sillygirl702

BRAND NEW Twigs & Honey Floral Head Piece in its original box.  I bought this for myself but have since changed my mind & decided to go with a veil.  I paid $130 and am asking for $100, includes shipping.  Thank you for looking

Ladies,

For those of you who used spa services, did you do a mani/pedi the day of?  I arrive 2 days prior to the big day & was debating whether or not to have that done before leaving or not.  Do they do a good job at the spa?  & what was the cost?

Would one of you ladies mind posting the photo of the new canopy so we can all see?

Wow!  Thank you so much for sharing.  You look so pretty with your hair done & veil on... I'm so glad that you feel more at ease with all of your decisions.  We will also being a site visit in July for our November wedding.  That is so great how well they took care of you even though it was just a visit.  My mind is blank right now so I can't think of anything to ask!  I'm looking forward to your responses to the other ladies here... I am sure they will have plenty of questions.  Thanks again & Congrats!  I am getting excited for all of us SMB brides & our upcoming weddings... so exciting

Originally Posted by kristinalilly 

 

Hi sillygirl702,

I'm kind of in the same boat as you are. We're planning on between 10 and 15 guests and I'm starting to feel like $2100 for the base package we booked is too much. I mean if the cocktail hour on the beach only costs ~$11/head that's really worthwhile.

 

Do you know if you can still have a private reception by the pool without booking the package. If we're only going to have 10-15 people it may work out to be cheaper. This whole thought came about because we wanted to upgrade our food package (specifically to get caprese salad), but to pay for the whole package and then extra on top...? we wanted to have a small wedding in Mexico to keep it on the cheap side.

 

Maybe I'll sit down later and properly work out the comparison. Especially now that I know the hair & makeup prices! Thanks again KCDawn!

 

 

 

 

Yes you can do a private reception even if you don't do a package.  For the silver menu its $45/per person plus taxes, which is the menu that comes with the Secrets of Love package.  If you already know how many guests you will be having, then yes sit down & figure out the math.  It may be cheaper to add on everything vs doing a package.  Good luck & let us know what you come up with.

Originally Posted by kristinalilly 

 

Now that the holiday hangover is over I'm starting to dive into the wedding planning a little more.

We've booked the Secrets of Love package and I'm wondering if that was the best decision...

I mean the extras that you get (that I care about) over the complimentary package are:

 

- Hair and makeup (which I've heard mixed reviews about)

- Cocktail hour

- Reception dinner

- Photo package

 

Has anyone priced out or heard of anyone trying to use the basic package and pay upgrade fees for the cocktail hour, private dinner, and photography package (I could do my hair/makeup myself if need be)?

 

We can cancel the package we booked before the end of the month to get our deposit back so I just wanted to make sure I had really sussed it all out.

 

Thanks for any advice you ladies can offer.

 

 

I guess it would depend on how many guests you will be having.

It is a bit early for my final guest count but we are not expecting more than 20.  Right now, we only have 10 confirmed.  With 10, we are going to stick with the complimentary package.  I have inquired about adding on a beach cocktail hour & I was quoted $10/per person plus taxes.  I know if you have less than 15 guests, you can reserve a table at one of the restaurants at no extra charge. 

If we go over the 15 & have less than 20, then we are probably going to upgrade to the Secrets of Love package & trade out the hair/makeup & photo package (we are using outside vendors for both) for a Caribbean band to play during the cocktail hour. 

At the moment, the only extras we are paying for is the speaker system during the ceremony (we will be using an ipod for both ceremony & reception if we go with a private one) & for the outside vendors we are using.  I say if you've already put down the $500 deposit, you may want to consider leaving it so it can go towards your balance if you do add on extras &/or spa services.

Have a great time! & yes please keep us all posted on the outside florist situation.  You should find out if they will charge you an additional vendor fee for that, or if the florists could just drop off the flowers.  Also, find out if they will charge you a set up fee.

We are still in the early stages & I asked about bringing in our own decor - really just some colorful flags that you see at Mexican celebrations known as 'papel picado' (kind of like those banners you see at fairs) - they are fairly inexpensive but when I asked if we could bring that in, Cecilia said it would be an $80 set up fee!  sheesh - so we won't be bringing that unfortunately.  So now I am looking to dress up the day with flowers. 

I will also be doing a site visit in July so keep that in mind ladies if you need any additional questions answered. 

You are right BrideRN... i am so going back & forth on this...  

On that note, I emailed Cecilia about 80% of guests required to stay at the resort & below is what she said:

I read somewhere that 80% of the guests must be guests of the resort.  What if the majority of our guests stay somewhere else?- Would it not be allowed or would we be charged an extra fee?  In case of not all guest stays at the resort then you will be in charge of pay their day passes

Hi there!  Newbie here... been browsing this great site for awhile & have finally signed up.  My fiance & I will be getting married at Secrets Maroma Beach in Nov 2012 & are both super excited.  Congrats to all the fellow brides to be out there!  Looking forward to being part of this wonderful community

So if 80% of your guests don't stay at the resort, is it not allowed?  or do you have to pay an extra fee?  

As far as day passes, this is what we are doing...

We are sending out 16 invites (+1 guest each so it would be 32 people)... We figure about about 8 may rsvp (+1 guest each so 16 people) but of the 8 we think 4 may stay at the resort (+1 guest each so 8 people) &  4 other couples may stay in Playa Del Carmen.  We are going to pay the day for the 4 invited people not staying at the resort, but we are asking the guests to take care of their fee.  I can't bring myself to pay $100 for my brothers girlfriend of the moment or my BFFs guy of the moment, but I'm all for paying for my brother & my BFF.  Does that seem rude? 

Newbie here - 1st post!  I will also be getting married at SMB later this year.  So excited!  We are doing the free wedding package & are debating whether we want to do it just us or actually invite a handful of guests... on 1 hand its pricey but on the other, its our wedding!  Decisions, decisions... Congrats to all the brides out there!