cyclegirl77

I got married on 7/30/2010 (Friday) in MBJ - so if you start counting on Monday 8/2 - first business day after...I'm in my sixth week & no marriage license yet I thought they said six weeks, so I'm at least waiting until the weekend & then I'll email my coordinator next week if it hasn't come by then. Good luck to the rest of you, I'm anxious about changing my name too (not so anxious to stand in the long line at Social Security though! ha!)

Hi eholt - after reading your email & seeing your pics....my choice is #1....I can tell that you are loving number 1 by your fierce pose Funny, b/c If I actually looked at getting that dress too!!! The other great benefit is that since you are getting married in Jamaica (you'll be traveling w/your dress)...then you won't have to worry about having your dress perfectly steamed for pictures Dress #2 is very flattering on you & you won't have to worry about seeing any lines/wrinkles in your pics Obviously I am jaded because I chose a very similar dress, but I love that style & I was glad to pic a dress that traveled easily to Jamaica  Cheers :)

So very Cool Thanks for picking my review as the review of the week :) Love this website it helped me before my wedding, so I had to make sure to give back & help others for their special day  *Cheers* Stacie

Very Beautiful Pics Congrats on your engagement!

Hi Ireyes - Â We just got married @ the Iberostar Grand in MBJ in July this year & I think when I started looking, I didn't even know what island at first....so now that you know which Island, the fun now starts with looking up locations & places for your special day. Â Here are some recommendations to consider when reading through this website for places for your wedding: 1. Consider whether you want your location at a hotel or off site - in addition, cost to you & to your friends/Family. Is this location going to make YOU happy 2. How many people plan on coming to your wedding. Knowing this, then you can plan on whether you want to be close to the airport for easier travel for a lot of out-of-towners. Also - can your hotel accommodate the amount of folks you have attending? Cost of Wedding to include all guests - or how much per person? 3. Outside vendors allowed? If you plan on outside vendors (flowers, photographers, etc), how much does it cost to work with an outside vendor vs. using the hotel's preferred vendors. 4. Cost to your guests - so once you can narrow down a few choice hotels...consider how much per night it will cost your guest to travel there...so on average, do you want them paying $150pp or $400pp per night? Lots of choices, so if you can calculate the cost of hotel, food & airfare per person....this will help you understand how many folks will be able to afford to come to your wedding. We tried to hit a cost of $250pp (assuming hotels typically cost $100+ a night, Food & Drink cost $75-100 per day, and you then can average out the flight for $50-75....so that was our easy math calculation, but essentially, we just wanted to be realistic with what it would cost if we had them travel to our wedding in North Carolina...but realizing that they can also utilize this as their vacation too!) Â Again - if you plan on a wedding at a Hotel, try to get their Wedding packages so that you can start narrowing down your decision once you get an understanding of what each place can offer....I think the piece that took me the longest was getting our date secured with the hotel, but once we got that, everything ran fairly smoothly!!! Â Good luck! Â

Hi There - I had the same concerns...I just got married there in July & it was pretty humid!!! I ended up with half up & half down to the side....I had the salon do a trial run on my hair before the wedding & it all worked out perfectly....the salon had this spray that they used on every single curl....(sorry, I wish I got the name...but it was in a yellow bottle with a black spray cap - liquid spray vs. aerosol) - by the end of my wedding night, my hair still looked amazing!!! I'd recommend working w/the salon because they do so many up-do's they have all kinds of product that would work with your hair. I bought anti-frizz spray & brought it, but never needed it since the product they used kept my hair in place all night  Good luck to you!

That May be them...I just can't remember the name & I don't have all the pics yet to look to confirm But they were super Awesome!!!! I think they are $600 per hour....we had them for 2 hours...  Overall - we spent a lot less on a DW then if it were here in the states....After looking into the costs here in the states, I believe the total would have been around 25-30k when all said & done.... - BUT that wouldn't include the Honeymoon. I would say we spent around the same with the Wedding (in the most beautiful place) AND the Honeymoon....BUT, we chose to spend a lot of money on our Honeymoon..we went to Jamaica Inn in Ocho Rios (hired a private driver) and rented a cottage...so 20% of our total spending went to our honeymoon....  So for us, we figured if we spent around the same & just applied it the 'right' way - we could get the best bang for our buck  btw - here is a slideshow our photographer put together (Melissa Green):  http://www.melissagreen-photography.com/blog/2010/08/12/stacie-stevens-jamaica-destination-wedding-slideshow-iberostar-grand-rose-hall-montego-bay/

Hi All - (sorry If I got this posted elsewhere....fairly new to posting, so I think I posted this in the wrong section - sorry) We just got back from getting married @ Iberostar Grand Rose Hall on 7/30/2010 & hopefully if anyone needs help with ideas or questions (or deciding if this is the location for you); then maybe I can be of some help (or this post may be helpful in answering some of your questions!) Where to begin... I'll start w/the fun stuff = Pictures!!! 1. We hired Melissa Green @ www.melissagreen-photography.com She was AWESOME - I attached a picture that she took (seen above) Her and Summer Hooke came out and stayed with us at the Grand & they were both amazing! I actually found them through this best destination website & I contacted her from her website.....and from our first conversation, I knew she was a perfect fit for us! They truly blended in and all my friends & our family enjoyed both of these Ladies They 2 ladies are very special, they work very hard for the great shots...including jumping in, fully clothed into the pool on our TTD session in order to get 'the shot'...they had us laughing!!!! They took pictures Thursday night @ our Bonfire, the day of the Wedding & the TTD session the following day. They were super special the day of my wedding, as they came and sat with me prior to my girlfriends coming to the room & it was so great, b/c I was somewhat anxious & nervous, but just through conversation with the ladies - we ended up having such a great time & I was put at ease by the time my sister & my friend came to the room to help get me dressed They also had a lot of patience...my poor husband (which I love saying now! ha!) has sensitive eyes to the sun, and they tried very hard to make him feel comfortable on our TTD session the day after our wedding...the sun was very bright & it was hard to keep our eyes open, but the ladies were extremely patient with us & helped us get in some shaded area in the pool so that we could keep our eyes open longer - ha! We were also so tired the day after, so it was so great that both Melissa & Summer were very patient, because we were in super slow mode...especially that first hour outside Sorry to Melissa & Summer - we needed more caffeine - ha! Melissa also posted a teaser shot the same day of our TTD session (seen below) - so it was so awesome to be able to get a glance of what the pictures look like the same day we took them....they took so many & I know it's got to be a lot of work to comb through all the pics & edit them...but the ones we have seen so far are INCREDIBLY AMAZING!!! AGAIN - I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THESE LADIES FOR YOUR DESTINATION WEDDING Here is a link to Melissa's facebook page w/some of our wedding pics: http://www.facebook.com/#!/album.php?aid=474535&id=239475115334&ref=mf pic from TTD w/ Melissa Green: 2. Beach Wedding - Steven & I are fairly laid back, so going into the entire destination wedding, we were open to any/all suggestions & not too picky about what we wanted. THANKFULLY, it did not rain!!! We worked w/Kymoya (wedding coordinator @ grand) and we asked for her opinion of where to hold the ceremony...as you basically get 2 choices on the beach: right in the center (near the plunge pool)....or off to the side, in front of the outdoor restaurant. We took her recommendation (off to the side) & it was PERFECT...you get much less 'watchers' trying to watch your entire ceremony & you didn't have to worry about the folks lining up within the pool to save 'their spot' to watch your wedding...there could be a rowdy crowd, so I would stick with Kymoya's recommendation. We had the dove release & Steel drum Bands play at the wedding - BOTH great choices!!! I went with the roses bouquet & flowers for my hair...we had the silver tie-backs for the chairs...and we didn't specify anything specific for our Arch...we just had tropical flowers & it looked just perfect for us. We had Rev. T. Gordon & if you can get him to do your ceremony & marry you...I highly recommend him!!! We loved him from the minute we met him...he was perfect for our ceremony & they all thought he was great...he was funny and down to earth - we are very thankful that we got him to perform our ceremony. pic of dove release & cocktail party w/steel drum band: 3. Dinner/Disco/Beach Party - We ate at the gourmet restaurant for Dinner on our wedding & we asked to have a Lobster Tail added to the main plate..."no problem'...and just like that, we got the steak & lobster. Our group total was 20...so we all sat at one long table which worked out great for us....the restaurant was closed to the public until we finished (8pm) and that made it so much nicer!!! **Get the Strawberry Cheesecake for your Wedding Cake - it was soo delicious!!! We then headed to the Disco for 2 hours - which is completely yours until they open it up to the public @ 10:30. We had a great time; although, I think my friends were tired from the long day...so we didn't get too crazy on the dance floor . Rehearsal Night - For our ceremony, we didn't have any bridesmaids or groomsmen - just the 2 of us! So we didn't have to worry about practicing on the beach. For The Night before our wedding (Thursday), we worked with Kymoya in advance, and booked a Reggae Band, a Fire breather for Entertainment & had them set up a bonfire on the beach. Our dinner was at the Surf & Turf Restaurant (where we sat at one long table again) and then headed over to the beach for an AMAZING SET UP by Kymoya's team for the Reggae Band & Cocktail Party & Bonfire! It was AWESOME!!! The Fire Breather was amazing too....I highly recommend getting a Reggae Band (and a fire breather) - they were well worth the $$! I would recommend doing the beach party the night before your wedding...it was pretty hot out there (of course we were there in July), but I can't imagine trying to dance and party after our wedding on the beach. One more note about the Beach Party - you have to love Jamaicans...they worked very hard on setting up the Bonfire for us - it took them a long time to get that fire going...but they finally did! You have to give them credit, b/c as my one friend said..."if we were in NY, they'd be done trying after 5 mins"....these guys relentlessly worked on getting our bonfire set up & it really does speak to the overall attention & attitude to our entire weekend = the folks there wanted to please your wishes & they all worked so hard to make us happy...and they definitely made us VERY HAPPY! A few pics from our rehersal dinner & of our Beach Party (Steven & I had separate shirts made: "jamaican bride & jamaican groom" - our guests had "wedding crasher" shirts...see below, we had them made from cafe press) the bonfire shot was with a few of our friends who stuck around after the band @ the very end of the night...I had to take the shirt off...I danced up a storm & I was pretty sweaty! ha! ... . Hotel/Wedding Coordinator/Butler - I can't rave enough about this hotel, the food, and the service. Our wedding coordinator was great - Kymoya I remember first waiting for emails & thinking I wasn't getting a response back right away.....but once we got there, I realized how busy these wedding coordinators are - but even with her being so busy, she made every chance to meet with us and or speak w/us to get all of our requests done...and they were all met - she followed through on everything...again, "no problem" and we had a wonderful/perfect wedding! Our Butler was amazing...Darwin!!! I would request to be on Darwin's floor if I were you He was super nice & patient and even helped us finish packing some of our gift bags to distribute to our friends Again - everyone that worked there treated us with a lot of respect & there was no bad attitudes or vibes...we would do it all over again, in a heartbeat 5. Tips - we tipped almost everyone...we tipped bigger & continued tipping more for those employees who really impressed us...it was great getting to know a lot of the workers...some of their stories are amazing and we were happy to tip them b/c they truly deserved it for all their hard work!! 6. Buri Fans - we brought the buri fans with us for our wedding day...while I got a good discount on ebay for these fans...I would also recommend waiting & buying some buri fans at the markets. Make sure to get a cab ride over to the Market Downtown...much better prices & you can buy gifts for your guests; as well as, the hand made fans if you want them for your wedding. 7. T-Shirts - we had t-shirts made from cafe press: "Wedding Crasher Jamaica 2010" in the front and had this on the back of the shirt: rule#76: "no excuses, play like a champion" We had them bring them to the bonfire so that we could get a group shot & most of them just ended up wearing them all night 8. Pants at dinner - I had so many questions on this from my guests...so to help you all, YES guys have to wear pants at dinner w/collar shirts. AND flip flops are acceptable. So after our dinner Thursday night, we just told them they could go change into shorts for the bonfire. Most folks dressed up nice for the sit down dinners...just wanted to let you guys know, as this was a constant question from the group 9. Hair & Makeup day of Wedding = Done at the Salon there at Iberostar...I just brought some pictures, did a dry-run with the hair the day before & it turned out perfect! They also did my nails & they looked perfect too! No dry-run with the make-up, just day of & it turned out amazing...my husband loved what they did 10. Kids - No kids allowed at hotel (18 is the legal adult age in Jamaica); however, it was no problem to have my nephew, who is 13 & stayed at the the Suites to attend Thursday night & day of Wedding...most of what we did was private, so there was no issue having him attend. One of my friends was pregnant & another one of my friends just had a 3 month old...and they both took the time out to hire babysitters (their family) to watch their kids in order to attend our wedding in Jamaica - you gotta love them for that! Long story short, they have kids & they loved the fact of getting away & treating this like a vacation...they both commented how it was nice not to have a lot of kids running around the property...it really set the tone & mood of this place! That was the first time I vacationed w/out kids at a hotel...and it was really great!!! Since our Wedding was on a Friday, our friends were able to treat it as an extended long weekend to get away to Jamaica Again - you could work through Kymoya & have kids attend your wedding - but they are not allowed to stay at the Grand. Well, I'm sure I'm forgeting some information to post...All in all, it was an amazing time there & I would definitley recommend getting married at the Grand!!! If we had to do it all over again, we would have done the exact same thing!!! So glad we chose to do a destination wedding...I will always remember our special day Please let me know if you have questions & I will try to help :) I can post more pics once I get more of them :) p.s. - I know I probably used 'amazing' a million times, but I'm not sure what else to use...ha! It was really all Amazing ;0) ha! lol..... Good Luck to you future brides out there Stacie Â

Yes - I just told them I want a Steel Drum Band & it was all taken care of...it was nice not to have to worry about dealing w/outside vendors...Kymoya (our coordinator) handled both the Steel Drum Band & the Reggae Bands (for the night before). The Coordinators put on a lot of weddings there - so I just put my faith in their recommendations & it turned out perfect for us....you gotta imagine how much they see, so I knew they would recommend what they would do....but of course, they will accomadate your requests if you seek outside vendors outside of their recommendations. Â Another Side note - that Reggae Band we had was unbelievable!!! I wish I could remember their name..All I know is that the lead singer resembles (to me) Lenny Kravitz....they were soooooooooooooo good!!! Of course we asked for "one more, one more"...and he did a solo @ the end w/his guitar. Loved it!!!! :) Â Stacie

Hi All - We just got back from getting married @ Iberostar Grand Rose Hall on 7/30/2010 & hopefully if anyone needs help with ideas or questions (or deciding if this is the location for you); then maybe I can be of some help (or this post may be helpful in answering some of your questions!) Where to begin... I'll start w/the fun stuff = Pictures!!! 1. We hired Melissa Green @ www.melissagreen-photography.com She was AWESOME - I attached a picture that she took (seen above) Her and Summer Hooke came out and stayed with us at the Grand & they were both amazing! I actually found them through this best destination website & I contacted her from her website.....and from our first conversation, I knew she was a perfect fit for us! They truly blended in and all my friends & our family enjoyed both of these Ladies They 2 ladies are very special, they work very hard for the great shots...including jumping in, fully clothed into the pool on our TTD session in order to get 'the shot'...they had us laughing!!!! They took pictures Thursday night @ our Bonfire, the day of the Wedding & the TTD session the following day. They were super special the day of my wedding, as they came and sat with me prior to my girlfriends coming to the room & it was so great, b/c I was somewhat anxious & nervous, but just through conversation with the ladies - we ended up having such a great time & I was put at ease by the time my sister & my friend came to the room to help get me dressed They also had a lot of patience...my poor husband (which I love saying now! ha!) has sensitive eyes to the sun, and they tried very hard to make him feel comfortable on our TTD session the day after our wedding...the sun was very bright & it was hard to keep our eyes open, but the ladies were extremely patient with us & helped us get in some shaded area in the pool so that we could keep our eyes open longer - ha! We were also so tired the day after, so it was so great that both Melissa & Summer were very patient, because we were in super slow mode...especially that first hour outside Sorry to Melissa & Summer - we needed more caffeine - ha! Melissa also posted a teaser shot the same day of our TTD session (seen below) - so it was so awesome to be able to get a glance of what the pictures look like the same day we took them....they took so many & I know it's got to be a lot of work to comb through all the pics & edit them...but the ones we have seen so far are INCREDIBLY AMAZING!!! AGAIN - I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THESE LADIES FOR YOUR DESTINATION WEDDING Here is a link to Melissa's facebook page w/some of our wedding pics: http://www.facebook.com/#!/album.php?aid=474535&id=239475115334&ref=mf pic from TTD w/ Melissa Green: 2. Beach Wedding - Steven & I are fairly laid back, so going into the entire destination wedding, we were open to any/all suggestions & not too picky about what we wanted. THANKFULLY, it did not rain!!! We worked w/Kymoya (wedding coordinator @ grand) and we asked for her opinion of where to hold the ceremony...as you basically get 2 choices on the beach: right in the center (near the plunge pool)....or off to the side, in front of the outdoor restaurant. We took her recommendation (off to the side) & it was PERFECT...you get much less 'watchers' trying to watch your entire ceremony & you didn't have to worry about the folks lining up within the pool to save 'their spot' to watch your wedding...there could be a rowdy crowd, so I would stick with Kymoya's recommendation. We had the dove release & Steel drum Bands play at the wedding - BOTH great choices!!! I went with the roses bouquet & flowers for my hair...we had the silver tie-backs for the chairs...and we didn't specify anything specific for our Arch...we just had tropical flowers & it looked just perfect for us. We had Rev. T. Gordon & if you can get him to do your ceremony & marry you...I highly recommend him!!! We loved him from the minute we met him...he was perfect for our ceremony & they all thought he was great...he was funny and down to earth - we are very thankful that we got him to perform our ceremony. pic of dove release & cocktail party w/steel drum band:  3. Dinner/Disco/Beach Party - We ate at the gourmet restaurant for Dinner on our wedding & we asked to have a Lobster Tail added to the main plate..."no problem'...and just like that, we got the steak & lobster. Our group total was 20...so we all sat at one long table which worked out great for us....the restaurant was closed to the public until we finished (8pm) and that made it so much nicer!!! **Get the Strawberry Cheesecake for your Wedding Cake - it was soo delicious!!! We then headed to the Disco for 2 hours - which is completely yours until they open it up to the public @ 10:30. We had a great time; although, I think my friends were tired from the long day...so we didn't get too crazy on the dance floor . Rehearsal Night - For our ceremony, we didn't have any bridesmaids or groomsmen - just the 2 of us! So we didn't have to worry about practicing on the beach. For The Night before our wedding (Thursday), we worked with Kymoya in advance, and booked a Reggae Band, a Fire breather for Entertainment & had them set up a bonfire on the beach. Our dinner was at the Surf & Turf Restaurant (where we sat at one long table again) and then headed over to the beach for an AMAZING SET UP by Kymoya's team for the Reggae Band & Cocktail Party & Bonfire! It was AWESOME!!! The Fire Breather was amazing too....I highly recommend getting a Reggae Band (and a fire breather) - they were well worth the $$! I would recommend doing the beach party the night before your wedding...it was pretty hot out there (of course we were there in July), but I can't imagine trying to dance and party after our wedding on the beach. One more note about the Beach Party - you have to love Jamaicans...they worked very hard on setting up the Bonfire for us - it took them a long time to get that fire going...but they finally did! You have to give them credit, b/c as my one friend said..."if we were in NY, they'd be done trying after 5 mins"....these guys relentlessly worked on getting our bonfire set up & it really does speak to the overall attention & attitude to our entire weekend = the folks there wanted to please your wishes & they all worked so hard to make us happy...and they definitely made us VERY HAPPY! A few pics from our rehersal dinner & of our Beach Party (Steven & I had separate shirts made: "jamaican bride & jamaican groom" - our guests had "wedding crasher" shirts...see below, we had them made from cafe press) the bonfire shot was with a few of our friends who stuck around after the band @ the very end of the night...I had to take the shirt off...I danced up a storm & I was pretty sweaty! ha! ... . Hotel/Wedding Coordinator/Butler - I can't rave enough about this hotel, the food, and the service. Our wedding coordinator was great - Kymoya I remember first waiting for emails & thinking I wasn't getting a response back right away.....but once we got there, I realized how busy these wedding coordinators are - but even with her being so busy, she made every chance to meet with us and or speak w/us to get all of our requests done...and they were all met - she followed through on everything...again, "no problem" and we had a wonderful/perfect wedding! Our Butler was amazing...Darwin!!! I would request to be on Darwin's floor if I were you He was super nice & patient and even helped us finish packing some of our gift bags to distribute to our friends Again - everyone that worked there treated us with a lot of respect & there was no bad attitudes or vibes...we would do it all over again, in a heartbeat 5. Tips - we tipped almost everyone...we tipped bigger & continued tipping more for those employees who really impressed us...it was great getting to know a lot of the workers...some of their stories are amazing and we were happy to tip them b/c they truly deserved it for all their hard work!! 6. Buri Fans - we brought the buri fans with us for our wedding day...while I got a good discount on ebay for these fans...I would also recommend waiting & buying some buri fans at the markets. Make sure to get a cab ride over to the Market Downtown...much better prices & you can buy gifts for your guests; as well as, the hand made fans if you want them for your wedding. 7. T-Shirts - we had t-shirts made from cafe press: "Wedding Crasher Jamaica 2010" in the front and had this on the back of the shirt: rule#76: "no excuses, play like a champion" We had them bring them to the bonfire so that we could get a group shot & most of them just ended up wearing them all night 8. Pants at dinner - I had so many questions on this from my guests...so to help you all, YES guys have to wear pants at dinner w/collar shirts. AND flip flops are acceptable. So after our dinner Thursday night, we just told them they could go change into shorts for the bonfire. Most folks dressed up nice for the sit down dinners...just wanted to let you guys know, as this was a constant question from the group 9. Hair & Makeup day of Wedding = Done at the Salon there at Iberostar...I just brought some pictures, did a dry-run with the hair the day before & it turned out perfect! They also did my nails & they looked perfect too! No dry-run with the make-up, just day of & it turned out amazing...my husband loved what they did 10. Kids - No kids allowed at hotel (18 is the legal adult age in Jamaica); however, it was no problem to have my nephew, who is 13 & stayed at the the Suites to attend Thursday night & day of Wedding...most of what we did was private, so there was no issue having him attend. One of my friends was pregnant & another one of my friends just had a 3 month old...and they both took the time out to hire babysitters (their family) to watch their kids in order to attend our wedding in Jamaica - you gotta love them for that! Long story short, they have kids & they loved the fact of getting away & treating this like a vacation...they both commented how it was nice not to have a lot of kids running around the property...it really set the tone & mood of this place! That was the first time I vacationed w/out kids at a hotel...and it was really great!!! Since our Wedding was on a Friday, our friends were able to treat it as an extended long weekend to get away to Jamaica Again - you could work through Kymoya & have kids attend your wedding - but they are not allowed to stay at the Grand. Well, I'm sure I'm forgeting some information to post...All in all, it was an amazing time there & I would definitley recommend getting married at the Grand!!! If we had to do it all over again, we would have done the exact same thing!!! So glad we chose to do a destination wedding...I will always remember our special day Please let me know if you have questions & I will try to help :) I can post more pics once I get more of them :) p.s. - I know I probably used 'amazing' a million times, but I'm not sure what else to use...ha! It was really all Amazing ;0) ha! lol..... Good Luck to you future brides out there Stacie  Another Melissa Green Picture... Â

Hi Tina! I recently got married @ Iberostar Grand Rose Hall....we had a fairly small wedding (20) & we didn't have a wedding party - so only I walked down the aisle...what I can tell you is that we watched a larger wedding a few days prior & they had a DJ. They had one song for everyone to walk down the aisle (for Family & their wedding party - I believe they had 5-6 couples & a toddler) & then they had Canon in D song for the bride....they used the entrance song the same for the exit song for everyone (over the rainbow). They used one other different song for the signing of paperwork/sand ceremony (I forget the song they used). They DJ played music while they were seated...I don't recall the song(s) while everyone was seated.... As for the DJ - the wind would come and rattle the speakers & cords...so there were a few moments when the music kept fading in & out...it may have just been really windy that day, so it may not happen all the time - but I just wanted to throw that out there, since we did notice that while watching their wedding We, on the other-hand, had the steel drum band...which I absolutely loved & so did my guests...they played while guests where seated. I was fairly laid back & told my coordinator that I can leave it up to the steel drum band on what they wanted to play...since this was an island wedding & I wanted to incorporate part of the 'feeling' of Jamaica As a side note, even though we had a Steel Drum Band, they do set up speakers & a microphone (which I'm so thankful they did & I even forgot to ask my coordinator about this) - which is great, because all your guests can hear the entire ceremony!! (I thought that there would only be a speaker & microphone set up if you had a DJ...but they set up a sound system regardless of music choice Lastly = you're getting married on a beautiful beach, so don't worry about any music disasters...you & your guests will have an amazing time! They do an amazing job @ Iberostar :) I hope that helps?!? Good luck to you Stacie

Hi Matzah! I got married @ Iberostar, and like you, I wasn't sure what to do about the photographer.... I first looked at what the hotel offered, but then did some research on this website & looked through photo's of other Jamaica Weddings and started to pick out traits of the photos I liked...i.e. = color, candid shots, TTD sessions. After narrowing down a few photographers that I liked (I believe there is a forum here for Jamaica Vendors/Photographers) - I contacted them to see if they were available & their rates. For us, we went to Melissa Green Photography - I loved her photos, the colors & the TTD sessions that she had previously done. Since we had events going on the night before - Rehearsal Dinner w/beach Party, the wedding, and then wanting to do a TTD session the day after...we decided on flying in photographers into Jamaica vs. using local ones w/in Jamaica. Using Locals....You still had to spend money (gas, etc) for transportation for the local photographers to get to your resort (and also pay for day passes each day they were there). So for us, it was much nicer to have our Photographers staying there with us as the hotel, getting to know them (and having them get to know our friends/family), and it worked out great for us. Again, shop around on the photographer's websites & look for photos you like or want to see for your wedding day...and see if they have people who recommend them Again, my recommendation is for Melissa Green hope that helps, good luck to you! Stacie

I'm w/JesseLyn10...We got married in Jamaica & we totally loved it! Our guests loved it too....we had a total of 20 people...and it was perfect! I can't imagine having a wedding in the states w/100+ people...I was exhausted with all the events & things we did with our group, I can't imagine having to entertain 100+people We got married @ Iberostar Grand Rose Hall & we absolutely loved it :) Good Luck to you!!!

Hi All - We just got back from getting married @ Iberostar Grand Rose Hall on 7/30/2010 & hopefully if anyone needs help with ideas or questions (or deciding if this is the location for you); then maybe I can be of some help (or this post may be helpful in answering some of your questions!) Where to begin... I'll start w/the fun stuff = Pictures!!! 1. We hired Melissa Green @ www.melissagreen-photography.com She was AWESOME - I attached a picture that she took (seen above) Her and Summer Hooke came out and stayed with us at the Grand & they were both amazing! I actually found them through this best destination website & I contacted her from her website.....and from our first conversation, I knew she was a perfect fit for us! They truly blended in and all my friends & our family enjoyed both of these Ladies They 2 ladies are very special, they work very hard for the great shots...including jumping in, fully clothed into the pool on our TTD session in order to get 'the shot'...they had us laughing!!!! They took pictures Thursday night @ our Bonfire, the day of the Wedding & the TTD session the following day. They were super special the day of my wedding, as they came and sat with me prior to my girlfriends coming to the room & it was so great, b/c I was somewhat anxious & nervous, but just through conversation with the ladies - we ended up having such a great time & I was put at ease by the time my sister & my friend came to the room to help get me dressed They also had a lot of patience...my poor husband (which I love saying now! ha!) has sensitive eyes to the sun, and they tried very hard to make him feel comfortable on our TTD session the day after our wedding...the sun was very bright & it was hard to keep our eyes open, but the ladies were extremely patient with us & helped us get in some shaded area in the pool so that we could keep our eyes open longer - ha! We were also so tired the day after, so it was so great that both Melissa & Summer were very patient, because we were in super slow mode...especially that first hour outside Sorry to Melissa & Summer - we needed more caffeine - ha! Melissa also posted a teaser shot the same day of our TTD session (seen below) - so it was so awesome to be able to get a glance of what the pictures look like the same day we took them....they took so many & I know it's got to be a lot of work to comb through all the pics & edit them...but the ones we have seen so far are INCREDIBLY AMAZING!!! AGAIN - I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THESE LADIES FOR YOUR DESTINATION WEDDING Here is a link to Melissa's facebook page w/some of our wedding pics: http://www.facebook.com/#!/album.php?aid=474535&id=239475115334&ref=mf pic from TTD w/ Melissa Green: 2. Beach Wedding - Steven & I are fairly laid back, so going into the entire destination wedding, we were open to any/all suggestions & not too picky about what we wanted. THANKFULLY, it did not rain!!! We worked w/Kymoya (wedding coordinator @ grand) and we asked for her opinion of where to hold the ceremony...as you basically get 2 choices on the beach: right in the center (near the plunge pool)....or off to the side, in front of the outdoor restaurant. We took her recommendation (off to the side) & it was PERFECT...you get much less 'watchers' trying to watch your entire ceremony & you didn't have to worry about the folks lining up within the pool to save 'their spot' to watch your wedding...there could be a rowdy crowd, so I would stick with Kymoya's recommendation. We had the dove release & Steel drum Bands play at the wedding - BOTH great choices!!! I went with the roses bouquet & flowers for my hair...we had the silver tie-backs for the chairs...and we didn't specify anything specific for our Arch...we just had tropical flowers & it looked just perfect for us. We had Rev. T. Gordon & if you can get him to do your ceremony & marry you...I highly recommend him!!! We loved him from the minute we met him...he was perfect for our ceremony & they all thought he was great...he was funny and down to earth - we are very thankful that we got him to perform our ceremony. pic of dove release & cocktail party w/steel drum band: 3. Dinner/Disco/Beach Party - We ate at the gourmet restaurant for Dinner on our wedding & we asked to have a Lobster Tail added to the main plate..."no problem'...and just like that, we got the steak & lobster. Our group total was 20...so we all sat at one long table which worked out great for us....the restaurant was closed to the public until we finished (8pm) and that made it so much nicer!!! **Get the Strawberry Cheesecake for your Wedding Cake - it was soo delicious!!! We then headed to the Disco for 2 hours - which is completely yours until they open it up to the public @ 10:30. We had a great time; although, I think my friends were tired from the long day...so we didn't get too crazy on the dance floor 4. Rehearsal Night - For our ceremony, we didn't have any bridesmaids or groomsmen - just the 2 of us! So we didn't have to worry about practicing on the beach. For The Night before our wedding (Thursday), we worked with Kymoya in advance, and booked a Reggae Band, a Fire breather for Entertainment & had them set up a bonfire on the beach. Our dinner was at the Surf & Turf Restaurant (where we sat at one long table again) and then headed over to the beach for an AMAZING SET UP by Kymoya's team for the Reggae Band & Cocktail Party & Bonfire! It was AWESOME!!! The Fire Breather was amazing too....I highly recommend getting a Reggae Band (and a fire breather) - they were well worth the $$! I would recommend doing the beach party the night before your wedding...it was pretty hot out there (of course we were there in July), but I can't imagine trying to dance and party after our wedding on the beach. One more note about the Beach Party - you have to love Jamaicans...they worked very hard on setting up the Bonfire for us - it took them a long time to get that fire going...but they finally did! You have to give them credit, b/c as my one friend said..."if we were in NY, they'd be done trying after 5 mins"....these guys relentlessly worked on getting our bonfire set up & it really does speak to the overall attention & attitude to our entire weekend = the folks there wanted to please your wishes & they all worked so hard to make us happy...and they definitely made us VERY HAPPY! A few pics from our rehersal dinner & of our Beach Party (Steven & I had separate shirts made: "jamaican bride & jamaican groom" - our guests had "wedding crasher" shirts...see below, we had them made from cafe press) the bonfire shot was with a few of our friends who stuck around after the band @ the very end of the night...I had to take the shirt off...I danced up a storm & I was pretty sweaty! ha! ... 4. Hotel/Wedding Coordinator/Butler - I can't rave enough about this hotel, the food, and the service. Our wedding coordinator was great - Kymoya I remember first waiting for emails & thinking I wasn't getting a response back right away.....but once we got there, I realized how busy these wedding coordinators are - but even with her being so busy, she made every chance to meet with us and or speak w/us to get all of our requests done...and they were all met - she followed through on everything...again, "no problem" and we had a wonderful/perfect wedding! Our Butler was amazing...Darwin!!! I would request to be on Darwin's floor if I were you He was super nice & patient and even helped us finish packing some of our gift bags to distribute to our friends Again - everyone that worked there treated us with a lot of respect & there was no bad attitudes or vibes...we would do it all over again, in a heartbeat 5. Tips - we tipped almost everyone...we tipped bigger & continued tipping more for those employees who really impressed us...it was great getting to know a lot of the workers...some of their stories are amazing and we were happy to tip them b/c they truly deserved it for all their hard work!! 6. Buri Fans - we brought the buri fans with us for our wedding day...while I got a good discount on ebay for these fans...I would also recommend waiting & buying some buri fans at the markets. Make sure to get a cab ride over to the Market Downtown...much better prices & you can buy gifts for your guests; as well as, the hand made fans if you want them for your wedding. 7. T-Shirts - we had t-shirts made from cafe press: "Wedding Crasher Jamaica 2010" in the front and had this on the back of the shirt: rule#76: "no excuses, play like a champion" We had them bring them to the bonfire so that we could get a group shot & most of them just ended up wearing them all night 8. Pants at dinner - I had so many questions on this from my guests...so to help you all, YES guys have to wear pants at dinner w/collar shirts. AND flip flops are acceptable. So after our dinner Thursday night, we just told them they could go change into shorts for the bonfire. Most folks dressed up nice for the sit down dinners...just wanted to let you guys know, as this was a constant question from the group 9. Hair & Makeup day of Wedding = Done at the Salon there at Iberostar...I just brought some pictures, did a dry-run with the hair the day before & it turned out perfect! They also did my nails & they looked perfect too! No dry-run with the make-up, just day of & it turned out amazing...my husband loved what they did 10. Kids - No kids allowed at hotel (18 is the legal adult age in Jamaica); however, it was no problem to have my nephew, who is 13 & stayed at the the Suites to attend Thursday night & day of Wedding...most of what we did was private, so there was no issue having him attend. One of my friends was pregnant & another one of my friends just had a 3 month old...and they both took the time out to hire babysitters (their family) to watch their kids in order to attend our wedding in Jamaica - you gotta love them for that! Long story short, they have kids & they loved the fact of getting away & treating this like a vacation...they both commented how it was nice not to have a lot of kids running around the property...it really set the tone & mood of this place! That was the first time I vacationed w/out kids at a hotel...and it was really great!!! Since our Wedding was on a Friday, our friends were able to treat it as an extended long weekend to get away to Jamaica Again - you could work through Kymoya & have kids attend your wedding - but they are not allowed to stay at the Grand. Well, I'm sure I'm forgeting some information to post...All in all, it was an amazing time there & I would definitley recommend getting married at the Grand!!! If we had to do it all over again, we would have done the exact same thing!!! So glad we chose to do a destination wedding...I will always remember our special day Please let me know if you have questions & I will try to help :) I can post more pics once I get more of them :) p.s. - I know I probably used 'amazing' a million times, but I'm not sure what else to use...ha! It was really all Amazing ;0) ha! lol..... Good Luck to you future brides out there Stacie (and Steven)

Hi - I'm getting married in Jamaica @ Iberostar & the hotel has Digipix as their photographer to use. I have clicked on their site - they don't have a lot of photos listed in order to really see what their total portfolio looks like. Has anyone used them? Or have most of you ladies used a different photographer? Thanks! S

Hi Melfredo! We finally got our date secured, 7/30/2010! I ended up writing Angellie & she has been very helpful & quick to respond Now - it's up to the planning part....so thank you all for posting updates, as we probably won't visit before our date! I know our date will be here before you know! Cheers - Stacie stevenandstacie.com

Leslie - Thank you for sharing all your pics & Ideas!!!!! We are getting married in July & finally got our date 7-30-10 @ the Grand We should hire you! ha! It looks like everything turned out fabulous! Congrats Stacie Stevenandstacie.com

Hi All! I have been trying to email Pilar @ the Grand, but I haven't had any response back....It's been a week since I wrote her - do you guys know how long it takes for them to get back to you? Thanks!!!