Beaches ~ Turks & Caicos Roll Call!

[Kendall]

Thanks, Misti!  I'm looking forward to your review.  So sorry to hear about your luggage.  Congrats to you and your new hubby!

[urmysunshine]

Congrats Misti!  Thanks for the heads up about AA!
 

Originally Posted by mistibuard 

Hi Ladies,

 

I've just returned from the resort, and I will begin working on my review shortly (I know you guys love pictures and I am waiting on my guests to send me a few from the ceremony so I can share them with you all).

 

However, I will try to address your concerns- so just put a message on here and I will reply as soon as I can. As far as the rooms in the French Village and the Caribbean Village, in my opinion the biggest difference would be the tv. I stayed in a Honeymoon Suite in the French Village and we had a 46 inch flat screen versus one of our guests stayed in the Caribbean Village and they had a tube as the tv. Other than that, everything was pretty much the same in my opinion. As far as the musty smell in the French Village, I didn't smell anything and my guest didn't complain either. (Oh yeah, and a ton of mosquitoes in the Caribbean Village- lol! I spent the night before the wedding in my parents room in the Caribbean Village and I woke up with 14 bites--4 of them on my face!! Lol)

 

Personally, if we return to Beaches I'd stay in the Caribbean Village because it is closer to everything--beach, central location for restaurants, etc.

 

Just a piece of information while it's on my mind. Someone said on this thread before, everything will NOT go as planned. So try your best to prepare for the unexpected. For example, we arrived last Wednesday on an American Airlines flight...I've returned to Houston and I have yet to receive our most important piece of luggage with ALL of our wedding items, etc. The suitcase never arrived to Turks and AA can not find our luggage. Originally I did not freak out, but by Thursday evening- Friday morning.....I was a mess. My bridal jewelry is in that luggage, items for our guests, my husbands things that he needed for the ceremony, etc. With that said, we truly had to improvise. Seriously. It really felt like it was going to be a disaster, but we truly made it work...and it turned out to be a beautiful day even though we NEVER received our luggage.

 

With that said, girls try your best to take all of your necessary items for the wedding in a carry on bag. It will save you a lot of heartache. Also, if you can avoid it- DO NOT FLY WITH AMERICAN AIRLINES! There were so many of us (staying at various resorts on Grace Bay) that flew American Airlines and did not receive our luggage. I can go on and on about them..but I'll hush.

 

Anyway, as soon as I get some pictures I will post the review. Oh yeah, Ileana with Tropical Imaging truly made us forget about our lost luggage when we met with her Friday and while we took pictures Saturday. You HAVE to book her! We got a chance to meet her parents and we truly had a great time!

 

[mrssylvester2b]

Hello! We are getting married (finally lol) August 10, 2011 at 4pm (as of right now) at Beaches T&C! I've been lurking for a couple of weeks now and this site is amazing! It's just going to be me, him, and daughter but it is fun to read about everyones planning!!

[SophiaandTJ]

Thanks so much, Misti, for your advice! I will take the luggage issue into consideration when packing my carry-on bag.  The advice about the Carribean Village was very helpful also.  I was a little reluctant to stay there, but I feel more confident now.  Congratulations on your wedding!  I can't wait to read your review!

[SophiaandTJ]

Hi Mrssylvester2b and welcome!  I will be getting married on June 2, 2011 (ur not far behind).  I am planning a small ceremony also  with only 6 guests.  I was very excited when I found this site also; Isn't it wonderful to communicate with others who are experiencing the same process as you?

[mistibuard]

American Airlines (F)

 

If I could possibly give them a grade lower than a F I would…lol!  We were gone for a full week and returned last night and AA still can’t find our luggage. Everything I needed for the wedding was in that luggage- earrings, bracelet, make-up, clothes, undergarments, TTD attire, etc.

I will definitely reiterate what I said earlier, girls try to pack all things needed for your ceremony in a carry on bag.

Oh yeah, on the flight from Houston to Miami there was another bride in line waiting. I literally saw her and ran to the front to make sure there was room for my dress to hang in the captain’s closet. Quite funny when I think about it. On the connecting flight from Miami to Turks I had my own overhead bin with my dress and my husband’s suit.

 

Customs (A)

 

Customs was very simple. Our flight landed before the US Airways flight and everything went smoothly.

 

Shuttle Service to Beaches (A-)

 

Because we couldn’t find our bag, we had to wait a little longer for the next shuttle to Beaches, but it was fine. The ride is literally 10-12 minutes from the airport.

 

Check-in (A)

 

Our flight landed at 12:20pm and rooms aren’t usually ready until 3pm, so we checked in and one of the Beaches reps took us to Guiseppes for lunch. We ate lunch there, walked around the resort, and once we returned to the front desk our room was ready.  Oh yeah, they had cold towels and punch for us. I couldn’t really taste the rum, but I did like the punch.

 

Our Room (A+)

 

We stayed in the Honeymoon King Luxury Room in the French Village. The room was absolutely fine with me. We had a 46 inch screen television, tile floors, king bed, etc.  Truthfully, you do not spend a lot of time in the room, so I wouldn’t worry too much about the room. If we were in our room during the day we were either taking a quick shower before we went to our next event…or we were taking a quick cat nap (which rarely happened). Seriously, when you get to the resort you will truly laugh at what some of the people had to say about the resort on TripAdvisor. Some people just have to have something to complain about I suppose.

 

Pools (A)

 

We went to the Caribbean Village pool (not the one directly behind the lobby) and hung out there one day. It was cool…hardly no kids, quiet, and sunny! We went to the waterpark one day too..lol!

 

Restaurants (B+)

 

I would give all of the restaurants a B+. We ate at every restaurant except Kimono’s and Cricketeers (although my honey did hang out at Cricketeers ALL night the first night).

 

Wedding Planning (A+)

 

Once you arrive to the resort you’ll have a binder in your room with your wedding planner’s information and the meeting time. Our planner was Stacey Ann and she was truly great!! We met with her Thursday at 10am, and went over all of the details of the ceremony—did we have speeches we wanted to say to each other, we read over the wedding scripts, chose the flavor of our wedding cake, gave her our CD for the ceremony and reception, ordered our honeymoon breakfast, etc.

We also set up our wedding dinner at Sapodilla’s which is truly the best restaurant at Beaches.

 

Welcome Dinner (A+)

 

We had our welcome dinner at Schooners—bring something to stay warm! It was kind of windy and the restaurant is right by the beach. It was great. Our guests loved it!

 

Wedding (A++)

 

After making 16 phone calls to American Airlines about our lost bag that we NEVER received, the wedding day still went well. I did my own hair and make-up as planned, but we literally had to go find the items that I needed off of the resort. It was an adventure the morning of the ceremony. I found make-up, earrings, curling irons, etc. Ha! It’s really funny when I look back on it. The couple next door to us in the French Village had gotten married in Jamaica 10 years ago. They were very supportive. They told us that it was our day and not to allow the lost luggage to ruin anything…and we didn’t.

 

My ceremony was at 2pm, and I was the only bride getting married that day!! My honey had to meet with the pastor 15 minutes before the ceremony. Stacey Ann came to my room and picked me and mom up on her golf cart. My mom went to her seat..and then they began playing the music as I walked down the “aisleâ€. The ceremony  was fairly quick, yet very intimate. I have a few pics of me crying. We did do the sand ceremony and we signed our papers. Our cocktail reception was at the area next to the gazebo..so we did our first dance, cut our cake and ate our hor’douerves.

 

 

 

 

Tropical Imaging (A++)

 

We walked to the Veranda Resort at 3pm to meet with Ileana from Tropical Imaging. It was a very windy day, so my hair was flying all over the place..but it was so much fun. We took group shots on the beach and some at the Verandah Resort. Afterward, our guests went back to the resort while we began our adventure with Ileana. I KNOW our pictures will be hot! She showed us a few and we were like “YES!â€.    I can not wait to see our pics!

 

After taking pics with Ileana, we had our wedding dinner at Sapodilla’s which was great!! We had reservations at 7pm, and the atmosphere was perfect for the occasion. We also had the remaining of our wedding cake served at the dinner reception.

 

Red Lane Spa (B+)

 

We reserved the couples massage with Stacey Ann for the day after our wedding. It was very relaxing, and my honey and I both enjoyed it. I think I would’ve enjoyed it more but my mind was racing. I’m not sure about what…but it was.

Off site Activities

 

Froggies ATV Tour (A+)

We did the tour the second day of our trip. We had so much fun!! Froggie picked us up from the French Village and went to the Blue Hills area to his place. We had so much fun on the tour! Wear your sunglasses if you do this tour. Dust was flying everywhere!

 

 

 

 

Conch Shack (A)

We ate at the Conch Shack after we did the ATV Tour. It was cool to see all of the conch shells. We also met another couple from NYC . We talked with them and shared a cab back to the Grace Bay Area. Taxis can be quite expensive out there…but it’s so worth leaving the resort to see the island.

 

Sapodilla Bay (A++)

I think this was my favorite beach. The water was crystal clear and SO quiet…it was so peaceful. You could stay out there forever..literally.

[butterfly913]

Congratulations and the pictures are very beautiful...I'm so happy we not flying from AA... We taking Continential nonstop flight from NJ to Turks but just in case I'm carry on everything we need for the wedding lol

Originally Posted by mistibuard 

American Airlines (F)

 

If I could possibly give them a grade lower than a F I would…lol!  We were gone for a full week and returned last night and AA still can’t find our luggage. Everything I needed for the wedding was in that luggage- earrings, bracelet, make-up, clothes, undergarments, TTD attire, etc.

I will definitely reiterate what I said earlier, girls try to pack all things needed for your ceremony in a carry on bag.

Oh yeah, on the flight from Houston to Miami there was another bride in line waiting. I literally saw her and ran to the front to make sure there was room for my dress to hang in the captain’s closet. Quite funny when I think about it. On the connecting flight from Miami to Turks I had my own overhead bin with my dress and my husband’s suit.

 

Customs (A)

 

Customs was very simple. Our flight landed before the US Airways flight and everything went smoothly.

 

Shuttle Service to Beaches (A-)

 

Because we couldn’t find our bag, we had to wait a little longer for the next shuttle to Beaches, but it was fine. The ride is literally 10-12 minutes from the airport.

 

Check-in (A)

 

Our flight landed at 12:20pm and rooms aren’t usually ready until 3pm, so we checked in and one of the Beaches reps took us to Guiseppes for lunch. We ate lunch there, walked around the resort, and once we returned to the front desk our room was ready.  Oh yeah, they had cold towels and punch for us. I couldn’t really taste the rum, but I did like the punch.

 

Our Room (A+)

 

We stayed in the Honeymoon King Luxury Room in the French Village. The room was absolutely fine with me. We had a 46 inch screen television, tile floors, king bed, etc.  Truthfully, you do not spend a lot of time in the room, so I wouldn’t worry too much about the room. If we were in our room during the day we were either taking a quick shower before we went to our next event…or we were taking a quick cat nap (which rarely happened). Seriously, when you get to the resort you will truly laugh at what some of the people had to say about the resort on TripAdvisor. Some people just have to have something to complain about I suppose.

 

Pools (A)

 

We went to the Caribbean Village pool (not the one directly behind the lobby) and hung out there one day. It was cool…hardly no kids, quiet, and sunny! We went to the waterpark one day too..lol!

 

Restaurants (B+)

 

I would give all of the restaurants a B+. We ate at every restaurant except Kimono’s and Cricketeers (although my honey did hang out at Cricketeers ALL night the first night).

 

Wedding Planning (A+)

 

Once you arrive to the resort you’ll have a binder in your room with your wedding planner’s information and the meeting time. Our planner was Stacey Ann and she was truly great!! We met with her Thursday at 10am, and went over all of the details of the ceremony—did we have speeches we wanted to say to each other, we read over the wedding scripts, chose the flavor of our wedding cake, gave her our CD for the ceremony and reception, ordered our honeymoon breakfast, etc.

We also set up our wedding dinner at Sapodilla’s which is truly the best restaurant at Beaches.

 

Welcome Dinner (A+)

 

We had our welcome dinner at Schooners—bring something to stay warm! It was kind of windy and the restaurant is right by the beach. It was great. Our guests loved it!

 

Wedding (A++)

 

After making 16 phone calls to American Airlines about our lost bag that we NEVER received, the wedding day still went well. I did my own hair and make-up as planned, but we literally had to go find the items that I needed off of the resort. It was an adventure the morning of the ceremony. I found make-up, earrings, curling irons, etc. Ha! It’s really funny when I look back on it. The couple next door to us in the French Village had gotten married in Jamaica 10 years ago. They were very supportive. They told us that it was our day and not to allow the lost luggage to ruin anything…and we didn’t.

 

My ceremony was at 2pm, and I was the only bride getting married that day!! My honey had to meet with the pastor 15 minutes before the ceremony. Stacey Ann came to my room and picked me and mom up on her golf cart. My mom went to her seat..and then they began playing the music as I walked down the “aisleâ€. The ceremony  was fairly quick, yet very intimate. I have a few pics of me crying. We did do the sand ceremony and we signed our papers. Our cocktail reception was at the area next to the gazebo..so we did our first dance, cut our cake and ate our hor’douerves.

 

 

 

 

Tropical Imaging (A++)

 

We walked to the Veranda Resort at 3pm to meet with Ileana from Tropical Imaging. It was a very windy day, so my hair was flying all over the place..but it was so much fun. We took group shots on the beach and some at the Verandah Resort. Afterward, our guests went back to the resort while we began our adventure with Ileana. I KNOW our pictures will be hot! She showed us a few and we were like “YES!â€.    I can not wait to see our pics!

 

After taking pics with Ileana, we had our wedding dinner at Sapodilla’s which was great!! We had reservations at 7pm, and the atmosphere was perfect for the occasion. We also had the remaining of our wedding cake served at the dinner reception.

 

Red Lane Spa (B+)

 

We reserved the couples massage with Stacey Ann for the day after our wedding. It was very relaxing, and my honey and I both enjoyed it. I think I would’ve enjoyed it more but my mind was racing. I’m not sure about what…but it was.

Off site Activities

 

Froggies ATV Tour (A+)

We did the tour the second day of our trip. We had so much fun!! Froggie picked us up from the French Village and went to the Blue Hills area to his place. We had so much fun on the tour! Wear your sunglasses if you do this tour. Dust was flying everywhere!

 

 

 

 

Conch Shack (A)

We ate at the Conch Shack after we did the ATV Tour. It was cool to see all of the conch shells. We also met another couple from NYC . We talked with them and shared a cab back to the Grace Bay Area. Taxis can be quite expensive out there…but it’s so worth leaving the resort to see the island.

 

Sapodilla Bay (A++)

I think this was my favorite beach. The water was crystal clear and SO quiet…it was so peaceful. You could stay out there forever..literally.

 

[butterfly913]

Which gazebo your got married on? From the look of the pictures, it look nice, cool and shaded

Originally Posted by mistibuard 

American Airlines (F)

 

If I could possibly give them a grade lower than a F I would…lol!  We were gone for a full week and returned last night and AA still can’t find our luggage. Everything I needed for the wedding was in that luggage- earrings, bracelet, make-up, clothes, undergarments, TTD attire, etc.

I will definitely reiterate what I said earlier, girls try to pack all things needed for your ceremony in a carry on bag.

Oh yeah, on the flight from Houston to Miami there was another bride in line waiting. I literally saw her and ran to the front to make sure there was room for my dress to hang in the captain’s closet. Quite funny when I think about it. On the connecting flight from Miami to Turks I had my own overhead bin with my dress and my husband’s suit.

 

Customs (A)

 

Customs was very simple. Our flight landed before the US Airways flight and everything went smoothly.

 

Shuttle Service to Beaches (A-)

 

Because we couldn’t find our bag, we had to wait a little longer for the next shuttle to Beaches, but it was fine. The ride is literally 10-12 minutes from the airport.

 

Check-in (A)

 

Our flight landed at 12:20pm and rooms aren’t usually ready until 3pm, so we checked in and one of the Beaches reps took us to Guiseppes for lunch. We ate lunch there, walked around the resort, and once we returned to the front desk our room was ready.  Oh yeah, they had cold towels and punch for us. I couldn’t really taste the rum, but I did like the punch.

 

Our Room (A+)

 

We stayed in the Honeymoon King Luxury Room in the French Village. The room was absolutely fine with me. We had a 46 inch screen television, tile floors, king bed, etc.  Truthfully, you do not spend a lot of time in the room, so I wouldn’t worry too much about the room. If we were in our room during the day we were either taking a quick shower before we went to our next event…or we were taking a quick cat nap (which rarely happened). Seriously, when you get to the resort you will truly laugh at what some of the people had to say about the resort on TripAdvisor. Some people just have to have something to complain about I suppose.

 

Pools (A)

 

We went to the Caribbean Village pool (not the one directly behind the lobby) and hung out there one day. It was cool…hardly no kids, quiet, and sunny! We went to the waterpark one day too..lol!

 

Restaurants (B+)

 

I would give all of the restaurants a B+. We ate at every restaurant except Kimono’s and Cricketeers (although my honey did hang out at Cricketeers ALL night the first night).

 

Wedding Planning (A+)

 

Once you arrive to the resort you’ll have a binder in your room with your wedding planner’s information and the meeting time. Our planner was Stacey Ann and she was truly great!! We met with her Thursday at 10am, and went over all of the details of the ceremony—did we have speeches we wanted to say to each other, we read over the wedding scripts, chose the flavor of our wedding cake, gave her our CD for the ceremony and reception, ordered our honeymoon breakfast, etc.

We also set up our wedding dinner at Sapodilla’s which is truly the best restaurant at Beaches.

 

Welcome Dinner (A+)

 

We had our welcome dinner at Schooners—bring something to stay warm! It was kind of windy and the restaurant is right by the beach. It was great. Our guests loved it!

 

Wedding (A++)

 

After making 16 phone calls to American Airlines about our lost bag that we NEVER received, the wedding day still went well. I did my own hair and make-up as planned, but we literally had to go find the items that I needed off of the resort. It was an adventure the morning of the ceremony. I found make-up, earrings, curling irons, etc. Ha! It’s really funny when I look back on it. The couple next door to us in the French Village had gotten married in Jamaica 10 years ago. They were very supportive. They told us that it was our day and not to allow the lost luggage to ruin anything…and we didn’t.

 

My ceremony was at 2pm, and I was the only bride getting married that day!! My honey had to meet with the pastor 15 minutes before the ceremony. Stacey Ann came to my room and picked me and mom up on her golf cart. My mom went to her seat..and then they began playing the music as I walked down the “aisleâ€. The ceremony  was fairly quick, yet very intimate. I have a few pics of me crying. We did do the sand ceremony and we signed our papers. Our cocktail reception was at the area next to the gazebo..so we did our first dance, cut our cake and ate our hor’douerves.

 

 

 

 

Tropical Imaging (A++)

 

We walked to the Veranda Resort at 3pm to meet with Ileana from Tropical Imaging. It was a very windy day, so my hair was flying all over the place..but it was so much fun. We took group shots on the beach and some at the Verandah Resort. Afterward, our guests went back to the resort while we began our adventure with Ileana. I KNOW our pictures will be hot! She showed us a few and we were like “YES!â€.    I can not wait to see our pics!

 

After taking pics with Ileana, we had our wedding dinner at Sapodilla’s which was great!! We had reservations at 7pm, and the atmosphere was perfect for the occasion. We also had the remaining of our wedding cake served at the dinner reception.

 

Red Lane Spa (B+)

 

We reserved the couples massage with Stacey Ann for the day after our wedding. It was very relaxing, and my honey and I both enjoyed it. I think I would’ve enjoyed it more but my mind was racing. I’m not sure about what…but it was.

Off site Activities

 

Froggies ATV Tour (A+)

We did the tour the second day of our trip. We had so much fun!! Froggie picked us up from the French Village and went to the Blue Hills area to his place. We had so much fun on the tour! Wear your sunglasses if you do this tour. Dust was flying everywhere!

 

 

 

 

Conch Shack (A)

We ate at the Conch Shack after we did the ATV Tour. It was cool to see all of the conch shells. We also met another couple from NYC . We talked with them and shared a cab back to the Grace Bay Area. Taxis can be quite expensive out there…but it’s so worth leaving the resort to see the island.

 

Sapodilla Bay (A++)

I think this was my favorite beach. The water was crystal clear and SO quiet…it was so peaceful. You could stay out there forever..literally.

 

[urmysunshine]

What a great review!  I'm glad that yall still had a wonderful day, even after the loss of all of your wedding items! 

[Kendall]

Awwww, thanks for the review, Misti!  BEAUTIFUL!  You looked absolutely beautiful!  And so happy (despite your luggage being Heaven-only-knows-where!).  So happy for you!