LindsayOO

Here's how our coral wedding turned out...I let the bridesmaids all find their own dresses and it turned out pretty good!

Originally Posted by Mady28 

 

Does anyone have a website that I can take a look at? I'm having some difficulties putting mine together.

www.weaverandoostyen.ourwedding.com

I feel your pain!

Originally Posted by cinnagirl 

 

Thanks Lindsay! Do you have to set up the day pass prior to getting to the resort, or can it be bought on the day off?

We set it up the day before..and she still had a bit of a hard time getting in...just make sure you talk to the front desk and confirm the day off..then you should be ok!

cinnagirl - We brought our photographer from home and we didn't pay a fee for her because she stayed the whole week with us...I had a hair and makeup artist come to the hotel and it's $150 per vendor...

Originally Posted by lvendram 

 

Hey Lindsay,

 

Great pics!!  Who was your photographer and who arranged the buses? What company did you use?  We are getting married at Jellyfish but not sure who to use to transport everyone (about 60 people).

 

Did you get pics done before the ceremony or wait til it was done?  We are getting married at the resort at 3:00 and then heading over to the restaurant for the reception.  We should be at the reception by 4:30.  Do you think that's enough daylight for pics?  The wedding is in July.

 

Thanks very much!

 

Laura

 

Thanks! We brought a photographer from home...Mayte sets up the buses for you...we didn't have to do anything, just arranged the times for the buses at the pre-wedding meeting with Mayte.  I think you will have enough time to take pictures after the ceremony as long as it isn't delayed.  We did do pictures before because our ceremony was at 4..it ended up starting at 4:25 because it rained and we had to move everything to a covered terrace....I wouldn't wait till 4:30 to start taking pictures though..I would start taking some right after your ceremony..so around 3:30 im guessing? We got to Jellyfish at 5:15  and only had 45 mins to take pictures

Originally Posted by sdj327 

 

lindsay00-beautiful wedding! you looked so pretty! so your color was coral? i am doing coral as well but in the pics everything seems a lil more pink that what i was going for 

It was more pink then I was going for as well lol...but again those pics are from an Iphone with bad flash so it didn't look AS pink as it does in those pictures...when I get the professional pics back I'll post some so you can see what the real colour was...but it was on the pinky end of the coral spectrum...coral is so hard to get right because sometimes its more pink, sometimes more orange and sometimes more red...I should have clarified with her I would have preferred it to be more of an orangy-coral...but again, I honestly didn't care because with the ambient lighting and all the decor it looked so beautiful and really wasn't a big deal to me...the food was awesome, everything ran smooth and everyone partied and had an awesome time, which is all that matters.  And it really did look beautiful

Originally Posted by MissyBee 

 

Thank you so much for posting this review Lindsay! Everything looks beautiful! One quick question--- what do you mean the cigar rollers were selling cigars? Aren't the cigars they roll included in the price you pay for having them there?

 

They do give out cigars but they were selling them as well...they only give out one per person or something like that....I was under the impression since we were paying $350 for them they would roll cigars for people and that is it...they weren't pushy or anything though...

Here's a quick couple of pics my photographer sent..loved the shoe valet! So cute!

Here's a couple from an IPhone - not good quality at all and the colour looks more pink then coral in these but you get the drift...

Cigar rollers - We didn't realize they would be selling cigars as well...but it was still cool

Bartenders lined up shots all night! They were not skimpy on the alcohol!

The bus ride to and from Jellyfish was hilarious!

As soon as I organize the pics I'll post some! It will take a bit to get the photographers pictures but as soon as I do I'll be sure to share

Hello all! We just returned two days ago from our wedding in Punta Cana and it was awesome! We stayed at Dreams Palm Beach (great resort!) and had the ceremony there, followed by the reception at Jellyfish. I also posted a review on the Dreams Palm Beach Brides facebook group with a review of the resort/ceremony. You all helped me so much and I hope you find this review useful! We had 65 guests in total - 60 adults and 5 kids.

Leading up to the Wedding

I see alot of brides writing posts about they how they haven't been able to reach Mayte and are waiting for responses, etc. Honestly, you really do not need to worry about setting up every little detail ahead of time. I was pretty relaxed about planning everything with her and I'm glad I didn't waste hours of my time worrying about it before the wedding. She has EVERYTHING under control. Once I confirmed our date and the amount of people coming we picked our appetizers, menu and alcohol options and opted to add a dessert course as well. She assured me that everything could be changed once we got there if we wanted and we actually didn't pick our dessert until we were there. It took me a little while to receive a quote but I wasn't too worried about it. The pricing has gone up slightly from the 2009 brochure but not by much...a couple hundred dollars here or there. The only things I sent her ahead of time were inspiration pictures with our colours, the seating plan and a timeline of how we wanted everything to go the night of the wedding.

The Pre-Wedding Meeting

We didn't set up the date for our meeting until a week before we left, so don't worry - she will be in touch the week before to set it up! We took a cab to the restaurant and met Mayte, who is so sweet and chill and just an awesome person! She went over every detail with us and made a bunch of different drinks we could sample so we could pick the welcome drink and cocktail hour drinks. We also tasted the appetizers we had chosen and picked the dessert. The drinks we ended up choosing were a sex on the beach for the welcome cocktail (we wanted something everyone would like) and for the cocktail hour we had a guava mojito and a frozen coco loco..both were really good! The only things I brought to the meeting with me were the guest favours (personalized leather luggage tags from ETSY...everyone loved them) and some coloured straws for the cocktail hour drinks. We also confirmed the times for the buses. Honestly, DON'T stress about trying to have all these details planned ahead of time - Mayte has a list of everything and goes over it all with you at the pre-wedding meeting...including details I didn't even think of! We brought cash and paid for all the services as well, which was nice to get rid of the money lol.

The Wedding Day

We had our ceremony at 4 pm and we had arranged to have the buses waiting to take the wedding party to Jellyfish for 4:45 and they were right on time. We arrived at Jellyfish and everything was set up and perfect! It looked beautiful. I'm so happy that I let her choose all the decor because what she did was WAY better than anything I would have thought up myself. Right away the wedding party started commenting on how awesome the venue and decor was. The room was set up with a head table for 10 and 7 other tables. Mayte mixed round and square tables and it worked out very well. The ideal number is 8 per table but we had a couple with 7 or 9 and it worked out fine. We finished taking pictures and our guests arrived right on time, just after 6 pm. They had sent 2 buses to pick up all our guests, I believe each bus seats around 25 - 30 people. The servers were ready and greeting people with the welcome cocktails and we went right into cocktail hour. We chose 3 appetizers - the tempura shrimp, spinach and cheese pockets and chicken lollypops - all were good and it was the perfect amount for 65 guests. The guests were blown away by the venue. The DJ/dance floor was set up beside the bar and there was more then enough room to keep the dance floor inside. Mayte had left the dance floor lights set up outside as well, but unfortunately it rained pretty much the whole day of our wedding so we couldn't use the outdoor areas. It was my original intention to have the dance floor inside anyway because I find alot of people hang out at the bar and if we had the dance floor outside the party would have been split up..just something to think about. We also got the cigar rollers and everyone loved it! They even put labels on them that said Greg & Lindsay & our wedding date. The DJ asked everyone to take their seats at 7 pm, we did a wedding party entrance and our first dance and then dinner was served. They started with bread and platters of olive oil/balsamic vinegar to dip. We chose menu #1 and because we had some vegetarians, Mayte made it so guests had a choice of ceasar or garden salad and the chorizo platters were served family style, which was perfect! Dinner was a choice of chicken supreme with red bell peppers and white wine sauce, sea bass with shrimp and ginger/passion fruit sauce or pesto fettuccine. We changed the sides so they came with rice and grilled vegetables, at no extra cost. For dessert, we went with a brownie topped with passion fruit sauce. For the kids she made up platters with pasta, chicken fingers, etc and they brought those out early, which the parents were happy about. The food was AMAZING. I had guests coming up to me before dinner was even over saying how good the food was! The only thing I would suggest is to have them put the dressing on the garden salad before serving it. They gave olive oil/balsamic on the side but some people would have preferred a dressing already mixed. Once the dinner was over (took just over 2 hours because we had speeches in between courses) we did our father/daughter mother/son dance and then went right into dancing and partied until just after midnight. We had one bus leave at 10:30 for people with kids and our grandparents, and the other buses were ready and waiting at 12:15 am. The timing for the buses worked out perfectly! For the drinks we went with the cocktail hour pricing ($6 per person for the hour and included beer and 2 specialty drinks as well as water/soft drinks), dinner drinks ($8 per person for beer, wine and soft drinks during the entire 2 hour dinner), and we paid for 2 hours of open international bar after that ($15 per person per hour) which was well worth it. The shots were flowing, everyone was drinking and having a great time and the bartenders would make pretty much whatever anyone wanted...it was great! I didn't actually see the final invoice because my husband and his dad dealt with it but I was told what the final amount was and it was less than I thought! The 2 hours of international bar would have only taken us to approx 11:15 pm and we had told Mayte at the meeting that we would decide at that point if we wanted to pay for another hour of open bar or just run a tab for the rest of the night depending on how much people were still drinking...well..let's just say that our guests were having a VERY good time and there were tons of shots and drinks flowing right till midnight - it was never brought up and the last 45 minutes of drinking was not added to the bill. That is how amazing Jellyfish is - they just want you to have a great time!

DJ

One of the best moves we made was using the Jellyfish DJ and MC. They were amazing, honestly no need to pay extra for DJ Mannia. One of the groomsmen commented that he wished he could have the soundtrack to the dance party because the music was so good and others commented that the MC was the best they had ever seen at a wedding..and he didn't even know us!! DO NOT be worried about them at all!! Right when we got to Jellyfish the MC came over and went over everything with us and throughout the night he kept checking in with us and would verify everything before he did it. We had made a dinner music playlist which they gladly played, although the cocktail hour music they were playing was really good so we didn't even really need to make our own dinner music. They were playing chill, beachy, funky background music..it was perfect! We had given them a list of who was doing speeches and when and he called up the people at exactly the right times. He also announced the cigar rollers, the game to get the bride and groom to kiss, and played our first dance and father/mother dances perfectly. We did give him our IPOD which had those songs on it because they weren't popular songs. They had lights and sirens and it was such a great party!! I have never seen so many people on a dance floor at a wedding, for the entire night! There were people dancing who I've NEVER seen dance before and having the bar right next to the dance floor was perfect because it made it seem like one big party.

Mayte

Simply amazing. She is so sweet and makes everything run smoothly. We brought the cake from the resort because it was included and we forgot our cake topper at the hotel..no problem! She made one up with flowers and starfish, etc and it looked so cute! One of our nephews was feeling a little sick and she sent someone to the pharmacy to get him medication and he was better within an hour. One of my bridesmaids had her 8 month old there who is still breastfeeding and Mayte let her use her office whenever she wanted to feed/change the baby. She really cares about people.

Cost

I know alot of brides don't like to talk about money but I was a little worried there would be unexpected expenses and it was hard to figure out exactly how much it was going to be, since things kept changing, so I'm going to post some of the costs in hopes it will help some of you!

Services (has to be paid in cash)

DJ & MC - $650

Cigar Rollers - $350

Bus Transportation - $455 ($7 per person)

Decorations - $850

Food and Alcohol

Appetizers for 65 people - $396

Drinks - as mentioned above

Menu 1 - $35 per person (I don't believe we were charged extra for adding dessert)

Taxes are 16% which gets added to the bill and you can tip at your discretion. We tipped Mayte, the servers/bartenders, bus driver, DJ and MC and the cigar rollers.

I will post pictures as soon as I get them from our photographer but it might take a month or two!

Having our wedding at Jellyfish was the BEST decision we made and we had a blast. You will not be disappointed and the only thing I regret about our wedding is not doing the whole thing at Jellyfish! I was trying to think of something, anything that went wrong but honestly nothing did! If you have any questions feel free to ask away! Good Luck!

Here's how my ladies ended up looking...fabulous! I love the different shades and styles, and best part is they will all wear their dresses again.

Ladies!

Just got back yesterday from our Punta Cana wedding.  Amazing.  Honestly.  You all are worrying way too much.  Mayte is so sweet and genuinely cares about us...she will always try to get you the best price and the best option for you.  We actually changed a few things once we got down there that added more food and made it cheaper for us...I got married at the resort (Dreams Palm Beach) and my only regret is I wish I would have just done the whole thing at Jellyfish.  It was awesome and I was afraid when we got the final bill it would be a couple thousand more then we expected but it wasn't..it was cheaper!  I'm going to do a full review shortly, I just need to get settled.  We had 65 guests so I'll be able to help out some of the ladies who had questions about having 60-70 guests.  I really didn't plan that much or bring much with me and believe me, you don't need to.  I'm glad I didn't waste hours planning things because even some of the things I did plan, Mayte had a better suggestion for.  That being said, I was VERY organized with seating plans, guest favours, timeline for the night, etc, etc.  So as long as you have the main things organized that's all you need.  I did not bring ONE decoration down with me - you don't need to, honestly...her decor is amazing and better then anything I would have thought of!!

Ladies...I wouldn't worry at all about the lack of communication...I am getting married on Wednesday and I just set up the date to meet with her this past week...I know it's hard to not have everything planned with her down to a tee and waiting for repsonses can make you stressed out but honestly, we all know she is amazing and she gives you exactly what you want! She is so busy with the brides who are there that it's hard for her to email us all back all the time, well this is what she said to me anyway lol...her only day off this week is Sunday and she's using it to meet with me to go over our wedding! Even though she might not respond she has saved all your emails and she confirmed this with me...I can't wait to get down there (we leave for the airport 3:00 am Sunday) and I will do a huge review and post pics when I'm back!

Originally Posted by bride2104 

 

We are getting married the next year and we wanted to do our ceremony and reception at Kukua Beach Club or Jellyfish Restaurant, someone have the prices or additional information of these wedings venues?

Check out the thread on this website for Jellyfish....TONS of info on there!!!

It's about 20 minutes away at the most...we are staying at Dreams PB and doing our reception at Jellyfish in 3 weeks!! ahhhh!!!

Originally Posted by mimiq 

 

Yes!  and they were more beautiful than I could have hoped for!!

 

And *****'s blog is ready with a few of my pics!  http://www.*****novablog.com/jellyfish-wedding-photographer-marissa-matt/comment-page-1/#comment-39727.  I hope you ladies enjoy!!

Love your pics Marissa!!!! Beautiful!! We leave in 3 1/2 weeks..getting excited now

Sorry Mimi I know you are getting bombarded with questions...I'm just curious if you had your dance floor inside or outside? I have the exact same amount of adults coming and am a little worried there won't be much room for dancing inside...

Thank you so much MimiQ!! That was an awesome review!! I hired Krystie Ann as well so it's so good to hear that you were happy with her Two questions for you if you don't mind...

1 - Did you pay extra to change the Caesar salad to the caprese salad and the fries to the vegetables?

2 - We have the EXACT same amount of adults coming...did you keep your dance floor inside and did you find there was enough room? Did you have to move tables out of the way if you did?

thanks so much!!

Originally Posted by elizabethrodriguez314 

 

http://vimeo.com/26107036

 

THIS IS MY VIDEO FROM JOCHY FERSOBE =)

I loved your video Elizabeth! I see he's from Santo Domingo...do you mind sharing what the cost was?

Originally Posted by Shimabride 

 

Yay that's awesome!  We're bringing a photographer from home with us (a good friend of my sister's - lucked out on that one).  Not sure about guests yet, I'm thinking probably 30 ish.  Still throwing some colour ideas around, but probably white, taupe and some corral accents - that's my favourite at the moment.  How about your details?

 

 

 

 

Shimabride does your sister in law work at Doolins Pub in Vancouver? My sister works there and she was talking to her about the resort...it's a long shot but thought it might be you!

Originally Posted by lmadore 

 

see my review in the review section.  We had an amazing wedding and amazing vacation.  I wouldnt have had it anywhere else.  Weather was excellent, my god is it hot down there, even into the night.  We switched last minute and got a DJ, Im very happy we did.  It was worth it.  

Thanks for the review!!!! This whole time I've been writing in the Dreams Palm Beach 2013 Brides thread which isn't very happening lol..I'm glad I found this thread!  41 days to go..eek!!

Originally Posted by CFK2013 

 

Thank you for the insight! I think I'll be keeping my rings on JUST IN CASE!

Oh and I forgot to mention I wore my engagement ring out everywhere when I was there in June...we even went to an offsite club that was pretty sketchy and noone batted an eye...it's totally safe to wear your ring

For you girls staying at the Majestic Elegance..DO NOT WORRY!! My fiances sister got married there 3 years ago and we loved the resort...the grounds are beautiful, the rooms are awesome and the food is decent (it's never really that good in the Dominican lol...hit or miss but nothing to complain about..you will not go hungry)..I've stayed at 4 resorts in the Dominican and did a trip with some travel agents in June and got to see 10 other resorts..the Majestics are still my favourite...we didn't book there because of the price coming from Canada and also they only had 11 am time slots left to get married at...umm no lol...you guys will have a great time!

That being said..the resort is VERY safe however, while we were there 2 peoples safes were broken into and 1 girls engagement ring was stolen...she never got it back....I wouldn't leave your rings in the safe...wear them the ENTIRE time you are there..I know the chances that this happens is probably very rare but you never know...we did leave money in our safe and it was fine but we only left a couple hundred..kept a couple hundred on us and hid a couple hundred in our suitcases..not to scare you but better safe than sorry

Originally Posted by ellie0717 

 

Hey ladies wondering if any of you could post your wedding day timeline. We are staying at Dreams Palm Beach and our ceremony begins at 4:30 at the Jellyfish.  I'm trying to figure out when to schedule our hair appts for the day of. We are not doing a first look but I'd like to get some pictures down at the pool/ beach with the bridesmaids and myself before we get ready and still have plenty of time to relax and do our makeup and take pictures back in the room, so if any of you have ideas of time frames I'd greatly appreciate any and all help in the matter. Thanks!!!

Ellie I just realized we are probably going to run into each other! Our wedding day is January 16th and having the reception at Jellyfish (Ceremony at the gazebo at Dreams at 4 pm) staying at Dreams Palm Beach January 13-20...I have a Canadian makeup artist/hair stylist who lives in Punta Cana for the winter coming to the resort to do hair & makeup and she suggested to be ready by 2:00 pm at the latest (so for a 4:30 ceremony 2:30 pm...that way you have lots of time to take pictures and not be stressed getting there in a rush...plus things always get a bit behind...she is coming to the resort EARLY...around 8-8:30 am..but she is doing hair & makeup for 5 ppl and just hair for 2...so she is going to do the moms first...then my sister & sister in law..then me...then the other 2 bridesmaids hair....hope that helps!

Our timeline is different because we are doing a first look and taking pics together before the ceremony but we are planning to be ready by 1:30...take pics with my mom/dad and bridesmaids..then she will take pics with the groom & groomsmen...then we will do our first look around 2:30  and have 1 hr to take some pictures and be ready for the ceremony for 3:30-3:45....ceremony at 4...ceremony finishes by 4:30 (we are having pastor York so he takes a bit longer) then take a couple group shots...wedding party will get on the bus to Jellyfish at 5...get to Jellyfish at 5:20ish and have another hour to take pictures around Jellyfish (sun sets around 6:30 pm)...bus is picking up the rest of the guests at 5:30ish and they will get to Jellyfish around 6...cocktail hour from 6-7 then dinner & party till midnight!

Originally Posted by peaches1149 

 

Do you know if u get married in the states by the JP if they could make it the same day of your ceremony in pc? I hate the thought of having two dates

Not sure about the states but in Canada they can't make it the same date...it has to be the date the Justice of the Peace signs it...but noone ever has to know that We are using our Punta Cana date as our wedding anniversary date and thats when we will celebrate every year!