Willsbride

I was married at Tensing Pen in Jamaica a little over a year ago. Here's my list of what I would and wouldn't do again....If I think of more, I'll add. What I would do.... Destination wedding - I couldn't have asked for a better wedding experience. It was wonderful having all my friends and family together for an entire weekend in paradise Choosing a non-AI - I loved having a small hotel where my guests took over the entire place. It was wonderful being the only bride for that weekend. Having a wedding planner based in Jamaica - I used Jamaican Journeys. Ari made the planning process extremely smooth. In addition to selecting the wedding vendors (except for photog); she also handled booking rooms for my guests at the hotel and ensuring that we had reliable transportation from the airport to the hotel. Flying in my photog - I can't say enough about how much I love my wedding photos. They are absolutely amazing! Videographer - The day really flies by. The wedding video really helps me relive my wedding. I had the videographer film only the ceremony, cocktail hour, first dance, toasts and cutting of the cake. I loved being able to share it with my family and friends who were not able to attend. To cut down on costs, I only bought the raw footage and edited it on my computer. Filene's Basement Running of the Brides- I was able to get a beautiful designer wedding dress for only $299. I recommend going in the afternoon. There are still a ton of dresses to choose from and not as many brides. Write our own vows - Made the ceremony so personal. On our anniversary we re-read our vows. Palm Fans - I provided palm fans to my guests. They loved them! It was so hot during the ceremony and they all used them. Not have a program - Nobody missed it and it saved me a lot of stress in the end Weekend Guide Booklet and OOT bags - My guests used the booklet I created to find local restaurants and things to do in the area. It also included a timeline of activities for the day of the event. The OOT bags most of my guests used to carry their things around when they went to the pool. Steel drum band - Loved them! Use them for my ceremony and cocktail hour. Honestly, I would recommend them to anyone. They were AMAZING! We used a DJ for the reception, which worked out great. Sandals Whitehouse - Great honeymoon destination. Wear my hair up - It was so hot! My hair would have been a mess if I left it down. Wedding Website - It was helpful for guests to keep track of updates and find information about the hotel, etc. What I wouldn't do: David's Bridal - I bought my first dress (two dress bride) from DB's. My mom offered to buy my dress and I didn't want her to pay a lot so I settled on a dress from DB's. It was not well made at all and I just didn't feel good in it. As my wedding got close, I panicked and decided I needed a new dress. Luckily, Running of the Brides came to town and I was able to find a gorgeous dress at a bargain price. Stress so much before the wedding - Everything fell into place and I would have saved so much grief if I would have just relaxed. I didn't even really eat before my 4pm ceremony. Gave myself more time to get ready - I underestimated the time it would take for me to get ready. It was a bit stressful and would have really liked the time to relax OOT bag contents - I think my guests would have been happy with just the bag and the weekend booklet. I filled the bag up with bathroom items like tooth paste, bath salts/scrubs; deck of cards, sunscreen, etc. I would have saved money and a lot of headache if I would have just given the bags w/booklet. Cake - Don't get me wrong, my cake was absolutely delicious. I just wish I would have gotten a bigger one. It was two tiers, which I thought was enough for my 40 guests. However, it was only enough for one serving and it didn't really feel like a wedding cake because it was so small. I wish I would have added one more tier. Parasols - I bought one for all the female guests. Looking back it was really unnecessary. Most guests didn't use them. If I could go back, I would only get one for me and my bridesmaids. It made for a good photo prop. Expensive invitations - I spent way too much money on invitations. I wish I would have skimped more and used it on something else. Kinkos- I totally got ripped off from Kinkos. It was my fault for not asking for a price quote before asking them to print and bind 40 6-page booklets. It ended up costing me $400...so not worth it at all!

Hi Ladies, I justgot back from my wedding at Tensing Pen. It was so wonderful. My review is below. Click here for the slideshow my photog put together. http://www.jerrymcgaghey.com/pacheco Tensing Pen -Best place I could have gotten married. My guests and I are still in awe about the beauty of the place. It has to be the most beautiful and pituresque hotel I've ever stayed in. Every detail was thought of at the hotel. Carvings everywhere, linen was luxurious (I'm a linen freak) and food was best we had in Jamaica. Rockhouse came in a close second...coconut chx-yum. Drinks were superb. Also, the staff was really friendly. Everyone knew we were the couple getting married and made us feel so welcome. It was like a big family. There are so many goods that I will stick to the wedding day to shorten it. WC-Ari was a God send. I didn't have to worry about a thing. She took care of every little detail...including putting the bling on my cake. Music-OMG! The band was fantastic. I thought we were going to get a guy with a steel drum. We got a real band. I loved them. The guest loved them. It really added to the mood of the ceremony. Ceremony-We wrote our own ceremony and vows. It was so emotional. Every guest cried...even my aunt who never cries. Will had the most beautiful vows. He said that I reaffirmed his faith in God. And that was the tip of the iceberg. I couldn't have asked for a better ceremony. Reception - Food fantastic. Even the wedding cake was delicious and I don't like cake. Drinks were flowing, music was great. We had the best time. For our first dance, we danced to Prince Adore and then to the suprise of our guests we broke out into a new dance with our BP to Prince Kiss. It was so much fun. Although Will is 6'2 he does a great impression of Prince and is his #1 fan. After the reception we all changed into our bathing suits and headed to the pool for a night swim. So much fun. I really had the weekend of my life. New friendships were formed during the trip among my guests and some of my guests are planning a Negril '09 trip because they loved it so much.

Hey Landra! Yes, funny thing is that I actually read PinkPepper's post on Tripadvisor yesterday. After her feedback, I'm not moving forward with this vendor. It's just unfortunate that I won't have a videographer...Oh well, we have our own videocamera so I'm hoping we can enlist one of our guests to film the ceremony.

Anyone use or have feedback on Diana Campbell/DMC video? You can e-mail me at pacheekscw at gmail dot com TIA! Jamaican Weddings - Digital Memories Collection

My FI is going to wear a navy blue lightweight suit. The GMs will wear navy blue pants with a white button down shirt.

Great info...thanks for sharing!!!

Hi! Anyone not use/using a professional videographer for your wedding? I'm considering not using one because we have a pretty decent camera and can edit it when we get home. I'm just nervous about the sound quality due to the wind and ocean. If you are using a videographer, how much are you paying (if you are comfortable sharing) and what is included in your package? Thanks so much!

Hi ladies, Might you be able to share your ceremony and reception decor ideas? I need to finalize details and think I'm set but would love some additional inspiration. Thank you!

Hey! Yes, my WC asked if I wanted it in the restaurant but I decided to have it at Sea Song and the reception in the restaurant. Sounds like a great idea!

Great! My e-mail address is pacheekscw at gmail dot com. Thank you!!!

Thanks! I would love to see your pics. My hair is the one thing I've really been stressing over. Also, thanks to pp for the link to the previous posts about curls - very helpful!

I have really curly hair but think if I straighten it or wear it down it will get frizzy in the humidity. So, I'm leaning toward wearing my hair in a loose up do. How are you wearing your hair for the wedding? Also, are there any good site with pics of curly hairstyles?

Yes, very excited but nervous at the same time. I have so many ideas but not a lot of time to get it all done. Is there a place on here where I can get basic info? For instance, I would like to post a siggy but just don't know how.

Hi! I live in Boston and am getting married at Tensing Pen in Negril, Jamaica on 7/26/08.

I'm getting married at Tensing Pen. It's a beautiful boutique hotel in Negril cliffs. Let me know if you have any questions.