2011 Iberostar Brides

[nucci]

ok i'm back!

 

the ceremony was amazing.  everything looked great and the minister was so good.  we didn't meet with him before but he looked through our notes and personalized it which was really nice.  honestly i feel like i don't really remember it!!!  almost like i zoned out or something but everyone said it was perfect!  the cocktail hour was set up in the gardens which was also perfect.  we had the mariachi band and cold apps and champagne.  we took a few pics but weren't really there for it cause we went to the beach area to take our pics.  the beach was super windy so we mainly did pics in the surrounding areas.  the reception was awesome!  we had it at the don alfredo which is right outside building 10 and close to the pools and beach.  there was a little drama saturday morning.  on some of the maps it looks like the italian restaurant is located in a different spot so for a few hours we thought they set up everything at the wrong place.  my parents went off!  of course karla wasn't in yet so my dad went all the way to the lobby, which is far, and flipped out!!  whatever everything ended up working out and it was the right place but there was a huge lack of communication about it.  karla's boss ended up coming to the suite to explain everything b/c he knew how upset my dad was.  he said from that point on if we had any questions/concerns to contact him.  he was really nice about it but at the time we were all kind of freaking out.  everything was set up great and looked awesome!  def have your reception there if you can.  there was a nice breeze too.  i mean it was still hot but it was nice to be outside!  all the wait staff was awesome!  they were even dancing at times haha.  we def showed them our appreciation though.  they made out like bandits.  jeff and i tipped them all and so did a lot of our guests.  they were really good and deserved it!  i had the salmon which was delicious and jeff had the steak.  it was good but the salmon was def better.  some people said their steak wasn't great.  we did notice that you have to order things rare/med rare cause they tend to cook the steaks too long but still had a good taste.  we did all our first dances in the beginning after being introduced to kind of get them out of the way.  then we ate and then danced the ENTIRE night.  i was so sweaty hahaha but it was so fun!  dj doremixx brought out balloons and masks and it was soooo fun!!  we cut the cake around 10.  they did a great job on the cake and our bouquets.  i know a few girls didn't give great reviews about the flowers but ours were prefect.  i sent a picture and they duplicated it exactly minus the orchids b/c the price is ridic!  we hired an outside florist to do our centerpieces.  i got the idea and info from tara b/c i loved the way it looked.  ours were just as pretty too!  the reception ended a little after 11 and off the the disco we went!!  i actually wore me dress which was fun but it got so dirty...whatever i'll never wear it again!  

 

after the wedding the next days we just partied it up!!!  seriously we drank and ate all day long either at the pool or beach.  it was so nice not having to worry about anything anymore.  i actually never saw karla after saturday night.  she was very organized for the most part but her availability and communication wasn't that great.  but overall she was really great!  sunday we spent all day at the beach/pool.  sunday night we made reservations at the mediterrean rest.  it was really good!  def make the reservations early cause some people were having lots of issues with that. although they would tell you there are no more reservations but then the restaurant would be half empty.  so really push for them if you want it!  thats another thing i learned.  be strong when you really want something.  we all paid a lot of money to be there and we paid A LOT of extra for the wedding so we should get whatever we want hahaha!!!!  monday night we went to the mexican.  i thought it was good but some people weren't fans of it.  tuesday jeff and i had our couples massage which was awesome!!  so nice and relaxing!!  that night we had our romantic dinner on the beach which was also perfect.  they set up this whole area on the beach and had it decorated with flowers and music.  we had our own waiter who was really nice.  the meal was prob the best i had there.  the only thing was it was SO windy but it made it funny cause everything was blowing over.  our candle blew out at one point and we couldnt see a thing.  also we both had soup all over us from the wind blowing it off the spoon!!!!  after most our guests left we went snorkeling.  def try to do this.  so many fish!!!  ive been snorkeling a bunch of times and this was def one of the best.  we wanted to do so much more but just didnt have time.  we wanted to spend as much time with our guests as possible and i wouldnt change that.  we had SO much fun!

 

some tips:

 

-you dont realize how much you will be tipping so bring lots of $1 and cash for every day tipping like the bell boys, shuttle drivers, etc.  everyone is very helpful!

- i know i was having questions about tipping for the wedding...we tipped the photographers, dj, mariachi band, wait staff, karla, and a few others.  if they did a good job then we tipped which was pretty much everyone

- lobby bar is a good meeting place

- it's A LOT of walking.  the trolley really doesnt run as much as it should so leave enough time if you have appts.  

- try the coconut and nut ice cream...so good!

- the pool and beach buffets are very convienent during the day cause they're so close but the main buffets are def better with more options

- def go to the disco with a big group!!!!!!!!!!

 

all in all everything was prefect!!!!  the ceremony and reception were amazing and everyone kept saying it was the best wedding they've been to.  the resort was so clean and beautiful just a little too big for me, very overwhelming but still gorgeous.  a lot of people have put pics up on my FB: katie iannucci.  if you want to see them just friend me.  also my email is

kathryniannucci@yahoo.com if you have questions.  i know the few girls that answered a lot of my questions and gave me help were life savers!!!  

 

you won't be disappointed...the iberostar is a great choice!

[pitt2011]

Thanks Nucci for all of the great tips!! I love hearing about everyones weddings

[canmaya bride]

Thanks for the great info katie! I took many notes from your review. I also tried to add you as a friend on facebook to see your pics my name is courtney. I am meeting guests in the lobby bar at the lindo every night at 8. What bar would you recommend meeting guests? We have a group of about 45.

 

Has anyone done a slideshow at the reception? I know the hotels dj does not supply a slide show screen or projector and it must be ordered from outside the resort. I believe dj mannia has one but i am not sure if i want to go with him since i want to do lots of speeches/thank yous and if i do a slideshow we would probably only used dj mannia for maybe 2hrs and i know he is 1000. Any recommendations. I am not having a reception back home so this is it.....

 

Thanks ladies

Courtney

[Hannah5611]

Hi Ladies!! I am BACK!! Cannot believe it is OVER   I dont have time right now to write a full review because my emails at work are out of control BUT I wanted to give a couple QUICK tips -

 

1.  I did not hire a professional photographer but the resort company did come and shoot my wedding and still offered me a package - here is a slideshow so you can see their work - the guy that shot my wedding was Hideki and he did an AMAZING job - I didnt even realize he was there...lol!!!   this slideshow is only good for about a week so be sure to take a look if you are interested in the resort photographer

 

http://web.mac.com/vallarta_adventure2/SlideshowsIBELINDO/JASON_&_HANNAH_COMPLETE_SLIDESHOWSHOW/

 

The salon at the hotel did the BEST job on my hair and makeup and I do not think I could have been happier with the job they did - they were worth all $198   and I did a spa day and the spa is AMAZING

 

Also, the Lindo lobby bar is probably an ok meeting point, but I recommend the snake bar at the Maya lobby.....I will write about all the details later - the wedding was WONDERFUL but I did have issues with the resort ...if anyone wants to find me on facebook I have TONS of photos up....Hannah Hamstra or let me know your name and I will try to find you

 

Hannah

 

ps - review coming soon

 

 

[pitt2011]

Hi Girls,

 

Just a question about the food at the Del Mar. We are having our reception at the Don Alfredo and have chosen our food from the steakhouse menu. We chose chicken and steak and are now thinking about adding salmon to the menu. Has anyone else had three food options for their guests? If so, was Karla ok with this? I emailed her last week and she hasn't responded yet and am getting a little worried. My wedding is in July and we need to let our invitation guy know the food choices so he can put them on the response cards. I guess I am looking for advice about food and want to hear some other girls stores. Any help will be greatly appreciated!!!

[Hanna20]

Hi there!

 

We had our reception there as well in April and Karla allowed us to give our guests 2 choices (we chose the chicken & beef too)..... I don't think they will let you have 3 but it's worth asking... That restaurant is a great venue, you will love it!
 

Originally Posted by pitt2011 

Hi Girls,

 

Just a question about the food at the Del Mar. We are having our reception at the Don Alfredo and have chosen our food from the steakhouse menu. We chose chicken and steak and are now thinking about adding salmon to the menu. Has anyone else had three food options for their guests? If so, was Karla ok with this? I emailed her last week and she hasn't responded yet and am getting a little worried. My wedding is in July and we need to let our invitation guy know the food choices so he can put them on the response cards. I guess I am looking for advice about food and want to hear some other girls stores. Any help will be greatly appreciated!!!

 

[Lindo626]

Ok! This sounds like a really stupid question but I have 2 14 year girls and 1 16 year old brother going with us to stay at the Lindo so I was wondering about the night activities we could do as a group. I know they can not get in to the Disco but is there like outside bar/hanging out areas. I hope this makes sense!

 

[Hannah5611]

They are allowed everywhere except the disco ....they can still go to all the lobby bars....and they are allowed at all the shows....the night shows are a good place for all ages...the adults can sit around and have drinks, and it is something for the kids to watch too!  they have really good shows...my group went to the back (of the seating area) every night and pulled a bunch of tables and chair together for whoever wanted to join, but honestly, a lot of people went to bed early...the sun drains you - and we drank all day long..lol

 

the kids can participate in the games by the pool everyday (I even did...and won a free massage)  but I would say that the night shows are the best thing to do as a group with younger ones...the main show starts at  like 9:30pm....there is a different theme show every night - some are REALLY good...

 

the disco doesnt even open till 11pm and if you do go, there is a little diner (50s style...so cute) that is right down from the disco - it is open from like 7pm-3am and they have the BEST burgers!!  great for drunk munchies!!

 

I forgot you are one of the few girls that is having your wedding at the Lindo...the resort itself is awesome, but they are very strict about everything like the other girls said - we couldnt even put our chairs in the water on the little ledge thing - like every other resort lets you do..boo whoo..

 

 

 

Originally Posted by Lindo626 

Ok! This sounds like a really stupid question but I have 2 14 year girls and 1 16 year old brother going with us to stay at the Lindo so I was wondering about the night activities we could do as a group. I know they can not get in to the Disco but is there like outside bar/hanging out areas. I hope this makes sense!

 

 

[Hannah5611]

So I wanted to post this JUST as a heads up - I do not want to scare anyone, and the resort is great, but we did have a BIG issue so be careful...

 

I was warned about this and hoped that it wouldnt happen to us  - my brother had $300 stollen right out of his safe - I had been warned by 2 other brides there that had the same thing happen in the last 2 years but I had hoped it would be different - I dont think that this is because it was MEXICO - it could happen anywhere BUT the one thing that I was warned about even more was what really upset me - the WAY the resort handled it was HORRIBLE!!!  I am STILL dealing with them...well, I am trying to deal with them and getting NO response....there was so much lying on their part (which they were caught up in) and then they just avoided us, then they started harrassing my brother and staging incidents outside his room and taking pictures saying he did it (and he would have been with us all day) - I am so dissapointed in them that it will definately be my LAST stay with Iberostar....I tried not to let it ruin my trip, but it definately put a damper on things...

 

Just be careful....I only let them clean my room like twice when I was there - you can get extra towels and whatever you need from concierge...and dont let room service in your room, and just make sure you have everything accounted for every night...

 

Like I said, I personally know 2 other girls that were married at this resort, and ironically BOTH had told me to be careful because they (or their guests) had experienced stuff getting stolen out of the safe (there is a master code)...they said it could happen anywhere but the resort handled it so poorly...and that is the same thing I want to warn all of you about - everything else was PERFECT so just dont take a lot of cash...the atm fee was only like $3...or valuables...

 

Good luck everyone and here are a couple pics of my big day

 

 

 

 

 

!!!

[Hannah5611]