My Experience With Maye Cortinas **LONG**

[Ana]

Just to comment on this, the bride that I quoted actually was getting married after me in 2009, so her price should have been the same, and if you read Maye's response to me, she explicitly states that she subjectively chooses what prices to quote her clients. Secondly, her letter didn't explain anything. I contacted the same vendors she quoted me, for the same dates, and they informed me that her prices were actually incorrect and that they were charging something else. The price inflation came solely from her own inclanation to increase them. The reason I couldn't work with her is that her response to my email didn't touch upon any of the factors that I deemed important and instead she made excuses and found a round-about way of making light of a differnet matter altogether. Every time that I confronted her about a price (and these emails were not made public in this posting) she just emailed back excusing why they had quoted a different price. As far as the DJ is concerned, he is listed in the emails of the posting, he quoted me $225 for the same date and time in 2009 and she quoted me $275. He also stated to me that the price WOULD NOT CHANGE for 2009 for me, so her response doesn't even make sense. It was the same with every other vendor that she quoted me. There was at least a $50-$110+ price difference per vendor - the SAME VENDORS SHE QUOTED ME AND THE SAME DATE. She actually doesn't guarantee much, nor does she do much planning. I hope that she changes her ways in the future, or I believe that postings such as this one, might become more common and in the end it is her business that will suffer. Finally, as far as coordinators in the US/Canada vs Mexico, I asked her outright whether she charged hidden fees. I even went as far as to explain to her that coordinators here in Canada do charge a commission per vendor but that they make you aware of the percentage charged. She told me on the phone as well as in email that she did not charge a commission per vendor nor does she have any hidden fees. This was a blaintant lie, considering that when I inputed the vendor prices of the vendors she used, with the prices they QUOTED ME DIRECTLY, it came up to a $1450 difference. So not only does she charge $1250 per bride but then her fees can add up to well over $1000 - this might make a difference to someone who is on a budged. Oh but that's subjective as well, so if you're a difficult bride when you deal out your contract with her she can charge you as little as $600 or as much as she wants?! What I don't like is dishonesty and I don't think that's a facet of the United States, Canada or Mexico. Honesty is the same across the board, and for someone like myself, who values trust an experience like mine would make a difference in whether or not you hire a vendor. From what I've learned over the last few months all (or the broad majority of) WC's in Cabo do these hidden fees, some are worse than others. This was my experience. If you can't trust someone to provide you honest vendor information, can you really trust that they will recreate your dream wedding? For me, that question was ambiguous and as such I couldn't risk it.

Originally Posted by DreaW

ok I have to post and stand up for Maye a bit.....
I did have her as a wedding coordinator and thought she was very reasonable . You have to remember the quotes she gives you is for the timing (date) of your wedding. Your quote might be different then the other brides quote. You are in 2009 and the other bride might be in 2008....so there will be a major price difference. Since Cabo prices always change, daily. In her letter responding to you it did seem to me that she accepted her responsibilities and explained how vendors work. Vendors change their prices constantly.... Maye does work for you and does find good prices, maybe there are other WC that can find better prices because they have their own connections but she is using her connections.....
When I had a question about prices I confronted her with it and she would do a price comparison and show me the price I liked. No fuss about it.
I also wasn't asking for horse and buggy (not fighting so please don't take it that way).
If she does do a mistake just make a copy of EVERYTHING that she sends you and when you see her before your wedding ( I did this 5 days prior to my wedding day) I sat with her and showed her my copies and compared it to her copies. She saw what she did wrong and changed it immediately.
With regards to vendors.....if you don't like her prices (just like she stated) it is easy just not to use her vendors and pick your own instead. That's what I did for photographers and videographers, she (Maye) didn't mind at all she just made sure they were there on my wedding.

I'm sorry you didn't like working with her but you have to remember you are not working with WC from the US, you are working with WC from a different country.....all you have to do is make sure they are on task....yes a little more work but it is worth it in the end. There will be mistakes here and there but remember it is one day of a party and the person you are marrying is the most important thing.

Sorry my two cents.

[Ana]

Originally Posted by happyone

I specifically didn't use a wedding coordinator to book my vendors because I had heard they take a cut for themselves. This forum and the wonderful people on it have given me enough good recommendations to book all my vendors on my own. Thanks everyone! I'm sorry that you had this experience and I'm glad you posted it because we should here all opinions both negative and positive.

I totally agree, and I kind of wish that in a way I was less crazy about worrying so much about the wedding. Sometimes I think I make more work for myself. Things would have been much easier and less stressful had I not hired her in the first place. I'm not perfect either but to me stealing, lying and just overall dishonesty are some of the worst traits that a person can have, so this was a really unfortunate realization. Anyways, my main objectives with this post were: (1)to let people know that this is actually a big deal in Cabo so just be careful with your vendors and WC's if you hire them, ESPECIALLY if you're on a budget - $1000+ is a big deal, if nothing else, you can give it to charity for something that matters in the world other than one person's greed; and (2)to let people know my personal experience with this one particular vendor - I think that if I'd read a negative experience (such as mine) that someone had had with her before I hired her, then I would have thought twice about it.

I do have to say this though, since I became more vocal on this issue, I have realized that she has done this in the past with other people, and that she continues to do so but with increased negligence for being found out, and less care for the wedding day itself.

[Ana]

Thanks Alyssa! I realized after I posted it that it was in the wrong spot, but it was too late to do anything about it

Originally Posted by Alyssa

Wow Ana that is really dissapointing.

i can't stand when Vendors are dishonest / sneaky!

i moved this to the Cabo Vendor section so other brides can see it.

[jkcz0702]

That stinks sorry you had to go through that!

[StephanieMN]

Sorry you had to deal with this but you handled yourself very well.

[michelle08]

I am so sorry you have to deal with this...you really shouldn't have to!

I have to say as a recent past bride of Maye's services, I can see both sides!

Having met Maye now and granted for only a short time I was able to get a vibe from her that she is really a very sweet lady and really does want to please her customers the best SHE can.

Now...I am not saying that I didn't have problems with her because if you read my review you know that I did. BUT with that said...I honestly feel (and this is my gut feeling and everyone will have their own and is entitled to their own and should follow their own) that from my experience Maye isn't trying to purposely cheat her clients but rather she is just unorganized and flakey and I really believe that she would answer emails to me about questions and not look at her spreadsheets first so she really didn't know what she may have quoted me because there were times that she may have told me something different then what she previously told me but yet when I would ask her to emal me a copy of her spreadsheet it would be correct on there! She just isn't very thorough and on top of things which is unfortunate because to be a good wedding planner you need to be thorough and on top of things.

I had a similar situation with transportation her rates were so high but when I looked around on my own they were mostly comparable but then I found a company who would give me the type of transportation I wanted for like 1/2 the price of what maye was quoting so I emailed maye the email from this place and asked if she could match it and she did! She said her contact agreed to do it for this price. Now I guess you can look at it as she was infating the price up and then since I was on top of it and double checking her work then I was able to get it lower but that never crossed my mind until now.

The other thing that you have to keep in mind is in mexico it's everyman for himself and it's all about negotiating! So who is to say that these vendors aren't the ones lying and changing their prices? It could be that Maye is telling the truth and that they told her one price and then when you come around and ask for a price they try and come in lower? I don't know what incentive they would have but who knows...maybe if they are a contact for the coordinator they have an agreed on price and it's decided that the wc gets a cut and then gives the other the difference which would be what you are talking about but to me that's legit since the wc is the one having to do the work to book them. If you go directly through them then it's cuts the middle man and you can ge it for cheaper. BUT the fact remains that she should be up front about it if that is the case!

I know I have rambled but I just really don't think that Maye is a dishonest person and I have to say that meeting her in person you can get a much better vibe then through phone and email. Now I just passed off alot of her dificientcies as well I'm dealing with mexico and so whatever but you this is where you have to choose what is best for you. I only paid $600 for Maye's services so to me I got what I paid for and I knew that I would need to be overly involved every step of the way because that's how I am so I knew she wouldn't have to do much work at all. Now if I was paying $1200 then I would have had higher expectations from her!!! You have to be honest with yourself as to what you want and how much you want to be involved and what exactly you want your coordinator to do for you.

I do think Maye should maybe change some of her ways and try and be more thorough and on top of things, but I still don't think she is decietful I just think that she has a business to run and so do other vendors in mexico and unfortunately business down there is run on negotiating and what they feel is right given the amount of work and situation at the time and it's good to get a price from others on here to compare and make sure you are in the same ballpark but I don't know if it's reasonable to expect the exact same and with wedding planning i can understand how she said it depends on the level of service because if she had someone like me who was low maintanence and wanted to control everything and barely leave anything for her to do then she wouldn't need to charge as much as someone who wanted a true wedding coordinator to do it all.

I think you made the right choice by following your gut because you can opinions and advice left and right from all of us on here but fact remains that each of us are going to have our own unique experiences and it's hard to compare exactly. So in the end YOU have to feel comfortable with your choice and who is surrounding you on that day. All we can do is post our experiences and then let others choose to do with it what they want and you do that and I'm sure everyone will appreciate it.

I'm done! :)

[DreaW]

Originally Posted by michelle08

I am so sorry you have to deal with this...you really shouldn't have to!

I have to say as a recent past bride of Maye's services, I can see both sides!

Having met Maye now and granted for only a short time I was able to get a vibe from her that she is really a very sweet lady and really does want to please her customers the best SHE can.

Now...I am not saying that I didn't have problems with her because if you read my review you know that I did. BUT with that said...I honestly feel (and this is my gut feeling and everyone will have their own and is entitled to their own and should follow their own) that from my experience Maye isn't trying to purposely cheat her clients but rather she is just unorganized and flakey and I really believe that she would answer emails to me about questions and not look at her spreadsheets first so she really didn't know what she may have quoted me because there were times that she may have told me something different then what she previously told me but yet when I would ask her to emal me a copy of her spreadsheet it would be correct on there! She just isn't very thorough and on top of things which is unfortunate because to be a good wedding planner you need to be thorough and on top of things.

I had a similar situation with transportation her rates were so high but when I looked around on my own they were mostly comparable but then I found a company who would give me the type of transportation I wanted for like 1/2 the price of what maye was quoting so I emailed maye the email from this place and asked if she could match it and she did! She said her contact agreed to do it for this price. Now I guess you can look at it as she was infating the price up and then since I was on top of it and double checking her work then I was able to get it lower but that never crossed my mind until now.

The other thing that you have to keep in mind is in mexico it's everyman for himself and it's all about negotiating! So who is to say that these vendors aren't the ones lying and changing their prices? It could be that Maye is telling the truth and that they told her one price and then when you come around and ask for a price they try and come in lower? I don't know what incentive they would have but who knows...maybe if they are a contact for the coordinator they have an agreed on price and it's decided that the wc gets a cut and then gives the other the difference which would be what you are talking about but to me that's legit since the wc is the one having to do the work to book them. If you go directly through them then it's cuts the middle man and you can ge it for cheaper. BUT the fact remains that she should be up front about it if that is the case!

I know I have rambled but I just really don't think that Maye is a dishonest person and I have to say that meeting her in person you can get a much better vibe then through phone and email. Now I just passed off alot of her dificientcies as well I'm dealing with mexico and so whatever but you this is where you have to choose what is best for you. I only paid $600 for Maye's services so to me I got what I paid for and I knew that I would need to be overly involved every step of the way because that's how I am so I knew she wouldn't have to do much work at all. Now if I was paying $1200 then I would have had higher expectations from her!!! You have to be honest with yourself as to what you want and how much you want to be involved and what exactly you want your coordinator to do for you.

I do think Maye should maybe change some of her ways and try and be more thorough and on top of things, but I still don't think she is decietful I just think that she has a business to run and so do other vendors in mexico and unfortunately business down there is run on negotiating and what they feel is right given the amount of work and situation at the time and it's good to get a price from others on here to compare and make sure you are in the same ballpark but I don't know if it's reasonable to expect the exact same and with wedding planning i can understand how she said it depends on the level of service because if she had someone like me who was low maintanence and wanted to control everything and barely leave anything for her to do then she wouldn't need to charge as much as someone who wanted a true wedding coordinator to do it all.

I think you made the right choice by following your gut because you can opinions and advice left and right from all of us on here but fact remains that each of us are going to have our own unique experiences and it's hard to compare exactly. So in the end YOU have to feel comfortable with your choice and who is surrounding you on that day. All we can do is post our experiences and then let others choose to do with it what they want and you do that and I'm sure everyone will appreciate it.

I'm done! :)

Ok I totally agree with Michelle, but my post didn't come out as nicely as she wrote it. I was extremely tired last night when I posted. :)
Ana, don't want to argue....We each have different experiences with vendors and WC. I had a good experience with her and as Michelle stated she is a bit flaky and a bit unorganized but she never was deceitful.....
Like I stated earlier it is your personal opinion and I'm sorry you had a bad experience.
I still will recommend Maye to people but warn them to take careful note of everything she does.....and if you don't want to add that extra stress then don't hire her.

[Morgan]

if you have to double check everything, how is having a WC really helping you then? I didn't have a WC so I really don't know what they do for you.

[DreaW]

Morgan I meant double checking the total prices....You should always double check everything when planning an event, even if you have a WC or not....

[Ana]

WC's are supposed to provide the best vendor prices based on their relationships with the vendors themselves. And they're also supposed to provide peace of mind to the brides and organize the day-of so the Bride can relax and not worry about anything.

As far as Maye not being deceitful goes, while I appreciate everyone having different experiences with her, with me she was deceitful. When she told me something that proved to be untrue then she was lying. Also, I understand that vendors in Mexico make deals for best prices, but I heard from a number different vendors how Maye was the one inflating her prices for her own gain. I spoke on the phone with these people, and I highly doubt that there is a big conspiracy to put her out of business or paint her in a bad light. Lastly I would like to say that from what I understand from the vendors I have spoken to, Maye isn't the worst of WC's. She actually rips the clients off the least and still provides a somewhat appealing exterior to the brides. However she treats alot of her vendors poorly, and many of them can't voice their concerns because they don't want to be cast out and have their businesses destroyed. It is for this reason that I cannot go into great detail as to whom these vendors are, nor can I go into details as to all of the details that transpired. In my own personal opinion I think that Maye is very good at playing the unknowing, frazzled, sweet lady role. I think she knows exactly what to do and what to say to get what she wants and she's very good at it.

Thank you Michelle for posting your opinion and your experience with her. It is important I think for everyone to get feel for what different brides have gone through and my opinion is just one out of a million.