LadyCheese

Congrats! great review and pics!

you guys looked fantastic...you pics are amazing and everything looks great! I too had to have my outdoor reception moved indoors, which is a bummer but at the end it didnt matter bc everyone still had a blast. congrats!

very, very nice! love the shoe pics.

everything looks great! the programs are very cute, good job! have fun

Oh my, what a cutie!!! I love her color!

Quote: Originally Posted by Lizz We used ours on the beach. It wasn't very windy, but I think they would have held up even if it was, they were pretty sturdy. I bought a few extras just in case they got damaged, but didn't have to use them. They looked great in my pics (and saved a ton of money)! I agree, they were very study...they held up really good packed in the suitcase too. The pictures with the parasols look great.

Quote: Originally Posted by Angela139 Great review! My FI and I were at the excellence this past October - that is actually where he proposed to me. We've booked this resort for our honeymoon as well! I agree that the rooms are outdated, but the biggest plus for this resort, in my opinion, was the service, which was excellent. Glad you enjoyed your honeymoon, and congratulations!! Angela Thanks! Yes, I agree, the service was great!

Amazing review!!! Everything sounds great and I'm glad you had an amazing time and a great support team!

hi ladies...I used parasols for the bridesmaids; the ceremony was not on the beach but we took pictures on the beach and that day was very windy...the good thing is the parasols held up pretty good but the girls were having a hard time keeping the straight but it was hilarious. I say go for it.

Thanks for sharing Shelley...I love baking also and these recipes look great!!

Does anyone have the single "Fortunate" by Maxwell on CD or as an MP3 file by any chance?? I cannot find it anywhere in the stores (not even iTunes)...I did find it on Amazon but people are selling the single for over $30, ludacris!! The single was discontinued by the manufacturer so I guess thats why people are asking up to $50 for the damn thing. Jeeze!!

DH told me to pick any resort I liked for our honeymoon and I picked Excellence, partly because its adults only and partly because it looked very nice online. After our guests left Dreams on Monday, 11/24, we arranged a ride with Cesar from the tour desk (Liberty Travel, etc). He is such a great guy...he is so pleasant, upbeat, and just genuinely nice; we were going to pay a taxi to get to Excellence but instead he arranged for us to get picked up by one of their minivans and taken to the resort (at no charge). Excellence Punta Cana Resort and Spa Upon arrival at Excellence (it’s about a 10 min. drive from Dreams, I didn't know this when I was deciding on a honeymoon resort), we are offered these deliciously smelling wet towels; I couldn't stop smelling them... Check-in was easy, we had to wait for like 10 min. for our room to be ready...once we get to our room, we find a "Honeymooners" banner on our door, and it was cute. We had the Excellence Suite and although it was nice (and ocean front) it really did not compare to the Dreams Suite at all. The Excellence Suite was smaller and it felt a little outdated. But we had a Jacuzzi indoors and two balconies. There was a plate of fresh fruit and a welcome letter on the table letting us know that as part of the honeymoon we are entitled to a breakfast in bed, a romantic dinner, and 15% off the spa. Reservations must be made in advance with concierge for the breakfast in bed and the romance dinner. The breakfast is a set menu (it was some kind of egg & shrimp brioche, different pastries, toast, champagne, etc); for the romantic dinner, you choose the restaurant you like and it’s also a set menu. (Concierge shows you the menus up-front, in case you don’t like the selections and change your mind). A few cons about our room: one of the balcony doors had no lock, the balcony screen were both off the hinges and just leaning against the balcony doors (we couldn't leave the balcony doors open since mosquitoes, etc could get in our room), the phone on the night stand didn't work at all, we found sand on the sofa, housekeeping knocks once & whether you answer â€I’m coming†or not, they come right in (we kept the "do not disturb" card on our door after this happened to us twice!) and the biggest con was a late night visit from a creepy crawler in our bathroom (a big roach!!). On the first day we had told housekeeping about the balcony doors & phone, she said she would tell someone and no one ever came; we also called front desk and no one came. On the 2nd day, we called front desk again and spoke with Matias who assured me everything would be taken care of and everything was. Although we were not impressed with our room, we were very impressed with the resort grounds. Beautiful! The beach was nice…there’s a bar near the beach, ask for a “Coco Locoâ€â€¦they give you a nice drink in an actual coconut. The pool is gorgeous… Food- A I didn’t think the buffet had as much of a selection as Dreams but I found that the food at the specialty restaurants was much better than at Dreams (IMO). We tried to arrive at the restaurants shortly after opening (6:30pm) and we never had to wait. While at Excellence we tried these restaurants: Spice: Its an Asian restaurant specializing in Thai, Japanese, and Chinese cuisine. I had sushi for appetizer and a delicious Pad Thai for the main course; I also had a wonderful lychee flan, it’s to die for. DH had some kind of spicy soup which he really liked (and he is very picky) and a steak with white rice for dinner. The ambience and décor here are amazing (the pictures do not do it justice). The Grill: Serves continental breakfast and casual à la carte lunch but at night it’s a steakhouse serving à la carte dinner (we went for dinner). They served nice warm bread with butter while we waited to order. We both had a grilled combo; it included 2 types of steak, a pork chop, and a grilled chicken breast. It was pretty good and very filling. Nice portions. The Lobster House: This is strictly a lobster restaurant serving à la carte dinner. DH does not eat any seafood so he went just for me to indulge. They start you off with bread and butter as well. For appetizer I had something called Lobster Cocktail, it was served in a martini glass (A+ for presentation) but it was a bit on the salty side so I didn’t eat it. For the main course you get a lobster cooked they way you choose (steamed, boiled, or pan-fried) with an option of sauces (I had garlic butter). It’s served with very yummy mashed potatoes. Toscana: They serve breakfast and lunch buffet-style but at night its Italian dinner à la carte. We chose this restaurant for our "Romantic Dinner". We had a small table to the side and they decorated it with rose petals (very cute) and a tea light candle; we had a set menu for the romantic dinner and they printed the menu on cardstock and the cover said something like "Romantic Dinner for Mr. & Mrs. Rodriguez" with the date. I believe they brought bread with a red sauce topped with parmesan cheese for dipping. The menu had a choice of Napoleon of beef perfumed with truffle oil and served in Marsala sauce OR shrimps & radicchio risotto; DH had the beef (he enjoyed it) and I had the risotto. Let me just say, that risotto was EXCELLENT. The shrimps were plentiful and a good size, the risotto just melted in your mouth, it was so tasty (I can still taste it now if I close my eyes). It was a big portion also and sadly I couldn’t finish it all but I made sure to eat all my shrimps (LOL). Dessert was tiramisu; I took it to go because I just couldn’t eat another bite. I ate it later on that night in our room and it was very good as well. What I found out, is that the chef for Toscana is an actual Italian. I met him the day before when he was working the lunch station (and I had delicious pesto fettuccine) and I asked him where he was from because he obviously didn’t look Dominican…and he said he was from Italy, in his cute accent. He’s a very older gentleman but his cooking is great. There were a few other restaurants we didn’t get to try (Mexican, Mediterranean, and French plus a pizza shop). We just weren’t there that many nights to try them all but I’m sure they are all great. Entertainment- A They had karaoke one night and that was pretty funny although we didn’t go up. The staff walks around and tries to get you to sign up for it. One night they had a Dominican Night and there was a good band playing and again staff did a good job of getting people on stage to dance meringue. Our favorite was the Michael Jackson show on our last night there…wow!! Those guys really went all out…the break-dancers & performers were spectacular and the Michael Jackson impersonators were on point, moonwalk and all! There was a younger Michael (Jackson 5 era) and then the older Michael Jackson. It was an hour show and they performed to some of Michael’s greatest hits. For thriller, mummies came out and were walking around the audience, it was funny and scary. They just did an awesome job in that show; everything was very carefully put together and very entertaining! Spa- A The spa was very nice...I forgot my bathing suit so I couldnt get in the whirlpool while we waited for our appt time but DH enjoyed himself in there. These are a few of the things you can enjoy while waiting for your massage (or afterwards): 15-person capacity hot-water whirlpool, 2 rooms with hydrotherapy tubs for hydrotherapy bath treatments, Rustic shower, 2 cold-plunge pools (I dipped my legs in there, its freezing cold water!), 2 Swedish saunas and 2 steam rooms, 4 foot-hydrotherapy stations (I tried this, its just a little foot basin to dip your feet). We chose the Excellence massage (50 min), it’s a combination of techniques; DH & I were side by side, he fell asleep and started snoring, LOL). The massage felt good but they only concentrated on the upper body, I was expecting a lower body massage as well but that never happened. Overall, we enjoyed Excellence...it gave us time to relax and unwind and of course honeymoon! Here are a few Excellence pics: Kodakgallery.com: Slideshow

Thank you ladies. It was such an emotional day as you can see from some of the pics. I still cant stop looking at the pics, everyone who says the day goes by fast and its a blur - aint kidding! Good thing for photography.

I can send you a couple. PM me your info

Quote: Originally Posted by DanielleNDerek Great review Jess. I didnt see this before I read the wedding review and asked how the resort was. the suite was beautiful. Thanks! I should've put everything on one thread but I thought it may be too long...next time I'll just do one since its easier. I loved the suite at Dreams.

Quote: Originally Posted by SoontobeMrsE Wow Jess - what a very good and detailed review! I am so sorry about the WC there. She really needs some help. With a party that large, they definitely should have had some help for her. What sucks is that you put so much effort in making sure everything is perfect and then they screw it all up. It sounds like you made the best of it though. Isn't it funny that after it's all said and done some of it you just let roll off and it isn't so big of a deal as you thought? What a wonderful turn out for your wedding! That is awesome that you had so many friends and family! I want more pics girlie! You look beautiful! Thank you Celina. Yeah after a while, we were just letting things roll off our backs. We truly felt blessed to have such a good turnout, we had such a great time. I posted a slideshow under "wedding photos"...its a bit long but I tried to condense it as much as I could...But I know the BDW ladies likes their photos.

Okay, so my first post was not too good....I will try it again. I made this slideshow on Kodak and I hope it works. Its a bit long but I tried to condense it as much as I could. Enjoy Kodakgallery.com: Slideshow

sorry ladies...Photobucket was giving me a hard time so I tried to use Kodak

I had every intention of putting up more of my pro-pics tonight but honestly I'm so pooped right now. My eyelids feel so heavy, I can't stay up any longer...here are just a few of me getting ready before the ceremony. I don't have my slideshow yet, that would've been easier to show that posting individual photos but you gals are worth it. Tomorrow I will do a much better job of posting. I used PhotoSouvenir in Punta Cana Photosouvenir Punta Cana, Wedding Photographer Dominican Republic My "Something Blue" Our princess Nia He sent this gift to my room Rejoicing--my dress fit better in Punta Cana than it even did back home at the fittings.

you look fabulous! dress is gorgeous and love the choice of flowers! welcome back

Danielle, what an awesome review!! Sounds like their wedding department is really on top of their game & really cared about making your day special and I'm happy for you...! Isnt Severine the sweetest...I'm off to look at your pics now.

wow, all you ladies gave me fabulous ideas!!! thank you so much.. I knew I could count on my BDW family to lift my spirits. The funny thing is that my husband (forget what the abbr. is for that, LOL) was not too keen about doing the TTD but he brought along a linen suit just for that and I was the one who was not prepared or even remembered to do the session. Figures huh? But again, thank you all...I'm definitely thinking of doing a TTD on our next vacation or even at the Jersey shore over the summer, it will give me a good reason to pull my dress out the closet and wear it one more time!!

So...like the procastinator that I am, I didn't have time to get a TTD dress...and for whatever reason i didn't want to wet my actual dress but i really wanted the TTD shots. But guess what, I get to Punta Cana and forget about the whole TTD dress with all the running around I had to do, etc. Now I'm sitting home 10 days after I got married, regretting the fact that I didn't do the TTD!!!! I know its pointless now to beat myself in the head with it but its one more thing on my list that didn't go right. Whats a girl to friggin' do?!

Congrats Steph...great review. I felt the same way about my wedding coordinator at Dreams Punta Cana, wtf??! anyway, we are married now and still had a blast regardless of the WC's attitude and lack of interest. woohoo!

I wonder who she decided to go with?! Her wedding is like in 2 days....she should've asked Photosouvenir if they could do a smaller package for her and her needs, I'm sure they wouldn't say no. lets see what she ended up doing, hopefully it all went well.