Elisa

Welcome Larena ! You have loads of time to figure everythingout , so don't panic and more importantly , you have come to the right place . This forum is a god send ! You will find the most amazing group of people here , all willing to help, counsel, advise and cheer you on to your big day !! The site is addictive !! Happy Planning and Good Luck !

It was a complete tragedy . Horrific in every sense . The RCMP have released the mans name and age today . I feel for his family as well . I am sure the media attention will not be pleasant . As for the victims family . MY Gosh what those people must be going through . I hope that they feel the energy and love from the entire nation. I know everyone here in Toronto is shocked and saddened and send love and support to them .

OMG what a nightmare !? Have you contatced the Police ? A Lawyer ? Anyone ?? I mean this is theft , and a scam or con , however you want to see it , its wrong !

Welcome Sweetie and Congrats and don't you worry , this Forum is amazing and seriously will be able to answer ALL your questions , we have a great group here !! Good Luck and Happy Planning !!!

Welcome aboard !

Thanks so much for the info ...every little bit helps

Leticia your post was so much fun ! I loved it !! It was just like a picture story book . You were stunning and loked like you had a great time !

Wow , your photographer was incredible !!! Of course it doesn't hurt that his subjects were Model perfect !!LOL ! Truly you and your husband make an incredible couple and you both look so happy . Congrats and thanks fro sharing ; )

Thanks Mandy but what about Riu Palace Mexico ...its strange , some Maps show the palace Mexico but not the Palace Maya and others its the reverse ...strange ...The maps are still quite detailed though , so thanks again ; )

Is it just me , ...am I blind , or is the Riu Palace Mexico and Riu Palace Riviera Maya not on any of these maps ?

Happy Birthday Doll !!

LOL !!! I think he was just plain fed up with trying to appease her , calm her down , etc . etc . ....I mean expressing some concern , ok, ya , we get it but flat out refusing to go , to participate and be part of such a huge event in her sons life AND then to add insult to injury by calling up others and telling them NOT to go and spreading the fear like the Ebola Virus !! Ya , not so cool . So he just got fed up....plus I know he doesn't like to see me sad and he could see I was starting to come undone over all of the phone calls from people debating on whether to cancel or not . So far I am pleased to report that most have decided to continue on and will be coming !!

She is absolute perfection !!! Truly she is adorable , congrats to you and Paul and a big pat on the back to you Mama, JOG WELL DONE !!! I wish you everything you wish for yourself and an abundance of health and happiness for Little Gwendolyn Ann .

Thanks everyone . You guys are awesome! RIU hotels actually had someone call me . A woman named Stephanie called , right to me here at work . I am not sure from where , but it was definately long distance because I saw the number when it showed up on my screen and the line was very echo-ey . I thought it was very sweet of her to contact me directly instead of simpy replying to my email. She said " we take these matters very seriously and if one of our Brides has concerns , its our job to see to it that all her needs are met " Impressive non ? She went on to say that the slaying at Riu Los Cabos was tragic and indeed unfortunate but that without going into too much detail ( she was not allowed ) she can assure me that it was NOT a random act of violence. The investigation is still ongoing ...another reason why she can't say much . But she assures me that the entire Riu chain takes security quite seriously and in light of recent events have increased security in various forms at ALL of their Mexico Properties , including the Riu Palace Mexico and Riu Palace Riviera Maya . She also said that they had " added security measures that you won't see " .....I assume thats cameras but I also got the impression that they have 'undercover' ..as in disguised security officers , like dressed as if they are a hotel guest to blend in with everyone , also there . She mentioned that although Riu wants all of their guests to feel secure they don't want to operate by having a mass amount of secuirty guardspatrolling the grounds , it makes thehotels look more like prison camps then a relaxing luxury vacation . That makes sense . As for my FMIL , my FI was sooooo amazing with her . I think I might have fallen in love with him that much more ( if that was possible ) LOL ! He told her straight up to knock it off ( calling of other guests ) and basically said " Listen you are my mother, of course I want you to be at my wedding , but I am not going to beg you nor try and convince you to be there , if you want to come, great , if not , no problem, no hard feelings , and I will understand ...not sure how the pictures will look for the next 50 years or what other guests will say when the Grooms only parent ( his dad is dead ) is a no show but whatever . I am getting married with or without you . Its going to be spectacular and we are all going tohave an amazing time. I hope you can be part of it but if not , ....well the party will still go on , and the celebration will still take place " YOU GUYS , I was so proud of him , so incredibly proud . I was all " ya babes , way to man up " ..LOL.. Thanks again to all of you for the kind words of support and love . This forum rocks !!! xoxoxoxoxox

I had booked my flights and reserved ( paid the deposit ) for 20 of my guests in January . My Guests are staying 1 week . FI and I for 2 . They changed them half way through March . So far I haven't heard of any more changes and am keeping my fingers crossed .

MINE TOO !! LOL ! I had wanted to get married on October 11th , booked The Riu Palace Riviera Maya and paid for my flights ...even had my website already up and running for all of our guests who started booking as well and three months later Sunquest changed their flight schedule to Mexico !! I had to re-book EVERYTHING , and unforunately give up my date of the 11th and change it to the 9th . My website , the guests , aaarrgghhh the frustration!!! In the end though my FI said he liked the date better , he says there is no way he will be able to forget our anniversary if our wedding date is 10,9,8 . LOL, which I guess is kinda cool , but the aggrevation of Sunquest was soooo NOT cool . I told my Travel Agent that if they change the date again, then they will have to incurr the costs of new wedding invitations and favour cards and anything else that has our date printed , not to mention the complications that will ensue with the resort itself . I don't know why Sunquest is like that but good for you for finding out in time before any 'real damage' was done !!

Thanks Helen ....very true , one has to be 'smart ' when travelling , that really seems to be the key . I am happy to hear that PV was good to you and memories of the fond kind were created ; )

Maura , your last post made me smile ...first real one of the day ! Especially since I love Chicago ...best sour Apple Martini's are still at the Fairmont Hotel , as far as I am concerned ...lol.. All of that being said . I told my future mother in law that her chances of being killed , murdered or whatever , are more likely in Toronto than in Mexico , and WE have a pretty low rate considering the size of the city . Anyway , she is just being unreasonable . She was quick to point out that in the last few years there has been 'several ' Canadian slayings , her words , not mine . And if my memory serves me correct there has been 5 in total , hardly a HUGE amount in comparison to the amount of tourists , Canadian tourists that travel down . I am trying hard not to let her get to me , lord knows I have enough on my plate to worry about , but this is just yet another thing for me to have to deal with . My FI told me that he would speak to her this morning and tell her to lay off with the calling of the other guests . It breaks my heart to know that so many of 'his side' is thinking of cancelling . I would hate for us to get down there and have it be all of my family ...especially since most are flying in from Germany !! Pictures will not look right without his peeps ya know . But I hear what all of you are saying ....and hey , what more can I do or say then what I already am . I have emailed Riu directly this morning asking what their security is like on the actual resorts in light of the recent events . I am hoping that with a little more , " detailed " information I will be able to use it and stregthen my argument to my FI's Mom . Since I know that there are other Riu brides here, I will let you all know what they email me back ....just in case you encounter any 'fraidy cats ' in your group as the date draws nearer.

Thanks everyone . I know that everything that each and every one of your wrote is true ...and of course its too late for me to turn back now . My sister ( who lives in Germany ) gave me some savy advice , she said " keep your eye on the prize babe, you are marrying the man of your dreams , thats all that matters and those who are lucky enough to witness it will be glad they came and those who decide to cancel ...well its not going to STOP you from getting married right , so go to it " Of course I know she is right , its just so shitty that my FI's Mom is going around trying to persuade people not to go . Its highly inappropriate like Maura said , and I think its really unfair of her . I tried reasoning with her and she said she was just trying to be " protective' of her family members . Arrrrgggghhh !! Anyway thanks for the luv you guys . I will let what will be , be and leave everything in Gods hands , whatever happens , happens and whomever goes , goes . All I can do I guess is ask them to make an informed decision and not buy into all the hype . Thanks again everyone : )

Ok , so first let me preface this post by saying I have travelled extensivley , and have been to the remote jungles of Guatemala to being lost on the Humming Bird Highway in Belize . I never travel with fear and consider myself to be pretty confident when travelling , but now with yet another killing of a Canadian down in Mexico, I have to admit , I am somewhat concerned Many of my FI family members were really quite skeptical about attending our wedding because of safety issues and concerns . It took me endless conversations and a whole lot pf patience to 'convince ' them otherwise and calm their fears I explained to them that the Media tends to lend allot of coverage to this type of event but that over 1 million Canadians travel to Mexico every year and so given the stats , the crimes against us are really not high at all. Another thing to point out is that rarely these muders , as brutal as they are , are they ever random, there is usally much more to the ' story ' . Anyway , this last murder ( Thursday , May 15th ) , the couple was actually IN their luxury suite ...it was at the Riu in Los Cabos . He was shot 3 times in the head and she was shot in the foot . More details are said to follow after the investigation is completed but in the mean time . I am starting to get a little worried . As you all may or may not be aware of , there was a high profile muder last year when a Brides Parents ( BOTH ) were found with their throat slit in their rooms ...it has yet to be solved ...THEY were from here , Toronto . Now my FI mother and aunt and cousin are all saying that they don't feel safe going and are cancelling . I don't know what to do or what more I can say ! I am very upset over this . To make matters worse , they are going around calling other guests/family members and scaring them too . Saying things like : There is no security , they are all corrupt down there and especially for Brides and Grooms , the hotels KNOW who the wedding party is and who the guests are and dilberately will pin point the Bride and Groom , thinking that they will have an abundance of money on them or in the suite .... Please anyone , any tips or advice on what I can say or how best to handle the situation would be greatly appreciated . I explained to everyone that I would never dream of ever putting any of my friends , family or loved ones in harms way and if I ever thought that anyone would be in any kind of danger I never would have chosen the resort I did . BTW its the RIU Palace Mexico and RIU Palace Riviera Maya that I am getting married at .....IN JUST over 4 months ....I can't have people cancelling now . Thoughts ? Anyone . and thanks in advance for your replies . This Forum has been an absolute life line !!!

Congrats ! I am sure you wil be breath takingly beautiful !!!

I have travelled quite a bit and when not using the in room safe then I simply keep everything in my suitcase ( obviously locked ) , also I always have an extra lock , a combo one that I can use for one of my other luggaages or carry on peices while in the room . MY FI has a luggage set that came with a lock and he has ever had any problems either ....I hope I am not jinxing myself , we leave for Dominican for 10 days tonight !!

with 5 months exactly till my big day , I think this is a great idea and truly helpful to those of us who are now starting to get the " OMG-is-everything -going -to -be okay -jitters "

thanks for the info ...great prices !

I don't think its in poor taste at all . I will have around 50-60 people and have decided to have a private Champagne and Horderves cocktail recpetion immediately after the ceremony and the a semi-private sit down dinner ( offered in the Caprice Pacakge ) afterwards . I have also rented out the disco after dinner for our dances and speeches , etc. etc. Go with your heart and do what makes sense . Everyone is there for you and your day , so enjoy and don't worry , I am sure everyone loves you both enough that they are just happy and blessed to be there and it won't really matter where you chose to eat