jerzshortstuff

Quote: Originally Posted by sap We are using DJ Mannia. If you arrive on the 17th, you should totally crash on our beach party! Seriously! For the ceremony we just finished our CD which I understand Carolina will play for us...I hope. lol. Just the basics. Guest music, music for when the Groomsmen walk out then bridal party, then ME! I leave on TUESDAY WOO HOO!! omg! I am so excited for you!

Quote: Originally Posted by Bella30 SO glad to hear the wedding was a success! It is making me more and more excited each day to hear all the reviews on here!!!!! I found my shoes for my dress and i LOVE them! Feels like it is all coming together and I have finally chosen my colors! What another relief!)) I feel like I am a slacker since I'm getting married the day before you and haven't done a thing except send out STD emails hehe. I guess I better get moving! Congrats on your colors, dress, and shoes!

Quote: Originally Posted by sungoddess_08 Here's the link to the thread http://bestdestinationwedding.com/fo...-script-21660/ Also - I felt so confident with our first meeting with Carolina that I was totally at ease. As mentioned we met on Wednesday for about 45 minutes - picked everything we wanted. She asked me to leave my dress out on the bed on Saturday so someone could come pick it up for steaming. I came back on Monday before my hair appointment and it was all ready to go, hanging up along with my flowers and bouquets. She was perfectly on time and it was great. She also had us leave everything wedding related (music, guest favors, signs etc.) at the reception by Friday afternoon. Everything was so easy -- and when I saw her before walking down the aisle all she said was "you look beautiful, are you ready?" She was so calmning and I had no worries --- she had the music down perfect and all of the guests/bridal party at ease. I am still amazed at how smooth it went -- especially after seeing 3 weddings at Dreams Palm Beach -- it makes me feel so happy we went with GPPC and that we are so lucky Carolina was so amazing. Thanks for the link... And thank you for the information. It really put my mind at ease! I know it will be a great day no matter what happens! Carolina sounds really helpful! I can't wait to see pics from your big day! Congrats again!

Quote: Originally Posted by sungoddess_08 I used the spa services to get my hair done -- it was a last minute decision and I booked 2 days before. My mom decided the day before to get her hair done at the same time, and then my grandma decided the day of! None of us had problems booking or getting the time we wanted. There are 3 chairs there and enough staff...I would wait to book until you get there. Also, weddings are a priority so they will bump someone else if they need to to get you in -- haha they told me. We did the renewal of the vows, but we did not tell our guests. Carolina had paperwork for us to sign and everything! We gave her our own wording for the ceremony and we wrote our own vows. I do not want my guests to know its a ROV either. Will Carolina let you use your own wording? I am not sure what wording they normally use, but would you mind sharing yours? I want traditional vows, so I am assuming we can do it that way. I hope it all works out when we get there! I arrive on a Monday and we get married on Thursday. I hope thats enough time to plan everything with Carolina. Thanks for your feedback!

Quote: Originally Posted by sungoddess_08 Okay I have a few minutes now to give some details! Everything was smooth from the get-go when we arrived at GPPC we were told we'd been upgraded to the Royal Suites. It was amazing, and I would definately recommend the upgrade even if you have to pay - it's worth it and offered privacy from the guests. We were upgraded because it's low season right now. The suite was amazing for pictures and the maids did a great job with flower petals and curtain arrangements, it looked nice in the pictures. I was also able to order a bottle of champagne the night before to be delivered while I was getting my hair done. It was great to come back to a cold bottle of champagne on ice to have while getting ready. I was really impressed with the gazebo set up - it looked great. The cart picks you up and takes you over to the ceremony area, and it was nice because no one could see me standing at the end. When the music started my MOH walked first, then my mom and nephew. I did not have a song for them as I completely forgot (haha) so I told Carolina WHILE we were at the end waiting to walk down and she was like "no problem, I have one -- when it starts start walking" haha. So they walked, then they quickly switched to the one I brought for me. As I said, it was nice because no one could see me until I came around the corner through the arch. This was really appreciated because I saw two weddings at Dreams Palm Beach and the gazebo is right next to the pool and the bride has to walk through the lobby in front of all the people, and everyone can see her the whole time. It's nice to have that extra bit of privacy. Our first day we went to meet with Carolina and she was perfect - we picked our flowers, cake and colors. I went with green and afterwards I wasn't so sure, but seeing it in the pictures now I am very happy! We chose the caprese salad and beef medallions for the menu (I don't eat beef so they gave me the chicken thing, and as commented before it wasn't that great lol). Everyone loved the meal. Carolina did a great job of decorating the table at La Uva and there was no one else in the restaurant (another benefit of low season) so it was like a private dinner. After the ceremony we had champagne and took pictures. We had made a CD to play during the champagne so that was good for when we left to go do pictures on the beach. Our ceremony was at 5 - and it led perfectly into dinner which was at 7. We stayed there until 10 and then headed to the lobby for some drinks/ We hired HDC photography and they were amazing. Milan came to take pictures of both the ceremony and the TTD at Dreams Palm Beach over our honeymoon. I love the pictures and would recommend working with HDC. Whew -- I have to think about more, but feel free to ask questions. I've also posted pics on facebook so pm me if you want to see them! Sounds amazing! Makes me wish I booked in the low season lol. I can't wait to see pictures! Congrats on being Mr and Mrs! By the way, did you have a legal or symbolic ceremony? I am wondering on the wording for the symbolic ceremony. And how many days before your wedding do you sit down with Carolina to go over details?

Quote: Originally Posted by khomac The locals don't even drink their own water lol The ice cubes are okay, but I think I would stay away from large amounts of it. I used a lot of ice one day and that was the day I was sick (although I think I actually had food poisoning). Some people also say to not have a lot of salads. Keep in mind that the fruity drinks use coconut milk which can cause upset stomach as well. I stay off the resort alot and I always use the tap water to to brush my teeth (which is not filtered), but I only rinse my tooth brush in it so never swallow it. Yea I head people mostly get sick because of all the sugary drinks and different foods they consume while on vacation. I am hoping to keep this in mind during my stay in order to prevent sickness!

Quote: Originally Posted by sungoddess_08 Just an update -- I have to catch up once I'm officially back in Ontario BUT the wedding was amazzzzing! Absolutely amazing, and HDC is golden. SO happy we went with them. I will update details soon! We weer supposed to leave last night but our flight has been delayed for like 18 hours and so they sent us to Dreams La Romana to sleep! Also -- we were upgraded to the Royal Suites -- I would definately recommend!! It was fantastic...and Carolina also. And, I've since seen two other resort wedding locations (Dreams Palm Beach and Dreams La Ramana) and was not impressed at all -- GPPC is the way to go!! Sounds like you had a great time! I can't wait to read your review and see pictures! I almost booked at Dreams but I thought it would be too expensive for my guests! Glad the Palladium was a good choice! Quote: Originally Posted by richarsd Just to add to this, my TA told us that if you want the photographer (or any outside guests, even) to stay past 6 pm, they need an additional guest pass, so another $60 for the evening. Oh wow... well maybe its a good thing my ceremony is scheduled for 2pm so that I don't get hit twice with the daily rate. If you do a TTD session, is it at the resort or another location? Or is there another place that is an option for the TTD session? Was just thinking of a way to save myself from paying the day pass twice hehe

Quote: Originally Posted by msredbird51 I'm using HDC as well, and just asked Carolina this same question a week or so ago. This was her reply. (I am using Pastor Rick for the ceremony and had asked about day passes for the both of them.) ok thanks!

Quote: Originally Posted by atrott Here I go again with my random questions, ladies! In my many readings, I seem to have stumbled across a piece on the water in DR & that it's not safe to drink even at the resorts. Can't remember what/where I was reading but I do recall it highly recommending bottled water. Any of you past DR visitors know the answer to this? I think anytime you are out of the country it is unsafe to drink their water since your body is not used to it. Usually the resorts have bottled water for all of their cooking, ice cubes, and drinks. Depending on the resort, you should be ok to brush your teeth with the water, but I definitely wouldn't drink it. Hope that helps!

Quote: Originally Posted by sap I am using HDC photo and they charge $250 TRASH THE DRESS SESSION includes:
 • 1 hour Photo Session (usually the day after your wedding)
 • 1 DVD with all the pictures in high resolution that you can print at any lab and in any size.
The DVD includes approximately 150 pictures (Originals & Edited).
 • 1 Slideshow on DVD of your best pictures (with titles and music of your choice).
 • 1 set of 50 printed pictures in 6 x 8.
 250 US$ Does Grand Palladium charge a day pass for the photographer? If so, do you know how much it costs? Thanks in advance!

Quote: Originally Posted by sap That's basically how I have been. Not really bothering her at all. She emailed me recently and I threw some of my plans into my response to her stating that I just wanted to give her a heads up on what we were thinking of doing ie beach reception, pastor york and dj mannia. Also stated that I know that we will plan everything when we see her. No emails since then. I think if we are all planning the destination wedding then we can't expect to have total control over everything as we would expect at home. But that's the point, right?! I will be giving my update report in a couple weeks to let you know if there is anything you should request in advance!! Wow you leave sooo soon! You must be so excited! Are you restless at night yet? hehe I can't wait to hear how everything goes! I really don't want to bother Carolina so I hope by being laid back and not emailing her won't mess anything up important or screw me out of anything! Your DIY's look awesome! I hope I have energy to put together some stuff before my wedding. Between work and my master's courses, I might not have a chance to... but I love the ones you did! How many days until you actually leave for PC?

thanks for all of the tips... I have been married before so I am definitely not a bridezilla and am pretty simple about everything (hence the destination wedding). I guess we can just see when we get down there since I am sure there will be many more weddings that week. Should I be emailing Carolina at all about anything? I booked our date, sent our agreement, and that was it. I also feel like she has a TON of people to deal with so I really don't feel like bothering her at all since were not getting married until April. I don't really have any special requests or anything so I guess we just plan everything once we are there? Anyone know how that usually works?

Quote: Originally Posted by PuntaCanaNikki I totally agree with you, I am doing the beach as well.... My dream since I was a little girl was to get married on a beach!! I can't wait..... So exciting!!!! You will have to let me know how it goes since your wedding is in a few months! You must be so excited! Carolina seemed like she was trying to talk us out of a beach ceremony, but I know its what we want regardless of the half naked people watching us hehe

Quote: Originally Posted by ShelandMel Hello everyone who gets to see our first posting. jerzshortstuff did you ear any more about this resort? were kinda hoping its a gem.. Were seriously looking into getting married at the Barcelo, Punta Cana and would appreciate any information available. Thanks for reading. I heard some iffy reviews on it. I chose a few resorts for my travel agent to get me prices on and I thought since the reviews were mediocre for Barcelo that it would've been one of the cheaper prices. It turned out it was more expensive then the Palladium (which I originally wanted). So we ended up booking the Palladium. Good luck with your decision though. Your day will be beautiful no matter where it is! We were looking into the Barcelo Palace Deluxe which looked beautiful, but I was just nervous with people's reviews that we opted out of it. Hope that helps some!

Quote: Originally Posted by caribbeanLover Not at all. If you want the new gazebo, it's on the Punta Cana section, if you want the beach there is 2 locations, Punta Cana and Bavaro side. Awesome thanks for the info! Also, has anyone had the beach wedding? We really want to have the ceremony on the beach but it seemed like the Carolina was trying to talk me out of it. I tried getting a 5pm time so a lot of people won't be on the beach but for now I'm stuck with 2pm. Any recommendations for 2pm on the beach? Do I ask them to set up closer to the water? Our whole reasoning for going away was to have our feet in the sand while we say our "I do's!" I know people will be around and watching, but that's ok if we have some stragglers in our pics! hehe

Quote: Originally Posted by caribbeanLover Thanks Court, you got back to the girls before I did. I've been thinking about you, and how you've been feeling. The baby is officailly taken over huh! lol So you decided you wont find out the sex?!?!! My wedding was origianlly for 2:30, and I also freaked out about what people were going to do. I didn't want my wedding day to be another normal day on vacation. So I had set up a time line. People had an hour free time to change shoes if they wished( for the men) and then the plan was to meet at a lobby bar, have some drinks and play a wedding game. I didn't end up needing to do it since the time changed to 6, so dinner was ready for us once the ceremony was done. So you guys could consider doing something like this. My only concern is, if your ceremony is on the Punta Cana section, then wanting to go to the sports bar (it's on the other end of the resort) so people will have to wait for the train, no one will want to walk in the heat with maybe high heels on. so maybe consider the Punta Cana or the Palac lobby bar (all walking distance even in high heels lol) Hemingways only opens at 6pm, so that's not an option. Sap, you must be gettig so excited!!! have you still been sleeping good? I know 17 days away for me I definitely wasn't lol. How do you know what section you are marrying in? Is it the same section you book your hotel room in?

Quote: Originally Posted by sheila2011 Well I emailed Carolina and got good news and bad news! The good is that it only took her a day to email me back....I was shocked. The bad is that she said for 2011 in order to have the private beach party you have to have a minimum of 20 guests. I am really worried I won't have 20 guests! What do I do if I can't have the beach party I wanted? Sigh. I suppose no matter what I do, it will work out. At least that's what I am telling myself! In other news, my engagement pictures got rescheduled and good thing too because I got nailed in the face at a softball tournament the day before we were going to have the pictures!! You can see the imprint of the stitches of the ball on my chin. Very attractive! Sorry to hear there is a minimum on the beach party but maybe you can ask if you can pay for the 20 people even if you have less. Maybe its a money issue, like they need a certain price to allow it. So if you paid for the 20 people and only have 15, it would still be ok. Hopefully it will all work out for you!

Thanks so much everyone! I was stressing about 2pm, but it is what it is! And if we can get a little later great, if not, I am glad you girls reassured me its not too early! sap... I will have to look into Pastor York. But we are really tight on money so I will have to look into his prices! Thanks for the suggestion though... and I am glad my dad can still walk me down the isle since its a ROV ceremony. PuntaCanaNikki... I ended up printing out the agreement form and then scanning it so I could type my information in and save it that way. Hopefully that will work for you if you can't find a way to do it in Adobe. Congrats!

Quote: Originally Posted by sap Well ladies...I haven't contacted Carolina in quite sometime because I have this site to answer my questions and when I met with her last year it seemed that most decisions will be done when I get down there. That being said, she EMAILED me today to REMIND me that my day is coming. lol. LOVE IT! It's becoming sooo real now. She just emailed me to ask me to send her a list of my guests and their dates booked and I let her know that Pastor York confirmed 6:30pm for the ceremony. She emailed me right back "Ok, Perfect, Thanks!" I sent her my list, which she will also be receiving from my TA Dina (a BDW agent). I've just completed my chapsticks, my kids OOT sandbuckets, raffia fans wrapped with ribbon and added paper flowers, emergency kits and programs...I KNOW I MUST POST PICS!! Everything is coming out sooo awesome, FI loves it all too. MANY MANY thanks to all the wonderful brides and their ideas here on BDW!! I'm super excited! And I already don't want it to end! lol Your day is creeping up fast! You must be sooo excited! I can't wait to see pics of everything you are making! I would love to make stuff to bring, but I worry about how to get it down there safely. I haven't emailed Carolina lately about anything. I sent her my agreement form and she replied "thanks" but we haven't discussed any restaurants or anything. Maybe when it gets closer I can request one but since I am doing the semi-private, I am assuming I just get whatever is available. I wonder how the times for the weddings are determined. I wanted 5pm but she said she only had 2pm (which I am a little sad about) but we are doing a ROV ceremony. I was going to email her and ask if she had the wording or how it worked. Can my dad still walk me down the isle and give me away? Anyone do the ROV that may be able to help me out?

Quote: Originally Posted by sungoddess_08 Woo!!! I'm off!! Thanks for the wishes!!!! Yay!!! Enjoy every minute of it! I can't wait to hear all of the details and see pictures!

Quote: Originally Posted by caribbeanLover Hey guys!! I'm back in business after my surgery and a minor hiccup when I ended up back in the hospital after they let me go. I've never done well with anastasia, after I came home it was none stop vomiting, so I had to go back to get stable but was back home the next morning. I in fact had a serve case of endometrosis to the point it pushed my 1 ovary to the wall of my intestines. He was able to clean it all up and put the ovary back into place. (We tired to get prengnant on our honeymoon...now know why we couldn't) I'm excited (thought I never say this) to get my next period to see how pain (or painless) it'll be! We just bougt a house over the weekend!!!!!!!!!!! so we decided to put off trying for another year to get our self set up in the house and do a few minor reno's to the place. I appreciate all of you and your kinds words and keeping me in your thoughts!! your all amazing group of people!!! Okkkk I see there are some confusion to the beach party. There are 2 types of beach party. 1 being the reception which is $60 p/p which includes your meal, drinks. (I am sorry but I am not sure or cant remember if this includes a dj and dancing afterwards) but the tables get set up on the beach and you get served by servers here. The second type of beach party is the dance after dinner, you go to one of the a la carts to have dinner, then head over to the beach for a dance. This is $9p/p for the open bar for 3 hours then add the cost for the DJ $250. For 27 of us we paid $475 (2 of them were kids so we didn't get charged) Bella, Tracy, Or Tracey?! amazing!!! lol Thank you guys for the sweet comments on our photo's. They did turn out amazing, all thanks to Arnaud and his company HDC!! Glad you are recovering well! Sounds like it was painful! Hope you are getting lost of rest and relaxation! And CONGRATS on the house!!!!!! You both must be soooo excited! I am so happy for you! Glad to see you are back! And thanks for clarifying on the beach party! I knew you would have all of the info!

I found her response when someone else asked about it! Hope that helps! Also, I am sure if you private message her she can definitely help since she had the beach party there. Quote: Originally Posted by caribbeanLover Reception : You can have a semi private dinner at an A LA Cart which is included in your package, if you have more then 14 guest you must choose the dinner, you ge 4-5 different choice for the starters, main course and dessert. For dessert we choice to serve our cake since I read a lot of people didn't eat the cake because they were to full after dessert. Our cake was amazing, best wedding cake I've ever tasted!!!! Or you can have a private reception for $1000 in a restaurant. Or $60 p/p to have dinner on the beach. If I'm not mistaken the menu is the same as the semi private. Beach Party : It's a private thing for just you and your guest. You pay $9 p/p to have the open bar, with a bar tender and waiter. We hired the Dj (worth every penny) $250 (which is odd cause she told m $200, but was worth the $250) you can bring you own music and he'll play it. But ours didn't speak english, with out planning it, DH sister ended up being our MC...turned out amazing!!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by Bella30 Hey ...I am getting married home first then ROV there. As for food... we have two options for restaurants and I am down for whatever doesn't matter to me..I think I read both were good options soo...We have over 20 guests coming and will be doing the private beach party... $60/person is alot ...i thought we just had to rent the dj and pay for the bartender??!! Yea for food I think our options are semi-private buffet or a la carte which is included in our pricing, or you can rent the restaurant to make it private (which I want to say is like, an extra $1,000), or you can have your dinner on the beach which is $60/pp. BUT, if you do the semi-private dinner and just want the beach party, I thought it was $9/pp plus the DJ and Bartender. But maybe it is just the Bartender and DJ fee. caribbeanLover had the beach party, I just can't find her post on the costs. (I'm on a search! lol) I think it really depends on what you are looking for, how many guests you have, and what your budget is. Good luck!

Quote: Originally Posted by natalie1987 I don't know the food options either! Im glad we can just wait until we are down there! im getting a ceremony. What are you getting? We are doing the ROV ceremony since we are taking care of the legal stuff here first. Quote: Originally Posted by Jane_A_J Has anyone who has been married in this hotel got any suggestions what to do on the wedding night? We have 14 people in total for the wedding and we are not sure what to do on the evening? We thought about the beach party which is $60 per person, I have been told by carolina that we must have a minimum of 20 guests. I think we are just going to go with the a la carte restaurant which will be sectioned off, but I am wondering if anyone has suggestions what to do after that? Does anyone know of anything we could book outside of the hotel? or boat hire etc? Thanks guys, hope you can help!! I haven't been there yet but some girls do the A la Carte and then either go to the disco to dance/party or have the beach party. But the beach party is only like $9/person if you don't actually have the dinner. Its a lot cheaper. But you do have to pay for the DJ and I think maybe the bartender. When one the the *experts* (I think that's what I am going to use from now on to refer to the friendly ladies that have been there before that are always helpful hehe) come on, they can clarify the pricing. Good luck! Also if any of the *experts* used the ROV ceremony, do you know the wording? And can your dad still walk you down the isle if you do the ROV ceremony?

Quote: Originally Posted by natalie1987 I am booked and confirmed with Caroline for April 30 5 pm:)) I am now thinking that it is too late! does anyone know if you can request an earlier time?? I wanted April 28 or 29 at 5pm and she said only April 28 at 2pm was available but the time was subject to change. I think when we get down there we will be able to change it (maybe) but not before then. I think it will all work out! That's funny we are all getting married the same week! Are you doing a ROV ceremony or a legal one? I haven't discussed any food options but whatever they have is fine with me. I am not picky. I don't even know what the options actually are lol.