lilbuddha

We got to use the credits this July when we went and I promise there was no presentation at all. They were very cool about using them. The only suggestion I would make because we ran into some trouble was this...was drop a little note/e-mail etc. to your guests telling them to book spa appointments and tours as soon as they get there (no joke). We waited a day and found some of the tours booked up 3 days in advance. So if there is something that they really really want to do like swim with the dolphins (super popular) they should book that as soon as they get there. Â Other stuff like room upgrades etc. super easy but my fiance was a little bummed he couldn't zipline. I personally cheered inside

My fiance has 4 children ranging in ages from 16 to 12. The two middle boys will be playing the musical on their guitars. The 2 playing the guitars love the spot light while the younger two are not fans of big crowds. His daughter will be walking down the aisle as a junior bridesmaid. Â I really like the idea of vows but think it may be too formal....and not sure how excited the boys will be to get a piece of jewerly. I figured during the mother son dance I will dance with each of the boys in turn....but still unsure of ceremony....any other ideas of items to give them?

Hi Ladies, Â I am looking for some advice on how to incorporate my FI's children into the ceremony. They are an important part of us becoming a family and the decision to get married. Â As it is two of the older boys will be playing the ceremony music on their guitars but I would really like to add all of them into the ceremony similar to vows but maybe not as formal. Â Any suggestions or creative ideas would be very much appreciated. Â

Be sure to ask for the Aventura price list...it is different then their other prices. If you need a copy I have it.

I personally think the SPA is more private and love the way the carriage goes right up to the Gazebo. But remember no kids on the SPA side. Â

I personally was a fan of the Gazebo on the Spa side much more intimate and the horse goes right up to the gazebo. Â

When we did our site inspection in early July we went photo crazy of different wedding locations there are only a few (due to size) we did not take. If you would like me to e-mail them to you let me know I have not gotten savy enough with the new format of the blog to post them and there are a ton. Just let me know if you want Ceremony/reception locations....Spa or Cove side and size....Or if you have an idea which spot and I will see if my fiance got the shot. Â Just shoot me a message.

 I would definately say get legally married in the states let me preface this by saying THIS IS NOT LEGAL ADVICE in any way shape or form. But I am a lawyer and I turned this over in my head. The problem is if there is any hicuup along the way you are not dealing just with another state you are dealing with another country.   The hiccup could be in translation (docs are in Spanish) so they are then converted into English or once you get there just before your wedding if they deny the processing of your paperwork.  Same thing applies if you need duplicate documentation down the road to buy a house or when you have kids...you have to get it from another country not just your local city hall or even another state....translation fees apply etc.  I personally feel (again have to keep saying this is strictly personal belief I do not practice family law etc) is that it may be less headache in the long run to do the legal marriage in the states and the symbolic marriage there. We are doing it very quietly here. Not telling a soul. For us that is just the paper....the real wedding is in Mexico.  ~Mia Â

Thanks Nicole! Â I really like his work and his prices are great. He did mention he was doing his first wedding at Adventura this November so it must be yours! I hope you post your pics when you get back. And please let me know how it goes. Â Also, can I ask how long you are booking him for? Â Thanks for your help! Mia

I used a travel agent and per the contract w/ palace you are able to use 1 vendor (ie: apple vacations/usariways vacations etc.) to book all of your guest travel through. Our wedding date is 5/5/11 and we currently have 54 guests attending and 120 room nights toward our contract. We chose USairways vacations to book all of our guest travel through due to the low down payment option. Â My travel agent handles all the bookings and because we have so many room nights already locked in 9 months out they are being very accomadating in letting our guests book for various lengths of time. During our site inspection they emphasized the group contract and how important it is to adhere to it. Â Yazmin warned us that a lot of brides get tripped up so be sure to read over it again and again and make sure any modifications are in writing.

Has anyone had experience with Juan Navarro? I have been researching photographers in the area and right now he is our front runner. Any suggestions? Thanks!!

Quote: Originally Posted by Jackie22 We actually put together our bags before we left for Mexico and hand delivered them to whoever lived close. If they lived far or out of state I shipped them. This actually worked out really great. It amped my guests up for the trip. I was so happy I didn't have to lug them to Mexico too. Thanks so much for the idea Jackie! That may be a possibility. I will definately look into it...had never even crossed my mind!

I have a question for current and past brides, I am planning to do welcome bags for my guests to be in their rooms when they arrive. One of my bridesmaids and I were going to come down a couple of days early to finalize the events for our guests, welcome bags and wedding day. But the costs jumped quite a bit (over 600) for us not to come with our group. Did any of you have your WC put the bags together? Was there an extra charge? Did it go smoothy? When we met with Yazmin during our site inspection she recomended a customs broker to insure our items didn't get caught up in customs...did any of you use a customs broker? I am totally overwhelmed by the travel aspect and the group contract. There are just so many people to coordinate and the costs are so high. Any advice

Fabulous review! I am still trying to decide between Aventura, Iberostar Paradiso Maya and Rui....so this is a big help since Aventura at this point is our front runner! Thanks for all the details we are expecting around 80-100 next year so I am so happy to hear that they were accomadating. Can I ask did they charge extra for the pool party or the welcome dinner at all? Did you do a site inspection before hand? Any suggestions/questions we should ask? We are doing one next week.... This has been so helpful! Thank you! ~M

Quote: Originally Posted by amywuts I sent you a link to see my pics! We had gone over all of it with our TA before the wedding, so I knew what to expect and what else needed to be done. I didn't feel rushed with Yazmin; she wrote down everything we wanted (although, most of that didn't happen anyway...so what was the point of the meeting again) I felt rushed through the photos for sure! We used the resort photographer. He was really nice though about taking extra shots when we asked. I thought I had my timeline figured out. I made my hair appointment for noon (my wedding was at 5pm) and I knew it would take them 2 hours. So, I thought 2-4:30 would be plenty of time. It wasn't!! My sister was helping me with my makeup and we ordered room service. Between makeup, eating (maybe 5 minutes?), not being able to drink my glass of wine, and getting dressed I was really rushed! Time flew by so fast, I don't even know what happened. I got ready in a whirlwind! Yes, give yourself plenty of time! I thought I had... Besides the ceremony and your dinner, the way you schedule your day is up to you! I originally thought the same thing you did. I thought your WC would help you set up your hair appointment and anything else you wanted done. Your WC will tell you what time she'll be picking you up at your room. Everyone for our wedding was to be at the gazebo by 4:40pm. I told everyone 4:30pm. Yazmin came to my room at 4:50pm and from there we went! That sounds super intense! Thanks for the info though Amy, it will definately guide me on how I plan my day. The pictures you sent were beautiful. I can understand your frustration if you sit down and tell them how you want something and it doesn't happen that way. I can see how that would be worse then it just not going quite right by chance. I really liked your advice about having a member of your wedding party double check the details for you. Thanks for the wonderful guidance!!! Mia

Hi Amy, Thanks for such a a great review! Would you mind sending your pics to me as well? My email is [email protected]. I was just wondering if you felt like you had enough time to go over everything with your WC prior to the wedding or if you felt rushed in anyway? How scheduled was your day overall? Was there a timeline of some sort? Thanks ~M

Thank you so much for your review. My fiance and I are heading down to Riviera Maya next week for 3 site inspections at the Rui; Iberostar Paradiso Maya and Aventura Spa and Cove. We have been leaning toward Aventura for over a month now but we really want to see it (and taste it!) in person. I appreciate your honesty because it gives me an even better idea on not only what to look for but to keep an open mind throughout the process. Thanks again! ~Mia

Thanks everyone!

Hi Everyone, My fiance and I are getting married on May 5, 2011 in Riviera Maya. We are heading down next week to choose our location. We have narrowed it down to The Iberostar Paradiso Maya, Aventura Spa & Cove and Riu Palace. ANY guidance/ suggestions and past experience would be very much appreciated. Thanks! ~Mia

Hi Ladies, My fiance and I are getting married on May 5th, 2011. We really wanted to see the resort before we confirmed so we are heading to Mexico next Tuesday to look at 3 resorts. Adventura so far is by far our favorite. I am trying to compile a list of questions/concerns to ask the planner when I get down there for the site inspection. Is there anything I can ask to help guide you/me through this process? ~Mia