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[FutureMrzMalone]

 

Originally Posted by 1783lovely 

When you have 10 people booked under wedding party they provided rehearsal dinner for two hours

Originally Posted by FutureMrzMalone 

When you say "wedding party' are you referring to bridesmaid, groomsman etc? If so then what if you don't have a wedding party? I am not having one. I was told that you could use that as your welcome dinner. Is that true?

 

[Chayil]

Hello, 

Thanks stluciabound for the info. I am getting married October 6 at Beaches Negril. I've also got a very small guestlist. I'd be surprised if it hit 15 people but i know for sure there will be 10 of us. So, at this point I have booked the Visions in White package with the half hour reception because I figured that there would be so much to do on the resort that we would really just use that time for congratulations and pictures and stuff.  Still toying with whether i should change that 30 minutes to an hour.  Hoping that we can probably eat together as a group at one of the resort restaurants afterwards. It just didn't make sense to me to pay that extra money for the extra private reception time.  Do you know if reservations were made in advance for the restaurant?

I was intrigued by what you mentioned about the music though. Because I have been trying to come up with my own list of songs I would like to hear.  What did you mean by your friend using a hybrid of a dj?  lol  And, thanks for clarifying that an Ipod can be used. That's awesome. It would be so much easier to just create a playlist instead of worrying about burning a CD although I will probably do both. Did your friend use their own music for the entire time? I was wondering if i was just supposed to put together a few songs for processional, first dance and reception or if i could actually put together several to play until we are done.  I'm excited.....51 days!!!
 

Originally Posted by stluciabound 

Hey ladies! @Future MrzMalone: My friend was working with a pretty limited budget and a fairly small guest list (about 12 or so) and did the BB theme with a one hour reception. She used a hybrid of a dj and their Ipod. It came out great! The h'ourderves (I know I spelled that totally wrong, sorry were very good, they had champagne ready for all of us, the servers/bartenders were excellent and attentive (I think there was almost more of them than us!!). They made everything very personal,included some local Jamaican touches, and provided a microphone for speeches. I really can't say a bad thing about any of it. For her situation I thought the timing was fine, they kept everything flowing but we never felt rushed. We all then went to the fancier of the restaurants and all sat together and had an excellent meal. Depending on the amount of guests you are having and how important it is to you to have your dinner very private, the 2 hour may be the better option. I am sure the 3 hour is very nice,but honestly, with how much fun the resort is I don't know that it would be worth the extra money, unless of course you really had a lot of guests. For our wedding next April I think I am aiming for the 2 hour with a steel drum band (just spoke with another bride who really enjoyed them, and they do play everything current and any requests). I am also going to do the BB theme, but with upgrades such as a flower petal aisle, arch, and paper lanterns, etc. I think it is a lot more economical especially since the other themes are $500 each added table whereas BB is only $100. That way you only pay for what is really important to you and plus you can mix and match. Also, don't let them pressure you into booking ASAP, because they are going to want deposits and payments, which is silly considering it is never too late to add anything, even once you arrive!

 

On a side note,I don't know how many of you had had the opportunity to visit any Sandals or Beaches resorts before, but you are in for a treat. This will be my third trip and I am hooked. From the moment you arrive with a silver platter of champagne and cool wash cloths during check-in, to how special they make you feel at every encounter, you won't want to come home. I know I never do when I am there and am always planning my next trip in my mind before I even leave. I know I mentioned it before, but try to make your way to Rick's Cafe and the Catamaran cruise, they were so awesome! We also did the ziplining, which was a blast. Congrats and good luck to all of you and let me know if you have any other questions!!!

 

[stluciabound]

Hey Ladies!! @ FutureMrzMalone and Chayil.... yes, if you stay 6 or more nights the BB theme is free so long as you stay in a concierge level or higher. I actually just called my friend to double check with her and she said they booked the lowest level "concierge" room and they threw everything in for her.  The resort also does their very best to upgrade once you are there, especially if you are the bride and groom. The concierge level is awesome. Not only do you have 24 hour room service, but they literally also give you a liquor menu and will bring you bottles of wine, champagne, and liqour for free whenever you want. For instance on the morning of her wedding I surprised her with bottles of champagne and orange juice and we drank mimosas while I gave her her wedding gifts and we got ready... one experience we shared that we will never forget...

Do yourself a favor though... since you are staying at Beaches, it is a family friendly resort and each of the categories comes with both king size beds as well as 2 double beds. When we went my fiance and I booked one of the "honeymoon suites" and ended up with 2 double beds and ended up either having to sleep seperately or totally uncomfortable. I was so upset and addressed it with the resort, but was informed that all the king sized beds were already taken up and we should have confirmed that before we arrived. This was my only real complaint of the week. In my mind, I thought "honeymoon suite" spoke for itself, but apparently it did not, so don't take any chances

 

As far as the dinner... no we did not make reservations despite what they try to tell you. We ate dinner at the restaurant that you had to walk up the stairs to get to (sorry, I can't remember the name, but it is the only one where you need to walk up stairs... you will know what I mean when you get there). It was the fanciest one. I don't know what time your wedding is, but I think it opens at either 5 or 6 and we just arrived as it was opening and had no trouble all sitting together and it was awesome!! There is a bar/lounge at the bottom of the stairs that is nice so you can all gather there while you wait to go in. At worst you may end up with 2 large tables next to each other, but that's no different than a formal reception anyway.

 

As for her music... I believe they did end up burning a CD, which they used for the ceremony and reception. There was a sort of DJ or MC that kept the flow going though. The processional and recessional went perfect as did the symbolic dances along with a tribute to her new husband's mother who passed away just days before the wedding

 

Also, I might suggest switching the 30 minutes to an hour. I want to say the first 20-30 minutes we all kinda got settled and grabbed some drinks/food while they were nearby on the beach getting some nice photos done. The second half hour was when they were announced, did their dance, cut the cake, and we all got to celebrate a bit together before moving on to dinner at the restaurant. It was a special time I would hate to have rushed on you or for you to miss due to getting pictures.

 

Let me know if you have any other questions, I am happy my little bit of experience has been able to help Let our countdowns continue!!!!!

[FutureMrzMalone]

What is considered "concierge" level? I will be there for a week so I am not worried about that part it's the room level. Lol

Hey Ladies!! @ FutureMrzMalone and Chayil.... yes, if you stay 6 or more nights the BB theme is free so long as you stay in a concierge level or higher. I actually just called my friend to double check with her and she said they booked the lowest level "concierge" room and they threw everything in for her.  The resort also does their very best to upgrade once you are there, especially if you are the bride and groom. The concierge level is awesome. Not only do you have 24 hour room service, but they literally also give you a liquor menu and will bring you bottles of wine, champagne, and liqour for free whenever you want. For instance on the morning of her wedding I surprised her with bottles of champagne and orange juice and we drank mimosas while I gave her her wedding gifts and we got ready... one experience we shared that we will never forget...

Do yourself a favor though... since you are staying at Beaches, it is a family friendly resort and each of the categories comes with both king size beds as well as 2 double beds. When we went my fiance and I booked one of the "honeymoon suites" and ended up with 2 double beds and ended up either having to sleep seperately or totally uncomfortable. I was so upset and addressed it with the resort, but was informed that all the king sized beds were already taken up and we should have confirmed that before we arrived. This was my only real complaint of the week. In my mind, I thought "honeymoon suite" spoke for itself, but apparently it did not, so don't take any chances :)

 

As far as the dinner... no we did not make reservations despite what they try to tell you. We ate dinner at the restaurant that you had to walk up the stairs to get to (sorry, I can't remember the name, but it is the only one where you need to walk up stairs... you will know what I mean when you get there). It was the fanciest one. I don't know what time your wedding is, but I think it opens at either 5 or 6 and we just arrived as it was opening and had no trouble all sitting together and it was awesome!! There is a bar/lounge at the bottom of the stairs that is nice so you can all gather there while you wait to go in. At worst you may end up with 2 large tables next to each other, but that's no different than a formal reception anyway.

 

As for her music... I believe they did end up burning a CD, which they used for the ceremony and reception. There was a sort of DJ or MC that kept the flow going though. The processional and recessional went perfect as did the symbolic dances along with a tribute to her new husband's mother who passed away just days before the wedding :(

 

Also, I might suggest switching the 30 minutes to an hour. I want to say the first 20-30 minutes we all kinda got settled and grabbed some drinks/food while they were nearby on the beach getting some nice photos done. The second half hour was when they were announced, did their dance, cut the cake, and we all got to celebrate a bit together before moving on to dinner at the restaurant. It was a special time I would hate to have rushed on you or for you to miss due to getting pictures.

 

Let me know if you have any other questions, I am happy my little bit of experience has been able to help :) Let our countdowns continue!!!!!

[stluciabound]

When you go on the site there are 3 levels of room categories with multiple options within each... the bulk of the rooms fall into the standard category, the highest level is denoted by the "butler" category. It is the upper middle level which they state is the concierge level, which is what is required to qualify for the free BB theme. Just go on sandals/beaches site and plug in your dates and you should see what I mean, if you can't see it let me know and I will figure out a way to send you a link

Originally Posted by FutureMrzMalone 

What is considered "concierge" level? I will be there for a week so I am not worried about that part it's the room level. Lol



 

 

[1783lovely]

oh yeah it can be a welcome dinner am not doing a rehearsal dinner .. I do have a wedding party but i finger why do we need to rehearsal. during the dinner i was planning on giving out the OT bags.  As far as the food you will be able to pick of the menu they have on site.

 

I have my OT bag done i will put up pics of everything ....

[1783lovely]

it's  private you and your guest

[1783lovely]

I have 20 people booked  and  almost everyone booked 7 days, For the month of sept. there was a deal where you can stay 7 nights 8 day we got a day for free. hotel + air  1550 . hotel was 950 pp. 

[stluciabound]

Please do! I am trying to get some OOT ideas so I can kinda do mine as I go along and find sales,etc. I really want to do something nice for the guests, but creativity is not my finest virtue lol

Originally Posted by 1783lovely 

oh yeah it can be a welcome dinner am not doing a rehearsal dinner .. I do have a wedding party but i finger why do we need to rehearsal. during the dinner i was planning on giving out the OT bags.  As far as the food you will be able to pick of the menu they have on site.

 

I have my OT bag done i will put up pics of everything ....

 

[FutureMrzMalone]

I am excited to see what you put in them. Did you end up taking some of the ideas that I told you one of the ladies did on here?
 

Originally Posted by 1783lovely 

oh yeah it can be a welcome dinner am not doing a rehearsal dinner .. I do have a wedding party but i finger why do we need to rehearsal. during the dinner i was planning on giving out the OT bags.  As far as the food you will be able to pick of the menu they have on site.

 

I have my OT bag done i will put up pics of everything ....