joshfrommontreal

Melissa, I'm not 100% sure, I just sent a couple emails to past brides and I'll let you know once they get back to me.

Hi Rhiannon,

 

One thing to remember is that there is the Elegance and the Colonial. Both resorts are owned by the same people, and they look basically the same but have small differences.

 

I agree that the wind would probably be too strong for a beach setup in November.

 

My photos of the steakhouse were on the Colonial side, and they were on the terrace of the steakhouse, Jodi's I believe were inside the steakhouse again at the Colonial. With the terrace you would have the same problem with wind because it is outside of the wind screens (it is basically 30 feet from the location of the beach reception.

 

The steakhouse at the Elegance is not on the beach, it is near the lobby. You can have the non-private reception there and you are separated quite a bit from the rest of the guests. There is also a big room in the steakhouse that you can ask for. I'm not sure if it's counted as public or private.

 

There is the Parrot Bar, which you mentioned that you didn't care for.

 

There is also the Wet Bar location. Very similar to the Parrot Bar but there isn't much of anything overhead. The tables are out more in the open.

 

There is the Seafood restaurant (that looks like the Steakhouse at the Colonial). This is a non-private option.

 

The final option is the Presidential Suite. I actually have not seen the suite at the Elegance.

 

I am in the Dominican right now so I don't have all of the photos on me, but I will try and post more once I get back to Montreal.

Hi Rhiannon,

 

One thing to remember is that there is the Elegance and the Colonial. Both resorts are owned by the same people, and they look basically the same but have small differences.

 

I agree that the wind would probably be too strong for a beach setup in November.

 

My photos of the steakhouse were on the Colonial side, and they were on the terrace of the steakhouse, Jodi's I believe were inside the steakhouse again at the Colonial. With the terrace you would have the same problem with wind because it is outside of the wind screens (it is basically 30 feet from the location of the beach reception.

 

The steakhouse at the Elegance is not on the beach, it is near the lobby. You can have the non-private reception there and you are separated quite a bit from the rest of the guests. There is also a big room in the steakhouse that you can ask for. I'm not sure if it's counted as public or private.

 

There is the Parrot Bar, which you mentioned that you didn't care for.

 

There is also the Wet Bar location. Very similar to the Parrot Bar but there isn't much of anything overhead. The tables are out more in the open.

 

There is the Seafood restaurant (that looks like the Steakhouse at the Colonial). This is a non-private option.

 

The final option is the Presidential Suite. I actually have not seen the suite at the Elegance.

 

I am in the Dominican right now so I don't have all of the photos on me, but I will try and post more once I get back to Montreal.

there are at times as many as three or four a day.

I am at Dreams Punta Cana

Hi everyone,

 

I will be shooting a wedding at Dreams this week and will be there until Friday.

 

If anyone would like any specific photos or videos of the grounds or need information please post here or email me at mail@josh-brown.com

Can anyone recommend a UK travel agent? I am moving to London and need some help with trips.

 

Thanks!

That is definitely the right attitude to have. I have had a couple brides ask me beforehand to get a shot of a guy in a speedo in the background with them in the foreground if I can. They found it funny.

Once people see a wedding their general reaction is to crowd around. The WC when setting up the area will pull chairs back to a certain point, and they sometimes assign guards to usher people by at the beach by in my experience the guards just tend on holding a crowd there. During the actual wedding the WC will not ask people to step back or go away or anything because they are actively involved in the ceremony.

I can only speak for myself as a photographer but I am way too busy taking photos to ask people to step away or leave because they are unsightly.

The truth is - its a busy beach and if you choose to have it at that location there will be people watching. Some will be in swimsuits, some will be topless etc. If you have the ceremony at say 5 or 6 pm there will be less people on the beach.

Once you are there I suggest going to check out another wedding and if you don't like the amount of people they will switch it to the Gazebo for you.

This is not something that is exclusive to the Majestic, basically any beach ceremony at any resort will have the same problem.

I'm at the Majestic again until Sunday. So any questions or photo requests posted here I will try my best to get done.

Congrats on your engagement!

 

I am Canadian from Montreal, and have had a couples from the Winnipeg area.

 

It's always hard to know where to start!

 

First I would look into the dates that would work best for you, your budget and for your guests. Then I would start looking into the many resort options and what type of wedding package you are looking for.

 

A big question to ask yourself right away is if you want to have a legal ceremony in the DR or a symbolic ceremony. The legal ceremony will require more planning due to translation, and the resorts securing a judge on the day that you would like.

 

That should get your started, and just looking around here on BDW should give you a ton of information and don't be afraid to ask questions if you are confused about anything.

The 20 person minimum sounds about right. It is a big boat, but I think it would still be fun with 20 people.

The JellyFish restaurant is about a 15 minute cab ride from the Majestic, but they will organize a bus for a group of people to go. It is basically just a nice oceanview restaurant that has great food, drinks, and the last two times I have been there everyone has always had a great time.

Last month a group I was with did their rehearsal dinner there with about 20 people and they rented out the top. They brought in a DJ, and we all had the most amazing time.

I will upload a gallery of both the boat, and the Jellyfish for you.

I'm replying to your email right now.

Sorry I meant PPR, Paradisus Palma Real. Guests can easily walk there from EdenH and from the Melia Caribe which are more affordable options.

I wish there was an easy answer to your question! It all depends on your ideal wedding, and the group you are with - what type of people they are.

The Paradisus Palma Real was a beautiful location. The reception being the most beautiful part. The ceremony I attended was is in a garden location which was nice but didn't have the wow I was expecting for that resort.

The beach at most resorts in Punta Cana is the exact same. You are going to get nice white sand, and beautiful blue ocean. For a ceremony, the Majestic's have a fantastic set-up on the beach. The canopy on a hill surrounded by coconuts is really beautiful. But you are prone to spectators standing in the background and watching at the sides.

Size to me is a big thing about a resort, I prefer a smaller resort. But if you don't want to bump into people every two seconds you may want a larger resort.


If price didn't matter and you had a small group and just wanted to be married on the beach and have a great time. Then the best resort is the Tortuga Bay Resort. It was private, beautiful, you get your own golf cart, you have your own villa (or have a duplex villa), and you get the utmost privacy. However, the prices are crazy!

If you have a modest budget, don't mind the potential of a small hiccup (eg if the flowers show up a bit different then planned), want good food, a nice atmosphere, then I would say the Majestic's are all around the way to go. I've heard that Dreams is very similar, and I will be there early August and will let everyone know.

If you are doing site visits it is very important to (if you don't speak spanish) take a translated note with you telling the guards your intentions.

 

Before almost all resorts there are two check points. One is the resort area check point, this area shouldn't give you much trouble although if you do not have a bracelet they may ask you what resort you are at, or will want to look at your itinerary if you are in a taxi.

 

The actual resort security at the entrance to the resorts are often very tough when you don't have a bracelet for that particular resort. Also, most often these guards do not speak any english.

 

It will be in your best interest to bring a note in Spanish, saying you are doing a site visit, and if you add one or two employee's contact numbers that will be even better. I have had some long drawn out poor Spanglish discussions with security guards trying to get into resorts where a day pass was waiting for me.

Hannah,

 

You should definitely consider the DR for your wedding. I would pick Punta Cana, especially because it is more affordable then some of the other areas.

 

I think you should discuss some options with a TA and see what they come up with. If the biggest concern is guests being able to afford to come, I would look at making your wedding on an off month. Prices tend to be extremely cheap in November from Canada - not sure about the UK at the moment.

 

There are so many places in the area with beautiful beaches. From the UK you might want to look into some of the smaller islands, like St. Barts and St Lucia in the West Indies. I was in St. Lucia not long ago and found it to be the most beautiful island. The people were so friendly, the beaches were clean and beautiful and the cost wasn't that much.

Me too! Why won't that happen!

The Presidential Suite is a great private option for your reception. Its very intimate and they give it to you in the morning so it is also a great room to get ready in.

There are a couple concerns with it:

The wind - depending on the time of year the wind can get pretty strong up there. So if you have a winter date this is something you have to think about.

Also, nothing is included, so the private bar is usually a must, as is the sound system. Also 11PM is the strict cut-off time for music and noise. Just a couple extras to be aware of.

Definitely give Adam a call or go in and see him. He will go way beyond for you and does know the Majestic very well, both from booking all my trips there, booking the full group that he was with in January and he does DW's everywhere. I would let him know what Sell Off came up with and see what he can do.

Also, if you have any questions about the Majestic let me know. I'm back there next week.

Iris,

 

I'm not sure if the boat will come to the Majestic, but the manager told me that the will provide transportation if they won't.

 

The food is fantastic! The group I was with got the kabobs.

 

The boat wouldn't be completely empty with 20. For a group that size, also consider dinner/dancing at the Jellyfish restaurant. The upstairs is perfect for a group that size, the food is amazing, and its a lot of fun.

If you are looking into the PPA, then an option would be to tell you guests they could stay at EdenH which is basically next door when you walk on the beach. It is cheaper, and then guests could walk over to the wedding. I had a group that did this a couple weeks ago and it worked out great.

That's great Anna, thanks for sharing. Now hopefully everyone will get their confirmed dates soon so guests can start booking.

The wind tends to calm down in May but there are the odd windy nights. May is beautiful in Punta Cana, it is hot during the day and very nice at night.

Welcome and congrats! A Scottish wedding sounds amazing.

I'm afraid the couple I was with might have gotten some kind of deal and they got the steakhouses free meal and it only cost them $300 to rent the terrace. I have heard the WC's have now told a couple people that the dinner is considered private and you have to pay per person. I am back there in a little over two weeks and could ask for you then but I have no way other then email to contact them until then.

So my girlfriend and I have decided to move from Montreal to London UK in two months (September '09).

 

As Canadians we are allowed to live and work there for two years. We have our visas and everything lined up.

 

I have read all I can, it seems like we are going to try and find a place in Camden.

 

Any Londoners care to share some advice? Something that the books wouldn't have covered.

 

What's a good cell phone provider? I've read about ordering groceries online, is that a good option? How long does the average person spend commuting to work (for my gf), Is an oyster card the best way to go for transportation?