brittbrowne

Quote: Originally Posted by patrickaya We would strongly recommend both Sol, and the El Dorado Seaside to anyone who wants to get married in the Mayan Riviera! Feel free to email us if you have ANY questions! That is really wonderful news to hear! My FI and I are pretty seriously considering EDSS for our wedding June 6, 2009. Your wedding looked absolutely amazing, and it is just amping us up more. The setting looked great on the beach (clean and serene), and all the details were so tastefully executed! And, OMG that sunset was unreal! I'm sure I'll have more questions later, but for now my FI is wondering where you got those cool fans for the ceremony and of course how reasonable was the cost? We are going to be there in June, so we know it will be pretty hot, and fans would be a great relief. Thanks, Britt

Thanks for your insights. You pretty much confirmed what I was thinking, which is comforting to hear! All the Best! Britt

I've been trying to make the same decision myself, and I think the major swaying factor for me is the "whales" (sand bags) on the beach at Royale. If you look at pics on trip advisor showing the beaches at the two properties the sand bags are pretty disruptive to the view at Royale, whereas at seaside suites it looks like there may only be a few sand bags at the edges of the beach, not right in front of you runnig parallel to the beach. At the moment, I'm leaning towards Seaside Suites for our wedding. I've read on TripAdvisor it has a more boutique feel because of its size. Also, there is some coral and rocks in the beach, but that makes for good snorkeling conditions. Royale has the same coral and rock complaints I believe. No surf issues at Seaside, but Royale has intense surf so you have to swim amongst the sand bags in calm water. Also, I think there are still several bars and something like 5 restaurants at Seaside, so there's still a pretty good selection of restauraunts. I've also read Royale has a huge property (they even have golf cart shuttles to cart people around) and more difficulty getting into restaurants, therefore it feels more like a mega resort. Hope that helps. Good luck with your planning!

Quote: Originally Posted by lovefreddy Holy crap I am so irritated I booked there for next year June 6th, that is a bummer....where was that promotion? Directly from Karisma? I am going to email my TA and see if there is anything I can do about it. Thanks for the notice!! Hey! Wondering how your experience has been working on planning your wedding at the Azul Beach Hotel? My FI and I are considering having our wedding at another Karisma property, The El Dorado Seaside Suites. Coincidentally, our tentative wedding date is June 6, 2009! We considered Azul, but apparently they are closing their doors for renovations next fall? I'm just interested in hearing any tips about coordinating details with WCs at Lomas Travel. Thanks, Britt

Quote: Originally Posted by mauraw if you want to talk more about the westin feel free to PM me! also theres a thread i started here for westin brides so you can see what other peoples' experiences are. good luck! Maura, thanks for your insights on your experiences with the westin. I'm still considering them, but at the moment I'm going to back burner negotiations with them while exploring other options. I'll be in touch if I have more questions! I bet your wedding is going to be amazing! Can't wait to hear how it all turns out! Britt

Quote: Originally Posted by Janet This could be totally off, but what about just finding a chic hotel (not in Cabo) and seeing if they can accommodate a wedding. Google led me to this, for instance: :: Kimbe - Hotel :: (Hotel Kinbe: Playa del Carmen hotels, Riviera Maya, Mexico) or this idea: Playa del Carmen, Mexico: Hotel Básico - New York Times I'm sure there are other boutique hotels thoughout Mexico that might fit what you're looking for? Thanks Janet! Your right on with the idea, but we really are hoping for a hotel on the beach. I've definitely thought Hotel Basico was cool when coming across it before. And I really like the Kimbe - never seen that one. But, both are not on the beach... Thanks so much for the stylish recommendations, but I think having a beach hotel is really a top priority for us. Then again, we'll probably have to compromise on something because of our budget concerns... Thanks again, Britt

Thanks for the warm welcome from you all! Maura, your right the Westin is a gorgeous modern hotel. I discovered it about three weeks ago and even contacted the resort, thinking it was the one. After, Karina Jajan sent a preliminary quote for the room block and random expensive vendor rates. I contacted her because I had a lot of questions about planning a wedding there and concerns about the budget. You, see my FI and I like many modern couples, must pay for our wedding and the welcome/rehersal event. We wish we had a $30,000 budget, but we need to be as careful as we can to not overspend so we can buy a house some day. When I talked to Karina I told her that the quote she sent had room rates more expensive than what we could find on the westin website. She admitted to some error on her part (hmmm?). Then we talked about the budget issue and she made me feel more comfortable by saying that our wedding planner would be able to negotiate with the recommended vendors for lower prices on their services, and said they could even work with us on the food and bar pricing to meet our budget goals. So, I told her to send us a contract and bar & food pricing. I was so excited to get a contract signed and be over with deciding on the destination when I started reading the food and bar pricing. We might have been able to work with them on the food, as you know entry level chicken entrees part of a 3-course dinner start at around $55 / person plus 28% tax. That was over our budget, but again we thought we might be able to negotiate down to a more reasonable rate, and then possible not serve food at our welcome barbeque - instead have a welcome bonfire. But then it was the bar pricing that really blew my mind. The most ridiculous was the price of $9 per beer + 28% tax. My fiance and I realized we were going to have to negotiate every single aspect of our wedding if we went with the Westin. Although I know that's kind of how it goes in mexico, I really hate the idea they would send out a price sheet that in my opinion was a bit of a slap in the face. We just figured the whole thing was going to be way to pricey there. Sad part is I really loved that hotel. Maura, you are father along in the planning process then us though, how are your budgeting issues working out at the Westin? After the let down with the Westin we strarted looking at the Presidente Intercontinental in Cozumel. Its another beautifully renovated, modern designed resort with a nice beach and beautiful, reasonably priced rooms. The entry level room was only $230/night ($20 more than theWestin Los Cabos). The pricing on food was $35 or $40 for entry level chicken entree / 3 course dinner (including tax). The beers were over half the price of the Westin $4. (Don't get me wrong, we aren't serving just beer at the wedding, but it $4 a beer is a number you can at least look at and say they're not trying to take you.) Problem with this hotel turns out that taxes on the rooms and miscellaneous fees (resort fees, restauraunt seating fees, etc), seem to be out of control (according to tripadvisor.com reviewers). That means the entry level room could be bumping $300 a night. Although most of our guests could afford that, there are a few who it would be a hardship for. Finally, we are considering the El Dorado Seaside Suites on the Riviera Maya. The hotel has several new sections and the design is pretty contemporary (although it pales in comparison to the Westin - I'm an architect by the way so a modern hotel design is more important to me than probably anyone out there. And I'm probably the most difficult to please in that respect.) But EDSS looks pretty beautiful and the benefit of it is the hotel is a gourmet all-inclusive adult resort. It's small so it has a more boutique feel, and room rates are about 180 per person per night (taxes and fees included -no hidden costs). The good news in terms of event planning is we can plan a three course dinner with better main courses for 30 - 40 a person, premium open bar included. That means we can actually afford to serve food at our welcome event, and hors d'vours at our wedding @ ~20 per person. We are going to move forward with the wedding planning and room block inquiries this week, and will be adjusting my excel budget spreadsheet to find out how much we will be saving by going this route, but I'm guessing around $5,000 - 6,000! Looking for a place for the wedding sure has been a major event. I feel llike I could turn travel agent now.... Really hoping EDSS is the last hotel I have to research, a place I can finally settle on and be happy with. Tired, Britt

Hello, I'm Britt writing from Berkeley, Ca. My fiance and I are very excited to begin planning our wedding in Mexico. At this point however we are still seeking a specific location... mainly due to our combined high standards. We want a high quality resort with a modern aesthetic that won't cost a fortune for guests or us. We plan to get married June 6, 2009. Looking forward to our dreamy destination wedding day! Britt (& Aaron)