Married on Carnival Inspiration 11/21!

[heliosemy]

Could not have gone any better! No complaints!! Would love to answer any questions any soon to be brides have - we went into it having no clue what to expect!

 

Here are some photos from start to finish! :D (these are the pics our family/friends took; i will post the professional in the next post)

 

 

 

[heliosemy]

[heliosemy]

[heliosemy]

[heliosemy]

[tricy99]

 

Ole my goodness...you pics are gorgeous. Your dress was absolutely BEAUTIFUL! I am having a hard time figuring out my dress style....Thanks for posting your pics I would love to see and hear more. I will be married on Destiny next Aug.

[heliosemy]

thank you! i love love my dress..i was so sad to take it off :( That is the hardest part! but i did wear it as long as i could for the rest of the night - every where we went people stared at us or clapped and congratulated us. it was SO fun!

 

our photographer was AWESOME! he was about our age and let us go anywhere on the ship to take pictures we wanted. i only regret not meeting up with my family to take more 'fun' pics because i did not care for the posed picture in between the columns right after the ceremony. the flowers are so ugly! lol youd think they would have something more up to date, but they are pretty dated. i knew that going into the wedding because i saw other brides photos on this website and it was really bothering me - i kept asking wasnt there something we could do about the flowers!? but once we got there i let it slide..it really wasnt a big deal. i am glad that i brought my own flowers for my bouquet though! if you notice the flowers my maid of honor is holding, that is what they brought me. again - very dated! and with that ugly bow stuck right in the middle! we had a good laugh about that.

We also bought the videographer package which was so worth it!! Ive watched it twice since the wedding and still boohoo

 

i would have also brought my own caker topper- the one they provided was plastic and cheesy, but again..not a big deal at the time because as soon as you look at it, they take it off and cut the cake.

 

as for the ceremony - pick as meaning readings/poems as you can for the officiant to read as to make the ceremony last longer.

 

i have tons of other pics if youd like to see them - including the honeymoon! how many ppl are attending your wedding tricy? where is the cruise sailing to?

[merocket59]

Wow I loveeeee your pics!!!! Thanks for sharing, it looks like you guys had a lot of fun!

[shortnsweet7676]

Beautiful pics... What kind of bustle did you have on your dress? Was it pretty easy and quick to do? I am getting married on the Carnival Glory in April and having the 1-hour reception. I'm trying to decide whether I should walk down the aisle with the dress already bustled. I'm concerned I may be rushed from the ceremony to the reception and won't have much time to bustle my dress. My dress is very similar to yours.

[heliosemy]

its a french bustle. after the ceremony there is lots of picture taking - while u take your pictures, your guests are taken to the reception area. i had about 10 minutes extra to bustle my dress up and i think the only way we managed was because we had practiced it so many times before. so make sure that the person or people that will be with you during that time know how to tie your dress up!

 

the reception was fabulous! they have the best wedding cake ive ever tasted - and im not just saying that because it was ours. its really delicious..and any that you have left over will be served to you the following night at dinner :o

the food is also fantastic - we even had sushi that was to die for! and the best part, the free drinks! they keep those coming and they do not skimp on the alcohol in those drinks lol

[shortnsweet7676]

its a french bustle. after the ceremony there is lots of picture taking - while u take your pictures, your guests are taken to the reception area. i had about 10 minutes extra to bustle my dress up and i think the only way we managed was because we had practiced it so many times before. so make sure that the person or people that will be with you during that time know how to tie your dress up!

 

the reception was fabulous! they have the best wedding cake ive ever tasted - and im not just saying that because it was ours. its really delicious..and any that you have left over will be served to you the following night at dinner :o

the food is also fantastic - we even had sushi that was to die for! and the best part, the free drinks! they keep those coming and they do not skimp on the alcohol in those drinks lol

 

Thanks for the info... I am so looking for to my cruise wedding in April!

[SammieMC00]

Gorgeous pics! You looked beautiful. We got married on the inspiration 10/13/07 and it was amazing. I too knew ahead of time about the flowers so I made my own silk bouquet to take. I agree about the cake it was amazing. We had them save ours and deliver it to dinner that night for a second round of cake for everyone. We had a group of 18 with us on our wedding cruise. I do wish though that our photographer woudl have listened to us more. He kept making us take pics in the stuipd little set ups throughout the inside of the boat. We didn't get any outside shots from him. He did get a few nice candid shots during the ceremony that were good. I think the main problem was that we were pressed for time. We had the ceremony the reception and then a few pictures and then it was time for the muster drill. Which i though I was going to die. I had a few too many drinks at the reception then i was in my dress on the deck 4 people deep and it was soo hot! If i could have some how skipped it I would have. I loved the reactions of everyone too as we walked around the boat. We became celebrities for the cruise. We were in the newlywed/not so newlywed game, the hubby was a singing sensation at karaokee, both of us and our friend got "volunteered" for the belly flop competition. Eveywhere we went someone "knew" us. It was alot of fun! That was our first cruise, went on our second for our anniversary and it was also a honeymoon cruise for friends of ours, and we have the pride booked for May. It was a great way to start our addiction! lol

[Inspiration_bride]

Awww.. seeing your pics reminded me of my wedding!! ;) we were married and had reception in the same spots as you! Your looked beautiful. congrats!

[audi02]

Thank you so much for your post. I am so glad to hear all the good news. I'm getting married on Inspiration in October 2010. I have some questions. How did you handle getting ready before the wedding? Does the groom see you at some sort of rehearsal? I'm just wondering if I can get my hair done before I arrive at the ship without him seeing any of the final product. Also thinking about if he needs to be dressed and stuff like that. Another question is about the ship. Is it nice? I have almost 60 people coming and don't want to be disapointed in the cruise part of it. Also, how much time was left for that actual reception? We want a big party with lots of open bar time. Wondering if I should rush things in the wedding to have more time for the party after. Gosh, so many questions. Your pictures look great and you look like young and fun (like we are). So your opinions are really appreciated.

[tricy99]

thank you! i love love my dress..i was so sad to take it off :( That is the hardest part! but i did wear it as long as i could for the rest of the night - every where we went people stared at us or clapped and congratulated us. it was SO fun!

 

our photographer was AWESOME! he was about our age and let us go anywhere on the ship to take pictures we wanted. i only regret not meeting up with my family to take more 'fun' pics because i did not care for the posed picture in between the columns right after the ceremony. the flowers are so ugly! lol youd think they would have something more up to date, but they are pretty dated. i knew that going into the wedding because i saw other brides photos on this website and it was really bothering me - i kept asking wasnt there something we could do about the flowers!? but once we got there i let it slide..it really wasnt a big deal. i am glad that i brought my own flowers for my bouquet though! if you notice the flowers my maid of honor is holding, that is what they brought me. again - very dated! and with that ugly bow stuck right in the middle! we had a good laugh about that.

We also bought the videographer package which was so worth it!! Ive watched it twice since the wedding and still boohoo

 

i would have also brought my own caker topper- the one they provided was plastic and cheesy, but again..not a big deal at the time because as soon as you look at it, they take it off and cut the cake.

 

as for the ceremony - pick as meaning readings/poems as you can for the officiant to read as to make the ceremony last longer.

 

i have tons of other pics if youd like to see them - including the honeymoon! how many ppl are attending your wedding tricy? where is the cruise sailing to?

 

Yes, your flowers were very nice. We have 47 people booked and 18 nonsailing. We are going to Jamaica & Cayman Islands next August. Thanks again for the review and pics....

[SammieMC00]

. How did you handle getting ready before the wedding? Does the groom see you at some sort of rehearsal? I'm just wondering if I can get my hair done before I arrive at the ship without him seeing any of the final product. Also thinking about if he needs to be dressed and stuff like that. Another question is about the ship. Is it nice? .

 

There is a rehersal for anyone involved with the ceremony. That will occur pretty much as soon as you board the boat. The carnival cruise wedding people take you onto the boat and take you to the location of where your wedding will take place, and run thru the wedding. Our was very fast. This is when my husband to be and I parted ways. He was able to go out get a drink get something to eat and chill out before the ceremony. I on the other hand was taken to my cabin, and with the help of my mom sister and friend got dressed. Everyone was dressed for the wedding when we arrived at the port except for me. A friend did my hair in the morning, so my veil was in. They asked everyone else to be dressed because they could not guarentee that all of the cabins would be ready. If you wanted to though, the groom could go to the room get ready first...then you take over the room. Once I was ready i sent everyone who was helping me get ready away so i could have some time by myself. The same lady who took me to the cabin was going to come to get me and lead me back up to the location of the wedding, ours was in the shakespeare library. Well our wedding was supposed to start at 1...and it was 105 and the woman still wasn't at my cabin. I started to get ansy and wondered if i should go up myself. I wanted another 10 min and she showed up. Well she also go us lost making our way back to the library. I got a tour of the boat before the wedding...by the time i got to the library my feet were killing me! LOL Our wedding started about 20 min late or so......my poor hubby thought i was having second thoughts or something. But I made it! As far as the boat it was our first cruise and I dont think it could have been a better boat to be on. It was freshly out of dry dock with the upgrades, it was like a brand new boat. We all had a blast on the boat. Any other questions...i dont check this thread that often send me an email sbayura216@comcast.net

[heliosemy]

Thank you so much for your post. I am so glad to hear all the good news. I'm getting married on Inspiration in October 2010. I have some questions. How did you handle getting ready before the wedding? Does the groom see you at some sort of rehearsal? I'm just wondering if I can get my hair done before I arrive at the ship without him seeing any of the final product. Also thinking about if he needs to be dressed and stuff like that. Another question is about the ship. Is it nice? I have almost 60 people coming and don't want to be disapointed in the cruise part of it. Also, how much time was left for that actual reception? We want a big party with lots of open bar time. Wondering if I should rush things in the wedding to have more time for the party after. Gosh, so many questions. Your pictures look great and you look like young and fun (like we are). So your opinions are really appreciated.

 

Well I booked an appt at a local salon in Tampa the morning of the cruise! I got my hair done at 8am and then took a cab to the port where I met up with the rest of my family (my maid of honor went to my hair appt with me). Theres no way to not see each other prior to checking in at the port so I didnt do my makeup or wear my veil - just had the hair done. I had about a hour and a half to do my makeup and get dressed once I made it to my cabin. When you start to talk to your wedding coordinator more often (because you will when it gets closer to the date) ask her to make sure a room is ready for your fiance..we chose his Dads cabin. So he was able to go to his Dads cabin and get dressed while I got dressed in ours!

We had a hour long reception. I think that is the standard amount given in the package. So even if you 'hurry' the ceremony, you are still given the hour reception. The ceremony goes by REALLY fast so I wouldnt worry about that - what took the longest was the pictures after the ceremony with each of your family members. My husband and I both have step parents so that part took FOREVER for us. I have 4 Dads now! lol

After the reception you have to go to a muster drill - I think it starts at 4pm and everyone on the ship has to go. We requested from our photographer to meet up with us AFTER the muster drill to take fun pics, so ask him or her if you can do that!

 

Glad to be of help - i wish I had someone to ask all of these questions to!

[SweetDara]

Pretty Pics - Congratulations to you and hubby. :)

[audi02]

Quick Question... I have a larger bridal party. Is it hard on the cruise to have all of them walk down the isle (is there even some sort of isle)? My mother in law also wants to be escorted down to her seat. I was wondering how that will work in a cruise room. I have about 75 people coming, so I assume we will be in a big room. My ship is the Inspiration, so I thought this thread would know the most about the layout.

[heliosemy]

my wedding was in the library because we had only 25 people. yours will most likely be in the candlelight lounge because its a big room. the other bride getting married the same day as me had her wedding in there because she had a larger wedding party. i think your reception will also be in the same room.

theres plenty of room in there for your mom to be escorted to her seat! we were in the library which is much smaller and my mom was still ushered to her seat

[mysticair2]

Well I booked an appt at a local salon in Tampa the morning of the cruise! I got my hair done at 8am and then took a cab to the port where I met up with the rest of my family (my maid of honor went to my hair appt with me). Theres no way to not see each other prior to checking in at the port so I didnt do my makeup or wear my veil - just had the hair done. I had about a hour and a half to do my makeup and get dressed once I made it to my cabin. When you start to talk to your wedding coordinator more often (because you will when it gets closer to the date) ask her to make sure a room is ready for your fiance..we chose his Dads cabin. So he was able to go to his Dads cabin and get dressed while I got dressed in ours!

We had a hour long reception. I think that is the standard amount given in the package. So even if you 'hurry' the ceremony, you are still given the hour reception. The ceremony goes by REALLY fast so I wouldnt worry about that - what took the longest was the pictures after the ceremony with each of your family members. My husband and I both have step parents so that part took FOREVER for us. I have 4 Dads now! lol

After the reception you have to go to a muster drill - I think it starts at 4pm and everyone on the ship has to go. We requested from our photographer to meet up with us AFTER the muster drill to take fun pics, so ask him or her if you can do that!

 

Glad to be of help - i wish I had someone to ask all of these questions to!

 

I live in the Tampa area...could you tell me the name of the salon where you had your hair done? Thanks :-)