This Disney Cruise Wedding Might Just Be the Most Beautiful Thing We've Ever Seen

Updated on 6/20/2018 at 3:15 PM

Five days aboard a Disney cruise, surrounded by 100+ family members and friends. A Little Mermaid-themed ceremony on a private island, and the magic of Disney woven throughout the whole affair. Welcome to Colette and Johnny's wedding week. The couple met because they both worked in the video games industry. At the time, John was the VP of Production on the video game "Disney Infinity" in LA, and Colette was working as a video games PR professional in London, but also blogged about video games on the side as a hobby.

Colette published an article about Johnny's video game, and the article caught his attention. He subsequently met her in London during a press tour and showed her the game in-person. The two connected very quickly, sharing a passion for video games and all things Disney.

"When we met, I knew she was the one. Colette is smart, creative, funny, hard working, a great talker, courageous, and drop dead gorgeous!" Johnny told POPSUGAR.

The distance between the two didn't stop them from falling deeply in love with each other over time. Despite the eight-hour time difference, the two made things work as best as they could. In February 2016, Johnny and Colette both took a four-day cruise aboard the Disney Dream and celebrated Valentine's Day together on Disney's private island, Castaway Cay. At the end of this trip, these two long-distance love birds decided that they would no longer spend time away from each other and would figure out a way to close the distance between them.

After Johnny and Colette took that fateful cruise on Valentines Day 2016 and promised to "close the gap," they started making plans for the rest of the year. One of the holidays that they had promised to spend time together was Christmas and New Year's — which Johnny secretly felt was the perfect time to propose to Colette!

Leading up to the proposal, both Johnny and Colette were so excited for the November 2016 release of Moana that they decided to use the backdrop of the film to inspire their holiday vacation together, and unbeknownst to the bride-to-be: her dream engagement!

Colette flew from London to Los Angeles on December 23, and the two headed to Tahiti and then hopped aboard a small prop plane and flew to the island of Bora Bora. After months of planning, on Johnny popped the big question on Christmas Eve. After their sunset dinner, Johnny took Colette to a small dock on the island where he got down on one knee and proposed to her . . . and when she said yes, an actual fireworks show he arranged went off.

"Fireworks kinda had to be a thing. Colette and I always stay for the fireworks whenever we are at Disneyland, so it was a must for this momentous occasion," said Johnny.

And as for the Disney Cruise wedding itself?

"Let's be honest — there was no other option!" said Johnny. Colette had always dreamed of having a Disney's Fairy Tale Wedding and Johnny knew from working at Disney that the couple and all of their guests would be in good hands aboard the ship. The two had taken that Valentine's Day cruise together a few years back when they had fallen in love, so they thought it only fitting to invite their friends and family to enjoy the same cruise they did.

"With over 100 of our family and friends aboard the Disney Dream for our wedding on Castaway Cay, we would describe it as an unforgettable and magical experience. It really felt like we were in a fairy tale," the couple said. "Disney over-delivered on every aspect of the wedding, and our guests and family were treated like royalty throughout the week. Every detail was perfect and the big day was topped off with a spectacular fireworks display."

The two were wed on Castaway Cay, and even took a "mini-moon" after the cruise, where they stayed at Disney World's Grand Floridian Resort and Spa. At 6 a.m. one morning, the couple put their wedding attire back on and headed to Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom for their official Disney wedding photos outside the castle. It was a foggy morning, but the lighting only made the whole shoot even more enchanting.

"A Disney's Fairy Tale Wedding aboard the Disney Cruise Line is so special because it is a truly experiential event," Disney's Fairy Tale Weddings and Honeymoons told POPSUGAR. "We have found that our couples want to create events that reflect their personalities and also engage their wedding guests as active participants in the celebration . . . We love to create weddings that are unique to the couple and really celebrate their love story."

See their engagement and wedding photos ahead!

Disney's Moana inspired their engagement photos!

The bride and groomed saved their bachelor and bachelorette parties for the
first night of their week-long wedding cruise.

Johnny had his bachelor party at Pub 687 on Disney Dream. Disney designed a custom drink after the groom, dubbed "The Johnny V" — "a potent concoction consisting of a shot of Patron Silver, dropped into a glass of Corona to be chugged," according to Johnny. "A drink not for the weak by a long shot!"

Down the hall, Colette hosted "an elegant and elaborate" bachelorette party in the Dream's champagne room called Pink. The bar was inspired by the Pink Elephants scene in Dumbo.

Colette's bridesmaids and other close friends came dressed to impress in all pink outfits, and the bride-to-be was also decked out in pink.

Disney also designed a custom drink named after the bride — The Colette — which was not only pink, but served alongside pink colored canepes.

Later, the women crashed the bachelor party, where they "danced the night away" said the couple.

The bridal party wore adorable Little Mermaid-inspired T-shirts while prepping for the big day.

Colette had six bridesmaids — Ariel had six sisters! — whose dresses were handmade and designed by David McCarthy, and were inspired by the color palette of each sister from the movie.

The Caribbean Sea (and the Disney Dream) served as the beautiful backdrop for the ceremony.

For the wedding ceremony, the bride wore (light blue!) patent leather heels that said "Wifey For Lifey" on the soles.

Colette (fittingly) wore a white princess gown, embellished with pastel colored flowers and butterflies.

"My favorite part of the day was our first dance, because it was completely unchoreographed and turned out better than we could have ever planned," said Colette.

"We danced to the Moulin Rouge version of "Your Song" originally by Elton John, and I had a dress custom made to light up. And then at the very end, totally unprompted, the bridesmaids and groomsmen all came together for a group hug. It was amazing."

When asked about his favorite part of the event, Johnny couldn't pick just one thing. "There were so many moments, it is hard to pick just one. From the first time I saw Colette walk down the aisle, to when Disney arranged for two special 'friends' – Donald and Goofy – to show up in their regalia from one of our favorite video games, Kingdom Hearts, to everyone getting on the floor 'a little bit softer now' during the song "Shout," to the fireworks show at the conclusion of it all. The entire experience was just magical."

The wedding cake was a three-tiered peanut butter and chocolate cake, exclusively designed by Disney's pastry chefs. In keeping with The Little Mermaid theme, the cake featured chocolate and peanut butter sea shells, star fish, and other candies that were passed around throughout the reception, the couple revealed.

At the end of the evening, Colette switched into her final outfit – a dress inspired by the moment when Ariel emerges from the sea and walks towards Prince Eric in The Little Mermaid. Custom designed by Molly Nguyen Design, the purple body suit featured a sheer floor length skirt, dripping in sparkles and rhinestones.

After a week long cruise aboard the Dream, the newlyweds took a "mini-moon" and spent the weekend at Walt Disney World. They woke up at 6 a.m. for their wedding shoot, only to find a thick fog throughout the park.

"We were worried at first, but our photographer said that the fog would make the entire shoot that much more magical. We lucked out, I guess, because I think the photos turned out amazing!" said Colette.