avong1228

My husband would be willing to design it but you'd have to have it printed, etc. If anyone is interested, PM me and i can get you on touch with him to discuss cost.

My husband is a graphic designer and created and designed it all.

Hello brides! I am a past Mexico bride and am now helping my hopeless sister with her wedding and she wants to have it at the Palma Real. We went on vacation there a few years ago and loved it.

Can you guys help me with a few questions? (I've read a few pages but will read more tonight)

What is the email address for the current WC their? I thought I read there is a US based one?

Does anyone have the latest prices?

What are the ceremony and reception location options and does anyone have an opinion on which is best for privacy?

She is looking at March/April 2012, any thoughts on the best time to start the ceremony at that time of year to allow for sunlight after for pictures?

Are there outside vendor fees?

Are you guys working with a travel agent and if so have you found one that has been able to offer good deals on blocked rooms with ameneties?

I'm sure I'll have more questions but anything you can ladies can do to help out is really appreciated!

Thanks!

We wanted a violinist too but it is just too expensive. We did a CD of songs I burned and it worked perfectly and was free!

Yes it is!

Hey ladies! I couldn't agree with Annette more! It's been over 3 months for me and I still miss the planning! Enjoy every minute!

Ivan is fantastic and really made our wedding amazing!! We got a dance floor through him as well which made it even more fun!!

I got the Divine package and no hidden costs as far as food and drink went. There is additional costs for extra bouquets, flowers and decorations.

Our guests did a snorkeling excursion and we just rented 2 whole boats and they really enjoyed it. We used the provider right at the hotel.

Go to the General Tab and go to the Travel Forum. Lots of good stuff.

 

Originally Posted by sarcrook 

Thank you!  Can you tell me where the tread is on this - or I can just do a search..

 

That makes a lot of sense..it's SO expensive to ship International!!  I didn't even think about customs!!  Thank you!!

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by avong1228 

We packed everything with us as we've heard of so many horror stories but then again we did not bring that much. We took a large cardboard box and just filled it with stuff and checked it.  Make sure to bring receipts with you and read the the thread on this as it came in handy!

 

If you do decide to ship, it will be really expensive to ship and get back to you and if it gets stuck in customs, you are basically screwed. So just prepare yourself to do without if you decide to ship it.

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by sarcrook 

Past Brides..how did you get you DIY stuff to the resort?  Like centerpieces, etc..did you pack it all or did anybody ship it right to the resort?  I'm guessing that is pretty expensive..

 

We plan on doing Thermal Coffee Mugs - which would be tough to pack cause of space and cost of luggage these days.  Also, our centerpieces are going to be colored bottles...would be even more tough to pack cause of them being glass...???

 

Any thoughts/ideas??

 

P.S.  Love you guys!!! 

 

 

We packed everything with us as we've heard of so many horror stories but then again we did not bring that much. We took a large cardboard box and just filled it with stuff and checked it.  Make sure to bring receipts with you and read the the thread on this as it came in handy!

If you do decide to ship, it will be really expensive to ship and get back to you and if it gets stuck in customs, you are basically screwed. So just prepare yourself to do without if you decide to ship it.

 

Originally Posted by sarcrook 

Past Brides..how did you get you DIY stuff to the resort?  Like centerpieces, etc..did you pack it all or did anybody ship it right to the resort?  I'm guessing that is pretty expensive..

 

We plan on doing Thermal Coffee Mugs - which would be tough to pack cause of space and cost of luggage these days.  Also, our centerpieces are going to be colored bottles...would be even more tough to pack cause of them being glass...???

 

Any thoughts/ideas??

 

P.S.  Love you guys!!! 

Bumping ... dress and hair flower still available!

We got married on the terrace and there was another wedding at the beach terrace and we never saw or heard them. I did get a glimpse though while we were taking pictures and it was beautiful.

 

Originally Posted by jystar13 

So glad to hear this! i can't wait to hear your review and see your pictures.... i am getting married at the now sapphire on feb 19th and my reception is going to be on the beach terrace, we have about 56 people coming so far, daniela assured me they will make it private and told me not to worry.  did you see any weddings set up there? i'm nervous, but i'm sure it will be fine, i can't stress myself out! haha! 
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by 1106wedding 

I am back!! We flew home to Northern California after our trip to Mexico and spent Thanksgiving with our families. They even threw us an engagement party on Friday, it was a lot of fun! I'm planning on typing up a full review with pros and cons of all places we saw but I need to find the time. I can tell you this...we've ruled out Jade and Sapphire is in our top 2 (along with Azul Sensatori). Jade was very nice (loved the pool!) but it was a little too commercial for us. Sapphire definitely had more culture and depth, which we really liked. The tequila terrace opened up on our date which made it a contender because the beach terrace wasn't private enough. Sandra was very nice and gave a full tour and spent some time with us. Even being there in front of her though, still not all answers were totally clear. I find that they don't like to SAY much because it's going to be used against them. I took lots of pictures and hope to have them online soon to share!
 

 

 

 

 

When I got married there our deposit went towards the total cost of the wedding but that may have changed. I wouldn't think so. I would get her to clarify.

 

Originally Posted by 82turtles 

Quick question for someone who has been married at the NOW Sapphire recently.. I was just glancing through the wedding book that Daniela had sent me and read the deposit section a little more closely, but the wording confused me:

 

A deposit is required to confirm and hold the requested wedding date. Deposit of $500.00 USD is required. This deposit is not refundable and it is not deductible of any of the Wedding Packages

 

The whole "not deductible of any of the wedding packages" phrase confuses me. Does the $500 deposit go towards the total balance of your package plus extra meals/flowers/etc? Thanks!

 

Annette, I am so glad you are feeling better and got your questions answered! I can't wait to see pics!!

I believe if you get them through the resort they are $10 a piece extra.

They do for a cost. They can basically do any color sash since they use a rental company. I did purple.

Originally Posted by annkho 

Does anyone know if they hang different color sash around the chairs. I am doing a white and turquise theme and I would like to have white chairs with turquise sashes tied around them.

 

Not sure if they do that there or not. Anyone know?...

Jess, just sent you an email on price.

We used www.cancunminister.com  and were very happy. We had Mayela and she was fantastic.

Annette, don't stress. More people also means more activities and all the restaurants will be open! When we were there in July it was booked but it didn't feel like it. The place is spread out enough. The only difference is getting a pool chair ... need to stake your claim early when it's busy!

It's going to be great! Take a deep breathe!

Yes!

Can't wait to hear about it!!

Here are some closer pictures of the flower.

Wendy, you look fantastic!! Pictures are gorgeous.

Here's a sneak peek at some of our pics.

http://gwendolyntundermann.com/blog/2010/10/26/riviera-maya-destination-wedding-photos-now-sapphire/

Another thing is to keep in mind any tipping you'll do in your budget. That was something last minute that we did not think about ... officient, servers for the welcome drinks, rehearsal dinner, reception, photographer, wedding coordinator, DJ, etc.

Oh sorry, it was under $10k just for the hotel stuff. Our total amount we ended up paying for everything ... dress, photographer, gifts, OOT bags, honeymoon, rings, travel, invitations, website, etc was close to $25K, which is way cheaper than what we would have paid having a wedding back home..  I've heard of other brides doing it for under $10k but I have no clue how!  Go to the Budget thread, that may help.

Ivan cost us around $650 plus another $500 for the dance floor but he did tell me that since we booked his prices have gone up so don't quote me on that. There is a $300 outside vendor fee. No problems though with an outside DJ.

 

Originally Posted by 82turtles 

Hi Angie,

Hope this isn't too personal for questions, but I think I would have a group right around 40 ppl, so close to what you had.. You said you were under $10K easily, but I was wondering what all you included in that number? I'd like my total budget to be at $10K, including photography, travel, wedding dress, gifts, AHR, etc. Would you mind letting me know what your final price for the resort was (i.e. ceremony, dinner reception, dance, etc)? Maybe my numbers are just unrealistic!! It just seems there are so many 'extra' fees, that I'm finding it hard to compare resorts! Feel free to PM me if you would rather not post that..

 

Few other questions -- how much was it to have DJ Ivan come in, and how much for the lighted dance floor? Any outside vendor fees have to be paid for that? Any hassle with having an external DJ?

 

Congrats and thanks for posting your pictures! Sorry to hear that you had issues with the weather and a number of your guests weren't able to attend Looks like everything turned out beautifully though! You looked great!! Can't wait to see more pics!

 

I'm selling my hair flower (dress, shoes and necklace if you know of anyone!).

The centerpieces were around $75 a piece and we had 5 tables and the centerpiece on our sweetheart table was included. If you decide not to do a sweetheart table they'll throw one in depending on the package. We got the most expensive package ... Divine I think. As far as the bridemaid bouquets, they were around $50 (I think) and both mom's corsages were included with our package. We were originally going to bring our own chair bows but decided packing them and having to take them back and then trying to resell them wasn't worth it. Plus they charge you to put them on.

As far as the CD, we did about 4 songs for when people are sitting, one song for the guys walking down, one for the bridesmaids, one for me and then 2 for when people are leaving and I just marked those on the cover and they did it all for me. It was perfect.

There was another wedding. Our wedding was at 5 and the other was at 5:30 and we never heard or saw them except for when we were all at the Fun Pub later. Don't worry at all. The other wedding was where yours will be. I did take a glimpse when I went to the ladies room and its beautiful.

 

Originally Posted by jystar13 

angie! you were are beautiful bride! i am so happy for you that everything worked out with the weather and everything, you guys look so happy. congratulations!!! and best of luck!  your pictures came out great too! thanks so much for the awesome review, it definitely puts me a little at ease about things with my wedding coming up in february esp. with hair/makeup!!

 

i love all the little touches that you did, the pashminas, cigars, etc. and your monogram logo on everything was such a cute touch to keep it personal.  and i'm obsessed with your hair flower! where did you find that!!!

 

a few questions if you don't mind:

 

did your flowers cost you a fortune for the bridesmaids and centerpieces??? i'm debating on doing flowers from there or bringing my own centerpieces with me, but i was wondering what they charge for the flower centerpieces like you had.

 

did you use your own chair bows (& overlay on cake table) or did you use the resorts?

 

for the cd you provided for the ceremony,(this may sound like a totally stupid question) did they have someone there to like stop and then play the music? i'm thinking of like having music playing when the girls walk out, then when i walk out and then after we get married and walk back down the aisle, but i'm thinking some one would need to play, stop, play, stop, etc. for the 3 different songs that i want.....

 

and lastly, was there another wedding there the same day as yours???  i know there is another wedding the same day as mine and hers is on the tequila terrace (which it looks like yours was) and my cocktail/reception is going to be on the beach terrace, just curious if you got to see it set up or anything.... 

 

thanks in advance!    jan

 

ps- thanks again for the review! you have no idea how excited i am by seeing all these pictures and reading all your details!