sfox4214

I used Rashel for my wedding May 2013, and thought her work was awesome. I loved it because I didn't have to waste my time emailing looks back and forth to her - I changed my mind a million times during this process - stupid pinterest lol. I simply saved the looks I really liked on my phone, showed it to her the day of, and she went to work- and nailed the look !! With my the other ladies in my party she just knew what to do, and their makeup was flawless I would definitely recommend her !

I was married at Iberostar Rose Hall Suites last May and it was AMAZING. The nice thing about the Iberostar property is that you have a resort for every price-point in your group as there are 3 different resorts (including an adults only), all of which I got to see and all of which are stunning. We stayed at the Suites and were able to utilize all of what the Suites had to offer as well as the Beach resort - so that means their restaurants, pools, beach, bars etc. If you stayed at the Grand you would have access to everything on the complex, but we had children in our group an felt the Suites was a happy medium.

Every inch of that complex is manicured and gorgeous, and you see people working night and day to make it that way. The beach is private, and beautiful. We never had any issues getting a spot by the water regardless of what time it was. The staff is out every morning to push back the sand in the swimming area. The sea creatures tend to make their way up overnight, and the Iberostar does a good job keeping them away. The beach itself is very clean, no seaweed. The Star Friends are great, and they really do a good job getting you into the beach and pool fun !

The food was AWESOME. We got a chance to dine at both Beach and Suites restaurants and found the quality of food to be above average. The juice bar in the morning buffet was great, and I have a new found love of fresh melon juice. They also have a Jamaican BBQ twice a week with authentic Jamaican food on the beach with a steel pan band - this was our favorite dining experience (besides the wedding of course). Our wedding dinner was AMAZING, and to this day wish I could find Salmon that tasted like that .... sighhhh. Funny thing is, I don't even like Salmon ... it was that good ... lol. You can find something for everyone here though, even your friends/family that stayed at the club till 3am

Iberostar just rolled out different packages, so I can't speak much to those. But I was very jealous of the new brides when they came out ! Even if you didn't like the packages, you could do the basic package and add on. Iberostar has many different options, and work with many different vendors to make your day extra special

I would recommend this resort 1,000+ times, it was that amazing. My friends and family loved it so much my parents will be having their vow renewal next year at an Iberostar property in the Dominican. If you have any questions, please feel free to message me !!

I emailed a picture of my credit card and license and no issues !! I would make sure you ask for a confirmation and receipt when they receive it. The only time I wired money to Jamaica was for my makeup artist and moneygram stopped my transfer and made me call them to confirm that I really wanted to send it to someone I did not know.

I was married at Iberostar Rose Hall Suites 5/2013 and trust me, there is no comparison between the two. We took a bus from the airport to Iberostar when we arrived that stopped at the RIU and Hilton Rose Hall beforehand and we were so happy we chose Iberostar after seeing the other resorts. Have you considered the Iberostar Beach resort ? It's beautiful as well and has very reasonable prices !!

I would HIGHLY recommend Misha Earle. We used her for our wedding and TTD shoot last May, and she was absolutely FABULOUS. Check her out !!

www.mishaearlephotography.com

Originally Posted by jamielt 

 

 

Okay, well then, you ladies are my official sounding board!  lol  I better start asking questions... does anyone know if we can do the U shape table formation at Aunt Ruby's?  I see tons of pics... but they're always of the round tables.

I just did my dinner at aunt ruby's in May, I was told no on a U-shaped because of the random pillars that are laid out all over the restaurant. We ended up doing 2 long tables and a half moon sweetheart table. I don't know of anyone doing a u-shaped table at Aunt Ruby's, it's usually the same set up I had, or just long tables. You really don't have much room, we had 24 people total, and it fit, any more guests and I don't think It would fit without blocking people out with pillars.

Originally Posted by heather1214 

 

Dont hold your breath! I never even got the final details sheet from them. I got it from a bride on here and just sent it to them on my own.. never heard anything back.  Up until our meeting down in Jamaica I still had unanswered questions.  I got our "quote" days before we left and that was because I demanded it or they weren't getting paid!!  I had priced everything pretty accurately for myself, and there were no surprises.

 

Everything worked out fine, but it's a lot of unnecessary stress beforehand.  It's easy to say now, just get yourself organized, with a write up of how you want it to look.. (i did diagrams also!) and how you want the events to take place.  They do one wedding at a time, and by that... until it's your day they are not concerned with your wedding.  Be sure the florist and photographer (do not use theirs!!!) has everything together also and it will all fall into place.

 

If you are having a private reception, the DJ will lead the reception for the most part, so those details (timing, flow... etc) you will want to discuss with them.

Heather pretty much nailed it ... if anything make sure you have your vendors on the same page !! You want to make sure your florist has your vision, I would not recommend Tai Flora either, they are TERRIBLE with communication. I would recommend Floral Fantasies though I would highly recommend DJ Kevan for your reception. He is fantastic and took charge of the whole reception ... while the WC's were no where to be found the whole night. He even helped us get our wish lanterns off when the time came !!

I would go by the 2013 pricing for anything, and if you get 2012 it will be a nice surprise

Originally Posted by jamielt 

 

Hi All, I have been patiently awaiting…our wedding date is October 28th... when can I expect to get the final details info from Nicole/Tiffany?  Or, should I be asking them to send it to me at 3 months prior?  I've already created a word doc for them that details our 'wedding vision'.  Is this something I should send to them in advance? 

The wedding coordinators will not send you your final details until 2 months prior, and they will get you back your quote sometime before you leave. I got mine back a few weeks before we left, however I know some brides didn't get their quote back until 2 days before they left. I wouldn't go based on 2012 final details, it does not have the right info on it ... and it will only upset you when they charge you more for everything. It doesn't matter if you signed a contract in 2012 or not, they go based on their final details right now, and they pick and choose what they are going to charge you unfortunately. I received all 2012 prices, but another bride a few days after me was charged a 2012 bonfire price and a 2013 steel pan band price. I was charged 2012 DJ, but many brides around me were charged 2013 pricing. You could give them your "wedding vision" but they won't do much with it, they'll put it in a file until you have your meeting with them the day before the wedding and they'll go over what you can and cannot do. I would ask several questions about your "vision" to make sure you can do everything you want before you go ... that way there are no surprises.

Originally Posted by CGervaisToBe 

 

 

Bah, lol. Yeah I wasn't sure either. Other resorts had told us you had to pay the minister fees regardless, and Iberostar did tell me before that he could perform a symbolic ceremony, but I hadn't specified about legal at the time. We were originally going to the legal thing beforehand with my uncle, but since he's coming now anyways, I figured down there would be better.

I found an answer from the FB page !!! Another bride said she had her dad who is a minister do her ceremony, but the Jamaican minister had to pronounce them and sign the marriage certificate.

Originally Posted by sfox4214 

 

 

Wow ... it blocked out both !!!! hmmmm .... ******** is the missing word lol.

The blasphemy !!!!!! haha ... just PM me if you want to know the company ... I don't know why it keeps blocking it !!

Originally Posted by sfox4214 

 

 

Haha ! I just realized it blocked out who I ordered my real touch flowers through !! It was **************************

and if for some reason that gets blocked out again ... Sharon ******** Designs .com lol. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions

Wow ... it blocked out both !!!! hmmmm .... ******** is the missing word lol.

Originally Posted by 1stmarriage

Wow!! Can you think of anything else so worthy of mentioning? Thank you so much! Where did you buy the real touch flowers from?

Haha ! I just realized it blocked out who I ordered my real touch flowers through !! It was **************************

and if for some reason that gets blocked out again ... Sharon ******** Designs .com lol. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions

Originally Posted by meghanmiller 

 

Hi ladies! I'm new to the site -- but really starting to get into the planning of my April 12, 2014 wedding at Iberostar Rose Hall Suites

 

Question for those of you who are further into the planning process: Does the resort have different kinds of chairs for the ceremony -- or do you only have the choice of the white covered chairs? I was hoping for the pretty bamboo ones or thick white folding chairs.

 

Also --- when do you start planning the decor of your reception/dinner? Are there options of colors, etc? A book or site to choose from?

 

Any help would be greatly appreciated -Meghan

Hi Meghan,

So the resort does not have any color schemes, just the basics, if you want more and would prefer to use the resort vendor, they use a company called Tai Flora that you can get all your "Extras" from (extras being - chairs, chair sashes, chuppah flowers, chuppah fabric, centerpieces, candles, vases, table runners, extra flowers - bouts, bouquets, corsages, tents, linens, aisle décor ... etc.). Tai Flora provides the flowers included in your package and you're responsible for purchasing and/or renting the rest from outside sources. I would recommend if you want "Extras" to start working on them in the Fall, getting ahold of Tai Flora is like pulling teeth. I would have to wait months sometimes to get a response. The resort only has the white chair covers, if you want to rent the white garden chairs (folding) or the chiavari chairs (bamboo like ones) you can do that through Tai Flora. Folding chairs cost about $5-6 each and the chiavari chairs are around $8-9 each. All prices went up this year (including the resort) so that price may be off a little, but will at least give you a round about.

With that said I will tell you what I did I purchased satin chair sashes and table runners at efavormart.com for around $1.35 each for chair sashes and $2.50 per table runner (Tai Flora charges something like $5 a chair sash and $8-9 per table runner). I also purchased my chuppah fabric online at amazon.com (we used (2) 10yd x 60" bolts) for $26 with tax and shipping - Tai Flora wanted to charge me $200 for this. Keep in mind the resort does include white chuppah fabric. I got a quote for a 5" square vase with white roses for a centerpiece at Tai Flora - they wanted to charge me $105 per centerpiece. So I made my own centerpiece that consisted of a bubble vase I bought at walmart for $2, filled it with sand from the beach, put a votive in the center, a star fish and some colored glass beads - it turned out very pretty I also brought my own votives, they cost me $6.50 at walmart for 12, Tai Flora was charging $5 PER votive. I bought real touch flowers online through **************************, they were absolutely GORGEOUS. For my bouquet, 2 bridesmaids bouqets, 4 bouts, and 2 corsages it cost me $340 with tax and shipping, Tai Flora would have cost me (for upgraded flowers in the bouquets - the ones included are pretty basic) $750 and you can't take them home. I did use the registry flowers and cake flowers that are included in the package, plus Tai Flora gave me a $48 credit since I was bringing fake flowers and wouldn't be using the included bouquet and bout. We used the credit to purchases a chuppah arrangement, glad we did, the flowers were beautiful and we used the arrangement on our head table after the ceremony

Now everyone is different, and prefers different things so another option if you really want real flowers and what not ... Floral Fantasies. Chantal is AWESOME and her prices are almost 1/2 of what Tai Flora is. Chantal responds with 24hrs by email. We would have used her, but we decided to go with fake flowers, and when Tai Flora gave us the credit we just stuck with them. Anyways, there is vendor fee for any company that is not preferred by the resort (Tai Flora is the preferred vendor) however, if you have Floral Fantasies just drop off the flowers and the resort set them up, there is NO vendor fee (this was confirmed by Nicole (Wedding Coordinator) and Chantal from Floral Fantasies). Floral Fantasies also has a cheaper delivery fee as well. Floral Fantasies has a website and if you like a certain set up, ask Chantal how much and she'll quote it, and it will be set up exactly as shown. Floral Fantasies provides everything that Tai Flora does as far as extras. Also, if you use another vendor like Floral Fantasies, Tai Flora will still provide everything included in the wedding package, so keep that in mind.

Originally Posted by LanaNJohnson 

 

Hi Heather,  Thanks for the response.  That was my worry with the Huppah.  I am extremely OCD as well with this whole thing.  I have printed out pictures of how I want the ceremony site set up and just don't know how it will look at the Lazy River location.  I guess I will just have to wing it once I get down there. Did you privatize the Calabash?  We are torn between Aunt Ruby's and the Calabash (outside versus inside with AC).  What was the temperature in the evening?  Did you or your guests feel like it was too hot and muggy around 7pm to have an outside dinner?  Thanks for all the help,  as I am sure you understand how frustrating it is to plan with no responses from the WC.  I am sure they will do a great job down there but being so Type A, I want everything planned before I get there.  Thanks!

LanaNJohnson - I was married 5/29, we had a non-private dinner at Aunt Ruby's at 6:30. It wasn't bad at all, and the humidity that day was through the roof !! I was more uncomfortable at the ceremony then I was at dinner and dancing We had a private bonfire reception with open bar after dinner, used DJ Kevan and he was awesome The weather def. cools down at night, and we had a nice wind when the sun went down. Also, when I inquired about a reception at the Blue Moon Bar it did not include a DJ and there was no charge to rent the space, we would of had to pay for the DJ and open bar. The only thing that included 2 hours of DJ was the Mango Walk Disco which I would NOT RECOMMEND. It's very dark and in a basement ... not ideal to me for a reception. No vendor fee for DJ Kevan, he's their preferred vendor, and Jamaica Wedding DJ Services is Kevan's business and partners.

Originally Posted by LanaNJohnson 

 

Oh man, I have so many questions.  For anyone who booked Dj Kevan or used Jamaica Wedding Dj Services, Do you have to pay the vendor fee to get them onto the resort?  Also when you pay for a private reception at Blue Moon Bar, which supposably includes a DJ for 2 hours, does that money go towards using Jamaica Wedding DJ services or is their fee on top of the $400 for the private reception?  Thanks!

Originally Posted by kfarkas26 

 

Hi Ladies! I just returned and I wanted to warn future brides--- Please DO NOT trust DigiPix (resort photographer) with photographing your special day. We hired Misha Earle and she was fab! But the resort photographer did take pictures, when we went to view them they were TERRIBLE! we didnt even get the 12 that were included because they were THAT bad. Please please invest in an outside photographer so you have pretty pictures of your special day!

I am with kfarkas26 !!! Misha Earle is AMAZING !!! She photographed our wedding and TTD session as well ... waiting anxiously for the pics !! We didn't buy a single picture from DigiPix, not only were they ridiculously expensive, but I took better pictures with my camera ! We had considered buying a group pic they took the night of the rehearsal dinner, but I wasn't willing to spend the $15 they wanted for one 5x7 picture ! I will say however ... we did use Digipix to do our video for the ceremony, and we really loved it. If you don't want to spend $1000 + (and that's the cheap end) on a photographer, you should consider the resort videographer

Originally Posted by CGervaisToBe 

 

Just wondering - has anybody tried to bring their own Minister or Judge/Officiant to marry them? My Uncle is a judge and he's coming to the wedding so I think it'd be more special if he were able to marry us legally. I'm sure there's some certifications or something he'd have to look into, and I've inquired with the resort but haven't heard back just yet so I thought I'd check with you ladies!

I'm not really sure how that works actually ... I originally was going to say yes you could, however the minister the resort provides has all the paperwork and stuff for your marriage license and is responsible for getting everything filed. 

Originally Posted by kfarkas26 

 

Hey Ladies!

 

I have a VERY important question. I was told we could scan our notarized copies of our wedding documents and send them in an email. Has anyone done this? 

 

thanks!

If you are getting married at the Suites you CAN NOT do this. However, I believe the Beach and the Grand do allow scanned copies.

Hey Julia,

As far as catholic priests ... I think Karen is right, in order to be recognized a catholic ceremony, it must be done in a catholic church. The resort may be able to find you a catholic priest, but you may have to get married offsite. There is a bride who booked Stephen Henriques, a rabbi to do a Jewish ceremony, it is costing her $800, plus I believe you would have to pay a vendor fee on top of it. I'm not sure if the resort suggested him, or she found him herself. It might be worth finding out though.

Our wedding is May 29, (we'll be in Jamaica till June 7th) and we're having our reception June 14th. We sent our invites out the first week of March with a RSVP of May 1st. Seems kind of early, but we didn't invite anyone to our wedding besides immediate family and we wanted to get the invites out so that everyone knew we were having a AHR before the bridal shower and bachelor/bachelorette party invites arrived. Plus, we need to have our numbers to our caterer about 2 weeks in advance, and we'll be in Jamaica then ... so I figured, an RSVP of May 1st, gives about a week or two for stragglers and then I can get my final details in order before we leave for the wedding. I used Vistaprint for my invites (with an engagement picture on it btw) and we've gotten tons of compliments  

Our wedding is May 29, (we'll be in Jamaica till June 7th) and we're having our reception June 14th. We sent our invites out the first week of March with a RSVP of May 1st. Seems kind of early, but we didn't invite anyone to our wedding besides immediate family and we wanted to get the invites out so that everyone knew we were having a AHR before the bridal shower and bachelor/bachelorette party invites arrived. Plus, we need to have our numbers to our caterer about 2 weeks in advance, and we'll be in Jamaica then ... so I figured, an RSVP of May 1st, gives about a week or two for stragglers and then I can get my final details in order before we leave for the wedding. I used Vistaprint for my invites (with an engagement picture on it btw) and we've gotten tons of compliments  

Originally Posted by heather1214 

 

I find it so hard to believe that they just tell each bride whatever they want to.  I just got an email that said it's only a charge for her assistant who does hair. 

 

Are you having airbrush done Kassi?

BELIEVE IT ! lol ... Another bride got married last week and didn't pay a fee for either. They do what they want.I"m not sure if you ladies are on FB, but it's more communicated there. 

Originally Posted by Krystal084 

 

 

Thats so terrible! If anything I feel like they would prefer it to be a smaller crowd so they have less to clean up!  Anyway, what are you planning on doing?  Are you just going to rent the disco? 

Kassi pretty much has it right. And it took me a while to really understand why they do this ... but the way it was explained to me by my travel agent was that they will accommodate a guest, before a wedding party ... it's really all about repeat guests ... they want people to return. If a smaller wedding party blocks out a whole restaurant, they are possibly upsetting at least a hundred guests that wish to dine there that night. It is not worth it to the resort to upset over 100 guests by accommodating a small wedding group. They don't make their money off weddings ... and I think we tend to forget that. At least I did ... lol. Unfortunately I am unable to rent the disco because I have only 24 guests coming. Now this, I think is ridiculous as they told me I could use it if I had 25 guests, and they don't use the space for the guests during that time. But whatever ... I took my chill pill and I'm ready to just let things be I have actually decided not to do anything after dinner ... we will be doing our first dances on the beach after the ceremony, and speeches during dinner ... so I don't have to worry about getting that in. I've also been told dinner runs over (we'll be dining at Aunt Ruby's) ... so it doesn't make sense for me to spend $800+ on a DJ, bonfire and open bar, when I'm not really sure how much of that time I'll actually use. We also plan on letting off wish lanterns, and that would have taken more time away from DJ, as they shut down the beach at 10:30p. So yeah lol, I plan on doing the included semi-private dinner, there's no need for me to spend extra money on a semi-private at Aunt Ruby's as they give you your own section of the restaurant and it's pretty much private. We will then let of the wish lanterns and then going to the lobby bar until the disco opens. This is a much different vision than I originally had, but I know I'll be happy with it ... and not regret anything The resort offers a lot of different options for smaller groups (although they aren't what we're used to) ... so bear with them, they will make sure you end up getting your dances in, and any other traditions you will include in your wedding.

Hi girls!  Quick question.  I just found out from Nicole that I cannot rent Calabash for a private reception unless I have 70+ guests.  I am expecting 40 at most.  She suggested renting the disco after having my wedding dinner at Calabash. I wanted a space to enjoy dinner and then have speeches and the mother/son, father/daughter dance. I was also looking forward to a private, intimate dinner with my friends and family and now to find out that this is not possible really upsets me.  I was planning on paying the $800 to rent the space, and an additional $1,000 or so for DJ and open bar. Under 2012 rates, the disco is only $450 and that includes 2 hours of open bar and DJ... I can't understand what difference it makes if there are 40 or 70 guests.  Either way, I would be paying almost $1500 more to rent Calabash than the disco.. Anyone else have this happen to them??

Originally Posted by AliciaRichard 

 

Do you have to pay a venue fee to bring Rachel Edwards on the resort?

If you are getting married at the Suites then no, I have confirmed this with both Rashel and Nicole. However, Rashel did inform me if you get married at the Beach or the Grand, then yes there is a vendor fee ... I'm not sure why, but I'm assuming her and Nicole at the Suites have something worked out. 

2013 Brides:
01-04-2013- Justine416(Justine & Ryan)- Beach
01-07-2013 - Shauna253 - Suites
01-14-2013 - Erin - Suites
01-20-2013- Jreist - Beach
01-26-2013 - Grand
01-27-2013 - mthackeray (Adam and Marci) - Beach
01-28-2013 - erin2100 - Beach
02-20-2013 - newbiebridetobe - Suites
02-21-2013 - Cateyedcutie (Monique & Robert) – Grand
02-24-2013 - HollyandJohn - Suites
03-07-2013- mcc842002 (Meagan & Tom) - Beach
03-13-2013 - kristencanada (Kristen & Kyle) - Grand
03-23-2013 - Laura2013 (Laura & Jonathan) - Beach
03-28-2013-Kassi22 (Karen & Wayne) - Suites
04-17-2013 Vanessa and Robert - Suites
04-26-2013 cancemini (Becky & Anthony)- Beach
04-27-2013 - albellis (Andrea & David) - Beach
05-04-2013 - CourtandMatt (Courtney & Matt) - Suites
05-04-2013 - DaniScales2B (Danielle and Robert) - Grand
05-05-2013 - LauraKr - Suites
05-12-2013 - fut MrsAntenor (Tanae and Vladimir) - Suites
05-16-2013 - WendyJune (Wendy & Gordon) - Beach
05-17-2013 - katiemck22 ( Katie & Anthony) - Suites
05-18-2013 kinsellak1 (Roland and Kate)- Suites
05-23-2013 - heather1214 (Jack & Heather) - Suites
05-26-2013 - allieplask (Allie and Nick) Suites

05-29-2013 - sfox4214 (Stephanie & Phil) Suites
05- -2013- amybutz89- Suites
06-01-2013 - madison87 - Grand
06-02-2013 - Lillove81 - Suites
06-04-2013 beachbaby1192 (Andy & Debbie) - Beach
06-17-2013 - Bruuning17 (Laura & Jaden) -Suites
06-21-2013- kfarkas26 (Kristi and Jack)- Grand
06-22-2013 abbeynmike (Abbey and Mike) - Grand
07-01-2013 HeyMonBride - Suites
07-06-2013 - DanaB16 (Dana & Russell) - Suites
07-18-2013 - Julzman22 (Julie & Chris) - Suites
07-20-2013 - CokonLove (Naima & Satu) - Suites
08-13-2013- cander916 -(CharnayandCarl) - Suites
08-31-2013 - jleg04 (Jen & Tim) - Suites
09-02-2013- krystal084 (Krystal & Kurt)- Suites
09-09-2013 - Emily & Kieran (ejbunting) - Grand **I was deleted off after the last time I posted so I'm adding myself again!
09-21-2013 - (Amber & Nate) - Suites
10-12-2013-hollings04unc (Sabrina&Travis) - Grand
10-15-2013- KMidura (Kristina & Rich) - Beach

10-26-2013- onyxluxenoir (William & Keisha) -GRAND
11-08-2013- carajoe08 (Cara & Joe)- Suites
11-12-2013 Chris & Lisa - Suites

11-12-2013- cherri (Kenny & Cherri) - Beach
11-13-2013-Papoue (Pascale & Eric)- Beach

11-17-2013- ChelseaCat802- Suites 
11-18-2013- HeatherandMatt - (Heather & Matt) - Beach

12-07-2013- MrsDSO (Brandy and Joe) - Suites
12-08-2013- ShayF (Shay and Dwayne)- Suites

2014 Brides:

01-18-2014- wugambi812 (Maria and Greg)- Suites

01-19-2014- KWandCM (Krista and Chris) - Suites

01-20-2014- AliciaRichards - Suites