Upgrades/Discounts/Perks for total # of nights booked or group rates???

Hey all,

I'm a little confused about a few things as far as "group rates" or "nights booked". I've read different things from different people about the same resorts and obviously different different things about different resorts. So, I have a few questions to ask the Riviera Maya group....

Did your resort offer you a discount based on a group rate or total # of nights booked? How many rooms? How many nights booked?

Is it fair to assume that if you bring 40 guests that stay a minimum of 3 nights, they will work with you on upgrades/discounts/perks?

What did they offer you? Upgraded room, free room, wedding or reception discounts?

If you used a TA, did they work a "special" deal for you or is it something you could work out yourself?

Does anyone have any suggestions about their packages or resorts that seem to be willing to negotiate? For instance, trading the cocktail hour (b/c the tiki/pool/lounge bar is 25yds away for free) in place of _____________ fill in the blank?

Thank you so much in advance for all of your input!!

I did not use a travel agent, the following is what Palace Resorts Provide

• (1) complimentary 1 hour Cocktail after ceremony and 2 complimentary room nights for the bride and groom with 10 to 19 rooms paid nightly for 3 nights or 30 room nights.

• (1) upgrade to a complimentary private function instead of a cocktail party plus 4 complimentary nights for the bride and groom with 20 to 24 rooms paid nightly for 3 nights or 60 room nights.

• unlimited private functions plus 7 complimentary nights for the bride and groom with 25 rooms or more paid nightly for 3 nights or 75 room nights.

• bride and groom room upgrade to the next available for a minimum of 25 rooms paid nightly for 3 nights or 75 room nights, based on availability.

I was able to get this deal with Dreams:

Book five rooms, receive the sixth room free!

Plus, your group will receive a private check-in and welcome cocktail, 1 complimentary VIP room upgrade for every 10 rooms paid and $100 in resort coupons per person.

There is a 3 night minimum, but it sounds like that would work for you. Also, I think it depends what time of year you are going as to whether you can use this promo. It says specifically in the terms and conditions that it's ony for social groups (i.e. not weddings) and so I know some girls going at high season were not able to use it.

My advice would be to contact a TA that specializes in destination weddings (like the ones on here!) because they are usually pretty good at knowing who's offering the best promos and what your group might be eligible for.

Good Luck!

promotions change with resorts and time of booking. like alot of times they will offer promos if you are booking off season, or in the case of dreams they were offering that promo when things were a little slow but it is no longer available.

for palace resorts the free nights/upgrades is pretty readily available and on their website.

it is really hard to give a blanket explanation because each resort chain does things differently.

also, what people don't realize is that even if you get a complimentary room, sometimes it is at the cost of having a higher rate overall...it is not always you get the lowest rate AND complimentary room so you really need to run the numbers to see what will work best for you and your group.

I'm with Ceiba del Mar and the perks they have given me are...

-Free upgrade to Penthouse suite for bride and groom for 5 nights (we'll be there 7, so the first two nights are in a standard room, which is what we're paying for!)

-Free upgrade for bride and groom parents to one category above what they book, for their entire stay

-Free room for wedding planner

-One free room for every 20 rooms booked

-They are also giving welcome drinks to all our guests upon arrival and are putting complementary fruit baskets in all of their rooms.

We are expecting 70-80 guests and we did negotiate room rates based on this, which did bring down their initial prices. However, regarding wedding packages, this resort does not have any. That's actually why we chose them, as it is all-inclusive, yet we can still personalize our wedding and book all the vendors on our own, according to what we want and like. So there is no trading cocktail hour for cake or anything like that, because you customize everything. But when it comes to budget, this option is definitely not the best for that!

Thanks everyone for your feedback! It is greatly appreciated and very helpful. I understand the time of year and resort makes a difference on what they are willing to negotiate, but to have a reference point from different resorts definitely helps! I look forward to hearing from more of you!