Site visit to Hilton and Dreams

[sandyroo]

I just returned from a site visit to see both Dreams and the Hilton. Here's my take on each resort...

 

Dreams is very much what it looks like from its photos. One of the things I liked was the very airy and open feeling in the lobby areas. For my group, of approximately 30-50 people, we would probably use the gazebo for the ceremony, then do a cocktail hour right next to the gazebo, under the patio. One of the things I liked about the gazebo set up was that the bridal party procession would come out from the restaurant which is a short walk from the gazebo. If the weather is as hot as it was while we did the site visit, the short walk would be a big plus. Oceana Terrace looked like a great place for a reception. By the way, the renovated rooms look fantastic! The color palatte is very neutral and calming.

 

Hilton also looked as I had expected. It was more Americanized than Dreams. Dreams had a little more of a uniqueness to it. However, the Hilton has just renovated their rooms, and has given them a Mexican ambiance. The renovation was top notch. Our ceremony would be on the beach, but there is a very long path down to the beach. If it gets real hot, I'd probably melt walking all that way. But Emeline, the absolutely fabulous wedding coordinator at the Hilton, said they could send you down to the beach via a golf cart and walk from there. Might be a good option if it's a scorcher.

 

I'm still trying to decide between the two resorts. I think both have a lot of pluses to them. Emeline has been super responsive, however, I am still waiting to get availability and pricing from Dreams.

 

Just one more thing. I met with Maye Cortines, a wedding coordinator, while I was there, and she was absolutely wonderful. I am still debating whether or not we need an outside coordinator, but I definitely recommend meeting with her if you are interested in one. If we do decide to go with a coordinator, we'll go with her. On extremely short notice, she made some time to meet up with us to take us to visit the two hotels. Since Yesica, the wedding coordinator at Dreams, was unable to meet us at our scheduled appointment time, Maye showed us around most of the resort. Yesica did meet up with us later. Maye seemed to have a very good relationship with the wedding coordinators at both hotels.

 

Anyways, I hope this helps anyone who is looking at either of these resorts.

[jak27]

Great info, thanks for the reviews! Let us know what you decide to do!

[CourtneyV]

Sabina, I believe she's talking about Dreams/Hilton Los Cabos.

 

Thanks for the review. It's always nice to hear good things about your chosen resort!! lol, a bad review just puts a pit in your stomach!! Do you have pictures from your visits?

 

Did you meet with anyone else while you were there? A few people on this forum have met with Maye and love her. She's also a newly joined member on this forum. Honestly, if you think you might need her help, she might be worth the $$. However, I've heard (as per Sarah's awesome review) that Mariana at dreams is amazing and she didn't use another WC. Which brings me to the next thing: I'm surprised at the poor response you've gotten from Dreams. I've always had people e-mail me almost right away, what e-mail address did you send to? I think if you go to the weddings packages and you request information, you get a response back from Yesica or Mariana.. you might want to try that route.

[Clussy75]

Because of Sarah's write up on her wedding experience and how she heard a couple other newlyweds had a few disastrous results with Yessica as their WC (Dreams) I consulted with Tammy (host) and she talked to Mariana about switching up with Yessica for our wedding and thank goodness she did because since I've been put in touch with Mariana, not only has she provided me with immediate answers to any of my inquiries but is very patient and provides pictures and her opinions as well. That being said, I'd suggest going through the site to book or inquire about your date at Dreams and then call to follow up as soon as you get a chance and ask to speak to Mariana.

 

Glad to read about your good review on Dreams though (especially since I've never been and we picked the resort based on lots of glowing reviews and gorgeous pictures, as well as them having our wedding date available).

[Jolene]

Thank you so much for the info. Reviews are sooo helpful. Everyone is wonderful on this site!! I think I would have many panic days without the shared info.

[sandyroo]

Hey girls. Yes, I am talking about the Dreams in Cabo. I will post pics soon, as soon as I get them uploaded and figure out how to post them. I took photos of both renovated rooms and pics of the sites at Dreams. I don't think I took that many at the Hilton, just because I was preoccupied with asking questions and stuff.

 

I've been anxiously awaiting the information from Yesica, but who knows, maybe something came up. Emeline at the Hilton, however, e-mailed me back that same day I met with her. Honestly, I am not sure I'll need a wedding coordinator if we choose Hilton, since Emeline seemed really prepared and on the ball. We might still hire Maye though, since I'm sure she'd be helpful for securing the canopy and flowers and such. After my experience though, I won't even consider Dreams, without an outside planner. That's just my opinion. By the way, the e-mail address I have been contacting Yesica by is [email protected]. I'm sure it does depend on who you get. You girls with Mariana will probably be well taken care of. I'm sure you'll be happy with the Dreams resort!

[olisa6]

Yessica is my WC at Dreams and it takes her about 2 days to respond to my e-mails. I figure that there are weddign there every week and they are very busy sitting down with the brides all week long. Plus if I had a question I needed answered right away, I just posted it on this forum and it was answered in about 10 seconds. Thanks girls!! I would have went crazy without any of you:)

[Nrvsbride]

Thank you for posting, this was very helpful.

[gkashmira]

I am getting married at the Hilton but have also hired Maye as my outside coordinator. We have a total of 50 people coming (including us). At first I wasn't sure if this was the right thing to do however I think that by hiring Maye I have saved quite a lot of money. The Hilton is beautiful (which is why we're getting married there!) but it's vendors are generally pretty pricey. In most (though no all) Maye was able to get a much better price for things like flowers, music, photos, etc. What is also great is that she will help you set up other events that may not be at the Hilton. For me she has arranged our "Welcome Dinner" at Baja Cantina including reserving a bus to pick us up and take us there and stop at another hotel where a lot of our friends are staying (Marbella en la playa which is close-by but more affordable).

 

Did Maye take you to meet Emeline? I didn't think that they had worked together before but I had asked many many months ago so they probably have since then. Thanks for your review and let us know what you decide! Maye was actually Tammy-host's wedding coordinator so she's been around here for a long time - though I think she only recently posted up on this forum (it used to be a different one). Emeline is also a member!

[gkashmira]

I think the big decision to make is whether you want an All Inclusinve or not. An AI can be a lot cheaper because food and drinsk are included for your guests. However if you think a lot of people won't be staying there and you have to add the cost of 30 - 50 day passes then it may not be much cheaper. Do you knwo which way you guys are leaning - AI or non?