2010wedding

Quote: Originally Posted by badrianne Thanks for the reassurance Meghan. Through everything it's sounds like you really stayed calm and collected. Thanks for the tip on the cocktail hour. My FI tells me to expect that nothing will go right because then if something does I'll be excited.... I'm usually the optimistic one but he has a point. Janna, thanks for the info we will probably end up paying too... cause I dont want to hassle with delivering 44 bags On a happy note, we had our legal day yesterday (Cinco de Mayo) and they let us bring our dogs to the ceremony. 44 bags is a lot...how awesome to have that many guests come!! I only had 20 bags to assemble and get to people and I thought that was many!! I know $2 a bag is a fair amount of $$, but it was one less thing to worry about and manage. I wanted to be on the beach with my fam/friends then inside delivering bags!! Congrats on your legal day!! Janna

Quote: Originally Posted by badrianne So last minute they changed wedding coordinators on me. I have Sandra now. Luckily Ginalyn says she's good so I'm not worried. And actually it turns out that I've communicated more with the concierge then with my wedding coordinator. For example, we wanted a phone number that our guests could call to reach a main wedding person if needed (we didn't want to be the contact person so it's our best man) and the concierge was able to buy us a pay as go phone so we had the number to put on all our welcome packet info. Anyway the reason I'm writing is because I just filled out the wedding questionnaire from Sandra and it mentions that favors delivered to guest's room would be an additional $2 per room. Our traditional favor (maracas) will be given to our guests at the reception but is the OOT bag considered a favor? Was anyone charged for OOT bag delivery? Hi all- I had to pay $2 a oot bag. I should of negotiated with Jacy but at the point, I just wanted them delivered!! Janna

Congrats Meghan!!! Can't wait to read your review. I've thinking about you gals that went to DPA shortly after me. Can't wait to hear all about it! Daniela-sorry to hear about the wedding party drama. We're here if you need us! Janna

Quote: Originally Posted by m&d2011 Hi DPA brides!!! I have a question: I just received the wedding guide from Jacy and I'm soooo confused!!! there's so many choices....do you mind telling me what you chose and what made you choose? I believe we are having about 30-40 guests.... Also, for the reception it says there that we can only pick one appetizer, one soup, one main course? That doesn't make sense Are you doing a welcome/rehearsal dinner? Does anyone have a budget spreadsheet that would be willling to share I'm trying to figure out my budget and i'm so confused! HELP Thanks Real Simple magazine has a wedding PDF budget sheet. Just got to the Real Simple web page. Janna

Quote: Originally Posted by m&d2011 I am going to have my wedding @ DPA on June 18, 2011..I just emailed Jacy about it with my info. Here is the email from Jacy: "We are glad to inform you that the wedding date is available as follow: Wedding Date : June 18th , 2011 Time: 17:00 hrs (An extra $55usd will apply for ceremonies after 5pm)" So, now I'm confused, but I will just go with the 55 since i am not sure which package I want! I agree with Ginalyn- seems like the rules change with every DPA bride. I got married on Feb 27th at 5pm and by 6ish it was getting quite dark. I had the Ultimate Package but did not have to pay extra $$ for my specific time. I wanted a sunset reception and dusk pictures and that time work well for us. Not sure about the timeline of when the sun sets in May but I'd maybe check that out. Just an FYI since I got married later in the day too. Janna

Quote: Originally Posted by badrianne I'm so excited for you Janine! I know your day/vacation will be perfect. Can't wait to hear the details. Janine- you leave on the 15 right? Congrats in advance!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by echo2_62 So I just got in from the airport after seeing the first half of our group off for our vacation! I live just a few minutes from the airport so even though it's ridiculously early I didn't mind at all FI and I are heading out tomorrow and we don't have to be at the airport until about 10am so I know that will help my sanity IMMENSELY! LOL! Adrianne - are you just worried about losing a diamond or something from your engagement ring while snorkeling? Or do you have gloves that fit really tight? I can totally understand that you wouldn't want to just leave it in the room safe for sure. What about passing it off to a friend or family member who will be staying at the resort while you're away for the day? That way you know exactly where it is and might not have to worry as much?!?! CONGRATS Megan.....I can't wait to hear all about it!!!

I took my engagement ring and wore it on the wedding day. I had it in the hotel safe the whole time and was totally fine. I wore a ring from Walmart the rest of the 2 weeks. It was mostly Chris's idea to not wear it but he would of been right....I would of been so upset if I lost it!!

Congrats bridej9.....its going to be awesome!!

Quote: Originally Posted by echo2_62 Hey I wasn't at all here yesterday but YAY two weeks for me!! We leave in 9 days I think so this weekend is HUGE for us getting stuff done. I'm down to the point where I'm done most of the packing except our actual clothes and printing off all the paperwork and copies of things *I think* so hopefully this week won't be too stressful! LOL! I can't wait to just GET THERE! I too copied all my paperwork as well as emails from Jacy that I thought might come in handy!! I also put my emails etc on a flash drive to take down with me....just in case. OMG....I was such a stress case looking back!! You will feel so much better (and in control!!) when you get there...its going to be GREAT!!!

2 weeks today Echo!!! Hurray!!!

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Quote: Originally Posted by Ginalyn Janna try this link for how to post photos http://bestdestinationwedding.com/fo...ok-here-16832/ Thanks Ginalyn!

I used destinationweddings.com as well.

Hi all- if someone could point me in the right direction to upload my pics via my an email account? Thanks!

Quote: Originally Posted by echo2_62 HAha thanks Janna! I've totally list my brain lately and can't remember what conversations I've had with who, or even whether they were in person or online! LOL! But at least I totally did remember I really appreciate the insider info about the uneven ground at the lagoon - that will totally impact our decision if it's just too difficult for his family to maneuver. Hey here's a question for you - I've got strings of mini lights that I wanted to put up above our reception area somehow. Between the lagoon, poolside etc... does one had an advantage over the other for that sort of idea? Lagoon would be hard to do I think....and the pool already has some fabulous lighting b/c its by Oceana. I think it would be easier there...

Quote: Originally Posted by echo2_62 I had to make a second post to say THANK YOU for the great review Janna! OMG I cannot wait to see your pictures!!!!!!!! I've been worried about a few things lately and you really helped me get some of it in perspective. Like a lot of other brides on here, I'm a little bit of a control freak (okay a LOT about everything!) and I've been doing okay so far until now As for getting your pictures on here, photobucket probably is the best option BUT if you didn't know already - I'm pretty sure you can upload straight from an email account or website so that might save you some time (and additional headaches!!) from having to go through and upload all of your pics all over again. I can't access photobucket from my work computer (crap, damn, stink!) so if you need more help I can check it at home tonight. It was pretty straightforward though if I remember correctly. Thanks again SO MUCH! Down to 19 days until departure for me.... I'm getting SO EXCITED!!!! EEEK! You're very welcome!!! I am the same....I was (ok am!!) all about control and I think our need for it gets heightened when aren't physically able to see our destination, or talk to Jacy when ever we want. If I was being honest, when the past DPA brides said "don't worry, it will all make sense and work out when you get there," I didn't buy that or trust it!!! But its true...it will be perfect, and it all works out the way you want. 19 days.....yay!!!!

Gals- do I have to go to photobucket to upload some pics for you? Is there another way?? I'm up to my ears in uploading/downloading of pics right now and can't do another site!

My long awaited review!! General: The resort is beautiful. It is very small and after a day, you get the hang of it. When you enter the hotel by the front desk, if you go RIGHT, you hit the beach. If you go straight and pass the concierge desk and the business office you'll hit the marina and adult pool. The resort is pretty quiet after the evening entertainment ends which I didn't mind. We went into Playa a few times for something new (we were there for 2 weeks) and logged some time at Desires!! Check-in: 10/10 We arrived on Sunday February 21, 2010. There were no lines and glasses of champagne waiting for us!! I had asked for the 6th floor in a previous email and it was all taken care of without having to show my email as was access to the Preferred Club. Resort: 10/10 Dreams PA is an outstanding resort! We picked well DPA Brides!! It is small, and family friendly which is why it ranked #1 for us. The staff work so hard to keep DPA looking clean. Rooms were very clean and modern. We were in room 650 which had an amazing view, I highly recommend it. The resort offers 24 hour room service, which we and our guests took full advantage of!! Our food was usually delivered in 30 minutes and was good. The room service menu is small, but the items were yummy. The Preferred Club isn't worth the extra $$. You get free internet use and better booze. That's is really. I'm glad we didn't pay for this upgrade. Rooms/Housekeeping: 9/10 We stayed in an ocean view room and had the honeymoon package. There were flower petals all over the bed after our wedding/reception. They had a bottle of wine and two apples for us when we arrived on the 21st. We also got treats every night at "turn down". The rooms were kept very clean throughout our entire stay and the staff came 2x a day. Once in the am. to clean the room and for the evening to turn down the bed, leave treats and fill the minibar with more water. When Housekeeping found out after a few days I was a bride, we got very romantic towel art. One big heart one day on our bed!! I give a 9/10 only b/c I had to call a few times for the mini bar to be restocked. The mini bar isn't done by Housekeeping who clean the rooms...its another division of that. Beach/Pools: 9/10 The beach is beautiful, with warm water and soft sand. There are a few rocks in the beginning of the beach but then it softens up. It didn't bother us, we snorkeled right off the DPA beach and saw tons of fish and sea life. I didn't get in the pools at all really and never hung out on the Adult side unless I needed to wam up in the hut tub.My SIL and her family spent all their time at the kid pool. It was like bath water and usually more full with kiddies than the beach. The swim up bar was nice and always served quickly. Towels are everywhere and you can have more then 1!! We never had trouble finding one (or 4!!) beach chairs. This might have something to do with the fact that I woke up at 6:30 am. my whole vacation (what the!!!) and went and saved them but usually, this wasn't a problem. Food/Restaurants: 10/10 The restaurants to choose from are: Seaside Grill: By the main pool, easiest to go to for lunch. Food was good, pretty quick. Outside seating. Ceviche was yum-my!! World Cafe: I really enjoyed breakfast there every morning. We ate outside and the wait staff is excellent!! This is the buffet choice and usually had tons of thing to choose from. When we were there, Mallory, one of the concierge staff, asked my parents for feedback on their thoughts of a smoothie station. It went over big and then next day for breakie.....smoothies!!! Portofino: Italian: My favorite place to eat!!! The best mushroom risotto I have EVER had. El Patio: Mexican; My least favorite. Oceana: Seafood; loved this place; outside seating; tuna steak was mouthwatering. Crabcakes are the other good choice. Gohan: Sushi; Spicy tuna roll was our favorite! We went there 4 times!! Entertainment/Things to do: 7/10 Although the resort is small they do a great job of keeping things going. They had some sort of show or party each night. A few nights vendors came in to sell various items. Sometimes they walked around the resort with a monkey, iquana or parrot that you could take your picture with (pay about $10 for it). Ok, the stuff you've been waiting for.....Wedding Details!!! Wedding Coordinator: 9/10 I worked with Jacy, she is aware of when we all arrive and leaves a message as to when you will meet her. We met 2x before the wedding. She was very organized and is quite sweet. She did a great job making everything perfect. We did have some trouble with our corsages a 1/2 hr before the wedding, but she sorted it all out and had things under control. I was expecting Jacy to be more "assertive" and guide me more, however Chris and I did get the day we wanted. Initial Meeting: We met 2 days before our wedding and then the day before. She had everything ready for us and all the details correct. We sat in the lobby and made sure everything was the way we wanted it and then walked to all the sites to make sure we were all on the same page. Spa/Hair: 10/10 I had my hair and makeup done with Lusia who is a miracle worker with the short bob I have. I had an updo!! (pics to follow) She also did an amazing job with my makeup. I had her use my own so that I knew I liked the colors and products. I had Dee on make-up "stand by" but it was perfect and stayed on forever. She even found a flower to put in my hair at no extra $$. Flowers: 10/10 I had my bouquet, boutonnières for Chris/my dad/my brothers/my BIL/FIL, corsages for my SIL/MIL/my mom/and g-ma and two centerpieces on the table. I had red roses with red calla lilies. I brought blue ribbon to tie around my bouquet and Chris's. The flowers were outstanding. Photography: 9/10 Our package came with 50 photos which we exchanged for not having the video for 100. 2 photographers came before I got dressed to take candid pics of my mom and I and were there for the ceremony and part of the cocktail hour. In total 1.5 hrs. I was really worried about the resort pho-togs taking our pics. I am a hard critic on pics of myself and they turned out.....GREAT!!! Ceremony: 9/10 Our ceremony was at 5pm in the wedding gazebo, decorated with simple white chiffon loosely hanging with flowers. The minister was a gem but at times, he was a little hard to understand with his accent and the wind. We used a microphone and they did set up the sound system for us free of charge and hooked up my ipod to it. It was a full moon the evening we got married. I don't want to sound too sappy, but the day was magical. The best part of the ceremony was seeing Chris and hearing our song as I walked towards him...very emotional!! I was so nervous up until that point but seeing Chris at the end of the aisle so happy was the best day of my life. Dinner: 9/10 We originally had our dinner planned by the adult pool with a long rectangle table but due to the cold evenings and with the help of Dee (another great DPA bride!!) we moved it inside above Portofino. They did a great job. Great atmosphere, hot food, and my floating centerpieces were a hit!! Our wedding was everything we could have wanted. A few stressful points here and there, but we all really enjoyed ourselves and I look at our pictures everyday still!! I am so glad we decided on a destination wedding and DPA!!

Quote: Originally Posted by bridej9 Thank you ladies for all of the information on reception places!! I guess I'll just wait until I get there (we leave in 17days!!). I love the lagoon idea because it is private, I'll have to see how the smell of algae is when we get there, I'm guessing depending on the time of year that can change. And if it's cool I'll look at the option above Portfinos. I was hoping to have this planned out before leaving to put it in the welcome booklet, but I'd rather wait for the perfect location then rush and choose the wrong spot for us. All great ideas! Thanks again laides! 17 days...yay!!! I kinda wish I did that....just waited till I got there and saw all the spots. I had an idea that I wanted it by the Adult pool with cool lighting with all of us around 1 table. But I'll admit, I wasted some serious time on worrying about it (right Dee!!) and once you get there, it will all fall into place and will be so perfect!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by badrianne How many guest did you have? Would it fit 60 people? I would think so if you had both sides open. No problem!!! I had just 1 side open and it fit all 22 of us, the cake table, a highchair and it had a high table with flowers at the back where we plugged in our ipod docking system.

Quote: Originally Posted by echo2_62 OMG I wish that I knew there was a local rate for the rooms!!!! I think we paid nearly three times that rate even on sale! Way to go for finding that out and I'm sure it will help a lot of other girls out down the road. Damn, damn, damn And yes, we are officially three weeks away from leaving and there's almost nothing I've done this weekend that wasn't related to the wedding. There are a few last minute things that I'm scrambling with and it kind of sucks but thankfully its all pretty easy to get done so that's the best I can hope for. I am definitely getting excited though! Dee, thanks for the extra comments about the poolside location. That's where we're currently thinking of having our reception because we don't really want to pay a lot extra for a private venue but we also want the concrete to make it easier on our grandparents who will be attending and don't have great mobility anymore. Can anyone tell me if there is an extra fee to have the reception by the lagoon? I know someone commented that the algae can make it smell (which of course I don't really want either!) but it might be better than freezing! That someone was me!!! Chris and I asked Jacy about the odd "smell" that was quite strong as we toured the reception space by Barracuda bar and the lagoon and that's what she told us. It was REALLY off-putting but that was at the end of FEB so perhaps it has changed. Its quite rocky and had uneven sand there Echo so if you are wanting something easier for your grandparents, I'm not sure the lagoon are will work. There is no extra $$ for the lagoon.

Quote: Originally Posted by bridej9 Oh thank you for the heads up about the lagoon! What is it like above Portofino? Is it outdoors? Like a roof top deck? I really want to take advantage of the beautiful scenery and have it outside. Janine Hi Janine- Jacy and her team made it so lovely up there. I too wanted it outside, I totally understand what you mean and what you're after. The wind was cool when I went in March so having it indoors took away the worry that my guests and the food would be cold. There is a small outside deck where we mingled, and folks could go in and out if they wanted to. We also had our champagne cocktail hr above Portofino too. There were flowers everywhere, the lighting was nice, and the food was hot. Let me know how I can help! Janna

Quote: Originally Posted by Ginalyn Not sure if poolside is the same thing as the lagoon. The lagoon could be referred to as the "natural pool". But not sure if thats what you're talking about Also if poolside is different, are they referring to the adult pool or the main pool? I didn't have the option for "poolside" last summer. I probably just confused you ladies more... sorry!! But if any of the recent brides have the answer, that would help Ginalyn you're right. The "lagoon" is the natural pool. This is where I wanted my reception at 1st however, when we were there, the smell of the algae under Barracuda bar was off-putting. Poolside is by the Adult Pool where we were scheduled to have our reception. Its by Oceana, very lovely. After speaking to Dee, (Dee changed her original location after talking to me about where mine was!!) it was quite cold there so I had my above Portofino. It was excellent. We had 1 long table, dimmed lighting, the floating candles with calla lilies and it was private. A good choice. Thanks agin Dee for the tip! Janna