Soooooooooooo frustrated with prices!!! :(

[MsClarke724]

So I am getting married January 28, 2012 at  Dreams Punta Cana - I've had my date since the beginning of January and have just been patiently awaiting prices.  It is now almost May and the best prices we have received are $1900 for 7 nights.  Compared to 2011 and other people I have spoke with - this is too high!!  Group rates are not better either.  My travel agent has told me she is confident that they will go down.  If my guests pay $30 with their deposits, then they will be guaranteed the lower price when and IF it goes down.  This is great and all, but what if it doesn't go down.  I would probably consider changing my resort before I asked my family and guests to pay $1900.  This is just so frustrating because I have so many people asking me when they can book or so many others wanting to know how much it will cost so they can decide if they will be able to go.  I thought destination weddings were supposed to be less stressful!!  **(longest sigh ever)**

[AcutieRN]

MsClarke:

I feel your pain!  I feel like everything is pretty expensive right now too. I am wanting airfare plus land for around $3200 a couple and it seems almost impossible. I also have been playing the waiting game with pricing and am very frustrated as well.I have only been dealing with it for 8 weeks though, not 4 months! I would say if you are considering a cheaper resort check out the NOW larimar.  It is just changing managment and will be run by Amresorts(same as Dreams management) as of May 1.  Since it is newer management you may find that the specials are cheaper.  Most of us over there are being quoted about $120 per person per night so around 1600$ per couple for the week. This is only a bit better than what you are being quoted at Dreams.  Good luck, I know it is frustrating!

[Hanna20]

Hi there!

We just got married 3 weeks ago in the Mayan Riviera Mexico and we went through the same thing when we first started getting quotes. It was about $1900/person and we thought that was way too high. Basically what I did was check the prices myself online every few days to see if there was a drop... Then when the posted prices were about $1700/person I asked my travel agent to request a group rate for us. At that point the group rate came back at about $1600/person so only $100 less than the posted price. Still wasn't quite where we wanted to be with the price.... So I kept checking every few days and eventually the posted price went down to $1585 and once again I asked my travel agent to obtain a new group quote. This time the group quote came back at $1460/person and that included all fees/taxes. That is exactly where we wanted to be price wise so we jumped on the rate and it ended up being that the prices never went any lower than that. I should mention that we got that rate in October for our April wedding so basically 6 months in advance. I wouldn't worry about trying to get your trip booked so early because guranteed prices WILL go down it's just a matter of when.
 

Originally Posted by MsClarke724 

So I am getting married January 28, 2012 at  Dreams Punta Cana - I've had my date since the beginning of January and have just been patiently awaiting prices.  It is now almost May and the best prices we have received are $1900 for 7 nights.  Compared to 2011 and other people I have spoke with - this is too high!!  Group rates are not better either.  My travel agent has told me she is confident that they will go down.  If my guests pay $30 with their deposits, then they will be guaranteed the lower price when and IF it goes down.  This is great and all, but what if it doesn't go down.  I would probably consider changing my resort before I asked my family and guests to pay $1900.  This is just so frustrating because I have so many people asking me when they can book or so many others wanting to know how much it will cost so they can decide if they will be able to go.  I thought destination weddings were supposed to be less stressful!!  **(longest sigh ever)**

 

[lesee]

I just got married in Punta Cana and we had several guests wait to see if prices dropped and unfortunately (I know this is the case from several different brides on the website as well) the flights to DR got more expensive. Mexico is a different ballgame but the flights to DR if you waited too late almost doubled. Something to keep in mind.

[bmadzia1]

Because you are asking for the rates now, you are being quoted brochure prices.  Your price will go down IF the operator doesn't fill the plane, hotel is not filling up etc.  Not sure where you are located, but out of Cananda, a lot of the airlines will be bringing their prices up because of fuel surcharges. There is no REAL guarantee that you will have a price drop, but that of course doesn't mean there won't be.

 

When we originally got our price for Jamaica it was $1598/person.  We already took our price drop this month, and now our cost is $1442/person.  The price only went down by $156/person, but it did.  If you decide to book for that hotel, keep an eye for the costs going down.  If they do, have your agent go back to the operator and ask about the availability of the seats on the plane (if you are traveling out of Canada this is especially good thing to do).  This will give you an idea of how slow or quickly the flight is filling up, and the chances for price reduction.   We had our agent check, and with only 75 seats left, we took the drop. Wasn't worth losing the $156 over perhaps another $40.

[mishi071411]

We had the same issue. My TA gave us a price in July for a year out promising that it will go down. Well it never went down, and instead it went up. My guests were not happy, plus many aren't going to be joining us due to her misinformation. My TA is horrible and if I would've known, I would NEVER have gone through her. I'm encouraging potential guests to not use her.

[JPenny]

I'm in the exact same boat as you Ms. Clarke. Getting married March 30 2012 at Dreams Palm Beach and quotes so far have been around 2000. I don't want my guest to spend that much so I keep freaking out and thinking about changing resorts but its so hard when you don't know. I don't want to wait too long to change resorts and end up not getting a good wedding date/time but I don't want to give Dreams Palm Beach and then the prices go down! So frustrating. I hate the waiting game!!

[Tae123]

Hi Ladies,

 

I have found that travel sites such as (expedia.com) have way better rates than what the TA's offer.  I'm not sure if you have tried this route already but its just an idea .

[AwayDC]

I'm at this planning stage too and the whole rate thing has definetly been a challenge - frustrating to say the least.

[britb618]

The other day my bridesmaid called me and told me she got a better rate through her travel agent than I got from the Hotel under the wedding contract. Needless to say I was livid. I am still in negotiations with the hotel but I told them I am having almost 60 people if not more travelling there and it seems absurd to me that they can't match what a travel agent can quote! I mean shouldn't the hotel be able to give you the lowest deal? Getting married at the Hard Rock in Punta Cana.