Your Disney Wedding: Can You Bring Your Own Officiant?

Planning a wedding can be a stressful task, especially when it comes to choosing an officiant. This is a crucial decision as they preside over the most important aspect of your wedding day. If you're dreaming of a Disney-themed wedding, you may be wondering if you can bring your own officiant to the ceremony. The answer is yes! Disney allows couples to choose their own officiant, whether it's a friend, family member, or a professional. This gives you the flexibility to personalise your wedding and include special rituals or traditions that are meaningful to you.

However, it's important to note that Disney doesn't provide a wedding officiant as part of their wedding packages. So, if you're planning a Disney wedding, you'll need to arrange for your own officiant. This can be a friend or family member who gets ordained online, or you can hire a professional officiant in the area. Each state has its own requirements for legally officiating a wedding, so be sure to check the laws for your chosen Disney wedding location.

Disney doesn't provide an officiant, so you must choose your own

Disney doesn't provide a wedding officiant, so you'll need to choose your own. A wedding officiant is the person who leads the ceremony, pronounces you married, and signs your marriage license. While Disney can provide many of the services and vendors you might want for your wedding—including the venue, food and drinks, decor, transportation, a day-of coordinator, and a photographer—you'll need to organise your officiant separately.

Each state has its own requirements for who can legally officiate a wedding. You can ask a friend or relative to officiate your Disney wedding, as long as they've been ordained online. Alternatively, you can hire a professional officiant in the area. If you'd like recommendations, you can request a list of qualified officiants from the experts at Disney's Fairy Tale Weddings.

Your officiant will work closely with you to write the perfect 'wedding script' and design the perfect ceremony. They can perform religious or non-religious wedding ceremonies and are happy to include any rituals you might want, such as a unity candle lighting or sand ceremony.

A friend or relative can be your officiant if they're ordained online

Planning a Disney wedding? Congratulations! You can absolutely bring your own officiant to a Disney wedding. In fact, Disney doesn't provide a wedding officiant, so you'll need to choose your own.

Your friend or relative can get ordained online through organizations like American Marriage Ministries. In Florida and California, they won't need to register with the state before performing the ceremony. In Hawaii, they will need to register with the state before the wedding.

Once your chosen officiant is ordained and registered (if required), they can legally pronounce you married and sign your marriage license. You can work with them to write the perfect wedding script and design a ceremony that includes your favorite Disney references.

You can hire a professional officiant

If you're planning a Disney wedding, you can hire a professional officiant to perform your ceremony. Professional officiants decide their own rates and services based on their level of experience and the type of ceremony you request.

Disney's Fairy Tale Weddings can provide a list of qualified officiants if you would like recommendations. You can also check for local officiant listings online.

When choosing an officiant, it's important to consider their experience and whether they are familiar with Disney weddings. For example, Rev. Kevin Knox is a Methodist minister and one of Disney's Fairy Tale Weddings' approved officiants, with 28 years of experience and countless weddings performed at Walt Disney World under his belt.

The officiant you choose will work closely with you to create a personalised ceremony that reflects your personality and includes any rituals or traditions you wish to incorporate. They can also help you write your vows and design the perfect wedding script to make your special day magical.

By hiring a professional officiant, you can ensure that your Disney wedding is not only legally recognised but also memorable and tailored to your unique love story.

The officiant presides over the most important part of your wedding day

Each US state has its own requirements for who can legally officiate a wedding. If you're getting married at a Disney theme park in Florida, California, or Hawaii, or on a Disney cruise, you can ask a friend or relative to officiate your wedding if they've been ordained online. Alternatively, you can hire a professional officiant in the area.

Disney's Fairy Tale Weddings can provide a list of qualified officiants if you'd like recommendations, or you can check for local officiant listings online. You can also listen to the Disney Wedding Podcast episode with Rev. Kevin Knox, a Methodist minister and one of Disney's Fairy Tale Weddings' approved officiants, who has 28 years of experience and has performed countless weddings at Walt Disney World.

Whether you choose a friend, relative, or professional officiant, they can perform a religious or non-religious ceremony. Many officiants will work closely with the couple to write a personalised 'wedding script' and design the perfect ceremony, and are happy to include any rituals you might want, such as a unity candle lighting or sand ceremony.

The officiant leads the ceremony, pronounces you married, and signs your marriage license

A wedding officiant is the person who leads the ceremony, pronounces you married, and signs your marriage license. Disney does not provide a wedding officiant, so you will need to choose your own. You can ask a friend or relative to officiate your Disney wedding, or you can hire a professional officiant in the area.

If you are getting married at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida, your friend or relative can become ordained online and will then be able to legally pronounce you married and sign your marriage license. If you are getting married at Disneyland in California, the same rules apply. However, if you are getting married at Aulani Disney Resort & Spa in Hawaii, your friend or relative will need to register with the state as well as become ordained online.

If you are getting married on a Disney cruise, you will need to hold your wedding ceremony on land before or after your cruise for your marriage to be legal. This means that you will need to choose an officiant based on your location. For example, if you get married in Fort Lauderdale before departing on a cruise to the Bahamas, you can ask a friend or relative to perform your Florida wedding if they have been ordained online, or you can hire a professional officiant.

Disney's Fairy Tale Weddings can provide a list of qualified officiants if you would like recommendations, or you can check for local officiant listings online.

Frequently asked questions