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He's going to be so sorry that he recommended this site to me!!! I have soooooooooo many NEW ideas and stuff that I want after reading all the threads and posts!!

I'm hoping Kevin can get there to take a look at it (it's on my list of things for him to do while he's down there) so I'll let you know what I can find out from him.

If so... when did you try on dresses??

We pretty much created our own entertainment. We were there a couple of days before hand, and met some really great dancers that worked at the resort, and they put on a little special "show" for the B&G at the little bar/dance floor... it was especially great because it was soooo relaxed and unexpected. The B&G had a very informal wedding, so it just added to the whole atmosphere of the day for them. Even if you're doing a more formal affair, IMO a private-ish reception works well. I'm going away (personally) to get married so I DON'T have to all the formality stuff - it's just not me. I'll try and remember other stuff that they did and let you know. Leeann

Oh, and with the tour books, all the resorts ahve the complete package prices and whether or not they even fly from here, so that helps to narrow the resorts down too!!

I'll be the first to say that using a TA is definately the way to go... I went and saw ours, and I had sooooooo many questions about this and that and whatever else, so she gave me all the tour books, told me to pick 5 places that I liked (or thought I liked) or one general area... and come back and talk to her. I did just that, and she was able to help me narrow my location to the Mayan Riviera. All she had to say was..."the carribean of Mexico..." and I was hooked. My AI choices are dependant upon price and availability (of course) but at least we have somewhere to work from now...

We went to a wedding in DR last year, and what the B&G did, was leave a notice under our doors the night before/morning of the welcome dinner to let us know that we would all try and meet at the buffet restaurant between 8:30-9pm for everyone to be together the night b4 the wedding. Most other guests at the resort were done dinner by 7:30, so it ensured space for all of us. We had a fairly quick meal, then all went down to the beach bar for drinks. It worked out beautifully, and no-one was any the wiser... Hope that helps...?

OMG! what a great idea! I'm definately going to look into that one!!

we thought about doing it before we left... just to save the hassle or PITA as some of you put it...(that's so cute!) but I kind of want to whole lead up thing and the stress and the nerves that all go with it...(I think) although I DO know it would be a helluvalot easier to just do the symbolic part there... we'll be there for 2+ weeks and will have the time to get everything in order (I hope!) Any thoughts??

Quote: Originally Posted by MagsieMexico I read some terrible reviews about Dreams Tulum... I love the idea of being able to see the ruins and history right from the beach, but am afraid if it is really smelly like TripAdvisor says. Anyone been there? THis is one of our top picks right now... I've been doind some digging for reviews... Curious to know why it is "smelly" I love the idea of the church... and also the fact that there are nearby things for guests to do other than lay around all day...unless that's what they are there for!

I think it will inspire him to lay around on his ass...JK! I honestly didn't hink he would do much of anything down there in the way of wedding locations, but he was only there 2 days, and he emailed with 2 pages of info and said he has all sorts of books and information yet to show me...

Quote: Originally Posted by host it is a big misconception that because it is an AI all the fees should be included... if this were the case, why wouldn't everyone have private events for all their meals. it cost extra man-hours, which equals extra $$ to set up private events and have dedicated servers for your event only. also, to have the kitchen cook meals just for your event. when they say a free wedding pacakge, look at the fine print..it usually just includes the legal/ceremony and a dinner for 10 (not private). This is exactly what I've been noticing... and although it does kind of suck, I think it's TOTALLY worth it to pay the extra $$ for a private cocktail/dinner

Dreams Tulum is one of the places we are looking very seriously at... please keep us updated (esp. me!!) How have things been so far??

would you recommend getting a signed contract from the hotel with a detailed and itemized list of inclusions/exclusions?? My biggest fear is getting there and finding out that we have an extra billion dollars to fork out for things that we assumed were going to be included...

Quote: Originally Posted by LALA Welcome!! I had the whole thing planned before we got engaged too. FI called it Code Blue - like I'd make one call once he popped the question, say Code Blue, and it'd all be set. That's what I'll be like!

Quote: Originally Posted by LALA I'm late to this but here goes... #1 I hate this girl already. Who does that? #2 I think you should tell her that bc you are having a DW you are "resetting" the bridal party. Then ask who you want to ask and leave her out. #3 If she says ANYTHING about why she's not in it say "it probably has to do with the fact you like to lie about the groom. real friends don't do that." LALA, yours is my fave! I like the "resetting" the bridal party... that a really good one.

AHHHH - thank you! the kiddies will get a kick out of that...!

Quote: Originally Posted by REBECCA I agree with the other girls. Blame the FI. I definitely wouldn't keep her in the wedding in lieu of hurting her feelings. In fact, after the stunt she pulled it is probably better to not have her in your life anyway. Seems like she likes drama and planning a wedding stirs up enough of it on it's own! Agreed!! That's a really shitty thing to do, and I'm sure she's probably expecting to get ousted... and hse deserves a good a**kicking for that too!~!

ummmm...I kind of get the picture of what an OOT bag is by reading the posts... but what does OOT stand for??

Dreams is one of my first picks - either Cabo, Cancun, or Tulum... Cabo is too long a flight (from Canada!). Kevin is in Cancun with a business partner right now, so I sent him with a list of resorts and wedding packages to check out ... He just called and said that he's heard a lot of good things about Moon Palace and will be renting a car to go and check that one out, along with Dreams... even Belize!! (though I don't think there are any AI's in Belize...) So we'll see what he comes up with... THanks for all the kind words and wishes!!

holy jeeze, I can't believe all the stuff you have to keep on top of!

Quote: Originally Posted by Soon to be Mrs. Hull Welcome!!! I know BC is not close to the rest of our Canadian Brides, but you Canadians are taking over this forum!!! that's our ultimate goal!! ooops, actually, it's our ultimate goal to get ENGAGED!! Welcome to the board, I'm a newbie myself, and have the wedding already planned... still waiting for the engagement!!

Quote: Originally Posted by MagsieMexico I know, it is really overwhelming... For me, a private reception is important though, you'll have all the other days to go to the bar in the all inclusive... But i can see your point, low stress and a great way to save money! Now i think I'm considering Riu Palace Mexico, and Moon Palace... I think I have decided to push it out to February. That means I'm not getting married this year and I will have been engaged for 2 years when I get married finally!!!! I have a client that has been to Moon Palace (this is also one of the one's that we're looking at) and she said it was really beautiful. I've done some research on that one in particular, and they offer quite a lot in their wedding packages... I'm going to search the Grand Palladium too...

Jilly - I noticed that your wedding location is Dreams Cancun... that 's one of the places that we are looking at... how has the resort been to deal with?? We are also looking at the Tulum location... What other destinations did you look at, and why did you decide on Dreams??

Holy Jeepers - there's sooooooo much to think about!