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As part of its continued effort to go global, Southwest Airlines now offers service from several major U.S. cities to Cancun, Mexico, including nonstop service from Los Angeles, Calif. While Southwest has always been known for their reasonable airfare rates and flexible and abundant flight schedules, the airlines jaw-dropping rate for a direct flight from LAX to Cancun was all the motivation I needed to take advantage of a last minute trip with my family that I booked less than 24 hours before I was scheduled to depart. How much you ask? My ticket was $283 roundtrip all taxes included! (I also traveled with my 2-year-old toddler on this trip, so for the two of us it was a little under $600). Full disclosure, I was a little hesitant to take a Southwest international, because I wasn’t sure how they would compare to other airlines especially when it comes to the basic features they offer. But I’m here to report, my first and only experience with Southwest from Los Angeles to Cancun had a few ups and downs, but overall I can say it was an affordable and efficient way to travel and I'd definitely consider using their nonstop service to Cancun again. The pros about flying to Cancun via Southwest: The leather seats are comfortable and spacious and you get a good amount of legroom. Having been on several flights, I’d say legroom and comfort on my Southwest flight was above average. So if comfort is important to you — you’ll be pleased on this flight. You can check in luggage for free. This is especially important to point out because any other airline will charge you for check-in baggage. The awesome check-in policy is what Southwest is known for, and when it comes to international travel, it applies here too. Your first two check-ins are absolutely free, so if you’re bride with lots to bring, Southwest is a great option that will cut down on baggage fees! Easy check-in and flights are timely. During both legs of journey, we didn’t run into any problems with check-in or flight times. Also important to mention, there were several flights we could have chosen from when we were booking our tickets, which is a great advantage if you need flexibility. From Los Angeles, there were two non-stop flights to Cancun offered daily — one in the morning (with arrival in mid afternoon) and one in the mid afternoon (with arrival in the late evening). This gave us options if we needed them. Great rates. Bottom line, Southwest offers unbelievable rates if you can nab them at the ‘Wanna Get Away’ rate. I’ve never flown to Cancun for such a great rate with check-in baggage fees included. The cons: Southwest does not offer pre-assigned seating. So yes, you have to chance possibly not sitting next to people you know. The solution to this is purchasing the Early Bird check in option, which allows you to get a higher priority boarding to increase your chances on getting the seat(s) you want. This option was only $15/person for each flight, so it’s not too high a price to pay if you want a better chance of sitting where you want and choosing your neighbor. The no-assigned seating method may also make you a bit nervous if you’re traveling with children, but after some asking around, I found out that they do allow people traveling with children 6 and under to board the flight after the A group and preferred members board — so you’ll likely be abler to sit next to your child with no problem. I also witnessed the flight staff, really work hard to keep families together once all passengers were situated. No meals are offered for free or for purchase on Southwest flights, but they will load you up with all the drinks and snacks you can eat (chips, cookies, crackers and peanuts), which is actually a great thing compared to some other airlines that do offer food for purchase. So make sure pick up a meal at the airport or bring one from home if you like being able to eat a meal on your flight. Wifi service is TERRIBLE on Southwest. I can only attest to my two flight to and from Mexico, but either way it was a crap shoot and mostly didn’t work. Wifi will cost you $8 for all all day pass on a single device and no matter how hard I tried to pay — I was basically like “TAKE MY MONEY!” and it never worked. So don’t rely on Wifi onboard, this is a problem I’ve read is a common occurrence in other travelers who’ve used Southwest to go international. While Southwest does NOT offer any entertainment module on board (screens on the backs of seats in front of you or television screens above), they do offer free streaming TV and movies for purchase if you use your own device — BUT again, anything streaming on my flights was terrible. This was basically the message I saw the whole time when trying to watch their free live TV, “ Hold tight! Our Live TV is currently outside a coverage area.” There simply wasn’t a stable connection and it was quite frustrating. So I basically spent my in-flight time on my laptop catching up on work (i.e., writing up this review LOL.) If you can get past Southwest's minor shortcomings, it’s a great and affordable option for traveling into Mexico. It all really depends on what in-flight comforts and services are important to you! Note: My travel period from LAX to Cancun was May 29, 2017 to June 1, 2017. To find out more information about booking your honeymoon or destination wedding, contact Wright Travel Agency at:www.wrighttravelagency.com or you can contact them HERE! - - - About me: I am a former BDW Bride AKA as MarieSam and I was addicted to this forum as I planned my own wedding in 2009. Since 2010, I have been the proud owner of MarieSam Sanchez Photography -- a husband and wife photography team based in Southern California and documenting love all over the world. I am also a mother to two girls, an avid traveler and a destination wedding writer/blogger.
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Hey ladies!! I'm new to this forum! I'm just wanting to see if anyone has had their wedding at Dream Sands Cancun!! We have ours booked for April 7 2018!! Just wanted to get some feedback of the Pros and Cons of the resort and how everything went for your wedding!!
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I’m finally doing it!!! I’ve been thinking about starting my thread weeks after joining this forum, but for a number of reasons I didn’t – fear of my thread not being interesting, lack of free time and what if someone didn’t like something I chose? Through communicating with the amazing ladies on this thread, I’ve learned that we are all here for the same purpose, and this is the most supportive group of women I have ever encountered. When I started planning #deecolwedding2016 (yes, that’s our hashtag ) I didn’t know what to do. All I knew was: Half of our guests will be flying from Toronto, half from the UK and possibly a few from New York, Florida, Nova Scotia, France, and Ireland We needed to find a location that wasn’t unrealistic in both distance and price for all of our guests to travel to We wanted our Canadian guests to pay between $1200-1400 I’m hoping that with this thread I will not only be able to keep myself organized and get great feedback from the community, but also to help any future brides who were confused in the beginning like me and maybe have some similarities to my story. So here we go… just over 7 ½ months to go: 225 days until we leave for Mexico and 232 days until we say I do! How We Met My girlfriend Victoria was having her 25th champagne birthday in Las Vegas in August 2011. On our first day we met a group of guys that were really cool we ended up hanging out with. On our second day, we went to the MGM Wet Republic pool party. These guys bought a cabana, booze, the works, so the day went on and the vodka was flowing... I had refused to go into the water because, well, not many people actually get out to use the washroom, and they’re drinking loads… you get it… Victoria decided she was going to have one of the guys throw me in the pool. So there I am, in this disgusting pool, wading my way out of it, and this gorgeous English accent beside me says “You look nice”. I turned to look at him and he was so handsome, I couldn’t believe it. We talked for a bit and then decided to exchange numbers and meet up later that night. I got back to my room with the girls and slighty slurry said “Guys, I just met my husband!”. Later that night, Colin showed up at Tryst nightclub (pic above) and we spent the rest of our holiday together. We had this instant connection. Saying goodbye was so hard, we both cried, it was like we have known each other for ever and were a couple. He said he’d call me when he landed back in the UK and I thought I’d never hear from him… “What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas”. Well it didn’t. He called me the day he landed, and the day after, and we bbm’d all day and night inbetween calls. Then, 5 days after we met, we decided to go for it, neither of us wanted a long distance relationship but we decided we were just going to make it work, we had to. I booked a flight to London to visit for a week in October 2011, we went to Venice for a couple days in between and I met his family. He flew to Toronto one month later in December 2011 for my birthday and met my family. I applied for my UK visa and moved to London in February 2012. We lived there together for almost two years, Colin got permanent residency to Canada and we moved back in January 2014. The kicker – Colin was previously engaged. She cheated on him with his boss so obviously that ended. He had already booked his stag with a few of his friends in Vegas and with the wedding being called off, he asked his friends if they want to postpone it by a few months and go anyway. They postponed to that weekend in August 2011 that I was there. We had a magazine article written about us when we were in London and the story of how we met, the headline was “I Met My Girlfriend On My Stag-Do!” but the best part was that his ex saw it! haha The Proposal Colin and I always knew we would get married. But with moving back to Canada and trying to get permanent jobs, we also knew we had to wait. On November 28th, we had made reservations to go out for my birthday dinner (my Birthday is December 1st). That day Colin had called me to tell me he got a job offer! Obviously I was beyond thrilled and couldn’t wait for that evening, we had so much to celebrate! I did have a moment of “He got a job, is he proposing?” but decided to push it aside and enjoy the awesome night we had ahead of us. I bought some champagne on the way home and should of caught on when I suggested we have some but he said to wait until after dinner, I thought he was just being sensible. We had a delicious dinner and when we were leaving he asked if I wanted to go for a walk on the pier, we were in Port Credit in Mississauga and you can see the Toronto lights from there. Since it was almost December I said “ummm not really, it’s a bit cold” and he said “Trust me, I’ll make it worth your while”. My heart dropped into my stomach. OMG it’s happening. Once we hit the spot you can see the lights, he dropped to one knee and said “Will you be my wife?” I said a combination of “omg” “are you serious?” “holy sh**” and eventually “YES!” I called my mom and she cried like someone had been murdered. I called my dad and he already knew because Colin called him when he went to the washroom I’m really close with my Dad and he loves Col to pieces so this meant the world to me. We went to pick out my ring the next day and we had already invited a bunch of friends over for my birthday that night so it turned into a triple celebration! The Wedding – Why Destination? Along with always knowing we would be married, we also always knew we were going to have a destination wedding. All my friends and family are mostly in Canada, and all his side is mostly in England. We didn’t think it would be fair to ask just one side to travel, it just made the most sense to us. This way everyone gets a great vacation, our friends and families get to spend a week together getting to know each other and we get to spend time with the UK family we don’t get to see too often anymore. Deciding on a Resort, Travel Agents and Getting Pricing As most brides will tell you, this is one of the most stressful parts… Our first task was to figure out what resorts will cater to guests from both the UK and Canada and offer packages. Colin took the reins on this as he is in travel, and not that he gets any inside info or discounts, but he knows where to look. We decided on Riviera Maya, Mexico and narrowed our choices down to the Grand Sirenis (due to @calgarybride2015 thread and review – I still think she should get a commission from them) and the Grand Bahia Principe Coba. We gathered some quotes, from the airlines directly, travel agents and from Romantic Planet. So far the GBP was looking like less money for both the Canadians and Brits. I work part time for a marketing company making drinks and promoting brands etc, one weekend I was working at the Toronto Food & Drink Market and there was a bridal show going on in the next hall. One of the vendors from the show came to me on the Sunday and “needed a Caesar” well, I “needed to get in that show” so she handed me her exhibitors pass and off I went. I did a quick loop and a guy from Total Advantage Travel & Tours stopped me. I told him I was pretty much ready to book and he said he could beat the quote I got. So I thought ‘what do I have to lose’ and emailed him the next day. Their first quote for GBP was already $100 less than Romantic Planet and after going back and forth, doing a bit of price matching and $30 more being taken off the price … we were able to get a group rate through Total Advantage for $1259 pp with Air Canada. We made sure the London flights matched up and weren’t too expensive and secured our deal. To date we have 19 booked from Canada and 21 booked from the UK, 40 total including Col & I. We anticipate about 10 more to book, but I am beyond happy with our number, it’s more than I could have ever asked for and I can’t wait!!! We have decided on a legal ceremony, although it's a bit more hassle, we wanted to have everything done at once, and it will be worth it Engagement Photos We had these done on February 7th, 2015 in High Park, Toronto Save the Dates and Invitations The Save the Dates were sent out at the end of April once we secured our Canadian group rates and the UK flights were released and activated our wedding website. We sent our Invitations out Mid-May. We have all information available on our website including the RSVP, as we would have replies coming in from so many countries it saves us a bit of money as well. We update the pricing for the UK guests as often as possible on the travel page of the website. The final rsvp date will be January 31st, 2016. I have my dress, flowers, bridesmaid dresses and a couple other things on the go. I didn’t expect to be able to start this today so I will update the rest shortly
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Hello, Does anyone have any information on the band that's available for weddings at Dreams Tulum? We'd love to have a band, but are worried about shelling out $4k for a subpar house band!
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Hey! I got engaged in 2016, but have only just got round to deciding to organise the big day! Me and the big bear are looking at September 2018 (yes I'm aware of hurricane season). We're a bit confused because right now we don't have much indication of how many guests we will have.. I think we should send a save the date out to get a better idea. I stayed at Paradisus in 2015 and absolutely loved it, I'm very curious about having my big day there.. although I'm not sure if it's going to be too pricey. Has anyone else had their wedding there? If not, would be great to hear about any other hotels on the main strip that have good food and awesome weddings and are as pretty as Paradisus without being too expensive. Thanks xxxx
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If you've been thinking about renewing your vows in front of your closest family and friends, Azul Fives Hotel in Playa del Carmen, Mexico has the perfect vow renewal package for an intimate celebration and best of all -- it's free! The Sky Rooftop Vow Renewal package at Azul Fives is ideal for couples who wish to renew their vows in an intimate setting with up to 24 guests. The celebration includes: Ceremony Inclusions Romantic ceremony location Altar table with white linen Uncovered white garden chairs Sound system with speakers and microphone Non-denominational officiant Welcome cocktail served to all guests upon arrival Cold towel service for each guest during ceremony Signature Services Expert Signature Designer to help plan your event Guest concierge* Personal onsite attendant day of the ceremony - 3 hours* Special room for your other half with gourmet bites on day of the ceremony 12pm - 5pm Reception Inclusions Dinner reservation for your group at Flavors Restaurant Personalized menu card Vow Renewal Romance Package for the Happy Couple Private four course candlelit dinner on the beach for two Chef's special gourmet breakfast in bed Chilled bottle of sparkling wine delivered to room upon arrival One-night return stay voucher for your next anniversary 15% discount on spa services Fresh tropical floral arrangement in room Romantically decorated suite with rose petals and aroma therapy Beachfront sky massage two for one* Couple's also have the ability to further customize their vow renewal experience, including adding options for photography and video as well as decor and floral options. This package is offered only at Azul Fives Hotel and the following requirements apply: - Package is available complimentary for US or Canada based couples - The couple must 3 Bedroom Sky Suite for 3 nights or more and two additional rooms - Ceremony must take place in the couples' bedroom sky deck. - Other couples can purchase this package for $950 USD. - Gourmet Honeymoon & Anniversary Package inclusions apply to wedding couple only. One massage must be purchased to receive one of equal or lesser value complimentary. - One-night return stay voucher valid for future stays of 5 nights or longer, non-transferrable, holidays excluded and must be used within 395 days of check out date. To find out more information about booking your complimentary Sky Rooftop Vow Renewal pakage at Azul Fives Hotel, or for assistance on booking an all-inclusive vacation for your honeymoon or destination wedding elsewhere, contact Wright Travel Agency at: www.wrighttravelagency.com or you can contact them here. - - - About me: I am a former BDW Bride AKA as MarieSam and I was addicted to this forum as I planned my own wedding in 2009. Since 2010, I have been the proud owner of MarieSam Sanchez Photography -- a husband and wife photography team based in Southern California and documenting love all over the world. I am also a mother to two girls, an avid traveler and a destination wedding writer/blogger.
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If you're looking for a special but simple way to renew your wedding vows with the one you love, Karisma has the answer for you and it's just $399 for a celebration that begins in the morning and ends at night on your Wedding Day. Karisma Hotels & Resorts, a luxury provider of vacation properties worldwide, now offers the perfect vow renewal package to celebrate love at some of their most incredible destination locations. Vow Renewal Celebration Package: $399 (for two-person ceremony only) For couple's who want to keep it simple and intimate with just the two of you, Karisma's Vow Renewal Celebration package is the idea way to renew those I Do's. Priced at $399, this package offers: A non-denominational Minister to perform a romantic symbolic ceremony Romantic ocean front ceremony location Sound system with speakers and microphone Symbolic wedding certificate Professional services of a signature wedding designer Sunrise breakfast basket including assortment of cheeses, sweet rolls and mimosas on the morning of ceremony Chilled bottle of domestic champagne at the ceremony Romantically decorated suite with rose petals, aroma therapy and candles the night of the ceremony This package is offered at El Dorado Spa Resorts & Hotels, Azul Hotels (excluding Jamaica), and Generations Riviera Maya, but the following requirements apply: - Valid for couples based in USA & Canada only - Valid for ceremonies taking place Monday through Thursday at 5 PM or earlier. Weekend ceremonies must take place at 2 PM or earlier. Ceremony location restrictions apply. - For those qualifying for the Memorable Moments Honeymoon & Anniversary package, the ceremony will take place at the dinner location just prior to the honeymoon dinner on the beach. - Package inclusions may vary without previous notice. Not combinable with any other promotion unless otherwise specified. Couple's also have the ability to further customize their vow renewal experience, including adding options for photography and video as well as decor and floral options. To find out more information about booking your Vow Renewal Package at Karisma Hotels & Resorts, or booking an all-inclusive vacation for your honeymoon or destination wedding, contact Wright Travel Agency at: www.wrighttravelagency.com or you can contact them HERE! - - - About me: I am a former BDW Bride AKA as MarieSam and I was addicted to this forum as I planned my own wedding in 2009. Since 2010, I have been the proud owner of MarieSam Sanchez Photography -- a husband and wife photography team based in Southern California and documenting love all over the world. I am also a mother to two girls, an avid traveler and a destination wedding writer/blogger.
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Hi ladies, I just got back from my wedding site visit at the Hard Rock Riviera Maya. I'm posting my review that I also just put up on Trip Advisor as I had a really hard time finding any information on a wedding review of this resort in particular before I visited. I'd like to know if anyone is having the same experiences as I am or have had to this point. Particularly with the home office in Miami. I'm dealing with Andrea Perez and she's awful. To be honest, if my deposit wasn't already paid to this resort and 40 guests room deposits already paid, I would probably move elsewhere. Whilst the actual venues to get married are much nicer than other resorts and a bit more private (eg- the palapas over the water vs a gazebo right in the pool area), I'm not sure it's worth all of the aggrevation I am going through just trying to get finalized costs and a contract to sign to move this wedding forward! We have guests attending from 4 different continents and that's stressful enough to deal with! I don't need the added stress of problems occurring in the run up to my wedding or worse, day of! I would also post pictures but unfortunately, my husband got into the hot tub with his iPhone in his bathing suit pocket and, well... good bye all pictures we had taken! Even the rice bag trick didn't work. The phone is fried. Thanks. Here's my review... We visited this resort for 4 nights just prior to Easter for our wedding site inspection. We booked this resort for our wedding this coming July without having previously visited or seen the resort firsthand and went off pictures from the internet and the recommendation from a travel agent based on our needs/wants. This resort needs to step it up in the service department majorly! Across the board, the service we received at times was appalling and downright rude. We're due to have our wedding here in July 2015 with approximately 40-50 guests in attendance and I wish I could change resorts. But unfortunately, we're too far down the line with planning and room deposits to switch so we'll have to make do. In comparison to our experience at this resort, prior to arriving at the Hard Rock, we spent 3 nights at the Excellence Riviera Cancun where the staff and service were, well... excellent! It was such a let down to then arrive at the Hard Rock and to be let down from the get go. Here's our experience... Check in: We rented a car and drove ourselves to the resort. The bell hops met us at our car and unloaded our luggage promptly and took the car via valet (free parking). So far, so good. We were offered a glass of some neon blue (non-alcoholic) drink as we walked in. It's disgusting. Took one sip and put it down. In comparison, we were offered a glass of champagne AND a cold wash cloth at the Excellence. The check in desk is chaos. They don't have enough personnel behind the desk to keep up with guest demand at peak times. We were about the 3rd group in line and waited about 30 minutes to get to the desk for our turn. We were checked in, told our room wasn't ready but were being upgraded (score!) and to come back in about 15 minutes for our key. Fine. We were fitted with bracelets and given a photocopied map of the resort. That was it. No explanation of the map (which isn't very clear or big and a bit difficult to read), not direction to go to the bar up the hallway if we wanted a drink, nothing. We felt a bit lost and were already feeling a bit put off given how well we were treated at the Excellence only 2 hours earlier. We came back about 15 minutes later, got our key and room number but given no other information. I had to ask what we were meant to do, if the bell hop was going to bring our bags up, if we had to go get the bags, etc. It was all very confusing and annoying that the desk staff didn't seem to go out of their way to explain anything. We also realized that we had different colored bracelets than most people and it was only after we met with our on-site wedding planner the next day, Natalia, that we found out these were VIP bracelets. Wouldn't that be something the check in desk should have told us?? Weirdly, where our room was (8325), there wasn't an elevator located near by, but the stairs were right there. So the bell hop wound up carrying all our bags up the flights of stairs. It was all very strange. The room: It was just okay. The rooms are definitely on the small side. It was nice to be upgraded from a garden room to a sky terrace room (which we've also booked for our wedding in July). However, they gave us what I call a half terrace room in which it only has 2 chairs and a hot tub upstairs. The other terrace rooms we saw across the way had a bathroom, 2 lounge chairs and an 8 person table and chairs in addition to the hot tub. Not sure why they skimped and gave us a room that didn't have all the amenities they advertise for the sky terrace category?? The mini bar was a bit of a let down. The Excellence gave us bottles of wine, snacks such as Oreos and Snickers bars, etc. The Hard Rock just gave the basics in terms of drinks (coke, diet coke, juice, water and beers). Weirdly, they give 2 cans of Dos XX and 2 cans of Tecate light. I was pretty surprised by the Tecate light as this is pretty cheap beer and I wouldn't think the Hard Rock, with the prices they charge, would cheap out on the mini bar and top it up with this cheap stuff. In comparison, the Excellence gave us 4 nips bottles of Corona and 4 cans of Corona light. On the 2nd day, the mini bar filler came around whilst we were still in the room. He told my husband he would come back but when we came back after a long day at the beach, he never did. We called to have the mini bar refilled (the book says you can call any time for a refill on the mini bar) and were given a bit of attitude by the operator who told us they had completed all of the mini bar refills for the day. Eventually they came and refilled it that evening but not with everything we had used. The coffee and coffee maker were fine. Annoyingly, they never gave us any brown sugar which my husband likes. I kept thinking they would fill it up each morning and include what was missing but they never did. The iron and ironing board were bad. The ironing board cover was very worn and threadbare. The iron barely worked and dripped hot water all over my husbands foot when he tried to use it. We didn't try to use it again after that. Bathroom toiletries were fine. Basics were there. What was nice at the Excellence is that they also offered a toothbrush travel size Colgate toothpaste which I thought was an extra nice touch that perhaps the Hard Rock could take on. We had an issue with the toilet in our room from day 1. You would flush it but then the toilet would keep running. We called maintenance who came up the next morning whilst we were out and 'fixed' it. Unfortunately, it still wasn't fixed and required another call to maintenance. We finally gave up after the third call and just gave the handle a jiggle to make it stop running. Housekeeping was hit or miss. They only give you the bare necessity number of towels. So we only had 2 at any given time. What was extra annoying was that we had the roof terrace with hot tub but were never given any towels for the hot tub! We looked across at other similar rooms, all which had 2 rolled up towels next to the hot tub. We called housekeeping who very rudely interrupted us when we were requesting towels to say that they should already be up there. We told her there were none and we would like some but they never showed up. Not at all during the 4 nights we stayed there. We finally started getting them from the pool towel hut. Beds were comfortable and pillows fine. Pools: We didn't spend much time at the pools. This is primarily because the hacienda side pool was teeming with children who weren't really being supervised by their parents and on the heaven side, I was taken back about 12 years to my college spring break days with booty dancing competitions, which wasn't really the atmosphere we were looking for either. My husband walked through the Heaven pool side to go get us drinks and some drunk girl who was up dancing decided to slap him on the rear end as he walked by and then her equally drunk friend decided to slap him in the privates! I mean, really out of control. What is wrong with these people?! And what is wrong with the bar staff that continue to serve them or the fact that none of the staff around the pool/DJ area said anything to these girls?! Beach: We spent most of our time at the VIP beach on the hacienda side. Primarily because it actually had shade (the Hard Rock must want people to have heat stroke with the lack of shade/umbrellas they provide) and because it was less chaotic than the pools or regular beach. The sand is pretty awful. Rocky and can sometimes hurt your feet. Not powdery at all. The swimming was fine. There was great snorkeling right in the protected coves off the beach. We saw plenty of fish, including 2 resident barracudas and a baby barracuda. The grounds: Can be pretty appalling in some instances. We were shocked at how poorly the grounds were made or put together in some places. There is a giant pool that sticks up in the middle of the sidewalk in one area (not sure what it's purpose is), but someone ripped it out of the ground and threw it to the side. That evening, we were walking to the Heaven side and I nearly broke my ankle because it was dark and I didn't see this 6 inch wide hole in the ground. Another time, walking through this large courtyard area where they seem to hold concerts or team building exercises, we came across a giant pile of rusty screws. Just lying there right in the middle of the walk way. No idea how they got there or why. I saw a spotlight type light, meant to illuminate a tree just ripped out of the ground and thrown to the side with the electrical wires still hanging out the bottom of it. There also seemed to be quite a bit of trash thrown about. Presumably by drunk guests who have no class and throw their garbage anywhere they like. There were cracked tiles in some of the floor areas and the inside of the one elevator ride we did take was disgusting. Fingerprints everywhere and the wallpaper like covering they had over the glass window side of the elevator was half ripped off and torn to shreds. Really bad looking. Bar/restaurants: The restaurants on the heaven side are leaps and bounds better than on the Hacienda side. The Brazilian on the Hacienda side was so so. We found the cuts of meat were not the best and they were quite fatty with veins running through the meat. We had a third plate on the table which we dedicated just for dumping fatty pieces of meat that we didn't want to eat. By the end of our dinner, this plate was overflowing. The Italian and French on the Heaven side were excellent, as was the service. Really top notch. The Mexican on the Heaven side was equally good. The pool bar food on either side is disgusting. Don't bother ordering chicken wings. They are horrible and forget blue cheese. I'm not really sure what they put on our plate. It was white and very runny but really had no cheese. The lunch is just so so. No matter which restaurant you go to, it's primarily the same buffet food. We had lunch at El Toro one day, and they'll put meat on the grill for you... don't bother with this. The meat is cooked burnt on the outside and then raw on the inside. What would be good is if there is somewhere you could go that just had plain salads or chicken wraps or club sandwiches. These are all on the room service menu but annoyingly, you can't order it anywhere at the pools or restaurants for lunch. The breakfast is decent. Lots of choice, you won't go hungry. We ate one morning in the Hacienda side Mexican restaurant which is reserved for VIP or timeshare sales. You should avoid. It's noisy and there's not enough room at the food station. It's annoying listening to the reps constantly trying to sell other guests on these timeshares and the waiter service is crap. We were nearly done with our breakfast before they came around offering coffee and practically left before they brought it to the table. We watched other guests just get up and walk over to the coffee service station and serve themselves rather than wait. In hindsight, we should have just done this. The bar service at both pool bars is terrible. Our first day, first drink we went to go get, we went to the Heaven pool bar. It's chaotic and you're not really sure where to stand or where to order. We finally, after 10 minutes, managed to get the bartenders attention to order our drinks. He never said hello, never smiled. In fact, he seemed downright annoyed we wanted to order drinks. He started walking away before I had even finished telling him what we wanted. I had to call him back over and then tried to hand him our 2 insulated mugs which he rudely just replied 'take off the covers'. We stood there gobsmacked. The very first drink we try to order and this is how we're treated?! So rude. He couldn't have been less bothered to help us. We found this to be the case most of the time at both pool bars on either side of the resort- chaotic, never know where to stand to order, and bad and sometimes downright rude service. On the flip side, the 2 gentleman waiters who brought the food/drinks back and forth on the VIP beach Hacienda side were wonderful. Energetic and always had a smile. We didn't mind tipping them because they worked so hard and were very grateful. Overall in terms of service, with the exception of the VIP beach servers and the servers we had at the italian, french and Heaven side Mexican restaurants, the service is terrible at this resort. Never smiled at, ignored most of the time and it almost seemed like they were annoyed when you would interrupt their casual conversation among each other if you needed anything. As a comparison, at the Excellence, no matter which member of staff you passed walking by- a bartender, bell hop, chambermaid, someone changing a light bulb, they ALWAYS stopped what they were doing, looked at you and gave a friendly 'hola' with a smile, Now that's the kind of service and staff I like to see! Not these morbid mopes who look absolutely miserable. Wedding on-site coordinator: Natalia saved this trip for us. She was great. Met us in the hacienda lobby the 2nd morning we were there, gave us a tour of the entire resort, told us we had VIP bracelets, answered all of our questions, showed us all of the wedding venue options at the resort. She is the only reason we are still having our wedding here. She provided me with some reassurance that this wedding with my 40 guests won't be a complete disaster. Especially as the service in the 'home office' in Miami is terrible. Our contact in that office is horrific. The information she provides and the quotes based on our requests are not organized, hard to follow and come in drips and drabs in different emails. I've finally told my WOW (not sure what this stands for but these are travel agents who are Hard Rock specialists) wedding travel agent in NY to deal with her as I could no longer without losing my cool. So I've basically cut off all communication with this woman in Miami which is not good considering this is the woman who needs to put my contract together and final costs before anything can move forward at the resort itself. But honestly, I've given this woman everything she could possibly need to quote my wedding, including my own 20 page look book with picture examples of exactly what I want everything to look like from the flowers to the table setting to the papel picado hanging over the dance floor. And she still tells me she doesn't know what I want. It's unbelievable. There are also fees for setting up in different locations, fees if you want them to place a program on each chair, fees for everything. So she includes line items for set up fees in my quotes, but it's not clear to me what is included in these line items! All very confusing. We also found the Hard Rock contracted vendors to be wildly overpriced so we are actually bringing in outside vendors for multiple things such as the flowers, DJ, photographer, hair/make up, etc. Even with the $500 outside vendor fee per vendor, it still works out cheaper. Hard Rock needs to make their prices with their vendors more competitive if they want to retain the business! Our budget for this wedding is about $15k and at least half of that is going to be with outside vendors, if not more. Also incredibly annoying is that we're staying a total of 10 nights for our wedding. We are getting 7 nights 'comped' due to our wedding guests, HOWEVER, we are paying a good sum of money to upgrade to the Sky Terrace Suite room (comped rooms only go up to platinum room category) and are paying full price for the last 3 nights. Because of the 'comped' room rate for 7 nights, we only earn 3 nights worth of resort credit, which is $500. The inflated prices they charge for the resort credit activities, we can hardly do anything, which really doesn't seem fair that we're the bride and groom and are bringing all of this business to the resort and we get the least amount of resort credit out of all our guests? Just doesn't seem right. We want to have as good a time as everyone else and we won't be able to do everything we want to because of this. I can understand if we weren't paying to upgrade on those 7 nights, but we should at least earn something for the money we're paying above and beyond the comp rate. So that's it really. Did we have the worst time? No. But would I return if I didn't have to for my wedding or another vacation? No. There are less expensive resorts that are much nicer and where the service is much better. I think you're paying for the Hard Rock name here and it's just not worth it. Sorry, one last thing... we are not going with a Colin Cowie set up for our wedding. For the price they charge and the fact that you can't change a single thing about the design (even if you want to use real flowers vs fake flowers they have in some of the packages) it's simply not worth it. This was confirmed when I saw the black and white themed set up on the beach. It looked pathetic. I felt so sorry for the bride and groom. The chuppah looking thing with the crystals hanging down looked like it had seen better days. It was rickety and cheap looking and looked like it was about to fall down. The hooks with the glass balls of flowers lining the aisle looked drab. Save your money on these Colin Cowie packages ladies and just go with the complimentary wedding and pay to customize. You'll be much happier! This way you can get the colors you want, the flowers you want and don't have tacky crystals hanging everywhere.
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Hi everyone! I am starting to plan our future destination wedding (thinking February 2018). We come from opposite coasts of the states so Cancun seemed like the natural caribbean location (easy to get to for both sides and relatively affordable). Question I have - are there any good starting places/resources/links on info for prices etc? Or anyone have any of their price experiences to share? I really want to get a ballpark on how much this might cost us before planning everything and realizing it's too expensive. I've stayed in ME Cancun and Paradisus Playa Del Carmen before and loved both (modern, nicer, relaxing) so would be interested in something like that (not a huge fan of the old fashioned resorts).
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I wanted to share with you all how I ended up choosing the resort I am getting married in in Cancun. I found this to be the most difficult and daunting part of planning. You all have been so helpful so I wanted to return the favor for any others looking or getting started. I also have more info on my flowers and budget and I will post that separately so people can get an idea of what things will cost. I was very concerned with pricing and I know asking what you paid for your wedding is a little sensitive but I will start a new thread with my wedding flowers cost. I knew I wanted to get married in Cancun, not Riviera Maya or Playa Mujeras, but downtown Cancun as I have been there many times before and for my group it would be a perfect destination between partying and beach/resort/relaxation. I started out by writing down all the hotels I liked and then I started emailing info. All I got from the coordinators were the pdf files with the packages, but realistically, that was not enough to make a decision. With my personality, I need to know all the ins and outs and what to expect before I choose a resort. I've heard things can add up and there are a lot of hidden fees. I don't mind spending money but I want to know in advance what I'm getting into to avoid any arguments later. I also received lots of recommendations to get a travel agent and they would be able to help me. I did get a travel agent but making the decision on which resort still came down to me knowing all the facts. With the above being said about my personality, a lot of people on this forum as well as the coordinators recommended to choose a hotel based on where I saw myself getting married and which grounds I liked. For me, this wasn't enough. I badgered the coordinators to show me all of their fees, including outside vendor fees, how it works with the extras such as dj, photographer, and decor, as well as extra guests and linens, etc. The hidden fees I found were astonishing, some hotels were charging extra money to walk in sand if you had your reception on the beach or to keep the food warm. Off the bat, I discounted those hotels since those were things I didn't want to deal with. I chose my resort on one thing alone after all my research: Outside vendor fees. I wanted a resort with low outside vendor fees as I didn't want to be bamboozled into paying high resort pricing when I could get the same thing outside for cheaper. The resort I chose is Dreams Sands Cancun and the date is 1/28/17. Dreams Sands outside vendor fees are $150 per a vendor which is very reasonable compared to the others who charge $800 or $1000. I made sure this fee was per vendor and not per person. The resort is not as beautiful as lets say the Hyatt Ziva, but ultimately I would be very agitated had I found out these high fees later on when I started planning. The coordinator at Hyatt Ziva was actually not very helpful when I contacted her and was trying to get me to book the package on the very first day that we spoke on the phone. After receiving a more detailed email from them, I crossed Hyatt Ziva out. Thats it, I based it on one factor. I also made sure this hotel is in a great location right near party city and its affordable for guests and allows kids. So far, planning seems ok. Dreams Sands seems easy to work with but I will definitely fill you in on all that as I get closer. How did you all choose your resort?
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Hi everyone! This site has been so very helpful with so much of my planning! So thank you! For brides that have traveled to Mexico from the US, has anyone had a problem taking dried eucalyptus? My TA said it could be a problem, but we want to take our decorations to save cost and I really want to utilize eucalyptus in my centerpieces with the sola and silk flowers.
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How We Met So a bit of a back story on myself. I will cut straight to the chase by saying I has a life changing event when I was 25. I was planning a trip of a lifetime by myself, a cruise of the Greek islands and right before I left I woke up with a painful lump in my breast. Fast forward 6 months and I was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer. I went through chemo, radiation, double mastectomy and reconstruction surgery all within the span of a year. I was single at the time and while I stayed positive throughout everything I thought I would never find someone that would want to be be with me as I wasn't whole ananymore. It took seven years for me to work on building up my self esteem and self worth again before I was even remotely ready to start to date again. About 3 years ago I decided I was finally ready but didn't have I lot of opportunities to meet new people so like a lot of people now I went online. Let me tell you I met a lot of winners (and not the good kind)! I was just about to give up when Alec messaged me. He seemed so sweet and was so thoughtful about what he wrote and bonus he actually took the time to read my profile! He was and still is super shy but slowly he came out of his shell with me. He planned awesome dates, going to concerts, taking me to a boardgame cafe (I have a secret boardgame obession), going bowling, among other things. When we kissed for the first time it was magical. I know it sounds crazy but after the first few dates I knew he was the man I was going to marry. We both have the craziest things in common, the food we eat (cheeseburgers plain, meat and cheese, nothing else lol), we love hockey, we both love boardgames (even though he kicks my butt everytime), we both read up on movies after we watch them, I could go on forever lol! The Proposal So we had talked about marriage and went ring shopping in the Fall so I knew it was coming but didn't know exactly when. That day came on Christmas eve. He told me he chose Christmas because he knew how much I loved it and wanted it to be extra special. Alec is very shy and simple kind of guy so after I conned him into getting my gift early (eve instead of day) because that's what I do every Christmas. He grade my hand and hugged and kissed me lots and simply said I love you so much and will you marry me. It was simple yet beautiful and the best day of my life! The ring he chose wasn't one I had chosen but I'm so glad! He listened to everything I liked and chose something he thought fit the criteria which meant the world to me. Right after the proposal we went to my family gathering and it was so awesome to share the news with my family! I will never forget how I felt that night, I was on cloud nine. Let the planning commence! I was so happy just to be engaged but people kept bombarding me with questions , when are you getting married, where, etc and this was the night I got engaged! I felt super overwhelmed super fast. Saying yes was the easiest part. All I knew is I wanted a destination wedding. Finding a Travel Agent This was the easiest part for me as my Aunt is a TA. What I lo ed about this is the fact that I already had someone that I trusted with I feel is extremely important for a destination wedding. She always answers my emails and very promptly as well. Even if it might take her a few days she sends me warning so I'm not left hanging. Maybe it could be the fact that I know where she lives and I could hunt her down but I like to believe it's just her high standard of customer service. Picking the Resort The big thing for me was I wanted affordability without sacrificing quality in the resort. So my Aunt when immediately wentry to work and suggested 3 Mexico locations, Puerto Vallarta, Cabo, and Riviera Maya. She presented me with about 6 resorts in total with varying prices. Due to the Canadian Dollar taking a plunge the quotes weren't as cheap as I would've liked but in the end it was still way cheaper to chose Mexico versus a home wedding in Winnipeg. I within a week I narrowed it down to either Cabo or Riviera Maya. I ultimately chose the Grand Sirenis in Riviera Maya for a few reasons. They had a free wedding package, the resort was absolutely gorgeous, the prices for children were really reasonable and Riviera Maya was the only place I haven't been to in Mexico. Needless to say I was excited to say within a week I had made our decision (FI said whatever I wanted he was good with). Well I was excited until my TA came back and burst my bubble saying that Grand Sirenis has decided as of 2016 to eliminate the Free Package. I was devastated because we were on a tight budget I wasn't sure we could afford it. I immediately did up spreadsheet of all the costs so I would have a more realistic idea of the total cost because let's face it you have to pay extra for everything! In the end we were very fortunate that both sets of parents totally stepped to help us out which I'm forever in their debt. I was trying to previously plan the whole wedding ourselves without help except for the dress which my parents had previously said they would cover. Once the $500 deposit was paid to the resort and the $400 deposit for the Bride and Groom our TA's travel agency developed a PDF and a type of Web page on their site that guests can access to reserve their attendance. I have a lot more to write but time for bed. I will be back soon!
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I'm trying to find information about having a legal ceremony for just the 2 of us ,I would like to keep costs down as many of the features in even the most basic packages are not needed .I appreciate any input thank you
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I noticed that the last thread for El Dorado Seaside Suites is a bit dated, so I thought I'd start a new one! I just booked an April 2016 wedding with the resort, and I'm so excited to start planning. We have about 60 people on the guest list, and it looks like most will be able to come! If anyone has tips for timing of the ceremony, cocktails (which are 2 hour packages), and reception (4hours), let me know! I have a 3:00 ceremony as of now, but I'm thinking about moving it back to 4:00 and just using one hour for cocktails. Happy planning!
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Luxury Style: 24/7 Butler Service at Karisma's Villa Carola
MarieSamSanchezPhoto posted a article in Planning
Imagine having 24/7 butler service while you and your family enjoyed a luxury vacation on a private property with all the comforts and convenience of an all-inclusive resort in a tropical paradise. Well that experience can be yours at Karisma Hotels & Resort's Villa Carola property in Puerto Morelos, Mexico. Villa Carola, an exquisite two-story private villa, is adjacent to the Azul Beach Hotel in the Riviera maya and offers 10,700 square-feet of luxury and privacy for 12 adults and 8 children, 6-ocean view bedrooms and bathrooms, and a private pool, beach and jacuzzi. But one of the villa's best perks is 24-hour assistance from your own personal Majordomo -- a butler of sorts who is there to make all your special requests and preferences come to life. The pampering at Villa Carola begins even before you arrive to the property, with pre-arrival service by your butler, who will make sure your vacation experience is perfect from beginning to end. No matter your requests, your Majordomo is ready and at your service because no wish is too far fetched and it always comes with a warm smile. According to Carlos, the Majordomo for Villa Carola, he communicates with guests from the very start even before their vacation begins, obtaining information on their likes/dislikes and preferences for food, activities or comforts and necessities inside the villa. Carlos is also there to help with planning reservations at any of the Azul Beach eateries, the Vassa spa or to help arrange any off-site excursions or transportation. "I am here to help and assist with any requests or needs the Villa Carola guests have," he said, adding that no requests is too big or too small. Besides the services from your personal Majordomo, guests at Villa Carola can also enjoy the delicious offerings of the Gourmet Inclusive Experience, including daily maid service, non-motorized water sports, daily activities, private beach butlers, delectable cuisine, and 24-hour room service. To find out more about staying at Villa Carola or the other two Karisma Villas in Riviera Maya, Mexico, contact one of the Best Destination Wedding travel agents who specialize in destination wedding and honeymoon travel. You can contact them HERE! - - - About me: I am a former BDW Bride AKA as MarieSam and I was addicted to this forum as I planned my own wedding in 2009. Since 2010, I have been the proud owner of MarieSam Sanchez Photography -- a husband and wife photography team based in Southern California and documenting love all over the world. I am also a mother to two girls, an avid traveler and a destination wedding writer/blogger.-
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Hi everyone! Newbie here! I AM SO HAPPY THAT I FOUND THIS SITE! I was having such a hard time getting info on average costs for a destination wedding in the Rivera Maya, so I hope to get some feedback here! We're getting married in October 2017 with a group of 35-55 people. I have NO idea how much the average cost would be. We're planning our budget and I'm thinking 6k is good (for the ceremony/music/decorations/videographer+photographer] [PLEASE TELL ME IF I'M WRONG] I want a super simple wedding, nothing crazy. My main concerns are: -Photographer/videographer: how much should I set aside for these two? I don't want to spend more than $1,500. [if you have any recommendations, please let me know] -Outside vendor fees: which hotels/resorts have low fees? -Ceremony costs for 30-55 people -Florist: does the resort provide floral arrangements or do we come up with this ourselves? If so, what was your experience like? how did you do it? -Wedding planner: DO I NEED ONE? I LOVE planning stuff myself. But is it absolutely necessary to get a wedding planner? If so, how much does it usually cost to get one? Here are the resorts I was considering: -Valentin Imperial Maya -Las Villas Akumal -Excellence Resort Isla Mujeres I want a small/intimate hotel/resort. I stayed at Sandos last May and I HATED IT because it was such a huge resort. I want to keep it small and intimate. If anyone has gotten married/plans to get married at these resorts, could you tell me about your experience? OR if there are any resorts you'd suggest, please let me know! Thank you in advance!
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I've been going back and forth between the wedding coordinator for flowers as well as an outside florists. Everyone has warned me about the high pricing from the resort florist.. and WHOA were they right. My outside vendor fee is low at $150 per vendor and I have already booked the outside florist but I wanted to share with you my experience. I started talking to the outside florist even before I booked the resort since flowers are important to me. He has been very helpful and always responds to his messages. For the resort florist - I have to go through the coordinator so its very difficult to convey my vision and attach photos, etc. It's like we were playing telephone. This is the pricing I received from the outside florist: Tall centerpieces: $175 - tall cylinder clear vase with white roses, white mums Low centerpieces:$85 - Small cylinder with matching arrangement as tall centerpiece Prices from resort florist: Tall: $550 Low:$300 Yes, huge difference in pricing. I showed both florists the photos attached and while I know there are orchids in the arrangement, I mentioned to both of them to take out orchids since I know they are expensive. This was where the outside florist was much easier to go back and forth with. For my bouquet: I am going with white roses and dendrobrium orchids with silver pins in the center Sorry, I posted too soon: For my bouquet: I am going with white roses and dendrobrium orchids with silver pins in the center outside vendor: $165 resort florist: $250 Matching boutonnieres cost $15 So far my total cost for flowers is $1530 and this includes: 4 tall centerpieces at $175 a piece (this includes white wooden boxes for the vase to stand on during the ceremony. We will then move all the flowers to the reception area). 2 low centerpieces at $85 a piece flower petals to cover the aisle at $200 my bouquet at $165 matching boutonniere at $15 2 arrangements on the white curtain for $75 a piece (these will be recycled for the bride and groom table Flower girl and ring bearer flowers: $30 total $100 delivery and setup fee I am utilizing the free bouquet that comes in my package for my bridesmaid and the 2 corsages/2 boutonnieres for the parents. My budget for flowers was $2k so I am currently under budget which I am very happy about after hearing girls spend $5k on flowers. I will have to add or remove things as I find out how many guests are coming but this is what I have so far. I might add another arrangement for the escort card table. How much did you ladies spend on flowers? Or what was your experience like?
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Hello fellow brides! Getting excited to finally start planning our destination wedding! I have my travel agent/destination wedding planner already. Im just having a really hard time trying to choose a resort! We would like a smaller 5* resort with great food. Ive narrowed down things to Beach Palace, Azul Fives and Now Jade. Can any of you ladies provide some insight and recommendations to help me choose a resort! Also im open to hear recommendations for other resorts as well. Thanks so much
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Besides the incredible massage and spa services the Vassa Spa offers at Azul Beach Hotel in Puerto Morelos, brides, bridesmaids and wedding guests can also enjoy the spa's full service hair and makeup salon to ensure they're picture perfect for the big day. The Vassa Spa salon staff is comprised of trained hair and makeup stylist who are very receptive to their client's inspiration photos and styling preferences. The staff also suggest that brides schedule a trial before the Wedding day to ensure that you get the look you've envisioned for your I Do's. "I would definitely suggest brides do a trial ahead of the Wedding day," says Yidan Ortiz, who has been one the salon's stylists for six years. Ortiz says that it can be challenging when the bride wants to try out a style or changes her mind on the day of the wedding because not all styles or looks work for every person's face or hair. Trial runs allow for the stylist and the client to nail down the perfect look for the final run come the big day. Hair and makeup trials should be scheduled in advance and requests can be made to work with the same stylist during both the trial and the Wedding day. The spa, which typically has at least four stylists on staff, uses Mac products for all makeup services because of its propensity to last in hot and humid weather conditions. Airbrush style makeup is also available upon request. Aside from hair and makeup services, Vassa Spa and salon also offers manicures and pedicures by appointment. Click here for more information about Vassa Spa's treatments, services and prices. And to book your stay at Azul Beach Hotel, contact one of the Best Destination Wedding travel agents who specialize in destination wedding and honeymoon travel. You can contact them HERE!
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Hello BDW dolls! We are having our wedding at the Azul Beach resort! I twas highly recommended, by our fantastic travel agent! If anyone wants their information, I;m happy yo share! I would love any feedback, suggestions, ideas, do-don'ts; or any direction from anyone who has had their wedding and or planning their wedding at this lovely resort! I look forward to planning via BDW and sharing and gathering information to make this even more of a dream come true! Also, I'm debating about photographers and outside DJ's. I'm almost 100% certain that we are obtaining an outside photographer, but I'm still debating on the DJ? Suggestions? Best RMV!!
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Hello Ladies! I have been recommended this wedding videographer in Riviera Maya and I HAVE to share it with you! His name is Santiago and he owns and runs Becker Wedding Films - http://www.bbweddingfilms.com I also have seen a lot of his work on his Facebook - BB Wedding Films His style is so beautiful and unique, the work he produces is much more than just an ordinary wedding video but more like a peace of art that really shows a couples love story, as you can tell, I am hooked!! It's definitely a great choice for people who are really into art and culture, he seems to capture this in every of his example videos. I have had excellent communication with Santiago these past couple of weeks and I am now in the process of securing my package with him (I am so excited!) His prices are not for budget brides as such but extremely reasonable and for whats included and at such high quality he really is worth every penny! I hope some of you girls get a chance to check him out and fall in love with his work as much as I have! Hanna
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After traveling to several countries and numerous resorts and hotels throughout the world, I've come to realize that what sets apart good resorts from excellent ones is customer service and guest experience. And these aspects truly made me appreciate and enjoy my weeklong stay at Azul Beach Hotel in Puerto Morelos, Mexico this past year because the customer service and guest experience here were second to none. From the moment we stepped foot on the resort grounds, we were welcomed by friendly faces who always went out of their way to ensure that all our needs and any special requests were taken care of. Whenever we were in communication with the front desk or concierge, we were always greeted warmly and our questions or requests were quickly addressed. Room service even happily arranged for a glass of milk to be delivered to our room every night for our 2-year-old little girl before she went to bed. And whenever we needed anything in our room, it was delivered promptly. I cannot say enough about the front desk staff and concierge -- they are always willing to help when they can. The Vassa Spa is another area of the resort where customer service really shines, the spa staff is completely focused on giving you a relaxing experience highlighted by top notch service from beginning to end. Scheduling an appointment at the spa is simple and easy and you will feel all your stresses melt away the minute you walk through the spa doors. But the guests experience doesn't just end there -- you are greeted with the same professionalism in all of the hotel's eateries as well. The hostesses are all very warm and welcoming and before you dine, they always ask for any allergies they need to be aware of. And I cannot say enough about the servers in each of the restaurants, all of whom were extremely friendly and attentive. Because our toddler would take naps in the late afternoon after spending hours at the beach or pool, my family and I often dined late for dinner. And while we were often the last guests left in the restaurants, we were never rushed or felt pressured to dine quickly. Our servers encouraged us to enjoy every part of our meal and always suggested dessert or coffee to wrap up our meals no matter how late it was! Having a wonderful dinner experience was always such a nice way to end our day. Another aspect that I really enjoyed at Azul Beach was the staff's focus on ensuring that families with children were well taken care of. Traveling and vacationing with young children can be so intimidating and stressful, but at Azul Beach, they go out of their way to make sure children's needs are met -- be it with an expansive kids menu at all the eateries, the many kids amenities in the rooms (bath robes, slippers, toys, crib, stroller, etc.) and throughout the resort (the kids pool, kids lounge chairs, toys on the beach, the kids club, etc.). The staff is there not only to serve the needs of adults, but that of their youngest guests as well! When you visit Azul Beach Hotel it feels like home. And before your stay even ends, you'll find yourself already looking forward to the next visit! To find out more about staying at Azul Beach Hotel in Riviera Maya, Mexico, contact one of the Best Destination Wedding travel agents who specialize in destination wedding and honeymoon travel. You can contact them HERE! - - - About me: I am a former BDW Bride AKA as MarieSam and I was addicted to this forum as I planned my own wedding in 2009. Since 2010, I have been the proud owner of MarieSam Sanchez Photography -- a husband and wife photography team based in Southern California and documenting love all over the world. I am also a mother to two girls, an avid traveler and a destination wedding writer/blogger.
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How We Met Andrew and I met online early summer of 2014. Our initial conversation started with our likes for rivalry hockey teams, the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Boston Bruins. From there the conversation kept flowing and we went on our first date in early July. We continued to talk and go on dates over the next couple of months until we made our relationship official in August 2014. From there the rest is history ♥ The Proposal Every year we make a trip to Florida and stay in Indian Rocks Beach. This time we traveled with another couple (Ellen and Tyler) at the end of March 2016. Ellen and I being typical girls we wanted 'cute and coupley' sunset photos with the boys. On Sunday, April 3rd we finished dinner and walked down to the beach just in time to get in some good photos of the sun setting. Andrew and I took a few photos standing on the beach with the sun behind us, and then he said 'Let's try one more (pose)'. Then he got down on one knee in the water and I immediately started blushing and crying because I was so shocked/happy/surprised. After Andrew gave his romantic spiel and asked me to marry him, I said of course. Travel Agent/Picking a Resort We knew that we wanted to have a destination wedding right from the get go because we are beach bums and love the sun/water. Neither of us have ever been to Mexico, however it seemed like the perfect place for our wedding! The next thing on the list was to find a travel agent. I had been told to shop around for an agent for pricing and most importantly the person knows what they are doing/is easy to communicate with. We went to a local mall and popped into Flight Centre, they directed us to a nearby mall where their group travel specialist was located. Instantly we clicked and my finance and I knew we would be going with this agent based on her knowledge, experience and how helpful she was. The next step was choosing a resort, we wanted the resort to be affordable, yet still nice. We weren't very flexible with our potential wedding dates because the best man is a teacher and it is the only time he could take time off work to come to the wedding. After looking at quotes and reading (wedding) reviews we were sold on the GRAND SUNSET PRINCESS. On May 5th 2016 we put our deposits in for travel May 17th - May 24th. Our guests had the deposit deadline of July 13th to guarantee the rates given by the TA. ....More to come
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Hello ladies, We picked the NOW Sapphire as our DW and the date is set for May 2nd, 2017. I had some questions for past brides or anyone that could be of help. We are paying for my 2 (soon-to-be) stepchildren (1 of which will be at an adult rate as he's over 12 yrs old). Plus our photographer friend. So paying for 4 adults, 1 child as well as our honeymoon (so already at approx. 15k there)--- so we are trying to save where we can! Where there are 5 children so far coming, (that all love to dance), we decided we should have a "reception" of sorts. We currently are set up for the "Complimentary" (Your Moments) wedding package as we did not need a photographer and all packages would still require us to pay extras. We decided on the gazebo with the Preferred Pool as the "dance" location. We want to have the "dance" so that our photos include our first dance, father/daughter, mother/son, etc. photos... plus the kids would not be allowed at the disco later, AND if we were to opt for the disco instead of a reception, the parents of the other children would have to tend to their kids so I'd be missing 4 wedding party members. I'm terrified of all the extra costs. The cost is adding up and I'm not convinced that a "Package" will even help us out either. We're looking at renting the speakers from the resort (180$ per hour - 3 hours), and cost per additional guest after 10 is 22$ approx. (for the Your moments package) we are currently 30 attendding. Renting the Preferred pool is 1000$ and we are using an off site make up and hair team which wasn't cheap but it was something all of us ladies agreed on. 1-I'm thinking of bringing "fake bouquets" cause they seem pretty costly at the resort. I have 4 bridesmaids, 2 groomsmen and the 2 stepsons. What have some of you done regarding bouquets? 2-In regards to renting the speakers, we have also been in contact with a DJ where the speakers, the DJing would all be included but that would come with a vendor fee on top of their fee so approx 700$ I believe. Do any of you have any tips to share? I hear lots of brides mention a DJ app, how user friendly is this? 3-The lighting or decor... we want it to be very pretty for the photos, do any of you that chose the Preferred pool needed to bring anything additional? Lighting starts at 600$ and bringing your own, you'd still need to pay 100$ per pole to hang them. Any experience advice on that location? 4-During the wedding, do they play music or is that an additional fee? 5-Has the WC given out decor or anything complimentary with this package? i.e. aisle runner or little decorations on cocktail tables, etc or do they nickel & dime you every chance they get? 6-I was thinking of having some sort of video (short one), but not paying an abundant amout, has anyone done this at a reasonable cost? Basically - Have any of you chosen the "your moments" package, and if so, could you share your cost saving ideas? We aren't opposed to paying for some extras but just are looking at cost cutting where we can so that we can permit to spend a bit more on our guest bags and "at home party". I'm extremely excited about our choice and when I see all the photos our WC posts of the weddings, I'm in awe - I guess I picture that each bride must have paid for the packages and had a much larger budget than we do. Any advice would be greatly appreciated :-)
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- Cancun Riviera Maya
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Earlier this year, the Cancun/Riviera Maya based design and decor team at Zuñiga Productions created a vibrant Indian wedding ceremony design in one of the ballrooms at the Moon Palace Golf & Spa Resort. The use of rich jewel tones and touches of gold help to make this a ceremony display one your guests will soon not forget. For more information on Zuñiga's design services, visit their website at: www.decocancun.com
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- Cancun Riviera Maya
- Decor & Details
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