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Quote: Originally Posted by bahiabride2010 This is a J Crew Dress! It's the Silk Chiffon Tank Twist dress. The nice thing about them is if you choose the colour then the girls can just chose the style they would like best for their shapes. We ordered ours from there and the girls received them in just over a week! Some went halter and some strapless! That wasn't even the rushed shipping method! Check them out online! HAPPY HUNTING! This is actually the silk chiffon sophia dress which is a little different than yours. I like yours too but I didn't see any halters Does that same dress come in halter? Please let me know because that was the one objection my MOH had to this dress...she wants halter and I can't find it. Is the dress neckline convertible

I'm also getting married at Gran Caribe and have had the worst customer service experience of my life. I'm usually not a difficult person and throughout my entire wedding planning I have received excellent service from everyone EXCEPT Gran Caribe. Even when things haven't gone 100 % according to plans at other places I've just let things go because the service was so good. But Gran Caribe has been just awful. I complained to the manager and she was completely obnoxious and like you said kept cutting me off. What is the name of your coord? I want to switch but have been scared that the person I switch to is worse. This is really so unfair. This is one of the biggest days of our lives and we're paying - its not like they're giving it to us for free (you had to pay for the rooms to get it). Maybe if enough people complain to the RIGHT person something will get done. We should not have to just lay down and deal with that type of treatment.

Quote: Originally Posted by Dedicated2Us Please! What is the name of the wedding coordinator you are working with!! I am about to give my deposit and reading your review has me second guessing this resort! It is so hard to find any info regarding this place. By any chance did you take pics from your site inspection visit? And please share the name of the W.C. Her name is Denisse but I honestly don't have faith that any of the others are much better. Her manager was even more abnoxious than Denisse was...at least Denisse tries to be nice. Eventhough she's not accomodating or flexible and takes forever to get back to you at least she's not rude. The manager was flat out rude and arrogant. If you hve better luck with another coordinator PLEASE let me know so I can switch. I didn't take a ton of pics on the site visit because frankly I was just really pissed...but here are a few. If you look closely to the right of the first pic you'll see the stairs where you come down. After coming down you make a quick left, turn and go in the chapel. The other option is to come all the way down the path you see (behind the cross) but then you have to go through that kids club. The place is just as beautiful in person as in the pictures on their website. I'm sure it will look even more gorgeous once it's decorated.

Quote: Originally Posted by roo66 You have plenty of time chilll !!! xxxxx Have you looked at the victoria secret 7 in 1 dress.Alyssia used these for her wedding and all her girls looked fab.Jewlery i think can make a bridesmaids dress.Try thinking out of the box shells etc coloured beads etc.The thing is anything goes and i know that the victoria secret dress can look so great on different body shapes.Have fun no more stresssing xx That's such a great idea. I love the idea of having them choose the style they feel flatters them best. Only problem is they don't have my color I thought I had plenty of time which is why I wasn't sweating it until today. Most places have a really long waiting period of over 3 months. But, I'll try to relax One of my girls is overseas in the military right now so I want her to have plenty of time to get it and alter it before the wedding.

My wedding is 4 months away and I still haven't picked out bridesmaid dresses. I just found that estimated delivery time for some places is THIRTEEN weeks! So now I'm freaking out because I realized I have to get this done asap. Problem is I don't even know where to start. Where has everyone else bought their dresses? I don't want your very traditional BM dress...I'd like something flowey and beachy that my girls will feel comfortable in but I want them to feel beautiful and happy. Please just tell me any places you know of where I can get summery or beach type dresses. I saw this one I like in my color but I'm thinking it might be just a little too simple and I want them to feel great that day. I think I would really love this dress if it were a halter, sweetheart or strapless neckline. Please help - any links, designers or websites would help me. I just don't know where to start.

The rude manager gave me the option to switch to another coordinator. I chose to stay with the flake because I was worried that they might give me someone worse. The new coordiator also won't have all the history so I'm worried that things could get lost in the transition. The manager was SOOOO rude and unhelpful that I can't imagine other people on her staff are any better. The latest update is that I asked if I could reserve one of the rooms on the path to the chapel so that I could just walk out of the room and straight to the chapel. That way, I could have a long walk down the aisle without going through the kids club area. She said I could get the room for the day for $200. I checked online and the price was $164 so I pointed it out. She said the $164 price was promotional and ended the next day. She said she'd honor the online rate but I had to pay the next day. I just don't get their customer/client service. Anyone else would have given that room for free just for the inconvinience or deeply discounted it. I'm getting a free suite at the reception venue and a free room at the hotel where I'm blocking rooms for guests. I didn't ask for those free rooms, they just gave them to me. Given the aggravation I've been through I would think they would offer that as an option. They just truly don't care about making brides happy or providing good customer service.

I'm having the same problem... I wanted a small intimate wedding of about 30 people and the list of people who are going is now near 55! And every day I find out of one or two more people who are inviting themselves. Just yesterday my mom told me of a family friend that invited herself and said she's not missing it for the world...but she wasn't on my original list! This has happened a LOT! And I have to be careful about any new people my FI meets or goes out to drinks with because he immediately invites them. His list is TWICE as long as mine because he wants to invite the world. I had a long talk with him and told him we had to limit this list to family & very close friends because we simply CANNOT afford it. I had a heart to heart and said I wish all these people could go but we just don't have the money. I think that when I broke it down to him he got it so he's not inviting additional people. But the problem now is people inviting themselves. I think that at some point I'm just going to tell people that the venue has a limited capacity and we had to keep it small so we are only inviting family. That's always my excuse... I say it's a family affair (even though it really isn't only family). I've found people don't take it personal when you say you're only inviting family. Good luck!

I was my friend's MOH and her groom had two best men so they both walked me down the aisle...one on each arm. People actually got a kick out of it and said I was so special I had two men walking me:) I don't think it's a big deal at all. I'm also having an uneven number of BM & GM so I don't think it's uncommon.

Yeah, I thought about elevating it to higher powers but then I'm concerned about how the wedding coordinator might react - she really has the capability of messing up my wedding day if I piss her off enough. I will definetely complain about the poor service to higher powers AFTER the wedding. I have never experienced such bad service in my life. I'm not even so bothered by the actual logistics anymore (i.e. walk down the aisle, etc..). What I'm extremely frustrated and angry about is the treatment I've received and how unhelpful they've been. It's like they just don't care. I've received such personalized service at Le Meridien which is where I'm having my reception, and even at the Gran Melia which is where I blocked room for the guests. Le Meridien & Gran Melia are both top rated resorts and they're client service reflects it. I would never, ever give Gran Caribe Real my business again not even as a guest.

Quote: Originally Posted by cublica82 I am soo sorry! I am also getting married at the chapel and i am disappointed that the aisle wont be long.....i wanted a decent length aisle to walk down as well. i can only say that i hope everything works out for us and the photographers are pros and can get great shots anyway.. are u using their photographer? i was thinking of booking an outside photographer I'm flying in a photographer from the US. I will have to pay the resort a fee just to bring an outside photograher. She is a really great photographer and a pro so if anyone can pull off good shots it's her. When is your wedding?

Quote: Originally Posted by ldyrck16 I was there over Thanksgiving week looking at wedding sites. The Chapel is beautiful and it was what made the decision not to have my wedding there difficult. However, we found the place difficult to deal with as well in regards to even getting an appointment with the wedding coordinator (who ended up sending others to meet with us, so I never met with her). I will say that we did get to see a couple of weddings during our time there and they all looked amazing and everyone looked happy. They seemed to be running very smoothly. So I think everything will work out for the wedding ceremony and you cannot beat the Chapel there - it is gorgeous. Thank you for this. It makes me feel a little better to know that someone has actually seen a wedding there. I've had a very hard time finding any reviews about weddings in the chapel. It's good to know that you saw a ceremony that was going well. Did you by any chance take photos? I'm curious to at least see the place decorated. I'm going to try to stay positive.

Quote: Originally Posted by renee1811 I am so sorry to hear that you are frustrated with your site. My fingers are crossed it all works for the better--maybe she was having an off day?! Thank you so much for the well wishes - I'm going to need them:) Unfortunately, I don't think she wasn't having an off day...she's been a flake from the beginning. When I first started planning, it was like pulling teeth to get a response out of her. Then she got a little better but even then she wasn't the most responsive or flexible person in the world. I'm just going to pray that all goes well the day of.

I have to vent because I'm on the verge of tears! I just came back from a weekend trip to Cancun. I'm getting married in the catholic chapel inside the Gran Caribe Real and I really wish I had done this site visit before I put the deposits and confirmed everything. The chapel is beautiful just as pictured in the photos. However the entrance to the chapel is not what I expected... you have to go through a really loud and super busy lobby just to get to the chapel. The path from the lobby to the chapel is very long with a lot of turns so it's easy for guests to get lost. When I asked the coordinator if there would be signs or a staff member guiding guests, she said no. Then they told me that I only have 30 minutes after the ceremony to take photos. We have to leave after 30 minutes because they have another wedding after mine. When I asked if there was another place to take pictures she said no. The day of my wedding, I have to enter the chapel through stairs that are to the immediate right of the chapel entrance so the walk down the aisle is VERY short. I can't even imagine how I'll get good pictures walking down the aisle because you literally come down the stairs and you are right inside the chapel. The coordinator showed me another way to get in the chapel where the walk would be a little longer. That entrance requires that I go through a kids club where there is a pool with games splashing water. Going through that entrance would mean running a risk of getting wet before arriving in the chapel. I asked if they could stop the water games from splashing out water for just 2 or 3 minutes while I walked through there and they said no. I asked if I could just wait in a kids club room where they have tables and chairs for kids to watch tv and read. I figured I could just hide in there until the guests arrive so that I could have my walk down the long aisle. You guessed it, the answer was no. I'm also having my rehearsal dinner at the Gran Caribe and I asked the coordinator MONTHS ago if I could have it on the beach. She confirmed in writing but during the site visit she couldn't remember confirming the beach so she insisted that the rehearsal dinner was in another location. I had to correct her about my ceremony time FOUR times in a matter of 10 minutes. She kep saying the wedding was at 2pm or 4pm even though we have confirmed that it will be a 3pm. I corrected her and literally 5 minutes later she said the wrong time again. I'm really at my wits end. The most frustrating part is that they are not accomodating or flexible at all. She pushes back on everything I ask for and never provides solutions or alternatives. I've had problems with this resort from the beginning and I just wish I went with my instincts from the beginning. I'm so stressed out because I have no confidence that these people will do a good job on my wedding day. They are not organized at all, the communication has bee horrible and they are making no effort to accomodate me with anything. I spoke to her manager and she's probably worse than the coordinator - a very arrrogant and unpleasant lady. My advice to anyone planning a wedding there is to do a site visit before confirming and get everything in writing. I'm really dissapointed and upset. I had such a pleasant experience with everyone else I'm dealing with in Cancun. I'm having my reception at Le Meridien and I thank God for that decision. The Wedding Planner at Le Meridien is the complete opposite of the one at Gran Caribe. She has been a dream to work with - very professional, organized and pleasant. She is making every effort to ensure I have the wedding of my dreams. The reception place is gorgeous and everything exceeded my expectations in every way. I'm going to try to find a new place for a rehearsal dinner because the fewer events at Gran Caribe the better. Sorry for the rant but I'm on the verge of tears right now.

This is great. Did you create seperate email addresses and print one out with each of your guests names?

This has been my BIGGEST stressor. I really didn't want a bridal party because I didn't have to choose between friends, siblings, cousins, etc.. I didn't want anyone to feel left out but I also didn't want a HUGE wedding party. I've never liked the idea of having 8 bridesmaids. I also didn't want to have to worry about picking out dresses, shoes, gifts, etc... The problem is my FI went and asked 6 (yes, SIX) guys to be his groomsmen BEFORE he even proposed or gave me an engagement ring!!! So since he had not proposed yet, I never discussed my thoughts on a bridal party with him. Now it's too late because he can't take back the invitation to be a GM but I don't want to have that many bridesmaids. So now I have to select 3 or 4 which is really TOUGH because I don't want to choose from all the ladies in my life. I really wish we didn't have to have a bridal party. At worse, I would've been happy with only a MOH & BM. This has been so stressful that I am now 4 months away from my wedding and I've only selected my MOH.... I still haven't picked the other girls because I'm so stressed about having to choose between two people and making them feel like they're not iimportant enough. I say GO FOR IT! If I did what you did, my life would be so much easier right now

I'm getting married there in April and I'm super excited. It is gorgeous. I'm going down for a site visit next week.

I agree...I don't think there's anything weird about it at all as long as it's before the bridal party. My aunt walked down the aisle with her son (my cousin) at his wedding. At my other cousin's wedding he was just standing up there waiting and his parents walked down the aisle, followed by the bridal party and then finally the bride. Actually, now that I think about it, the groom's parents have walked down the aisle in every single wedding I've ever been to - but it's always before the bridal party. My mom walked down the aisle in my brother's wedding but not with him. She just had ushers escort her down the aisle, followed by my grandmother, the bridal party and then the bride. It's all up to you honestly, because it's your & your FI's day but there's certainly nothing weird about it. I plan to have my FMIL walk down the aisle, followed by my mom and then the bridal party.

I'm going to have eco-friendly confetti.. Eco-Friendly Wedding Confetti, Tossing Confetti, Biodegradable Confetti I loved this idea becaue I'm having an aqua/turquoise wedding and I couldn't find rose petals or rice in that color. This confetti comes in aqua, periwinkle, green, pink and white. I ordered them in aqua and white and I think they will show up nicely in the pics and the color will pop. It's also enviromentally friendly which is always a plus:)

Quote: Originally Posted by amcarter I can understand where you're com'g from. I have reserched all over the place. I did research in Hawaii, Turks & Caicos, DR, Mexico, Cayman Islands, St. Martin, Anguilla and Costa Rica. You're correct in saying that there is limited information available. I started with a local travel agent. I explained that I wanted to have a destination wedding and needed help narrowing down a location. She also helped me narrow down a date explaining what dates were considered t/b high season in specific areas of the country. Since I work in the insurnance industry I knew I didn't want to have a wedding during hurrican season June 1st - Dec 1st. Since that knocked out most of the year, she was able to provide air prices for each location and hotel prices for 7 days at her favorite spots based on feedback from clients. On her list The 4 Seasons and Paradisus (sp) were the most expensive. I sent the same email request to every single island that I was researching. Asking each hotel to answer specific wedding questions. The Paradisus took a very long time to respond to my email and didn't answer any of my questions. They simply attached a template to my email which I already had a copy of from the DR Paradisus. I started norrowing down my options based on cust svc. Since I was having a hard time getting hotels to respond, I ended up researching photographers there and selected a wedding planner based on wedding decor that I liked in photographs from weddings in CR. I did the same thing - waited for a wedding planner to respond and provided great cust svc. I finally found one and she sent the most detailed email to me with every possible wedding location in all of Costa Rica. She also described each part of Costa Rica: if you want to get married w/ the jungle in the background, go here; if you want a waterfall, go here; black beaches, go here; Carribean style, go here. It was the longest email ever but it was very helpful. After speaking with her and telling her my vision, she was able to recommend Pacifico and provided photos of the inside and out and I was able to block rooms with them as well. My travel agent recommended staying at the new Marriott and the Hilton and both hotels are cute but I started emailing people in April, and no one from either of those hotels in CR have responded to my email. Sure Mexico has a LOT of options but CR offers a very unique back drop. Good luck to you. Hi - can you share the name of your wedding planner? My friend has been considering costa rica for her DW and as everyone else has said, there's very limited information. I think that this type of breakdown is exactly what she's looking for (ie. for rainforest go here, for beach go here).

So, I just finished my invitations and I'm a little worried because I didn't go with the 'traditional' wording of "{so & so} request the honour of your presence". Instead my invitation says "Because you have shared in our lives, so & so invite you to share in a celebration of love as we exchange our marriage vows". Is it really bad etiquette to use "invite" instead of "request the honour of your presence..." I was trying to be a little more laid back and not so formal but now I'm not so sure. Did any one else's invitations say something 'untraditional'?

I put a ton of info and pics of the resort, etc.. on my website to get people excited. The website also doubled as my 'save the date' and I just update people every month or so. I had my resort send me some beautiful brochures that I plan to include in the invitations. They didn't send me enough for every single invitation. Since I don't have enough brochures for everyone, I'm only including the brochure with the invitations to people who I really, REALLY want at the wedding (my A list) AND who are still on the fence for whatever reason. Those people who I "have to" send invites to but I wouldnt' really lose sleep if they didn't go are not getting a brochure:)

I have been having ALL kinds of bridal party issues since I first got engaged...too many to list out here. One of the issues was that my FI did the same thing yours did... he has asked everyone and their momma to stand with him. He promised ppl before checking to see if I'd have enough girls on my side. I couldn't decide between two friends so my solution is to let him have more GM than I have BM. He will have 4 GM and I'll have 3 BM's... I know a lot of ppl who do that. Why don't just have an uneven # of BM & GM? OR tell your friend that you didn't pick her originally because you were waiting for your FI to find another GM so that you could be even. Now that he picked one you would love her to be his partner. Spin it so that it looks like you wanted her all along but couldn't tell her because your FI didn't have enough guys to a make it even.

Quote: Originally Posted by KJT1985 For me I think it's been the reaction to us having a destination wedding. I've had people tell me i'm selfish for doing it, people tell me they can't go and then expect me to change our plans for THEM, people laying guilt trips on me. It's really been the absolute worst part. I'm not stressing about everything else because most of it just doesn't matter that much to me. And the things that do matter are mostly in my control. I have my moments where I stress about the dress or if the salon at the property is going to be capable enough to not make me look like crap. But the worst of it is definitely the reactions... I have one friend who made me feel like crap this past weekend but then I snapped out of it and realized SHE's the selfish one. It's very convenient for people to jump in their car and go to your LOCAL wedding because it's just a party with FREE food and alcohol...it's EASY and it's CONVENIENT. BUt the second they have to go the extra mile and step out of their comfort zone to be there for YOUR special day it becomes too dificult. I think they're the selfish ones for putting that on you.... it's YOUR day - You're supposed to be selfish and do it your way. To me this wedding has been a great way to weed out the people who don't need to be there in the first place but I would "have" to put up with if the wedding was local. As far as I'm concerned the people who REALLY matter will be there and everyone else can kiss it. All the people who I'm really close to, love and will make that day special have said they will be there no matter what and they are super excited. Those are the kind of people I want in my wedding and my life. Don't let anyone make you feel like crap about how you decide to celebrate the biggest day of your life.

I'm bringing everything down in my luggage. I'm going to split everything up between my luggage, my FI, my mom and some other family members. I plan to bring down 50 beach towels so I'm going to buy Vacuum Seal Storage Bags to make room for everything in the suitcases

I think you should include that concern in your wish list - tell them that you want a very small intimate dinner with space for your first dance, cake cutting, etc.. Remember that they are sending you a proposal meaning that they should propose a few options for you. The resort wedding coordinator might have suggestions. They know the venue better than anyone and may be able to suggest a space that will feel intimate but still give you enough room to do all those things you want. Where are you getting married and what time of year? I've seen beautiful outdoor locations that are small enough but you can still dance. Maybe a private room in a restaurant or the outdoor area of a restaurant? There are many options so I think you should tell the wedding coordinator EXACTLY what you're looking for and ask for advice. Best of luck