San Fran Sarah

I met with Donaji and she seemed pretty clear on this. If we could bring our own photog and florist we would almost definitely get married there. They are doing a package deal and I'm guessing they think they will make more money by doing everything in-house or with vendors. I have a feeling they are going to get a lot of resistance to this policy. Maybe it will change.

Hi, does anyone have a reliable way to get ahold of Azul Beach?! I have tried to contact them several times. I decided not to visit on my site visit because I felt if I couldn't get a hold of them now it didn't bode well for planning a wedding. Also, I want to have sol as a photographer and I understand that is difficult at Azul. Still, I am really regretting not seeing Azul Beach and I am worried that the two places I am choosing between: Esencia and Ana y Jose are going to be too expensive. I'm even considering going back to see Azul. Also, can anyone comment on the reception site. Are there private areas for your guests to eat dinner and dance or will hotel guests be a part of your party . . . . Thanks soooo much! Sarah

I didn't take any pictures because tragically my new-ish camera decided to break on the first day that I was there. I have some pictures that they sent me but its not letting me upload the pics . . .maybe they are too big or something. Can you send me an email with your actual email address and I will forward them to you? Maybe you will have better luck uploading. Sarah

what an amazing wedding! You look so beautiful . . .congrats!

I just met with Donaji and she mentioned that they were in the process of changing their policies and prices. They now do not allow outside vendors which is the main reason we decided not to get married there. The have a wedding package which includes music, flowers, a/v, minister, marriage certificate. It does not include food and beverage.

does anyone know where you get those round palm(?) wicker underplates like amy posted? I really like them but I am having trouble finding them . . . maybe I just don't know what to call them. They look like something that could be found in Mexico . . .

Have you chosen a site for your wedding yet? Do you have any ideas what type of a venue you are looking for? Almost all the hotels have on-site wedding coordinators that will help you book vendors so that you don't have to hire a wedding coordinator yourself. They walk you through everything from flowers to transportation and wedding certificates. In fact, some may not let you bring in an outside coordinator. At first we thought we needed a coordinator but most of the places we were looking at had wedding coordinators.

Just back from a site visit. We were looking for small and intimate venues. There are plenty of pictures on-line (and on Matt and Sol’s posting) of these venues so I will just mention a few things about each: 1) Esencia, 2) Al Cielo, 3) Ana y Jose, 4) Azu-lik, 5) Maroma and 6) Eurostar Blue Tulum. All these places comped our tasting except Maroma where they said they only do tasting for confirmed weddings. Some even comped our drinks! Please keep in mind these estimates are based on the menu options and alcohol options we chose. Usually a mid-range food option, and 3 hours open bar (cocktail hour and two hours after dinner) and 1-2 hours wine and beer with dinner. We also visited MANY hotels in Tulum looking for potential places for our guests to stay including Zamas, Mezzanine, Dreams, Copal, Posada Margarita, and Pedra Escondida, Maya Tulum Wellness Spa. We also visited Sams Club in Playa del Carmen to see what they had for gift bags and alcohol. Let me know if you have any questions about any of these places. We also met with Sol who we LOVED and would highly recommend as a photographer (so far). Choosing her and Vanessa Jaimes (florist) were the easiest decisions we had to make. Now we just need to decide on our site! We are choosing between Esencia and Ana y Jose Beach Club 1) Esencia— 15 minutes south of Playa del Carmen on Xpa Beach Vibe: Upscale and luxurious without being pretentious Cost: Estimated Cost per guest 250 dollars. That includes site fee, wedding coordinator, Food and Beverage. Pros— --fantastic attention to detail --food was AMAZING, service was outstanding --beautiful big beach --very private location --Fabian (wc) hosted us and made us feel welcome in the middle of a wedding which was being moved inside due to rain. Clearly he is organized and responsive --no policies restricting outside vendors --On site spa looks like heaven Cons— --not many other hotels located nearby, particularly for guests with small children or guests on a budget. --Room policy (see below) --Cost **Esencia was by far our favorite venue. It is a magical, romantic, and beautiful place. Our only concern is that they require at least 50% of guests to stay at the hotel for 5 nights (in the high season, less in the low season). Our guests will likely stay at the hotel but we feel uncomfortable committing to pay for rooms in a contract if our guests don’t stay at the hotel for that many days. Especially because the food and beverage will already exceed our budget as is. 2) Al Cielo— next door to Esencia Vibe: Rustic and bohemian Cost: 400 per guest (all inclusive flowers, photo etc see below). Pros— --on the same beautiful as Esencia --Donaji (wc) has a lot of experience as is really nice --charming and rustic vibe --food was great Cons— --new wedding packages don’t allow flexibility and seem costly (see below) --inadequate rain option (it was raining while we were there and there is only a little area of the palapya that doesn’t get wet) --only 4 rooms. The rooms are all wood. They are beautiful and peaceful with a hammock in each room and a beach view but they will cost 300-350 per night during the high season (which seems like a lot for these simple rooms) **If it weren’t for the restrictive new policies we would probably get married here. They are in the process of raising their prices and requiring the purchase of a wedding package. This package costs 11K and includes: Wedding coordination, photographer, florist, A/V, music and flowers, minister, marriage certificate coordination. This isn’t a bad deal but we want to use our own florist and photographer and this isn’t allowed. Also, this isn’t a bad deal if you want all these services but if you don’t want some of them (like a marriage certificate or a minister) you are paying for them regardless. Food and beverage is additional and will cost around 150 per guest (more or less depending on alcohol choices). The food prices (86 per person) seem a little costly given the rustic laid-back feeling of the place. This is perfect for the couple who don’t care too much about the vendors they use and want a no-fuss, show up and get married, package. 3) Ana y Jose (Beach Club) Tulum Vibe: Rustic but with a bit of an urban edge (lounge furniture and lighting) Cost: 185 per guest (including wc fee, set up (chairs etc), and food and beverage) Pros— --On a big beautiful beach --lends itself to décor—beach beds and trees and lots of places to hang lights --Jackie (wc) was our absolute favorite. She is sweet, personable, and calm under pressure (we saw her hours before a big event) --Location at a beach club in Tulum gives guests MANY options for accommodation in all price ranges along the beach near-by. --cost is more in our price range --no restrictive vendor policies --allow BYOB wine and Champagne (but pretty steep corkage) Cons— --Will be open to the public for dinner unless you pay 4000 private event fee or have 120 guests --the food was ok but it wasn’t as good as most of the others --not available on our first choice date ** We are probably going to choose ana y jose because of the cost, the beautiful venue, and our confidence in Jackie. We are still trying to figure out what to do about the privacy issue. The restaurant is a big rectangle so there isn’t a way to have a private section for our party. We don’t really want to share our intimate wedding with other dinner guests in the same area. One thing we are considering is renting a tent and doing everything outside in the yard by the trees (see tulumweddings.com to get a sense of the set up). We are likely going to stay at Eurostar Blue Tulum (formerly Azul Blue). We like that our guests can stay wherever they want but that there are options in every price range within walking distance of the wedding site. The only reason we wouldn’t have our wedding here is if we decide to risk it and book the required rooms at Esencia or if they are willing to compromise on the room booking policy. By the way, Ana y Jose also has a hotel which you can get married at if you stay there. We liked the ambiance at the beach club so much more though. 4) Azu-lik/Copal Tulum Vibe: eco-conscious, rustic (almost campy), secluded jungle-feel Cost: 100 per guest (food and beverage) Pros— --this place is very accommodating they will tailor everything to your needs. Fransciso and Jesus at the Copal Restaurant are genuinely interested in making couples happy. There is nothing cookie-cutter about their approach. They have no outside vendor policies and they have low corkage fees for BYOB --the staff make you feel like guests in their home—very ma and pa type of feeling but very welcoming --the cost! --the food was surprisingly good Cons— --Jungle atmosphere would be really difficult for elderly guests and guests with disabilities. For instance, there are like 100 stairs to get to the beach for the ceremony --there are three sites for receptions but we didn’t love any of them: restaurant (right on main road without a view of the beach), tun tun bar (great area on cliff above beach but small for dinner and dancing) and on the beach directly (no bars or structures) --two options for accommodation: simple affordable cabins at Copal or the tree-house like cliff cabins with hanging beds and outdoor cliff jacuzzis at Azu-lik (fabulous but pricy given there really isn’t a bathroom—just a wood tub in the middle of the room and a toilet in a bamboo closet). --WC Maria lives in Brazil and the operations people at the hotel do all the work with her planning (people say it works but it sounds like a strange set-up to me). Still, Maria has been super responsive on email, even called me to talk through my reservation and tasting. ** We ruled this out because we are concerned about the comfort of our elderly guests. They will have to walk down many stairs to get to the beach and then there won’t be any shade for them down there. For a reception everything will either have to be carried down to the beach (including bar set up) or we will have to do the reception far from beach in the restaurant or tun tun bar. Still, for the right couple this is a personalized, affordable and environmentally conscious option. FYI they specialized in Maya weddings. They have a sweat lodge and spa and free morning Hatha yoga classes. 5) Maroma (orient express) Maroma Beach Vibe: luxurious lush paradise Pros— --the best beach of any we visited --the property is so so beautiful --the food is phenomenal --they let you do a bon fire Cons— -- a bit pretentious. Even though we were seriously considering this property the wc didn’t even meet us in person. She had her assistant do the site visit -- room policy (see below) ** this was the most striking and breathtaking place we visited. You drive through the jungle to this hotel which is an adapted house of a famous architect. There are parrots and so many beautiful details everywhere. They require you to commit to 80% of your guest staying at the hotel for 3-5 nights. The rates start at 350/night. We just don’t feel comfortable committing to our guests all staying at the hotel in our contract. We plan to go here for our honeymoon unless we get married at Esencia and then we will stay there. 6) Eurostar Blue Tulum (formerly Karisma Azul Blue) vibe: striking, elegant, modern Pros— --all inclusive with GREAT food (for an AI) means that food and beverage for event is SIGNIFICANTLY cheaper. Plus guests can all stay together in separated villas with rooms that can be attached --great wedding packages and good discounts for guests --most comfortable rooms in Tulum—the only place besides Dreams that you can use a hair dryer --amenities such as dress ironing and mani/pedis on site --no policies preventing outside vendors --they are trying to build their wedding business up so they are willing to negotiate and throw in freebies such as free night stay for you and your parents (with certain # rooms blocked) Cons— --NO SAND BEACH. The hotel is on a rocky beach so they pay for you to take a cab to a beach 5 minutes away). There is a “beach” which is a plot of sand next to the water. --Not many weddings have been held here so it is not tried and true Sorry this is so long. I hope it helps someone else. It at least helped me to think through the pros and cons of each place! I'm excited for questions, suggestions and comments Sarah

Also, it can be a pretty cheap option if your guests are staying at the hotel. Their food and beverage will be covered already (or somewhat covered) and they are willing to give pretty good discounts to weddings guests.

I just visited Eurostar Blue Tulum (formerly Azul Blue of the Karisma line but now under new management). I posted about it on my site visit. The food was actually really good (for an AI) and the service was FANTASTIC. They seem to really want to build up their wedding buisness so they are willing to go the extra mile to make the day special. It's a bit scary to have a wedding at a place that has had so few weddings. Still its nice to hear all these positive things. There was also a robbery at one wedding over a year ago. That can happen anywhere but I think it really hurt their wedding program. Our main concern in the end is the lack of beach. We really want to get married on the beach. We will likely get married in Tulum and have our guests stay here.

Are you getting married at Eurostar Blue Tulum? (Formerly Azul Blue?) We just visited there last week and loved it but they haven't hosted a lot of weddings so we are nervous. Also, they don't have a sandy beach. What has your experience been working with them? Were there a lot of hidden costs? The prices they quote seem too good to be true. Are most of your guests staying there? Thanks for any adivice you might have! Sarah

Maroma (orient express) is a BEAUTIFUL tropical hotel. They have one of the most beautiful and private beaches in the area. The hotel is luxurious (albeit a bit pretentious) and has amazing food. The downside is that they require 80% of your guests to stay for 3-5 nights. It's a 4 night requirement arriving on wednesday and 5 nights arriving on thursday or friday. The rates start at 350 so it may be alot to ask of your guests depending on their financial situations.

I just got back from a site visit to Tulum. It is a bit farther than Playa del Carmen but its a really easy drive. There is only one main road you have to drive to get from cancun airport to tulum and it's is a nice paved highway. It takes around 1:45 to 2 hrs to drive. It's easy to rent a car and there are a lot of other transport options such as shuttle services and buses. I think if you are willing to drive to playa del carmen it wouldn't be that much of a difference to drive to Tulum. I will post my site visit reviews later today if you are interested. Sarah

We just got back from our site visit and Esencia was by far our favorite. Its is sooooo amazing. Our only concern was that they asked us to commit in our contract that 50% of our guests would stay for 5 nights. We feel uncomfortable assuming our guests will stay that long. Especially during high season when the rates are 500+. Did this concern you? What an amazing place to have a wedding! Congrats!

Hi Heatherly. We are also getting married in Tulum and are considering ana y jose. We haven't done our site visit yet but one thing I am concerned about (from emailing with Jackie) is that they section off an area for you but keep the venue open to the public. Did you see the area? Was it private enough? How did you decide on the hotel instead of the beach club? Thanks so much! Sarah

Its nice to know there are boutique hotels right in Cancun. I think we are going to try to do Tulum or Isla but thanks so much for the info. Sarah

Alex, Welcome to the forum. I just chose the Riviera Maya. We are doing a scouting trip in June. Since you mention that pictures are important to you I would recommend hiring your photographer as soon as you can--especially if you are on a budget. We found that the good photographers that live in the area are hired a year or more in advance sometimes. There are a lot of fantastic photogs on this website from all over the place but it can get expensive when you start paying travel fees to bring them to the wedding from the states. We are in the process of booking sol from delsol. I think she her work is fantastic and she has been really helpful with suggestions for vendors etc. Keep in touch, Sarah

thanks for the info. we are planning a scouting trip in June so I will post again. sarah

Not to send you on another research mission but this article (below) helped me find some less-mentioned boutique hotels up and down the coast (some and on the water). http://www.coastalliving.com/coastal...693816,00.html Also, Matt and Sol's postings have links to a bunch of real weddings and are organized by venue. Have you checked it out yet? It sounds like we are looking for similar things. We are about to take a scouting trip so I will keep you posted. Sarah

Has anyone looked at Hotel Secreto on Isla Mujeres during a scouting trip? It looks lovely online. We are looking for a boutique hotel in the MR to hold an April or May 09 wedding. I love Azul but I don't appreciate their vendor policies. Thanks in advance, Sarah (and Jivan)

Hi Everyone, This is such a useful forum and I am so glad I found it. My fiance and I are newly engaged and we are about to begin planning a DW in Mexico in spring 09. We are still undecided about location but we are thinking either the Cancun or Cabo Area (but maybe a little drive out of town). We are also interested in Zihuantaejo but it may be a bit hard to get to for some of our guests. I look forward to speaking with you all, Sarah