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As for tipping, Pete and I tipped quite a bit. We actually meet in the service industry and Pete is a chef so we are habitually big tippers possibly b/c we might have a different view of the work these people do. We got a chance to talk to one of the bartenders on a rainy day at our Casita pool and learned that bartenders have what is considered the best job at the resort. They make about $5 A DAY from EDR and if they are lucky, they make about $20 in tips. I personally was nauseated as we sat in front our our room that we spent almost $5,000 for!!! They also leave there families in other parts of Mexico to work six or seven days a week at the resort. We had already been tipping big before that (giving about $40 per server at our reception - same guys for cocktail and dinner), but tipped even bigger after. So to each his own, but I know that even though we were on a budget, the work these people are doing is the same as if we were not on a budget and the money means more to them than it does to us. My two cents on the subject...

EDR does multiple weddings a day. We got married on a Saturday and there were two other weddings. This doesn't happen every day of the week though, so you could chose an off day. For what it's worth, I never say another bride the day of my wedding and did not feel ignored by the WC's at all. Some of our guests went to guacamayas after the reception and said the two other brides were there, so you could run into them, but it's totally possible to feel like you are the only bride that day.

Wow, she's crazy and selfish, huh? Beyond her having missed her opportunity to speak up, I think it would be rather obnoxious to your guests that have made arrangements to go and change them. IMHO. Plus, are you truly going to redo all of your plans just b/c she thinks it isn't a good beach?? Plus, the beach there is fine and there are areas without sandbags.

Quote: Originally Posted by shannon Hey Bre-how long was the signing of the documents? I didn't think about playing a song for that, but it does make sense- could you post a picture of your programs for ceremony?-- trying to get a feel for the ceremony outline... We played "somewhere over the ranbow/it's a wonderful world" by Israel Kamakawiwo'ole (I lived in Hawaii for 5 years). It is five minutes long, which seemed perfect. The signing of the legal documents takes a while so it was a nice element. A couple came up to us the next day and said they had seen our wedding (we never noticed anyone) but said that having all the music we did made it a lot nicer than another ceremony they had seen earlier in the week. It was a nice compliment after putting a lot of work into the ceremony. I didn't do programs. It's so short and our group was so small it didn't seem necessary to me. I had asked for an outline from Valeria and never got one. We added our vows and a reading but it was pretty awkward b/c Glorai was asking me during the signing of the documents what should be done next. Not a huge deal but it would have been better if it had been planned out in advance. I had forgotten to ask in the meeting. We went over it on the phone the day before but it wasn't totally smooth.

Quote: Originally Posted by ctpetch I had found a cd that is all piano music, love songs. I was almost thinking of just playing it through the entire ceremony as background music. Do you think that would work or be too loud? If we decide to do music just during certain times through the ceremony does the wc do all that? What is your recommendation? We played music before the ceremony, for processionals, during the signing of the documents (used a long song for this one) and the recessional. The music was pretty loud so I think playing it the whole time would be distracting and might make it really hard for your guests to hear. Plus, if you are getting married on the beach, you want to hear the sound of the ocean!

Quote: Originally Posted by pryzeless I am planning on around 45 people and we are having a welcome "free" dinner the night before. I was thinking about the BBQ because of all the choices but I like sitting down and being served. We just can't decide on the food options. My FI is a picky eater. Bre- Did you do a sit down? If so, what were your food choices. We did the free dinner at Cocotal the night before and had a plated sit won dinner for the reception. THere were a ton of choices. They should be able to email you the whole list of food options- it's like 18 pages but includes everything you can imagine. We chose to do the pork with achiote sauce and mashed sweet potatoes and the salmon with champagne sauce. First, course was the papaya salad then we had the ceviche. I loved the ceviche and wanted to steal it off peoples plates.

Quote: Originally Posted by Mandy What's the deal with the bouquet holders? We don't have to get one of those to keep the flowers together, right? I did not order a bouquet holder. I requested that my flowers be wrapped in a chocolate brown satin ribbon, which they were at no additional charge.

Lauren, I forgot to mention this but I think you should email Faith Wishnie [email protected]. she is the director of wedding services at Karisma. My TA pulled her in early on for an issue and it was resolved quickly. Your experience is something she should hear about.

Lauren, you weren't kidding that was a long review! I feel really bad that you had so many bumps in the road That definitely stinks and I can see why you wouldn't personally recommend EDR. For all of the EDR brides reading this review, I just want to say that we had a entirely different experience. I think part of this is that when I came up against obstacles I decided to avoid the situations rather than get them to do things they weren't used to, such as rehearsals. So we skipped the rehearsal which wasn't too big of a deal for us. We had also worked out prior to arrival that we were bringing an outside photographer so there was no on-site conflict about this one and the staff was incredibly courteous to Vincent and Diego. As for changing locations the day before, I had ready posts that they are very reluctant to make changes once you sign everything b/c in actuality you are signing documents agreeing to locations and what not. That said, I do think that could work on being accommodating to couples but given how many weddings they do I can understand to some extent their reluctance. We also had a disappointing site visit there. They basically didn't know we were coming and wouldn't work out any of the details with us. Later I realized this is b/c it is the job of Valeria and Monica to work out details and the on-site coordinators to implement it. We had Valeria and I think that helped account for a better experience. I've heard from many brides that Monica is not organized and your review clearly reinforces that. I would suggest that future brides request Valeria. SOOOO, Lauren, sorry that you had to go through so much hassle but hopefully other EDR brides can learn from your experience. When do we get to see photos?

Quote: Originally Posted by ctpetch I wasn't aware of that either. I have a cd I'm playing anyways. Just with piano music I found we really like for the ceremony. I got alot of decisions to make only 2 1/2 months left and not sure what to go with for some things yet. With a burned cd you never know if it will play in their cd player. Maybe someone can find that out for you since there are several of us on here getting married in May. We burned cds and had no problem playing them for the ceremony. just be sure to bring a back up in case something doesn't work and have it on your iPod too. THankfully we didn't need to use either back up. Also, make a cover for the cd that includes the number of the song and when it should be played (ie- pre-ceremony music while guests are seated, bridesmaids, brides processionals, document signing music, recessional, etc.)

Quote: Originally Posted by pryzeless Is anyone doing/did a sit down dinner? We are thinking about it but we are also having the 2 hour cocktail party first. We did the two hour cocktail party then the four hour private dinner event. It seems like a long time but we didn't get to any of the cocktail party and the dinner event FLEW by. We were really happy that we did both though. Our guests really enjoyed it. One tip: make sure you clearly express how you would like timing for the reception. Have a copy of the schedule for the person who is running things at the reception. This was one of the restaurant managers who was there for the entire reception (in addition to the WC's though they left after a couple hours). You may also want to have one of your bridesmaids keeping an eye on the time for things like speeches and special dances- basically what a DJ would do but we used the iPod. It can totally fly by if you don't pay attention.

Hi everyone! I'm REALLY sorry that I haven't written my review yet! I've started it a few times but working full time, being in grad school full time, and trying to find time to be a newly wed is a little bit of a life-work-school balance issue. I actually barely find the time to come onto the forum anymore I'll try to write one soon! I'm on spring break this week so there is hope! But in all- it was absolutely amazing.

Neither DH or I had any issues on either of our trips there. As far as we know, no guests got sick. The shower and sink water smells like sulfur. I think this is because they might treat water from the mangroves, but that is just a guess!

istockphoto is awesome. we bought a great photo for our save the dates there. it was about $5. the company the did the magnets asked if they could buy the photo from us to offer it to other couples! istockphoto.com really does have the best images at the lowest prices, especially if you want high resolution (for printing). We use it at work all the time. I would highly recommend it. Stock Photography: Search Royalty Free Images & Photos | iStockphoto.com

Quote: Originally Posted by Jacqueline "bigger than my head", i just busted out laughin to that. It's funny but honest to goodness when my sister was pregnant last year, she got huge and I got SCARED. I'll already be front- heavy....

Quote: Originally Posted by JessicaLovesBrian bre- did you get them behind your chest muscles? do you have any scarring from the incisions? They are behind my chest muscles and I do have scars in my armpits. THey are very light though and I've never had anyone ask about them so they might not be noticeable. I think given the type of skin there and how often we move it's hard to have zero scarring.

Quote: Originally Posted by Kat81 Did you have kids after? No kids yet. Though I am afraid they will be bigger than my head when I'm pregnant... By the time we have a couple of kids, it'll be close to 15 years so I'll reevaluate then based on how they look and if I get naturally larger during pregnancy.

Quote: Originally Posted by Jacqueline You're advice was very good. Is it true that people have to get them "touched up" every 5 years?? I haven't had to have mine "touched up." In fact, I think they still look great! Gravity has taken a small toll but I think that only I would notice.

I got implants 9 years ago. It was a great decision for me but it is not for everyone. It is an incredibly painful process and you need to be very dedicated in your recovery to ensure that they look as natural as possible. Post-op it's up to you to make sure you wear the right bras, don't do movements that you shouldn't be doing, wear a band above your chest to keep them from setting too high and (guys love this idea but it hurts like a MoFo) you need to massage them for 10-15 minutes twice a day to prevent the build up of scar tissue that turns them very hard. I get really angry when I see shows like Dr. 90210 and two weeks later the girls are wearing string bikini tops. That is totally irresponsible and unrealistic. I would recommend doing it at least six months before your wedding to ensure they don't look too new and people have a chance to get used to them. Sounds silly but it'll be an adjustment for your family and friends. It is a long, painful and involved process but if you really want it AND you go to a very good surgeon it can be a great decision. I would also recommend getting them behind your chest muscle if you intend on breast-feeding children some day. This is the only option where breast-feeding is possible but it does make the surgery much more painful. Be sure to take care of your incision sites though b/c going behind the muscle requires incisions in your armpits which are harder to heal very small b/c of the amount we move our arms on a daily basis. Hope I didn't paint too grim a picture! In the end, just be sure you don't go to big or else you'll suffer the opposite of what you feel now but no one will be willing to hear you complain! Good luck!

Thanks for the tips ladies! I was going to post the link to the photo on the Amsale site but it wasn't there. I'll post one when I get home. It's a stunning dress but better for a non-summer wedding. It would be perfect for a wedding in the fall or winter b/c it's a really heavy satin. I bought it when I thought we would get married in Boston. That's why I didn't think of posting it here. But I guess it's worth a try! (even if you do know what I paid....)

I don't think it's lame at all! In fact it gives me hope (false but whatever) that maybe my DH had a cute plan all along... I always wanted to get engaged on Christmas Eve. Well, he asked me on Christmas Eve. But he was so nervous that he couldn't wait so he asked me while I was putting make-up in the bathroom. not exactly the romantic proposal that little girls dream about... He's made it up since then and now I can laugh about it but I will admit it was a little disappointing that night. especially when I walked out of the bathroom and saw the christmas tree all lit up in the living room. Oh well! I think I'll keep him. I love that you got your FI to write it up though. You need to save that for your wedding scrapbook if you're doing one.

Okay, so last February I bought a stunning Amsale dress at the Filene’s Basement “running of the brides†for $500. I think the dress retails for upwards of $2,500. I ended up buying another dress and want to sell the Amsale. It’s never been altered or worn. Do you think I could try to sell it for closer to retail? If so, how could I find out what it goes for at a bridal shop?? We have some debt from the wedding so I don't want to walk away from any money. It had been on the Amsale sight forever and now it's not on there Does this mean they aren't offering it as part of the collection?? I was thinking of putting it on craigs list first, then eBay. Any advice on how to sell it would be much appreciated!

I've had people ask me in business meetings if I'm an intern. It's great to see their face when I start to run the meeting! I can feel your pain though... For me, I makes a big difference how tightly I pull my hair back. The softer the look, the more I look like my actual age. I think soft and sophisticated is the way to go for your hair. Try a test run at home if you're nervous. Make-up will also make a big difference. Regardless, you'll look beautiful on your big day!

I did simple paper gift bags b/c I personally wouldn't reuse a bag with someone's wedding logo on it so I decided to save money there. here is what we included (I think this is everything...): welcome letter dove chocolates alka-seltzer crystal light individual flavor packets (hotel gives bottled water in every room) emergen-c (energy/immune booster) custom bookmark chap stick sunscreen (little travel tube from target $1) pack of eclipse gum travel candle and matches pashmina for the ladies cigar for the men bolded items are the ones that people commented on the most. Pashminas were a very big hit. I bought three colors and let the ladies choose their own.

I went last year. Took an early lunch at 11am and went by myself. I thought the madness would have subsided but it was still very weird. Though I'm sure MUCH less hectic than at 8am. I did buy a truly beautiful Amsale gown for only $499. It retails for something like $2,700. I ended up buying another dress though, which reminds me I need to sell the Amsale... Anyways, there are amazing deals to be had. Just try to have some idea of what you are looking for. and be clothed to try things on. I'd also recommend going with someone. It was pretty overwhelming by myself. I ended up going back with a co-worker. If you're looking for a deal, it's the best thing going!