amee

Jpenyea, that was my impression of the two places too. We are now happily booked at Half Moon. Its been a stressful month, but things are looking better now. We're actually headed off to Jamaica next weekend to do a site visit, after which I'm sure I'll be more comfortable with everything.

yeah, bummer for me, my date was in April

FYI...now opening in June!

I apologize in advance if this thread has been started elsewhere. I'm going through some major last minute changes in venue for my Montego Bay wedding in...April. My original hotel will not be opening in time..I'm now trying to decide between Half moon and Rose hall, which from what I understand is now under new Hilton management. Has anyone been to either or both and have strong opinions? I have to make a quick decision and would love some feedback. I would especially love to hear from anyone who's been recently married at Rose Hall, under its new management. I'm leaning towards Half Moon b/c it seems a little different from the other resorts in the area...but my head is starting to spin with all the info and I'm not sure I'm being objective anymore.. Thanks for your help!

MLK - I would love to hear what you think of Solis firsthand. I know the pictures and website look great, but I'm really interested to see how things are coming along, since they delayed their opening until March 2009, which is getting close to my wedding...so thanks in advance for the info and hope you have a great trip. I think they are comparable in price to other nearby resorts. I did briefly look at Half Moon and the Ritz in Montego Bay and Moon Dance Villas in Negril. I got better room prices at Solis, for sure. In terms of food/alcohol I think they'll be pretty similar to Half Moon & the Ritz, meaning pricey. I think all resorts do this, they suck you in with some amazing deal (like cheap accomodations) and then charge you a ton for food..but its to be expected... They don't seem to have strict outside vendor policies, as long as they are insured. I also didn't see any wedding packages, like at some of the other resorts, which is fine by me. I'm having a traditional Hindu ceremony, and an all vegetarian reception...which they have said they can accomodate without a problem..so I think they're pretty flexible overall...but they should be for the amount we're paying!! Will add more info as I get it.

Anyone have any names/contacts of steel pan bands that would play at resorts outside of Riu? Would love to have a couple hours the night before the wedding.

Hi MLK, They changed their opening date from Winter to March '09 (which is a little anxiety provoking) but say they'll be ready for April. Fingers crossed. They apparently had to move some of the Jan/Feb scheduled weddings to other locations.. So far communication with them has been pretty good, although i can't always be sure how accurate the info is from this far away. I guess we'll just have to wait and see!

They quoted us an $80 per person dinner, but it was all vegetarian food, we also thought it was a bit expensive, especially since we were planning on taking over both properties. We ended up at Solis, the Palmyra (not AI, but they gave us good room rates), in MoBay, hasn't opened yet which is a bit nerve-racking but its gotten good press so we'll see... A

Sparkles -- how funny! more or less the same thing happened to us, we were actually going to buy out both properties, but still would have had trouble accomodating 100+ guests..and it turned out to be pretty expensive regardless...we're thinking about honeymooning there too! (late April). Where are you thinking about having the wedding now?

Moon Dance Villas is 5 or 6 different sized villas on 7 mile beach (famous Negril beach). Its been in existence for some time. If you look it up on TripAdvisor you'll find tons of reviews. Moon Dance Cliffs, is currently being built, up on the Cliffs. I was told it was about a 5-10 min ride from the beach to the cliffs. The Cliffs is going to be a small hotel, with regular hotel rooms as well as some villas, restaurants, pool etc. There are also (mostly rave) reviews from people who had their wedding at the Villas on TripAdvisor. BTW, I don't work for Moon Dance, I just did a lot of research on them when I was picking a venue! The staff there is very friendly, I was mostly in touch with Miriam.

I'm having similar issues, except we're getting married in Jamaica. We may end up taking someone from the US who can do mehndi, sari draping and hair/makeup etc..obviously we have to pay for her travel, but it may work out in the end b/c she does a little bit of everything.

I, also, really wanted to have my wedding at Moon Dance. In the end, they ended up being too small for us. We really loved it, though, and are thinking about going there for the honeymoon anyways. They are building a hotel up on the Cliffs, called Moon Dance Cliffs, same owners, same staff. I think its supposed to be ready this fall, so you could definitely have some of your guests stay up there. I'm still a little sad we're not getting married at Moon Dance, but it would definitely have been too tight for us. Good Luck.

bashigyal and others...didn't realize great house in rose hall was so expensive, i guess one of the advantages of the "resort" type wedding, is that a lot of these venues are included..but, yes, I agree they are charging us plenty...a separate question that maybe you can help me with, since you're from Jamaica..I've been trying to find some local musicians or DJs (who play reggae, soca and/or calypso) to hire for various events in April..we're really looking for people who play a variety of music, including Indian or chutney (I am Indian marrying a Trinadadian). If you have any leads they would be much appreciated... amee

Thanks, ajanders21, I would love their contact info Amee

Have you looked into the Rose Hall great house in MoBay? I'm getting married next April at the new Solis, Palmyra resort in MoBay (which by the way is not AI) and I know one of their options is the Rose Hall great house - which is supposed to have this very haunted tale attached to it...I don't think the hotel owns it though, probably open for anyone to have their wedding there..just a thought.

Hi..i thought i could take a break after finally picking a place to have the wedding, but apparently there are a lot of other things to do! One of which is finding some music, we're hoping to find a reggae band for the reception and maybe switch it up with and IPOD or DJ as well. Any suggestions for a reggae band would be much appreciated! Thanks

sorry, here is link Moon Dance Resorts - Negril, Jamaica

I would also check out Moon Dance Villas and Moon Dance Cliffs in negril, same owner. The Cliffs are being built now..i almost booked there, but they were a little small for me.

Well, its official we booked at Solis the Palmyra for next April! So far the WC has been great, very helpful and flexible. We'll see what happens as we start moving on some of the details. I think we ultimately chose this place b/c they have the capacity to be flexible, they are a relatively large resort and not yet open, so they have some motivation to help us out. We're likely having 100+ Indian wedding, so we definitely need that flexibility. Some of the other places we looked at just weren't that interested, they would reply to emails but no major efforts. The people at Solis, on the other hand, are quite excited about having an Indian wedding, so thats a plus. If anyone is planning a visit to Montego Bay in the next few months and has a chance to swing by the property (next to half moon I think) I would love to hear about it. Also if anyone knows any local Indian vendors in Jamaica (decor, henna etc) please forward them to me. Thanks and good luck to everyone!

I'm no longer considering Ceiba del Mar, mostly b/c they don't have the date that I wanted. But I was communicating by email with the WC, Denise, who was really friendly and responded very quickly. My guests are mostly Indian and vegetarian and she had their chefs put together a sample menu for us, in jus a day or two. They also now allow children year-round if thats an issue for you. Here's her contact info. As a plus, the resort also looks amaxing!! Denise Courtney Wedding Coordinator & Groups Manager Ceiba del Mar Spa Resort Phone. 52 998 872 80 60 Fax. 52 998 872 80 61 [email protected] Good Luck!! Amee

Hi, Has anyone heard anything about this new resort that is supposed to be opening in the winter? Its called Solis, the Palmyra in Montego Bay..I think its partnered with the Ritz. Has anyone ever stayed at any other Solis properties? Am thinking about having an early Spring wedding there...had originally been infatuated with Moon Dance in Negril but they're a little small and not budging on their prices Thanks Amee

I'm looking at Negril also. Two places that looked great, but are too small for me, are the Rockhouse and Tensing Pen. Both looked amazing, Rockhouse is up on the Cliffs, and seemed to capture the Negril vibe. I would definitely use one of them if I didn't have more than 100 people! Good Luck..

I've actually tried to contact them without much success. I'm early in the planning process, so that's ok, but I have a pretty large group and planning an Indian wedding so I feel like I need extra time. For those who got married at Rose Hall do you think they can handle "special requests". For example, my family and at least half of my 150 guests will be purely vegetarian and we want the reception to be 100% veg...do you think this is beyond their abilities? Much thanks and congrats!

I'm looking at Ceiba del Mar also, does anyone have more information about it? I have a pretty big group and the hotel has been pretty accomodating so far, but I haven't confirmed anything.

Hi all, I haven't seen too many threads about Barbados, I'm thinking about having my wedding there in April 2009. Has anyone ever been to any of the Elegant chain of hotels, the Crane or the Hilton there? I've been there on vacation and remember it being pleasant. I'm also thinking about St Maarten if anyone has any tips. I picked these islands b/c they have the largest Indian populations, and I'm having a Hindu ceremony. Any advice? Thanks Amee