Suggestions for Wedding Planner or Day of Coordinator for Villa Wedding (reasonably priced and flexible)

[solymar]

 

Hello, everyone! I am new to this board but am happy to have found it.   My fiance and I are planning to do our wedding in Puerto Vallarta, and although we haven't pinned down a date yet, it will probably be either February or June of 2012. My fiance is Mexican and I am from the US, so our guest list will be split - about half Mexican and half American. It should be a fun intercultural wedding. FI lived and worked in Puerto Vallarta for several years, and so he knows the area quite well which should be helpful as we plan.   We know we want to rent a private villa and do the wedding there. My first question is this: do we need to hire a wedding coordinator? I believe the answer is yes, because obviously, we will not be there physically and it would help to have someone local and also someone to do the set up and coordination on the day of, so we do not have to stress about it. So, my second question is, who would be a good group to hire? I initially looked at the Dazzling Details because I love some of the pictures of their weddings on blogs, but from reading on this forum, they can be quite pricey (over $200 per head!?). Part of the reason we want to do a destination wedding is to keep costs down.   Also, I would like to have some control over the process. Originally, when we thought about doing a local wedding, I had been planning to do a lot of DIY projects - menus, favors, programs, etc,..all those little details. I would still like to be able to do that, and have each guest bring whatever in their suitcase. Is there a coordinator that will be open to that, and maybe charge less? I just really need someone who could provide day of set up and coordination....I don't want to spend a ton of money or deal with someone who has preferred vendors. Since FI lived in Vallarta, he has quite a few connections that we would like to use. Also, it is my understanding that being in a villa we would have a private chef and I wonder if we could use him to cook as opposed to hiring an outside caterer.   Has anyone else done a private villa wedding and who have you used as your coordinator? Or do you know of anyone who doesn't charge an arm and a leg and would be open to letting me to some DIY projects or pick my own vendors to keep costs down? Where I am from, you can hire Day of Coordinators who just bring everything together and usually charge a flat fee. That would be great I think but the wedding planners I have seen in Vallarta seem to do everrrrything (and charge accordingly!). Thanks for any advice..

[wnmrtn8]

I used Vallarta Webb Planners and they are open for you to make your own things. I really enjoyed that process of doing some of things. And also they brought a lot of good ideas, and suggested many things that I never taught about before. Their prices are very reasonable. And they answer every email and they are very professional. I got married in a hotel but I know they also do wedding in villas you might want to ask them. And we also save money with them bc we got some lower prices with the vendors they used. Good luck.

[AfricanVenus]

I'm having the same dilemma. I'm having my wedding at a hotel, but I'm not sure they'll execute my vision the way I like, so I need a day-of planner to do the set-up. I'm aiming to do a lot of DIY myself. Try these planners for size:

 

Mishka Designs or Rocco Troyani may work...They're are a lot. Dazzling Details, Vallarta Wedds Planners, E & M Vallarta (will work with you on price), Landa Weddings (might not be cheap), Vows Vallarta, Vallarta Incredible Weddings, Vallarta Weddings By Monique, Platinum Weddings Mexico, Martoca Beach Garden, and Prisar. Just to name a few! Just compare and contrast. All the best!

[samfina]

We're using Patricia Romo from Vallarta Incredible Weddings & Events to plan our legal ceremony.  So far she has been great to work with, and very quick to respond to any questions I have.  

[adcarter41]

I'm having a villa wedding in March and am using Gaby from Marweddings. They are very reasonably priced (they charge a flat fee based on your number of guests) and willing to work within your budget. So far communication has been great and I'm happy with everything. 

[solymar]

Thanks for your advice about Mar Weddings. Do they have a website or blog with pics of past weddings they have done? Thanks!

[AfricanVenus]

Right here: www.marweddings.com

 

Originally Posted by solymar 

Thanks for your advice about Mar Weddings. Do they have a website or blog with pics of past weddings they have done? Thanks!