ctpetch

I have a $150 gift certificate that can be used at El Dorado Spa Resorts & Hotels Azul by Karisma. This can be used for luxury resorts towards a beachfront sky massage or candlelight dinner on the beach or suite up grade or vintage wine. This expires on Dec 15, 2009 for anyone who is going in the next month. This is transferable and can be shared with a friend if you can't use it. I'm selling it for $50 if anyone is interested in saving $100 towards their stay. Thank you

Quote: Originally Posted by EDRBride2009 I think you mean Elizabeth Medina and yes, she does awesome pics. I am going with Claudia Rodriguez's photographer Citlalli That's who I'm thinking of Elizabeth. I did here that Claudia is very good too. Believe it or not there are quite a few good photographers there in the area. Well best wishes your day is coming up soon. Your going to love it there if you haven't been there already. They will make it very special for you. We even just went back for our one yr anniversary in May. May go again this year or try one of their other resorts this time.

Quote: Originally Posted by jennib31 CTPetch - Your from Wheatfield near Buffalo, NY? I'm a buffalo girl and thought that area sounded familiar. Thanks for the input everyone. I am trying not to freak out about all the extras but our budget is ever-expanding. The photography really worries me, what if the quality of the recomended companies aren't good? I feel I would rather pay more and rest assured they will be awesome shots - the photos are all we have! I am from Wheatfield, Buffalo NY. What a coinsidence. So are you still living in buffalo? Don't go crazy with all the extras as I mentioned. They do such a great job and will help you with last minute changes if needed. I know what you mean about the photographer and not knowing the quality. They are very important to get great pictures especially being your wedding. I know there are alot of great ones there. I went by what other brides recommended on this site. I seen what their experiences were and the quality of pictures they put on along with the websites of the photographers. That too helped me decide. I went in the middle as far as cost and was very pleased with our pictures. I could try to put some of them on here tomorrow so you can see and others how they turned out. You definitely want some awesome photos. I did hear Elizabeth? is one of the best. I cant recall her name at the moment. I can check in to some of the ones that were recommended to us. Good luck. Tracy

Quote: Originally Posted by jennib31 So for those who are booked for weddings Nov-2010... what types of "extras" did you order? Who did you choose for photograpghy? I'm still torn on Moments that Matter... just seems like a lot of money ($2,500 for the photogs plus $500 resort fee) Are you doing a private dinner? Did you pick any colors? I already had my wedding at the EDR 5/2008. They do an exceptional job so no worries. Don't stress or go over board. You can do so many extras that aren't even needed in my opinion. I did upgrade our gazebo with scarves and hanging corsages. Then they used them for table center pieces for our reception. We did chair covers with sashes for ceremony and reception. All those upgrades were inexpensive and made it beautiful. They did all our flowers and they were gorgeous. As far as the photographers they had the resort fee when I had mine too. It had just started then. So my photographer took off $250 to compensate the cost. I know they have added several photographers you can choose from without paying a fee. I had Cancun Studios for 3-4 hrs which was plenty of time for $1200. They did a beautiful job and Agustyn the owner was our photographer & he is great. We did a reception for 4 hrs and had a great time. Actually better then our at home reception. I would of been happy with just doing the one at EDR. They again did a beautiful job setting it up and the staff was entertaining and great food. It was well worth it and we only had 16 people with us. I did white sashes and scarves because my color was difficult to match. Then once I arrived at EDR they go over everything and you can make changes. They also suggested some changes to my flowers which I did and they were absolutely beautiful ...the purple iris's Hopefully that helped you or anyone else. It helps to talk with people that have already done their wedding there.

Quote: Originally Posted by Dreamgirl08 Thanks for your feedback Rhonda, well yes, my rehearsel dinner was going to be held on the day before the wedding, but it turns out that many of our guests will be arriving on this day, so I don't even see the point in doing it anymore. I don't want it to go to waste, and it's def. a great way to save ouselves some mony. So I'm thinking maybe we should take advantage of it, and just try to work with it during, and after the dinner. I'm just upset cause there won't be a nice backdrop for pics during the dinner and after...I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO!!!? I really need to know who's going & who isn't I think. This will help me to narrow down my options for sure. Does anyone happen to know what is traditional as far as TIMING for RSVP'S back from the INVITES goes so confused.. Things may change with some people the last minute. With the struggle with the economy that is a big factor. I would say most will know 2 months prior. I would give them some time and you can plan it all but don't need a menu or count til 30 days prior. I did all mine then. I only had the places picked out and that was it. If alot are not coming in til that day you could still do it later as a rehearsal dinner. We did ours with a few guest coming in but did dinner at 7:00 pm. If not another suggestion to do is use it as a thank you dinner at the end of everyones stay. I've seen brides do that too. Usually with AHR it's usually 4-6 wks prior so would say about the same. Most are going to know within 60 days. I had a few at the last minute bail out but most knew right away. We did all our plans with 8 months notice. It all worked out great and wouldn't change anything we did. The EDR did a fantastic job. We are going back for our anniversary in May. I can't wait to go back. I would be glad to help anyone if they have any questions or concerns.

Quote: Originally Posted by bechgrl Hair Trial? Hi any former EDR brides did any of you do a hair/makeup trial? I was wondering if it is really worth it or if I would just be losing that much more time the? Thanks for any help!!! I did a trial at home and hated the way it came out. So I found a picture I liked and gave it to them at the resort when getting my hair done and she did a beautiful job. I loved it. I didn't do a trial at the resort. I also did my own make-up. If you know what you want they do a great job copying it. They do alot of updo's.

Quote: Originally Posted by shannon Hey Tracy-- hope you are doing well! --- I haven't gotten the photo album or CD -- only the slideshow.. But I sent in the selections for the slideshow early, bc we are sending out a few annoucements with the slideshow link on it... Hopefully the album and CD will come in the next few weeks-- I'm slightly ADD about the photos- hehe.... I'm doing pretty good. And you? That's a good idea with sending the link to friends and family. I have to sit down and figure out which photos we want. Did you get all of them put on a cd or just the ones from your slide show? Hope your having a great summer. Keep in touch

Quote: Originally Posted by Dreamgirl08 Cool, yeah we're doing the same thing. Question, in your registry, did you post $$$$ contribution, or actual activites & gifts for your guests to choose from? Right now we have $$$$ contribution as an option, but we kind of feel like this is too straight foward about the whole thing. Any suggestions about how to go about it? Also, should I go through Lomas for picking things? We did both. We did massages and then just different dollar amounts. The nice thing about it they will direct deposit the cash into your account then you can use as you like. We did mostly dollar amounts. We didn't get alot from that but enough for us both to get the couples romantic massage. That was the main thing we wanted. Plus I had a small shower anyways. You could go through Lomas if you want but either way I think is a great way of getting something nice for your honeymoon/wedding.

Quote: Originally Posted by Dreamgirl08 Quick question for all Riviera Maya or EDR Brides on here, How exactly do you go about booking things such as spa treatments, hair & make-up appointments, massages, and your honeymoon activites/excursions..etc? My FI & I are with honeymoonwishes.com and we're trying to post our gift wishes on the website for guests to purchase for us. But we're having some trouble deciding where to look. Would it be Lomas Travel? If so, I noticed they don't offer many options. FI & I would love to go horseback riding and maybe go snorkeling too, but I didn't see these options on Lomas. Is there another group of professionals that I can work with? How did you make your arrangements? And did you book ahead of time or while there? We did Honeymoon Wishes - Honeymoon Registry where your wedding gift is a Romantic Honeymoon for ours. It gave upgrades, spa treatments and excursions. The best part about it you just get a check for the items or amount purchased and use where you want to. You can just register for dollar amounts for your registery or wedding gifts. It is helpful to have to put towards any of those things. I had my TA book my hair appointments and my massage. The WC will but you have to pay when you pay your bill 30 days prior when doing that. We had resort credits and cash from the gifts purchased from honeymoonwishes.com so we just paid at check out. for ours

Quote: Originally Posted by shannon We got our professional slideshow back from Cancun Studios if you guys are interested! :) Vince & Shannon Your slide show is beautiful Shannon. I still have to choose our photos and send that in to them. Did you get your photo album or any other extra photos? If so were you happy with everything?

Quote: Originally Posted by Kits55 Hi Ct: thanks for the tip! i am all about candles and glitter/sparkle for my reception. this is very good for me to know! No problem. That what this is for. You get alot of great tips on things you don't think of. It can save you some money and help you be more organized in your planning. You really don't have to over do it either. All their weddings and set ups are beautiful..

Quote: Originally Posted by animaldoc Thank you for the info, I think I am going to make the appointment for 11, which is probably too early, but I don't want to be running late. Tracy, the new coordinator said that the bridal party would be scheduled an hour apart from each other, I wonder why they won't schedule the bridal party at the same time as me. Jennifer Jen I'm not sure about that with the scheduling. It was only myself and sister so it wasn't an issue. I actually had my TA schedule it for me. Heather from Berman took care of that for us.

Quote: Originally Posted by pryzeless Thanks for the info. Did you use the ones that EDR provided or did you bring your own? I used the ones EDR provided. They were just white paper bags with sand in them for weight and the candles. I would definitely bring extra candles this way you will have the lighting all night. Wish I would of done that.

Quote: Originally Posted by animaldoc I have a question about hair and makeup. How long does it usually take and what time would you suggest I make the appointment for, my wedding is at 3:30 and pics start at 2:30? I will have 2 bridesmaids having their hair fixed and MOG hair and makeup. Thanks, Jennifer I would schedule for 11am or 12. I think they can do 3 or 4 people at one time. My sister and I did ours at the same time. They did a great job too. It was well worth the money. Just have an idea or photo and they will copy that. They do have magazines and books with ideas which we went the day before to look at. I ended up going with one I brought with me anyways. Best wishes and happy planning.

Quote: Originally Posted by animaldoc I have a question about hair and makeup. How long does it usually take and what time would you suggest I make the appointment for, my wedding is at 3:30 and pics start at 2:30? I will have 2 bridesmaids having their hair fixed and MOG hair and makeup. Thanks, Jennifer Hey Jen. How's the planning going? Sounds like you are getting down to the end things. About the hair & make up. My sister and I went, it took about an hour. We had hair washed before going. They weren't crazy about our hair being damp before getting there though. Our ceremony was at 5 so I think I had my appointment for 1:30. It was plenty of time for us. I did my own make up and only had 30 minutes pre bridal photos. Again which was enough for us.

Quote: Originally Posted by Kits55 Thanks for posting where you got your sand vases from, i had no idea where to look! Just a suggestion on beach candles. They only burn 2 hrs. I would bring some extra ones so you will have them for your entire reception. You can buy a bag of them of 100 for $5. I wish we would of done that for our reception.

Quote: Originally Posted by Rhonda Has anyone had any experience with any of the "approved" photographers/videographers at EDR? My FI and I have decided to use one of the resorts photographers to avoid the $500 fee. The choices are Caribe Photo; Royale Photo; Claudia Rodriguez, or Mexican Wedding Photos. I know a lot of people on this forum have said positive things about Claudia, but, I'm wondering about the others....the prices vary quite a bit, so, I'm wondering what the best choice is... Any help would be greatly appreciated! I'm with everyone else. That is awesome they are giving more than one choice for photographers. Here we paid the $500 because caribe was the only choice in may. I too would go with Claudia. I wasn't impressed with Caribe from other brides that used that photographer when I seen their photos. Check out their sites and see how the photos look. Possibly someone on here has used some of the others. Claudia was one of the biggest ones recommended when I was searching. Unfortunately she was booked when I finally decided to go outside. I think it is worth paying the money for your wedding day. I also felt the 3 hrs I had with photographer was plenty of time. That included 30 min. pre ceremony for myself, ceremony, photos of family, guest and bride and groom after. Then we even did about 30 min. at private reception set up and guest again. The photos friends took the rest of the night turned out beautiful too. Hopefully that helps you.

Quote: Originally Posted by nolaroy724 Your EDR coordinator should be able to email it to you. I know Monica sent me a copy, but I can't seem to put my fingers on it for you. I have been to a friends DW in Mexico and it is still really nice with the translation. Afterall, we are in Mexico!!!! You may want to consider writing your own vows because this will help to make the ceremony more personal for you. You could also have someone do a reading. This may help you feel more comfortable with the ceremony since only a small portion will be in Spanish then. We had a few reading done by our guest. We didn't do our own vows and wish we would of to make in more personal. Especially since they don't even do the normal vows and you repeat them. The only thing you have to remember is to say I DO... Yet we still loved the ceremony and it will be a day to remember forever!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by nde062010 I'm also having a hard time deciding what to do. I really don't want to hear the ceremony in spanish! but I also don't want to do the legal stuff at home cuz I'm afraid the Mexico ceremony won't feel real.... The minister, priest may speak english. I know the judge definitely doesn't speak any english. We personally enjoyed the ceremony in spanish also. It was quick even with the translation. We don't speak any spanish either. Kind of wish I did or knew some of it. We also didn't want to do the stuff at home. To do it again wouldn't feel real. Just like my AHR I put my dress on again. It felt weird doing it all over again.

Quote: Originally Posted by KirstenRN6 I'm looking for a copy of the legal ceremony script/program for EDR. Could someone please post that? Also, for those of you who were married legally in Mexico, did you have an english speaking minister? We really want to get married legally in Mexico, but feel wierd about having our ceremony translated. Any thoughts or suggestions would be greatly appreciated! We had a civil ceremony by the judge. It was legal. Judge only speaks spanish but it was a nice touch her speaking and then translated. Our documents were then translated to English and mailed to us.

Quote: Originally Posted by nde062010 Has anyone used the resort dj? I know the popular choice is the ipod but fiance was not havin it. Would it also be $500 fee to bring in an outside dj? We brought cd's & our ipod with the music we chose for our private reception. Then I brought a dinner music cd. We rented the speakers for $250. They hooked up the ipod to the speakers and played the music as I wanted them too. He also played some of his own music he had on his own ipod. They don't have a microphone to do any announcing they just play the music and are also there helping with the reception. They also get the party going too, the staff we had was awesome. We had a bartender with a bar with everything you could image on it. Vincente who was awesome waiting tables and drinks then one helping with everything and the music. I didn't want to pay the money either at first but it was worth it to me. We had more fun with 16 of us at this reception then my at home reception with 150 guest. They totally take care of you and make it very entertaining.

Quote: Originally Posted by nolaroy724 You should be fine at 6:00. Most people start getting ready for dinner about then and the beach will be clear. Just try to decide when you get there if you like that location. You can choose to move it to another gazebo if it is available. Some other EDR brides have said they changed the location once they got there. I don't recall seeing that gazebo there. I would be interested in seeing it. It is true most people are off the beach area around 5. We had some watching ours at gazebo 55 but off to the side in regular clothing. Then people in suites were all in the balconies watching and after all was done they were all clapping. Which was kinda neat to hear them cheering. You could change your location but I would find out what is still available at this point or just before you go to get the one you really want. It is very tough to pick a place when you only see photos. Everything is beautiful there and most of the areas for ceremonies or private receptions I would go with.

Quote: Originally Posted by shannon Aww- hearing all the "July brides" makes me want to do it again!!! I'm so going through Mexico/EDR withdrawals! Just want to let the future brides know that EVERYTHING will work out-- the timing of photographer, the location of your ceremony-everything. They are so amazing there with coordinating and organizing. I think we've had brides (on this forum) get married at almost every location on the resort, and they have all been so beautiful-- so it's def a win-win! You guys will have such an amazing time- just enjoy every second of it! Wish I was going back with you guys!!!! I'm with you there Shannon. I can't wait to go back and would also do it all over again. Wouldn't do it any different. Your right there is nothing to get stressed about there. They do an amazing job and are so on top of it all. They do a great job and decorating each gazebo they are all beautiful. They definitely take great care of you that day. No matter how many other brides are getting married it's all about you.. It will be amazing & wish I could do it again so it goes so fast.

Quote: Originally Posted by shannon hey Tracy- I got the sneak preview of the pics -- once again, they are just beautiful!!! CONGRATS! Thanks Shannon...Everyone's pic have been beautiful. Congrats to you too.. Hopefully we will see each other for our anniversary...

Quote: Originally Posted by nolaroy724 Tracy, everything looked so beautiful, including you! I loved the purple. The iris's were breathtaking. Congrats! Can't wait for your review. Thank you so much. I was very happy with the purple too. I loved the iris' too I'm so glad I went with them. The contrast was perfect. They also corelated them in with my hanging corsages. Then my husband also wore one.