Onboard weddings

[jperry2011]

We have booked a wedding onboard the Sunrise for May 14th 2020. It will be on the ship and I got the deluxe package for 10 or less people (8 of us total will be there). The biggest reason was the simplicity of it all and us not having to plan for everything.

 

Has anyone been married on a carnival cruise or been a part of someone else's ceremony? How was it and what to expect?

[cruisinmeme]

My son was married on carnival ship (New Orleans) the lady that handled it was awesome.  Her husband was the one that married them. The bride wanted the parents to have a corsage so that was extra.the whole thing from start to end was rather rushed. Especially the reception.  Way way too much food. We had all gone up to the buffet once on the ship, so we were already full.

do invite the 8 people you know will show up. You are paying for those 8 plus bride and groom and no replacements once you give the names.  Ny niece was married out of Galveston.  She had  guest that didnt show up and she had paid dearly for the extra guest.

the picture package was all 8x10’s.  It was outrageous. The shots we took would of been fine but the bruise didnt know what sort of pictures we got.

as far as being a stress free wedding you cant beat it.

[jperry2011]

I know my guests will show up since we have all paid for the cruise already. And they must have changed the paying process because it was either pay for 10 or less or like 40 or less.

[Essiesmom]

There is a forum here for Honeymoon & Wedding cruises:  https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/18-honeymoon-amp-wedding-cruises/  You might get some more experiences/advice there.  EM

[jperry2011]

Thank you I'm just kinda looking for a little first hand knowledge of what to expect in person.

[Johnc3211]

Our daughter got married last March on the Sunshine. She wanted a beach wedding on Grand Turk but waited too long to reserve the spot. They only have a couple of time slots open each day of the cruise for weddings, and they ended up having the ceremony on the ship while at sea. My best advise would be to plan ahead and book everything as early as possible so you get what you want. They were officially married before we left on the cruise, as Carnival does not officially marry anyone at sea. The grooms mother is an ordained minister and performed the "symbolic" service on board. There were almost 50 people who went on the cruise with us. The ceremony took place at one of the entertainment venues on board the ship in the afternoon when the "club" was normally closed. The ship had a wedding coordinator who was great and handled everything very nicely. She did double duty as a hostess in the main dinning room and gave us all preferential treatment every time a big group of us came to eat there. We brought our own decorations and flowers on board with us. Since everyone on the cruise eats for free anyway, about all you are getting in their wedding package is the ceremony and reception. We opted for the more premium package for 50 people and had very nice high end finger food and open bar. It lasted about an hour and a half. As someone already said the photos the Carnival photographer took were fabulous but expensive. All in all a great experience for everyone and a bargain for the parents.

[lulamc]

My daughter is getting married on Vista on March 14.  We have 18 sailing guests and so far I think 40 non-sailing.  Carnival will only allow 50 non-sailing so we had to be very careful with that number.  Still confirming that why I say I think 40. 

 

We have silk flowers we are taking on board.  At the reception we have favors (flip flops for dancing and anchors that are bottle openers) and I have a small canvas of the couple that will sit on a table with guest book and card box. 

 

That's it!  We do have a cake topper, and I'm sure a few other things I'm not thinking of.  All in all very simple and we are all very excited!

[jperry2011]

Sounds like a great plan!

[HenanSan]

Our situation was a bit different.  Our daughter had 2 weddings.  One on land that we paid for and then a vow renewal type marriage on the ship.  She always wanted to get married on a ship BUT the majority of those invited could not make it.  Therefore we did one here at a hall where they were actually married (160 people) and then the vow renewal service, performed by the Captain, on the Elation and 28 people.  I can say it was beautiful!  They did the renewal ceremony, but like a wedding, at sea in the Library.  They worked with us to give her the wedding (for a second time) that she wanted and the reception was in the MDR at dinner.  They set up one area for just us.  Carnival was wonderful, her wedding was perfect.  She liked that part better than the land wedding.  Expensive yes but well worth the smile on her face and the hugs she gave us. Carnival will work with you to give you exactly what you want (within reason). 

[HenanSan]

Dont let me forget the land wedding and at sea renewal were 2 weeks apart.  It drove me crazy with planning but it was all worth it.

[mac21902]

Renewing my vows on board the Panorama on 7.4.2020 and I couldn't be more excited. I'm finalizing details now and still have to finalize the menu. I wanted to ask if they would extend the reception for another 30 mins but was told I have to wait until we are on board the ship to ask. 

[jperry2011]

Hmm I'm not sure about a menu, I bought the best onboard package they had and didnt hear anything about food... we just got a cake and champagne as far as I inow.

[cruisinmeme]

19 hours ago, jperry2011 said:

Hmm I'm not sure about a menu, I bought the best onboard package they had and didnt hear anything about food... we just got a cake and champagne as far as I inow.

 

 

We didnt have a say in the food for the reception. They just kept bringing it out. Too much and fancy stuff. I also believe there was a groom cake and the regular wedding cake.  Nobody was hungry for all the food because we had gone to buffet before wedding. 

Don’t hesitate to call the coordinator with your questions. 

[cruisinmeme]

19 hours ago, jperry2011 said:

Hmm I'm not sure about a menu, I bought the best onboard package they had and didnt hear anything about food... we just got a cake and champagne as far as I inow.

 

 

Ok out of being curious i went to carnival site to check out the wedding packages. They have apparently changed the packages. Didn’t say food on any of the simple packages. I know in our case it was a waste. We also had open bar. I remember they had the cheapest package, 

[jperry2011]

Yeah that's what I figured they had to change something. No loss though already all you can eat on the ship!

[nklpikl]

We were married on a Carnival ship. It was perfect for us. We had some guests that sailed with us and some that were only there for the wedding. We didn't have a lot of choices so it isn't good for someone who wants to control everything. I enjoyed not having to decide a lot of things. We brought our own flowers (silk) and music. The cake and food were delicious. Drinks were plentiful. It was perfection.

I think the link to our photos are in my signature. That would be the one downside. We had to leave our guests to go do photos. However they turned out amazing. 

[jperry2011]

Sounds like a great time, we are excited..