olisa6

Quote: Originally Posted by MoBride Yeah, I'm in Galssboro on the border of Washington Twp. Howdy neighbor! I grew up in Blackwood but now live in Logan Township(near Mullica Hill). Howdy to you too:)

The only food I have left to choose is the canopes and dessert. What did you choose and was it good?

Quote: Originally Posted by host ooohh...there are alot: kate 12/08/07 Claudia 11/11/07 Angela B 10/28/07 brandy 6/21/08 lauren 5/08/08 courtney 5/19/08 sandra 5/25/08 jessica M 6/14/08 angela G 6/19/08 Jessica W 7/19/08 Forgot about me too Wedding date + time : October 1, 2007 5:00pm Ceremony: Beach Cocktail Hour: Cascade Terrace Music: Trio to play at ceremony and lead guests to cocktail hour5 - 6:45 Reception: Cascade Terrace Food: Beef Tenderloin or Mahi Mahi Cake: Whatever is with the package Flowers: gerber daisies and lillies(orange and yellow) Bridesmaid flowers: gerber daisies and lillies(yellow and white) DJ: DJ Mijares 6:45 - 10:30 Hair and Makeup: Suzanne Morale Wedding Cordinator: Yesica at Dreams Photographer: Juan Carlos What's left to do: table assignments final dress fitting finalize appetizers menu cards OOT bags(put together) welcome letter/itinerary put together bridesmaid/groomsmen gift bags order flowers stuff I've already done: luminares wedding table cameras votives centerpieces favors OOT bags jewelry dress/suit room block

I see you are form Glassboro. I'm right around the corner from you!! Haven't met anyone on here that lives so close!!

Quote: Originally Posted by SarahMc I used Dreams for flowers - I only need my bouquet, two wrist corsages for the moms and some petals for the flower girl. I went with gerber daisies in yellow, orange and pink and loved my bouquet - it wasn't huge, but just what I wanted. I think it depends how important flowers are to you. My bouquet was free, the wrist corsages were $17 and the bag of petals (which was huge) was $30. Do you have any pictures of your bouquet? I'd love to see it. I'm looking at the gerber daisies and lillies for my bouquet in orange and yellow. How were the wrist corsages?

I had the same decision to make. It was between Riu and Dreams. I chose Dreams because the wedding coordinator at Riu would not retun my e-mails in a timely fashion or at all. Also it was about $800 for the basic package at RIU where it was free at Dreams. I really think Dreams is cheaper but I can't say for sure. I had my site visit at Dreams after we booked and I love the resort. It is a decent size and very intimate. Its not a party hotel. I believe the Riu has a club and is more "active" where you need to have the music turned off by 10:30 at Dreams. Riu is alot closer to town, but Dreams is only a cab ride away. Hope that gives you a little more information, from my opinion. The brides on here that have already had their wedding at both places can comment on that. I'll be able to tell in 4 1/2 weeks how mine goes!! Good luck on your decision...

Have fun!! Its a great time. Ask lots of questions!!!

Hi Heather. Congrats on your engagement and the choice of Dreams. Lots of Dreams brides on here that will help you through everything!! Good luck planning.

Yeah she did send me a pic but I'm shocked. How the heck do you paste a picture in this

I am getting the free wedding package from Dreams so my bouquette and my finace's is free. I got a quote from Yesica at Dreams for my bridesmaids flowers and the groomsmen's and our mothers. She quoted me $30 each for the bridesmaid and $15 each for the mothers wrist coursage. The mothers sounds about right, but I am concerned about $30 for a bridesmaid bouquette. So my question is, how small is the free one and the bridesmaids flowers sicne this price is so cheap? Should I look somewhere else for flowers and pay the extra? I got a quote for $70 for the bridesmaid bouquette and that seems more correct. I'm not complaining about the price, I just want them to look nice.

Quote: Originally Posted by host Hi LIsa, got a response from epic and they said they paid for your taxi so you should not have paid anything and that they will send a private, luxury van to pick your up for your wedding (round trip) That is correct, we did not pay for the taxi. But it still took Dreams to try and coax three different taxi drivers to take us to the airport and charge them back. I'm glad that they did pay the taxi driver though. It all worked out both ways because we made it to the hotel and to the airport, it was just frustrating sitting by the curb at 5:40am and no one is showing up. For the wedding I am definately calling the day before to verify they are coming the next day!! That is great that they have a luxury van for us and it makes me feel better that they know we are arriving. Thanks again for all your assistance. You can't have the baby til after my wedding is over with(in case I need you again). As for Juan, you are correct. When I met with him, he suggested to me to have it at Cascade. He did say he thinks it is more fun there. And he said the lighting is better for pictures too.

I don't know of any sites with the exact song but search for it on youtube.com. I know Sarah(nursesarah) posted her wedding video on youtube and you can hear the mariachi band in the background. Don't know what songs they played but you could ask her. Just a thought.

Quote: Originally Posted by JenandBrendanWedding Have you thought about getting your BM's Burberry Bathing suits. I think they run about $200 right now. I think it's such a cute gift idea since it's a DW and you're all at the beach. I love the idea of versace sunglasses and burberry bathing suits but I'm picky with that stuff. Those are the type of things that don't look right on everyone and I don't want to spend money and it doesnt fit or the sunglasses make this ones nose or forehead look tooo big... That would be me complaining:) I don't know. I was thinking of the circle of friendship necklace. Online at jestjewels.com it shows Cameron Diaz wearing one. I am paying for their hair to be done with Suzanne Morrell. So that is one thing I already got them. I just need something personal now no more than $200. I was also thinking the tiffany's venetian bracelet and then maybe some victoria secret perfume/lotions as someone stated in this thread. I'll just see what other people suggest and go from there.

It really does depend on the time that you look. My first travel agen quoted us $156 per person per night. then Tammy(host) quoted us $146 per person per night. I did a room block of 15 rooms at that price. Then about a month and a half later all my guests were looking at expedia and orbitz and it was way cheaper. So I went back to the TA and I have a new rate of $128 per person per night. Only because it was about a $250 difference per couple. I wouldn't want to spend $250 more just to use a room block when I can get it cheaper online. thanks god the hotel was accomodating. I just proved the price online and it was not a big deal. This was with Dreams. I do not know how other hotel will be. I know that Tammy and company have a great relationship with Dreams so that may have helped!! Plus October is not a high volume month either. Just do your homework and see what price is offered online at that time and make sure your TA gets you a price that is lower or equal to that price. Every hotel is going to vary and then vary with the time of year too!!

Quote: Originally Posted by erik.wade Damn Girls! Can I be your Bridesmaid? Geez! I would totally score and then could return it all and cash in on another trip...LOL Though I am a guy, Sunglasses are a great idea as they will be on the beach and will need them...but I would suggest sunglasses in a nice gift basket with all sorts of little things as well, like sun tan lotion, chap stick, and even condoms to add a hint of comedy... But again, what do I know...I'm a guy and my gift I got as best man was a zippo lighter at one, and a cheap MP3 player that I traded to the waiter for a bottle of vodka. We already bought the groomsmen really nice Bulova watches and Birkenstocks to go with their outfits and then they can have after the wedding!! As a guy I hope that is a nice gift and they won't trade it in for a bottle of tequilla!! For what we paid, they need about 15 - 20 bottles!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by CourtneyV Lisa! Woot, I got to meet this girl, and she's such a sweetheart. I don't know where she went after she swam up to me while we were at the seaside grill (lol), but it was nice to meet a forum girl in person! Lee, we got to Dreams on the day of your wedding. We missed your ceremony, but I saw your ceremony and was a total creep and snuck some pictures (which I can send to you, if you like - none of them are that great because we didn't want to get to close and intrude). Also, our room was right above the Oceana Terrace, so we got to watch your reception (again, like complete creeps!). Good music choices, btw... you had your guests partying their butts off! It was very nice to meet you as well. We were in that pool the rest of the week. Were you at the Oceana pool? I'm shocked I did not see you the rest of the days. My fiance kept saying where is that girl you know? lol he wanted friends to hang with:) But it was very nice to meet a forum girl as well. We spent every night except monday night at the lobby bar. And tuesday we went into town so we weren't at the pool. My room was above Oceana as well and I was spying on their reception as well. I only took pictures of the set up process though. I saw the Mariachis lead them into Oceana and kept peeking out to watch. I was at the lobby bar at one point and even went back to the room when it was dark to get a peek. I feel like a stalker, HAHA... But it was nice to see one in person.

It is sucha great feeling to book the hotel. Congrats on your choice. All the reviews are great about Cabo Surf on this forum. I have not been there so am not much help, but having breakfast items in your room sounds great but do you really want people wandering in and out of your room every morning? Maybe the hotel can set up a table somewhere that you can have the items out everyday for a small charge. It will only be your family and friends so you don't have to worry about other tourists eating it. An offsite restaurant sounds like a great idea. It iwll give your guests a breather in funds and will be a nice treat to get offsite. I was thinking of doing it but I am at Dreams which is an AI and it doesn't make too much sense to pay for dinner when its already paid for. I still may to a sunset cruise for my RD for the guests. We'll see. I don't have much time left to decide, lol... Good luck to you!!

Quote: Originally Posted by host hi lisa, i am pretty upset that the hotel did not have you booked on the 28th but it was with mariana and she is still working remotely from mexico ciry (at least last time we spoke) so i guess it fell through the cracks.. the epic issue is not right and not only do you deserve a refund but i think you should get a free transfer for you and fiance next time you are there...i'll start working on that. Thanks Tammy!! I appreciate your efforts. I did send an e-mail to Teresa explaing all of this but she was on vacation this week. I think she is due back on monday. I asked her if before the wedding she can verify with Epic that all of my guests have reservations. Even though it all worked out it was not a very good first impression of Cabo and not what I want my guests going through. Thank god I can be patient at times. But Dreams did a wonderful job in getting us a taxi to the airport and we did not pay anything. Hopefully the driver was able to charge it back to Epic.

So its official now, a Cabo wedding and not a NY wedding! Congratulations on the decision and you can't go wrong with it. Now its time to plan but if I remember correctly, you have most of that done already or at least budgeted out. Congrats again!!!

I have less than two months till my wedding and I need ideas of what to get my bridesmaids for gifts. I want to do something really nice for them because they are spending so much money to come out for the wedding. I have about a $200 limit on each girl(I have 3). At first I was thinking a $200 gift card to coach or D&B so they could pick out their own purses or even to Victoria Secret but the more I thought about it, a gift card is not personal enough. I thought about getting them a necklace from Tiffany's but my matron of honor did that for us at her wedding so I can't really do that either. I'd feel like I was copying... Does anyone have any other ideas of good jewelry brand names(like tifanys) that I could get something at or even have any other very good ideas for gifts? Thanks.... Lisa

Great slideshow. You both look gorgeous and your wedding looked awesome. You both look so in love and so happy. I hope my fiance looks that happy. He hates pictures:) I am very happy for you both. Juan - Once again, you do great work. I'll see you in 8 weeks 1 day!!

Dreams wants $300 for an arch for a 20 minute ceremony. That is rediculous. I may just sweat it out.. If anyone has any better ideas I'd love to know as well....

I received a 5% discount from Continental Airlines. I looked online to see what was the cheapest airline at the time from the cities that most of my guests were departing from. Then I just called customer service and they sent me to their groups department. I told them I was having a destination wedding and wanted to inquire about a discount. They sent me a form to sign and fax back. Then they sent me the discount code and gave me a 12 day span to use the 5% discount and I had to have a minimum of 10 guests use it. It was based on the destination of Cabo so they could leave from anywhere. Some airlines I think need you to leave and return the same time/day. Hope that helps.

I got back yesterday from my Dreams site visit and figured I'd post my thoughts.. The trip started out rough. We took American Airlines and they only had one person working the check-in counter. It took us 1 1/2hrs to get through check-in and another 20 minutes to get through security. We got to the gate with 10 minutes left and then calling the "final boarding call". Then we were in the air and on our way. We finally got to Cabo and got a green light at inspection, yay. Then we fought our way through all the people hounding us for timeshares and to take us to our hotel(this was very annoying). When we got outside and found Epic Transfers, they did not have our name on the list. I had the voucher so it all worked out, but we sat there for about 45minutes until they straightened it out. We were finally on our way to Dreams. Cabo was not what I expected. I expected tropics for some reason but it is desert the entire drive to the resort. Not sure why I expected tropics when it is in the Baja Sur but it was still a nice drive. We made it to Dreams in 20 minutes from the airport. We were greeted with a cool towel for our forehead(this was very nice). I got to the counter and Dreams did not have us coming in until Monday the 30th. We arrived on Saturday the 28th. I was not happy but I did have all my e-mails stating the confirmation of 4 nights from July 28 - August 1. It was not a big deal because the hotel was not sold out. But if it was sold out, this would have been a huge issue. After about 45 minutes of waiting, we were on our way to the hotel room. They gave us the Honeymoon Suite for the two free nights and then they wanted us to move to the Jr. Suite room. I said I am not moving rooms so they gave the Honeymoon Suite for the four days for the discounted rate. Not sure if they do this for everyone but it was a nice treat to see the room. The room was big and very nice. It had all the "new" furniture but the old decor. They did say that all the rooms should be done by the end of this month. We'll see. The hotel was gorgeous. The pool was huge and the service was awesome all week. All you need to do it throw the service a few bucks in the morning by the pool and they take care of you all day. The same for the lobby bar waiters. They had activities all day long and the lobby bar was open til 1am every night. We met a couple from NY and had such a great time with them in the bar each night. I thought the food was very good. Most people have complained about the food but I saw no issues with any of it. We ate at Oceana, Portofino and Seaside Grill. We did not have the buffet for dinner so I can not comment on that. We did eat at the buffet for breakfast and that was OK. I guess I only like eggs and on the buffet line they were really "wet". I don't like wet eggs so I was not thrilled with breakfast but overall the food was great. I met with Juan Carlos, my photographer. He is just awesome and so down to earth. It was such a pleasure to meet with him and see some of his photos in person. I am very happy with my choice. I met with Jose Louis, my trio. He was very nice as well. Thanks Sarah for recomending him on your wedding review. They will play for 2hrs at the ceremony and cocktail hour. I met with Yesica, the Dreams WC. She was just a doll in person. She was so helpful and down to earth as well. She answered all my questions and we had a taste test for the options we wanted. We chose the Beef tenderloin in a red wine sauce and mahi mahi in a white butter sauce. I brought stuff down with me on this trip and she is holding it for me til the wedding. I will bring the rest down with me next month. Even though Yesica does not respond to e-mail very quickly, she really was very helpful. I did get to see two weddings. Both ceremonies were set up at the Gazebo and both receptions were at Oceana. I was a little bummed because my ceremony is on the beach and reception is scheduled for Cascade. I really wanted to see the set-up but oh well. One of those wedding was Lee's and she looked beautiful. Her reception was right under my room and I came out and watched them every once in a while. They looked like they had alot of fun. I am still undecided for the reception location. Oceana was more private but it looked really dark over there. Cascade seems like it is in the middle of everything and people will be walking by constantly during the reception. We are thinking of having the reception on the beach now because it seems a little more private yet still in the open. Plus the baracuda bar is right there. We saw the setup of a mexican theme buffet there saturday night. I believe it was Lees rehearsal dinner and it looked really nice. We have time to figure it out.. Then it was time to go. We had an 8:05 flight out and Epic was supposed to pick us up at 5:40. They said we did not have to call the day before so we didn't. Well big mistake.. They never showed. We called Epic but the office did not open til 9am. We had to take a taxi to the airport. Dreams was very helpful to call a taxi and have them charge back the fare to Epic. Two other taxis did not want to do that but the third one said he would. The only disappointing thing about Dreams is that it costs $25 each way to get into town via taxi. They have a shuttle but it only runs 9, 10 & 11am then agian 5, 6, 7, 8 & 9pm to town and then on the half hour back to Dreams and it was $6per person each way. We probably could have attempted the bus but they said it only comes every 30 minutes and it was HOT there. I was not about to wait 30min in that heat. All in all it was a very good trip and I am happy with my decision about havig the wedding at Dreams. Hopefully this helps some of you if you are deciding on Dreams. 7 weeks and 6 days til we leave for Dreams again!!!

Great review and sounds like everything went perfect. Glad to hear DJ Mijares was awesome. I have booked him for my wedding too. Congratulations!!!