Princess - Tie the Knot Ashore/Harborside

[Collette17n]

Hello everyone! I'm new this site - this is actually my first post! My fiancé and I got engaged last November while on a cruise (Celebrity Solstice) on Honeymoon Beach in St. John. We are thinking that we would like to have the wedding on a cruise as well! It is going to be a small wedding (30 guests) and I know that many of them won’t be able to cruise with us so it has to be before the ship leaves, either ashore or harborside on the ship. I am leaning towards having it on the beach as I think that would be absolutely beautiful. However, I do have a few questions for anyone who has done this before. We are open to any of the reasonably priced cruised lines (Carnival, Princess, Celebrity, etc) but were thinking Princess may be the best choice (a little nicer and fancier). What do you think?

 

Princess offers a package called “Tie the Knot Ashore” which allows us to get married on the beach in Ft. Lauderdale before the ship leaves. If I choose this option, can I have the reception onboard the ship with all of the guests before the ship leaves, since some of the guests won’t be sailing? Have any of you gone this route? If so, was it smooth? I would love some feedback!

 

The other package is called “Tie the Knot Harborside” which allows you to get married onboard the ship and the guests who are not sailing get off before the ship leaves. I believe you have the option to get married in some sort of a chapel or on deck, from what I’ve read online. Have any of you gone this route? Did everything go smoothly?

 

We’re don’t have a date set yet, my fiancé is commissioning into the Marine Corps and doesn’t know when he will be leaving yet. Any help/tips would be GREATLY appreciated! I have also included some pics of the engagement (his parents cruised with us and were in on it, they were basically hiding in the bushes snapping pics) :)

[Collette17n]

Also, I just called and spoke to someone about the wedding packages and she mentioned that since I wanted to do it on the day of embarkation we could only have an hour long reception. She said it was because the non-sailing guests have to be off of the ship 1.5 hours before it sails. I forgot to ask, if it's that tight of a schedule, will there be time to take photos before the non-sailing guests leave? I believe that my immediate family will not be able to sail and it's important that I get photos with them before they leave.

[Artemis908]

Hello and welcome! :) You'll get a lot of great advice here and I'd definitely recommend having a look at some of the past reviews to get a good idea of what to expect, there were a couple of recent Princess cruise weddings reviewed in the past month.

 

I am getting married on the Caribbean Princess, leaving out of Brooklyn. I know all piers have different rules, but I was able to add an additional hour to my reception to make it a total of 2 hours.

 

I have 76 non-sailing guests (80 people) total so we could not all fit in the chapel and instead I am having my ceremony AND reception at Club Fusion. One problem is you can't have a sit down meal in this case, it's hors'derves and food stations (pasta, meat, etc.). So the choice was either sit in the main dining room where it wouldn't be private, with no music or have an open bar in one of the lounges with lighter food. I changed my mind several times, but eventually I chose to go with the lounge.

 

Embarkation day weddings are always a little hectic since you don't get much of a chance to speak to the coordinator before hand and you have to be ready to go by the time you get on the ship (you can bring your dress onboard, but everything else like hair and make up needs to be done). There also isn't really time to rehearse in many cases.

 

I think there is one key takeaway we all say here and that is, cruise weddings can be awesome alternatives to a traditional wedding, they can be beautiful and save you a ton of money. However, if you are control freak type that will freak out if you get the wrong flowers or the cake doesn't look exactly as you imagined, don't do a cruise wedding.

 

If you're not, I think you'll enjoy planning a cruise wedding and aside from dealing with TWE who can sometimes be difficult to work with, my planning process has gone fairly well. I've just had to make sure I ask a lot of questions and keep record of everything that's been said.

 

Let me know if you have any other questions!

[Collette17n]

Hello and welcome! :) You'll get a lot of great advice here and I'd definitely recommend having a look at some of the past reviews to get a good idea of what to expect, there were a couple of recent Princess cruise weddings reviewed in the past month.

 

I am getting married on the Caribbean Princess, leaving out of Brooklyn. I know all piers have different rules, but I was able to add an additional hour to my reception to make it a total of 2 hours.

 

I have 76 non-sailing guests (80 people) total so we could not all fit in the chapel and instead I am having my ceremony AND reception at Club Fusion. One problem is you can't have a sit down meal in this case, it's hors'derves and food stations (pasta, meat, etc.). So the choice was either sit in the main dining room where it wouldn't be private, with no music or have an open bar in one of the lounges with lighter food. I changed my mind several times, but eventually I chose to go with the lounge.

 

Embarkation day weddings are always a little hectic since you don't get much of a chance to speak to the coordinator before hand and you have to be ready to go by the time you get on the ship (you can bring your dress onboard, but everything else like hair and make up needs to be done). There also isn't really time to rehearse in many cases.

 

I think there is one key takeaway we all say here and that is, cruise weddings can be awesome alternatives to a traditional wedding, they can be beautiful and save you a ton of money. However, if you are control freak type that will freak out if you get the wrong flowers or the cake doesn't look exactly as you imagined, don't do a cruise wedding.

 

If you're not, I think you'll enjoy planning a cruise wedding and aside from dealing with TWE who can sometimes be difficult to work with, my planning process has gone fairly well. I've just had to make sure I ask a lot of questions and keep record of everything that's been said.

 

Let me know if you have any other questions!

 

Thanks so much for your input! I'm definitely not a control freak, so I think this is a great option for us! I see that most people don't like TWE, why is that? Are they horrible?

[mrsgomez2011]

Thanks so much for your input! I'm definitely not a control freak, so I think this is a great option for us! I see that most people don't like TWE, why is that? Are they horrible?

 

They can be a pain to get ahold of. I switched coordinators with 4 months of planning to go because my coordinator was impossible to reach. But I'm very happy now. If you can, get their email address, I've found it's so much easier to get a reply with email.

 

Congrats!!!

[Artemis908]

Thanks so much for your input! I'm definitely not a control freak, so I think this is a great option for us! I see that most people don't like TWE, why is that? Are they horrible?

 

My first coordinator sucked. She just "yes"ed me to death, provided no receipts and told me there was no cap on non-sailing guests. Then she disappeared for several months and no one bothered to told me she left the company, it wasn't until I contacted the general TWE Princess e-mail that I got a response saying the original coordinator no longer worked there.

 

It was then I started to work with Christine, who has been helpful so far. She told me about the cap on guests (though a little too late since I had already sent out invitiations!), it also turned out I couldn't get the luncheon menu I had wanted so I switched to the lounge, she also gives me receipts for everything once we've discussed them.

 

The biggest problem with TWE is the person you talk to is NOT who you will see during your wedding. It seems like the smart thing to do would be for you to speak with someone who has been on the ship before and knows what to expect. It seems none of the coordinators know much about the ships and what can be made available to you.

[Collette17n]

My first coordinator sucked. She just "yes"ed me to death, provided no receipts and told me there was no cap on non-sailing guests. Then she disappeared for several months and no one bothered to told me she left the company, it wasn't until I contacted the general TWE Princess e-mail that I got a response saying the original coordinator no longer worked there.

 

It was then I started to work with Christine, who has been helpful so far. She told me about the cap on guests (though a little too late since I had already sent out invitiations!), it also turned out I couldn't get the luncheon menu I had wanted so I switched to the lounge, she also gives me receipts for everything once we've discussed them.

 

The biggest problem with TWE is the person you talk to is NOT who you will see during your wedding. It seems like the smart thing to do would be for you to speak with someone who has been on the ship before and knows what to expect. It seems none of the coordinators know much about the ships and what can be made available to you.

 

Oh no! Well that's a little scary. I wonder if you can ask for a specific coordinator (such as Christine). What is the cap for non-sailing guests? I am assuming most of my guests won't be sailing and there should be about 30 ppl there.

[mrsgomez2011]

My first coordinator sucked. She just "yes"ed me to death, provided no receipts and told me there was no cap on non-sailing guests. Then she disappeared for several months and no one bothered to told me she left the company, it wasn't until I contacted the general TWE Princess e-mail that I got a response saying the original coordinator no longer worked there.

 

It was then I started to work with Christine, who has been helpful so far. She told me about the cap on guests (though a little too late since I had already sent out invitiations!), it also turned out I couldn't get the luncheon menu I had wanted so I switched to the lounge, she also gives me receipts for everything once we've discussed them.

 

The biggest problem with TWE is the person you talk to is NOT who you will see during your wedding. It seems like the smart thing to do would be for you to speak with someone who has been on the ship before and knows what to expect. It seems none of the coordinators know much about the ships and what can be made available to you.

 

My TWE coordinator will be at the ship that day along with 1 other one because we are over 50. I wonder why yours won't. TWE is based out of Miami and are located pretty close to the port. That makes no sense!

[jeter'sflake]

I'm getting married onboard the Caribbean Princess May 26th out of New York. I have a total of 24 guests so the ceremony is in the chapel and because we have the dj the reception is in Skywalkers. Like Artemis, I was able to extend my reception time to the 2 hours.

 

I haven't had any problems working with TWE. My coordinator has been great. Her name is Patrice.

 

If you have any questions, just let me know! :-)

[Artemis908]

My TWE coordinator will be at the ship that day along with 1 other one because we are over 50. I wonder why yours won't. TWE is based out of Miami and are located pretty close to the port. That makes no sense!

 

Yeah I was told that the person who was setting everything up wouldn't be on the ship, but that the person calling me to finalize everything would.

[Collette17n]

I'm getting married onboard the Caribbean Princess May 26th out of New York. I have a total of 24 guests so the ceremony is in the chapel and because we have the dj the reception is in Skywalkers. Like Artemis' date=' I was able to extend my reception time to the 2 hours.

 

I haven't had any problems working with TWE. My coordinator has been great. Her name is Patrice.

 

If you have any questions, just let me know! :-)[/quote']

 

That sounds very similar to what I want. We should have about 30 guests. I have been looking at some of the chapel pics from different ships and to me they look pretty plain. Someone called it a "glorified meeting room". Do you know what yours will look like on the Caribbean Princess? I spoke to someone at TWE and asked about having it on deck. She said that they CAN do it but only at the particular ship's discretion. I wonder if having it on deck somewhere would be a little nicer than in the chapel?

 

How were you able to extend it to 2 hours? Is it because your ship leaves at 5pm? She made it sound like if the ship sailed at 4pm I would have an hour only. I see many of the ships leave at 5pm. That would give me an extra hour, right? Does it cost extra to have it for 2 hours instead of 1 hour?

 

Sorry about all of the question, they just kept popping into my head as I typed! :o

[Artemis908]

That sounds very similar to what I want. We should have about 30 guests. I have been looking at some of the chapel pics from different ships and to me they look pretty plain. Someone called it a "glorified meeting room". Do you know what yours will look like on the Caribbean Princess? I spoke to someone at TWE and asked about having it on deck. She said that they CAN do it but only at the particular ship's discretion. I wonder if having it on deck somewhere would be a little nicer than in the chapel?

 

How were you able to extend it to 2 hours? Is it because your ship leaves at 5pm? She made it sound like if the ship sailed at 4pm I would have an hour only. I see many of the ships leave at 5pm. That would give me an extra hour, right? Does it cost extra to have it for 2 hours instead of 1 hour?

 

Sorry about all of the question, they just kept popping into my head as I typed! :o

 

No problem. :) I was never a fan of the chapel either, it's kind of plain looking. The problem with having the ceremony on the deck is they won't guarantee it to you (in fact my coordinator flat out said no) and they can't guarantee music or seats. Another issue I've heard of is sound, with all of the background noise, many of your guests may not be able to hear you. There can also be issues with wind, blowing everything around. All in all, I didn't feel it was worth it to have on deck.

 

By far, everyone I talk to who knows Princess says the best place to have your wedding is the Skywalkers Lounge. Unfortunately, that location was already taken which really pisses me off since I had this cruise/wedding booked day 1 when the prices became available, I should have gotten first pick of rooms. Second choice was Club Fusion, I've also heard Wheelhouse Bar is nice, just open/not private.

 

We extended our reception to two hours,it did cost extra money, I think around $150? Plus the food, open bar, photographer, DJ, and videographer to cover that extra hour.

[Collette17n]

No problem. :) I was never a fan of the chapel either, it's kind of plain looking. The problem with having the ceremony on the deck is they won't guarantee it to you (in fact my coordinator flat out said no) and they can't guarantee music or seats. Another issue I've heard of is sound, with all of the background noise, many of your guests may not be able to hear you. There can also be issues with wind, blowing everything around. All in all, I didn't feel it was worth it to have on deck.

 

By far, everyone I talk to who knows Princess says the best place to have your wedding is the Skywalkers Lounge. Unfortunately, that location was already taken which really pisses me off since I had this cruise/wedding booked day 1 when the prices became available, I should have gotten first pick of rooms. Second choice was Club Fusion, I've also heard Wheelhouse Bar is nice, just open/not private.

 

We extended our reception to two hours,it did cost extra money, I think around $150? Plus the food, open bar, photographer, DJ, and videographer to cover that extra hour.

 

I am going to look into the Skywalkers Lounge and see what I think! If you don't mind me asking, what was the total cost of having the wedding onboard with a 2 hour reception (not including the cruise itself)? I came up with $3500 to have ceremony onboard in Ft. Lauderdale, ($1300 ceremony fee plus $205 license fee), They said we would only have an hour for the reception which would basically be time to eat, no dancing or anything. I was thinking Gourmet Luncheon A plus the Open Bar which would be approximately $1200 for 30 people. Then upgrading to the large cake was $150 and I think having any type of a reception you have to pay an additional $150 for the coordinator's time. The last thing I was including was the photo CD for $495. So that totals $3500. But that means no dancing, DJ, lights, anything like that. It would be in some sort of dining room. Am I way off?

[Artemis908]

I am going to look into the Skywalkers Lounge and see what I think! If you don't mind me asking, what was the total cost of having the wedding onboard with a 2 hour reception (not including the cruise itself)? I came up with $3500 to have ceremony onboard in Ft. Lauderdale, ($1300 ceremony fee plus $205 license fee), They said we would only have an hour for the reception which would basically be time to eat, no dancing or anything. I was thinking Gourmet Luncheon A plus the Open Bar which would be approximately $1200 for 30 people. Then upgrading to the large cake was $150 and I think having any type of a reception you have to pay an additional $150 for the coordinator's time. The last thing I was including was the photo CD for $495. So that totals $3500. But that means no dancing, DJ, lights, anything like that. It would be in some sort of dining room. Am I way off?

 

If you aren't having any music, you probably won't be in a lounge, they'll have you in the main dining room. I think you're required to go to the main dining room if you have the luncheon. The cake that comes with your package feeds about 10, if you add to it (btw my coordinator said I couldn't add to the cake, it had to be separate but than I have heard of other brides adding to it, so I don't know who knows what they are talking about) it'll cost extra if you ask for a particular design or want to feed a certain amount of people... also keep on mind flowrs, photographer and videographer. All together mine is about double what you estimated your total will be. I also have 80 people, that might be why...

[Collette17n]

If you aren't having any music, you probably won't be in a lounge, they'll have you in the main dining room. I think you're required to go to the main dining room if you have the luncheon. The cake that comes with your package feeds about 10, if you add to it (btw my coordinator said I couldn't add to the cake, it had to be separate but than I have heard of other brides adding to it, so I don't know who knows what they are talking about) it'll cost extra if you ask for a particular design or want to feed a certain amount of people... also keep on mind flowrs, photographer and videographer. All together mine is about double what you estimated your total will be. I also have 80 people, that might be why...

 

What day is your wedding on? Most of my guests are non-sailing, so I have to have it on the day of embarkment. That's why the schedule is so tight. I wonder what other options I have? I don't know if any music will be going if we had it in any sort of club or lounge that early? They said the reception starts about 30 mins after the ceremony which would put it at about 1:30pm.

[Artemis908]

What day is your wedding on? Most of my guests are non-sailing, so I have to have it on the day of embarkment. That's why the schedule is so tight. I wonder what other options I have? I don't know if any music will be going if we had it in any sort of club or lounge that early? They said the reception starts about 30 mins after the ceremony which would put it at about 1:30pm.

 

My wedding is on embarkation day too. Even when I didn't add the extra hour, I wasn't told there was no time to do music. I mean yeah it'd be kind of rushed, but we didn't plan on doing any of that (imo) corny stuff like toss the bouquet. I was told the ceremony is about 15-20 mins, but also things don't always start on time. I've heard of many brides say they were delayed and everything got pushed back. I was also told I'd be the only wedding which was BS, I was told recently I wasn't the only bride. It really pissed me off that they would lie...

[Collette17n]

My wedding is on embarkation day too. Even when I didn't add the extra hour, I wasn't told there was no time to do music. I mean yeah it'd be kind of rushed, but we didn't plan on doing any of that (imo) corny stuff like toss the bouquet. I was told the ceremony is about 15-20 mins, but also things don't always start on time. I've heard of many brides say they were delayed and everything got pushed back. I was also told I'd be the only wedding which was BS, I was told recently I wasn't the only bride. It really pissed me off that they would lie...

 

Yeah that's pretty rude of them to tell you that they don't double book if they do. So are a lot of your guests non-sailing? So you're not going to have any dancing or music either? Is that right?

[Artemis908]

Yeah that's pretty rude of them to tell you that they don't double book if they do. So are a lot of your guests non-sailing? So you're not going to have any dancing or music either? Is that right?

 

76 non-sailing guests, 4 sailing. (They let me go one over the 75 limit). We will have a DJ, so there will be music and dancing. Just aren't going to have real food. I think that was the trade off, you can't have real food AND dancing. It's either dancing and hors'derves/food stations OR a sit down meal. :(

[Collette17n]

76 non-sailing guests, 4 sailing. (They let me go one over the 75 limit). We will have a DJ, so there will be music and dancing. Just aren't going to have real food. I think that was the trade off, you can't have real food AND dancing. It's either dancing and hors'derves/food stations OR a sit down meal. :(

 

Ok gotcha. How much was the DJ/music for 2 hours? I see hors d'oeuvres with open bar is $21 per person for a one-hour reception. How much is it for the 2 hour reception? Also, does it include all of the hot and cold hors d'oeuvres listed in the online pamphlet (10 different ones)? Why couldn't you do the Food Stations? Is that only in a dining room as well?

 

Thanks again! You are giving me wayyy more info than the woman I spoke to at TWE. :)

[jeter'sflake]

Ok gotcha. How much was the DJ/music for 2 hours? I see hors d'oeuvres with open bar is $21 per person for a one-hour reception. How much is it for the 2 hour reception? Also, does it include all of the hot and cold hors d'oeuvres listed in the online pamphlet (10 different ones)? Why couldn't you do the Food Stations? Is that only in a dining room as well?

 

Thanks again! You are giving me wayyy more info than the woman I spoke to at TWE. :)

 

If you to go princess.com/bridgecams and select Caribbean Princess from the WeddingCam drop down you can see what the chapel looks like.

 

Access for people at home to see actual live photos from our wedding is one of the reasons why I wanted it in the chapel.

 

Before I tell you what I'm paying, keep in mind that prices vary by ports slightly:

For less than 25 guests (including me and the DF) I only have to pay a $150 reception fee. For more than 25 the price increases because you are paying for an extra coordinator.

 

I'm paying about $1200 for the 2 hour Open bar w/ hors d'oeuvres and $130 for a 14 inch cake (they are stacking it with the cake that comes with the package). It does include 10 hot and cold hors d'oeuvres. My ship leaves at 5:00 and The Wedding Experience are the ones that offered me the 2 hour reception. I thought I was only going to be able to have the one hour.

 

If you want the $495 photo package that includes all images you have to purchase it in advance as it is not offered on the ship for the same price.

[Collette17n]

If you to go princess.com/bridgecams and select Caribbean Princess from the WeddingCam drop down you can see what the chapel looks like.

 

Access for people at home to see actual live photos from our wedding is one of the reasons why I wanted it in the chapel.

 

Before I tell you what I'm paying' date=' keep in mind that prices vary by ports slightly:

For less than 25 guests (including me and the DF) I only have to pay a $150 reception fee. For more than 25 the price increases because you are paying for an extra coordinator.

 

I'm paying about $1200 for the 2 hour Open bar w/ hors d'oeuvres and $130 for a 14 inch cake (they are stacking it with the cake that comes with the package). It does include 10 hot and cold hors d'oeuvres. My ship leaves at 5:00 and The Wedding Experience are the ones that offered me the 2 hour reception. I thought I was only going to be able to have the one hour.

 

If you want the $495 photo package that includes all images you have to purchase it in advance as it is not offered on the ship for the same price.[/quote']

 

Where did the $1200 come from? I see it's $21 pp for hors d'oeuvres and open bar for a 1 hour reception. $21 x 25 guests = $525. Do you double that because it's 2 hours? That comes to $1050. Is there a set price pp if it's a 2 hour reception? I just tried calling TWE but they're not answering even though they're open for another half hour.... :confused:

[jeter'sflake]

Where did the $1200 come from? I see it's $21 pp for hors d'oeuvres and open bar for a 1 hour reception. $21 x 25 guests = $525. Do you double that because it's 2 hours? That comes to $1050. Is there a set price pp if it's a 2 hour reception? I just tried calling TWE but they're not answering even though they're open for another half hour.... :confused:

 

I am paying slightly more than 21pp (prices vary by port) and it is doubled, plus taxes.

[Collette17n]

I am paying slightly more than 21pp (prices vary by port) and it is doubled' date=' plus taxes.[/quote']

 

Ok great! Thank you so much for your help! :)

[jeter'sflake]

Ok great! Thank you so much for your help! :)

 

No problem! I booked my wedding fairly last minute (a little over 60 days prior) and these boards have been a great asset in planning and answering all the questions I either forget to ask TWE or never thought to ask!

 

Artemis is great too! :-)

[Collette17n]

I am paying slightly more than 21pp (prices vary by port) and it is doubled' date=' plus taxes.[/quote']

 

I didn't know that the prices of the food vary from port to port. I knew that the ceromony prices do. It says $21 pp on the online pamphlet. How do you find out how much the prices are for each port for the food/drinks, etc. ?