khanhandphil

If you haven't already, maybe you can try [email protected].

Thanks RonNMel! Our wedding slideshow has just been completed, if anyone is interested in taking a look, send me a private message and I'll send you the link. Cheers! Khanh

Hello! Just posted a few of our professional pics on Facebook, feel free to take a look! Welcome to Facebook Cheers and happy planning, Khanh and Phil

Barrierunner: No, we didn't pay extra for our photographer. We didn't mention that we had one, but Yahimara definitely saw him at the ceremony and she didn't say anything about it, so I'm pretty sure there's no fee.

During the symbolic ceremony, Yahimara read out some kind of Cuban wedding agreement, but mostly it was just us saying our own vows. What she read sounded like a legal document, and in all honesty we didn't pay much attention. At one point we had to say "Yes" we agreed, but that was all really. We were given the option to sign some fake documents, but we passed on it. I think for this kind of ceremony, the thing that is most important is your own vows. Unfortunately, I can't say what a Cuban legal wedding sounds like, because I don't know. Sorry. Best of luck, Khanh

chevy14 - Thanks!!! RonNMel - To answer your questions: 1) The symbolic wedding is actually cheaper, we paid $400 CUC instead of the $700 (or whatever it is) for the legal ceremony. I think it's also more flexible in the sense of which days you can have it on, because I believe the judge or legal officiant is only available on certain days? Whereas Yahimara is there basically all the time. 2) Yes, the arch is included in the package. I'm not sure if it comes in any other colours, or if they just change the colour of the flowers adorning it. 3) Yes, all of the flowers and decorations were included (except for the bridesmaids' flowers, and we did not get boutineers for the groomsmen). I'm pretty sure they reused the table flowers from the ceremony by sending them to our room. Aside from the extras that I mentioned in the original post, we did not pay extra for anything else. Hope that helps, best of luck!!! Khanh

Hey guys my wife just posted this review of ILA and pics on Facebook. Login | Facebook Hello! Phil and I got married on January 21st, 2010. Our ceremony was on a Thursday afternoon, and we met with Yahimara on the Monday morning before. We actually didn't decide on much of anything via e-mail with Yahimara beforehand, because we wanted to see what the situation was like in person. In one meeting we were able to decide on everything, which was great because it meant we had lots of time with our photographer and family and friends, rather than worrying about wedding details. Venue - we chose the beach instead of the area near the spa (which is also quite nice and has a great view of the resort and the ocean. A good option for rainy days). There is no gazebo yet, which didn't bother us, but for those who are set on it I think it might be some time yet before it's done. I believe we saw the wooden foundation for it laid, so if that's indeed what it was, it's still quite a ways before completion. Also, it was on the beach, but not very close to the water. We were happy with our little arch =) Ceremony - we had a very simple symbolic ceremony, with Yahimara as our officiant. We got legally married in a Catholic church in Toronto the morning of our departure, because we did not want the hassles of doing paperwork in Cuba and also because we did not want to have to go off site to a church. The ceremony lasted about 1/2 an hour, with Yahimara reading some Cuban marriage agreement, but most of it was simply us saying our own vows. It was fast and easy, which was exactly what we wanted. After the ceremony, there was champagne provided on the beach for our guests. Our ceremony was supposed to start at 2:00 pm, but the bride is not picked up from her room until all the guests have arrived. They took some time between all the guests arriving and picking myself and my bridesmaids up from my room, so we just called reception to make sure they were on their way. Music - we burned our own procession music onto a CD, as well as a song that we wanted played immediately after the ceremony. After that, there was a live musical trio who played for 30 minutes (maybe less for us, because we left to take pictures fairly quickly). Food - we had dinner at 8:30 pm at the Romantico restaurant (there was a huge gap between our ceremony and dinner, which worked out perfectly because it gave us lots of time with our photographer, and our guests were free to go back to their vacation if they wanted). We had decided on the Romantico restaurant over the Cuban and loved it (you get a choice of two menus, we chose the asparagus soup and snapper). We paid $18 CUC for lobster for each guest, but ours was complimentary. There was a wedding cake as well, which was nice. For some reason, the wedding cake was served as the only dessert (there was an additional dessert listed on the wedding menu, but it never came). We didn't make an issue out of it because everyone was stuffed, but you may want to clarify with Yahimara if it's included. Hair - I got my hair done at the salon for $50 CUC, and my mother in law decided to style hers as well, which cost $35 CUC, I think. It took me about 2 hours to get my hair done. Flowers/Decorations - the bridal bouquet is included, as well as the groom's boutineer. Each bridesmaid's bouquet is $15 CUC. You can choose between tropical flowers or roses, as well as the colour scheme (not guaranteed, but they try!) They match the other flowers (arch, table, etc.) accordingly. The staff in the restaurant did a lovely job of decorating the tables and chairs. We had flowers sent to our room, as well as a bottle of champagne. Service - was excellent, from Yahimara, to the hairdresser, to the staff serving champagne on the beach, to the servers in the restaurant. We brought along some of our own alcohol, and they were happy to serve it for us. Photography - we had our own photographer, and the resort had no problem with that. Resort - New, clean, beautiful. Lots of great photo ops. Kids - the resort is VERY family friendly. We only had one child with us, though, so we didn't bother asking if there was a different wedding menu for kids and ended up paying the extra $18 for his lobster as well. But if you have lots of kids in your party, you might want to inquire about a kids menu. Dancing - by chance, the restaurant played the song that we would have chosen if we had had a traditional wedding in Toronto, so Phil and I had an impromptu first dance in the restaurant =) After dinner (which ended at about 11-ish), we headed to the disco and had a fabulous time. Again, the timing worked out for us because our dinner was fairly late, the disco was hopping by the time we arrived. It helped that all the alcohol was included!!! Bottom line - we had a great wedding =) The main reason we chose to have a destination wedding was because we wanted to celebrate our love and commitment without the stress of worrying about the minute details, and Iberostar did that for us. There were other stresses, simply because the day is an important one, but given the chance, we wouldn't have done it any other way. And this resort was a great place to do it at. Best of luck to everyone, enjoy the ride! Khanh and Phil Tran

Hey guys my wife just posted this review of ILA and pics on Facebook. Login | Facebook Hello! Phil and I got married on January 21st, 2010. Our ceremony was on a Thursday afternoon, and we met with Yahimara on the Monday morning before. We actually didn't decide on much of anything via e-mail with Yahimara beforehand, because we wanted to see what the situation was like in person. In one meeting we were able to decide on everything, which was great because it meant we had lots of time with our photographer and family and friends, rather than worrying about wedding details. Venue - we chose the beach instead of the area near the spa (which is also quite nice and has a great view of the resort and the ocean. A good option for rainy days). There is no gazebo yet, which didn't bother us, but for those who are set on it I think it might be some time yet before it's done. I believe we saw the wooden foundation for it laid, so if that's indeed what it was, it's still quite a ways before completion. Also, it was on the beach, but not very close to the water. We were happy with our little arch =) Ceremony - we had a very simple symbolic ceremony, with Yahimara as our officiant. We got legally married in a Catholic church in Toronto the morning of our departure, because we did not want the hassles of doing paperwork in Cuba and also because we did not want to have to go off site to a church. The ceremony lasted about 1/2 an hour, with Yahimara reading some Cuban marriage agreement, but most of it was simply us saying our own vows. It was fast and easy, which was exactly what we wanted. After the ceremony, there was champagne provided on the beach for our guests. Our ceremony was supposed to start at 2:00 pm, but the bride is not picked up from her room until all the guests have arrived. They took some time between all the guests arriving and picking myself and my bridesmaids up from my room, so we just called reception to make sure they were on their way. Music - we burned our own procession music onto a CD, as well as a song that we wanted played immediately after the ceremony. After that, there was a live musical trio who played for 30 minutes (maybe less for us, because we left to take pictures fairly quickly). Food - we had dinner at 8:30 pm at the Romantico restaurant (there was a huge gap between our ceremony and dinner, which worked out perfectly because it gave us lots of time with our photographer, and our guests were free to go back to their vacation if they wanted). We had decided on the Romantico restaurant over the Cuban and loved it (you get a choice of two menus, we chose the asparagus soup and snapper). We paid $18 CUC for lobster for each guest, but ours was complimentary. There was a wedding cake as well, which was nice. For some reason, the wedding cake was served as the only dessert (there was an additional dessert listed on the wedding menu, but it never came). We didn't make an issue out of it because everyone was stuffed, but you may want to clarify with Yahimara if it's included. Hair - I got my hair done at the salon for $50 CUC, and my mother in law decided to style hers as well, which cost $35 CUC, I think. It took me about 2 hours to get my hair done. Flowers/Decorations - the bridal bouquet is included, as well as the groom's boutineer. Each bridesmaid's bouquet is $15 CUC. You can choose between tropical flowers or roses, as well as the colour scheme (not guaranteed, but they try!) They match the other flowers (arch, table, etc.) accordingly. The staff in the restaurant did a lovely job of decorating the tables and chairs. We had flowers sent to our room, as well as a bottle of champagne. Service - was excellent, from Yahimara, to the hairdresser, to the staff serving champagne on the beach, to the servers in the restaurant. We brought along some of our own alcohol, and they were happy to serve it for us. Photography - we had our own photographer, and the resort had no problem with that. Resort - New, clean, beautiful. Lots of great photo ops. Kids - the resort is VERY family friendly. We only had one child with us, though, so we didn't bother asking if there was a different wedding menu for kids and ended up paying the extra $18 for his lobster as well. But if you have lots of kids in your party, you might want to inquire about a kids menu. Dancing - by chance, the restaurant played the song that we would have chosen if we had had a traditional wedding in Toronto, so Phil and I had an impromptu first dance in the restaurant =) After dinner (which ended at about 11-ish), we headed to the disco and had a fabulous time. Again, the timing worked out for us because our dinner was fairly late, the disco was hopping by the time we arrived. It helped that all the alcohol was included!!! Bottom line - we had a great wedding =) The main reason we chose to have a destination wedding was because we wanted to celebrate our love and commitment without the stress of worrying about the minute details, and Iberostar did that for us. There were other stresses, simply because the day is an important one, but given the chance, we wouldn't have done it any other way. And this resort was a great place to do it at. Best of luck to everyone, enjoy the ride! Khanh and Phil Tran

Hi guys! Allow me to introduce ourselves: Phil and Khanh. We are planning a wedding at ILA on Jan 16-23. I believe we should be the first among the couples here. We'll post our pictures when we get them processed. Take one for the team, Khanh and Phil

Hello everyone, we're planning a wedding in Varadero Cuba Jan 16-23. Great forum. Khanh and Phil