cjaruba

Congratulation Le! I'm getting married at the Aruba Marriott next month! Christene

For some reason I don't hear too much about those two. Seems a lot of people go to the Divi all inclusive. The place to check out will be the aruba.com forum: Official Aruba Community Forum Its been my best resource. There have been a couple of people on there that bug me but overall its really helpful. My next best resource has been TripAdvisor.com. We didn't like the fact that RIU is a monstrosity that doesn't seem to fit in with the rest of the hotels but we did drop in one night. (We were in Aruba for a site visit in May.) It looked pretty good. Huge pool! Looked like people were having fun and I could totally see myself bellied up to the pool bar. We stopped in around 10pm and people were still mingling around the pool. I've heard the 'included' food is 'ok' but there is some a-la-carte food that's really good. We had been considering the Occidental but ruled it out early on because of expense. We don't have enough people that party that would make good use of the All-Inclusive. Occidental seems to have a great location. RIU is down by the Westin near the end of the Palm Beach strip. There really isn't a bad location though. You can walk one end of the beach to the other in less than 20 minutes. Its only about a mile of resort after resort. There is an outdoor shopping center that the Occidental may be closer to, but really, I don't think either are more than a 10 minute walk. Good luck!

August 2009 Branden & Shivani- August 6, 2009- Almond Morgan Bay, St. Lucia Jacilyn & Joe (Jacilynda) - August 8, 2009 - Hotel Akumal Caribe, MX Monique & Eric - August 15, 2009 - Dreams Los Cabos, MX Karen & Dan - August 15, 2009 Tiffiney & Ryan - August 15, 2009 - RIU Vallarta, MX Megan & Doug - August 15, 2009 - Miami, FL (Carnival Cruise) Michelle & Brent - August 19, 2008 - Wynn Las Vegas, NV Tiffany & George - August 22, 2009 - Dreams Los Cabos, MX Jenni & Tim - August 22, 2009 - Holden Beach, NC Elizabeth & Gabriel - August 31, 2009 - Carnival Ecstasy, Galveston, TX September 2009 Sarah & Zachary - September 1, 2009 - Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands BWI Marijke & Rob - September 1 or 2, 2009 - Parga, Greece Dominica & Ernest - September 5, 2009 - Azul Fives, MX Allisa & Vance - September 9, 2009 - Azul Sensatori, MX Erik & Zarina - September 9, 2009 - Las Veags, NV Benny & Shawn- September 9, 2009- Excellence Riviera Cancun, MX Amy & Clint - September 11, 2009 - Cancun, MX Lisa & Gary - September 17, 2009 - Maui, HI Trista & Jon - September 17, 2009 - Excellence Riviera Cancun, MX Amber & Donnie (foxybride) September 19, 2009 - Las Vegas, NV Dayla & Randell - September 19, 2009- Cancun/Riviera Maya, MX Vicki & David - September 26, 2009 - Buenaventura Puerto Vallarta, Mexico October 2009 Natasha & James - October 7,2009 --RIU Palace, Cabo San Lucas Heide & Paul - October 10, 2009 -- San Juan, Puerto Rico Amanda & Anton - October 11, 2009 -- Las Caletas, Mexico Ashley & Dustin - October 17, 2009 -- Dreams resort and spa cancun Dustin and Ashley October 17, 2009 At Dreams Cancun Danelle & Antonio - October 17, 2009 --Riu Palace Riviera Maya Angela & Jason - October 20, 2009 - Majestic Colonial, Punta Cana Heather & Matie - October 22, 2009 -- Cabo San Lucas, Mexico Josie & Marko - October 24, 2009 -- Dreams Tulum Dana & Eddie - October 24, 2009 -- Moon Palace Cancun Jenny & Matthew - October 27, 2009 -- Melia Caribe Tropical, Punta Cana, DR Emily & Kevin - October 28, 2009 -- Melia Las Dunas, Cayo Santa Maria, Christene & Rattan - October 31, 2009 -- Palm Beach, Aruba November 2009 Melissa (SgtPepperette) and Grant - November 4, 2009 - Fort Myers Beach, FL Keira and Steve - November 05, 2009 - Bahia Pricipe Coba, Mexico Nicole & Curt - November 5, 2009 - Azul Sensatori, Riviera Maya Megan & Shay - November 7, 2009 - Westin Los Cabos Erin & Trent - November 9th, 2009 - Melia Caribe Tropical, Punta Cana, DR Jodey & Simon - November 12th 2009 - Dreams resort and spa Cancun Lisa & Doug - November 12, 2009 - Riu Palace Riviera Maya Carrie & Andy - November 13, 2009 - Beaches Negril Evelyn (koolatta) & Audie - November 14, 2009 - Catalonia Riviera Maya Alicia & Rob - November 14, 2009 - Sandals Grande Ocho Rios Joanne & Mark - November 14, 2009 - Iberostar Grand, Mexico Mirna & Louis-November 15th 2008-Dreams Cancun Heidi & Patrick - November 16th 2009 - Sirenis La Salina, Varadero Leslie & Gerry - November 16th, 2009- Majestic Colonial, Punta Cana Valerie & Ryan - November 21, 2009 - Dreams Cancun Resort & Spa Sarah & Tan- November 21, 2009- Valentin Imperial Maya Mary & Paul - November 28th 2009 - Puerto Vallarta, Mexico Jessica (Jess) & Paul - November 28th, 200 - Puerto Vallarta, Mexico Josie & Jason - November 28th 2009- Playa Del Carmen, Mexico !! December 2009 Gina & Ryan - December 2, 2009 - Riu Palace Riviera Maya Leslie & Jay - December 5, 2009 - Moon Dance Cliffs Jamaica poohshek & spidey - December 11, 2009 - Riviera Maya Jen & Kenny - December 12, 2009 - Excellence Playa Mujeres Lesya & Dave - December 12, 2009 - Sands resort Turks and Caicos Jillian & Tim (Adlergray)-December 18, 2009- Blue Tulum Rsort & Spa Nadine & Jesse (cdnvb9) -December 29, 2009 - Dreams Huatulco Resort & Spa Patty & Jason - December 30, 2009 - Barcelo Riviera Maya Colonial Karla & Abraham - December 31, 2009 - Negril, Jamaica January 2010 Melissa & Kent- January 5, 2010- Playa Pesquero, Cuba Aimee & Theodore- January, 8, 2010 - Iberostar Tucan, Mexico Jessica & Matt(jrprice24)- January 8,2010- Sandos Playacar, PDC, Mexico Kerri & Elton (kpuckrin)- January 12th, 2010- BlueBeard's Beach, St. Thomas Nancy & Pat - January 13th, 2010 - Beaches Negril, Jamaica Melita (Melette) & Charlie - January 21, 2010 - Dreams Los Cabos, Mexico Catherine & Ian - January 22, 2010 - Playa Pesquero, Cuba Shannon & Lauchlan- January 27th, 2010- Puerto Vallarta Mexico Jocelyn & Sean - January 27, 2010 - Gran Bahia Principe Tulum, Mayan Riviera February 2010 Melissa & Sean- February 10, 2010- St. Thomas USVI Linda & Ton- February 22, 2010- Costa Rica Amber & Sean - February 22, 2010 - Moon Palace Resort, Mexico March 2010 Bev & Brian March 4th 2010 - Clubhouse Negril Christine & Welsey March 19th, 2010- Dreams Tulum, Mexico Katie & Ryan March 26th, 2010- Riu Palace Riviera Maya April 2010 Claire & John (adelaide) April 1, 2010 - Occidental Grand Xcaret - Riviera Maya Holly & Adam (Scubadiva) April 2nd, 2010 - Megans Bay Beach St Thomas USVI Mandy & Micah (cruisebride0410) April 9, 2010 - Nassau, Bahamas Michele & Jim (jerseykitten) April 10, 2010 - Grand Palladium Lady Hamilton Resort & Spa - Montego Bay, Jamaica Steph & Jason (sperger) - April 16, 2010 - Grand Palladium, Punta Cana doblauvelt-April 16, 2010- Moon Palace, Cancun Sarah and Jed (sarah310) April 17, 2010 - Occidental Grand Xcaret, Mexico Stacey & Eric (La Romana Stacey) - April 22, 2010 - Dreams La Romana Rowena & Tak (Bride2010) - April 22, 2010 - Barcelo Maya Palace, MX Suzanne & Ryan (soxgirl)- April 23, 2010- Divi, Aruba (?) Veronica & Patrick (vgirl17) - April 24, 2010 - Moon Palace, Cancun MX Joanna & Chris (jerzygirl85) - April 24, 2010 Dreams Tulum, Mexico Christina & Gregory (GregsBride) - April 24, 2010 - Iberostar Rose Hall Suites, Montego Bay, Jamaica Erin & Jeremy (ebredhawk) - April 28, 2010 - Dreams Punta Cana May 2010 Crystal & Dave (CrystalM) - May 1, 2010 - Magen's Bay, St. Thomas, USVI Heather & Eric (hockeymom97) - May 5th, 2010, Beaches Negril, Jamaica Dyan & Chris (dyanh) - May 7, 2010 Sandals Montego Bay, Jamaica Savannah & Billy (BillysBride) -May 8, 2010 Avalon Reef Club, Isla Mujeres, MX Victoria & Eric- May 11, 2010- Excellence Riviera Cancun Resort Heather & Andrew- May 14, 2010- Kauai, Hawaii Jessica & Matt (Future Mrs. Griffith) - May 14, 2010 - Dreams Resort PV Heather & George (dolfinluck)- May 15, 2010 - Dreams La Romana, DR Margaret & Matthew (mmontgo) - May 15, 2010 - Dreams Riviera Cancun, Mx Shannon & Robert (preciousmi811) -May 17, 2010 - RUI Palace Tropical Bay, Jamaica Mary & Pete (MissM)- May 19th, 2010- Los Cabos Amber & Mike (gokartmagic) - May 21, 2010 - Iberostar Grand, Montego Bay, Jamaica Belle & Jean-Claude - May 27,2010- St. Kitts, B.W.I. Samantha & Ralph- May 27,2010- Coco Reef Resort, Bermuda Craig & Fiona - May 28th, 2010 - Moon Palace Erin & Greg - May 28, 2010 - The Royal, Playa del Carmen June 2010 Jennifer & Ernie (jenninjamaica) ~ June 1, 2010 Breezes Grand Negril, Negril, Jamaica Jaymi and James (Jaymibaby) ~ June 1, 2010 Sandals Royal Caribbean, Montego Bay, Jamaica Stephanie and Michael (~Stephanie~)-June 11, 2010 The Royal Playa del Carmen Michelle & Arsen (michelle613)- June 12, 2010 Dreams Cancun Krystall & Nick (azulskies) - June 17, 2010 Olowalu Plantation House, Maui Stephanie and Chris (sspiris) - June 19, 2010, Destination to be determined Lulu & Kirkton (lmuze) ~ June 19, 2006: Iberostar Rose Hall Beach, Jamaica Jessica & Bryson (Royal_lady10)-June 26, 2010 Dreams Tulum July 2010 Jennifer and Juan- July 2nd, 2010- Gran Bahia Principe Tulum Kaytee and CJ- July 3rd, 2010- Destination still TBD! Jannae and Ryan (LadyTrunck)- July 6, 2010- Riu Palace Riviera Maya, Playa del Carmen, Mexico!! Mandy and Chad- July 10, 2010- Sullivans Island, SC Edy And Jaxon (mswhatever) - July 17, 2010 Grand Palladium Lady Hamilton resort & Spa Jamaica Bobbett and Ricky (Natural)- July 18, 2010 San Juan, Puerto Rico Tracy and Cole - July 2010 in Playa del Carmen, TBD August 2010 Melissa and Robby (hunniebee724) ~ August 19, 2010 NYC, Carnival Cruise Lines Crystal & Marques (hugrad) - August 9, 3010 St. Thomas, USVI September 2010 Courtney & Chris-September 3,2010-Siesta Key, Fl October 2010 Lori & Oliver (gossip girl) - October 10, 2010 - Destination TBD! Suzanne & Joe (sierra101010) - October 10, 2010 - Puerto Vallarta Chris & Crystal (Crystalballl) - October 20, 2010 - Playa Pesquero, Cuba Jo & Darren (Jo&Daz20-10-2010) - October 20, 2010 - Coral Coast - Fiji December 2010 Chris & John (sunstarsmoon) - December 1, 2010 - Rui Ocho Rios, Jamaica Stephen & Sabrina (breeze616) - December 10, 2010 - Iberostar Rose Hall, Jamaica Shana and Jamel (chocolatedrop04)- December 11, 2010-Moon Palace, Mexico Carla & Christoper (adias.angel) - December 11, 2010 - Riviera Maya

Thanks! Yes, finally falling in to place. Just planned the welcome party last week. If only the 5lbs I'm desperate to lose would go so well. =) Quote: Originally Posted by Sheree10 Don't you wonder where all the time went? I hope things have been getting a little easier with your planning.

Congratulations Aruba brides! I'm getting married in Aruba too and don't remember seeing this thread before. Our wedding is in less than 12 weeks now - yikes! I'm getting pretty excited and am finally checking some things off the list. After a site visit in May we chose the Aruba Marriott but also liked the Hyatt, Westin and Manchebo Pavillion. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions or find any great resources you'd like to share!

I also like number 1 the best - I think its the classiest, but agree, those necklines can be tough. If you're uncomfortable with the neckline, see if the seamstress has any ideas. I have an evening gown with a drape neckline and feel like its a bit distracting (especially with a large bust). I ended up pinning it down and in making it more of a v-neck. I love the straps and the beading. You're going to be gorgeous in any of them though!

Oooo -- those are pretty too. Very classy! Quote: Originally Posted by shanelle Those are great! I have been searching for my perfect formal invite as well. I think i found it! ladies who havent found their invite yet, try Unique Wedding Invitations, save the date cards, custom handmade wedding invitations, wedding shower invitations I choose the seaside stars ~ starfish wedding invites.

Thanks! And I love the story -- a woman that says 'enough of this' and starts her own business out of her home! She started out intending to be a stiletto-d, power-suited business woman armed with degrees in economics and a masters in accounting, yet found her passion here. Quote: Originally Posted by Hoosierfan Those are great - what a fantastic find!

I just want to share my excitement in that I FINALLY found a wedding invite. Just as I was ready to give up and make something myself, another bride emailed me a link and sure enough there it is! It was a struggle - I wanted something informal and colorful, my fiancé wanted something formal and traditional. I wanted something that was kind of tropical / beach-y without being cliche. Well Decadent Designs has the perfect invite for us (Thank you Cindy!!!). I think its the perfect compromise between traditional with the pocket fold and pretty script, but love the 'organic' elements (raffia) and subtle, tasteful shells! They seem pricey but there is no minimum order and they include everything - even the enclosures! By the time we paid for a minimum order with someone else, plus all the add-ons (at least with the ones we were looking at) we would have spend just as much. Since these are hand-made there are also many modifications you can make without extra charge (for Example, our colors are pink and orange so we're adding orange to the existing design.) The designer is Lynsey - a young newlywed (Feb '0, who found herself starting this business when she went through the same struggle - trying to find the balance between fun and chic. I love the story and have already had exchanged a couple of emails with her and think she is a doll. I'm so grateful that she has made something that had turned into a chore, fun again. I'll be sure to post my proof when its ready! www.decadentdesignsllc.com

Well please don't rule out Mexico based on my post. Ask the brides that have been there! My hairdresser was telling me about his sister's wedding and the officiant didn't show... didn't show for 2 days! (Their wedding was going to be on the beach.) They finally gave up, started partying and sure enough when she was loaded on margaritas they got the call that he would be there in an hour! He had to try to sober up his heart-broken sister and get her dressed for the wedding. I've heard a couple other things though not as severe. And I don't know how long ago Jeffrey's sister was married so times may have changed. We were planning on Puerto Vallarta before swine flu hit two weeks before our site visit. I think Mexico would still be a fantastic destination and I'm sure you can get a LOT for your money now. We're excited about Aruba but it is so expensive! I had wanted to ship some stuff down to my wedding planner - a 20lb box worth $100 and it was going to cost me over $200 to ship it (via UPS)! Needless to say we are instead just packing an extra bag, but still... And some of their decorations seem outdated to me which makes sense since it costs them so much to import things. At first I was frustrated by the lack of contemporary decor I wanted but had a much better appreciation after trying to ship my simple package of wedding favors. Aruba will turn out well I'm sure but I think PV would have been so much fun! Quote: Originally Posted by goNDmay9 YIKES CJ! you may have just convinced me to rule out mexico - that is scary!! not to mention, my moon palace contract said something about catholic ceremonies not being legally recognized. this whole civil cermony thing is starting to get really complicated. hello! my next project is the cayman islands! ha!

I used DW too (Susan)... Ended up saving me $50 per room per night! Quote: Originally Posted by goNDmay9 I may give them a try. I am currently using weddingdayaway.com, but i really need someone who is going to take the reins on this a little. I have found more from this forum then i have found from my person right now! There are two options we are looking at for Jamiaca. The Sandals Montego Bay has a chapel on the resort, and my weddingdayaway person just said that she is finding info out on a offsite church as well. i have never been to ANY of these countires though so it is good to know that it is hard to go wrong! ahhhhhhhh. But at least i am starting to cross things off the list. i will keep you all posted if i do not go insane first.

Your right -- the actual wedding part is a downer. ALL legal weddings do need to take place at the city hall. When we were researching Mexico we heard a few horror stories of unreliable officiants so we decided we were going to get the 'legal stuff' out of the way with a magistrate ceremony at first. While Aruba is a lot more reliable, we had already gotten comfortable with doing the legal part at home the week before and it saves a bunch of money when you're not paying for document translation. As far as our guests and family will know, they will be witnessing the real ceremony on the beach. I have to say I was REALLY surprised they don't have church weddings there. Given we were stuck on our date in October, the weather had crossed most places off the list. Good luck finding the perfect place for you! Quote: Originally Posted by goNDmay9 The Aruba Marriott and the RIU were the ones that we were looking at. Although I just found out some news that has just CRUSHED me. Actually, i am not going to say that - i am going to say that it is allowing me to cross countries off of my list (which is fab at this point!). My FI and I want to have a chapel cermony (preferably catholic) and I found out that A - they do not do weddings at Alto Vista (that would have been perfect and was my original plan) and B - Aruba does not allow church weddings at all. You have to get married at City Hall and they only do beach cermonies. Are you all getting married at the Aruba City Hall first too? I was just curious to see if you heard the same thing before i ruled out Aruba. Yours is coming up soon! Sooooo exciting. Love ya!

We had 'stay-tuned' on our wedding website for 3-4 months while we researched Florida, Costa Rica, Mexico and finally Aruba! =) Then after we had selected a resort it took another 3 weeks to get the contract sorted out and were finally able to post the hotel link with the group code... Quote: Originally Posted by goNDmay9 thanks cjaruba! aruba is on our list too - but then again everything seems to be on our list ha! i just keep telling myself to keep looking and the right venue will hit me and everything will work out. we have already been telling people it is a destination wedding too - just not sure where. I have already alerted most people to go ahead and get or renew their passports because we are going somewhere!! are you getting married on the resort?

Yes, we're getting married at the Aruba Marriott. I have to say they are terrible to communicate with but I do think they'll do a good job. Because we're getting married in the fall we don't have a lot of options thanks to hurricane season, hence our choice of Aruba. Our first choice was Puerto Vallarta but then swine flu hit as we were getting ready to visit and we decided we didn't want to take any chances with the wedding only 6 months away. We're excited but its definitely expensive and I often feel like they're about 10 years behind some other locations (for example I have been unable to find Chiavari chairs to rent). There are probably places you can get a lot more for your money but we had our date picked and wanted to keep moving forward. Good luck! Wherever you choose I'm sure it will be beautiful. Quote: Originally Posted by goNDmay9 thanks cjaruba! aruba is on our list too - but then again everything seems to be on our list ha! i just keep telling myself to keep looking and the right venue will hit me and everything will work out. we have already been telling people it is a destination wedding too - just not sure where. I have already alerted most people to go ahead and get or renew their passports because we are going somewhere!! are you getting married on the resort?

Well the resort has tiki torches and luckily they are only $5 each. I don't know how many they have though cause I'm thinking I'd like some drama, using maybe 100 outlining the reception space and walk up to it. Another thing I want to do is set up a 'lounge space'. Furniture rentals have been hard to come by, but worst case an area with some lounge chairs might at least be something. I want guests to be able to find a more comfortable seat to watch the festivities and chat if they don't want to dance. (I especially want older guests to be able to find a seat more comfortable than plastic folding chairs.) I hadn't thought of draping them with fabric though - great idea! The hotels lounges are red and I'd really prefer white. Thanks! Quote: Originally Posted by JOSIE I love the tikki torches idea...but how will you get them all down there or do you plan on buying them there? This might sound a little crazy but what about beach chairs? You could line them up and drape towels or fabric over them could be weird but also beachy and cute!