Royal Caribbean Cruise Wedding

So I would definitely check out cruisecritic for cruise wedding advice. There are a few of us on here but not many. I am getting married in January on Carnival. We definitely liked RC but for the price, package, and cost for our guests, we chose a more budget friendly boat. We are going out of Jacksonville to Freeport and Nassau and getting married in Nassau. We invited roughly 84 people and so far 24 are booked. Our ship doesn't have a chapel either. At first, it bothered me but now it doesn't matter to me. You do what makes you happy. We didn't have a lot of money to spend on a wedding and this was the best option next to eloping. Our guests are paying $250 for the cruise and some are flying and some are driving to Jacksonville. If you plan to go this route, definitely keep the costs on their end into consideration. There is really zero planning involved in this and it has been amazing. If you need more information on this, private message me or email me at *******@*****.***

I'm planning on going to my cousins wedding on RC next May. She had a NIGHTMARE of a time trying to book with RC. Just things like, she would ask for one thing and they would say, "sure but then you can't do this other thing we already told you you could do", and she asked them time and time again to lay out each package and what they include so she wasn't playing a guessing game to try and figure out how to get all of her must haves and they were just super difficult to work with. Now that it's booked, she said everything is much easier and it was just that initial stage, but I am a little worried for her considering how difficult they were being when they were still trying to sell her.. I don't know the whole story on this one but at one point they told her if she picked the options she did she couldn't wear a wedding dress... wtf?

@meanttobeakennedy- Wow I'm shocked with RC! I never actually got them on the phone. The cost of the package and what you were getting steered me away. I have no clue what package wouldn't allow you to wear a wedding dress. That's ridiculous!

So, this was original idea as well until I read and heard the horror stories. This is what we're doing now... beautiful beach ceremony with only close family and friends. It's a intimate gathering so we're only expecting 30 to attend. Our ceremony begins at 11:00 a.m and will last 2 hours. Our package includes cake cutting and having our first dance on the beach plus 2 hours of photography. There will be a nice beverage stand for all guest. As soon as the ceremony is over we will be headed to Port Canaveral to cruise to the Bahamas for 3 days!! This option was cheaper than getting married on the boat and sounded so much better to us. Good luck!!

I didn't like how many individual add ons rc had to build the wedding package I wanted. I ended up going with Carnival. I agree with PP though. Cruisecritic will be very helpful. I know it was for me. ETA if you have any general cruise ceremony questions, feel free to reach out to me. I loved our wedding and would recomend a cruise wedding to anyone.

I'm doing a cruise wedding but through carnival. If you're in doubt, don't rush the decision - look at some other cruises or destination ideas. You don't want to spend all this time wondering if it'll be a problem or if there will be problems. We invited 260 and we have 50 definitely coming so far and it's 9 months away. The price was more for our guests then fururemrsp but that is because we're sailing out of ny, which impacts it a lot. It's a four day cruise which made it easier for guests to join. I would definitely go with low cost and short for the cruise length if you want guests to sail with you. Carnival allows 50 non sailing guests which is nice. They also don't have a chapel on my boat which disappointed me, but I'm hoping it'll be fine in pictures.

I don't have any real info on this, but I heard a story on the radio this morning about someone leaving out of Baltimore and then after departing they were told they were going to Canada instead of Bermuda because of hurricane Nicole. Apparently, Canada had no ports to house them so they were docked in NJ. Just something to think about since your date falls at the beginning of hurricane season. She said they were given a refund and I believe another cruise.

Have you looked into Carnival cruises? There's plenty on here that are getting married through Carnival.

Just want to say, I was looking at carnival site for a question that came to mind and they're pricing went up a lot in the time I booked (4 months ago) and now so what people are sharing might be off a bit as a heads up. We're locked in since we booked but they increased the extra guest cost and base package price so definitely look at the new info if you look into other cruises

Don't CArnival and RC both use The Wedding Experience as their shore side contacts and co-ordinators? I remember reading something about that somewhere, but I don't know if it is still true. If so, you are dealing with the same people- it's just how the packages are structured that is different. Look at all the lines before you commit.

I appreciate all of your input- everyone. I am very conflicted. The cost to the guest is tremendous and I feel terrible for that, but I also thought, its a vacation for everyone! We were planning on sailing out of NJ with RC going to Bermuda- a 6 day/5 night cruise. Its costing people 2500.00 per couple. I guess I am being ridiculous asking people to spend that much. The cost for us of course is <10,000, which I like because I do not want to spend 40,000 on a wedding in Westchester, when I could use that money for more important things. I did try to find a cruise with Carnival, but nothing suited our needs. It was easier to leave from NY because I have a disable father, who can not fly to Florida. At this point I am ready to just elope.

(somehow my comment got cut in half- weird)

Did you try the July carnival cruise out of ny that's four days to Bermuda? - $625 per guest plus port fees/taxes if it's still available. I didn't do this cruise bc it conflicted with work but could work for you guys - I totally understand that it's still a lot for guests and I struggled with that myself. Keep in mind if you choose out of ny, there is a law that prohibits the drink packages from kicking in on day 1

I did look at that, and in all honesty- I wanted to spend more time in Bermuda. I wish there were more options out of NY, but its very limited. We are trying to avoid later in the season to avoid the Hurricaines

Most of my guests booked last January and the cost of the cruise has actually decreased and Carnival honored that price. Gave them a cruise credit or deducted it from the total cost depending if they paid in full at time of booking. I would definitely consider the time of year you are planning to cruise. Hurricane season can be a total bust. I absolutely think 2500 is a lot for your guests. Look at all your options and times of the year. Your family and friends might be on-board with it if it's more budget friendly. Or get married on embarkment day so your guests can decide whether they want to take the cruise with you after the ceremony. I know Carnival does this but I don't know if RC does. I considered that opened for a second but the logistics weren't for me.