Valentin Imperial Maya Brides?

[JBean]

Hi Ali!  Thanks so much for all that information! For a bride who's never been there and planning "blind", it's really nice to hear all those details!!

 

Did you see any other spots that would be nice for the ceremony? We don't really want to get married on the sand, so we were thinking the gazebo, but I'm thinking that might be needed for cocktail hour. Any suggestions? Are there any nice "garden" spots? 

 

Thanks!! And welcome to BDW!

[Ali2420]

Hey JBean! The chapel is also gorgeous, but when we asked about it, Ana said it was only for a catholic ceremony. However, we were also told that it was our Plan B in event of rain. The gazebo is really nice, it's in a garden area. I think that the beach, chapel and gazebo are pretty much their main options for the ceremony. There are other options for the cocktail party if you choose the gazebo for the ceremony. There is this really elegant tea room (indoors), which is also our Plan B for the cocktail party in the event of rain. You could definitely do that after getting married in the gazebo. 

 

The biggest take-away was-- don't worry about it, they've got everything covered! Phew!

 

Congrats to you! I'll be sure to post a full review when we return, which will hopefully be helpful for you since you're getting married a couple weeks after us. Below is a sort-of far away shot of the gazebo.

Cheers!

Originally Posted by JBean 

Hi Ali!  Thanks so much for all that information! For a bride who's never been there and planning "blind", it's really nice to hear all those details!!

 

Did you see any other spots that would be nice for the ceremony? We don't really want to get married on the sand, so we were thinking the gazebo, but I'm thinking that might be needed for cocktail hour. Any suggestions? Are there any nice "garden" spots? 

 

Thanks!! And welcome to BDW!

 

[NikkiT1021]

Hi Ali!  I'm getting married the day before you at VIM on October 21st!!!  SO EXCITING!! 

Thank you so much for the wonderful review!  My FI and I have visited Valentin in the past but this was prior to our engagement so we weren't really looking at any of the wedding details.  However, we did "crash" a party at the fountain area when we were there and it was incredible! Therefore, the only thing I'm bridezilla about is having the 50 people to have our reception in that area! lol

Anyway, I'm hoping to coordinate with you throughout the next few months!  It's nice to know someone from BDW will be there at the same time as us!

 

~Nicole

 

Originally Posted by Ali2420 

Hi everyone! I'm new to this forum. Getting married at Valentin Imperial Maya on October 22, 2011! 

 

I wanted to introduce myself to the group. My name is Ali and I'm from Atlanta.

 

My fiance and I just got back from our site visit and everything exceeded our expectations. The only thing I was bummed about is that they would not comp. us a room even for one night. So, we hotwired a room in Cancun (so glad we're not getting married in Cancun).

 

Veronica will be our coordinator, but we were given a tour by Ana. She answered every question that I had. The resort itself is gorgeous. Very traditional mexican hacienda style. The walkways and gardens make for an excellent setting. We chose the Unforgettable Package and are getting married on the beach, cocktail hour in the gazebo and our reception on the Mexican fountain patio. We've got 42 guests booked so far and am hoping to get to 45 to do the patio area.

 

The beach is absolutely incredible and very private. It's quite a bit windy and Ana said they don't recommend a vail for the ceremony. I'm planning on having my hair done back with some flowers too, so that its not blowing in my face the whole time. You can pay extra for the wood structure thing to get married under, but the beach is beautiful enough in my opinion. The gazebo is also a lovely location. We decided to have our cocktail party there. The fountain patio is awesome. It's really set off from the rest of the resort and creates a lot of privacy. It's basically a circle with four pie pieces that have small fountains in them. They will turn off two of them, have six tables of seven or eight set up in one pie piece, and the other pie piece will have the dance floor and speakers. We are very particular about our music, so we decided to forgo the DJ in favor of a number of different playlists. The reception will be from 6-10. 

 

We are not doing a special rehearsal dinner, figuring we could all go to a restaurant the night before. Ana said that would be fine, but the best places to do that are the Mexican restaurant or the Indonesian place at either 6pm or 9pm to beat the crowds.

 

The plan B in the event of rain is ceremony in the chapel, cocktail party in the tea room, and reception at the Mexican restaurant, which they will close for us the day of. It can be a game time decision the day of the ceremony. I was particularly impressed by this. Ana has been there for 2 years and does this every weekend, so we were comforted by her experience level.

 

When I returned from my trip, Veronica emailed me a summary of all of the things Ana and I talked about and my selections. All in all, they were extremely professional and put my mind at ease. I definitely think that part of the reason for having a destination wedding is that you don't have to sweat all the details. I've heard some horror stories where people have said that is not true, but VIM really made me feel that that will definitely be the case.

 

I appreciate all of your contributions-- they have been so helpful! I'll be keeping you all posted on the process. Message me if you want to see the pics from our site visit.

 

 

 

[MrsAlmaguer2011]

Thanks for the awesome review! I too have been planning blind. It makes me nervous and I am probably more stressed than I should be! Please post more pictures if you can!

 

Thanks again!
 

Originally Posted by Ali2420 

Hi everyone! I'm new to this forum. Getting married at Valentin Imperial Maya on October 22, 2011! 

 

I wanted to introduce myself to the group. My name is Ali and I'm from Atlanta.

 

My fiance and I just got back from our site visit and everything exceeded our expectations. The only thing I was bummed about is that they would not comp. us a room even for one night. So, we hotwired a room in Cancun (so glad we're not getting married in Cancun).

 

Veronica will be our coordinator, but we were given a tour by Ana. She answered every question that I had. The resort itself is gorgeous. Very traditional mexican hacienda style. The walkways and gardens make for an excellent setting. We chose the Unforgettable Package and are getting married on the beach, cocktail hour in the gazebo and our reception on the Mexican fountain patio. We've got 42 guests booked so far and am hoping to get to 45 to do the patio area.

 

The beach is absolutely incredible and very private. It's quite a bit windy and Ana said they don't recommend a vail for the ceremony. I'm planning on having my hair done back with some flowers too, so that its not blowing in my face the whole time. You can pay extra for the wood structure thing to get married under, but the beach is beautiful enough in my opinion. The gazebo is also a lovely location. We decided to have our cocktail party there. The fountain patio is awesome. It's really set off from the rest of the resort and creates a lot of privacy. It's basically a circle with four pie pieces that have small fountains in them. They will turn off two of them, have six tables of seven or eight set up in one pie piece, and the other pie piece will have the dance floor and speakers. We are very particular about our music, so we decided to forgo the DJ in favor of a number of different playlists. The reception will be from 6-10. 

 

We are not doing a special rehearsal dinner, figuring we could all go to a restaurant the night before. Ana said that would be fine, but the best places to do that are the Mexican restaurant or the Indonesian place at either 6pm or 9pm to beat the crowds.

 

The plan B in the event of rain is ceremony in the chapel, cocktail party in the tea room, and reception at the Mexican restaurant, which they will close for us the day of. It can be a game time decision the day of the ceremony. I was particularly impressed by this. Ana has been there for 2 years and does this every weekend, so we were comforted by her experience level.

 

When I returned from my trip, Veronica emailed me a summary of all of the things Ana and I talked about and my selections. All in all, they were extremely professional and put my mind at ease. I definitely think that part of the reason for having a destination wedding is that you don't have to sweat all the details. I've heard some horror stories where people have said that is not true, but VIM really made me feel that that will definitely be the case.

 

I appreciate all of your contributions-- they have been so helpful! I'll be keeping you all posted on the process. Message me if you want to see the pics from our site visit.

 

 

 

 

[Ali2420]

Nicole-

Forgot to mention that Ana said if we had 45 people, we could do the patio. I'm at 41 right now and working on getting those extra 4 to make it too! 

Looking forward to talking with you in the next couple months as well!

 

Everyone- here are some more pics - (1) beach wedding site (2) beach "aisle" (3) chapel (Plan (4) fountain patio

 

Originally Posted by NikkiT1021 

Hi Ali!  I'm getting married the day before you at VIM on October 21st!!!  SO EXCITING!! 

Thank you so much for the wonderful review!  My FI and I have visited Valentin in the past but this was prior to our engagement so we weren't really looking at any of the wedding details.  However, we did "crash" a party at the fountain area when we were there and it was incredible! Therefore, the only thing I'm bridezilla about is having the 50 people to have our reception in that area! lol

Anyway, I'm hoping to coordinate with you throughout the next few months!  It's nice to know someone from BDW will be there at the same time as us!

 

~Nicole

 

 

 

[JBean]

Ali, thanks SO MUCH for that advice. I think we have settled on the gazebo for the ceremony. I'm going to relax about it now! I can't wait to see your wedding and read your review in a few months.

[futurMrsQuigley]

Your review was very helpful Ali!!  I am getting married December 9th 2011.  I am looking forward to seeing how everything goes for you!!  I am one of the many that is planning blind.  I did have one question for you.  Just curious what you were doing as far as photography???  I am also doing the unforgettable package and I know it includes some photos.  Did you get any details on that while you were there??  I have 42 guests...working on 45 : )  I have Veronica as well.  She has been really prompt on getting back to me through e-mail which is nice.  Did you have any pictures of the other restuarants?  She gave us options for our reception/dinner at the lobster pot or the mexican place.  Just curious.  She had sent me photos but the quality was a bit lacking.  I really appreciate all you helpful info!!!!! 
Jamie
 

Originally Posted by Ali2420 

Hi everyone! I'm new to this forum. Getting married at Valentin Imperial Maya on October 22, 2011! 

 

I wanted to introduce myself to the group. My name is Ali and I'm from Atlanta.

 

My fiance and I just got back from our site visit and everything exceeded our expectations. The only thing I was bummed about is that they would not comp. us a room even for one night. So, we hotwired a room in Cancun (so glad we're not getting married in Cancun).

 

Veronica will be our coordinator, but we were given a tour by Ana. She answered every question that I had. The resort itself is gorgeous. Very traditional mexican hacienda style. The walkways and gardens make for an excellent setting. We chose the Unforgettable Package and are getting married on the beach, cocktail hour in the gazebo and our reception on the Mexican fountain patio. We've got 42 guests booked so far and am hoping to get to 45 to do the patio area.

 

The beach is absolutely incredible and very private. It's quite a bit windy and Ana said they don't recommend a vail for the ceremony. I'm planning on having my hair done back with some flowers too, so that its not blowing in my face the whole time. You can pay extra for the wood structure thing to get married under, but the beach is beautiful enough in my opinion. The gazebo is also a lovely location. We decided to have our cocktail party there. The fountain patio is awesome. It's really set off from the rest of the resort and creates a lot of privacy. It's basically a circle with four pie pieces that have small fountains in them. They will turn off two of them, have six tables of seven or eight set up in one pie piece, and the other pie piece will have the dance floor and speakers. We are very particular about our music, so we decided to forgo the DJ in favor of a number of different playlists. The reception will be from 6-10. 

 

We are not doing a special rehearsal dinner, figuring we could all go to a restaurant the night before. Ana said that would be fine, but the best places to do that are the Mexican restaurant or the Indonesian place at either 6pm or 9pm to beat the crowds.

 

The plan B in the event of rain is ceremony in the chapel, cocktail party in the tea room, and reception at the Mexican restaurant, which they will close for us the day of. It can be a game time decision the day of the ceremony. I was particularly impressed by this. Ana has been there for 2 years and does this every weekend, so we were comforted by her experience level.

 

When I returned from my trip, Veronica emailed me a summary of all of the things Ana and I talked about and my selections. All in all, they were extremely professional and put my mind at ease. I definitely think that part of the reason for having a destination wedding is that you don't have to sweat all the details. I've heard some horror stories where people have said that is not true, but VIM really made me feel that that will definitely be the case.

 

I appreciate all of your contributions-- they have been so helpful! I'll be keeping you all posted on the process. Message me if you want to see the pics from our site visit.

 

 

 

[cvan8765]

That you for the detailed review Ali, it is so helpful!  It gets me so excited for my wedding in November!!

[heidilynn28]

Hi everybody,

 

Well, I leave tomorrow! I have been in contact with Ariadna this past week.. she's confirmed everything for me, they're making the cake I want, we have a plan B because the weather is terrible down there right now (lots of rain, showers, thundershowers....).

 

We are supposed to have the ceremony at the gazebo, cocktail outside the bar hallway and then our reception outside on the mexican terrace but if it rains, we will have our ceremony in the chapel, cocktail in the el cafe bar and our reception in Le Marché restaurant (private).

 

I'm really not stressed for the rain, except for our pictures.. but what can you do!!!?

 

I will take pictures of everything and post a review and planning thread when I get back.. no time today... I still have to assemble my fan ceremony programs, menus, guestbook card and finish packing!!!

 

Have a great weekend and I'll keep in touch when it's all over!

[NikkiT1021]

Have great time!!!! I'm sure even with the weather, the pictures will be beautiful and your wedding will be amazing! Cant wait to hear all about it and see your planning thread!! Enjoy!