NettyD

Quote:

Originally Posted by MissJali 
 

See for my dates it's a 3 night minimum which comes out cheaper to just pay the $1k lol smh this is crazy

Oh. Yep. I see that now. I thought I could be slick and just pay for one night like a regular hotel. Hmmm... back to the drawing board....

Quote:

Originally Posted by MissJali 
 

 

But when would you book the room? Here in the states or out there?

Ideally I would book it here via the BBPD website. I need the names of the photographer(s) assigned to our wedding to book it. I might have to pay for 2 nights (the night before and the night of the wedding) because check in is around 3-4pm and the wedding is at 5. This would make sure that they are considered "guests" in plenty of time and is still cheaper than the vendor fee. Am I crazy? Do you think that would work? 

Not sure if this would work...but...if booking HDC (provided that the whole photographers staying as guests thing has been resolved) couldn't we just book a room for them and avoid the outside vendor fee? I mean BBPD couldn't have blacklisted the HDC photographers from staying at their hotel right??! 

MissJali- you were so right! HDC sent me their packages and they are wayyy better. More coverage and more pictures for much less. I was told by Arnaud at HDC that if we had to pay the vendor fee they would add one extra free hour to our package. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by SoonMrsD 
 

 

 

Send me your email and I can give you their rates, well what I have for HDC but the thing is that BBPD won't let you use them unless you pay the fee of $1000 for them being an outside vendor - 

Thank you! It's [email protected]. If we pay for a room for HDC would they still be considered an outside vendor? I would like to have more coverage and more pictures than what TP is offering but without the crazy pricing that TP charges.

Hi Ladies

I read a bit of buzz on here about HDC photography. I may have missed it but does anyone have their rates? Thank you!

Originally Posted by MissJali 

 

if that's the case, that makes it soooo much easier for me!!! how many times can I email Susana so her ass can respond?

They're pretty slow at responding. I found Arise to be way better than Marlene was but I emailed Arise a week ago and still no response. I hope you get the same answer- that they are included. Let me know!

Originally Posted by MissJali 

 

i[uote name=NettyD" url="/t/65076/barcelo-bavaro-palace-deluxe/1740#post_1940377]MissJali-

 

I did book the tangerine package... maybe that's the difference? I don't know. They're so confusing. I know that going into my site visit I didn't think that they were included. When Arise said they were (and the mirrors) I asked like 3 times to make sure. I figured a bride left them there and they upgraded their basic centerpieces. She also didn't seem to think there was a charge for any Bavaro Beach guests not staying at the Palace (unless it goes over your 35 people- then there's that charge).

 

PS. My comma button is broken! Sorry for the lack of punctuation! 

 Just the bowls and the flat mirrors underneath. I believe they are empty because I vaguely remember her mentioning that I could send my bridesmaids to put sand in it or something. 

Originally Posted by MissJali 

 

That's it! I need to make a call to the resort. The fishbowls are included??!? Susana didn't freaking tell me that. and im getting annoyed that her ass isn't answering my emails!! UGH sorry I had a moment.  What package did you book? B/c it really should be included in the tangerine package since it is the most expensive one smh. 

MissJali-

I did book the tangerine package... maybe that's the difference? I don't know. They're so confusing. I know that going into my site visit I didn't think that they were included. When Arise said they were (and the mirrors) I asked like 3 times to make sure. I figured a bride left them there and they upgraded their basic centerpieces. She also didn't seem to think there was a charge for any Bavaro Beach guests not staying at the Palace (unless it goes over your 35 people- then there's that charge).

PS. My comma button is broken! Sorry for the lack of punctuation! 

Originally Posted by MissJali 

 

I'm just doing fishbowls with sand, shells, white mini pillar candle and an orchid in it. I gave the idea to another bride here and it turned out wonderful. The resort charges $75 per table and it's not nearly as nice lol

MissJali-

Sorry if you've already answered this but Arise told me that the fishbowls were included- so are you planning on just bringing the extra stuff? I think there's been some different answers coming from Bodas regarding what is actually included in the centerpieces. Arise said the flat mirrors are included also. I hope that's all true because those Christmas wreath things were terrible! lol

Hi Solo!

I just realized you had a link and looked at all of your pictures. Beautiful!!!

I hope you don't mind me asking but could you send me more info on your photographer? I'm interested to know if it is less expensive the way that you did it rather than using tropical pictures. I'd also like to see more of their work. They seem like a great couple to work with!

Hi Nat-

Coming from Miami is going to be super easy for you! I want to make a recommendation though on the travel site. Try CheapCaribbean.com. They are super fair on their prices and they offer a split deposit plan. I used them for our site visit and everything went very smooth. They usually start their early summer sales in November/ December but right now the prices are really good for areas outside of Florida. I have looked up packages with them for my family in NY and Cali and can't believe how low it is right now. I have seen Florida rates cheaper- but that was in November/ December. The only negative thing I will mention is that the service they use for the airport transfers (optional) is also an excursion company so they are a little pushy on excursions. They kind of veil the excursion sales pitch by saying you have to meet them in order to arrange the return transfer. They aren't rude or anything but they did call our room a couple of times to remind us to come visit them. We did, filled out what we needed to for the return and made it very clear we weren't interested in excursions. The office is located in the downstairs part of the lobby area so it wasn't too big of a deal. 

I didn't realize the opinion everyone would have on hair! I just tried dresses for the first time on Monday and I was completely outvoted in having my hair down! lol. But I agree... we don't want to regret anything in our pictures! MissJali- I do not have an "up-do" face either!!

Originally Posted by soloparatijc 

 

@Miss Jali: I purchased the boxes for the Jordan almonds at Michael's, I wanted clear boxes so that I could incorporate more of my accent color (yellow). I actually bought the Jordan almonds online at Staples.com (I bought a 5 pound bag for $30), they have them in all different types of solid colors, I was surprised that everywhere I went to in person had a mix of pastel colors and nothing in just one color unless you dye it with food coloring, which I wasn't going to risk doing.

 

@SoonMrsD: Glad I could help!

 

@NettyD: It took about a month because I had my grandmother drive to San Juan in PR for my birth certificate apostille and I also had my now husbands' (love the way that sounds!) mother drive to Manhattan to get the apostilles to save time as I did everything only two months before the wedding.

Thanks Solo!  A month isn't too bad. And we were both born in the US so hopefully that makes it easier too. Phew...that's a little less scary! 

Originally Posted by NatJ 

 

Probably June 25th. I haven't submitted my reservation form as of yet because I am between the strawberry package and the tangerine package. I was also thinking about sending in the reservation after I purchased my plane tickets. Do you think I should send in the reservation form before confirming my vacation details?

 

Hi NatJ-

We might run into each other! I'm June 18th and I'll be there the 15th-21st. I would send in the reservation form prior to booking your vacation but the resort has a good bit of availability. I believe my WC (Arise) said they do about 3 weddings a day. Who are you using to book travel? We went with the tangerine because Bar Higuey isn't included in the Strawberry (would have been an extra $500) and we wanted the international bar. 

Originally Posted by soloparatijc 

 

Hello Ladies!!

I got back from our wedding like 2 weeks ago now but I'm moving at the same time so I haven't had time to write a review until now. We got to the resort on July 25th and we were upgraded from the Junior Suite Deluxe to the Ocean Front Junior Suite Deluxe which was beautiful! I could just stare at the view all day. As soon as we got there we made reservations for the first couple of days but they informed me that the reservations are by room so we couldn't make reservations with the guests that hadn't arrived at the resort. I had two guests that couldn't book rooms because the resort was overbooked and they decided to attend the wedding last minute so I greeted them at the lobby to see what could be done for them, which I was so worried for nothing because I just added them to another family members room with an extra pass which was only $77 per night/per person. I would have to say that the only thing that really ticked me off about the resort is the fact that even though we were spending thousands of dollars at this resort, guests who are staying at the Barcelo Bavaro Palace Deluxe cannot order food or drinks in the Adults only side, this simply did not make sense to me as I had guests staying in both sides and even though the Adults only side is cheaper to stay in, they were able to eat in our side and order drinks without any problems. I met with Susana the day before the wedding and she went over all the details of our wedding with us, she really simplified the process for us at this point. She had 3 weddings on the same day as ours so she only popped in and out on our wedding day and had Hildebranda coordinate the day for us. Since I did the legal ceremony I did not have the actual time of the wedding until the week before which ended up being at 5pm, I booked the spa for the bridesmaids the day we got there and they ended up calling a hairdresser in on her day off to accommodate my wedding party which I really appreciated. We had our rehearsal dinner for 19 people at the Kyoto and the food and show was great! My spa appointment was booked for 1pm and I was still in the Spa at 4:30pm, I was freaking out the entire time as Susana warned me if I was not there by 5pm the judge would have to leave as there is only one judge in the entire Punta Cana area legalizing weddings. I ended up arriving to the room right on time to meet up with the bridesmaids who were waiting on me. The wedding location we chose was right in front of our Ocean Front Suite (Bldg 1) which was so convenient as I was able to catch a glimpse of the beautiful wedding location and all the guests gathering and also this is the area of the hotel on the beach where there are the least amount of guests . Hildebranda had me walk out of La Brisa restaurant which ended up working out very convenient. I really wanted to have the tiffany chairs but didn't want to spend the $12 a chair, honestly all the decorations were so beautiful that the tiffany chairs were the last thing I thought about. I had a seashell curtain attached to the huppa for $175 and it gave the ceremony a really nice touch. I walked down the aisle and there was not a dry eye on my 48 person guests. The trio played as I walked down the aisle. The ceremony lasted for about 20 minutes, we also included our own vows that we each wrote during our trip. We had a one hour photography session with our photographers that we brought with us as guests from Miami and we paid for their flights and hotel accommodations as we loved their work on our engagement shoot. Our reception was from 7-10pm, we had the Full MC with DJ and honestly this was worth the $1300 we paid as they were amazing and kept the flow of the night very organized and we didnt have to worry about a thing. The cold fires also gave the first dance an unforgettable touch. The centerpieces that we chose were the large vases with the orchids inside for $50 and they were simple and elegant, gave the room a very elegant feel. The cake was amazing (vanilla with pineapple filling) and so was the food (curry marinated chicken breast and tomato salad, pesto marinated broiled chicken, and chocolate fondant) everybody loved the food ! We kept the party going at Disco Bavaro but went to our room first to change to find Champagne and fruit and rose petals in the jacuzzi. We had room service bring us breakfast in the morning and had our couples massage a couple of days later (this was one of the highlights to our trip). We had dinner at the French Restaurant one night which ended up being $20 a person but the food was simply amazing! All in all the trip was unforgettable, to have so many people you love so close for a couple of days in paradise is worth every penny. We got everything we wanted and more!!

 

 

For the bride who was asking about the paperwork needed for the legal wedding (Lalala i think)...it's a little complicated but I just wanted to walk down the aisle and have everything not just feel real, but actually get married for real in front of everyone we love. Anyway, the first thing you need to do is check the process for an apostille for the state you were born ( I was born in PR and my husband was born in NY, my process was easier than his) and send the fee for the apostille along with your original birth certificate (NY requires a letter of exemplification to be ordered with a long form birth certificate which then needs to be sent to the county clerk for certification before they will apostille the birth certificate). Then they require a single status affidavit (WeDo Dominican Republic has a format that can be copied/pasted) to be notarized and apostilled by the department of state that you reside in. This paperwork along with copies of your passports and checks for the fees are then sent to WeDo Dominican Republic (they are located in Texas) and they legalize and translate all the documents for you. You then take the originals with you and the wedding coordinator will give them to the judge there.

 

 

My photographer added me to his blog, the link is below so you can view the photos of this very special day  thank you all for being so helpful throughout this journey, I hope this review helps you as much as you all helped me. Feel free to ask me any questions you may have.

 

 

http://kristyandvic.com/blog/2013/08/12/maribel-jeffrey-destination-wedding-punta-cana-dominican-republic/

Great review!!! Thank you! You looked beautiful! I didn't realize the paperwork side was so complicated! How long did it take you to complete?

NatJ- When in June are you getting married?! Who is your WC?  

Originally Posted by nykat57 

 

Hi ladies!

I just returned from my ceremony at BBPD. My husband and I were renewing our vows (10th Anniversary)! Everything was beautiful and absolutely perfect.  I had the Strawberry Package and 35 guests.  My ceremony and reception were both on the beach.  Our WC was Susana and she did an amazing job!  Very knowledgable and professional.

 

We arrived on Wednesday and asked for our upgrade.  Receptionist told me that I would get it AFTER the wedding and I told her that wasn't acceptable and that I know that's not how things work.  I spoke to a second person and received my upgrade.  Afterwards, asked for Susana and had our meeting. Meeting was detailed and she offered some great suggestions....so thankful for her!  I unpacked goodies and explained my ideas to her.   I brought lanterns, shells, and candles as centerpieces. Then,we met with photographer from Tropical Pictures and completed a checklist of photo ideas that we wanted.  I know their prices are steep but the quality of their work is phenomenal!!! Malena was our photographer--- 5 stars for her! She did take extra pics and they charge $12 per picture (smaller sizes) either print or put on a CD.  Let's just say, I wanted them all but couldn't afford it.

 

Hair and makeup at the Spa. My sisters, my daughters and me got ready in the Bridal Suite.  Maritza Corporan hooked me up.  I have long, thick hair and wanted an undo. I was concerned about it staying up all night, and it did! My face was a little sunburned so we were playing with makeup and I felt flawless.  I got the natural look that I asked for....very happy bride!

 

Reception was on the beach on the "adults only" side.  The view was breath-taking.  The wait staff was super friendly.  They created a cocktail called "Blue Sky" that matched my wedding color.  It was refreshing and smooth. Our menu consisted of caprese salad, pesto marinated chicken with vegetables, and crema brulee. EVERYTHING WAS DELICIOUS AND GOOD PORTIONS!

 

The day went smoothly but it does go by quickly, so enjoy every moment ladies!

 

 

Overall, it's a great hotel.  Beautiful grounds, beach, pool, and the most complete buffet I've ever seen. However, I was a little disappointed with the unfair treatment that I noticed in the hotel.....NOT wedding office or service staff.  I will try to post some pics soon. 

 

Happy planning brides!  Relax because it will all work out on your special day. 

Girls- any tips on where to get custom "welcome" bags? I know the summer is almost over and I'm slacking!!!

Originally Posted by natalieblev 

 

NettyD

 

Honestly Im not really sure if he is allowed to do legal weddings. I never considered doing a legal ceremony there, so i just straight away asked for the symbolic when speaking with him. The thing is though, it was just as real to me as it was to my guests. I wanted prayer, words from the bible, a minister, blessings over our marriage because acknowledging God's presence was my number one. He does all of that, and when he has you sign your marriage certificate in front of everyone I dont see why anyone would question whether it was legal or not. Noone ever asked me after at all. And for me it wasnt so much important about the legal part as it was so stand in front of my friends and family and say you know I am here because of God and he will always be the number one in our lives in order to have a successful marriage and that is what Pastor York does. I would not have been satisfied had I not hired him. (I even had them read from the bible at the courthouse when we got our legal ceremony done.) There is a forum on here about him that might answer the legal question just search Rick York. Hope that helps! 

Hi Natalie!

I forgot to thank you for this post! I have been so caught up in the "legal" side of the wedding that I lost site of what, or more importantly, Who brought us together in the first place! I appreciate your words of wisdom!

Originally Posted by natalieblev 

 

 

Thank you!!!

 

Pastor York is AWESOME! He is really wonderful and Im so glad I reached out to him. Having religion in my ceremony was my #1 priority! I wanted the chapel, but if it is not catholic they wont let you use it.  He is from the Church of Christ and can do symbolics at any location of your choice.  He has you sign a certificate infront of all guests so that it feels very offical too.  He could def do the pier. His cost is 350.00, but so worth it if its important to you.

 

There was no issue at all with having him come...no fees, not even a day pass fee...Arise knew him well as she has worked at other resort wedding departments and called him by a first name basis. I had no fees whatsoever and no issues when i told susana he would be coming just an OKAY no prob!

 

I do have both his scripts. Send me your email address if that is okay with you and ill send you his scripts which also include his email. He has a traditional and a more modern, both religious. (But he is not catholic, so it would not be a catholic script). He also allows you to add in readings, take stuff out, etc whatever you want to do! Our guests brought school supplies for the new preschool his missionary is opening in August and he was so sweet accepting them! I really like him alot! 

 Natalie,

I hope this isn't a dumb  question but if Pastor York does the ceremony, is it legal as well? I already have a judge booked for the exact date and time that I wanted because I was under the impression that unless it was in the Catholic church on property, a religious ceremony would not be considered legal. Unfortunately, my fiance is previously divorced, so as much as we'd love a Catholic wedding (both raised Catholic), that can't happen. It is important to us to have religion in our wedding, so we may get married in another church we found outside our Catholic parish here at home, but we'll see. I'm torn because I want my family to witness the "official" wedding since this is my first. 

I'm going to send you a friend request on facebook! I want to see the rest of your pictures! I had been a little iffy on Tropical Pictures but am very impressed with how yours turned out!

Congratulations Natalie! You look beautiful! Did you have your hair and makeup done at the resort spa?!

Originally Posted by Reign14 

 

NettyD,

 

Thank you for sharing your site visit with us. Great info to know! Much appreciated.

 

We also decided on a beach ceremony, and reception in Bar H. But we're using the rooftop for our cocktail hour in between. Do you think it will be too disjointed to have guests go from the beach to the rooftop, then all the way to Bar H?  I love the atmosphere of the rooftop and want to do pics up there after the ceremony. But if it doesn't make sense to have the cocktail hour there then I'll have to rethink it.

Hi Reign!

I totally agree with Miss Jali- it is your day! Where will your beach ceremony be located? If it is in front of the pools, then the rooftop bar is pretty central to that. If it is more towards the adults only- then it is a little out of the way, but it's so beautiful there that I don't think anyone will mind the walk. You can definitely take pics there either way. I agree with you- the rooftop is beautiful. Of all the locations, the rooftop is my favorite. 

MissJali,

Your invite is genius!!!! 

Hi ladies!

I have not posted much on here but I want to say that I greatly appreciate the reviews and all of the help this forum has provided! I think I've read every single one of the posts!

I had my site visit/ vacation from the 14th-18th. Congratulations to the two brides who got married on the 15th!!! I watched one of the weddings in the morning on the beach, but I missed the second one! The first bride is not on this forum (yes, I asked!) but I believe the second bride is! So, congratulations!! 

My coordinator is Marlene, but she wasn't available for our first meeting on the 15th or the tasting on the 17th. So, Arise took over. The initial meeting was in the main Bodas weddings office where we sat and looked through pictures of locations, flowers, settings, colors and then had a short meeting with the photographer. My fiance and I wanted to see each location site so we hopped aboard the golf cart and got the tour. We settled on a beach ceremony. For those of you who are having a beach ceremony, let me recommend having the ceremony in front of buildings 1-3 or 4 (closer to the adults only resort) it is much quieter. The beach ceremony I saw the morning of the 15th was in front of the pools and I personally would have liked it more private- but that's me! We then decided on a cocktail hour at the garden gazebo since it's right next to Bar Higuey. And Bar Higuey deserves all its positive reviews! It's so cool!! I loved the open air feel, and even though we were there in the early afternoon (1 ish) it was still tolerable with a nice breeze. Our reception isn't until 6:30-7 so I am not worried about it being too hot. I really wasn't too hot the whole time we were there (granted, I live in Florida...but I did grow up in NY!). We also decided on the rooftop lounge for our "Welcome Cocktail". It is an extra $500 for the space (per hour!) so we are only using it for an hour. Cocktail hours are $12/pp which includes your choice of 4 appetizers. That goes for both a Welcome cocktail and a regular pre-reception cocktail hour. Please note that Cocktail hour means one type of cocktail. I am assuming you make the decision on which type you want. I am trying to convince the WC(s) to allow my guests to have more than one option.

We elected to do the food tasting ($50 pp), which allows each of you to select one dish from each course. We tried the Caprese and the Onion Soup (the soup was a dumb idea- too hot for hot soup). The Caprese won. The presentation is beautiful! We tried the fish and the steak parisienne for our main course. Didn't like either one. Please also note that the resort doesn't seem to do a good job on seafood. I tried the lobster in a couple of different restaurants and it was blah. We tried the black forest cake and the creme brulee and went with the black forest cake. My fiance also tried to convince Arise to make our wedding cake a black forest cake. I tried to convince her to make me a tower of chocolate covered strawberries instead of a cake. I think he won.

As for the resort... the grounds are impeccable. Beautifully maintained. The beach is amazing...water is clear and like bath water! White sands, tons and tons of chairs (don't worry about getting to the beach early!) and lots to do. The staff is friendly. We had champagne on ice brought to our room twice! The rooms are ok... not fantastic but certainly not bad. I would have liked the terrace jacuzzi to be a little more private, but the garden/ side ocean view was pretty.

Some bars made better drinks than others. Coral (seafood place) kinda sucks. French restaurant is awesome (included in club premium and about $20 pp without), Chez Gourmet (adult side) is awesome. Japanese place just ok... show was good We found that the adults side had a better buffet and better drinks. We think we will check out of the Palace after our wedding and move over to the adults side. We spent the last day of our trip over there and it was quieter. 

We only saw one show- a Cirque type show and it was very entertaining. We missed the MJ show by one day (so disappointed!) but if it is the same guy I saw last time I was in the DR- don't miss it because he was amazing!!

The whole time we were at the resort, all we could think of was how much fun our families and friends will have next year. I wanted a place that would fit everyone's budget and have a 5 star atmosphere while not quite being 5 star I can't say enough about the beach and the setting. 

This is a little long for the site visit review! If you have any questions, please ask and I'll do my best to answer them! 

Hi Girls!

Does anyone have any prices for a cocktail hour between the ceremony and reception? I know the welcome cocktail on the rooftop was about $1000. I think that was because of the site rental if I remember right. Is a cocktail hour before the reception included in any of the packages? Also- does anyone know what kind of alcoholic beverages are included with the reception?

Thanks!

Originally Posted by MrsShoreytobe 

 

 

EXACTLY! The less we nutty brides have to worry about the better

MrsShoreytobe

That is the funniest emoticon I've ever seen! And so fitting!!! 

Hi Candacey

 We won't be having a Catholic ceremony... but would really like it to be a legal ceremony if at all possible. I couldn't keep it a secret if we got married legally before we got there! lol The idea of having to arrive a whole 6 days before the wedding (weekend days don't count and neither does the day we arrive is what my WC/TA told me) is crazy! I have already asked Marlene and still waiting on a response...go figure. Thank you for your help!