Dreams Punta Cana Brides

annidas... i know i didn't just get married there, but i think i have a lot of the info you're looking for, and i'm sure dreamsbride09 can add or correct anything!

 

you can go here: Dreams Punta Cana Resorts & Spas: Wedding Extras and scroll down to the very bottom to see the private reception prices. it's different from just a regular dinner considering you get an area to dance, cake, champagne, etc.

 

this is also some incredibly helpful info, esp. in regards to the receptions:

Dreams Resorts & Spas - Login

 

you have to sign up for the dreams forums to read it, but you should do that anyway... lots of great info there!

 

i know you can choose to just reserve an area of a restaurant to have a private dinner that would be part of the "all-inclusive" package, but you won't get some of the extras that come along with a private reception. definitely a personal preference!

The private reception does cost money, which I know many people don't like considering it's all inclusive resort, however it is definitely worth it. From my own experience I would not count on being able to use one of the restaurants. I think it is hit or miss. Some people may have been able to do it, but not everyone can. When I first inquired about having a welcome dinner they said I could reserve a terrace but it would cost per person. Then when I asked about it again they said none of the restaurants could be reserved and the only place we could fit our group was the buffet. I'm only saying this because I wouldn't want someone with a large group to count on reserving a restaurant for their reception and to then find out it couldn't be done. The private reception is worth it because you know exactly what you are going to get.

I totally agree. For example, we went to the Japanese restaurant one night, there was 13 of us there, and we waited for about 45 mins to be seated. With the private reception you pick the time you want at your meeting with the coordinator and it is all set up by the time you get there. I also asked the wedding coordinator if it was possible to set up a dinner for us and our immediate family the night after the wedding and was told that it was not possible and we'd just have to go when we wanted to be seated, which is what we did, but still had to wait. To be honest, our entire wedding did not cost half as much as we expected considering the add on's we wanted. We had the free wedding, added the sound system for the reception (Which we didn't even use because it rained), added a bridesmaid bouquet, extra boutinnere, 5 centrepieces, 3 person trio, dinner for 37 people, 2 extra bottles of champagne for after the ceremony, judges fees, my hair and my MOH hair, and Im sure there was more and it only cost us $2300 USD. I didn't think that was too bad at all!

The hotel photographer was really good. Ours was Pamela. She's super nice. We chose the bronze package (50pics) and there was 189 I think to choose from. The 50 pics were $500 and had the option to buy the rest for just over $700 which we didn't do because one of our friends is a photographer who came with us. So we received 50 printed pics, you can choose 4x6, 5x7 and another size. We chose 5x7's. We also received 2 copies of the cd so we can print more pics. Funny thing is, when I went to Costco to print the pictures, they asked if they could make a copy of one of our pictures to put on display because they thought they were so good! LOL!

Thanks everyone great advice...im thinking im better off doing the private dinner never thought about getting the complimentary package and adding things to it .... good idea! Did you decide this all the day you meet with the coordinator? so many things to think about but your right its not going to cost as much as a wedding at home would be !!!!!

Yes, all of this was added when we met with the coordinator the day before the wedding. We knew we were going to do the free package before we met though. She basically has a check list she goes through. I had Deyanira as a coordinator but I also met Sharron, who is a total sweetheart! She is a very nice british lady

I'm confused, how much extra is a "private" reception? And are private receptions considered to be those held on the terraces? If so, what is a regular, free, "public" reception? Do they just section off part of the buffet? We were told you couldn't do the reception in the a la carte restaurants...

The private reception cost really depends on which wedding package you choose. If you look at the Dreams site where they list wedding extras you can find details about the cost. There are different dinner menus you can chose from and certain packages you can use. We had the Complimentary wedding package and then added on the gold dinner package for 42 people. We really felt it was very affordable and were happy with our choice. You don't have to make any of these decisions before you go to the resort, this is all stuff you can plan once you get there. There really is no such thing as a public reception. I suppose all of your guests can go to a restaurant after the wedding but there is no guarantee you will be seated together. If you decide to have a reception they will reserve a terrace for your wedding party and you will have a full meal, cake, dancing, etc. That area is yours for a certain period of time.

Does anyone have any pictures they can share that were taken by the resort photographer at Dreams ... thanks!

Thanks ACH2009! That's what I thought, just add on the extra people/higher food package. I got the impression from "private reception" that there was an extra charge to have the reception on a terrace! But now I see. If you had 20 people, and chose the 2nd wedding package and the Silver dinner package that's included with that, it would have been free. Perfect. :0) Thanks!