Dreams425

My parents gave Landy $100 at the end of the night and tipped our servers. Someone else had previously asked about tipping DJ Mannia and I think we gave him $50, I wasn't sure if this was good or not, but at that time of the evening I had too many tequila boom booms to be thinking clearly I hope this helps! As a wedding coordinator myself tips are greatly appreciated, most people don't realize how hard coordinators work and we don't get paid overtime or to work the events into the late hours. Landy was wonderful and went above and beyond. I hope this helps! Quote: Originally Posted by Lindz This is a great question and I never would have thought to ask!!! Thanks for sharing-- I guess thats why they have such a valuable website, huh!? Anyway, I second the question above....what is an appropriate tip for the wedding planner? And outside photographer? And people at the spa?? Thank you!!!! SO SOON I CAN'T WAIT!!

Quote: Originally Posted by jmb0902 Did any of you have ppl stay off the resort and come in for your wedding and other festivities? I have 2 friends who are hell-bent on going through vrbo.com to save $$ (I don't think they will when you tally up food/drinks, etc.). Did you have to pay the $55 a day guest fee? I know there aren't wristbands or anything... I don't want to "sneak" them on but I'm wondering if anyone would notice? I had family members attend the wedding who stayed at another resort. My dad paid for their passes. You won't be able to sneak them in. There is a guard at the gate and every cab/shuttle/car etc that comes through the gate has to register wtih that guard, he takes down the room number and/or name is your staying off site and radios to the front desk. This is not a hassle you want to deal with on your wedding day! Also, I would double check on the pricing of the passes I seem to remember them beign more expensive then we had planned on, they may have went up. My advice is don't try and beat the system it wouldn't be worth it. The guests do not have to wear wristbands when they come in.

DJ Mannia Review http://bestdestinationwedding.com/fo...967#post789034

I just wanted to share my experience using Carlos with DJ Mannia. Very early in our planning stages we talked about using a DJ and I emailed back and forth with Carlos because I had heard such wonderful things. His reputation stood true and he was responsive and attentive. Unfortunately at the time it seemed our budget would not allow for a DJ and we were just planning on using an Ipod, but then at the last minute (2 weeks before we left) we decided we could squeeze it in! I emailed Carlos and within minutes I had a resonse that they were available and a quote! Out of the entire planning process this was by far the easiest! Carlos sent me a playlist and we had everything confirmed so quickly. Before we left I kind of left some items open ended because I was so scatterbrained but lucky for us Carlos was on the ball and called the resort to check in with me! During our phone conversation we confirmed the special songs (first dance, father/daughter, mother/son, etc.) and he had them all available even with my last minute requests! I asked Carlos what time he would arrive to be set up and he told me 4:00 for a 6:30 reception. I plan events in the states and DJ's are infamous here for being late but Carlos did not let me down!! He was set up very early and ready to go. After our pictures were done we ran over to say hello to Carlos and he had me listen to a couple songs to confirm they were right and off to cocktail hour we went. When we arrived to the reception Carlos was playing our song and announced us and we went right into our first dance. So much fun and everything was perfect. The dinner music was great choices and as soon as we finished eating the party got started! I've never been to a wedding where nobody was in a chair, he did such a good job of getting everyone moving. We were having so much fun I totally forgot about cutting the cake but again Carlos was on the ball and announced it and stayed organized. Needless to say I was thrilled with the service we received from DJ Mannia. They are super easy to work with and really responsive with questions/concerns. I think anyone who works with this company will be amazed by the customer service you receive and your reception will be so much fun! Thank you DJ Mannia for making our wedding reception unforgettable!

Quote: Originally Posted by jennyatk wow everything looked wonderful! You and your husband looked so relaxed in your pics! I'm glad everything turned out. I was wondering if you have any suggestion on what to do about the front desk issues. Should I talk to my TA and get a game plan. Because I know something will be messed up and it is just nice to be prepared. Thanks and again everything looked wonderful! My recommendation is to speak with your Travel Agent about what is acceptable for you and what is not. For example my parents were not willing to sleep in a double bed and they thought they were booked in a king. So part of our problem was lack of communication from our TA. Just make sure you clarify with your TA and have them communicate it to the resort. Tell them you do not want any surprises upon check in. I would also take any confirmation emails from the resort to your TA if they will give them to you. Also keep in mind that even though our trip started off really rocky everything works out, hopefully by the end of the week it will seem far away from your thoughts

Quote: Originally Posted by jmb0902 First, congrats and welcome back!! You were a beautiful bride, I can't wait for more pics! 1. What did you have to pay for the rehearsal dinner? For the projector? 2. Did you use the resort photog or your own? How did they rate? Thanks girl! We didn't pay anything for the rehearsal dinner! It was awesome and I would do it that away again. I paid $30 for the screen and I actually brought the projector with me from the states and I rented it for $100 (normally $300 but they gave me a break because I use the company for work). If you look on the first page of the Dreams Tulum page on here you will find the contact info for the guy who supplies all the AV equipment. We used the resort photog. We thought he did great work we just wanted more If you're on a budget its great! Make sure you schedule a meeting with them prior.

Quote: Originally Posted by Chanti Wow, what a great review!!! Thank you so much, you have reassured me :-) Quick question, when you say you didn't have to pay to set up the sound system for the ceremony, did you bring your own or did you use the resort's? They want to charge us $150 USD for setting up their sound system for the ceremony, and then $325 USD for setting it up at the reception: because of this, we have just bought a portable iPod docking station.... Gorgeous pictures by the way, you look absolutely stunning!!!! Thank you From what I understood they normally charge $150 to set up the sound system for the ceremony but they did it for us for free. I think it may have to do with the fact that we have been booked for so long and we booked when there wasn't a charge for it? Not really sure nothing seems standard around there Quote: Originally Posted by Royal_lady10 I love your pics... you were absolutely stunning..Thanks for the review!. this makes me so excited, I have over a year.. but your review was great. Thanks for the tip about the room category.. we were debating about which one to select, ocean view or honeymoon.. Btw were you in the dreams or hacenda side.. were there really and differences between the two? Thank you so much! We were all in the Dreams side. The Hacienda rooms are nice as well they are just further away from everything. Almost all of our guests were booked in Hacienda and they were all upgraded. Thank you for the compliments girls! Its so much fun!

Hi girls. My review is finally posted! http://http://bestdestinationwedding.com/forum/t41919

but for a total of $790 I would say its worth it just to outsource and get a ton more pictures we only have 250. If you are looking to stay within a budget which we were in the beginning then the resort photographer does a great job, just don’t let them rush you. OVERALL: We had the wedding of our dreams and I wouldn’t change anything. Everyone should relax and enjoy the process and know that your day will be all you hoped for and then some. Thank you for everyone’s help and all of the creative brains on this forum! I hope this review will help someone as so many of them have helped me along the way. Your planning months go by so fast, treasure them.

DJ Mannia – Carlos was so easy to work with and totally responsive to all of my emails and questions. He even called while we were there to check in and confirm some last minute items. I was very impressed by his service. He was arrived early to set up and was ready to go. I checked in with him after our pictures before we went to cocktail hour and he had me listen to a couple songs to confirm they were the right versions. He was really good with service. One note for any upcoming brides using him- be sure to send him a list of “must playsâ€. I wasn’t specific at all which led to a lot of music being played that we were not interested in but this was totally my fault. I did ask him on 3 occasions to play Fergie during the night but it never got played, just be specific and send him a list prior and you will be thrilled with him! I have his music list if anyone needs it just let me know. After Party – when the reception ended at 10:30 our entire wild group moved into the diso. I changed out of my wedding dress and into my short, white, party dress and we had so much fun. Everyone danced and drank and nobody remembers much except that we had a lot of fun! Photographer: We used the resort photographer and purchased the 30 picture package but ended up buying the entire CD. We had Reuben as our photographer but this was a last minute change as we were supposed to have Nicholas and had already met with him and talked about we wanted. Reuben was great and lots of fun to work with. The only issue was he was supposed to arrive in my room prior to the ceremony which I confirmed 3 times and he never showed up. Nicholas also seemed like a lot of fun if anyone wants to request him. We felt rushed through our group shots and I didn’t get all of the family ones I wanted unfortunately (no shots with my grandparents or brother), make sure you are specific with them that day. I had talked to them prior but then with the photographer change we didn’t get everything we requested. I think our pictures turned out beautiful

Reception – Our reception took place from 6:30 – 10:30 by the Dolphin Pool. Absolutely gorgeous and so much fun – the perfect spot! We had DJ Mannia playing music (details below). I took all of our own linens, overlays, napkins, napkin rings with us. My family and friends all said I was crazy but it looked so pretty they all changed their minds and agreed it was worth lugging them to Mexico. Food – the food was very yummy! We had a Caprese salad to start followed by a Spinach Cream soup in a bread bowl and then chicken stuffed with spinach and cheese and for the vegetarians Portobello mushrooms. Everything was delicious! Our guests couldn’t believe how good the chicken was. I loved it all. Just be prepared that dinner service moves very slow so a good portion of your evening will be spent eating. Drinks – the staff brought our drinks right to our tables, nobody had to get up. At one point in the evening my MOH ordered tequila boom booms and every one of our guests got in a line and did repeated tequila shots it was hilarious and so much fun. Wedding Cake – we had vanilla cake with strawberry filling, it was so good! As a planner I taste a lot of wedding cakes and this one definitely ranked high! I was so pleased. It made me sad that they didn’t deliver the left over cake to our room though. Everyone should ask for this! We had half of the bottom tier left.

The WEDDING: First of all I should say that whatever Landy gets paid is not enough. She is one of the hardest workers I have ever seen and her attention to detail is amazing. I have an enormous appreciation for this because I am a wedding planner myself and know I am not an easy client or easy to please. I know the amount of work that goes into a wedding day and the fact that she does it every day all year blows my mind. I have weddings 6 months a year only 1 or 2 per weekend and am exhausted I can’t even begin to imagine how she feels. The ceremony – so beautiful! We took the sashes for the chairs. Everything was perfect! We played music and they didn’t charge us for setting up the sound system!! Our ceremony was at 4:00 we started a little late but no big deal. The ceremony was symbolic and was conducted by a minister. He was a funny man….his cell phone rang in the middle of the ceremony but at that point everyone just laughed. I would make your coordinator confirm that the persons cell phone is off before you start J Cocktail Hour- on the terrace of the lobby. I was completely thrilled with this set up. We had hors d’ oeuvres and champagne out there and it was beautiful. We chose melon and prosciutto, mushrooms stuffed with cream cheese and shrimp on melba (I think). The only one I could eat was the mushrooms and they were yummy. The other ones seemed ok the prosciutto and melon didn’t look impressive but I’m sure it tasted fine. The staff at cocktail hour never let anyones champagne glass get empty. This was a blast! It was hard to tear everyone away to go to the reception. Cocktail hour took place from 5:30 – 6:30.

Bonfire: The bonfire on the beach was a really fun get together and welcome party for our guests. We took all of the stuff to make smores with us but hardly anybody made them! I ended up leaving a case of graham crackers from Sams club sitting in our room because I wasn’t carrying them all the way back here. It was my best friend’s birthday just a couple days before so I ordered a birthday cake for her through the concierge and had it delivered to the fire. The cake was awesome and she was so surprised! The chocolate cake was so yummy! This night was really a blast, I highly recommend it! Rehearsal Dinner: Wonderful!!! Everything was perfect for our rehearsal dinner. We did the ceremony rehearsal at 6:30 and had dinner in the World Café. I ordered a screen for a slideshow and it was delivered and set up by 6:00, I went in and set up the projector and got the slideshow ready. The staff this night was amazing! We ate from the buffet and the chef prepared the dolphin fish the guys caught earlier in the day for us! Like I said I’m a vegetarian so I didn’t eat it but our guests were amazed and everyone is still talking about the fish and the fact that they did this for us. The Chef even came out and presented it and what seasoning it had on it (he prepared it 2 different ways).

Fishing Charter – Captain Ricks: Unfortunately the guys went fishing on the windiest day of the week. The sea was really rough making for bad fishing conditions. It was too rough for them to even drink the beer I ordered for them! The good side was that they caught a dolphin fish, and a mackerel. Their captain sucked and was rude but their equipment and boats are first class. The booking process was also very easy. I ordered boxed lunches for them through room service the night before they left and they were delivered to the lobby in the morning for the guys to take on the shuttle with them. If your group is big eaters order extra! The sandwiches consist of bread, 1 slice of ham and 1 slice of cheese J

Spa: The Spa is beautiful but again, service not so great! Throughout the week I had my legs waxed, we had 2 couples massages and then my hair done the day of the wedding. The major screw up of the week was that my friends had purchased us a gift certificate for a couples massage with champagne and chocolate covered strawberries in the VIP room. Well, when we arrive for our couples massage we didn’t know we were booked for the additional items and we never received them! So when my MOH arrived and found out we didn’t get the rest of the package she complained to Jennifer and they booked us for another night with the full package. The resort also screwed up because my MOH ordered us a bottle of champagne and fruit plate to be delivered to our room the first night and we never received that either. I found both men working the front desk of the spa to be very rude when I checked in for my services. On a positive note…me, my mom, and bridesmaids all had our hair done at the spa and we all loved it! Mine wasn’t anything like the picture I took but I was still very happy with it. Trinidad is a pro! My mom had her makeup done and it looked pretty, I touched it up slightly when we got to my room but the girl did a nice job overall. I ended up doing my makeup because I had not read any good reviews about it.

Food: I have to admit I was very uneasy about the food quality before getting there but I was pleasantly surprised. We have never chosen the All Inclusive route before because I am always concerned about food, but Dreams does a nice job and I would consider doing it again. Some nights were better than others but overall I was really happy. I’m a vegetarian and a picky eater and I definitely ate my share last week! All of our guests were thrilled as well. I have to say my favorite meal was the Mexican Fiesta! What a spread! I didn’t get a chance to eat at the Asian restaurant but all of the guests said this was the best one so don’t miss it like I did! Breakfast was wonderful every day also. My only note on the restaurants is that service is extremely slow! Don’t wait until you’re starving to go eat. Overall Service: The one part of the trip I found disappointing is that I was really expecting amazing five star service, it’s not. Some aspects are really great but mostly its just not good. Part of first class service is going beyond your guests expectations and the only person I felt that did that was Landy our wedding coordinator. The front desk staff was terrible and didn’t solve any of the problems we had throughout the week. I know everyone on here has raved about the service so its possible that it had to do with the fact that the resort was at capacity all week. It wasn’t just our group though that had issues, every time I met a guest in the lobby there was some guest at the front desk fighting with them about one issue or another. Please know that even though the service was not good our whole party still had so much fun and was thrilled to be there. The Beach: The beach is pretty, not like most Caribbean beaches because of the reef but it is still tropical and the water is turquoise. The best part about the beach is that even though the resort was at capacity we never had trouble getting chairs and we never felt crowded. Getting chairs by the pool was another story though, luckily we prefer the beach. I recommend going all the way to the end in front of seaside grill.

The Rooms: As I mentioned above all of our guests were upgraded except for my parents which was really nice. This was done without even asking. Our Honeymoon Suite was beautiful and spacious. Plenty of room for all of the girls to get ready! I did get to see the Hacienda rooms as well as the Dreams Suites, I thought they were all very nice. I would say if your are trying to decide between booking and paying for an ocean view/front or the Honeymoon suite just book the lower category, I don’t think there was that much of a difference space wise and there is a good chance you could get moved up into a Honeymoon Suite anyways. Housekeeping – Felix our housekeeping staff member was wonderful! We tipped him at the beginning of the week and he took very good care of us all week. Some of our other guests did not have the same experience unfortunately. Many of the guests said that their room service dishes were never taken out of the room and their refrigerators were never refilled their entire stay!!! I wish they would have let me know before the week was over, but they didn’t want me to be upset about anything. If something isn’t right make sure you call the housekeeping extension!! The one time I did have to call for our room to be cleaned at a certain time and it was taken care of right away

Check In: Some good and some bad. We did not receive our cool towels at check in and got our champagne at the very last minute as we were ready to walk away from checking in. We were supposed to be in an ocean front room in the building closest to the beach however no ocean fronts were available when checked in so they upgraded us to the Honeymoon Suite in building 7 which was a bonus. We were a little bummed at first because it was farther away but our room was beautiful and very quiet and private and we ended up loving it. My parents checked in with us and had a confirmation from our TA that they were in a Garden View Suite with a king size bed, but upon check in the front desk person told them they were in a room with 2 double beds, this did not fly with my dad. He was really upset and the guy checking us in was a huge jerk and continued to be a jerk for the rest of the week. Apparently the resort does not guarantee what type of beds will be in your room so be aware of this when you check in. Our travel agent did not prepare us for that at all. It ended up that my parents stayed in a Hacienda Room on Sunday night and were moved the next day to a Garden View Suite with a king. It all worked out but out of our entire group my parents were they only ones that did not receive an upgrade despite the fact that my dad paid for 9 people and 5 rooms, but at the point they were just happy they had a king bed. In our contract from the resort it stated that all our guests were to have a “Private Check in†with the way it was worded I assumed that there would be a separate table for the guests to be taken straight to when they arrived. This was not the case. When we checked in we did not receive the private check in and when I asked about it the manager told me that once our guest were greeted they would be taken to the couches and would sit there and be given all of their information and checked in. This only happened for 1 guest and it did not help them to avoid the long wait at the front desk. I would say the worst part of the week was checking in. Just double confirm things before you and be organized and prepared. The front desk staff is not good at problem solving or accommodating your needs so be very clear in what you want and get it in writing. cont....

Hi girls!!! I'm BAACK! Today is my first day back in the office so things are a little crazy but I wanted to let you know I'm here and swine flu free along with all of our other guests! The wedding was amazing. I'm aiming to write my review tonight, pending my internet working at home my new hubby said he was having some trouble with it this morning. As long as its working this evening my review will be posted I can't believe its over. I'm so sorry for the girls who have to move/postpone their trips and Beth I hope you and all of your guests have an amazing time.

Quote: Originally Posted by ida Can i just vent and say that I am very frustrated with planning this destination wedding?? I'm so mad that they keep changing the prices on me! First of all I thought it was only $6usd each to rent Tiffany chairs and then Anabel quoted me $12usd each. And now after I just emailed to confirm everything she's quoting $18usd each for the Tiffany chairs!!! WTF? How does it go from $6 to $12 to $18! I'm soooo mad! I emailed her back and told her that she already quoted $12 for me and that I don't appreciate her giving me this new price out of nowhere! Geez I feel like they just wanna rip you off! And i thought it was only $50usd per person for a day pass but she quoted me $90usd per person Does anyone else have this problem It's so unfair to feel like this when you're already stressed about the wedding! Sorry just had to vent!!! My recommendation would be to search for the vendor yourself and go directly through them. DT doesn't seem to have any problems with outside vendors coming in. If you rent directly through the vendor you alleviate the DT mark up as well as locking in a price with a contract. Just search for a party rental place in Cancun or Playa Del Carmen. I plan weddings myself and when I rent equipment and linens etc. I mark up the vendors prices 20% typically (just to give you a heads up on what DT is probably doing).

Quote: Originally Posted by Blkatz wow Tiffany! Good luck with the packing!!!! That is the hardest part sometimes! Packing has been the hardest! Have you started? You are right behind me, I recommend doing a little at a time so you are not frantic like me

Hi girls! I'm leaving on Sunday! Does anyone have any questions they would like me to find out while I'm there? Let me know and I'll make a list. Doing my final packing tonight. Yikes! I can't believe its actually here.

Quote: Originally Posted by Andi haha wedding brain! I have that too! I am seriously having problems actually WORKING at work! haven't started packing yet...hoping to do a bit of that this weekend...when do you leave? i noticed your day is one after mine! I leave the 19th. Today I officially decided I must give up on work for the next week. The girls in my office were totally entertained today by me trying to make decisions on last minute things I'm ordering...what color parasols, paper lanterns or no paper lanterns. Unreal that I actually spent all day stressing over dumb thing! When do you leave? Its so close! I can't believe its actually here.

Good point! Thanks! I'm over thinking everything at this point.