driftaway

I know you said you already found a company, but I thought I'd send you some info. anyways. I was married in Ocho Rios in 2008 through Tropical Weddings Jamaica. We also used a cruise as the reception. After the small mini reception at our wedding site. Basically snacks to hold everyone over. We booked a booze cruise for our dinner reception. It was very casual. We all changed into casual clothes before we left the wedding site and got on the bus. Good thing because the waters were a little rough and drinks were spilling. Also, the bathrooms are not the roomiest. We booked through http://www.fivestarwatersports.com/ We had a private "Taste of Jamiaca Cruise". You can find the info on their web-site. It started at 5 and lasted until 8. Basically, the boat staff did whatever we asked. They were very nice and friendly!! All my guests loved them. Very relaxed atmosphere! There was plenty of food and drink which was good I hear. I never had anything to eat, but can tell you the drinks were awesome!!!. We danced and saw the coastline with all the hotels. However, it gets dark quite early in Jamaica so about half of the cruise was in the dark. It cost $70 per person. After the cruise we were provided transportation back to our resort where we all went to the hotel buffet/snack bar for more food. Then we hit the resort Disco. Also, you may want to bring a couple of CD's with music for dancing. A lot of my guests did not dance for a long time. I would suggest bringing some of your own CDs of music your guest will dance to. At first, all that was played was Carribean. Fun music, but not stuff that everyone would dance to. Once they started playing North American music then my guests felt more comfortable dancing. This company takes off from Ocho Rios, Mahogany Beach. We got a bus ride to Mahogany Beach. which is about 5 mins from Sandals Grande Ocho Rios. Before we went on the boat, we all had to sign a waiver. Once that was completed, we were off. I also asked my guests to bring extra cash for tips, seeing the staff did not work at a resort. Hope this helps. If you need anything, just PM me. D

I was married at the Grande Oceanfront "Firefly" location. TWJ "Almarie" organized my day. It ran smoothly and was more then I could ever ask for. All my guests were so impressed. Especially after seeing so many weddings at our hotel during our stay in Jamiaca.( 5-8 a day!!) My wedding day/location was private and special. It truly was "my" day. No uninvited nosy hotel mystery guest, hotel pool parties noise, sun bathers in the background during wedding and photos! I can honestly say, going off the resort was our best decision. My guests were happy and felt safe. They were amazed with Jamiaca and the views that you don't get from the hotel. I know a couple people throughout the forum have e-mailed me, but if anyone has any questions just send me an e-mail. I'll be happy to help in anyway. Hope my review of TWJ is helpful!! I can't say it enough. Going through "Almarie" was the best decision we made!! I can't thank her enough. If you go through Almarie's testimonials I wrote one. My wedding date was March 2008. We are under an arch with pink flowers. Also, our pictures are on her site under location "Grande Oceanfront" Good Luck!

That is where I had my wedding. It is an amazing site. However, I booked through Almarie, "Tropical Weddings Jamaica" If you want to see pictures of the site just go on her web site Tropical Weddings Jamaica - Private, Romantic, Beach, Garden, waterfall Wedding Locations It is the location called "Tropical Grande Oceanfront" It is about a 45 min drive from Ocho Rios. D

I forgot to mention. I had 50 people at my wedding and Tropical Weddings was cheaper then the resort wedding. I knew the base price for a wedding at my resort(with no add ons) I basically knew what the resort wedding was going to cost for 50 guests so I made that my budget price and that is what I gave Almarie. I got a lot more with Almarie than I would have with the resort. The standards do not even compare.

All I did was e-mail Almarie my wish list. A list of items I wanted for my wedding.(I had 50 guests) I made it huge, knowing I would not take everything. With the wish list she suggested a package that would be cheapest. I also had her price everything on the wish list so I could pick extra things. After all that is when I gave her my budget! I will pm you the prices I received for everything on my wish list.

We stayed at the Sandals Grande Ocho Rios, but the wedding was off the resort. It was at the "Tropical Grande Oceanfront" which was about a 45min. ride which was included in the package. This location is actually called "Firefly" and was Noel Coward's Private estate and is now a museum. It has amazing veiws of the James Bond Hill and beach and was so private and large!! Although my wedding was off the resort we still had the option to have our reception at the hotel. However, I really did not see why we should pay so much money for our guests, seeing it is an all inclusive resort. So we decided to rent a booze cruise as our reception.($70 per person. This was less then the price I was quoted from the hotel reception and it also included transportation.) Welcome to Five Star Watersports The cruise was very casual. It started at 5 and ended at 8. There was a buffet and plenty of drinks and music. The food was good and tied everyone over. Basically, because we rented the boat for the evening, the staff did everything we wanted. They were great!! My guests all loved getting out of the resort for the day and seeing the coast line and other resorts. They saw a lot of Jamaica. After the cruise we went back to the hotel and all hit the buffet and the hotel disco for free!

I was just married in March by Almarie from Tropical Weddings. Everything went so smoothly and was so beautiful. The private, scenic location amazed my guests. Going with Tropical Weddings was the best decision I ever made. Her prices did not even compare to the resorts. Plus it was so private and we did not feel any time pressures. I got everything I wanted and more. My wedding guests are still talking about how amazing my wedding was!! My testimonial is on her site (March 2008 Dina & John) Plus there is a picture of my wedding site set up. If you scroll down to the Tropical Grande Oceanfront. The picture of the pink wedding with the bamboo arch is my wedding. Tropical Weddings Jamaica - Private, Romantic, Beach, Garden, waterfall Wedding Locations If you want any information. Please feel free to e-mail me.

I used Almarie at Tropical Weddings. I thought she was fantastic!! My wedding was beautiful and my guests were overwhelmed by the location. I found that it was way more private off the resort. My testimonial is on her web-site. "March 2008 Dina & John" My site was the Tropical Grande Oceanfront. I still got my hotel group rate. If you have any questions feel free to ask!

It was really easy to get pricing. You can e-mail Almarie or use the contact from her web site Tropical Weddings Jamaica - Exclusive Wedding Packages & Planning Service I used the free price quote on her web site, but even with that we altered the package and I told her what my buget was. She worked with that and made everything happen. I phoned a few times before settling on a package! I'll p.m. you any information I have that I think will be helpful. It is quite a lot so I do not want to write too much in this thread. Truthfully it saved me money and my wedding was a lot more private then at the hotel. We busses my 50 guests to a private location(Firefly, Ocho Rios) (Tropical Grande' Oceanfront) Tropical Weddings Jamaica - Private, Romantic, Beach, Garden, waterfall Wedding Locations If you scroll to the Tropical Grande Oceanfront that is my wedding in the picture before you go into the album. The pink with the bamboo arch. I think her testimonials speak for themselves. My testimonial is on her web page as well. She worked so hard for me and made my wedding exactly how I pictured. I could not imagine the price if we went through our resort.

My parish priest was fine with it. He actually already had all the information for the church and priest in Ocho Rios because someone else from here got married in the same church a year earlier. Around here everyone leaves for destination weddings. It is cheaper for everyone involved. You get a all inclusive vacation. A break from our long cold winters and it cost just as much to rent a hotel room here. My priest had no problems and was very helpful.

I don't know if this matters to you or not, but I just returned from Jamaica. The sun goes down at 6:30-7:00ish. The time you want will be pitch dark. I had an evening booze cruise for my reception.(5pm-8pm) Just before sunset to dark(very dark). We were able to see the shore in daylight for half the cruise had the buffet and then when it got dark we started to dance. There were 50 people on board we rented through Five Star Water Sports. AKA Red Stripe Cruises "Cool Runnings" It was $70 per person. That included food&drink. Transportation cost to and from your resort will depend on where you stay. I see that Red Stripe offers a cruise for 9pm-12pm. If you e-mail them with your ideas/wants. I'm sure they can help you. Tours

Just got back. My guests loved the travel bags. They all appreciated the welcome booklet with wedding info. I think that is a must. Try to include photos of people attending. All the guys liked the Wal-mart Sample Travel Packs.(4.99 each) Everyone used their bag and thermal mugs. Also everyone used their sunscreen & aloe burn lotion. However, we passed out the bags before the trip. Therefore, they only brought what we bought them. If you plan on passing out the bags at you hotel or airport, I would not bother with purchasing sunscreen. They would have brought their own. Overall, our best purchase which everyone used and some people were even trying to borrow others was the "Tide To Go" pens. Everyone had Salsa, tomato sauce or a fruity drink spilt on their clothes at some point during the vacation.

I just got back. I had my husband pass out our water bottles to our guests before the wedding. Seeing it was outside and very hot. All we did was have the labels printed before we went. We did not bring water. That would cost a fortune because of the weight! Labels by the Sheet We got the custom printed wedding design! At most resorts you get bottles of water free. Most honeymoon suites etc.. have a stocked bar with water included. We just asked the guy to give us extra water each day until we had enough for our guests on our wedding day.(We hid them and transported them to our wedding location in our luggage! 60 bottles in total!) We gave the beverage stocker some extra cash to give us a flat. We also had our parents and maid of honor & best man get extra bottles. It took about 1 hour to remove the old labels and stick on ours. Our guests loved them. Many kept them as wedding souvenirs. Even the beverage stocker wanted one!

Just got back. I could not have asked for anything more. My wedding was amazing. If you scroll to the the Tropical Grande Oceanfront Location on the web page. The picture before you go into the album is my wedding. It is the bamboo arch with pink flowers. Almarie out did herself. The location was a 45min drive outside Ocho Rios. Very private! Only my wedding guests and staff of Tropical Weddings. I would suggest Almarie to anyone looking to get married in Jamaica. You get everything you want and she makes your day special!! Tropical Weddings Jamaica - Create Your Own Wedding Package in Jamaica

Sorry, it took so long to reply. I just got back from Jamaica, yesterday! Father John Bosco married me in Our Lady of Fatima Church.(I have pictures, if you want) He was so helpful and kind. To get married in a Catholic Church in Jamaica is the same as getting married in a Catholic Church in your home town. First, I phoned the priest to see if the date I wanted to get married was booked. I saved the date. Next, you have to complete the pre-marrital course offered through your church. After the course your Pastor will then have to fax your pre-marrital papers/course certificate/baptismal and birth certificates to the main office in Montego Bay. Once that is complete you are good to go. Everything is done by your priest back home. He actually has all say on whether you get married in a church in Jamaica or not. If you want the phone numbers & addresses and any more detailed let me know. I'll p.m. you everything. PS. I would higher recommend Father John. Even if you decide on a civil ceremony outside. Father John was amazing. He impressed everyone at my wedding. He is fantastic. He even did my Civil Ceremony outside the day before!! You could not ask for a more helpful, friendly minister. He went out of his way to make our day special for everyone at our wedding.