JenniferSS

That's a great idea! Now I just need some examples of color combinations! I want something that will really "pop" and draw people to it! I saw some amazing combinations on here but can not find them anymore .....if anyone can direct me to pics or threads that have great color combo's on the chuppas I'd be really grateful!

If you are looking at Sandals or Beaches for your wedding BDW is having a Test drive your Destination wedding this fall- it's a bit more expensive but includes a 3 night stay at Sandals Dunns River Villagio at a reduced rate plus sandlas is hosting many wedding related events! Check out the thread about it in the Sandals forum or email me and I can provide info! It''s going to be amazing though as we'll be meeting with the WC's, sampling everything from cake, to entertainment and everything in between!

Saphire- Are you already booked for your DW? Or are you still looking at locations?

Hi Ladies! I was wondering if you gals could help? I am doing a bridal show in January and I wanted to build a chuppa for my booth to feature destination weddings! I am looking for pics of fabric draped chuppahs that would be easy to assemble and take down. I know I saw some great looking ones here on BDW where you ladies had beautiful colors and decorations but I can't find them again ! I went through about 3 pages of wedding reviews and it took me a couple hours so any help I can get is appreciated! If you guys come across any or know the thread that I can find them at would you mind posting them (or the thread link) here? Thanks in advance! TA Jennifer

Just wanted to let you guys know that I will be out of town as I was invited to Sandals Star Awards! Last year there were only 75 agencies in the world invited! It is such an honor for my agency to be able to go! We'll be staying at Sandals Royal Bahamian-so at any rate I won't be available next week!

This may help, we're doing a webinar on December 16 at 7pm EST for Sandals resorts, they'll go over Sandals Negril and also what the wedding packages include! I do have for my brides pics of the resort and wedding locations. Sandals Resorts Honeymoon & Destination Wedding Planning Webinar Join us for a Webinar on December 16 Space is limited. Reserve your Webinar seat now at: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/316676542 Sand & Sun Vacations present a Sandals Caribbean Honeymoon & Destination Wedding Planning Webinar ! December 16, 2008 at 7pm EST (6pm central, 5pm mountain, 4pm Pacific) You see the ads everywhere~ bridal magazines, television and the internet~ now is your chance to learn all about what Sandals Resorts has to offer and why they are the #1 Honeymoon & Destination Wedding resort year after year! Attend the webinar and receive a $150.00 discount* off of your Sandals Honeymoon/ Destination Wedding or Vacation ! This is in addition to the Sandals special of up to 60% off Sandals resorts, valid till December 18, 2008! Do you have questions about the resorts, not sure which Sandals resort is right for your Honeymoon or Destination Wedding? Join Sand & Sun Vacations and you'll have the opportunity to learn about each of the Sandals Resorts distinct personality, allowing you to find the perfect Sandals Resort for you in Jamaica, St. Lucia, Antigua & The Bahamas! Enjoy seeing photo's of the resorts, destination wedding sites, Preston Bailey Packages. Register Now- slots are limited Webinar will last approximately 1 hour, 15 minutes and will be followed by an open question and answer session. Title: Sandals Resorts Honeymoon & Destination Wedding Planning Webinar Date:Tuesday, December 16, 2008 Time:7:00 PM - 8:30 PM EST After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar. System Requirements PC-based attendees Required: Windows® 2000, XP Home, XP Pro, 2003 Server, Vista Macintosh®-based attendees Required: Mac OS® X 10.4 (Tiger®) or newer

Sandals Resorts Honeymoon & Destination Wedding Webinar Join us for a Webinar on December 16,2008 Space is limited. Reserve your Webinar seat now at: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/316676542 Sand & Sun Vacations with BDW present a Sandals Caribbean Honeymoon & Destination Wedding Planning Webinar ! December 16, 2008 at 7pm EST (6pm central, 5pm mountain, 4pm Pacific) You see the ads everywhere~ bridal magazines, television and the internet~ now is your chance to learn all about what Sandals Resorts has to offer and why they are the #1 Honeymoon & Destination Wedding resort year after year! Attend the webinar and receive a $150.00 discount* off of your Sandals Honeymoon/ Destination Wedding or Vacation ! This is in addition to the Sandals special of up to 60% off Sandals resorts, valid till December 18, 2008! Do you have questions about the resorts, not sure which Sandals resort is right for your Honeymoon or Destination Wedding? Join Sand & Sun Vacations and you'll have the opportunity to learn about each of the Sandals Resorts distinct personality, allowing you to find the perfect Sandals Resort for you in Jamaica, St. Lucia, Antigua & The Bahamas! Enjoy seeing photo's of the resorts, destination wedding sites, Preston Bailey Packages. Register Now- slots are limited Webinar will last approximately 1 hour, 15 minutes and will be followed by an open question and answer session. Title: Sandals Resorts Honeymoon & Destination Wedding Planning Webinar Date:Tuesday, December 16, 2008 Time:7:00 PM - 8:30 PM EST After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar. Please keep this email to be able to click into the webinar. System Requirements PC-based attendees Required: Windows® 2000, XP Home, XP Pro, 2003 Server, Vista Macintosh®-based attendees Required: Mac OS® X 10.4 (Tiger®) or newer

Here you go! It Pays to Test Drive Book a minimum six-night honeymoon at any one of the twelve Sandals Resorts located in Jamaica, Antigua, St. Lucia, and The Bahamas, and the cost of your Test Drive will be applied to your honeymoon!** Space is limited and subject to availability. * Full credit of $149 per person will be made towards new bookings (six-night minimum in a concierge room category or higher) that are made within fourteen days after the attended Test Drive event. *** Participants must be present to win prizes and receive gifts

Hey Gang! Great specials again- valid till December 18, 2008! These specials are combinable with the webinar (DECEMBER 16TH at 7pm EST) discount of $150! *Sandals Grande Ocho Rios- up to 60% off! These Sandals resorts are offereing up to 55% off: *Regency *Royal Bahamian *Grande Antigua These Sandals resorts are offereing up to 50% off: Sandals Inn *Dunn's River Villagio *Whitehouse Halcyon These Sandals resorts are offereing up to 45% off: *Montego Bay *Negril *Royal Caribbean Grande St. Lucian Also the starred resorts are offereing free nights in some of their top room categories! Remember that we can book your accomodations for a $200 deposit as opposed to the $400 that Sandals requires!

Wineax Bride- Are you doing the test drive for a wedding or for a honeymoon? If a wedding -when are you getting married?

I'd also caution to not purchase airfare when it is first released, usually it's really high at that point- wait a month or two as then all the airlines have released their fares and itineraries, made some adjustments and start to compete on the pricing!

It's true that the airlines are hurting for $$ and I don't expect them to lower the fares-especially the closer you get to travel! The market is so much different than it was after 9/11 when there was dirt cheap everything, to a loss for many businesses, especially the airlines. Then about 4 years ago people travelled en mass because of the low flight cost,(which also gave us amazingly cramped seating as they reconfigured the planes, less services, paying for bringing luggage and in some cases being held hostage on the tarmac !), the occupancy levels at most resorts was almost at full capacity and now, even though we keep hearing about a lousy economy, the resorts are full, planes are full and prices are going up & up. The travel sector will see what prices the market will bear. The gas prices didn't help with the steady rise we've been seeing over the past few years year but even though they went down I wouldn't (unfortunately) expect to see travel related prices going down. Specific to airlines -one thing to keep in mind is that the airlines have consolidated their flights-as an example- instead of having 5 flights a day to Cancun out of an airport their may now only be 2- which means less seats going to a destination on any given day. This is so that the airlines can fly with full planes ( the cost to operate the plane is basically the same whether it's full or half empty). This also means that they can charge more per seat-supply and demand at work. We also have airlines that are no longer operational & mergers, such as the recent merger of NWA & Delta- that will mean less competition at certain airports and may mean that the prices will go up and seat availability go down. This can have a ripple effect across the nation on airfare pricing staying the same or going up. This also means that if you want a decent flight itinerary-I'd book early and not play the price game anymore. I am seeing the good itineraries go at a fair price ( not cheap but not as outrageously expensive as I've seen them go for lousy itineraries closer to travel!) I just paid over $600 to go to the Bahamas for December 8-11-typically low season. The same fare when I looked at it 6 weeks ago was about $475 ( I became really busy and also came down with that horrible head & chest cold so I focused on my clients instead of booking my own travel- ended up paying A LOT more) I'd let your guests know that if they can live with a price and they liked the itinerary to book it now and not wait or the flights that they can live with ( especially at smaller airports) will either not be available at all or will be incredibly expensive and they won't be able to go! Of course the airlines could go into a bidding war-lowball themselves again into not being able to operate at a breakeven point, let alone turn a profit and go out of business leaving people stranded. It's a heck of a gamble!

Iberostars are a great choice- the complex isn't right in the middle of anything but still close enough to Playa del Carmen. Keep in mind that there are actually three tiers to Iberostar and each comes with different amenities and restaurant choices!

Iberostars are a great choice- the complex isn't right in the middle of anything but still close enough to Playa del Carmen. Keep in mind that there are actually three tiers to Iberostar and each comes with different amenities and restaurant choices.

Hey I thought this was a neat contest! Azul Fives by Karisma Sponsors Mariana I Sailboat Azul Fives Hotel by Karisma, the Gourmet Inclusive resort located in the Riviera Maya, Mexico, is sponsoring the Azul Fives Mariana I, a Sun Odyssey 52.2 in the 23rd annual Atlantic Rally for Cruisers (ARC). Having disembarked this week from Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, more than 200 sailors will endure weeks at sea as they compete in the world’s largest trans-ocean sailing event. The rally, which spans more than 2,700 nautical miles, will finish in the Caribbean island of St. Lucia. “We are pleased to participate in the Atlantic Rally for Cruisers, as its following of sophisticated and knowledgeable sailing enthusiasts are an ideal audience for the stylish Azul Fives Hotel,†said Mandy Chomat, vice president of sales and marketing for Karisma. Individuals interested in the race will have multiple chances to win a lavish vacation at Azul Fives Hotel, which includes the Gourmet Inclusive experience featuring complete a la carte dining at any of the property’s gourmet restaurants, local and international alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, Fisher-Price Azulitos Kid’s Club for children under 5, My Gym Fitness Center to keep kids 6 to 13 active, snorkeling and kayaking, and special nightly entertainment and live music. Boating enthusiasts can enter to win a five-night stay for two in a Deluxe Suite with rainforest shower at Azul Fives Hotel including the Gourmet Inclusive experience (valued at $2,200). For more information, visit Cruising World - Announcing CW's 2008 ARC Getaway Giveaway. During the ARC, sailing enthusiasts are encouraged to follow crewmember Agustin Juárez’s blog from Azul Fives Hotel’s boat, the Azul Fives Mariana I at Logbook - AgustinJuarez - Cruisingworld. Each day a question about Azul Fives Hotel will be asked and participants will be able to submit answers on Azul Hotel’s website at Azul Hotels by Karisma . Correct answers will be entered to win five nights’ accommodations for two in a Deluxe Suite at Azul Fives Hotel. Depending on the Azul Fives Mariana I’s finishing place, participants could win up to 25 percent off bookings for reservations made within 45 days of the ARC’s completion. If the Azul Fives Mariana I places in the top 10, guests will receive 25 percent off booking; in the top 50, 20 percent off booking, and in the top 100, 15 percent off booking Agents who are Gourmet Inclusive Vacation Consultants, along with consumers, are encouraged to send the Azul Fives Mariana I’s crew motivational messages throughout the regatta. The most inspirational message will be selected every five days and awarded a voucher for a complimentary gift during a stay at Azul Fives Hotel. Send to Logbook - AgustinJuarez - Cruisingworld.

Curious as to why you would want to exchange one Riu for the other as basically everything would be very similiar- the wedding packages, the rooms, food & beverage. One other option in Negril that is a little smaller ands boutique would be Grand Pineapple Negril. In Ocho Rios- the only options that would come in mid range budget wise are Riu Ocho Rios, Sunset then a little more upscale is Beaches Boscabel. You'll have the widest variety of family friendly AI's in Montego Bay.

Wow!I was speechless- I can not believe that a TA would do that-I'm sorry but truly a professional travel agent would never send a client to tripadvisor and tell them to pick a destination wedding property based on the reviews! Nor would they push for one resort because of their relationship with them- I love Sandals & Beaches, I have an amazing relationship with them however they are not the best choice for every couple I assist. Basically, with a March 2009 wedding you really need a travel agent advisor that is familiar with destination weddings and can quickly narrow down the properties that fit what you envision and your budget and start finding out if there is wedding availability ! Generally either destination would work out well- Riviera Maya may be a little better if you have a lot of people coming from the West Coast but the advantage really isn't that much greater overall to a DW in Jamaica!

A couple of things your post brings up- 1) using a travel agent as opposed to doing it yourself online will usully produce better results as far as options/prices. A website can only give you the options that have been programmed in. a travel agent has a variety of resources to check all of your options! 2)Another thing to keep in mind to see if pricing is actually less expensive is to compare oranges to oranges- you have to be sure that the entire package is the same. Same flights- times-dates-room categories-taxes and if transfers are included. Now you would need to look at whether those flights are decent- a $300 savings up front may initailly cost you more in the long run; -If the layovers are bad (too short to make the connection- yes they will book them, say they are valid and more than likely you will miss your conection!), -the flight pattern is extra long ( I've seen flights that leave from the east coast that go out west and then down to the Caribbean- some people may not mind the extra 4 or 5 hours in travel but I want to spend as little time flying as I can !), -which airline the flights are with ( will their be baggage fees, seat fees ect that cancel out the savings presented ? ) -will the layover mean that you will have to eat a meal at the airport thus costing you $$. These are just some of the things that are looked at when a TA presents the best overall value. When you book with a website you need to look at all of those items and then figure out the best option! I really can't caution you gals enough about picking a TA - don't just look at pricing there are so many other factors involved with making your DW stress free and amazing! I know it's a strong factor but in the end service and knowledge will outweigh a couple of dollars in savings every time! Just look arounfd the forum to see how many brides say that they wished they had used a different TA or didn't book online. They wanted a TA with experience in assisting with a Destination Wedding! It's a whole different mind set than booking honeymoons or regular vacations and requires a different set of skills!

Beautiful Jamie! You look so very happy- I'm glad that you had the perfect dress day! You most certainly deserved it!

The reef terrace is probably the most private spot at Sandals Grande Ocho Rios! It's very pretty and I believe it can fit 30 for a ceremony ( may be more)

Quote: Originally Posted by jewls567 I'm actually having the same issue with my TA. When I asked her when I can talk to my WC at the resort (we've already booked our sunset wedding package & our stay & the stay of our families, etc.) and she told me the WC won't talk to me until we get down there which made me confused why that would be like that if we are paying so much money and all The Wc in Miami is different than the WC on site. The WC in Miami will arrange the entire wedding for you, including packages, upgrades ect. The WC onsite will meet with you the day after you arrive at the resort and review what you've already selected prior (if you didn't select anything prior she will show you what is available) and answer any last minute questions. The on site WC is there to see that things go smoothly.

If we have 10 couples who have not yet booked their travel for Sandals then we can schedule a webinar the third week of December. Probably a Wednesday or Thursday If not the next one is in February.

A couple of things that may help! 1)Sandals has a same price policy- which means that no matter where you book ,the price will be the same. If an agency ( online or a travel agent) is caught discounting, Sandals will cut them off and may not honor any of the bookings. Which means that possibly your booking will be cancelled! So you can find a TA who really knows Sandals and weddings, gives great customer service and feel easy that you will get the best pricing for the resort! It provides a great deal more power to the consumer! 2)Sandals also almost always has a sale of some sort- some are better than others but I find that this time of year typically has the best sale! 3)They also have changed things for wedding groups in the last few years. Instead of providing a discount for the group block ( and also requiring deposits and penalties for the rooms unused) they are providing additional amenities for the group as a whole and for the bride & groom. Sandals / Beaches will provide a group code, the guests book with the TA whenever they are ready, in wjatever room category they prefer for how many nights they wish to travel and again- no deposit required from the bride & groom! Truly it's the best of both worlds- the flexibility of booking individually with the perks of booking as a group. This is from the wedding I just booked for 2009 ( keep in mind that the program amenities for 2008 was different)and reserved a group space for: Congratulations! Thank you for considering Sandals & Beaches, Luxury Included Resorts to host your Group WeddingMoon. Book 5 to 9 rooms outside of 60 days from your wedding day and receive the following concessions: 1Complimentary 1 category upgrade Bride & Groom (excluding butler suites) 10 Rooms or more booked outside of 60 days from your wedding day and receive the following concessions. 1Private Group Rehearsal Dinner (guests booked as part of the group block) 230 Minute Wedding Cocktail Reception (Valued at US$ 15.00 per person) 3Complimentary 1 category upgrade Bride & Groom (excluding butler suites) 4Manicure & Pedicure - Bride 535 Minute Massage - Groom 6One complimentary room for every 25 paid rooms (26th room comp) 7Group PRE-REGISTRATION and Checkin upon arrival. 60 days prior to your wedding we will verify the number of bookings for your wedding and once confirmed the wedding department will be advised, and the wedding coordinator will schedule the Rehearsal Dinner and 30 Minute Wedding Reception. If less than 10 rooms are booked 60 days prior to your wedding day, a surcharge will apply for all or any scheduled wedding functions. Please note Beaches Resorts does not have exchange privileges with Sandals Resorts. Sandals guests do have exchange privileges with Beaches Resorts, transfers between Sandals & Beaches are not included. All reservations are subject to space availability, current promotional rates, and black out dates at time of booking. Sandals Resorts have a 3 night minimum stay. Beaches Negril & Beaches Sandy Bay have a 4 night minimum stay and Beaches Boscobel & Beaches Turks and Cacios have a 3 night minimum. HTH! Feel free to email me if you have any questions!

Yes, it is the same for all of the Sandals & Beaches resorts! The WC in Miami will contact the TA or the bride within 48 hours of the wedding being reserved. I made a wedding reservation this Monday for Beaches Negril for June 6th, 2009 and heard from the WC by Wednesday morning. My bride is already looking over her options and making decisions on the wedding packages and dinner menu!

Maybe try the Valntin imperial Maya or Ceiba del Mar. I believe at Valentin you can have the restaurant for the entire night and it would be close to the chapel and also to the gazebo! At Ceiba Del Mar there is a roof top patio where you can party all night long as there are no neighbors and there is an area at the other end of the resort where you can have the wedding on the beach or on the pier and reception right next to it in a plaza area. That area needs to be done at 11pm though because of the neighbors. HTH!