Sandals Grande Riviera Wedding - November 2014

[lild428]

Hi all - I'm new here.

 

I just placed a deposit on a week at Sandals Grande Riviera, November 1st through the 8th, with my wedding on November 4th.

 

I was wondering if there are any SGR brides out there and what your experiences were.

 

I'm just going to to the free package, Beautiful Beginnings. I'd say we'll have about 10-20 guests there.

Edited March 25, 2014 by lild428

[crspoon10]

Hello and congrats!

 

I will also be getting married there on June 7th. I haven't found too many ladies on here that are getting married at that Sandals resort specifically, but there is a forum topic that is for Sandals brides. I found it helpful as well as everything else on this site. Lol

 

Happy planning!

[TammyWright]

welcome to BDW.  TA Babs and TA Virgilia are both Sandals specialists and might be able to help.

[lild428]

Hello and congrats!

 

I will also be getting married there on June 7th. I haven't found too many ladies on here that are getting married at that Sandals resort specifically, but there is a forum topic that is for Sandals brides. I found it helpful as well as everything else on this site. Lol

 

Happy planning!

 

Congrats to you too! Have you chosen the location you're getting married at? I'm planning on the Reef Terrace Gazebo since it overlooks the ocean. I was thinking the beach area is a little small and you can't really prevent people from walking by.

[crspoon10]

@@lild428 Thanks!

 

We've never been there so I don't think we'll know for sure until we get there and see it. But we are thinking either the Reef Terrace Gazebo or the Pier. We will probably end up picking the Gazebo though because of the privacy aspect. We thought about the beach too but agreed that it wouldn't be private enough since it's small.

 

We were also going to do the BB package, but then I decided I wanted to bring my own real touch flowers. So we used the $500 credit to pick a cake and add a few more items.

[lild428]

@@lild428 Thanks!

 

We've never been there so I don't think we'll know for sure until we get there and see it. But we are thinking either the Reef Terrace Gazebo or the Pier. We will probably end up picking the Gazebo though because of the privacy aspect. We thought about the beach too but agreed that it wouldn't be private enough since it's small.

 

We were also going to do the BB package, but then I decided I wanted to bring my own real touch flowers. So we used the $500 credit to pick a cake and add a few more items.

 

I'm not sure what I'm going to do with the $50 credit... I do have some time though lol

 

Are you adding a photo package or no? 

 

Do you have a lot of guests? I'm thinking of making a wedding website and putting all the info out there. If you want to come, cool. If not, oh well! 

[crspoon10]

I'm not sure what I'm going to do with the $50 credit... I do have some time though lol

 

Are you adding a photo package or no? 

 

Do you have a lot of guests? I'm thinking of making a wedding website and putting all the info out there. If you want to come, cool. If not, oh well! 

 

Lol, yes you have a little time to think about it!  We changed our minds several times and I thought my planner would kill me. Lol. But she has been super helpful and now we're just ready to get there! When is your first call with your 'wedding planner'?

 

Photography has been one of my 'worries.' I've read reviews where other ladies were not happy with the quality of the Sandals photos. So we toyed with the idea of bringing our own photographer but then I found a gal on tripadvisor that had recently gotten married there and she said her photos turned out great. She just said to be specific and let them know what you are wanting as far as the style of the photos you are wanting. So I'm going to bring some examples and request the same Sandals photographer she used (his name is Micah). We booked the 'Traditional Photo Package'. 

 

We will have about 14 people there (including us). We didn't do any formal invitations and just spoke to everyone we wanted to invite. Btw, Sandals gives you a free wedding website too, I filled it out but still have yet to do anything with it. Lol!

[lild428]

Lol, yes you have a little time to think about it!  We changed our minds several times and I thought my planner would kill me. Lol. But she has been super helpful and now we're just ready to get there! When is your first call with your 'wedding planner'?

 

Photography has been one of my 'worries.' I've read reviews where other ladies were not happy with the quality of the Sandals photos. So we toyed with the idea of bringing our own photographer but then I found a gal on tripadvisor that had recently gotten married there and she said her photos turned out great. She just said to be specific and let them know what you are wanting as far as the style of the photos you are wanting. So I'm going to bring some examples and request the same Sandals photographer she used (his name is Micah). We booked the 'Traditional Photo Package'. 

 

We will have about 14 people there (including us). We didn't do any formal invitations and just spoke to everyone we wanted to invite. Btw, Sandals gives you a free wedding website too, I filled it out but still have yet to do anything with it. Lol!

Not sure when my first call with wedding planner will be.. probably not for a little bit - we just officially booked our room yesterday.

 

I was thinking of booking the cheapest photo package and then go from there. It's not like they're not going to let you buy more pictures lol

 

It was funny.. we went there off a cruise in December '13 (you can buy day passes) and while in the water with my fiancé, a photographer came over and started snapping pictures of us. We're like "we're not guests here!!" haha the guy taking the pics was super friendly and funny so I would imagine if you just told them what you're looking for, you can end up with some nice photos. Of course, your guests will most likely have digital cameras with them too.

 

Just an option - you could always dress up in your dress at home after you return and snap some great photos with a local photographer in case you aren't thrilled or want a special pose done... certainly would be cheaper too!

 

I'm in the middle of creating a website on theknot.com. I started it before we got our booking number for Sandals. I'm putting all these pictures on there to try to entice people to go lol. 14 people is pretty good! I know our parents will go, but other than that, I think at least 2-5 other couples would go. I know most people do not have the time or money to go, and that's okay with us. We just had to do what we wanted to do!

 

Bring on Jamaica!

[crspoon10]

Not sure when my first call with wedding planner will be.. probably not for a little bit - we just officially booked our room yesterday.

 

I was thinking of booking the cheapest photo package and then go from there. It's not like they're not going to let you buy more pictures lol

 

It was funny.. we went there off a cruise in December '13 (you can buy day passes) and while in the water with my fiancé, a photographer came over and started snapping pictures of us. We're like "we're not guests here!!" haha the guy taking the pics was super friendly and funny so I would imagine if you just told them what you're looking for, you can end up with some nice photos. Of course, your guests will most likely have digital cameras with them too.

 

Just an option - you could always dress up in your dress at home after you return and snap some great photos with a local photographer in case you aren't thrilled or want a special pose done... certainly would be cheaper too!

 

I'm in the middle of creating a website on theknot.com. I started it before we got our booking number for Sandals. I'm putting all these pictures on there to try to entice people to go lol. 14 people is pretty good! I know our parents will go, but other than that, I think at least 2-5 other couples would go. I know most people do not have the time or money to go, and that's okay with us. We just had to do what we wanted to do!

 

Bring on Jamaica!

 

Lol, that's exactly what we did. Chose the cheapest package and we'll go from there. We're not thrilled about the pricing of the photography packages but we HAVE to have photos! And like you said, we and a couple that is going with us, just got new cameras (holla!), so I'm sure we'll have plenty of photos. Lol

 

I'm glad to hear that you liked it enough from your first time to book your wedding there. I was a bit nervous to pick a place we had never been to before, but then was like "It's Jamaica! How bad could it be?" lol, so haven't really thought about it again. Plus the photos I've seen there are gorgeous! That's a good idea to put a few on your website! You never know who will decide to go once they see the pics! Lol.

[lild428]

Lol, that's exactly what we did. Chose the cheapest package and we'll go from there. We're not thrilled about the pricing of the photography packages but we HAVE to have photos! And like you said, we and a couple that is going with us, just got new cameras (holla!), so I'm sure we'll have plenty of photos. Lol

 

I'm glad to hear that you liked it enough from your first time to book your wedding there. I was a bit nervous to pick a place we had never been to before, but then was like "It's Jamaica! How bad could it be?" lol, so haven't really thought about it again. Plus the photos I've seen there are gorgeous! That's a good idea to put a few on your website! You never know who will decide to go once they see the pics! Lol.

When we were there, we only saw the Riviera side. We hung out at the beach, did some paddleboarding, ate at the Beach Bistro and the pizzeria up near the Riviera pool, saw the Ochi Pool, walked the gardens. The floatie mat (the cement pad that's anchored in the water) was awesome and it was so nice to sunbathe on it haha Music was pumpin out of Jamie's Sports Bar, and the staff was having a blast with everyone. I was not happy we had to go I wanted to stay and explore.

 

My wedding planner is a certified Sandals specialist and she recommended either the Reef terrace gazebo or the Overlook Treehouse (http://cdn.sandals.com/sandals/v11/slideshows/resorts/sgo/media/large/slide-19.jpg) for the ceremony. We didn't see the Treehouse but it looks very pretty!

 

I know Grande Riviera is a little far from the airport, but it seems like it has something for everyone and no one is on top of one another unless you want to be. There's 15!! restaurants which is crazy.