Jump to content

jhartford19

Jr. Member
  • Posts

    187
  • Joined

  • Last visited

    Never

About jhartford19

jhartford19's Achievements

0

Reputation

  1. Try typing it in manually. It didn't work for me when I clicked on the link, it took me to cinemamotion.com, but you want videopuntacana.com.
  2. Videographer: The one people thought we didn’t need. My husband and his family thought I was crazy for booking Florian from Video Punta Cana- Cinema and Motion because we were already paying for pictures. However, they have all changed their tune now that they have seen his work. My husband’s family has watched the video every night since we have been back. The video is beautifully done. We got extra copies for our parents and for my husband’s grandparents since they couldn’t come to the wedding. Now we can show everyone who didn’t come our wedding. My only regret is that we didn’t book him for the whole time of the wedding. It would have been well worth it! Florian is originally from Germany and has lived in the DR for 19 years, his English is very good and it is easy to communicate with him. He was very friendly and easy to work with. He tells you what to do and if you have any suggestions he is open to them. Check out his website, you will fall in love with his work right away! www.videopuntacana.com
  3. I found them horrible to work with and had to find another travel agent. They would not get back to me when I emailed them, I would have to call and then finally I asked to speak to the owner and she made excuses for the person who I was dealing with. I would recommend going with a regular travel agent. The wedding planners at the resorts are great, they do this all the time, there is no need to spend the extra money.
  4. When we went to Paradisus, many people on the flight back that stayed at dreams were sick. When I read the reviews before I booked, more people were sick at dreams. No one was sick at the Paradisus. It was amazing!
  5. Paradisus Punta Cana Wedding Review (it's very long) My husband and I were married on January 31, 2011 at the Paradisus Punta Cana. Our wedding was amazing. So here is my review of everything: Before our departure: We booked through Breakaway Online which is based out of Oshawa, Ontario. We are from Toronto, but we found this travel agent through a recommendation after having problems with a popular wedding travel agent in the Toronto area. Our travel agent, Kim was great. She answered all of my questions promptly and took care of all of the bookings. None of our guests contacted me about anything, they contacted the travel agent directly. She handled everyone’s questions and concerns. I wanted to put together Wedding Information Packages and Kim contacted the Paradisus representative and got me a bunch of different booklets on the Paradisus to give to our guests. Our flight went smoothly and we arrived on time in Punta Cana. Arrival: I was a little bit worried driving by the other resorts in Punta Cana, but when we got to our resort, I immediately knew we made the right decision. Some of our rooms were not ready so we hung out at the Lobby bar and had a few drinks while we waited. We were all pretty tired from traveling all day so we didn’t mind having some drinks and relaxing. Once our rooms were ready everyone went to their rooms to freshen up. Our upgraded room in the Reserve area was beautiful. We would definitely upgrade again. You might hear people say that you are far from your guests, but everything is within walking distance and you can always take a tram. The only problem we had with the rooms is my mom’s toilet didn’t work, so my mom and dad were moved to a different room. Rooms: Our room is the reserve was beautiful. The other rooms were very nice. Everyone was happy with their room, but of course they loved our room. The rooms are quite cool. You have a balcony, a fridge that is filled each day. For some reason we didn’t get beer, but my father-in-law got lots of beer each day because he put a tip in the fridge. If you don’t get beer, you can order room service and they will bring you some. There were no bugs in the rooms as far as I know and they were cleaned everyday if you wanted them to be. The First Night: The first night we had a bachelor/bachelorette party. We handed out Welcome bags to everyone with information on the rehearsal dinner, the wedding and other things they needed to know, along with wedding week survival kits, flip flops, travel hair brushes, playing cards, bookmarks, and other things that people may have needed. Our guests really appreciated them. We ended up being so tired from our travels that the night did not last long. We went to the buffet for dinner, to the Lobby bar and then home. The Second Day: We met Miguelina and went over everything for the day. I brought chair sashes, program fans, bubbles, water bottle labels, sand ceremony stuff, magic pearls for the vases, table runners, a guest book and some other stuff. I told her what everything was for, and she had no problem setting it up. She did not try to change the price of things like other people have stated. The prices were the same as before we got there. We had to add lighting to our reception and buy the water bottles, pay for a guest pass for the videographer, but the prices were the same as we were quoted before. She showed us where the wedding would take place and where the reception would take place. I have to admit I was a little bit worried after our meeting, not because of Miguelina, only because I hate giving up control like that. I knew I wouldn’t be able to check in on things, but I was prepared for things to go wrong and decided to take on the island laid back personality. But nothing went wrong. Rehearsal Dinner: The next night we had our rehearsal dinner at Terra (the steak restaurant) we got to choose two options for our guests and they got to pick one of the two options. They printed up menu cards and reserved three tables for us. We chose steak and ribs as the two choices. Everyone loved their meals. Most people had the steak, but a couple had the ribs. They even did a special kids menu for the two kids at our wedding. We started with the salad bar, which had many different salads, meats, cheeses, etc. Then had the steak or ribs and finished with the desserts from the salad bar. Everything was great. Wedding Day: I had my hair done first thing in the morning. The hairstylist curled it all and pinned it up so that it would last, I had to go back to have the pins taken out. I wanted my hair to be in long loose curls. It did not last, it looked like beach waves by the time the ceremony came. I wish I had put my hair up. We met the photographer and videographer and they started with the boys. I will talk more about them in the next paragraph. They were amazing though. We had pictures taken and then the boys went to the wedding site (the gazebo) and the girls had more pictures. We were a little late for the wedding, but it’s island time, right? I left the belt for my wedding dress at home and one of the groomsman forgot his pants. Luckily my dad had the same pants as the groomsman, but they were a little big. As for my belt, my sister brought a brooch and we used that. I want to have an AHR so I can wear them together. The gazebo was beautiful. Miguelina outdid herself. We had the chill out package and there were orchids lining the aisle, we ordered two big floral arrangements to decorate the gazebo and they were beautiful. We did not request veils, but we had them anyway and they made the gazebo stunning. We had our cocktail hour, everyone loved the hors d’ouevres that we picked out, I didn’t have any because I didn’t want to get my dress dirtier than it already was. (Be prepared for your dress to get dirty quickly, but it doesn’t really show up in the photos). We had a champagne toast and then more pictures. The Reception was amazing. Miguelina used my table runner, water pearls and all of my ideas that I had emailed prior to the wedding. The centerpieces were way nicer than what I was expecting, the cake was not exactly what I had ordered (I wanted one tier chocolate and one vanilla, but we got two tiers vanilla and raspberry or strawberry), everyone loved the cake. The meal was great. All of our guests were raving about it. The people that served the meal and played the music were very patient. Some people had gone home to freshen up and were late coming back, but they all patiently waited. Miguelina was our MC and did a great job. To end the night, we didn’t want to have a dance, because there were only 23 people, so we had fire dancers. We requested one fire dancer and we got two. They were well worth the money. Everyone was amazed by them. People who were at the restaurant during our wedding came up to us the next day and told us our wedding gave them chills, it was so beautiful. Many of our guests said it was the best wedding that they have ever been to. Miguelina did an amazing job. Photographer: Our photographer was Michael Steingard from Ontario. He was amazing. He does a lot of weddings at the Majestic and if he is already in the DR you don’t have to pay for his travels. He was super friendly and people even said he was like family by the dinner. He stayed with us all day and then did a trash the dress session a couple days later. He made us a slide show at the end of the night with 100 of the pictures and burned us a CD so that we could have them ahead of time. I am so excited for the rest. People have said our pictures look like the cover of a romance novel. The way he alters the backgrounds of the photos, it makes a good picture amazing. Even the ones where I don’t look so great, the rest of the picture looks so good that I had to print all of them anyway. We have had so many compliments on them and our friends and family are already trying to get him as their photographer, so I would suggest to contact him early. www.michaelsteingard.com Videographer: The one people thought we didn’t need. My husband and his family thought I was crazy for booking Florian from Video Punta Cana- Cinema and Motion because we were already paying for pictures. However, they have all changed their tune now that they have seen his work. My husband’s family has watched the video every night since we have been back. The video is beautifully done. We got extra copies for our parents and for my husband’s grandparents since they couldn’t come to the wedding. Now we can show everyone who didn’t come our wedding. My only regret is that we didn’t book him for the whole time of the wedding. It would have been well worth it! Florian is originally from Germany and has lived in the DR for 19 years, his English is very good and it is easy to communicate with him. He was very friendly and easy to work with. He tells you what to do and if you have any suggestions he is open to them. Check out his website, you will fall in love with his work right away! www.videopuntacana.com Restaurants: We loved every restaurant that we went to. The Japanese place was a favourite, because of the experience and the food was really good. People who went to the Italian loved it, Fuego was great, Terra was really good, the seafood restaurant was good, the portions were small, but you could always order more. The buffet was the only one people said was a little boring after awhile. We ate their for breakfast and lunch everyday, but I loved the grill for lunch, the hot dogs and fries were yummy! Disco: This is the one part I didn’t really like, it was really loud. I wish the lobby bar would stay open later for people who did not want to go to the disco. Departure: We realized we were suppose to get separate check in and champagne, but we didn’t take advantage of it on the way over, just on the way back. The flight went smoothly home. My biggest regret: we should have went for two weeks, one week is not long enough! We are going back for our one year anniversary because we loved it so much!
  6. Ninassasso, The cost for an outside photographer for the day is $120. I don't believe the arch is decorated. I am getting married Jan. 31 and have opted for the Chill Out Chic package. We are getting married at the Gazebo and had to pay for flowers to decorate it. We are still thinking about having veils to decorate because they cost an extra $200 and the flowers already cost $160 for each arrangement. The wedding coordinator from the romance team would be best to talk to about the arch decorations though. I hope I have helped. Happy wedding planning
  7. I asked my WC about whether their was a Walmart there and she said no. Check with your resort WC.
  8. I am going down on Saturday, Jan. 29 and getting married Monday, Jan.31. The WC didn't have a problem with that. When we arrive we will meet the WC right away to go over details. My cake is picked out, so are my flowers, ceremony and reception set-ups, etc. We just need to finalize details, look at the ceremony and reception sites and make our final payments. So I don't think you have anything to worry about.
  9. Hi girls, I had my phone call with Lauren and here is what I have learned: - Everything costs extra - centerpieces are about $60 for a small local tropical flower centerpiece and $100 for a small imported flower centerpiece - with the packages the sound system is included for the ceremony, but for the reception it is $100 an hour - there are different options for the dinner, you just have to ask for other options - if you get your own photographer it is $120 to bring your photographer onto the resort - you can have family/friends set stuff up for you the day of the wedding, otherwise if you bring your own things they charge a fee to set them up, no matter how simple - decorations for the gazebo- flowers are about $160 and veils are $250 - if you want one long rectangular table they will use a few small square tables and push them together That's all that I can think of right now, but if I remember anything else I will post it. Also I have some other Q&As in my email that I will copy and paste when I get to my home computer!
  10. My wedding is Jan 31 2011, so I am a little worried. I am worried about my mother who just finished cancer treatment and her immune system isn't as strong....
  11. Mushra 2011, I have a group rate package through a regular travel agent. I tried the wedding holiday place in Toronto,but they were horrible with their communication. It is much easier with a TA because my TA deals with everyone. I sent out a save-the-dates with information on how and when to book and from then on, I have only had to deal with a few people saying that they are going but not booking. As for the package vs a la carte, I originally was going to go a la carte, but we wanted open bar and it was cheaper to have it through the chill out package for 2011 then it was to do the a la carte thing. Plus with a la carte, I am pretty sure you have to pay for things like chair rentals...so think about it carefully. I am having my conference call in the next two weeks, so I will also post what I find out for you ladies
  12. I saw a girl use it for the favor. She gave out photo albums and placed the sketch in the window in the front of the album (they were just big enough to fit one picture on each page). I like the idea of using it in your oot bags so that the guests get to have a copy of it!
  13. I'm in the same position. We are getting married at the end of January as well. I would like to do an outdoor AH reception, but I think that may be too long to wait....all of the places I've looked at ( for indoor receptions) will cost more than our whole destination wedding, trips included!
×
×
  • Create New...