marak

Well, after a few months off from wedding planning the fiance and I are back at it. Seems we are picking up where we left off trying to pick a location. I think we've tried every angle...created lists, prioritized, been selfish, been thoughful, been extravagent and budget concious. Alas, a grand epiphany! All locations look great on their own websites. Wa-wa-waaaa. If I see one more couple clearly designed in a lab and sporting their fabulousity on a louge chair I am going to vom all over them.... You see all this deliberating has put me in rare form. So photogs, CALLING ALL PHOTOGS!, please chime in on your favorite resorts to work with and photograph a wedding at. If you will, without giving up your secrest, please list your top 3 Riviera Maya resorts and why (any correlating photos would be great too). Tootaloo darlings and thanks!

Just wondering if most people utilized the services of a travel agent, worked through the resort or organized travel yourselves? If you used a TA, did you find him/her useful? Did he/she save you money &/or headaches? Did you pay for the service or was the TA paid through the resort? Feel free to recommend one! I'm in northern Jersey (if that matters) Thx!

Doubled! Wowsers.

Alright, my fiance is really starting to think I am addicted to this forum. I just can't stop reading, but the more I read the more indecisive I get! I'm going to ask you wonderfully informed gals for some advice on a destination for my DW. The parameters I'd like to work within: 1. East coast Mexico or Caribean - nothing West coast as almost all guests are coming from NY/NJ/CT/FL. Some are elderly so I worry about long flights. Some on a budget so I worry about airfare jacking up the price. 2. AI w/ good food and premium booze included (What can I say, we like to eat and drink) 3. Would like to keep the total price per guest w/ air/taxes/etc under or around $1500 for 4 nights/5 days or more. 4. Would like ceremony to be next to the beach, water view and beach ambience, but no sand. I'm a high heel kinda gal, need to be able to walk down the aisle in them. Sand and high heels means I bust my bum in front of everyone...while my guests would be entertained, I would be mortified. Would love the reception to be on the beach though..once my flip flops come out. But I can certainly work with an open air restaurant/reception area just off the beach, just nothing indoors. 5. Must accept outside photographers. 6. Must be gay friendly as not all of our guests are "traditional" couples. 7. We are a partying group that will probably need a lobby bar or disco to go to after the reception. 8. We are looking at about 50-65 showing up. That is all I can think of right now. Please have at it with suggestions or feel free to rule out any of the popular places on the east coast that won't fit the bill. And thank you thank you thank you ahead of time.

I emailed the Occidental Grand Xcaret for info about their resort and package pricing. They sent me the attached list from 2009 and advised there will be a 15% increase to those prices for 2010. I will say I am not super familiar with this as I have just started getting price quotes from resorts, but does 15% seem like a rather large increase? Is that the norm from year to year? 2009_XCARET_WEDDING_PACKAGES[1].doc

This thread is AMAZING. My fiance and I are still trying to pick a location (just agreed yesterday to do a DW after getting a quote from the one place I found acceptable in NJ...It was outrageous). Anyhow, thank you all for sharing your woulds and wouldn'ts. You gave me 3 pages of notes and a day of work that just blew by!!!

Congrats! I'm a newbie too!

Hi all, My fiance and I are recently engaged and about 90% decided on a destination wedding. I am completely clueless as to weddings in general so I was thrilled to find this message board! I have already read so many informative posts and gained a wee bit of confidence that maybe I will be able to plan this shindig after all. There are so many beautiful locations, but we are focusing in on Riviera Maya, Mexico or somewhere in the Dominican Republic...hopefully 2010 if all goes well. So....Hi there!!! Mara