JenniferSS

The airfare right now is pretty high so that's probably eating a lot of your budget. There is an all inclusive called Negril Gardens, Sandals just bought them and is renaming the property Grand Pineapple Negril and is keeping the property as a moderate all inclusive. It's small, cute and has a garden area that while not super lush is very nice. The propery itself is beach front with another section of rooms and the pool across the street. If you'd like more info pm me! TA Jennifer

Quote: Originally Posted by bridget917 Amanda, That was a huge help! Thanks so much! The $25 reception is what we're looking at. We have 12-16 people (including us) going, so it's still fairly reasonable...we figured since we had so many people coming for our wedding that we at least owed it to them to have an hour long reception!!! Do you happen to know what the regular ceremony includes? I'm not sure if we're going to do the sand ceremony yet, just trying to decide what we can do and what we want to do. I'm thinking of making a cake topper to match my flowers so it won't be anything fancy, it will just personalize it a little bit! Thanks so much for answering my questions for me!!! Bridget Asteff beat me to anwering your other questions but she is right on the money! The regular ceromony is very simple and sweet, 15 minutes tops but the WC's can add anything to it that you'd like. They have someone there that will assist with the signing of documents, cutting of the cake and pouring the champagne. The Reef Terrace is fairly sheltered so a Unity Candle would be easy enough to light. Sandals also has the vases to do a Sand ceremony that you can buy onsite! What we heard over and over while at the ttraining was that whatever you can dream up they will help you accomplish. I was discussing different ideas and options with Nadine who is the Wedding Manager for all of Jamaica. She loves what she does and is open to pretty much anything that you want to do and will even brain storm on how to get it done! We came up with some neat ideas, especially for trash the dress sessions!

Fantastic Review! I really love CSA, it's such a laid back beautiful resort! For singles there are a few rooms with double beds-no problem mon! The WC's here do such a wonderful job, they really love what they do!

Quote: Originally Posted by Asteff2001 I'm so glad to hear that the Reef Terrace is private. We're only having 8 guests, but want everyone, including ourselves to feel like we're the only ones there! We're also having a one-hour private cocktail reception. Is there a space at the Reef Terrace for that? Definately! For 8 people you could have the cocktail reception and do a little dancing if you want!

Quote: Originally Posted by IrieBride08 Thanks for posting these! It looks beautiful! Do you think the Reef Terrace location can accommodate 40 people? I was planning to use "ceremony option A"--I don't know the official name for it! Did you see this location? How private is it? The Reef Terrace may work for 40 people - it may be a bit tight but I think it would be do able. The other location I did see and have pics of and can't remember the name of right now either. It's fairly private but the main pool is at the right of this, you may get some pool noise if they are doing activities and using the microphone. The only other thing near here is the chess set and walkway going down to the beach side. Very few guests walk, at least when we went, most use the shuttle but we saw a lot of staff members using the sidewalk. I thought it was a great location- if they had the fountain taken out! I did see several weddings set up there - just the chairs though not the actual ceremony.

Thank you so much! I've been doing Sandals Weddings for years now but it is neat to be able to say I am one of the few who have the certificate!

Thanks you guys! I have to admit that those are the better pics- the others have been permanantly deleted It was a lot of fun- especially as I had really wanted to do a vow renewal for our 10th anniversay ( it'll be on May 1st! ). The time just got away from us ! So....I was really glad that they did that for us! We became good friends with a few of the agents on the trip and there was one that was so sweet- when we were dancing she started crying, which in turn made me tear up (I am such a big softie-it's ridiculous!). It was a great end to a fantastic experience.

You'll really like the Reef Terrace-it's tucked away a little bit so it's private but will make great pictures with the ocean in the background. The location is great for intimate to mid sized weddings. The flowers on the gazebo were upgrades, as were the hanging votives with the white roses in them. I'll try tonight to post more locations- it took me hours and hours to post what I did- I think my pics were too big to start with so it's taken photobucket forever to upload. I was getting pretty frustrated!

A little bit of background- my husband co-owns Sand & Sun Vacations with me. He usually books dive travel but is starting to get more involved in the Romance Travel and assist me with the Bridal Shows and booking honeymoons. So he went to the Sandals Destination wedding training with me. Poor thing- he was the only guy with 22 women (20 travel agents and two Sandals representatives)!. He caught grief from day one! After out classroom training we were treated to a mock reception- they wanted us to experience what the food and banquet facilities were like for an inside reception. We enjoyed lunch and I went to use the ladies room. When I came back the wedding coordinators at the Grande Ocho rios had given him a rose to present to me and had placed the cake in front of us. I came in- went to sit down when I realized he was standing, about as red in the face as he could get and there was THE cake. I DO NOT like being the center of attention......I was like-"You have to be kidding me!" He hands me the rose, the WC comes over and has us cut the cake, do the bird feeding ( you put the cake in his mounth and then kiss) and then all of a sudden in comes a sax player for our first dance! They had the photographer come in taking pics- I am not photogenic at all! Plus in my shock there were very few pics where my mounth was not wide open. If I had known we would have dressed a little more appropriatly and I would have been made up- at this point we were tired, I had ditched the heels and we figured it was classroom time so no need to look good!

Here is the Great Lawn Gazebo on the manor side- again this is a quiet, beautiful location!

Here are pics of a mock wedding we saw at the Reef Terrace!

There are so many choices for wedding locations at Sandals Grande Ocho Rios! The resort itself is very large and the two sides have completely different atmosphere although both are lush and beautiful! I'll write a review hopefully soon! This is the pier location- fairly private and the pics would be beautiful! Preston Bailey Floral Elegance Collection

Thanks Alyssa! These are pics of some of the wedding cakes- the cake for the free Package is the same as the first pic, just unadorned. This is the cake to the Preston Bailey Water Lily Collection- beautiful isn't it?!

Ok gang! I finally have a few minutes to start posting some of these pics! First I want to brag a little hee hee! Here is my Sandals Destination Wedding Certificate.

Welcome to the forum! There is always Sandals Royal Bahamian in the Bahamas and the St. Lucia Sandals properties! Both islands are fairly easy to get married on! What was it about Jamaica that made thm say- no way? If you'd like additional info just PM me! Warmest Regards- TA Jennifer

I love riding with my husband, with kids though we just don't get to go that often. Don't lean on the corners! I use to do this all of the time and he would get so mad as he'd have to compensate for my leaning hee hee! At first make sure there are plenty of stops- you'll use/stretch muscles that you weren't aware of and if you don't get off you'll find that your very stiff and can barely move ( well at least that's what I found!- of course we road the first time for an hour w/o any breaks)! Have fun! TA Jennifer

Quote: Originally Posted by JennyK So which was your fave? hehe This is a loaded question LOL! For a combination of nice rooms no matter what category, good range of day & night time activities, nice beach and ease of meeting fellow guests - my top choice would be Sandals Dunns River Villagio. For amazing rooms ( I love those swim up suites!), good range of activities both day & night, lots of areas to meet & mingle and a great beach- Sandals Negril for a longer trip and Sandals MoBay (Bay Roc Estates are fantastic!) for a shorter trip. For needing a getaway that was a chance to unwind, recoup and unplug with a good beach, a European village feel and really nice rooms to veg. in- Sandals Whitehouse. To take the family- that is really tough- Beaches Boscabel with the new waterpark was awesome, we also saw alot of older kids having a great time in organized activities. The beach was also alot nicer than I though it was before I went! Beaches Negril however was really nice too and I love Negril beach with those sunsets, crystal clear water and shallow entry to the ocean. Negril is a little closer but my husband I were talking (he's a TA also and went with me) and this fall we'll probably take the kids to Beaches Boscabel. If the kids were littler ( 6 and under) I would say Beaches Negril. TA Jennifer

Quote: Originally Posted by melody Hi..how was the Royal plantation? it looks great but the beach is practically non existant...what did you think? I'll try to answer the questions- it has been a really busy week trying to get caught up plus I caught another terrible cold- I think I should just stay in Jamaica- it's been the only time I've been perfectly healthy all winter! The beach area is small in comparision to say Sandals Dunns River (which is practically right next door) but there is enough room for everyone to spread out as it is a smaller resort. I certainly wouldn't say it was non- existant though! The rooms were wonderful! As were all of the public areas-there was a definate old world continental charm and luxury feel to the place. Very laid back and quiet. I don't have as many pics of this property as I was trying to be a good Samaratin (sp.?) and close one of the balcony doors that was banging in the wind (they closed the wrong one first so the other side didn''t latch) and I dropped and destroyed my camera!

I'm back! It was a great trip- Sandals is improving on everything-it's been amazing! I visited every single Sandals property on the island of Jamaica ( well except the villas- but I had to save something for my next visit!). I think I was able to capture everyones pics, talked to almost all of the wedding coordinators at each resort, saw lots of locations and set ups and met with the head of the Sandals Destination Wedding department on Jamaica (she's a doll- so incredibly sweet!). There are a lot of new packages for honeymoons that have been released that I can't wait to share and a new Preston Baily wedding package! I am also one of only twenty travel agents around the globe that has officially gone through Sandals Destination Wedding training! The thing that I heard over and over was that Sandals is willing to make any dream come true- if you can dream it up- they will make it happen! I have over 750 pics to go through so please be patient! TA Jennifer

I have everyones request down and am getting ready to start packing! We leave for the hotel at 6pm tonight so I'll just be throwing stuff in a suitcase LOL! See you all in a little over a week! TA Jennifer

As much as I would love to have you use one of the TA's here on the forum I have to let you know that it seems to be an epidemic across the board for January 2009 and beyond group prices. The resorts have been extremely slow in getting back to our suppliers with rates....as are the airlines. For group rates I use several suppliers and see who is offering the best rates and value for my brides- I have several quotes out for pricing for my January 2009 brides and I am getting the same answer from all of them- a couple of days, a couple of weeks..... I've never had it take this long! Another thing that I am noticing is that the prices that are coming down the pike for group rates are higher than one would expect. Depending on resort/ time of travel and group policies it may be an overall better value to do individual reservations as opposed to a group. You may want to ask your TA to check into it so that you can compare. I know how hard it can be to be patient when you have guests chomping at the bit and calling you but it sounds like your TA is really doing all that she can and is on top of it.

Sandals Whitehouse is beautiful, only a few years old and sits on (if memory serves right) 46 acres. The resort itself is mid sized-360 rooms, all have at least an ocean view. Has a European flair in design and architecture, set up in a village concept with three swimming pools. But the beach is fantastic, two miles long and fairly private. Someone on the forum had a friend get married there last year and loved it-sorry I can't remember who it was. I'll be going in about a week and a half and staying at that resort - I'll take some pics and post! TA Jennifer

Hi Natalie! Couples will do group rates- how many guests are you expecting? Couples resorts offers a completely different ambience than Breezes! Couples is more laid back, geared towards romance, better food- drinks are about the same. Couples Ocho Rios is closed for rennovations but they are planning on doing a lot at the property! Sans Souci is very nice, quiet and not a good resort if you have any guests with mobility issues as there is quite a bit of stair climbing. I beleive the rep told us that at the end of 2009 Sans Souci was going to build an additional complex on the bluff. I posted pics and a review of Couples Swept Away. Couples Negril is a little more happening than CSW and really beautiful also! Breezes- entertainment can be a bit more on the wild side, definately adult in nature (this is the same chain that owns Hedonism Resorts! ) Food is usually pretty good. It really depends on what you & your guests prefer! TA Jennifer

Welcome Natalie! You'll love the forum and all of the ideas! TA Jennifer