Andrea434

My husband and I used Derek Campbell from photos in Cancun. He took great pics, was really affordable and easy to work with. Some of my pics are on my review under The Royal-Playa del Carmen reviews.

We tipped the romance concierge (she did sooo much for us) the dj, the photographer, the wedding coordinator, and gave the head server money to share with everyone. Think that is it.

Posted my review under resort reviews for The Royal PDC. Hope it helps!

Just got back from our wedding!! AMAZING!!! Everyone had a great time and said it was the best wedding they had ever been to. Will post a review this week!

Jenn, I would NOT recommend the violinist. When we were there last May we watched a ceremony from the sidelines and they had a violinist that sounded horrible! We are going with our ipod and letting them control it Good luck with the rest of your planning

Hey Ladies! Can anyone send me an example of their wedding welcome letter? My fiance and I would love to see some of your ideas and incorperate them into ours. Thanks a ton!!

I have been working with an onsite coordinator the entire time and know they have been really strict about changing or transferring things in the packages. We were going to do the luxury wedding but when we took out all the things we really didn't need or want it ended up being the eternal romance package. So I will second that you should check to see if a smaller package would work. I am having the international buffet (2) at my wedding in three weeks....I will let you know how it goes. We have a lot of football players and picky eaters coming so this seemed like the best option.

I do know they do not sub things out on the packages. Why do you even have to tell her that though? You can hire an outside photographer and just tell the resort photographer to hang back or take a break when they get there. I can't imagine they would fight you on that on the day of.

Our coordinator told us 6-10 so we are going with 8

Hey Kate! I am two months away!! Not sure if anyone on here is before March 23. I am getting so excited, it's so hard to not think about being there all day when I look outside at the snow. So far so good though. Had a small glitch with the rehearsal dinner time but they are taking care of is so no worries. I think I have everything done though except the wedding gift bags and that will be done this weekend! Woo Hoo!!

I totally agree. I almost don't want to come on here anymore. It seemed like things were looking up this past week though. I also have had very little issues with my wedding. Of course when something comes up my coordinator has got back to me in a timely fashion and I could not be happier or more excited about the wedding. You have to remember they have to make many people happy and I feel they do all they can to make sure that happens. About El Dorado Royal, it is a beautiful resort and when we went to Mexico last May we visited and stayed at both resorts. I will tell you though why we went with the Royal and maybe it will help you make a decision. The resort is very big and spread out, not as intimate as the Royal We had contact with 2 different wedding coordinators before we went down there to meet them and when we got there the last one we had contact with had quit two days before, we felt that was an issue. The rooms in the El Dorado side are older and do not hold a candle to the Royals. The rooms on the Casitas side are amazing but they are a lot more expensive. They also all include their own pool and larger pool with bar for about 10 rooms.....if we go back we will stay in the Casitas side. The food was not as good as the Royal. Don't get me wrong El Dorado Royal is a great place and I would definitely go back there, we just liked our experience at the Royal better. Hope this helps you.

Thanks!!! I will forward that site to my fiance

Lisa, Thanks so much for that positive post on this thread!! I have been on the brink of not coming on here again because I don't want it to bring me down. I too have been discouraged with fees but when I think about what I would spend on a wedding here it seems silly. The extra cost is the business of weddings. Also, My fiance and I have never been in touch with an off-site wedding coordinator and our on-site coordinator is wonderful. It may take a couple of days to respond but she is always helpful and I know will make sure all of our weddings are wonderful.

My fiance is looking to take my father and a couple of the groomsmen golfing one day during our time there and we would like to know if anyone can recommend a good course down there to visit. I know there are a few men on this site so if you have went anywhere down there (good or bad) we would love to know about it! Thanks!

Trust me you are not the only one. My fiance and I were finalizing our package and all of these charges were coming out of no where. I was really frustrated. Thank goodness my fiance is very level headed and does not just roll over because he took care of soooo much. I think things are going to get frustrating (it is a wedding and it wouldn't be natural if it didn't but know it's all going to be great in the end. As far as Marvin he is cheaper than the Royal and most of my friends that have got married here say that my price is much less than they spent on flowers.

I would do it at the Tequileria, it is just outside of the main lobby. It is a large open area where they have some seats and tables, it was never too busy in the evenings when we were there last March. I think that is where my fiance and I are going to do something similar

Those are awesome.....just what I have been looking for! Thanks for sharing

I cannot speak to all of your questions but can help you with a few..... I have hired Derek Campbell with Photos in Cancun and am getting full day coverage for about $2000. One of my very close friends is a photographer here but will be having a baby right before our wedding. I looked at his reviews and sent her (my friend) his website and I feel very confident in my decision. I think he is really worth looking into, most other photographers were way out of that price range. Playa Weddings is also worth looking into for the video. A little high but you will be saving money if you hire Derek. My fiance and I are getting married in the gazebo for a couple reasons.....The view is still gorgeous, more privacy, I want to wear heels and I think my guests will be able to hear our wedding better. When my fiance and I visited there in May we saw a wedding set up where they had a runner going down the aisle....I will attach a pic, hopefully I am sure your coordinator will help you with this. I have never spoke with an off site coordinator and besides a couple long awaited responses I could not be more happy with our on site coordinator. I am sure she will make everything perfect for you. Our wedding will be about a month before yours so if you have any questions when you are getting close to the date please ask. I will be more than happy to help you

Looking at those beautiful pictures just made me so excited and grateful that I will soon be having my wedding there

Another question.....my fiance and I are considering doing a buffet. It requires a minimum 50 guests (which we will have) and based on the menu download it's only 10 more dollars per person. We have so many picky eaters and looking at the buffets it seems there are more choices. Has anyone done one? Which one did you choose? Was it worth the money?

Hey ladies, What's the outside vendor fee again? Thanks!!

He will get back to you.....I think he is just really busy. It took him a couple weeks to get back to me. I would tell him exactly what colors or flowers you are interested in and the quantities of each and he will send you a quote. Don't give up yet

Hey ladies! Six months left to go....how's planning going for everyone? Have all the big things done but have ALOT of things to order and little things to do. Can't wait to hear how it's going for everyone and where you are at in the process

I do not think it is too late at all. Our wedding is in March and we sent out a letter from the travel agent in July, a save the date two weeks ago and our formal invites are going out in early December. I think the way we did it has been good because we got the early birds with the letters then the travel agent got another wave of people booking when the save the dates went out. I think we will catch the procrastinators with the formal invites. Don't worry everything will be perfect, everyone does things a little differently

Hi Kelly, I would HIGHLY recommend working with a travel agent. They are no cost to you and really will save you from being the go to with questions about fares and rates. Mine has called and let people know when rates are going to go up etc. Really saved me a lot of headaches. I don't know this from personal experience but he also said that in the instance of an overbooking the people that booked through sites such as travelocity and bookit may get moved because those sites do not check occupancy rates. Again I do not know this from experience but would hate for someone to have to go through that. Good luck with everything! Andrea