Lovesnick

I honestly can't remember what exactly the officiant said...we had a non religious ceremony and he definitely complied with that. Unfortunately he had a bit of a stronger accent than I am used to, so I really had to focus to hear and understand him. He did a nice job though. We gave a copy of our vows to Jacki, who gave them to him for us to repeat. I am glad that my husband and I looked them over quite a few times before the ceremony, so we could remember pretty much what we had to say. Your nerves definitely get to you! Personally, I was glad to have scripted vows, due to nerves mostly.

It was $18 per person to extend for the first hour, you could do a second hour for $15 per person. We had our ipad. We organized everything into playlists so it would be easy to jump to different songs for the first dance, cake cutting, etc. Ipads don't have the ability to crossfade songs, which kind of sucked, so if you want to do that, I would bring your laptop or a device that can do this. Everyone was dancing without a dj, I suppose it depends on your crowd. I found the oldies were the biggest hits, something everyone can appreciate. The thing that is nice about doing the music yourself is you can choose exactly what songs you play. The Bubba Kegs are definitely cheaper from shopbubba.com than if you bought them in the stores. The resort has nice large glasses though, so mugs aren't a must if you want to save costs. If you can do it, I would recommend trying to buy snacks when you are down there. I would be concerned that they would get crushed on the way. And everyone liked all the funny names that they had for the snacks. It was really cheap, you could take a quick cab ride to the Chedraui and get a big flat of chips and large packs of cookies and candy.

I am happy to help! We booked El Patio way in advance, mostly because we wanted it so much. There was another wedding on our wedding day, so it could have been possible they booked the restaurant before us, and we didn't want to take that chance. There are only 2 weddings a day, at 3pm and at 5pm. It seems like a lot of people choose a wedding on the beach. We had a buffet, the Mexican one. It was absolutely spectacular. There were a lot of choices for people, and I knew everyone would find something they liked. We also took out the chicken mole and added the coconut fish from the Carribbean buffet menu, it was pretty much the star of the dinner. I had read a lot of other people said sit down dinner takes awhile, and buffet was pretty quick. I brought down photo frames (large ones, 8x 10) that had the table numbers and photos of my husband and I from each year corresponding to the table number. I brought down tealights and glass candle holders from Ikea as well. Pretty much it, with the exception of the cake topper, guest book. The candles near the front of the restaurant (where the windows are near the ocean) blew out, but the others stayed lit. Honestly though, the ambiance in the restaurant was so nice, I don't think candles would be necessary at all. Jacki took the flowers from the gazebo and split them to the cake table, guest book table, and head table. So we bought little centerpieces for each table, a tall round vase with water and a lily in it. $30 each, kind of steep. They charge so much for everything, if you have something in mind you would really like, I would bring it. I honestly don't think you need much in that restaurant at all, something personal for you and your fiance maybe. The place sells itself. If I could give one piece of advice, pay the extra money to have an extra two hours in the restaurant. We paid for one extra hour and wished we had way more. It seemed like less when we were dancing around and drinking, but I would highly recommend paying for longer, even if you have to cut from somewhere else. We went to the sports club after which was fun, but everyone really enjoyed dancing in the restaurant and having it to ourselves. It is not cheap to do this, but without a doubt the one thing I wish I did. It was an incredible night though, whatever you do will turn out great! I saw you are doing welcome bags, we did too. The towels aren't necessary, they have big beautiful ones that you can take as you please, and leave on your chair when you are done. We got Bubba kegs shipped to the resort, which was great. The glasses they give at the resort are large nice plastic glasses so travel mugs aren't a necessity, but if you want to go that way, Bubba kegs were great. We also added hand sanitizer, spf lip balm. Also, when we got there, we went to the grocery store (Chedraui, quite near the entrance to Puerto Aventuras) and bought big boxes of small bags of chips and cookies. People loved to have those snacks when they arrived, esp since the chips from the gift shop were $10 for a small bag!!! Let me know if you have any more questions, I am happy to help, You will have a great time!

Dinner at El Patio was nice, I saw a wedding at Oceana, the seafood restaurant, that looked beautiful. It was a big more elegant than El Patio so you can choose what you would like best. There were many receptions on the beach, but it was quite breezy. I wondered if their food was full of sand and got cold quickly. Also, I don't think it was very private on the beach, anyone could watch the entire reception if they walked past. However, it looked beautiful, and everyone looked like they had a blast! The resort is gorgeous.

I just got back from my wedding at the Dreams Puerto Aventuras and it was amazing! I would be happy to try and answer any questions you have. We had our ceremony on the gazebo and our reception in El Patio, despite it not being air conditioned, it was very comfortable. There are windows all around the restaurant that can be opened for a bit of a cross breeze, it was perfect. We were much hotter in the Desires sports bar after, I would highly recommend El Patio. It was gorgeous.

Thanks for all of the ideas ladies! Ashley your stuff looks super cute, seems like blue is a popular destination color scheme! All the stuff you picked out looks great, you will have to let us all know how it turned out! Did Jacki tell you all what types of tables there are? ie how do you know sizes, etc of things to get?

Are many of you bringing extra supplies for table settings and what not? I am not really picky of having matchy colors, will they include things like table runners, napkins, etc. or do we have to supply our own?

Are many of you bringing extra supplies for table settings and what not? I am not really picky of having matchy colors, will they include things like table runners, napkins, etc. or do we have to supply our own?

Hey ladies. I have yet to order my travel mugs for my OOT bags, and was wondering if there was anyone who would like to share shipping or make up a minimum order count? I want plain non customized mugs, have a few in mind from www.discountmugs.com, and www.promopays.ca. Thought we might as well try to save together! PM me if you have some suggestions/thoughts!

Hi all! I am looking to make an order for plain (non customized) travel mugs to Calgary, and am looking for someone who would like to order and share shipping costs, or to make up the minimum order number. www.discountmugs.com (ships to Canada for approx $53) www.promopay.ca (minimum orders usually over 100) PM me if you are interested and we can work out the details! If anyone has any other suggestions on where to order, I am open!

KristieT I am using Crowfoot AMA and they have been great so far. Quick to respond, and really great service. I agree with everyone's comments about Air Canada, with the little experience I have. For a few weeks, apparently they were considering cancelling direct flights to Cancun...it didn't end up happening, thank goodness! But my travel agent was prepared to switch everyone's flights over, and do all of the work. Lots of stress off my back. I was initially working with Romantic Planet vacations but felt they were extremely slow to respond and provide information. So much so that I started booking with AMA, and got a random email 1.5 months later from Romantic Planet saying they hadn't heard from me.....AMA is much more personal!!

RNtoBe Thanks for sharing this! I am wanting to buy a second hand cheap dress for my trash the dress photos, and I am thinking the selection will probably be pretty sparse at second hand stores. I will definitely check this place out!

Thanks!!!

Ashley You leave so soon! That is very exciting!!! I was thinking of doing booze only as well for the bonfire, since it will be at 8pm, people will have just finished dinner (a meal that is included in their package!), so why pay to serve them food an hour later that they probably won't want to eat? Jacki quoted me $20 per person, but I am getting married next April so I am assuming prices increase for 2013...? As for a bar to meet, I can't think of any that I have been to personally, but I work with a girl who went to this place called El Alux. It is in a cenote/cave and she said it was super cool. It's definitely a unique experience, I am thinking I might check it out when I am in Playa del Carmen!!! http://www.aluxrestaurant.com/en/restaurant-cavern-in-playa-del-carmen.html

I am looking into having a beach bonfire, does anyone have any photos?