Jamaica Villa or Resort - Prelim ????

luvtoteachlaw · June 11, 2008

From reading many posts in this forum, it does seem that many people have chosen to have their wedding handled by a resort. While I am not opposed to that option, my FI and I have thought that a fully staffed villa would be a very nice opportunity to have our closest family and friends together for a very private and elegant event. We are looking at a max of 30 people.

I have a few preliminary questions:

1. Did anyone look at a villa as an option? Did you opt for the villa - why or why not?

2. Once you have settled on the location, did you use the coordinator at the location, if provided, or did you secure your own "outside" coordinator (like the one from Tropical Weddings)?

3. What types of things did you have accomplished prior to a site visit? Did you have a coordinator assist you with the site visit, or did you set up the site visits on your own with the villa manager or resort staff?

We are looking to make a visit to Jamaica the third week in July and want to maximize our time there. Any suggestions are appreciated!!

Jenn · June 11, 2008

We briefly looked at villas, but thought that it may be cost prohibitive to our guests, and also weren't sure about everyone literally sharing rooms and bathrooms - just a privacy issue. Our guests didn't all know one another, so it may have been a bit awkward at first.

If you are looking for a more intimate feel, check out Coral Cove, which is just outside of Negril - we were married there and it was absolutely perfect A little off the beaten path, but a very cool vibe, and they will do almost anything to make your day perfect! It has a bed and breakfast feel to it, and if you essentially rent the whole place (which we did) its like having a villa, but with everyone having a little more privacy.

luvtoteachlaw · June 11, 2008

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jenn

We briefly looked at villas, but thought that it may be cost prohibitive to our guests, and also weren't sure about everyone literally sharing rooms and bathrooms - just a privacy issue. Our guests didn't all know one another, so it may have been a bit awkward at first.

If you are looking for a more intimate feel, check out Coral Cove, which is just outside of Negril - we were married there and it was absolutely perfect

A little off the beaten path, but a very cool vibe, and they will do almost anything to make your day perfect! It has a bed and breakfast feel to it, and if you essentially rent the whole place (which we did) its like having a villa, but with everyone having a little more privacy.

Jenn - thanks for this info! This looks like a great place . . . how many total guests did you have at the wedding and how long of a stay is required for guests at this property?

Also, what kind of outside vendors did you need to secure for this location?

This may be an option for us to stay at during our site visit next month, so it is helpful to get details on this first-hand!

Jenn · June 12, 2008

Coral Cove was very flexible... They have a policy of a 4 night minimum stay, but told us that if guests needed to, they could do 3 nights. We had a total of 20 guests, but I believe that at full occupancy they can house 26-30. We also negotiated a 10% discount for all of our guests for booking 10 rooms. Anyone who stays 7 days gets a 15% discount.

They have a wedding planner, and they can arrange for everything. We did bring our own photographer, because we wanted pics for the whole weekend - welcome party, a TTD session, and we didn't love the one they usually use. My stepfather is a florist, so we also bought our own flowers in MoBay wholesale. They have a florist in Negril though, and can arrange for anything you want. We also brought some decoarations that I wanted - paper lanterns, starfish, etc.

The owner, Steve, really did everything to make our wedding fantastic! It's a really special place! Let me know if you have any other questions