AmyBoerema

Originally Posted by hmlicos 

 

Any of you ladies plan on having the hotel deliver the OOT gift bags to your guest's rooms?  I just think the amount they charge per bag is crazy and we're trying to find ways to save some money. Some of our guests are arriving a few days prior to the wedding and we're not having the Welcome Dinner until the night before, so I'd like for them to have their bags when they arrive.  Is it tacky to have them contact my FH and I when they arrive in order to deliver their bag to them?  Any suggestions??

 Hi! I just returned from our DT wedding! It was great! In terms of the bags, we had given them to Annabelle to deliver to all the rooms, but they weren't all delivered right when the guests arrived. most of our guests got them several hours, or even the following day, after they arrived. she had charged us $3 a bag to do it per room, plus we gave her a tip.

if you're trying to save money, then you might just want to give the bags out yourself to your guests if you're having like a welcome dinner or something. i wouldn't wait for them to contact you....it's a long trip down, they're going to be disoriented enough and it's just one more thing they have to do.....

we had half our guests arrive on thurs night, the other on fri., and we had a welcome happy hour on thurs for those guests and the welcome dinner on fri for the rest of the gang. if we hadn't had the bags delivered, we would've just handed them out at those times. i wish we had actually, because then you could have made sure they got it, and seen their faces and welcomed them personally. i don't even know if all my guests got their bags (some said they didn't)  and i got tired of asking everyone individually if they'd gotten them. and some people didn't even look that closely at them, they thought they were from the hotel!

Wedding is on Dec. 4, and we leave the day after. So we're only there for a few days, then we will be in Playa Del carmen for the honeymoon. Let's look out for each other!

 

Originally Posted by sstryker 

AmyBoerema - how long are you at Dreams Tulum for? We arrive on the first as well! Our date is the 8th, & we leave on the 11th. 

Hey guys! I know some of you were worried earlier about meal choice (only being able to pick one), and on the wedding planning form, they do say you can have vegetarian options for meals that you can discuss once you're down there. Just thought I'd pass that along to relieve any anxiety.

Leaving for Dreams Tulum on Dec. 1! Can't believe it's almost here!

You don't have to have a cocktail party if you have a package, even though it's included. I'm not. But just know the value of that can't be traded in for anything else. And yes, you can have an outside DJ for the ceremony. I am only having it for the reception, but I know you can have it for both.
 

Originally Posted by DanniS 

Okay I know that this has been discussed before on this forum, but I just want to see if anyone can clarify this:  If you purchase the Dreams of Love or Ultimate package do you have to have the cocktail party?  Or can that just be skipped?  We are estimating to have 50+ people coming and having the cocktail party really cuts into our budget if we do the Dreams of Love or Ultimate Package.  We are leaning towards the Paradise package due to this.  Ugh decisions!! Oh and the other issue is that we wanted to hire an outside DJ for our ceremony and reception but Aurora's response seemed to say that you could not have an outside DJ for ceremony???

 

 

~Danni

My ceremony was originally scheduled for 4 p.m., and now it's at 3:30 p.m. I sent Aurora an email expressing concern because it gets dark really early in December (around 5 p.m.) and I wanted enough time for pics. She wrote back and offered the 3:30 slot. If you just ask, it shouldn't be a problem.

I've heard a few different starting times for the reception. From what I gather from here, it usually starts around 6:30 p.m., though Aurora had told me 6 p.m. If you get a package, only three hours is included, so 9:30 would be the end time. I am paying for an extra hour for my 45 guests, so we will go till 10:30!
 

Originally Posted by SaraMexicoBride 

Hey!  Congrats!

How did you get them to move your ceremony up to 4:30?  I was under the impression that they wouldn't do that.  Because I would love to move it up to have that extra 30 mins for pics!  And do you know if it's 10 or 10:30 that the music has to be off?

soooo pretty! I love your colors, too!!! congrats!!

 

Originally Posted by LeNell 

I got married a Dreams Tulum on May 29, 2010

http://s876.photobucket.com/albums/ab326/Lenell83/Wedding/?albumview=slideshow

Yes, I agree with all of you, as well. We will have about 45-50 people on Dec. 4, 2010, and are getting the Dreams of Love package. We are also paying an additional $850 to keep the reception open for an hour longer (since the package is for three hours, but the DJ i hired will be there for four), with wait service. Originally, I was going to try and do what other brides did, and just tell the servers to go away, and that we could get our own drinks from another nearby bar so we don't have to pay for that extra hour. But as I've read on here, it doesn't always work and it can be pretty stressful.

So it was worth it for me to pay the extra money so I don't have to stress about not knowing if we'll be charged or not, as well as having the extra service. If for some reason we HAD to shut down an hour early, it would've been so disappointing. I didn't want to take that chance, so now I am guaranteed a 4-hour reception!

Point being - it IS about memories, so I'm willing to pay a little more. In the grand scheme of things, this wedding will have been much cheaper than one at home in Chicago, AND it's the perfect amount of people that I can talk and hang out w/ each of them individually! I am estimating that the Dreams of Love package, along with set up, extra dinner, and extra hour for everyone, and my outside DJ and photographer will cost about $7,500.

Hi Ocean! Yes, Aurora attached it in response to one of my emails. I didn't ask her for it, but we were talking about booking places, etc. I originally had said I wanted the Dolphin pool as my reception site, and when I first asked about it (back in Jan.) she had said it was open. I mistakenly assumed she remembered that I wanted it. So a week ago, I told her again about it, and SURPISE, it has been taken by someone else. Whatever, I'm over it now.

But now I am not going to leave anything else to chance, and I want to make sure I have the Relax pool booked, along with finalizing my package, etc. So that's when she sent me the wedidng planning form.
 

Originally Posted by OceanWonderland 

They already gave you your wedding planning form? I'm getting married Nov 15, 2010 and I have gotten NOTHING form them. Did you ask for it? I thought they were supposed to send it out. They know I'm getting married, we have emailed each other several times with detailed questions.

 

And they probably did assume you were going to rent the sashes from them. I think there still is a charge per chair though, not sure how much though. $3/each I think? And the $150 fee is just what everyone gets charged it seems, like a baseline, although some girls have noted they didn't have to pay the $150 once down there (I think they determine this depending on how much they actually have to set up).

I got a little clarification re: set-up costs. First, you are allowed to have other people set up chair bows, centerpieces, etc. for no extra cost. But if it involves lights at the reception (like Chinese lanterns), those have to be done by maintenance and you will be charged. Aurora quoted me at $100 for that, though, not $150, I don't know why. (Maybe she could tell I was getting irritated.)

The $3 a person covers everything else - chair bows, menu placement, centerpieces, favors, etc. for both the reception and ceremony. Hope that clarifies for some people. It sounds like if you want reception lights and everything, it could cost $150 plus tax, in addition to the $3 a person. Yikes!

This is insane.

I am starting to fill out the wedding planning form (Dec. 4, 2010) and told Aurora I'm bringing my own chair sashes and flower petals and seasells for the reception centerpieces, as well as some small lights. I asked her how much it would be for set up. 

She quoted me $150 plus tax, plus $5 for each chair sash and she said "and different prices for the centerpieces." What the heck does that mean? I can rent chair sashes for $5 each there! (maybe that's what she thought I wanted to do.)

These set up costs are crazy. i'm trying to save money by bringing my own supplies, but it doesn't look like I'll really be saving any money. I told her I'd freakin' do it myself rather than pay $5 to put a chair sash on each chair and more to spread some seashells on a table.

What the heck does the $150 cover, then?? (I am getting married in the chapel, so it can't be for the reception; there is no set-up involved!)

I hired Claudia Rodriguez. She has fantastic review and her work is fabulous. Plus her prices are really reasonable!

 

Originally Posted by hmlicos 

Do any of you ladies have a suggestion for photographers?? 

I am getting married in two months! Hard to believe it's almost here! I'm so excited but a little anxious about all the nickle-and-diming, esp. with decorations I am bringing for the set up. I am trying not to worry too much until I get down there. At least I have my package set (Dreams of Love), and reception place (relax pool) even though neither of those were my first choice, and this was after I'd already thought I had everything booked and ready to go. Oh well....one thing I've learned with DT is that you have to be flexible and go with the flow. Trying to remind myself of this every day!!

I am a Chicago-area bride, from the western suburbs. Getting married in two months, at Dreams Tulum on the Riviera Maya! I am soooo excited! Just had my shower and bachelorette party this past weekend, and it was one of the best days ever! (minus the hangover the following day).

I just realized that the reception included in the wedding packages is for only three hours (after that, they start charging per person). This is probably a dumb question, but what happens after the reception is over?

It just seems strange that it can't be longer - if dinner takes, say, an hour and a half (from what I've heard, service is slow) then guests really only have like an hour to dance afterward? Then does everyone just go hang out at a bar? It says in the program that they start charging per person for open bar, which seems weird, because it's an all-inclusive resort.

Has anyone else's reception gone longer than three hours, and if so, any idea on how much they charge?? I'm kinda disappointed - I was hoping the packages could be for longer.

everything looks amazing. you're a beautiful bride! thanks so much for sharing!!!

Awesome job. Thank you so much for sharing.!

Hey guys, just wanted to tell everyone that I am super grateful for this forum and all your support.

None of my friends had destination weddings, and my fiancee apparently has ADD when it comes to wedding planning, so this has been an awesome place to get ideas and find out info about our resort!

I know many of us have gotten pretty stressed about money recently, but I really think everything will work out. My wedding is still a LONG time away (10 months), and a lot can happen in that time (like maybe they'll reinstate the $20 pp set food menu - or even introduce a $10 one? ha). I'll have more answers once I know for sure who's coming, and I'm nowhere close to that now. So there's really no need to worry about every little detail at this point!

(I know; easier said than done - therefore, I apologize in advance for any future rants.)

danathebride, i am having the exact same issue. it's extremely confusing.

Hi Katrina: I am having the same issue. Thanks for your post, I am looking into other options too. Too bad they made me pay the $50 already.