual passes.

Unofficial afterparty

Cost: N/A

After the surprise ride, we took advantage of the complimentary Monorail service from EPCOT to the Magic Kingdom Park resort area. Here, we hosted an unofficial afterparty at Tambu Lounge, a tropical bar at Disney's Polynesian Village Resort, and a spot I've been visiting with my own family for decades.

Bride and groom hotel

Cost: Complimentary

All wedding couples receive a complimentary stay at any Disney resort. Naturally, we opted for the most expensive option, Disney's Grand Floridian Resort and Spa, where we were delighted to be given a firework-view suite.

Day after meet-up

Cost: N/A

One of my favorite parts of our wedding was all of the un-official events we were able to have. Many of our guests made an entire vacation out of our celebration, and joined us the following day to eat and drink around EPCOT's World Showcase.

I'm not a sappy or emotional person, but if I could relive that day over again I would in a heartbeat — and probably will for a 10-year vow renewal. We didn't know it when booking, but we couldn't have picked a more perfect wedding that reflected our unique personalities and general attitudes towards life ... and Disney.

It turned into an unexpected family reunion that has since not been replicated. The level of customization was surprising, especially for the price level. As cheesy as it sounds, anything was possible, and Disney worked to make sure our ideas came to fruition — whether it was transporting guests on a boat or having a classic surrey serve as our exit vehicle.

The service was incredible and every little detail was graciously taken care of. I enjoyed having touches of Disney woven throughout, but the Disney magic served as more of a backdrop to our special day, which was perfect for us.

Now, I can confidently say that no one hosts a wedding like the mouse.

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