elsa s

Originally Posted by kerrimaxwell 

 

Sooo... I have been posting for the last probably 2 months that we could not get in touch with anyone about our July 21st wedding since the departure of Evangelina. Even our travel agent contacted her resort rep who contacted other people at the resort and still nothing. Then, at 3 months to the day we got an email of a wedding packet (most of which we already had) and it assigned us our planner Georgina. 

   Great I thought! Finally! Well.. no such luck. Our confirmation has the time off and also a charge for the Seaside Grill which is not on our original confirmation, So I sent Georgina an email... nothing. My fiance emailed her... nothing. We both have emailed the DJ... nothing. I emailed the spa... nothing. We are 10 weeks out and we have nothing, literally nothing, but the trip booked and times and locations (which are not 100% right).

 I quickly realized that the packet email we got was received 3 months to the very date of our wedding and it is probably something automatically generated. We started emailing beginning of April and have heard nothing ever again. In fact I have not hear anything since we left our deposit. 

   I am now going to begin calling and I am so out of mind angry at this resort it is not even funny. I haven't even gotten there yet and I don't think I could recommend this place to anyone due to the horrible horrible horrible planning. I am a second time bride. Honestly, I am not obsessed or emailing them over paper lanterns or cake flowers... I know that stuff can be worked out there. But my reception time being wrong..? Charges I didnt know about? A DJ that is not answering? Hair/Makeup appts I cant get made? I have truly had it. It is ruining this whole experience for me.

I had the same problem with seaside but i printed all my emails and gave it to Lorena and refused to pay anything additional since I booked it over a year ago and she didn't charge me but they are now charging everyone for seaside girll... just show her your emails 

Originally Posted by AnaSteele58 

 

 

Great review! Can't wait to see pictures.

 

Were you nervous while carrying all that cash?!? Your reasoning is actually something to consider

 

No we just split it between us... and i kept it in an envelope close to me... my credit card was gonna charge me a service fee of $600 or more just to pay and i was scared the hotel may over charge me and i didn't want to deal with any confusions... it worked out perfect! 

HI everyone here is a short review,,,, first let me say that everyone should really try their best to enjoy their wedding week as it flies by so quick...

 

Arrival- as soon as we arrived we were greeted and all of our luggage was taken for us to the preferred club and we checked in right away and upgraded our room... it was quick and easy!! all of our guests were also greeted with champagne and water at the front and assisted with check in... we received a letter from Lorena right when we checked in to go meet in her office at 6:30 pm... 

 

Meeting with Lorena- it was only an hour... she had everything documented on our file... we just reviewed everything and our DJ came by to confirm our songs and we gave Lorena the ceremony songs on a CD... we confirmed all the flower dinner and centerpieces and decorations then she gave us a receipt for it and we payed at the front lobby...we decided to pay everything cash to avoid credit card charges and confusions.

 

Day before the wedding- I didn't reserve for a rehearsal dinner as i had 50 guests but we all planned to meet in the lobby and there is a live band that plays... we basically requested songs socialized and had a few beverages and danced in the lobby.it worked out perfect ... we took a lot of pictures and before this every group did their own dinner... 

 

 Wedding day- They gave my husband his own room the night before so I woke up and got ready for the spa... there were 6 of us getting our hair done,,, when we arrived they said they wanted to charge everyone an extra $20 because our hair was damp... I have curly hair therefore its not easy to dry it myself unless I style it... my hair and makeup was done by 1300... I asked Lorena to give me the presidential suite for pics therefore me and my bridesmaids met there to get ready together... we ordered a bottle of champagne and some fruits... Lorena came to check up on me... my photographer Elina who was amazing and Edurado from Mike Cantarell films both showed up at 1430... my ceremony started at 330pm at the Gazebo and my flowers also arrived to my room...

 

Ceremony- it was a beautiful day... walked down and my songs were all perfect... everything went smooth,... everyone met on the beach for a group photo then they went to the beach bar where the mariachi band came to play for our guests while we took more photos with our bridal party... I did leave my hair down therefore it was a bit messy by this point due to the wind and sun... I went back to the spa and did my hair again and decided to put it up for night... then Elina took photos of us all around the hotel.

 

Reception- My reception was at seaside grill... it was my favorite location... I saw many weddings but the setup at seaside was the best in my opinion.... Lorena changed the chairs for us and I had taken some candles and other decorations which they arranged... it looked amazing... the food was the Caribbean buffet and all of our guests loved it... they screwed up on my cake... I wanted the seashell cake but they gave me ones with flowers which i never asked for... but it was fine. our Dj was George and he was amazing... he did everything very well and it was a blast... whatever we requested he had and all of our guests were dancing all night...

 

Overall the resort was amazing... the service was great... The only down point was they broke some of my decorations after the reception when they were cleaning... Also two days after my wedding there was a rain storm which was horrible and i felt bad for the bride that day... her centerpieces were flying in the ocean... so i got lucky with weather.....The restaurants are great... I loved eating at Oceana during the day and and the french and Italian were my two favorites... I definitely recommend them. The room service is very slow at nights... we ordered once but fell asleep because they took so long... 

 

I haven't received any of my photos yet... the overall experience was great and It was the best week of my life! 

I just got back from my wedding at Dreams Riviera!!! its so beautiful there .... i cant believe how fast it went by... i will post a review shortly... 

What do you mean shaky?  Mine isn't shaky.  Mine is the second link.  The first link was the other bride from my day. He also has Cancun Wedding Video and Mike Cantarell Films.  The latter is wedding cinematography while the first is just videography.  I am not sure what you mean.

. Hi Lindsey ! I was watching it without sound but urs looks more stable a s better camera and the other link seems a bit different and shaky ! I think it may be the different camera men ! So you had the cinema style ? HowmAny camera men did you have ? I hope my style is like yours also

does anyone know how much the lights under table are???

Originally Posted by EmilyT 

 

Just an idea for future brides... i cannot stress how happy i am to have had the saxaphone player. now that i watched my video and can actually appreciate him, it was really awesome. he played as the guests were being seated and during the walks down the aisle and after and i think it was one of the nicest touches of my wedding. when he started playing "here comes the bride" i remember getting chills that day and when i watched the video i got chills again lol i do not think it would have been as awesome if it were just playing on an ipod. i also think it gave such a nice ambience as the guest were arriving. just my opinion for those who are interested!

Hi Emily...

 

Do you know if the hotel will allow you to substitute the mariachi band with the saxephone player?? im pretty sure they dont but just double checking lol I wish they would 

Originally Posted by LindseyM 

 

Emily, here is hers with just one videographer:

 

 

and here is ours:  

 

I wonder if he used a different type of camera on hers, it looks different.  I know she booked him very last minute when she found out I had.  We communicated on Facebook and she asked for help so I am wondering if it'a an availability thing.  

 

Why is the wedding highlight so shaky? I have hired him for 8 hour film package but the none of the viedeos on his website look like that... now I'm worried 

Originally Posted by loripanori 

 

Whoops, only one uploaded... That's the preview image I have from Santiago. I'm gonna try to attach two more photos my guests took.

 

 

wow that looks beautiful....howmuch did they charge you for the gazebo decoration like that??? i love ittttt 

Originally Posted by EmilyT 

 

Hey girls, sorry I never came back to write a review ( was married at DRC on march 1st and loved everything about it ), but I am an RN who works 5 days a week and a FULL TIME student and mom on top of it so whenever I get a chance to be on the computer I am typing something for school! I will write a review soon though I promise!!!

 

ANyway I just received my wedding video from Mike Cantarell and I would say i am about 85% happy lol I am very picky.. some of the sound quality was a little poor ( just for a few minutes during the reception ) and my cocktail hour was him basically filming the mariachi trio which was not what i pictured.. i thoiught it would be more of my guests mingling and the cocktail hour was beautiful ( on desires terrace ) and i dont think he really captured that aspect at all. it was like a mariachi concert lol i thought maybe he would get my guests to speak and so forth but that part was just dissapointing. also he didnt use most of the songs i sent him ( he asked for about 7 songs ) and used like maybe 4 total. I would still recommend that company however ( my video man was Eduardo )

 

I did not receive a highlight video from them that I thought I would receive. I know girls on here had posted their videos and I wanted to post mine but he never sent me anything except the final copy via mail. Does anyone know why this might be? does it come later on? Also I wish I would have paid for one extra hour because I had 5 hours of coverage and it did not get my cake cutting ;(

 

Overall though I think my wedding was amazing- I loved the pool deck and my beach ceremony. I think it is the perfect location. My gurests are still talking about. Also the resorts DJ played great music ( we sent a list ) and i dont see any reason to use an outside DJ. The food was excellent was well.

 

Here is my slideshow for anyone who didnt see it.. photographer was Santiago

http://010313guiffredo.dreamsriveriacancun.adventurephotos.com.mx/

Hi Emily....

your pics are amazing!!!! this just got me more excited... I have santiago as well for my wedding... and i hired mike cantarell... did you send him your songs for your video in advance? 

also... how was your hair and makeup? I'm so nervous for this part... and did u pay a fee for mike  to the hotel? and howmuch did u tip mike?... sorry im just trying to figure it all out 

Originally Posted by Vika Yakovleva 

 

Oh wow you are cutting it very close. You will only have the day before for the actual wedding planning with the coordinator. But I'm sure everything will still be perfect, from all the great reviews, these coordinators are pros!

quote name="elsa s" url="/t/47576/dreams-riviera-cancun-brides-post-here-new-thread/11070#post_1895810"]My wedding is on April 30th and i leave on the 28th... I find it ridiculous how expensive the DJ is and if they charge an additions 15% over the 11% tax plus 300 an hour.... that's just a rip off but i guess we have no choice....

i know I really am... I'm so nervous but from the beginning they advised that it wont be a problem... and my travel agent emailed them to get my wedding schedule with everything confirmed on there... most people say they meet with wedding planner once and everything goes into place so hopefully that will happen for mine too!... fingers crossed 

Originally Posted by Savs1027 

 

Every price that is listed does not include any tax or service charge. 

The $3000 for the unlimited package is not subject to the service charge though, just the tax. The only things that get the service charge are things like food, champagne, cake, (where you need a server). 

 

Also keep in mind if you're paying with a CC most companies charge an international fee. 

thank you so much! 

Originally Posted by Vika Yakovleva 

 

Elsa,

 

Unfortunatly the package does not include the tax or the service charge on it, as for the DJ, i am pretty sure that it doews not include tax eaither. When is your wedding? I leave in less then a week and get married in 10 days!

My wedding is on April 30th and i leave on the 28th... I find it ridiculous how expensive the DJ is and if they charge an additions 15% over the 11% tax plus 300 an hour.... that's just a rip off but i guess we have no choice....

does anyone know if the 2999 for ultimate pkg is going to have an additions 15% service charge and 11% tax on it??? and does 300 per hour for dj and add photo packages have these additional charges on it? I'm trying to calculate the charges in total....

HI ladies....

I leave in 11 days... im so nervous about forgetting things !!! I really hope they have everything ready at the resort... any advice or tips? were going to pay the wedding charges on a credit card... I'm hoping they don't make a mistake or anything on the charges... 

Originally Posted by ashley822 

 

 

We paid $1146.00 extra for the Seaside Grill. They quoted us this before we even gave a total number of guests so I'm still not completely sure where this came from haha. My understanding was to close a restaurant is it the $35/pp + the 15% auto grat/pp + 11% fee/pp. Then I thought there was maybe a minimum number of people they charged for (such as 30 guests) but I am really not sure where the number came from. It ALMOST worked out for our 25 guest number but since we had our hearts set on that location after seeing pictures and not being thrilled with the other options, we didn't have too many other extras so we just said fine and agreed to book it  

They never told me about any additional charge for seaside grill... they did give me a rate to shut down el patio and this other restaurant but seaside grill was no extra charge... hopefully they dont change that on us! i think its because seaside grill closes at 6pm ? 

Originally Posted by ashley822 

 

 

We paid $1146.00 extra for the Seaside Grill. They quoted us this before we even gave a total number of guests so I'm still not completely sure where this came from haha. My understanding was to close a restaurant is it the $35/pp + the 15% auto grat/pp + 11% fee/pp. Then I thought there was maybe a minimum number of people they charged for (such as 30 guests) but I am really not sure where the number came from. It ALMOST worked out for our 25 guest number but since we had our hearts set on that location after seeing pictures and not being thrilled with the other options, we didn't have too many other extras so we just said fine and agreed to book it  

They never told me about any additional charge for seaside grill... they did give me a rate to shut down el patio and this other restaurant but seaside grill was no extra charge... hopefully they dont change that on us! i think its because seaside grill closes at 6pm ? 

I have 50 ppl in total and im booked for seaside grill... hoping this wont be an issue 

Originally Posted by elsa s 

 

yes I am using a DJ for ceremony... should I just contact him ? I guess they will charge another $300 for the ceremony for him to be the tech... but seems like the easiest way to go 

oops i mean I'm using a dj for reception 

Originally Posted by Savs1027 

 

are you using the DJ for your reception? 

If so - he can be your "tech" for the ceremony as well. You just tell him your music before you leave and he'll have it ready for you. 

 

If not - the sound system fee comes with a "tech" You can bring your music on a CD or iPod and then give him instructions on when to change it. 

 

I would have 3-5 songs for before the ceremony, bridal party song, bride song, sand ceremony song, recessional. 

yes I am using a DJ for ceremony... should I just contact him ? I guess they will charge another $300 for the ceremony for him to be the tech... but seems like the easiest way to go 

Hi brides... 

my wedding is 20 days away.... I need some major help please... does anyone have any idea how they arranged their ceremony music? I'm not sure if i should put it on a cd or ipod and take it and how will I know how long it should be played for since my entrance song will be different then bridal party and etc... will Lorena control the music or will I have to hire a DJ??? any feedback ladies? I'm so confused about this 

Hi everyone...what photo package did you guys use?? im confused about these prices... is this is for photos after you have selected ones for your package?? and lets say if you selected $1400 package and when you see the photos you want to upgrade to the $2100 photo package... do they allow that???

Originally Posted by tiffany0613 

 

Glad everything worked out!  You mentioned that Lorena went out of town, does anyone know if she is back or if anyone is checking her emails?   I have sent numerous emails lately with no response (not uncommon I know, but we leave in 2 weeks!) 

 

Does anyone have the email address for the videographer that is included with the Ultimate package?  Lorena had sent me another wedding planning form to fill out listing them as [email protected] http://www.videowedd.com/  but when I emailed them to confirm that we wanted to upgrade to HD quality and did not want additional music added over our speaking in the video I was told that their contract with Dreams ended in February???  Does anyone have a different contact?

Hi Tiffany...

Lorena is back ... I received an email from her 3 days ago and she did advise that she had a family emergency that is why she took long to reply ! 

Originally Posted by EmilyT 

 

http://010313guiffredo.dreamsriveriacancun.adventurephotos.com.mx/

Here is my slideshow .... not a fan of the cover photo with my serious face lol i actually emailed them asking him to change it lol but here it is )

Omg I love ur photos!!! you look amazing... !!! who was your photographer???

Hello past brides.... I have bought napkin holder for my wedding favors and going to get them engraved ... does the hotel provide you with the white napkin cloths on the tables??? if not I have to take my own since the holders wont work without the napkin cloths...