Getting Hitched at Sea?

[Shyle]

Anybody get married on a Princess cruise?

 

How did you book? Did they give you a reference number or something for your guests? Or did you book through a travel agent?

 

How did you do the reception? Did you do the luncheon or just book your group in one of the anytime dining restaurants for dinner?

 

Tell me what I need to know. Testing the GF's sea legs in Sept and hoping for a ring to seal the Alaskan cruise wedding deal :)

[fishywood]

There is a Honeymoon and Wedding Cruise board here on Cruise Critic. Your best bet for first-person experiences is to post there.

 

And here are the links to info on weddings on the Princess web site and Princess' wedding package planner.

 

Everything must be coordinated through the agency Princess contracts with. The hardest part of course is having to have a firm, unchangeable guest list done before the final payment is due and cancellation fees kick in. It would be financial suicide (even more so than the average wedding is ;)) to not book the cabins through Princess' group sales department or a TA they recommend.

 

However much time you think your fiancee will need between the day you give her the ring and your wedding day, double it if you want to get married at sea. Remember there is also the alternative of getting married on the ship on embarkation day before sailaway so you don't have to spring for a cabin for everyone who is at the ceremony.

Edited April 18, 2016 by fishywood

[reedprincess]

Anybody get married on a Princess cruise?

 

How did you book? Did they give you a reference number or something for your guests? Or did you book through a travel agent?

 

How did you do the reception? Did you do the luncheon or just book your group in one of the anytime dining restaurants for dinner?

 

Tell me what I need to know. Testing the GF's sea legs in Sept and hoping for a ring to seal the Alaskan cruise wedding deal :)

My brother got married on Caribbean Princess last year. He originally booked directly but later transfered everything to a travel agent for one point of contact for all of us coming along, and the group benefits (so many cabins booked comes with extra perks for group leader, think it has to be 8 cabins or more).

He said it was all very easy, and loved doing it that way. Wedding was in the Chapel while at sea and ceremony by the captain himself, about 20 minutes. They had the basic package, but upgraded their photo package. He didn't opt for any type of extra reception add-on, we simply all my at a lounge after the ceremony and had some drinks and socialized. His wedding was at 1:45, so didn't really lend itself to a dinner reception, and there was about 17 of us, so meeting up at an inside lounge during the day was easy - especially as t was spring break in the Caribbean and virtually everyone was outside! It was like having a private reception without paying the extra. Lol. His wedding cake was sent to the dining room for us all to enjoy that night, which was thoughtful.

All in all, he really liked it and how easy it was. If you're going to have people join you, it may be easier to have a travel agent handle everyone's booking so there's on point of contact, everyone's reservations are linked, dining is set together, etc..

The Princess wedding section is quite detailed, be sure to read it!

[Jodieg]

Hi, we got married on Diamond Princess in 2012, and I kid you not when I say we still talk about our wedding every day! Everything was perfect and Tie the Knot was who organised the entire thing. It was so easy and we would not have changed a thing. I just had a look at the link attached and they have loads more information on there now including a frequently asked questions section.

If you're into cruising, I couldn't think of a better way to get hitched.

Keep us posted.

[mph045]

We were married aboard the Crown in 2008 by Cpt Bennetti-we had B2B and were the only couple to be married and were very spoiled.

We went thru Princess Outfit out of Miami-spent one year emailing back and forth and each detail-we were wed at 3pm[the time is at the Cpts discresion] and were assigned our own photographer-florist-reception in Adaggio-had a Russian pianist at the chapel and reception-the Cpt invited us twice on the bridge and sent strawberries and wine to us and sectioned off the hot tub for us only!!! Our cake was huge-enough to feed 50 adults-and it was only for 8 of us! They also went overboard on the bridal bouquet and maid of honor!!

They sang to us in the crown grill as well!!:p

Overall I think we paid $2500+cabin costs-well worth it all

 

My advice-document every email-follow up constantly-than when on board the first day meet with attendant by Princess to go over every detail-flwrs-wedding vows-photos-music selected-where you want pictures- people who will sign the nautical wedding papers-etc

you will also meet with the Cpt prior to the wedding taking place.:eek:

[Shyle]

Thank you for your tips and thoughts!!!!!

[mph045]

We also picked our songs to be played[had our daughter sing "AT LAST" in the Adagio with the pianist. We selected the colors of our flowers as well.

You will receive a marriage cert from the Cpt before you leave and the official one will be mailed home in about 7 weeks

We had an Int'l presence with the Italian Captain-Philippine florist-British coord- Russian pianist-American photographer[they tried to take pics out on the deck, but was way too windy!] You will have the chance to see all pics and select what you want.

They also escorted my wife and daughter to the Chapel! I will note in the reception, we had to ourselves, they had four servers with hot trays of everything along with a bar tender for us-it was fantastic!

We decided to have our cake presented in the MDR for dinner-had a standing ovation from the passengers as we came in and we shared the three layer cake with about 25 people-took some to our room and shared the rest with the servers and those who cook behind the scenes.

As we walked through the Atrium to go back to our cabins after dinner, the pianist there requested for us to dance and again we received applause and congratulations for all-it truly was a magical time for us and where ever we went we were greeted congratulations by staff and passengers !!

Forgot to mention when we came to the port in San Juan to embark-as soon as we got in line to go thru security they somehow knew we were the wedding couple and we were escorted into the ship first to meet with the wedding coord as well as the Captain!

Edited April 21, 2016 by mph045