NEMMERZ

Anniversary return to Secrets Maroma! Anybody return for their anniversay nights?? I am currently trying to book for May 5, 2012 for our return of anniversary nights and it turns out to be a total rip off...... they say 2 nights are free, but I am not sure if its Apple Vacations or Secrets....they want you to book airfair and hotel separate which turns out to be alot more money and no real discount. Now, i lovvvvvveeee Secrets Maroma.........so I really wanna go back for our anniversary, but not for a price tag of $5000.00 for an anniversary... Can anyone help?? Nemmerz

The jungle is a home to these creatures. They are harmless. Just dont feed them. There was one or two there that hang out on the rocks. They wont bother you unless you antagonize them. We found them entertaining, the are so cool, but I can see where some people are freaked out...........LOL

Must be that time of year, we never saw one!! hmmm, we got married May 5th.

I got married May 5th, Initially i had some troubles getting my dates confirmed, i think its just because we have just a sense of urgency and trust me Cecilia is a one woman circus and runs it well........... But you have to kinda nag her sometimes, she has to email you a contract saving your date, you sign it and scan it and email it back, you then have to send her a deposit depending on what wedding package you have picked. she cannot save you day until she receives your contract and deposit, she will put on hold on that date for quite a while as you sign contract and send deposit. I would send an email a day until i got an answer, she gets TONS of email and if you sent if two weeks ago, its buried by now.... I would also call, I did. they both speak pretty good english. When the resort answers, they will answer in spanish, but just ask to talk with Cecilia and they will put you through to her.... You have picked the most WONDERFUL place to get married,dont worry they will make sure your wedding is perfect, Cecilia is a perfectionist and loves her job!! She is just sooooooooo busy, and you will see that for yourself once you get there and as a guest you watch her flutter around the resort everyday..... You made the right choice, but sometimes she doesnt answer right away, Yes there are other resorts that answer you right away, BUT she makes up for it when your wedding gets closer, she does answer you quickly and makes all your demands happen...... Good luck....now worries... Feel free to email me if you have any further concerns [email protected]

Thanks They arent De Sol photos though I wanted people to see also that not everyone can afford De Sol.......LOL.......I couldnt !! So my pics are awesome, but no trickery photography.....but i still luv em " And if you cant afford the FAncy photographers the other photographers can do them also, they all just dont have underwater cameras Or have the ability of illusion of fire .....

I also did a BD shoot for my HUBBY, he couldnt believe the pics I took (I wont post any, he will get upset with me...LOL) He looks at it all the time, ladies you will be amazed and how your husband looks at you, but you dont really look at yourself that way. My hubby just LITE UP!!! Anywayz, that was my present to my HUBBY.... May 2011 Riveria Maya

Out off all my wedding pics, everyone thought my TTD pics were the best and most unique and really captured our love. I would tell anyone to go it, its one of the benefits of doing a DW right?? Why not?? This was my second wedding and my first wedding dress is still under my bed. On a good note about your dress afterwards, truly its CLEAN, really you wouldnt think so but it was so clean, the ocean and salt do an awesome job of cleaning it, I did not have one stain, and we rolled all over the beach...LOL Cinco De Mayo 2011 in Riveria Maya Mexico

wow Maggie impressive I love them, so very nice I sent thank you cards similiar but made them cards so I could hand write on them. Im kinda old fashion that way....

Danni I havent run into that problem yet, but I am getting people that all want to bring food....... I guess ppl do just think its a picnic..... I guess they are as confused as I am.... Oh, if they all could be on the forum!! LOL BTW, dont second guess having an AHR, ppl making those comments just arent happy for you, so that is my guess anyway. I have not had one of those comments, so......... maybe some ppl just have to say some crappy things sometimes Just forget about it, and they dont have to attend if they feel that way........no biggie

We are doing a backyard Mexican Fiesta AHR.......LOL Im stressing tho.............i am more worried about the decor....... I have bought some "fiesta" stuff, but dont want it to look cheezy ya know. Its funny too.............so many ppl ask if they can bring food.......uh NO.....i really was hoping for some gifts ,hahahaha, have you found ppl find it more picnicy??? I just dont know what to expect!!

We all have the wedding blues...............my hubby thinks i am NUTZ All i do is research good deals about going back. Im obsessed....... We were going to go to the Outer Bank, NC but i just cant do back to that brown nasty ocean water when you can have the Carribean, I seriously cancelled our trip to the outer banks and hoping to return to the Riveria Maya in October. I became friends with my photographer in Cancun and she is going to keep in touch about deals down there. I think we all need to keep in touch about awesome deals. I saw a guy from Travel Magazine on Rachel Ray and he said the best deals are found 3 months before you leave......its more expensive when you plan a year to 6 months away.............How about that??? So if anyone finds any kick ass deals to anywhere in the Carribean please post!!! WE CAN STILL DO THIS GIRLS..............YEARLY!! MAYBE 2X A YEAR.....!! WE WERE CAREFREE THERE, WE ALL NEED MORE OF THAT IN OUR LIVES...... Anybody wanna open a Snorkle Shop with me??...LOL.........JK (i wish)

Cecilia is the BOMB.she can multi task like nothing i have ever seen She did everything i requested and more..... You see that woman run all over the resort making sure things are perfect I never meet Valeria or had any relations with her... Wish I could help.......out with the Valeria situation, its unfortunate because Cecilia is Just that GOOD.....

Anybody wanting to go back already?? O M G...i cant stop thinking about going back... I research it all the time.............. Anybody else feel like that??

June, We just got married May 5. First you are gonna love it some advice.....at the time i was there the Hacienda was blocked by a man who said no trespassing,,,so I needed a $20 bill to get in, plz carry some cash with you to the Hacienda....(but we went there often cuz its awesome, it just so happened that man was there on my wedding day, but no worries Cash will you get you everything in Mexico) Second, do not worry about the guests waiting for you to get back, my guest waited also, its what happens at a wedding..Right?? I think they can entertain themselves for awhile!! Its your wedding remember, I am sure they wont mind at all!! third, i think the music is a waste, in my opinion, it will be hard to hear it on the beach and Cecilia keeps you under a Palap under the bride is ready to walk anyway....just some advice from someone who has done it. Hair at 3pm.............they did my hair fantastic, but it only took them 45 min and I have alot of hair, so consider sitting around for almost 2 hours with you hair done.........??

Elle, Originally i was going to do 11am but switched to to 3pm 11am will be just as great as any other day especially if that day is special to you. I would suggest NOT the gazebo, it is busy in that area during the daytime hours, there will swimmers behind you and the swim up bar in right behind you too....so I suggest NOT doing the Gazebo, did it ON THE BEACH.. Then after the wedding do a luncheon...... How many ppl are you expecting?? that will determine if 11am will work or not for you..... How formal do you want your reception?? Nemmerz, May 5, 2011

We are having a backyard mexican fiesta type reception......july9th. but i am so stuck on ideas to make my backyard look festive and not cheap! Im really stuck on decor!! i want a tropical look to it........without being cheesy but cheap........ is that possible?? I am doing paper flowers.........and thats all the further i got LOL......... were have a bonfire (not doing the slideshow , too much time involved in that for me) Oriental trading has some stuff,but too cheap looking i think?? www.orientaltrading.com/rainbow-balloon-lanterns-a2-3_473.fltr?prodCatId=388626&tabId=1

Hey girls Thanks for the compliments, i really worked hard, I also continue to work hard, I no longer do 6 days a week now...i do 4 days now to maintain. You have to be driven, i just dug deep and counted every calorie, but also allowed myself one high calorie day about every 10 days or so, which seemed to have worked, Julian Michaels told me that...LOL...so I did endulge a little, you cant be miserable or it will never work......and of course my BODYBugg was my best friend too... i used MYFITNESS Pal app on my droid to count my calories, I really had to account for everything......i ate 5-6 times a day too......yogurt, whole grains breads and pasta, so i didnt give up bread, lots of fruit, lots of chicken and turkey, turkey burgers and used fillers like lettuce tomato, no sugar pickles and mustard, all those condiments are so low cal...cucumbers......i didnt do alot of salads cuz for me they didnt have enough nutritional value, you gotta eat good food that feeds your body. Jus a personal thing for me.... girls, just dont be miserable about your food selection, you gotta eat things you like, there are so many variations out there, you can find stuff that is low cal enough....... And if you are gonna work out,make it count!! work HARD!! Sweat!! Be a lil sore, a little uncomfortable!! You want to know my biggest problem right now??? My wedding is OVER!! YUK, I wanna go back, really I do, Mexico was Paradise and real life isnt as fun....where's my concierge, where my room service, where's Carlos with my Flamigo drink??.........Oh crap, I gotta do all that myself now??

Hey girls, I AM BACK.... I got married May 5th and was in Paradise what a beautiful resort, It was the best week of my life !! My weight loss was very sucessful, lost almost 20 pounds.... This forum was so helpful, I just did it the old fashion way, I counted my calories and had help from my BodyBugg that told me my caloric burn everyday and it worked........i also worked out 6 days a week for 2 hours a day...........It dont come easy girls.....stick with it and it does WORK, but you gotta do the work with NO gimmicks... Here I am at about 118 pounds or so... Best day of my life REMEMBER LADIES YOU CAN DO THIS!! HARD WORK AND DEDICATION AND A SWEAR YOU CANT GO WRONG!!

More pictures from my May 5, 2011 wedding... Spa Pedicure room Lobby fountain hacienda down the beach sunrise from my view in hotel room sunrise at Infinity pool View from our room If there are other pics you want to see, just let me know.... You will be in paradise

Secrets Maroma Riviera Maya, Mexico Review We were married on May 5, 2011 This hotel was amazing ,best resort I have ever stayed in. Adult only resort…. If you look at the hotel brochure, it is exactly what you will get, they pics are exactly how it looks, it is completely accurate, I have pictures to prove it. We stayed in the preferred club, we were treated like royalty. We had a nonstop flight from Pittsburgh to Cancun a 3.5 hour flight, then a van ride to the hotel about 25 min, we went through Apple Vacation in a private brand new van directly to our hotel with NO stops. You are in a gated resort, you must have clearance to be on that resort, huge doors (like Jurasic Park we said) to let you onto the resort. We always felt safe. The staff is there for your every need!! We were approached by men with cool towels and drinks and also a golf cart to take us to our private check in since we were Preferred club……..the club is great and private and very elegant, we were checked into our rooms immediately , even early since we arrived around 11:30am and our rooms were ready…. Your bags are taken and are in your room before you arrive…….NICE!! We stayed in building no. 26 on the top floor the 4th floor, awesome rooms, modern, flat screen tv, plush bed and bedding and pillows, slippers and robes…couldn’t ask for more. Super clean, super super clean. No noise, I never knew anyone was next to us at all. We always, always had HOT water!! Never was an issue, we even did the Jacuzzi one night, you just have to let it run for about 40 min. (you are in mexico people…LOL) There were no corporate parties when I was there May 5, 2011. No party animals at all. Our concierge was Carlos. (we love you Carlos) if you need anything you ask your concierge and he/she will handle everything!! They are located on the bottom floor of every building. Our view was perfect…we had ocean view and only a 3 min walk to pool and beach. There really isn’t a bad room in this resort, its not a huge resort so everything is very reasonable walking the restaurants are near the lobby!! Either way you can walk anywhere within 6 minutes….. The beach is clean, the staff cleans all seaweed every morning, there are no rocks in the ocean, baby smooth bottom ocean floor, super blue clear ocean…no rocks at all….super white sands, best beach in Mexico……so my photographer tells me…..nice cool sand, the sand never gets HOT… Cecilia the WC is very professional and sweet, she may take awhile to answer your emails, but once you see her in action you can see why. That poor woman runs morning to night to make sure your wedding is perfect, so give her some time because she is helping other brides at the resort to be perfect. She is worth the wait. We did the symbolic ceremony, we got married here at home by a JP. It was just easier. We were married on the beach… NOT the gazebo. It was very private. The sand ceremony was included which was a shocker, so that was included in the package. the judge spoke perfect English and was a lovely lady. We did NOT have a religious ceremony. My flowers were included in the package as well as the wedding cake and champagne, we did the 3 milk layer Mexican cake, best cake I have ever had……perfect!! The flowers were perfect and delivered on time. We brought our own blue TULLE for the chairs and the staff wrapped the chairs (covered chairs no extra charge) for us, no extra charge!! My gown was picked up promptly to be steamed and delivered early morning day of wedding. Again No charge. We were given the complimentary groom suite for the night, free of charge. My hair was done in the salon…..PERFECT! I gave her a picture and she matched it perfectly, we also got a couples massage and the spa is very elegant. I only paid like $65 for my hair updo, I have long hair so I thought it was reasonable and I loved it too. I did my own nails and makeup, that’s my preference. Cecilia the wedding coordinator picked me up in my room 20 min before to make sure I was OK. There is a private path you walk along the side of the hotel, so private, no one sees you coming at all!! I walked because I was only 3 minutes from the beach anyway.. The Beach ceremony was very private, they cleared the area well, although there are onlookers, but that cant be helped, personally I never notice them, you are so caught up in the moment. Reception I only had 6 people with us, being it was CINCO de Mayo in Mexico and there was a fiesta that evening, we got front table outside for the elegant outdoors buffet and show that evening, it was fabulous, we also had our cake outside. I was a NO Frill bride, kept it super simple……. I did not have Music. I had no first dance. I did not have a reception. No videographer. No welcome party (although I saw some that they kicked butt, very well done). No wedding party (But I saw two weddings with all the Frills and boy were they fantastic…) Photographer AKI Demi, I hired outside the resort. I paid $100 to have her for the day onto the resort, she was fabulous, I had her for 3 hours we did pics after our 3:00 ceremony then went to the abandoned hacienda down the beach……ALL BRIDES MUST GO HERE FOR PICS. MY BEST ADVICE TO YOU. Then we did TTD right there in front of the hacienda (its far enough away from hotel and nothing else around you) and we went back to the room showered and meet everyone for dinner, it was perfect. It was Cinco De Mayo in Mexico, it was awesome. Pool/Beach Service There is service at the pools and beach until 4-5pm or so, they come around all the time with whatever you want from drinks to food……..it was great. There are Oceanside beds and a bar on the beach with swings…there is a swim up bar you could sit at and another bar too and also the swing bar on the beach, if you didn’t want to wait for a server (which never took long) you could walk up to any of the bars. Pool water was perfect, not too cold not too warm, it was lovely. Ocean was about 80degrees, perfect. FOOD There are 7 restaurants, we never had a problem getting to dinner, but we ate early everyday……6:30, they don’t open until 6pm. The Himitushi was my fav restaurant!! Food was really good…no complaints… Breakfast every morning in the World Café is excellent, it’s a buffet and anything you want is there…….there are stations to make fresh eggs, crepes, waffles and bunch of stuff…there is something for everyone. We got fresh coffee delivered to our room every morning (included) they would come within 10 minutes I would make the call to room service before I really opened my eyes. POOL and BEACH Chairs Guest are very polite here, maybe because its more of an upscale place, people don’t hog chairs, the staff wont let you, you cant park your towel there all day and never come back, they give you about half hour and if you don’t come back you lose your chair, which is only far, on the beach they don’t do that , but around the pool you cant hog a chair and go sit on the beach too..which again is fair… THERE ARE NO WRIST BANDS WORN HERE EITHER……… **We had no bug problems, no flies or mosquito, maybe we were just lucky….weather was perfect… We had NO ant problems! Excursion We went on an excursion, an all day snorkel tour, through Amstar at the hotel, the tour was amazing but the van ride is rough an hour there and 1.5 hours back, I don’t know if I would take that tour again due to the travel time. But the snorkel was great… Tipping We tipped a lot because they work soooooooo hard, but it didn’t matter if you didn’t tip you got the same awesome service no matter what!! Pool/Beach Towels You get as many as you want, as often as you want, they are huge brown towels…. There are always clean ones out for the taking!! Bar Drinks This resort has more top shelf liquor, I thought the drinks were awesome, some bartenders poured heavy some didn’t, just like any place you would go at home too!! The did have Corona and coke products. Fridge in room Fridge is always stocked daily with Coke and beer and water and liquor!! If there is something you don’t want they will bring it lickety split!! Drinking Water I used bottle water to brush my teeth……….but this resort had a water filtration system and we drank the water they served all week long at dinner………..no one ever got sick. Just don’t drink directly out of the faucet!! Common sense stuff. Frozen drinks are NOT an issue,…….Drink and enjoy! Salads were not and issue, eat them!! No one got sick for us all week long and we eat everything…. Only Con There is not a buffet available 24 hours……..but there is room service 24 hours. The pool closes about 5pm, service stops and the pool bars all shut down…..you are certainly welcome to stay at the pool as long as you like, but all service stops. There is no nightlife at the pool…no one swims at night in the pool. Not a big deal to me, I got enough during the day, but thought I would mention it. We will return next year for our anniversary nights!! Cant wait, I will always return to this resort, I don’t think it gets any better…… .No worries…you made the right choice. Enjoy! Any questions, just ask me… Picture from my room on my balcony Bedroom

Hey Sara Those on my feet are called barefoot jewelry or barefoot sandals. They still look brand new, the held up awesome!! I bought them on ebay sooooooooo long ago so not sure exactly where. I was going to list them on this forum for sale, i bought them for $30 plus shipping, i was gonna sell for $20 incl shipping.......some can get as high as $60. Let me know if you are interested before i post them... BTW, you will just love your wedding,...........i miss it....

Gotta love the hacienda............its an amazing place What day did you get married?? We did on May 5.... I think i told you to go with Octavia didnt I? Its one I recommended........??

I hired outside the resort and got so much more for my money...... $500 for 3 hours, 65 touched and printed pics delivered back to me two days later at the resort with a DVD of 350 pics for me to print out at home....... AKI Demi in Cancun Just something to look into, I know Juan was expensive for how little time he spent with you. I did alot of research for photographers on this site...... Just my lil input..... Here is an awesome example.... Make sure to mention this abadoned hacienda a 5min walk down the beach, i got so many fabulous pics at this site........... opps sorry about the duplicate... Aki Demi also included the Trash the Dress in that price too.....something to consider.... This picture I took, it is the front on the hotel at Sunset........ Again, family took this pic at the ol hacienda down the beach....its old and charming there..you must go for a walk there.. Pic of the infinity pool and ocean I took at sunrise.....You wont ever want to leave this place... Pool beds are awesome......and very clean too..this again was early, everyone still sleeping. Again, my personal pic at sunrise at the pool....Should be a postcard!! Back to the photographer, just do some research, you will find there are some good deals out there, you just have to dig a little if you dont look into my photographer Aki Demi Photograpy.

Can you please tell me where you ordered these from?? I would love to duplicate it.... Luv them