bridget917

We didn't quite do things the traditional way lol...March 26 of last year we decided to get married August 16, 2008. We didn't think we'd be able to swing it financially but then Sandals had an amazing deal and we could do it after all! We had been ring shopping already...I didn't even get my ring until July til he found the one he was happy with.

 

We also had a big reception back home last September which was a lot more work and planning than the wedding. I think if you have an idea of what you want, you can plan as quickly as you need to. I would think a year would be plenty of time to plan.

I'm finally getting around to doing our scrapbook from our trip last August to SGOR. Now I'm finding that there are some things I really wish I had taken a picture of, like the sign outside the wedding office and maybe the sign above Valentino's since we had our wedding dinner there.

 

Is anyone up for a picture share? My pics are mostly SGOR but I have a few of SDR and some Dunns River pics. I'm sure we all have a lot of "generic" pictures (just scenery, buildings, etc)...and it would be great for those getting ready to go or those trying to make a decision as to where to go.

 

I know several photo site allow you to upload photos and others can download full res pictures. Hopefully it's okay to suggest this, if not could a moderator just delete my post?

Congratulations! You will absolutely love SGOR! Some of my family stayed in the room type that you're staying in and they were beautiful rooms with a wonderful view!

 

Yes, this board is addicting...I'm not on here as much now, but I still can't resist popping in now and then!

This is an old post but I'll respond anyway! We got married August 16, 2008 in Jamaica. It rained the night of our wedding and all night...the next morning the rain was gone and that was the only rain we experienced while there. My husband is a teacher so we pretty much had no choice but to go during hurricane season lol.

We just sent notarized copies of our birth certificates and didn't take the originals with us. We had absolutely no problems with the documents.

We upgraded to the one hour reception. We had 12 people besides us at our wedding. After the reception we went and took a bunch of pictures--most of our guests were in the ocean/pool within an hour lol! We actually went back and changed after our pictures and took a nap and then got up and got ready and went to dinner. After dinner we spent some time at the piano bar and then in the little loft thing at the Manor Pool (SGOR). It was more laid back, but the entire trip was special to us because it was our wedding trip. I wouldn't change a thing!

Amanda also had an upgraded package though. I saw one wedding on the pier while I was at SGOR, and there were no decorations that I can recall. We got married at the Reef Terrace Gazebo and they did not decorate. However, at that location it looked beautiful on its own with the ocean in the background. I have heard some brides say that they allowed them to decorate on their own. If I remember correctly, IrieBride did some hanging orchids herself and used them to decorate the gazebo. Hope that helps!

Thank you so much for the compliments everyone! I don't spend as much time on here as I used to...way too many things going on! I thought that in order to make it easier for those of you who don't have enough points racked up that I'd just post my files on 4Shared.com. That way you can download them for free. Here's the link 4shared.com - online file sharing and storage - download Info Packet.zip. If you have any questions send me a message (I get a copy in my email so I'll see that quicker than a message here!) and I'd be glad to help you!

We just had copies of our birth certificates made and they stamped them with their seal and signed them. My MIL works for the district justice and we were able to have him do this for us. I'm not sure about the affadavit part though. We didn't have one, just the stamped certificates.

We got married there in August 08 and I'd go back in a heartbeat! We're planning a trip in 2010 and at first we were going to head back to SGOR, but others were interested in going with us (and there are kids involved) so we may very well just go to a Beaches resort instead. Right now we're looking at Tukrs & Caicos. Have a great time! You'll love SGOR!

We got married at SGOR in August 08. As far as the photographer goes, we used our own. Luckily for us my husband's uncle is an excellent photographer, so we had him do our pictures for us. Because he was family they didn't say anything to us. Sandals still sent a photographer to take some pics during the ceremony and reception. I'm not sure if it was because we didn't purchase a package or not, but I was so unhappy with the pictures they took. My makeup (which I had done at the Spa as well with my hair--great service I might add!) had run from me sweating, and I had a black blotch under one of my eyes. No one told me until later so it was in all of my pictures. The photog didn't do any touch up work (fortunately our other pictures were touched up and that is not on there anymore!). Whatever he took is what you got. We took our free one and that was it. We had decided that if he had some good shots we'd purchase them, but it wasn't worth it to us. However, I've seen some beautiful photos that others have had taken there, and some of the couples with us had photos taken and they turned out great. Sadly I think it's the luck of the draw!

I'm not saying what did or didn't happen--just what I was told. I feel somewhat liable being that I first brought it here months ago! I prefer not to get in the middle of anything, I just have to give everyone the benefit of the doubt.

Tammy, she told me that she did not create the id's and that she checked and her assistant also claims to not have done it either. She said she was just waiting for her "waiting period" to be over so that they could start advertising here. I don't know everything that happened (obviously I just now found the thread) but I can say that Sharon is extremely upset about everything and would like to get to the bottom of it all.

I'm a bride (with a real account) that used Sharon. Actually, I started a thread about her company months ago after finding her on Ebay and having her do my flowers and being absolutely blown away by the quality of the product and the kindness in which she corresponded with me. I sent her a message letting her know that I liked her work so much that I mentioned her on this board so that other girls would know about her. I know she mentioned to me that she signed up here to help girls with questions, etc., but I know there were several other brides other than me that used her services and were very happy with the product she delivered. If you look under the "flowers" board (can't remember the exact name!) you'll find the thread that I started...something like "Fake Bouquets: Another Vendor Option". If you have any questions, feel free to email me!

I can't remember what music they had. We took our own CD down. I would think that you might be able to get a list ahead of time from the wedding coordinator. There were a lot of songs that I recognized on there (pop songs) as well as classical music--that much I do remember!

 

As far as the first dance, I'm sure they would let you skip it. They are all about making you happy! I didn't really want to do it either (we had 12 guests in attendance but I hate being watched--thus, the small wedding!) but I'm really glad we did!

They DO offer steaming services--I can't remember what the prices are because I didn't use that particular service, but I'd ask the wedding coordinator about it. We took my husband's suit and my dress down together in my dress garment bag which we carried on the plane with us and hung up, and neither one of them got wrinkled.

Congratulations! Your pictures are absolutely beautiful!

Oh wow! I've been watching the Sandals thread to see how your trip was, and just happened to check here to see if maybe you posted here instead. Sorry that things didn't go the way you had planned, but at least you have a good back up plan!

A private reception at the Sandals Grande that included a sit down dinner and personal bartender for 3 hours is $75 a person...the dj is extra, but honestly I don't know how much off the top of my head. If you have any other questions I can try to help. Just a note--if you upgrade your reception at all, you have to pay for everyone including the bride and groom. If you stick with the very basic package (just cake and champagne and I think it's for half an hour) it's free for the bride and groom and two other people.

Yeah, the "boardwalk" takes up a lot of beach. The one thing I will mention is that though the beach is small, it isn't really crowded. We were always able to find chairs on the beach, and even when we were out in the ocean we were never really close to many other people. It amazes me how huge the resort is and how many people are there at one time, yet you never feel crowded...it has a very intimate feel to it.

Thanks again everyone. It was just such a wonderful day!

 

The only other wedding I actually saw was in the pier gazebo...I know there were a few others while there, and at least one of them was in the Reef Terrace Gazebo where we got married. The beach is really small (I thought people were exagerrating, but I must admit I was somewhat disappointed when I did get to see it) so I'm not quite sure where they'd set the wedding up if there was one on the beach.

There's a program called PDF995 that is super easy to use and works great. All you do to convert your document to a PDF file is hit print and then change your printer to PDF 995...if you do a google search it should come up!

Kohl's sells a sterling silver starfish necklace...I think it is about $25. Unless someone was absolutely crazy about Tiffany's, I don't think I'd spend that much on a necklace!

That is an awesome website! I learned a lot about the resort from there...I'd definitely check it out. You might find out some cool things about your resort!

Have you tried Reviews of vacations, hotels, resorts, vacation and travel packages - TripAdvisor I was able to find a lot of photos of SGOR on there...and it was nice to see pictures that regular guests took and not just the hotels pictures!