TATrisha

15 meters = 16.4 yards so you have plenty Do NOT ship anything down to Mexico. There are threads about it throughout this website, but basically the customs in Mexico is kind of ridiculous and you are not gauranteed to get your stuff delivered. In fact, kind of the opposite. The WC also don't have room to store everyone's stuff so they will ask that you don't ship anything as well. For my wedding I had the luggage that you can buy where it's a big one, and then you open it and there is another luggage, and then another luggage. That worked out perfect! I was able to just put them inside of themselves to bring home. AND I threw my wedding dress in the smallest luggage so I only had our one suitcase of clothes and then one suitcase of suitcases/dress That was nice compared to the four suitcases and wedding dress that we had on the way down! As for photographer fee, yes, if your photographer is a guest at the hotel then the $500 fee does not apply. Naturally you'll want to get that in writing as well as excuse the services of the hotel photographer.

I've never had a bride have problems with it actually. Perhaps because they are so ready to party for their reception that it doesn't even cross their mind? Not sure. But I've never seen a reception retouch done and they always look gorgeous and happy at the end of the night.

For photographs I perfer the look of air-brush. It looks effortless and flawless all at the same time and photographs beautifully. My main makeup advice... stay away from minerals!!! Minerals are a photographers worst nightmare. They have severe reflective properties and cause what looks like light beams to come out of your head. It's rather sad actually.

I've traveled a few times where this was an option... and I have never paid for the seats or had any problems... until our last vacation. I will now pay for seats every single time I go. You see, we got to the airport, the flight was oversold, and since we didn't RESERVE a seat we were the ones that got bumped off! I was irate to say the least. In the end it worked out fine as a few people who DID reserve their seat didn't show up so we were allowed back on the plane, but to have purchased a ticket through the airline directly and then be told we didn't have a seat was beyond stressful. For your wedding, it's not worth it! Pay the extra!

It appears that the original poster has since left, however I think some of us "old pros" could write a top 10 list of things every destination bride should know from the get-go. Here is mine: 1. It's YOUR wedding - do what YOU want to do. You don't want to regret your wedding for the rest of your life. If you dream of getting married on the beach, don't listen to your SIL complaining that she can't wear heels. 2. Not everyone will come - and it's important to know that along with this one that you'll also have to hear their opinions and excuses WHY they won't come. 3. Budget - your wedding is the beginning of your new life. Many people choose destination weddings to have a cheaper wedding. That's not always the case. My wedding cost probably MORE than it would have had I had it in WI, but that's just because I went over the top. The MOST important thing is to have a budget. Know how much money you HAVE and how much you can spend. Keep track of it. 4. Bridal Attire - People are going to think you're nuts for wearing a ball gown on the beach. Who cares. As a photographer, these dresses look gorgeous on the beach and blow just as much in the breeze. Wear what you want to wear and what you feel the most beautiful in. 5. Mexico Time... Island Time... it's all the same... SLOW! - When you send an email to the resort, don't expect an email back within an hour. Sometimes 24 hours, sometimes a week! When you go to your resort, you'll see why. The wedding coordinators are busy. They have 1-4 weddings a day and they are providing the best service to the brides as they can. So relax. If it's something you desperately need to know, then call them. 6. It's your guests vacation - Yes! They are there for your wedding. YES! They are happy for you. But they are also on a vacation. Very rarely will someone shell out 1,000 a person just to see you get married. They want to enjoy the resort as well. Try not to plan every second of their day, and don't be offended when they just want to lay by the pool one day. If you paid for their trip, then you can dictate what they do. 7. Shoes - As a photographer... I LOVE awesome shoes. Oh yes. Color, bling, love it! But if you're getting married on the beach, please go barefoot or wear flats. Heels will sink in the sand and you'll look like a fool walking down the aisle. Flip flops will flip that sand right up your dress, so you'll probably want to avoid that too! 8. Travel Agent - Yes. It's easy to book vacations on-line now-a-days. it is NOT easy to deal with your 35 guests or the wedding coordinator that won't get back to you. Do yourself a favor, get a travel agent. The benefits FAR outweigh any sort of DIY motive you may have. I highly recommend one of the travel agents from this website as they are destination wedding specialists. Do it. 9. Packing - Oh packing. After playing on this website I brought down six pieces of luggage I think. SIX!!!! Between ceremony decor, reception decor, OOT bags, and my dresses and shoes, I was packed to the brim. Looking back, that is the one thing I regret. For the reception I brought candles... duh. I had an outdoor reception. They blew out. Waste. For OOT bags I just went crazy buying stupid stuff. All i needed was insulated cups, spf chapstick, sun screen, aloe, and imodium. Everything else was just wasted space and wasted money (playing cards, pool toys, makeup, etc). 10. Photographer - here is my shameless plug for myself and fellow photographers... please hire a professional. These are heirlooms that you're going to be passing down to your children. These are your memories that you will share with the family and friends that weren't fortunate enough to be with you on your big day. This is how you will remember every detail you put into your wedding. This is what you'll share with all these awesome photo loving brides on BDW!! Seriously, hire a professional and budget for a good photographer. Those are my top 10 tips that I can think of at the moment. Hopefully many agree.

Found it! http://blog.amberhughes.ca/2011/06/14/tammy-linnette-puerto-vallarta-wedding/

OOO, I just saw a GORGEOUS wedding, but it's on the west side of Mexico. I have seen same sex weddings a lot more frequently in the Puerto Vallarta, Cabo area than I have in the Riviera Maya. If I'm not mistaken, Playa Fiesta in Puerto Vallarta is where I have seen some of my recent favorites come from. I'm not sure if it's all inclusive though, but it sure is gorgeous!

If you're staying at Coba you can still get married at the Akumal location. Back when I got married (can you believe it's been three years ago already!! Geesh!). Anyway, back when I got married the Akumal lodgers got first choice on location and time, and then Coba. But it never seemed to be a problem. Thanks Andree! The fabric is the $2.99 a yard fabric from Hobby Lobby. It a satin blend. I used the 40% off coupon and it was super cheap then! They also have a lot of really great colors. I also took that same fabric and had a sash made for my bridesmaid's dresses so everything matched perfectly. That worked out swimmingly well I must say

When we were at Dreams in April photographing weddings, neither of them were on the beach, HOWEVER we did see a party on the beach that had a DJ, dance floor, and dinner so it was basically a wedding. Probably 75 people, so decent size. It was right in front of the cascade terrace (that's the one by the infinity pool right?). It was awesome and people were definitely dancing. I think the reason a lot of people don't do it is that it's windy and in the sand, so you have the potential to get sand in your food. But they definitely DO do them, at least in April they did! They are also probably a little more expensive due to the stage rental and adding lighting out in that area, however it was a really cool dance stage with lights and the crowd seemed to love it. I will add pictures tonight. I have a full review of the resort with a ton of pictures, it's just busy season so I haven't been able to post it. I will make a note to do that this evening!

Gorgeous! I love all the detailing and it's so flattering!

Stefanie, that dress is beautiful! I love the structure of the bodice and I agree that it's a good length for sandals on the beach

Chelsey, I stayed at Akumal actually. That's the Akumal Hammock location.

Welcome!!!!!!! Your wedding sounds like it's going to be amazing, and the Caves is one of the most beautiful places I have seen! You're going to love your honeymoon! As for experience... don't stress. Everything will work out perfect in the end and you'll love it all if you don't freak out about the details (they just aren't worth it!).

Hi ladies! It's been SO long since i've checked in! So many new brides and so many new Mrs.! Congratulations to you all!! Jemma, I brought along 16 yards of blue fabric and then we cut off some of it for the table runners, so I think I used about 12-14 yards. I wish it was a little longer though as you can see it didn't go to the ground. I also wish I had specifically asked to NOT use the white stuff, but oh well!

You were a stunning bride and your details are amazing. Thanks for sharing for all the future brides!

Morning ladies! I just posted another Dreams Los Cabos wedding in my blog. The ceremony is in the gazebo, reception by the small pool, fire dancers, and continued reception in El Dorado Ballroom. If you're interested, here is the link: Faber Photography Blog

congratulations Missy! Ruby is adorable!!

You must discuss this adhead of time with your wedding coordinator. Sandals resorts have strict clauses that don't allow you to use third party vendors, even if they are guests at your wedding. There has been lucky recently with brides, such as wilson, who are able to sign away the Sandals Photographer, but this must be planned in advance.

I can see how they'd do it. Three tables along each side and two tables in the center by the back wall. Then the sweetheart will go somewhere around there. I think you'll be perfectly fine, just a little less spare room... which just means your guests will have to party on the dance floor!

The terrace is about a 10x10 square with a bar on one end (not included in the 10x10 calculation. So it's not too large, but during Victoria's wedding there were usually 3-4 clusters of 4 people out there, so it easily holds 16 people. This is the empty ballroom Here it is designed for Victoria's wedding. The terrace is out the patio doors to the left, the bathrooms are behind me.

I hope you have a fantastic wedding!!! Have a Bart Simpson for me! It's a kiddy drink... mmm but it is delicious!

I've done it to photograph a wedding at Sandals Negril (Sandals was sold out). Honestly... I wouldn't recommend it. They definitely knew and they definitely weren't big fans of it!

I was the photographer for KiwiBride's wedding there last month and she had a portion of her reception in the El Dorado ballroom. it was really nice. I originally thought it was going to be in the convention center, however on a stake out mission I found it. I didn't realize they had a ballroom upstairs on the otherside of the lobby! Who knew?!! Anyway, I'm sure you could PM her about her reception, but from my perspective it was beautiful. They had round tables of 8 or 10, probably 5 of them. The dance floor, and then out on the patio was the bar. It was also very nice that it had private bathrooms right there so people weren't having to run down the stairs and to the lobby. I can upload some photos of the room tonight if you'd like.

Quote: Originally Posted by proti007 All quiet on the Dreams Cabo front! I've been waiting eagerly to hear all about Teira and KiwiBride's weddings!!!! Where are the photos!? Where are the reviews!? Well, as the photographer for both of them... from my viewpoint, they were AMAZING! I loved that their weddings were obviously both at Dreams, but so different! Teira got married on the beach and Victoria got married in the gazebo. Then of course they had different reception locations and Victoria also booked the hall so the party went on into the morning. It was so awesome that they were so different but both so beautiful! Teira's pictures actually just got put on my blog (http://blog.faberphotography.com) and there is one sneak peek of Victoria on my facebook fan page, but her actual images (as well as Teira's trash the dress photos) will be coming up shortly!

merrylee the invitations look awesome!!! I can't wait to see the finished product and hear how your guests liked them!