Unique Proposal Scenario

[jtread4]

While I know that every scenario is unique, I haven't been able to find anything in these forums close to mine and I need a little help. First, a little back story: My girlfriend comes from a Disney family. Her parents have season passes and as a family they usually go at least once a year, sometimes more. Myself on the other hand only went for one day as a child and it wasn't until last summer that I had my first real Disney World trip. My girlfriend and I went last summer as a couple. This summer we are going back with her family. We will be there (for the second time) during the 24 hour day at MK. At first I was thinking about doing it then, but after reading other posts in the forum I decided that wouldn't be the best idea as it is the last day of the trip. She already knows (unfortunately) that I am planning on asking her at DW, so I am trying to come up with some ideas that I could still have the element of surprise. If I can't get the surprise factor, then I would be just as happy as long as I can make it extra memorable. We have been together for 3 years come April. Any ideas and/or pointers would help tremendously.

EDIT: I just thought of a scavenger hunt idea since her family will be there to lead her around. Any thoughts on this or ideas for stops along the way?

 

[DisneyAubs]

Scavenger hunt sounds fun! Try to incorporate her favorites.
Start with her favorite park. Then try to incorporate her favorite characters, attractions, snacks, etc... Maybe post one family member at each location to greet her and give the next clue, then you can be waiting at the end? Ooh, I love planning stuff like this! Fun stuff!!!

 

[LostPrincessKarleigh]

Definately love the scavenger hunt idea. Have family members posted at different spots with clues through out the park, maybe? And one to be with her at all times (don't want your little bride-to-be getting lost!) good luck!

 

[wdwmagic]

The only thing with the scavenger hunt is that I think it will be extremely obvious what is about to happen. There really won't be any concept of a surprise there - if that is important.

 

[MOXOMUMD]

While I know that every scenario is unique, I haven't been able to find anything in these forums close to mine and I need a little help. First, a little back story: My girlfriend comes from a Disney family. Her parents have season passes and as a family they usually go at least once a year, sometimes more. Myself on the other hand only went for one day as a child and it wasn't until last summer that I had my first real Disney World trip. My girlfriend and I went last summer as a couple. This summer we are going back with her family. We will be there (for the second time) during the 24 hour day at MK. At first I was thinking about doing it then, but after reading other posts in the forum I decided that wouldn't be the best idea as it is the last day of the trip. She already knows (unfortunately) that I am planning on asking her at DW, so I am trying to come up with some ideas that I could still have the element of surprise. If I can't get the surprise factor, then I would be just as happy as long as I can make it extra memorable. We have been together for 3 years come April. Any ideas and/or pointers would help tremendously.

EDIT: I just thought of a scavenger hunt idea since her family will be there to lead her around. Any thoughts on this or ideas for stops along the way?

The other thing is do you really want to waste the other family members park time on a hunt as it sounds like it could be time consuming.

 

[DizneyPryncess]

It might be cute to have a custom cake made that says "Will You Marry Me?" It could be delivered to your room, or brought to your dinner table, and you could get down on one knee at that moment? Either way, she wouldn't see it coming and the cake would just appear via the waiter, or to the room door. It wouldn't be obvious in advance, so you might get shock value.

Another idea would be to try to get a dining reservation at California Grill during Wishes. A friend of mine proposed to his wife there during the fireworks. The restaurant knew his plan, and gave him a window seat, and it all sounded pretty magical to me!

 

[MerMom1981]

If this were my family, I would be thrilled to be part of a proposal scavenger hunt...which should end with a Wishes fireworks cruise by the way.
If you don't have the element of surprise, it should be absolutely magical. You have to go bigger than a ring in her dessert. Plus, it's nice to have a private moment.

 

[Blueskyze]

If this were my family, I would be thrilled to be part of a proposal scavenger hunt...which should end with a Wishes fireworks cruise by the way.
If you don't have the element of surprise, it should be absolutely magical. You have to go bigger than a ring in her dessert. Plus, it's nice to have a private moment.

I completely agree!! I love scavenger hunts, and ending it with a totally unexpected magical event like a fireworks cruise would be perfect! Good luck, and please let us know what you end up doing.

 

[jtread4]

I love all the ideas! Like I said, the element of surprise is pretty much shot. We do however have a dinner reservation at the California Grill and I believe at Be Our Guest. With out having the surprise factor, I'm not quite as much interested in it being too surprising (for lack of better words) as I am having it be special to her which is why I was thinking about the scavenger hunt idea. But with it now a month away I'm not sure if I can come up with clues for the hunt or if I do if they should be random Disney facts (keep in mind she comes from a huge Disney family) or if they should be special to us (we have only been once together). I love all the ideas and help though!

 

[steamboatjosh]

What's her favorite Disney movie or character?

 

[jtread4]

Well lately her favorite movie has been Frozen. She doesn't have a favorite character per se, but she loves the princesses and Mickey of course.

 

[steamboatjosh]

Maybe propose to her during the Frozen part of Celebrate the Magic? Make sure you either get a FP+ for the Main Street Electrical Parade or show up early enough to get a viewing spot of the hub. After MSEP they do Celebrate the Magic which is a projection show where they completely transform the castle, then right after that they do the Wishes fireworks. You could propose to her right when the Frozen sequence starts during Celebrate the Magic, then right after that's finished you watch Wishes close-up together.

Would be very romantic.

 

[flipadeeflop]

Congratulations! You must be excited! I just want to say - I'd MUCH rather get engaged at the very beginning of the trip if I were getting proposed to... That way you can celebrate the whole time, get lots of "congrats," and wear just engaged pins!

 

[jtread4]

The trip is getting closer (less than a month) and I am very nervous! I like the Wishes idea, but I know that it can get very cramped around that time with people all trying to watch the show. We do have reservations at California Grill, but it is with her whole family, and I don't know what the tables for larger groups are like. Let me know what yall think about this idea. So from my understanding, most people go onto a balcony or a special area to watch Wishes during dinner at the California Grill. I also know that the Disney Florists have a tiara/glass slipper package. What if while watching Wishes, I have that delivered to the table? Either proposing during Wishes (around certain cues from Jiminy) or having the ring placed in the glass slipper and doing it right after the show?

 

[oswaldmickey]

If you are daring and she has a good sense of humor....and you want to keep the element of surprise, consider obtaining some extra ring boxes (with no rings in them) and propose to her many times throughout the trip...she might get mad/upset...but it will keep her on her toes.

And yeah, the ideal spot to propose at the California grill is on there walk out ledge and at any time of the meal you can walk her out there and propose really.

I would pass on the Disney Florist, for the price you pay it's more for convenience than quality. The tiara/glass slipper are kind of ehh to me. If you have some money, consider buying her Franklin Mint's Cinderella wand on ebay. There is one on ebay right now for $59 with a couple of "gems" missing but that would be a steal (about half off the best prices). Just go to Michaels and buy a couple of rhinestones glue them back on if you want. I got this wand for my wife as part of the scavenger hunt proposal I put her through. You can buy nice tiaras on ebay as well just make sure it matches her ring if she ends up wanting to use it during the actual wedding like my wife did.

Also you can have a special proposal cake or desert made at the California grill. One guy told a Disney chef "haunted Mansion / wedding proposal (or anniversary?)" as the only instructions and got one of the neatest cakes I have ever seen from Disney.

Also, there is a company in Tampa Florida you can contact called Zen Glass Studio who can make you a custom made glass slipper that will actually fit her feet. It cost $275 I think when I got them to make me one. I recommend taking your girlfriend "shoe shopping" and getting every measurement of her feet. Contact them now though because they are busy people and will need all the time to make the glass slipper. I also got made for my wives proposal. They will ship it to you too.

With that said, the Disney Florist gift is still a nice gift, the boxes they come in are very nice and will aww her.

I did a week long scavenger hunt proposal but I have gone to WDW many times and it was essentially my wife's first major trip. The more you know about the parks the better for a scavenger hunt. I decided 49 days before a Disney vacation that I was going to propose to her and was able to pull a very elaborate proposal.

If you are still interested in a scavenger hunt proposal, I might be able to help you. My wife had to save the Magic Kingdom, recover the Fairy Godmother's Wand, help a bunch of princesses out, find magical charms all over the park s, get herself invited to a princess ball and acquired many items to become a princess and then get "turned into a princess" for her proposal. I can tell you the "story" I came up with the different task and clues I came up and the more friends and family you have with you the better. The more help you have pulling off a scavenger hunt proposal the better.

Hope that helps.

 

[jtread4]

I actually really love that idea of empty ring boxes. We have been together for a little over 3 years and she has been sending me pictures of rings for quite a while, so it could kind of be a little payback . The cake would be a fun idea, however neither of us are really sweets people. We love them, but we can only eat a bite or so before it's too much. I think it's too close in time for the custom slipper to be made as we leave in just a little over a week from now. I do still like the scavenger hunt idea, but with all the excitement and nerves kicking in, my creative side has been slightly blocked, so if you're willing to give help there, I am more than willing to listen!

 

[BrittanyRose428]

I love the idea of doing it outside on the balcony of California Grille during the fireworks! I'm not a huge fan of in front of the castle proposals (mostly just because I feel like that's what everyone does) but that will make it unique. Though I agree with the person with the person above-- I would prefer to be proposed to at the beginning of the trip rather than the end if it were up to me.

 

[TheBeastMom]

Our kids grew up going - we've been DVC since 1993.

Our son's intended had NEVER been and loves fireworks. We suggested the Tomorrowland Terrace Dessert Party. At $29 a head it wasn't cost prohibitive for Dad, Mom, Aunt and the happy couple.

They stood at the railing while the pre show played and although he was going to wait until the fireworks were over they played "a wish is a dream your heart makes" and he caved....

He asked her what her wish was and she answered 'to be with you'

He asked her 'forever?' and she said yes.... he dropped to one knee and produced the ring....

They spent the rest of the fireworks show kissing and hugging while we cried....It was my 60th birthday and I had worn my Tiara to the party, but I transferred it to her head once she accepted the ring.

The cast members brought "We're Engaged' buttons for them, a certificate of an 'official celebration event' and allowed us a bit longer to finish our desserts.

The next night they had dinner at Cinderella's Table.

 

[CaptainShortty]

I love all the ideas! Like I said, the element of surprise is pretty much shot. We do however have a dinner reservation at the California Grill and I believe at Be Our Guest. With out having the surprise factor, I'm not quite as much interested in it being too surprising (for lack of better words) as I am having it be special to her which is why I was thinking about the scavenger hunt idea. But with it now a month away I'm not sure if I can come up with clues for the hunt or if I do if they should be random Disney facts (keep in mind she comes from a huge Disney family) or if they should be special to us (we have only been once together). I love all the ideas and help though!

I know someone who did a scavenger hunt where it like "prepared" her for the day. Depending on how much you're willing to spend, you could give her her first clue that would send her to the Senses Spa at the Grand for mani/pedis (maybe with her Mom/other girls that will be there), then send her to Arribas Brothers on Main Street to pick out a tiara, then to Castle Couture to get pixie dusted, and so on....Her last spot could be a particular spot where you want to propose (favorite place in Disney, what you think to be the most magical, etc.) or dinner where you can propose like others have said during dessert or wishes or what not depending on the restaurant. Or, you can surprise her with the fireworks cruise and do it then (at least the cruise would be a surprise!).

 

[oswaldmickey]

I also recommend proposing
A - During the day so you can actually get good photos/videos and
B - To photograph and video the whole proposal well
C - Proposing in front of a Disney authorized Photopass photographer. Feel free to hand the photogathers a piece of paper telling them you are about to propose and don't stop taking pictures. EVER.
D - And buying the photopass because of (B)s good photos.

My original plan was to propose in front of the castle during the fireworks but it is SO DARK at night at these parks. Unless you have good lighting equipment build into your camera(s), it will be super difficult to get good photos. My first night during my proposal totally changed my mind about the cliche ideal in front of the castle proposal and instead proposed on the last day at a character meet in greet with Mickey and Minnie mouse.
I made Mickey hold the ring but he dropped it.