dana

Janapana-We only tipped in US dollars and believe me no one gave us back the money! Girls, I posted my review http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/forum/thread/65742/dana-s-riu-palace-riviera-maya-wedding-review#post_1487307

Don't know why the pics didn't work, trying again

Photographer B+ Juan Carlos We used the resort photog who was from Calypso Photography. We picked one of the lowest packages so he was only shooting our ceremony after the ceremony. I met him for the first time as I as walking down the aisle. He was very efficient and got all our pictures taken and did a good job. I’ve gotten numerous compliments on how good my pictures looked. Although, if you are looking for more photojournalism I probably wouldn’t recommend him. He was supposed to photograph for 2 hours and he stopped after 1.5 hours, however, he took about 400 pictures so I had plenty to choose from. We went the next day to pick out our pictures and we were only supposed to get 70 pictures. We arranged that we got all 340 pictures on a disk and no photo album. Renova Spa A Included in our package we got a couples massage. Our couples massage included a body exfoliation which we didn’t know about and was great. Just as a warning to your FI’s that when they do the body exfoliation they have you put on paper underwear (very small) and my husband was a little uncomfortable in them to say the least. I thought it was hilarious! Also, make sure you wear your bathing suits to the spa b/c they let you use the Jacuzzi while you’re waiting for you appointment. Myself, two sisters and MIL got our hair down at the spa. They did an awesome job. They don’t speak good English so make sure that you bring a picture. We all had pictures and they did a great job! Also included in my package was a manicure and pedicure and it wasn’t great. It was okay, but I was glad I had it b/c my manicure and pedicure I had before I had left was chipped. I think that is all! It was the best experience ever and everyone had a blast before the wedding and at the wedding! If you choose RPRM for your wedding you won’t be disappointed! Here are some photo's from Juan Carlos:

The DJ was AWESOME! I can’t say enough. Since we had time between our pictures and cocktail hour my mom and I went to check out the reception set up. We happened to run into the DJ, David, who asked me what kind of music I liked. Every song was better then the other. If you are having a DJ def request him. Almost every guest came up to me and asked where I found my DJ b/c he was great. I did not sit down the entire time and everyone was dancing. I realized at 10:30pm that he had not played one slow song so I asked him to for the “older†people and he did. I thought about paying them to stay later, but I asked some of my friends and it seemed as if everyone was tired. We went to the sports bar after, but I lasted about 5 minutes and we went to bed as we were exhausted! Wedding Cake A+ We got the wedding cake included in our package. I ordered Vanilla cake with strawberry filling and Chocolate Icing. I know it’s so untraditional, but I love chocolate icing. The cake was awesome. One suggestion I would have for people. We cut the cake and then everyone started dancing. They did not put a piece at anyone’s place that was not sitting so a lot of people hadn’t gotten cake. At the end of the night I saw the ¼ eaten cake sitting there. I had the DJ make an announcement that there was cake if anyone wanted any and everyone that was left feasted on it. One weird thing with the cake happened with Nancy. At our meeting she hadn’t talked about cake decoration as I had my own cake topper. She calls my room at 2pm (an hour before my ceremony) to say she has been trying to get a hold of me all afternoon because she forgot to charge me for cake flowers. Hmm, hello did you check the spa? At this point I told her I didn’t need them. I’m not sure if she ordered them and didn’t charge me or realized I might of wanted them?? Wedding Coordinator Nancy was our wedding coordinator and a great person. She is very prompt with getting back to you through email before you get there which was great. You’ll notice I really didn’t put a rating b/c I’m not sure what she really did. I emailed her a few times starting in September to pick things that I wanted. I met with her once on Tuesday to finalize everything. I saw her for about 2 minutes right before my ceremony and once I was down the aisle I never saw her again. However, with all that being said I everything was perfect so I assume she did her job well. More to Follow....

Ceremony A+ (3pm) We bought the Caprice package because we had over 40 people. We had the ceremony at 3pm at the Gazebo. The Gazebo is gorgeous and the background is all palm trees and the ocean. I brought our own chair sashes that they put on for me. Unlike some other brides I did not have any set up fee, however, this was the only special thing that I had brought with me so I don’t know if that is why? The only complaint I have about the Gazebo is the stones they have for you to walk on. They number one move and are difficult to maneuver so I was looking down in a lot of pictures b/c I was afraid of tripping. We did a symbolic ceremony and I never met the minister until I was up there getting married. My husband said the minister asked him 10 minutes before the ceremony what type of readings that he wanted. I found that quite comical because I am the religious one and not him so he said he didn’t care. I honestly didn’t hear a word he said b/c I hate being the center of attention, but everyone thought the minister was great. He did call me Diana once instead of Dana, but that is really common for people with accents to do. Cocktail Hour A (5:30-7pm) We did the cocktail hour, outside at the Lyrico Bar. We decided not to do appetizers because we were paying for the private reception and did not want to spend the extra money. In retrospect, this is the only thing that I would have changed about the whole day. It felt a little strange just standing around talking and drinking without appetizers. They had the patio set up so it was semi-private with tables and chairs and background music playing. They had a station set up for champagne that they were handing out to guests as they arrived. There were about 5 servers going around taking orders and delivering drinks. Reception A++++++ (7pm-11pm) We had our private reception with DJ at Chili’s which is the Steakhouse. We paid extra to have the private reception which was a last minute cost b/c the RIU changed their policy and would not honor their old prices. Originally it was supposed to cost $1700 for the private reception and DJ, but landed up costing us $2280. I found this out two months before our wedding, but it still was insignificant to what I would have paid at home. The cost was $20/person for the food, $8/person for open bar and the DJ was an add’l $1200. We did not bring anything add’l with us to decorate the table. Included in our package were two bags of rose pedals, but since we did not have a flower girl Nancy put those on the table and then the gorgeous flowers that were on the gazebo were used for center pieces. Also, as soon as the cermony was over someone came and took 5 chair sashes to decorate the tables with. For dinner they provided the two appetizer options on the table for everyone. There was chicken caesar salad the seafood plate (it had crab legs, shrimp, smoked salmon, calamari). There was one plate of seafood and one salad per two people. While they served the appetizers they came around and took everyone’s order for dinner. The options were Prime Rib, Filet Minion and Shrimp Skewer, Chicken, and Rack of Lamb. I don’t know how they did it, but the food was out in no time and it was really good. They did not serve dessert besides our cake. More to Follow.....

We got back from our wedding and honeymoon a few days ago and it was wonderful! I don’t regret for one second doing a destination wedding. For me it was a very stress free experience and I really owe it all to this forum. I am a Type A personality and without this forum I think I would have gone crazy. The forum allowed me to relax over the past year knowing from all the past brides that is was going to be great. Here is my review of our wedding, if you have any add’l questions don’t hesitate to ask. Airline A- We flew Continental direct from Newark, NJ. Continental still allows you one 50 pound checked baggage for free when flying international so that was great. My grandmother was our travel agent and gave us two vouchers to be upgraded to first class. We got to the gate very early and my charming husband got us upgraded to first class. I gave a small negative though b/c we didn’t find out we were upgraded until half way through boarding so we were boarding with most of the people from coach. When the flight attendant saw my wedding dress right away she said that she didn’t have anywhere to store it. As soon as I told her we were flying first class she offered me the closet and then decided that wasn’t good enough and cleared out an entire overhead for my dress so it could lay flat. That was awesome, but had I not been flying first class I wouldn’t have gotten that service. Resort A+++++ The RPRM was awesome and I can’t say enough about it. When we checked in we mentioned that we were getting married at the resort and the women smiled and said told us to hold on. After a few minutes she came back with a huge smile and said she was able to upgrade our room (we hadn’t even asked). We had originally upgraded our room to the Superior Suite (just meant it was the normal room, but had a view of the courtyard). Well when we got to our room it was amazing, we had been upgraded to the Jacuzzi Suite and it was enormous. It was prefect for when my sisters and I were getting ready on my wedding day. My husband and I arrived 2 days before our guests started to arrive and we made sure all the staff knew that we were getting married on Friday and that we had 50 guests coming. By the time all the guests arrived they were treated like royalty. The service is tremendous here; all the bartenders and wait staff knew us by name. The pool bartender Marvin who remembered my husband from last year when we were there even requested to be our bartender at our wedding. He was awesome. I didn’t hear one complaint about the food. We ate at the buffet every night b/c we had so many guests coming in and we didn’t want to exclude anyone. We had several guests eat at all the restaurants with no complaints. So often people make reservations and don’t show up so if you go to the restaurant at the seating times and they have open seats they will allow you in. I had told all my guests this and it worked 90% of the time. Welcome Dinner A+ We arranged with Nancy ahead of time a welcome dinner at the Buffet the night before the wedding. There is a private section behind the desserts and that is where they set it up. They had 4 servers that were only taking care of our section and bringing everyone drinks. It was a really good night at the buffet with beef wellington, shrimp, grilled salmon so everyone was raving about it. It was completely free and since we had 50 people it worked great for us. More to follow....

Janapana-We paid for the wedding by credit card the day of the wedding. The contract that she has you sign says that you have to pay 2 days before, but she verbally told me 1 day before. When I went to the front desk the day before the wedding the bill hadn't been added to my room yet so he told us to come back the next day (which was the day of the wedding). You will either have to pay by credit card or pesos because the RIU hotel is no longer taking amercian money. As for the rest of the places you can still pay with American money, the way they explained it to us is that the large corportations are no longer allowed to take american money (RIU being one), but small private places are still taking it. So if you want to pay cash then you'll have to do it in pesos, but you can use your credit card. We used American money for everything else b/c it was accepted everywhere else. We never changed anything into Pesos. You do not have an exit tax if you go through the airport, but we took a car service to Belize and if you go through the border by car it was $20 US per person. I'm not sure if it's different for the UK? I took my own chair bows b/c if you rent them it was $4/bow. I bought them online for $0.59 a piece and they came folded in small package and easy to transport. I just left them for the day of the wedding at the front desk and she had them put them on the chairs.

Nicyx-We used the resort photog. We got married at 3pm. Jen-I brought both, but I didn't want to give up my Ipod if I didn't have to but brought it just incase the CD I burned didn't work. Everything with the music went great, I labeled on the front what song was for what and everything was exactly right.

Jen- Married life is great, we've lived together for about a year so it really doesn't seem different....well except everyone keeps calling me Mrs. Snook so maybe it just doesn't seem real yet. We had a private reception at Chili's. The food was really good, I was a little nervous b/c when we were there last year I really didn't like my steak but it was awesome this time. They started with both appetizers on the menu (seafood plate and chicken cesar salad). It was amazing how fast they were able to get everyones meals out since everyone ordered what they wanted. I had the filet minon and it came with a grilled shrimp skewer. We did the cocktail hour at Lyrico Bar outside. They had a little area set up and had about 5 waiters/ess serving drinks and champange at that time. We did not do food, I was being cheap b/c it was alot of money and since we had 54 people and paying for the private reception it would have cost alot more. To be honest it felt a little weird with no food there so if you have it in your budget you may want to add hourdeves. It was pretty quiet at that time on the patio b/c it was at about 5:30pm and the buffet and restaruants don't open until 6:30pm so it felt private. I think most of the other hotel guests were in there rooms getting ready for dinner. They did have quiet music playing in the background which was nice, but if you want you could probably bring your own? Lynn- We didn't do a first look. I really wanted to see each other for the first time walking down the aisle, but that was just me. I thought I was going to cry, but let me tell you those stupid stones they have to walk on moved and I was more nervous about tripping. As for songs, I really didn't do anything traditional. -I had a friends Jazz music playing while everyone was waiting for the ceremony to start -Momma's Song by Carrie Underwood for the mother's and my grandmother being seated -Make you feel my love by Adele (the instrumental version) for my sisters (bridemaids) -Feels like Home by Chantel for me -Beautiful Day by U2 for the walk out I honestly didn't even think about a song for the signing of the certificate so it was a little quiet, but it's so fast that I don't even know if you really need one. In retrospect, they prononce you husband and wife right after so they could have started my processional song quietly?? Did you all see about the explosion in Playa del Carmen yesterday? I really hope that none of the brides on here were there. It said on the news that a wedding was at the resort.

After a long trek home I am finally hear....feel free to ask me any questions. I don't know why you can't see my facebook pics I'm tagged in I'll have to look at my settings.

Hi Girls, I have to make this quick b/c if my husband catches me on this forum on our honeymoon he will flip....well not really but he will shake is head at me! We are in Belize on our honeymoon and it is awesome. I will be back on Saturday do I can answers all your questions in more details. Some friends have posted pictures on my facebook page. I had my reception at Chilis from 7-11pm and had the private reception with DJ. It was AWESOME, the food was great and it was a cool night and the open air was great. Botofogo is smaller so for 35-40 people it will be great, but since we had over 45 we had to do Chili's. Our DJ was awesome, I didn't sit down once the entire night and everyone came up to me and asked were I found him b/c he was the best DJ they had ever heard at a wedding...meanwhile I met him 30 mins before the reception. I had the cocktail hour at Lyrico Bar which is outside right outside the theatre and was nice. I didn't do food...was too cheap. Okay I have to go here he comes

Thank you girls...my mom's dress we got at Nordstrom's and it is from BCBGMaxaria

Aalva-Thank you for the suggestion, I really like that. I lost the battle and my mom is going to make placecards. She is so last minute that I bet she'll be making them 10 mins before the reception. Oh well, pick your battles.

Girls I finished my planning thread. Man, that was a pain, if you are going to do one, make sure that you save all your pics ahead of time. I had been keeping them all in my photobucket account and it still took a long time. http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/forum/thread/65041/dana-s-planning-thread#post_1470094

Cake Topper: I love this and got it from lynnslittlecreations on Etsy Parasol: I made this myself. I bought the parasols from OTC and painted it on with acrylic paint. It came out great. My mother's Dress My MIL's dress: I don't have a pic of her in it. PREVIEW I think that is it. Thank you again for all your great ideas. Only one more day.

Welcome Bag: I have 54 people coming to the wedding so I had limit how much I could put in there. Got the double insulated cups from discountmugs.com. The bags from the Dollar Tree. Welcome Letter: More to come....

FI Attire/Groomsmen Attire: We got the suits/shirts at Men's Warehouse on sale. Shoes: Got them on clearance Macy's Bridesmaid Dresses: My one sister is keeping the halter and my other sister made it strapless. Bridesmaid Gifts: I bought my sisters dresses and paying for their hair. I got them a small gift of a nice beach bag and a wet bag. Both from Esty More to follow.....

My dress: It's Alfred Angelo. Bustled Shoes: From David's Bridal Hair Inspiration: I think something like this, will probably get a trial once i get down there. Hair Flowers: I'm not wearing a veil only hair flowers. I got these from another great seller on Etsy. Jewelry: Sorry a little blurry, it was hard to get a good pic More to follow....

Pre-Travel Information: I sent out luggage tags and pretravel brochure about 6 weeks ago. The travel brochure was made for free on vistaprint. The luggage tags are awesome quality and cost about $0.50/piece from idcardgroups.com Welcome Dinner Dress/Earrings:

I can't say what a relief it was the day I stumbled upon this site. I don't know what I would have done without this site. I want to thank every girl I have stolen ideas from as I can not possibly remember everyone. How we Met: CJ and I met 9 years ago through mutual friends after I graduated from college. For about a year and a half we were friends until I moved out of state. In the next 5 years, I moved to different cities and we saw each other occasionally when I was in town visiting my parents. Three years ago we met up again in Wildwood. We were both unavailable at the time, but he kept introducing me as his "Wildwood Girlfriend." The following year we were in Wildwood again and CJ asked me to go out for drinks. That was just the beginning. The Engagement: This year in Wildwood which marked our two year anniversary together and that is where is proposed. CJ planned the proposal on the beach in the town where it all began. He got down on one knee and asked me to marry him! Engagement Ring: He proposed with something called a prototype ring. At Robbins Jewelers you use the prototype ring to propose with and then I got to go back with him and pick out exactly what i wanted. I am extremely picky and he didn't want to spend alot of money on a ring that I wouldn't like. It was the smartest move he ever made! So with that said here is the ring I eventually got. I picked our the matching band at the same time. His Ring, we got it from a seller on Etsy. In his line of work he can't wear a ring to work so we didn't want to spend alot of money on something that he will only wear on the weekends. The seller is Titanium Knights. The Resort: We went on our first vacation together at the RIU Palace Riviera Maya. I was laying by the pool and watching people getting married at the gazebo. I turned to him and told him that where we were going to get married there (we weren't even engaged). 1 1/2 years later it is really coming true. STD's/Invitations: I decided to do a STD with an RSVP so I eliminated formal invites. Of course I got the idea from this forum, again my sister designed them for me and I did all the cutting. More to come......

Thanks girls! I agree with you, but mommazilla is giving me hard time. I think I'm going to squash the place cards!

Nicola-I requested you as a friend. I'm not promising posting pictures right away on facebook. We are going to gone for two weeks and I'm not taking the computer with me...for sanity purposes of course. So I got an email from the wedding coordinator wanting to know how I want the tables. I was going to leave it casual and do open seating, but now my mom and sister said that is a bad idea. What are your opinions? This gives me 2 days to get place settings done.

DreamingofSunshine-You should def email the coordinator, if you need her email I can give it to you. It just seems weird she hasn't emailed you yet since she emailed me two months before. She is really great with getting back to me to, although I'm vary lax and have only emailed her maybe one time to ask a question. Also, as far as your soon to be inlaws maybe they are going to give you a gift. I have been bitter at my parents for the last year b/c they didn't offer me a penny for the wedding or my dress or anything. Well last week my mom announced as a gift they are giving a big chunk of cash (it will pay for a large portion of the wedding/reception) and now I feel guilty that I was thinking that way. So cross your fingers...... Virginia-I am on facebook, I think you have my last name since I emailed you. If not I'll pm it to you. I've been working on my planning thread all along and have all the pics saved in photobucket so I have half day friday and hoping to post it then. I can't believe I leave in 4 days! I feel so prepared that I'm nervous what I am forgetting!

Aalva-That's too bad about your cousin. Your right she is the one missig out!