sarahlynn12

Julie- I did not get a chance to check out the banquet hall although it would have been our fall back had it rained. I will say that because of the great breeze on the ocean we were very comfortable on the beach. I don't know if I can imagine doing it in one of the non-ac restaurants though because there is not wind in there! I also did the fan programs and loved them. If you are getting married in the gazebo then I would plan on having someone hand them to your guests as they come in, it was too windy to set them on the chairs. Here are what the front of mine looked like--

My review is posted! http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/products/dreams-puerto-aventuras-resort-spa-all-inclusive/reviews (third one down) Sorry I couldn't get it on this thread. Please read and let me know if you have any questions. Ashley- As for the package, we went with the ultimate. I think it was well worth the extras. We even decided not to do the live music since we paid for a DJ and they were able to give us a credit towards our package. So make sure you email Jacki if there are things in a package that you don't want or would like to add because often they will substitute. We actually put the credit we got for not having the live music towards the cost of the extra 2 hours we added on to our reception. Just an idea!

So we have been back a month and I just wrote my review, but I had to do it in the review section as they would not let me post it here, so as soon as it gets approved I will post a link to it. We got married on June 12, 2012 in the gazebo, had cocktail hour in the barracuda bar and had our reception on the beach and I wouldn't change a thing! Here are a few pictures! I'll be sure to get on here more and answer any questions! Oh, and there is a great xenote about 5 miles down the road that we "trashed the dress" the day after the wedding. (it actually cleaned it)

Hi everyone! Sorry it took me so long to get on her and write a review. It has been a month since the wedding but I still remember it like it was yesterday. The Resort Ride from the airport: was just over an hour long. We went through Apple Vacations so the host on the bus was very entertaining, the ride went by fast and we were greeted with a cold washcloth and a drink on our arrival. Overall appearance of the resort: on the smaller end, but it is what we ended up liking the best! We had 27 guests and it made it very easy for us all to meet up throughout the day. The resort was clean and the staff were very friendly and helpful. If we needed anything the conceirge was always able to help. Food: We didn't have any bad experiences. Some restaurants were better than others. Make sure you tell your guests that the men need to bring a pair of pants as it is mandatory to get into Portofino and it is well worth it! Portofino and the sushi bar were our favorites! We did not go to the buffet for dinner, but it was ok for lunch. The seaside grill also served a good lunch, but our lunch favorite were their hamburgers pool side..they were delicious! Rooms: We stayed in a preferred club suite and loved it. It was a bit more pricey but worth it for us. It was on the top floor so we never had any noise issues, the hallways were kept much cooler than the other floors, there was always some kind of treat awaiting you off the elevator (mimosas, fresh cookies). Wedding Days before: Jackie is amazing! She will take care of you and all your questions. I was nervous about them taking and steaming my dress but it was delivered to my room the day of the wedding looking amazing! Hair: I went to the salon the day before the wedding to get my hair trialed. I am glad I did this because it made the wedding day much less stressful! I loved my hair. Flowers: I had a local florist in my hometown put together silk bouquets and boutineres for our wedding party because I wanted gerbera daiseys in off white and coral calla lillies which was not something the resort could provide. I showed them to Jacki when we arrived and she then put together our flowers for the gazebo which we then took and used as decoration on our head table. They looked great! Photographer: We decided to fly our photographer down. We were able to find someone who agreed to take our pictures for only the price to fly her and her husband down for the week. It ended up being much cheaper then the Mexican photographers who only come for a few hours. Our photographer took pictures the whole day and did a trash the dress the following day. (more to come on that) Gazebo Ceremony (4:00pm): I am so glad we got married in the gazebo, it was everything I thought it would be. It was VERY windy and I am very glad I did not have a veil, so that is something to consider. I ordered my own chair sashes online and brought them with me (much cheaper!!). The ceremony was good, about 20 minutes long. Cocktail hour(5:00-6:00pm): We had cocktail hour at the Baracuda bar, it was a nice set up, our guests enjoyed it. We spent most of that time taking pictures. Dinner (6:00pm): We had dinner on the beach. It was very good. We had a U-shaped set up for our table (see picture below) and I am so grateful we did it that way. It kept it very intimate. Reception (7:30-11:00pm): We did decide to hire a DJ (DJ Mannia) and it was the most money we spent on any one thing, but it was the BEST money we spent. They were amazing. We had a light up dance floor and it was perfect. Our guests never got off the dance floor! I know the resort does offer a light up dance floor without the DJ but if you go through a DJ the floor is about half the price. I went to a wedding in Mexico last year where they did just a light up dance floor and no DJ and I will say it was fun, but having the DJ was way more fuN! and a lot less stress because they did all the work! No regrets! I know alot of people are saying they had no time for dancing after dinner and I can see how that would happen. We decided to pay to extend our time by 2 hours so we ended up with a solid 3 hours of just dancing, again, this was a little pricey but well worth it! At 11pm we left the beach and relocated to Desires Bar, although most of us were so exhausted from dancing, it was nice to have an air conditioned place to end the night! Little things: we paid for lights under our tables..I wouldn't do it if I did it again. Not worth it. You can only tell a little bit, and at sunset they definitely attracted mosquitos at sunset for about 20 minutes, so we had them turn the under the table lights off and they went away. Day after...trash the dress: We went with our photographer to a local xenote (5 minute taxi drive) and jumped in with our wedding attire on. SOO much fun! The first xenote we went to wanted to charge us an arm and a leg to go in because we were taking professional pictures (normal entry costs $6 per person, they wanted an additional $100)..so we walked about 100 yards down the road to another xenote that let us in no problem! We got some great pictures. I'm sure I will think of many more things and I will post as I do, but if anyone has any questions or concerns feel free to contact me by email. I have hundreds of pictures to choose from if you want to see any thing from the wedding or our trip! I know how stressful it can be to plan a wedding where you have never been! The Gazebo! Sand ceremony Dinner set up...dance floor is hard to see in picture but is just on the other side of tables classic jump picture walkway to the gazebo dance floor...guy in the black shirt is actually one of the DJs trash the dress at the xenotes Hope these helped! Let me know what I all missed!

Sunsetselene- I did not try finding a florist so I am little help there, but if you can not find someone to get callas in, I ended up having a florist where I live put together silk bouquets for me of callas and gerberas because the resort did not have what I wanted and they look awesome! It is just an idea if you run into a bind.

Anyone who has or is planning on having a DJ other than the one provided by the resort...is there a vendor fee? If so, what was it?

Oh, I didn't even think to ask the DJ. We actually just decided to go with the DJ so I don't know who we will use. I'm assuming whoever the resort provides. Any advice on that? Has anyone used the DJ the resort provides or have people gone to outside DJs? As for hair/makeup...if you are not using the resort, are you having someone come in or are you doing it yourself? Thanks! Sarah

Allie- When I had originally talked to Jaci, we had more than 40 people coming (so we needed a larger dance floor) and she quoted me at $1100 for the light up dance floor. I also recently emailed her about the cost since we now have less than 40 people coming and I'm hoping that will bring the cost down! But I have not yet heard from her.

Hi everyone! I am new to the thread but have had my wedding booked for a while now. We are getting married at DPA on June 12, 2012 and as I start to plan the smaller details my anxiety level has gone through the ceiling! Reading all the posts on here, I am questioning so many things I felt I was set on! Like have the reception on the beach and doing my own music instead of a DJ. Anyone that has done a beach reception, did you have lights under the tables and was this enough light at night or do they have other ways to light up the area? I am doing a light-up dance floor in the sand too so I think that will help. Does anyone have pictures from their wedding with silk flowers? I am considering this but I do not want them to look fake. My girls are wearing coral colored dresses and am nervous to do the resort flowers because it is such a hard color to match. Thanks! Sarah