Hi, Leslie
I posted the response below on Trip Advisor after our wedding on August 1st. Happy to answer any questions you may have!
My fiance and I booked our wedding at Shangri-la Caribe and can truly say that our stay exceeded every expectation. We plan to return next year and would not think of staying anywhere else in Playa del Carmen.
From the moment we arrived to the moment we checked out, the service was impeccable. We booked a penthouse room, but the penthouses were not available, so we were given a bungalow on the beach for the same price. There is a serene quality to Shangri-la that permeates the entire hotel. Any and every need of ours was immediately attended to with a smile.
The concierge helped us organize restaurant reservations, a snorkeling trip to Cozumel and a bar crawl on our last night in town. We also decided to do a self-guided tour of Tulum, the Mayan ruins. Our taxi driver drove us out and waited while we toured Tulum and enjoyed the beach. He drove us back to the hotel and offered to take us to the airport when we left. Sure enough, he was waiting for us when we departed the hotel. Incredible.
The Aventura restaurant was one of our favorite parts of our stay. Not only was the food incredible, but the staff was friendly and "no" was not a part of their vocabulary. Before our wedding many of them noted how excited they were about working at the wedding reception. They also provided us with tips on places to visit in town. During two nights, they set out an authentic Mexican buffet and then an authentic Mayan buffet. We thought the food couldn't get any better, then it did.
During our stay we got TWO massages and would have gotten more if we had more time. The hotel offered an hour-long couples massage for 50USD/person. Many of our guests took advantage of this offer and commented that it was one of the best massages they had ever had--we agree!
The hotel was populated by European families and couples. While they had a great bar and an awesome happy hour (that lasted an actual hour) where they offered two-for-one drinks, the atmosphere was very laid back. No crazy college kids, etc.
As for the wedding, it was perfect. Our coordinator, Tere, works with a travel agency called Maya Zone and plans weddings at Shangri-la. I basically coordinated everything with her via email, and everything came out better than we could have ever expected. The restaurant set up a Welcome Dinner for our guests, a cocktail hour by the pool, a sunset ceremony and a beautiful reception. They closed the main restaurant for just us and our 30 guests! Our photographer, Dennis Berti of Blue Lens Caribe captured our big day. He said he was the best and was not lying. Our pictures have blown all of our guests away.
This was simply one of the best vacations or our lives. I am imploring all of my friends and family to consider a vacation in Mexico, particularly Shangri-la Caribe. The people and the economy are suffering deeply from the paranoia and hysteria surrounding H1N1. All of our guests left happy, rested and relaxed, promising to return. I am very happy that Shangri-la will continue to remain open; it is truly paradise
Unfortunately there were no special discounts for our multiple bookings, but they have rooms at different price points. Alcohol is not included in the meal plan, but drinks were definitely cheap. We paid for an open bar at our welcome dinner, cocktail hour, and reception--and it cost us about 1700 USD total. Hope this helps!