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Hi I am currently trying to source other options for photographer and videographer for my Wedding in October. I was looking to get this from the same company as Moon Palace charge an $800 outside vendor fee. I have spoken to the hotels preferred vendor and have been quoted $4400 for 5hours of photo (around 350-400 photos on a USB stick) and 4 hours video (a 45minute DVD and a 4-5min hightlight DVD). I am not sure if this is reasonable or overpriced, any thoughts?

It is now 6 months until our wedding so I think it’s about time I started my planning thread. Like many of the beautiful and helpful brides I’ve come to know from this site, I thought that starting a planning thread would not only get me organized but also give me valuable insight and advice from you all. How we met: In 2010 after ending a very long-term relationship with my ex-boyfriend, my friend kept encouraging me to sign up for online dating. I won’t lie to you and I was very skeptical about online dating and thought that there was no way I would even try it. After months of hearing her stories about how much fun she was having meeting new people and dating men she would never have met otherwise, I thought, what’s the harm in trying. So in December 2010, I created my online profile. I will admit that dating again was fun. I had no intention of getting into another relationship; I just wanted to meet new people. Well you know how they say that things happen when you’re not looking for it? Well in less than two weeks, I received a message from Derrick that just said, “Hi. How are you?” I thought that was a pretty lame message but I looked at his profile. I thought he was really cute so I messaged him back. We were messaging back and forth and soon enough, we agreed to meet for a date. We met at Starbucks. I figured it’s a safe place to meet in case he turned out to be a creep! LOL As soon as I saw him, I remember the sigh of relief, he looked like his profile pic, but was actually cuter in person. Despite the usual first date jitters, we had a great conversation and it felt natural. After Starbucks we went to watch a movie. I don’t know why we went to the movies considering we talked the whole time. By the end of the night, I knew that it was the best date I’ve ever had. After that date we basically saw each other every day and he would text me daily to see how my day was going. I knew that we had something special and what proved it was when he went to Vegas for his best friend’s bachelor party. It was 3 am and my phone rang, it was Derrick. I got worried since it was early in the morning. I picked up the phone and he was clearly drunk. Before I could get annoyed, he told me that he loved me and that he missed me. There he was in Vegas with his friends having fun, and he still thought of me. Right then and there, I knew he was a keeper. The proposal: As a bit of a background, Derrick had asked me before if I wouldn’t mind if he used a diamond his grandmother had gifted him to give to his future wife. I knew how close he was to his grandmother (she had passed away before I got the chance to meet her). So during a trip to Puerto Vallarta with his family in March 2014, his sister and I were walking the Malecon and they thought it would be fun to go to a jewellery store to try on engagement ring settings for me. I typically don’t wear rings so I didn’t know what setting would look nice on me, especially since my hands are small. I instantly fell in love with a halo setting. So when we got back to the resort, Derrick’s sister instantly tells him what we did, just to tease him and he got up and said, ok let’s buy it. LOL So to my surprise, we bought the ring. But before buying it, Derrick told me that even though I knew what my engagement ring looked like (minus the diamond), he would still keep the proposal a surprise since I wouldn’t know when he would do it. As you can imagine, he had fun with that. Being the jokester he is, we would go out, tie his shoes and look up at me to make it look like he was going to propose. It happened on June 30, 2014 during our annual fishing trip to Ucluelet, BC. The weekend started off normal with Derrick joking around about proposing. Jokes included writing down "ring" on our list of things to bring to the island and Derrick singing "put a ring on it". On the last day of our trip, Derrick suggested going for a walk to the beach after dinner and go beach combing. Derrick and I love to go beach combing anytime we're on Vancouver Island. I told Derrick that his mom and I saw a beach that morning when we walked the dogs along the lighthouse trail so we headed in that direction. As we walked to the trail, Derrick kept asking me to walk on his left side, closer to the road. I made fun of him, joking that my friend's husband always walked on the side closest to traffic to protect her, meanwhile Derrick wanted to use me as his shield. Apparently he had the ring box in his right pocket and didn't want me to see it. I should have clued in on this but still didn’t even think anything of it. As we got to the beginning of the trail and looked at the map, I pointed to where we saw the beach. Derrick said he didn't want to go to that beach since it would be crowded. He suggested we keep walking to find a nice new beach that wasn't full of tourists. As we walked along the trail, Derrick pointed down the cliff and said, "Let’s go over to that beach, no one's there". He suggested going down the cliff using these old ropes tied to trees. I told him he was crazy and there was no way I'd go down old ropes, only to die falling off the cliff! So we kept walking and he eventually found a better way to go to the beach. To get closer to the water we had to walk and balance on what seemed like miles of rocks. In my usual "positive" vibe, I grumbled and complained the whole way. I think Derrick's favourite line was, "we're beach combing here? You know what we'd find under these rocks, more (insert expletive) rocks!" He would just turn to me, smile and say, "This is what I love about you, your positivity" When we finally got to the water, I had to admit that the walk was worth it, the view was breathtaking. On top of that, we were the only ones there! We climbed over rocks as Derrick showed me starfish, sea anemones (or what I call sea enemies" and more rocks (lol). After looking around, we sat on a huge rock and just looked out towards the ocean and enjoyed the peace and quiet. I heard Derrick say, "Jer", and as I turned to face him, I saw him on one bended knee, holding a ring box and said, "Will you marry me?" I said "of course" and hugged and kissed him.

TADAAAAA - We have a date! 8 months after our engagement, and 5 months after joining this site. A whole lot of researching, nagging, a site tour, and basically blood, sweat, and tears. We have finally made the commitment. I should have just listened to @@calgarybride2015 to begin with! Props lady! This is a Planning Thread v 2.0 for me, so I'll just copy/paste some of my previous backstory. How We Met He likes to call it "Fishing Off the Company Pier" which basically means we met at work. I was a Service Advisor, and he is an Automotive Technician. I've since left the position as it is considered a conflict of interest (although no one had any idea we were together). Initially we were both in relationships, but I always thought he was cute. I never thought we would end up together. He says he always knew we would end up together. Sometimes I still stop and look at him and I have to shake my head. I love him so much, and I feel lucky to be with him. He's a challenge some days, and so am I. But I guess that's the beauty of a loving relationship. Even from the day he proposed to today I feel our love has evolved to such a higher place.

We have been planning to have our Spring 2016 wedding at Akiin Beach but I'm finding myself overwhelmed with many things. I wanted to stay away from a "resort" wedding and wanted the more private intimate options that Akiin would be able to give us. Now with all the overwhelming details and trying to figure out accommodations for our guests we are reconsidering all inclusive resort options. We are looking into Iberostar Paraiso Lindo but based off their "wedding packages" I don't see any anything for a reception or different decor options/choices. If anyone has any info from personal experiences I would love to hear!

Newbie planning a wedding for March 2016 at Akiin Beach! We are in contact with the wedding coordinator but would love any suggestions from fellow akiin brides!

Hey guys I would LOVE any advice you may have related to Akiin beach club. We are planning to have our wedding at Akiin Beach in March 2016 (official date still up in the air) I have been in contact with their wedding coordinator but they don't help with hotels etc. I would love any suggestions or tips from personal experiences! Where did your guests stay? I love the rustic cabanas all around Tulum!

I LOVE reading planning threads for many reasons. Here are a few: They give me ideas I would have never thought of The provide answers to questions I hadn’t even thought of asking but definitely needed to know They make me feel like I am apart of someone’s wedding even though I haven’t had to do any of the hard work The give brides-to-be a rough guideline as to when certain things need to be started/completed They speak to issues brides-to-be run into and what to expect They let you know that how you are feeling or the situations or debacles you are running into are completely normal After being inspired by many other brides-to-be on this site, I have decided to start putting my planning into words. I am hoping by doing this it will motivate me to get the ball rolling again and iron out some of the BIG (and small) items I have been putting off. I hope you enjoy reading a little bit about Michael and I. I’m excited for you all to be reading along as we plan the wedding of our dreams. xo Ashley

Hello Brides! I just want to introduce myself. I am getting married in Cabo at Grand Solmar this November 2015..... and there's alot to consider! Any brides who can shed some of their experiences in dealing with Solmar weddings is much much appreciated! Thanks!

Hi There, My fiance and I are having our wedding at Grand Solmar Land's End this November 2015. When we looked at the price breakdown, their cake cost is $1400. From what we've learned through visiting multiple resorts, that price seems a little high. So we are considering using an outside vendor for our cake - despite a $200 outside vendor fee. Has any bride run into a similar costly situation, and if so are there any good recommendations you can give? Any tidbit info is much appreciated! Thanks!

Hi Everyone. We have booked our destination wedding in Huatulco Mexico for January 2016. We knew we wanted a destination wedding but we pretty late on planning it, realize now I only have 6 months to get ready for this! I am so excited but at a loss of what I need to plan and prepare. The wedding contact at the resort does not speak the best English so our emails are a bit difficult back and forth. I try to use the simplest English so she understand everything but I have so many questions I don't know how to get them all answers. So I am hoping you guys can help. I don't even know the first thing about what I need to be doing. We have our resort and the date picked. We know we get minimal decorations provided by the hotel and I have seen the dinner menu. Now where do I go from here? Decorations I bring with me, things to pack, how the day should run, things to make sure to ask the resort before hand, ect, ect. I don't really know anything about planning a wedding! Any advice is appreciated! Thanks so much