jkweddingday

Janet1480, we just arrived home a few hours ago. I cannot tell you how AMAZING everything was!!! Do NOT worry about a thing as they take such great care of you. All of our guests talked about the beautiful resort, the amazing wedding and our outstanding photographer (Reno with Photo Souvenir). We're writing a longer review which I'll post in the review section (with a link here of course ), but I wanted to very quickly tell you not to worry a wink and ENJOY IT ALL!!! You will not be disappointed. P.S. I didn't buy a typical destination wedding dress either and it was perfect!! You look stunning in your picture! :-)

Hey ayansi08, Welcome and congratulations!! I was very nervous about a Destination Wedding. In fact, it was the exact opposite of what I wanted. It's too long of a story to outline how I wound up here, but I did, and I'm really, really excited. We chose PPC because we had some friends honeymoon at the resort and LOVE IT. We've never been there, nor have any of our guests, and we like the adventure of it all. I worked with Lauren Harder and I was not impressed. Some of the other girls here have highly recommended Teresa, so I'd try to switch to her if possible. Lauren does the bare minimum, and is not personable at all. She's very reactive instead of proactive which isn't helpful when you're planning an event site unseen. Anyway, I wish you the best of luck. I leave in about a week for my wedding and will be sure to post information upon our return. This forum has been invaluable as we move forward so I would recommend you devote some time to poking around here. Good luck, Katherine

Hi Guys, I'm just going to hope an aisle runner is included and will double-check when I arrive. I'd rather work with them on-site then via email if it's not. I do have a couple questions for those of you who have stayed at PPC--first, do the buildings have elevators? We have some folks coming who can't handle stairs very well, so I wasn't sure whether I needed to request first floor rooms or if they all have elevators. Secondly, are there any buildings you would recommend (or not recommend) staying in? Thanks!

Hi Mandy5676, We're getting married at PPC on 10/1 @ 5:00 p.m. And we're also having a small ceremony--11 people (including us)! I go back and forth on how I feel about that, but it is what it is :-) We originally scheduled a legal ceremony; however, they couldn't guarantee turnaround time on the paperwork. I'm Catholic and will be celebrating in a convalidation in early December and the Church needed the paperwork beforehand. So, we are stopping by the courthouse for the legal stuff literally on our way to the airport then having my brother marry us in the DR. I like it this way as it's more personal. This forum has been super, SUPER helpful for me!! Feel free to throw out any questions as most folks are able to offer an answer. Thanks, Katherine ("jkweddingday")

Hi Ladies, Is an aisle runner included in the Chill Out Chic package? I just realized that I have this vision in my head, but I have no idea whether it's included or not. If not, does anyone know how much they charge for one @ PPC? Thanks!

Thanks, Ladies! I'm really excited now that I'm hearing good things about Jennifer. Thanks so much for letting me know :-) Janet1480, I will definitely do my best to ship you a note very quickly after the wedding!!!

Okay, ladies, I was e-introduced to our on-site coordinator yesterday--Jennifer Alvarez. Anybody have any experience with her (good or bad)? My pre-wedding coordination with Lauren left much to be desired and I really don't want the same experience with our on-site coordinator. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Janet1480, I'll be thinking of you on 10/22! We depart 10/13 so I'll miss you by a week or so. I'll try to find a few minutes to write up at least a quick review soon after the wedding in case I have anything helpful to say :-)

Janet1480, thanks! That was my plan as well (a note to the WC/on-site coordinator requesting renovated rooms for our guests). Our wedding is October 1st (we're arriving 9/26) and I'll definitely let folks know what we find. I'm a little concerned that they're going to say, "Oh, all of our rooms are great!" or something comparable so I was hoping folks could relay in what building(s) they've stayed so we know which ones to request (or avoid). Regardless, it sounds like I'm not completely off base with making the request. At least others are doing it too! Here's hoping all goes well :-)

Hey hatfiehm, there is a $120 fee to bring in an outside photographer. We've hired Photo Souvenir and are super excited about it :-) Everyone else--have you stayed or had guests stay in regular rooms and were they okay? The reviews are sort of freaking of me out. It sounds like things are okay if we get into the rooms that have been renovated. Does anybody know what buildings to request to get in the good "normal" rooms? I'm worried about our guests quality of stay..... Also, does the resort offer any excursions/tours? Thanks!

Janet1480, you've got me pretty spooked :-( I'll email/call Lauren, but I doubt I'll get a helpful, timely response. Can you send me Teresa's email and the menus you received? Thanks!

Okay, deesanders33, you've freaked me out with references to sand fleas and crabs. I've never heard of any such problems, and my reception is slated for the beach in less than 2 months. Is it really an issue (eek!)? Tink, we're doing the Chill Out Chic package and had a variety of reception locations to chose from. We chose the beach to fully embrace the uniqueness of a destination wedding in a beautiful locale. As you can tell above, I've heard nothing about sand fleas or crabs. I think we're probably going to wing it anyway although I do have visions of myself in my wedding dress with bug spray trying to set-up a parameter..... I can't speak to use of the canopy at the gazebo. Have you checked out the pictures on Picasa to see if it's included in any of the pictures at the gazebo? Hatfiehm, we're bringing in Photo Souvenir and are super excited about it!! Janet1480, I got one more menu out of her but they're all the same! I pushed back again and we'll see what she says. Otherwise I may take you up on your offer to connect with Teresa. Thanks for the advice though!

Hi Ladies, Thanks, Miss Sunshyne, for info re: the newly remodeled RS rooms. The sitting area still looks really uncomfortable, but I doubt we'll be there much anyway. Thanks for the tips about the steps ;-) We had our planning calling with Lauren the other day. I have not been impressed with her and our meeting only solidified that point, but she at least got us [most of] the information we needed. She sent me menus today and there were only two buffet options with Chill Out Chic. Has anybody else seen anything different or been able to negotiate something better? Neither option is bad, but I am surprised at the lack of variety. Also, do you convert most of your cash into DOP before going down there or do you tip in USD and stuff? Lauren mentioned that, by law, folks aren't supposed to accept USD. How did you pay for activities, tips, etc. (I assume DOP, but want to confirm)? Thanks!!

Hi Ladies, Has anyone stayed in the remodeled RS suites? They look really modern and terribly uncomfortable. We booked in RS with the nice mahogany and warm tones, but now it looks silly. I'm hoping someone has stayed there recently and can tell me how the new rooms are. Thanks!! We're down to ~60 days and SOOOO excited!!! :-) -Katherine

So.....I've been wrestling with what to get my FI for a while and this thread has been helpful. I really like the concept of BD photos, so I've just decided to go for it!! I am a large woman so I'm a little nervous about it but it's not like he doesn't know that, and the pics are meant just for him. I think it will be really exhilarating and I love the idea of giving him something sexy and sweet. I do hope they airbrush though :-)

Hi Ladies, I'm not sure how many of us this applies to, but I just found out about the ENTICE Me rates through PPC for special dates in 2011 (Jan 4 - Feb 28, Sept 1 - Oct 31, Dec 1 - 22). Basically, there's a discount of several hundred dollars (or $1,000 for Aqua). It's worth checking out, and you can find more in the Weddings section of the web site (navigate to the appropriate package page and scroll down). Our date is Oct 1, so we were able to secure the reduced rate for the Chill Out Chic package. I just wanted to pass along the info in case others hadn't stumbled upon the same information yet! T minus 9 months (or there abouts ) until our big day!!! Still quite a bit of time, but we're getting more and more excited!!!! I look forward to seeing some pictures from recent weddings there (hint, hint )!