ROYAL PLAYA DEL CARMEN BRIDES: were kids allowed for the day? ...and other questions

[ReidCapote]

 

 

Originally Posted by heidirn622 

 

Have a question for everyone.  Did ya'll reserve your date and location before you booked your room and package?  For everyone that has been to the Royal, which location is better, the beachside at pelicanos or the gazebo.  We have a choice between both right now.  Or did ya'll make a site visit first before deciding on everything?  Did ya'll talk to someone in reservations to get a group rate or went through a travel agent? 

 

Does anyone have elizabeth medina's email?  I filled out the request on the website and haven't heard back from her? 

 

Has anyone seen the ballrooms?  My fiancee does not want to be on the beach for the wedding reception.  Do you have to purchase decorations through the resort or outside company to decorate the ballrooms. 

 

If anyone has done a site visit, do they give you any incentives back when you book your wedding?  upgrades, etc?

 

Thanks for all the advice from previous postings, I sat for two days and read and took notes.  so helpful!

 

Heidi

 

 

Hello Heidi,

 

Congrats on your upcoming wedding! I'm getting married Oct. 24 at the Royal. My FI and I visited the resort when we were in Playa del Carmen for another wedding in January. We didn't stay at the resort, but had no problem poking around the property. We even got to see some other weddings while we were there. We set up a meeting with a wedding coordinator at the Royal the week before and just showed up on the scheduled day. The wedding coordinator showed us around and we got to see all the potential locations. We even scheduled a tasting ($100) so that we could decide on a menu. The food was delicious!!

 

After we got back from that trip we reserved the wedding date. Then we booked our rooms. We decided to use a travel agent to book our trip and a few of our guests have used her too. It didn't make sense for us to do a block of rooms because the discount rates they quoted us weren't very good (only $10-20 cheaper than the listed rate) and we weren't sure how long people would want to stay. I think that was one of the best decisions we've made yet.

 

Since we were able to watch a couple of other ceremonies while we were there we made the decision to have our ceremony in the gazebo. It's more private. The beach can be pretty crowded, especially if you're planning for an earlier ceremony. We're doing the cocktail hour on the patio/garden adjacent to the gazebo and then the reception on the beach. We figured most of the beach traffic would clear out by 6:00 or 7:00.  One other thing, the beachside by pelicanos  is right next to the pier. So you could have a lot of traffic walking by if a ferry is returning. That's a pretty busy area.  Remember, the beaches are public, so there could be lots of people hanging around.

 

I thought the ballrooms were really nice. Much nicer than what I was expecting. If we got rained out I wouldn't be totally devastated. And depending on the time of year it could be much more comfortable inside. It gets pretty hot down there during the summer. Another option is the garden. It's a pretty big space and I've seen it set up and it looks really nice. My only issue with the garden was privacy. It's right in the middle of the resort, so there's not much privacy.

 

I hope this helps. Sorry I can't answer the rest of your questions.  Good luck with the planning!

 

 

[ReidCapote]

Heidi, I found a picture of the ballroom set up for a reception. It looks really nice!

 http://assets.bestdestinationwedding.com/c/c0/c06e4d10_Dan_Ana_Wedding-0631.jpg 

[ReidCapote]

Does anyone have pictures of the lounge furniture that the Royal provides? I've seen pics from outside vendors and their stuff is beautiful, but I can't afford to pay over $1,000. The hotel's lounge furniture is much cheaper, but I'm afraid this is one of those situations where you get what you pay for. Has anyone used it or seen it? Is it nice?  Thanks!

[ChicagoBride2011]

 

 

Originally Posted by ReidCapote 

 

Does anyone have pictures of the lounge furniture that the Royal provides? I've seen pics from outside vendors and their stuff is beautiful, but I can't afford to pay over $1,000. The hotel's lounge furniture is much cheaper, but I'm afraid this is one of those situations where you get what you pay for. Has anyone used it or seen it? Is it nice?  Thanks!

 

I briefly saw their lounge furniture when I was at my site visit, it wasn't set-up yet so it was hard to tell how it looked.   I'm going to contact an outside company and compare prices. 

 

[jenniferkuhr]

Hello Royal Ladies!!!

 

It's been a while since I posted anything, but that was when I was "unofficial."  We put our deposit down today and I am getting married at the Royal on Saturday, April 2nd!!!  I am SO excited!!!  My only hope, dream and prayer is that the Capilla Nuestra Senora is free for us to have the ceremony there. It is the cutest chapel near the resort and I can just picture it all in my head.  I want a mariachi band to lead us from the ceremony to the reception.  Then a beach celebration it is!!!

 

Now I'm researching photographers.  Man, are they expensive or what?!?!  I'm looking into Sasha Gluck or Cecilia Dumas.  They are in the mid-range.  If I can figure out a way to win the lottery then I might have DelSol do our wedding. I'm trying to find someone who will do a combination of photojournalism and portraits, as well as include some other things like prints, online prints you can order yourself, albums, a TTD session...not sure.

 

Anyone else have their photographer booked and some convincing rationale as to why (besides the fact that its either Elizabeth Medina or DelSol, who we know now are both amazing)? 

 

[jamk32179]

 

 

Originally Posted by msglave 

 

LOL! I know the feeling. I had such a head start but I feel like I'm behind now. I'm done with all of my coursework but really need to finish my dissertation within the next month. I need to do invitations, playlist, checklist, menus, welcome books, decide on meals, centerpieces, order chair sashes etc. etc. etc. And did I say that my FI has yet to get clothes together for the groomsmen? I need to help him with that. On a lighter note, I have been doing tons of internet shopping! LOL! I need to work out everyday too. I bought my wedding dress one size too small. Can you say uhhh ohhhhh???

LOL!!! Oh ya, I forgot the working out, playlist, OOT bags...blah blah blah. Luckily my dress is a corsett easy alterations :-). We aren't doing a wedding party, but my fiance still needs shoes which he doesn't seem too worried about. I, on the other hand just wish it could all be done with!

 

 

[jamk32179]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jenniferkuhr 

Anyone else have their photographer booked and some convincing rationale as to why (besides the fact that its either Elizabeth Medina or DelSol, who we know now are both amazing)? 

 

I booked one of Claudia Rodriguez's associates, Citalli Rico for my photography. I gathered a few quotes from other photographers, put together a comparison spreadsheet and went from there. Honestly, the pricing was similar for the majority of them and after looking at 100s of pictures I came down to the conclusion they were all amazing and talented. I chose Claudia's team because of the prompt replys, information and the number of printed photos included in the package. As my mom pointed out, having prints made is usually the expensive part and I should look into someone who included prints. So ultimately, that is how I made my decision. Hope this helps!
 

[jenniferkuhr]

Yes!  Very helpful!  I agree with what you said about the prints.  Some lessons I learned from my sisters wedding "photographer phiasco":

 

1.)  Get an album made!  She still has a box full of proofs sitting in her closet.  The photographer was so expensive she had no $$$ left over for one of their albums!  (either that, or they didn't make them, I forgot)

 

2.)  Ask for a few formal portraits with the bridal party and family.  Some photographers are all about "capturing the moment" and their "photojournalist style" that they can't be bothered to do a few portraits.  My sister is STILL hearing from my mom about that (remember, our parents are from a different generation, there were no "photojournalist" weddings, or TTD sessions...)  You WILL want a few portraits!

 

3.)  Be bold and have the conversation about what the photographer will wear to your day.  One of her photographers was in a mini skirt and flashed everyone at the wedding while perched on the alter taking pictures!

 

Suffice it to say, I'm trying to be picky, but reasonable.  It's helpful to know what you want included in the price.

 

Hope this was helpful...

[prettypigpig]

Hi Heidi,

 

 

the beachside at pelicanos is bigger and wider, because the pier sort of protected it from erosion, but it is less private.  There are people walking around there all the time to goto the beach or catch the Ferry...etc.  The gazebo beach is smaller/ narrower, but it is a bit more private.beacau

 

I booked the wedding date before booking the rooms, and didn't negociate for any discount, as I will get a flight+ hotel pacakge from a Canadian tour operator anyway.

 

Like other brides, I will bring my own decorations, because I don't wanna pay $100+ for a centrepiece and $3 for a color sash...not to mention, I don't think any of the guest would care about the centrepiece and the color of the chair sash..as long as the food is good and the wine keeps coming!

[giraffexx]

does anyone know where to find your subscribed threads on the new site?