I just returned from my Destination Wedding/ 15 year vow renewal ceremony at the Hard Rock Hotel in Cancun that took place the 1st week in August and couldn't skip writing a review on the awesome resort and overall experience in working with this resort in planning my dream "I Still Do- Part Two" wedding ceremony. We traveled with a group of approximately 30 people, ranging in ages from 1 yrs old - 60 yrs old and although I was nervous about the mixed resort reviews on tripadvisor, the communication with the Miami Coordinator (Janessa) and on-site Cancun Coordinator (Diana) really set my mind at ease about every detail prior to arriving and Diana exceeded expectations after arrival.

We booked our wedding date and signed a group contract rate via a third party travel agent approximately 10 months prior to the scheduled arrival date. All communication at the initial booking time, up through 30 days pre-arrival date was via the Miami HRH office (Janessa). Janessa was always very responsive and if she didn't have an answer would follow-up within 24-48 hours. We chose one of the Colin Cowie wedding packages and added a couple of entertainment and reception add-on options which were a huge hit for our wedding guests and well worth the money, especially the fire show. The ceremony/reception set up was exactly the same as the pictures online. Communication with Diana was equally responsive and she is really a professional at all she does and made sure that all of our concerns (from minor room issues to forgetting the flower girl basket were addressed very quickly and never a true problem). She even consistently threw in extras throughout the week to keep us happy.

A couple of tips for any future bride/group travel. (1) We booked our ceremony for 6pm (sunset) on August 2nd, which was a perfect time for this season since noon or even 2 hours earlier might have been to hot in the sun. (2) If you do book under a group contract, I would highly suggest booking spa/excursion appointments for the group prior to arrival to take advantage of resort credits and ensure you receive time slots that work around wedding festivities. During the weekend these appointments fill up quickly and while the resort seems to fit the bridal party/groom in for spa appointments, the rest of the group might miss out on booking excursions, if not booked prior to check-in. Plus, it is fun to take advantage of booking excursions and going as a group at the same time. (3) I didn't request a dinner reservation at one of the restaurants prior to arrival for the group, however probably should have upon reflection since the wait times were at least 1.5 hours for a group over 15 people, but it wasn't a huge deal while sitting at the bar and catching up, plus we just figured out that we needed to request a table prior to getting dressed for dinner. (4) I can't rate the photographer vendor (Ocean Photostudio) that the hotel contracts with since I haven't seen the pictures and communication was limited with them prior to arrival, however finger crossed.....