Bride-chill-a

Thanks everyone for your feedback....keep it coming! I loved that website, it was quite helpful.

Quote: Originally Posted by jerseykitten I haven't made mine yet, but this is what I've got for mine. Michele & Jim look forward to sharing with you the sun, the sea and the memories of their wedding ceremony Saturday April 10, 2010 Four o'clock in the afternoon The Beach Grand Palladium Lucea, Jamaica That's lovely! Thanks for sharing! Jennifer

Hello Brides! I'm making my own invitations and I'm wondering if anyone has any suggestions for wording on their invitations? I don't want anything as formal as a traditional wedding and would like to tie in the beach wedding aspect. If you have examples, it would be greatly appreciated if you could post them here, to share!

My MOH used to live in the States and she says they have great flowers there. That was her suggestion was to see if there is a Walmart there and we can make our own. I guess you could figure it out when you get there and if they don't, you could order your flowers from the hotel I'm sure. I would check to see how much notice they need. From what I understand if you want tulips, calla lillies or orchids they need to know a couple weeks before hand. What resort are you getting married at? Quote: Originally Posted by VioletVol I have been to Playa del Carmen a couple times, but I do not recall going near a market to buy flowers. I am interested in just picking up my own flowers. I'm not picky, so just whatever is pretty & colorful. Do you think I can find this? It needs to be in or near downtown Playa, I don't think we will venture much further. Dumb question, but is Walmart there similar to here? Do they have flowers?

Quote: Originally Posted by lyoleek Hi Jennifer, I would love to see the pictures that you have. Please email me at [email protected]. Thank you Olya I just sent them...keep on the lookout! Jennifer

I'm excited for you! Can't wait to hear how it all goes! All the best! Jennifer Quote: Originally Posted by candiekiss I'm getting excited girls.....We are leaving in 8 days and the wedding is in 13!!! I'll try to post pics when I come back but I haven't been very good at doing that. Diana, that's interesting they say $6 per person extra for the toast and cake. It seems like they nickel and dime you to death on things.

Hi Brooke, I just sent them to you. The file is probably big, sorry! The restaurants we enjoyed the most were the Asian and the outdoor one (can't remember the name now). It's the one where some menu items are included and some are extra. It's really nice and the food/service is excellent! Jennifer Quote: Originally Posted by bnmarten Jennifer - Could you email me the pics that you have? My email is [email protected]. I am getting married there on 9/19/09. Everyone - I am trying to decide on dinner options for after the cermony as well...Does anyone know which option they chose and how much it was? It seems everytime I ask Ana, I get different prices. Thanks! Brooke

thank you! I heard back from Paola and I got all the questions answered that I wanted, so I'm feeling confident and I booked it! It's nice to have it all finalized.

Quote: Originally Posted by RCBlondie Jennifer, do you know how much Flight Center typically charges for their commission? Also, would your friend mind if I email regarding pricing as well? Has everyone else used a TA or are they going direct through the hotel? Not sure which is the best way to do it as we have guests from all over Canada (mostly in BC), as well as guests from overseas, New Zealand and Australia. Suggestions? Hi! I'm not sure what their commission is at Flight Centre and I'm sure she wouldn't mind if you emailed her. Her name is Marissa Bauzon and her email is [email protected] She is out of town right now, so I'm sure her out of office will direct you to someone else, so you can get a quicker response. Alot of brides are here are going with TA's and from what I can tell, that's your easiest bet because all of your guests can go through one place. I have contacted hotels directly and if you're willing to book your hotel and flight seperate then, that is a route to take as well as they only book for hotels. I didn't get into discussing any deals with them, but it seems you are better off to get a package as it's less hassle to deal with connecting flights, etc. Signature vacations has the following deal for group travel (as I'm sure alot of the tour companies do): Signature Vacations offers one complimentary adult for every 20 adults booked. They also have a Price Guarantee. They will make a one-time price adjustment on the group prices if it goes lower. This is based on them having sufficient availability in the system to rebook the whole group at the lower price. This offer expires November 16/09. So we will have to keep checking to see if the prices go down. Hope that helps! Let me know how you make out! Jennifer

Hey Ladies! My fiancee and I stayed at this hotel in November 2008. It was nice because it's really modern looking and the grounds are immaculate. The food was good (wasn't crazy about the Mexican restaurant though) and the pools and drinks were great. The other thing we weren't crazy about is the nightlife. There isn't much going on there during the week until the weekend and then it gets fun. There isn't a disco so it's pretty quiet - until the weekend when they have stuff happening in the main lobby. On the Saturday night they brought in a live band and everyone was dancing, so that was great. We saw a wedding there and that inspired us to have our wedding on the beach in Mexico. I have some pictures of the wedding set up, so if you want I can send you a personal message with those (I'm not sure how to do it on here). I also have tons of pictures of the resort in general. The ceremony was really nice and the wedding party/guests seemed to have a great time all week together. I think the lack of activities at night might not matter as much when you have a group to hang out with. The other nice thing about the resort is it's a smaller boutique style hotel (well...small for Mexico) so it keeps things intimate. Hope this helps! I'd be happy to answer any other questions you have. Jennifer

The Memory Stick is a great tip! Thanks!

Ok...sorry to be a little 'posting happy' but just after I sent this post, I continued to read on with the reviews on trip advisor. The one directly underneath to the link I sent you, was from a bride with a not so great review. She had a couple of rather misfortunate incidents.

Hi Everyone, I was just on trip advisor and I found this review (a bride who was just married there!) Here is the link, if you are interested (she's posted a few photo's). :-) Awesome Hotel/Vacation - Review of Sandos Playacar Beach Resort & Spa, Playa del Carmen, Mexico - TripAdvisor

Quote: Originally Posted by jrprice24 Jennifer- We have decided on Sandos primarily b/c of their wedding packages. I wasn't too impressed with any of the other resort packages. I did have a friend just come back from Riu Tucan and she said that they do not have a private beach, which in turn means that anyone and everyone can watch your wedding-including topless onlookers She said that she was frustrated b/c no one stopped them so they ended up being in the wedding pics as the bride was walking down the aisle! I have also been in contact with 2 brides that have been married there. They are both people who have been very willing to answer any and all of my questions. It has been nice to know different brides who have had nothing bad to say about the resort. Good luck with your searching! Jessica Thanks Jessica for the info! That is comforting to hear! I too was attracted by their packages. The Riu's would cost me about $1000 more in total. Yikes! I think I'm nervous about Sandos because I've heard all good things from my guests that they really like the Riu Yucatan and am hoping Sandos will live up to that expectation. But, as far as weddings go, Sandos caters much more to that so I think I just need to go with that to make sure we get the wedding we are hoping for! Plus, the setup looks so gorgeous!!! Can you imagine onlookers (let alone topless) in your pictures! LOL. I can't wait to hear how your wedding goes! Please keep us posted when you get back. Thanks again! Jennifer

BTW: Has anyone been dealing with Paola at Sandos Playacar? She's been so good at keeping in touch, up until now. I emailed her over 2 weeks ago to confirm my date and haven't heard from her since. I've even sent 2 follow up emails in the past week, checking in. I thought that was unusual for her and am anxious to secure our date. Perhaps she is busy with weddings. *shrug*

That would be excellent Keilag! Looking forward to it!

Quote: Originally Posted by amybermuda Thanks Kitten heart - annoucnements are a great idea since I do not have a date to save yet for the US reception! I have called 2 travel agents now who think that it is to early to start looking at rooms to book. weird! Hey - is anyone using a website to give guests more informatioon? If so - what website are you using Thanks and happy planning! Amy Hi Amy, I like theknot.com for my wedding website. I'm going to have all my guests RSVP right on the website, so it's easier for both parties and more environmentally friendly (and potentially cheaper, although there is an anual cost to have the site). I like the format and their backgrounds the best so far. Another one that is good is ewedding.com but if you want the option to be able to RSVP on the site, it's about $90/year as opposed to theknot.com which is $60/year. ewedding has a two week trial period and it's free if you want the very basic of options. Hope that helps! Let me know what you think, Jennifer

Quote: Originally Posted by sunnyee Hey! We may have the same wedding date! We have the Bahia Prinicipe pre-booked for our wedding on February 25th, 2010. We have been to this resort 5 times and love it. As for the prices, I had my TA, who is also my MOH get quotes from various tour operators. I wasn't surprised by how high they were because February is quite a way off yet. She advised me to wait and she will get another quote in a few months. Our guests of course wanted to know how much the trip would cost so I told them what we have paid the last 5 times we went in February so they could have a number to "work with"...and I told them that the prices were too high to book now and that we would wait until we get a more reasonable quote. Everyone was fine with that. Don't panic on the prices right now...hang in for a bit and check back later. Are you using a TA? Happy planning! That's so cool we might have the same date! :-) Thanks for your info...yes, I am using a TA who works out of Flight Center and is a friend of ours that's coming to the wedding. She's not charging us commission, so that's a bonus! I feel comforted with what you are saying. I'm going to trust that it will all work out and whoever can afford to come, will come! I think the biggest thing for me is that we get the 'wedding' that we want, so we need to just go with it. That's great that you have been to your resort many times before...makes deciding easier! We have only been to one resort (H10 Ocean Coral) in the Mayan but we know we don't want to have our wedding there, one reason is because of location. So, it's a bit unnerving booking something where we have never been. The Riu Yucatan seems like a safer bet, as many of our guests have stayed there and liked it, but they dont seem to cater to weddings as much as Sandos Playacar. I just want everyone to be happy. Sigh. Thanks again for your reply! Let's be in touch with our planning, etc! Have you sent out your invitations? Jennifer

Hi! We are planning our wedding for either Feb 25th or Feb 27th 2010, depending on which resort we go with. Trying to decide between Riu Yucatan and Sandos PLayacar. Any suggestions or feedback? Also, are you all getting qouted high prices for your stay there? It's hard because prices are just coming out and they are really high! We should be able to go for much cheaper than that, I'm hoping! I'm worried about the cost for my guests but want to make sure we have a great wedding! Hope your planning is going well! Jennifer

I'm a newbie too! Well...I actually joined this site in Feb, and am having trouble 'activating my account' so I come up as a 'lurker'! Lol. I am now in the throngs of planning and choosing a resort for our wedding in Feb 2010. Have you made a choice yet? So far it's between Riu Yucatan and Sandos Playacar for us. We want to be close to PDC so our guests can go off the resort, but not have to spend alot to get there. So far the prices I am getting from our travel agent and the resort seem a bit outrageous, considering they usually go for much less, so that's been a concern for us. Keep in touch...let me know how your planning is going and what resorts are of interest. Jennifer

Quote: Originally Posted by Diana Great idea! I always search hoping for more info so this is perfect.... Our date is June 26, 2009. Hey Diana, I am new to this forum and am looking at having our wedding (Feb 2010) at Sandos PLayacar (its between them and Riu Yucatan). I would love to hear how your wedding goes and how your experience was when you get back! What other resorts were you looking at and what made you decide on Sandos? Any feedback anyone has would be greatly appreciated! Jennifer