Jump to content

Gran Caribe Real CHAPEL - Site visit...so upset


Recommended Posts

I have to vent because I'm on the verge of tears! I just came back from a weekend trip to Cancun. I'm getting married in the catholic chapel inside the Gran Caribe Real and I really wish I had done this site visit before I put the deposits and confirmed everything. The chapel is beautiful just as pictured in the photos. However the entrance to the chapel is not what I expected... you have to go through a really loud and super busy lobby just to get to the chapel. The path from the lobby to the chapel is very long with a lot of turns so it's easy for guests to get lost. When I asked the coordinator if there would be signs or a staff member guiding guests, she said no.

 

Then they told me that I only have 30 minutes after the ceremony to take photos. We have to leave after 30 minutes because they have another wedding after mine. When I asked if there was another place to take pictures she said no.

 

The day of my wedding, I have to enter the chapel through stairs that are to the immediate right of the chapel entrance so the walk down the aisle is VERY short. I can't even imagine how I'll get good pictures walking down the aisle because you literally come down the stairs and you are right inside the chapel.

 

The coordinator showed me another way to get in the chapel where the walk would be a little longer. That entrance requires that I go through a kids club where there is a pool with games splashing water. Going through that entrance would mean running a risk of getting wet before arriving in the chapel. I asked if they could stop the water games from splashing out water for just 2 or 3 minutes while I walked through there and they said no.

 

I asked if I could just wait in a kids club room where they have tables and chairs for kids to watch tv and read. I figured I could just hide in there until the guests arrive so that I could have my walk down the long aisle. You guessed it, the answer was no.

 

I'm also having my rehearsal dinner at the Gran Caribe and I asked the coordinator MONTHS ago if I could have it on the beach. She confirmed in writing but during the site visit she couldn't remember confirming the beach so she insisted that the rehearsal dinner was in another location.

 

I had to correct her about my ceremony time FOUR times in a matter of 10 minutes. She kep saying the wedding was at 2pm or 4pm even though we have confirmed that it will be a 3pm. I corrected her and literally 5 minutes later she said the wrong time again.

 

I'm really at my wits end. The most frustrating part is that they are not accomodating or flexible at all. She pushes back on everything I ask for and never provides solutions or alternatives. I've had problems with this resort from the beginning and I just wish I went with my instincts from the beginning.

 

I'm so stressed out because I have no confidence that these people will do a good job on my wedding day. They are not organized at all, the communication has bee horrible and they are making no effort to accomodate me with anything. I spoke to her manager and she's probably worse than the coordinator - a very arrrogant and unpleasant lady.

 

My advice to anyone planning a wedding there is to do a site visit before confirming and get everything in writing. I'm really dissapointed and upset. I had such a pleasant experience with everyone else I'm dealing with in Cancun. I'm having my reception at Le Meridien and I thank God for that decision. The Wedding Planner at Le Meridien is the complete opposite of the one at Gran Caribe. She has been a dream to work with - very professional, organized and pleasant. She is making every effort to ensure I have the wedding of my dreams. The reception place is gorgeous and everything exceeded my expectations in every way.

 

I'm going to try to find a new place for a rehearsal dinner because the fewer events at Gran Caribe the better.

 

Sorry for the rant but I'm on the verge of tears right now.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 32
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

Quote:
Originally Posted by renee1811 View Post
I am so sorry to hear that you are frustrated with your site. My fingers are crossed it all works for the better--maybe she was having an off day?!

Thank you so much for the well wishes - I'm going to need them:)

Unfortunately, I don't think she wasn't having an off day...she's been a flake from the beginning. When I first started planning, it was like pulling teeth to get a response out of her. Then she got a little better but even then she wasn't the most responsive or flexible person in the world.

I'm just going to pray that all goes well the day of.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I was there over Thanksgiving week looking at wedding sites. The Chapel is beautiful and it was what made the decision not to have my wedding there difficult. However, we found the place difficult to deal with as well in regards to even getting an appointment with the wedding coordinator (who ended up sending others to meet with us, so I never met with her). I will say that we did get to see a couple of weddings during our time there and they all looked amazing and everyone looked happy. They seemed to be running very smoothly. So I think everything will work out for the wedding ceremony and you cannot beat the Chapel there - it is gorgeous.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Quote:
Originally Posted by ldyrck16 View Post
I was there over Thanksgiving week looking at wedding sites. The Chapel is beautiful and it was what made the decision not to have my wedding there difficult. However, we found the place difficult to deal with as well in regards to even getting an appointment with the wedding coordinator (who ended up sending others to meet with us, so I never met with her). I will say that we did get to see a couple of weddings during our time there and they all looked amazing and everyone looked happy. They seemed to be running very smoothly. So I think everything will work out for the wedding ceremony and you cannot beat the Chapel there - it is gorgeous.
Thank you for this. It makes me feel a little better to know that someone has actually seen a wedding there. I've had a very hard time finding any reviews about weddings in the chapel. It's good to know that you saw a ceremony that was going well. Did you by any chance take photos? I'm curious to at least see the place decorated. I'm going to try to stay positive.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Quote:
Originally Posted by simba1234 View Post
I have to vent because I'm on the verge of tears! I just came back from a weekend trip to Cancun. I'm getting married in the catholic chapel inside the Gran Caribe Real and I really wish I had done this site visit before I put the deposits and confirmed everything. The chapel is beautiful just as pictured in the photos. However the entrance to the chapel is not what I expected... you have to go through a really loud and super busy lobby just to get to the chapel. The path from the lobby to the chapel is very long with a lot of turns so it's easy for guests to get lost. When I asked the coordinator if there would be signs or a staff member guiding guests, she said no.

Then they told me that I only have 30 minutes after the ceremony to take photos. We have to leave after 30 minutes because they have another wedding after mine. When I asked if there was another place to take pictures she said no.

The day of my wedding, I have to enter the chapel through stairs that are to the immediate right of the chapel entrance so the walk down the aisle is VERY short. I can't even imagine how I'll get good pictures walking down the aisle because you literally come down the stairs and you are right inside the chapel.

The coordinator showed me another way to get in the chapel where the walk would be a little longer. That entrance requires that I go through a kids club where there is a pool with games splashing water. Going through that entrance would mean running a risk of getting wet before arriving in the chapel. I asked if they could stop the water games from splashing out water for just 2 or 3 minutes while I walked through there and they said no.

I asked if I could just wait in a kids club room where they have tables and chairs for kids to watch tv and read. I figured I could just hide in there until the guests arrive so that I could have my walk down the long aisle. You guessed it, the answer was no.

I'm also having my rehearsal dinner at the Gran Caribe and I asked the coordinator MONTHS ago if I could have it on the beach. She confirmed in writing but during the site visit she couldn't remember confirming the beach so she insisted that the rehearsal dinner was in another location.

I had to correct her about my ceremony time FOUR times in a matter of 10 minutes. She kep saying the wedding was at 2pm or 4pm even though we have confirmed that it will be a 3pm. I corrected her and literally 5 minutes later she said the wrong time again.

I'm really at my wits end. The most frustrating part is that they are not accomodating or flexible at all. She pushes back on everything I ask for and never provides solutions or alternatives. I've had problems with this resort from the beginning and I just wish I went with my instincts from the beginning.

I'm so stressed out because I have no confidence that these people will do a good job on my wedding day. They are not organized at all, the communication has bee horrible and they are making no effort to accomodate me with anything. I spoke to her manager and she's probably worse than the coordinator - a very arrrogant and unpleasant lady.

My advice to anyone planning a wedding there is to do a site visit before confirming and get everything in writing. I'm really dissapointed and upset. I had such a pleasant experience with everyone else I'm dealing with in Cancun. I'm having my reception at Le Meridien and I thank God for that decision. The Wedding Planner at Le Meridien is the complete opposite of the one at Gran Caribe. She has been a dream to work with - very professional, organized and pleasant. She is making every effort to ensure I have the wedding of my dreams. The reception place is gorgeous and everything exceeded my expectations in every way.

I'm going to try to find a new place for a rehearsal dinner because the fewer events at Gran Caribe the better.

Sorry for the rant but I'm on the verge of tears right now.

I am soo sorry! I am also getting married at the chapel and i am disappointed that the aisle wont be long.....i wanted a decent length aisle to walk down as well. i can only say that i hope everything works out for us and the photographers are pros and can get great shots anyway.. are u using their photographer? i was thinking of booking an outside photographer
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Quote:
Originally Posted by cublica82 View Post
I am soo sorry! I am also getting married at the chapel and i am disappointed that the aisle wont be long.....i wanted a decent length aisle to walk down as well. i can only say that i hope everything works out for us and the photographers are pros and can get great shots anyway.. are u using their photographer? i was thinking of booking an outside photographer

I'm flying in a photographer from the US. I will have to pay the resort a fee just to bring an outside photograher. She is a really great photographer and a pro so if anyone can pull off good shots it's her. When is your wedding?
Link to comment
Share on other sites

im so sorry for you, you poor thing. my advice is to try not to worry about those thigns, if you can't change them you can't change them. instead try to think about other area's around you can have photos taken, and that kind of thing.

 

im sure your wedding will be fabulous, try not to let it bother you.

 

also, is the hotel owned by a bigger company? it might be worth complainnig to the higher powers that be? maybe?

 

good luck x

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yeah, I thought about elevating it to higher powers but then I'm concerned about how the wedding coordinator might react - she really has the capability of messing up my wedding day if I piss her off enough. I will definetely complain about the poor service to higher powers AFTER the wedding. I have never experienced such bad service in my life.

 

I'm not even so bothered by the actual logistics anymore (i.e. walk down the aisle, etc..). What I'm extremely frustrated and angry about is the treatment I've received and how unhelpful they've been. It's like they just don't care.

 

I've received such personalized service at Le Meridien which is where I'm having my reception, and even at the Gran Melia which is where I blocked room for the guests. Le Meridien & Gran Melia are both top rated resorts and they're client service reflects it. I would never, ever give Gran Caribe Real my business again not even as a guest.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

So sorry to hear about your horrible experience! The chapel is also where I want to have our wedding. Who is your wedding coordiniator? Is there a way to request of a different one?

 

We haven't contact them yet. Since we plan to visit a few places in 1-2 months from now to narrow down the resort. This one has been my top choice, but now that I hear about your experience. I'm worried! They sound so unaccommodating. sad.gif I'm glad you hear that the chapel is still as beautiful as in the pictures though!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.



  • Best Destination Wedding Sponsors



    Facebook Pinterest Google+ Twitter
  • Posts

    • Hi everyone! I have been doing lots of research on various wedding venues all around Mexico, my fiance wants a destination wedding and I am happy to have a wedding wherever so long as the vibe is right and guests are happy!  I have been seriously looking at Cabo Azul and was trying to find potential costs for them, but only found a page about their wedding costs from 2010. Does anyone have any updated information on costs / reviews they would like to share of this venue? Or advice in general, anything helps. Thanks so much, happy wedding planning to all!
    • Hello everyone, I am dreaming of a wedding in Costa Rica and was wondering if I could get any help with venues and wedding planners. I am thinking Tamarindo because a close friend of mine lives there and I've been in town more than a couple of times, she's being helpful but is at a loss when it comes to this subject really so I was wondering if anyone here had recommendations. I am not closed to other town suggestions either, if I happen to find a good place and staff somewhere else. These are the places I have so far, has anyone had any experience with any of them?  Stay In Tamarindo Luxury Villas in Costa Rica Luxury Villas Pinilla Tropical Homes of Costa Rica The Point Luxury Villa Thank you so much for your help!
    • Have you ever considered having a wedding inside a bubble? With the current global situation, many couples are looking for unique and creative ways to celebrate their special day while keeping their guests safe. A wedding inside a bubble could provide a whimsical and intimate setting for your ceremony and reception. Imagine saying your vows surrounded by a beautiful bubble filled with twinkling lights and flowers, creating a magical atmosphere for you and your loved ones to enjoy.
    • Adult only resort or not? Let's discuss the pros and cons of choosing an adult-only resort for your honeymoon. While some couples may appreciate the peace and quiet that comes with an adults-only environment, others may prefer a more family-friendly atmosphere. What are your thoughts on this? Have you had any experiences at adult-only resorts that you'd like to share? Let's hear your opinions and recommendations!
    • When it comes to planning a wedding, one of the most exciting parts is choosing the perfect wedding favours for your guests. These small tokens of appreciation are a great way to thank your loved ones for being a part of your special day and to make them feel appreciated.
  • Topics

×
×
  • Create New...