TA Wendy

Here is the most current posting from Travel Impressions Tour operator pertaining to the hurricane: Travel Notifications Updated: 10/25/11 Hurricane Rina: Travel Impressions continues to monitor all severe weather activity. For any travel locations affected by severe weather, we work with our hoteliers to accommodate any delayed departures or arrivals. Please check your Airline carrier's website for up to date flight status and travel waiver policies. If your customer's flight is canceled or delayed: Notify Travel Impressions Customer Care immediately at 1-800-284-0022, prompt #3, so we can ensure that your hotel accommodations will be available upon arrival. If your customers are at their vacation site and have questions: Contact Travel Impressions Customer Care at 1-800-284-0022, prompt #3. Customer Care is available to assist you 24/7 For all pre-departure inquiries related to changing your customer's reservation: Contact Travel Impressions Reservations at 1-800-284-0022, prompt #2. Hours of operation: Mon. - Fri. 9:00am - 9:00pm & Sat. 10:00am - 6:00pm EST. For all pre-departure online bookings: Contact eCommerce Online Support at 1-800-999-4321. Hours of operation: Mon. - Fri. 9:00am - 9:00pm, Sat. 10:00am - 4:00pm and Sun.11:00am - 3:00pm EST. Please see the latest weather updates from the National Hurricane Center: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/ For specific airline policies, please check the carrier's website: AeroMexico - www.aeromexico.com Air Tran - www.airtran.com Alaska Airlines - www.alaskaair.com American Airlines - www.aa.com British Airways - www.ba.com Continental Airlines - www.continental.com Delta Air Lines - www.delta.com Fly Frontier - www.flyfrontier.com JetBlue - www.jetblue.com Lufthansa - www.lh.com SAS - www.flysas.com United Airlines - www.united.com US Airways - www.usairways.com Virgin - www.flyvirgin.com I also just checked with Gogo Tours and no cancellation of flights or hotel stays is reported today. Fingers crossed for everyone!!! TA Wendy

Hi Le Blanc Brides! Congratulations on selecting a most wonderful resort! Le Blanc is fantastic! I work quite frequently with couples who have selected Le Blanc as their wedding site, and I am down there several times per year. If anyone has any questions that I can help to answer I am happy to do that! Best regards and happy wedding planning! TA Wendy You may PM me or reach me directly at [email protected]

I have been a Travel Agent since 1980! Love it and love working with brides and grooms! It is nice to work with people when they are happy, and planning a wonderful experience! TA Wendy

Hi Labebeta, Just wanted to let you know that a good place to look for a travel agent is right here on the BDW forum. We are owned by a travel agency, Wright Travel and our agents of course specialize in Destination Weddings. I myself specialize in Cancun and Riviera Maya area. I would be happy to answer any of your travel agent questions... The Royal is one of my favorites! You can send me a PM if you would like, or contact me directly at [email protected]. Best regards, TA Wendy

I think these are so beautiful! I do wonder about the "what goes up must come down" part though, especially around Palapas or other highly flammable areas... Has anyone considering them checked with the resorts to be sure they will be allowed? What a magic and gorgeous moment to see them all floating off... hope it does work out! TA Wendy

The great thing about using an agent, (one of them) is that we can present you with options! If you know you will have at least 10 rooms, and it works best for you to hold a block of rooms using a group rate so you know you have the rooms there for sure for your guests we can go that way, but if you and your guests would like to book individually we can also do those price matches, book with Apple for you or whatever makes it work best for you! I would say that the majority of couples I work with do prefer to hold a block of rooms for their guests using a group contract. It locks the price in and makes sure that the rooms will be there when the guests begin to call. It also provides the best amenities for the bride and groom in terms of upgrades and free rooms and such, but we can also book at the lowest rate available for your guests at the time they are ready to reserve their room, and if it means doing a price match to one of the online search engines, we can do that with no problem! By still directing the guests to book through your agent, we can keep track for you of who has booked, and alert the resort of all the names of the guests and ask that they be roomed in the same general area even if we are doing the bookings as individual ones. We always try to find what works best for the couple and go from there! TA Wendy

Awww.. my pleasure! You Le Blanc Brides have selected the most wonderful resort there is! Good choices and happy weddings to all on this thread! TA Wendy

Hi all, I am on site now staying at Le Blanc! I was invited to come to visit and also attend the Shikira concert tomorrow evening! Le Blanc is just a fantastic resort. If anyone has any questions or needs me to do anything for them while I am here at the property I would be happy to do that! Just shoot me an email at [email protected] TA Wendy

Hi Le Blanc Fans.. TA Wendy here, I just wanted to drop a note on the Le Blanc thread that you all have chosen what in my opinion is one of the most wonderful properties in all Cancun / Riviera Maya area if you have your wedding here! It is an amazing and beautiful place. I have worked on a number of Destination Weddings at Le Blanc and all of the brides and their guests have had a most wonderful experience here. I currently have some space on my calendar to work with anyone getting married in late 2011 or early 2012.. if I can be of assistance to any Le Blanc brides with booking your space, please just shoot me a PM or contact me at [email protected]. Happy planning! TA Wendy

Hi RG, TA Wendy here... you have picked one of my favorite properties for your wedding! I wanted to encourage you to have a look at Del Sol Photography. They are frequent contributors here on the BDW forum and do absolutely beautiful work. ... And if you happen to need any assistance from a TA, I would be delighted to help you with that aspect! Best wishes to you! TA Wendy

Hi Jamie, I would be glad to try to answer your questions, and perhaps work with you, however if you are under deposit with another agent, it could be a bit sticky to change in the middle of your booking. - Hopefully the other TA is not one of ours from here on BDW as we do not ever compete with one another. I specialize in Cancun / Riviera Maya, so if that is your area and you would like talk with me I would be happy to do that! Feel free to PM me or email at [email protected] Best regards, TA Wendy

The Royal gave us the Tres Leche cake when a group of us travel agents were at the resort in December for a wedding training weekend... it was amazing and delicious! I highly recommend it! TA Wendy

Hello, Yes, typically when booking a group we are able to access the same programs and benefits for our clients that they would get by going direct themselves to the resort, and often we are able to get lower rates than what would be offered directly. But again using the Palace resorts example, they have a program of up to $1500 credits per room to be used onsite by guests... that is something that as travel agents we are also able to pass along to our clients when they book through us. Hope that is helpful! TA Wendy

Hi Brenners, No, as Travel Agents we are paid by the resorts and tour operators we book for our clients. We are paid after the completion of the trip. Some agents do charge a retainer or service fee, but that is not something that I personally do. So it is a win/win for you! TA Wendy

Hi Sharon, I would be very happy to help you! You can either send me a PM here, or contact me directly by email at [email protected]. How can I be of help? Regards, TA Wendy

Silvr109, I am glad that you have found someone who is working well with you and that you are pleased with your TA, however you may not know that the forum and website are owned by a travel agency. The agents on the forum would be delighted to help with any and all travel questions for the brides, we are all Destination Wedding Specialists who have worked for years in this field, and we ask that you not endorse or advertise agents off the forum. Thanks much! TA Wendy

Remember that the agents here on the forum can typically price match for you to any search engine you might find online... and provide you with much more personal service than you would get with something like Cheap Caribbean, Expedia or Orbitz. We are here to help! : ) Best regards, TA Wendy

Ahhh, you guys, thank you so much! I love what I do, and I love working with wedding couples and guests! Everyone is so excited and happy to be going, and I always know that if my part of the process makes it a little easier, and less stressful for the wedding couple, I have done my job!

Well thank you for the nice words! Of course I am biased, but I think that using a travel agent is really a win/ win for brides... you do not have the pressure of keeping track of the bookings, we can usually get better rates especially with the resorts, and I think it is a great thing to have one "go-to person" for your guests who can answer all their questions consistently. We often also know and have good contacts with the resorts we book, and if you are having any trouble with communication with the on site staff we are often able to get you attention and answers when you need them. As for me, I have cultivated contacts at many of the resorts in Cancun / PDC and I know my brides and grooms will get especially good treatment! TA Wendy

Actually as Travel Agents we can often save you quite a bit over what you would pay by calling the hotel directly. We can shop tour operators for you and can price match to online search engines, or by using group contract space you will be breaking into lower rates than what is available to the general public. Plus, and this is a big plus, with using a travel agent, you have one central person who will coordinate all of your guests travel, and make sure that the hotel is aware of everyone you are bringing with you whether booked as a group or through individual bookings. We become your go-to person for all your travel questions, and many times we are the ones who first hear about a special, or discounts being offered and can grab the deals for you! TA Wendy

I was just down at the Royal PDC and they did a Mayan Ceremony for us Travel Agents so we could see what it is like. In my opinion it was very unique, special and meaningful. All of the elements were acknowledged, sky, earth, water and it was very spiritual. For anyone looking for something a little different and very memorable, I highly recommend looking into the Mayan Ceremony! TA Wendy

Hi Emily, I was just down there in early December and got to see the chapel. It is truly beautiful with all the glass and looking out over the ocean... just doesnt get any prettier! The entrance walk was still to me plenty long enough... whether you came out of the building and hooked a right or came down the walkway from back by the kids club I still think the walk would be plenty long enough to play your entry music and I dont think it should cause you concern. That chapel is one of my very favorites in all of Cancun/ Riviera Maya and your guests will be talking about the beauty of it for a long time! Plus your pictures would be gorgeous! I love working with Real Resorts... let me know if I can be of assistance for you! TA Wendy

Great list of pros and cons! I would add that Azul Sensatori has especially fantastic food throughout, and Dreams Riviera Cancun has what I think is the coolest looking Gazebo around! Look kind of almost polonesian.. different and very pretty! Plus I think Now Jade has a really great color palatte throughout the hotel.. pretty bright but tasteful color scheme. ... and good prices too! Plus the AM resorts, Dreams, and the Nows have the especially generous group program where you begin to earn amenities with just a 6 room booking. Makes it easy to get perks, free rooms and upgrades with fewer rooms booked! If anyone would like more info on any of the above I would be delighted to check for you! TA Wendy

Hi Le Blanc brides! TA Wendy here... Le Blanc is one of my top picks for resorts in all of Cancun / Riviera Maya. I am beginning to be booked up for the year with weddings.. I dont like to work on more than 2 weddings per month.. but I have so enjoyed working with Le Blanc that I would love to help someone who might be looking for some TA assistance here... anyone need a hand? Best regards and wishes from me! TA Wendy

TA Wendy here... I was at the Royal in early December and observed a number of weddings including some "Faux" ones that the resort put on just to give us Travel Agents an idea of what they could do! Very cool, especially the Mayan Ceremony.. that was just really great! As to the question about privacy on the beach.. if your reception is in front of Pelicanos you are right next to the pier, and people can walk out on it and will be able to see the festivities, but they do seem to keep a respectful distance, and I did not notice any issues with interlopers causing troubles. If the wedding is on the beach in front of the Gazebo, it is a little public, and people will watch the wedding, but I saw people being respectful of the brides and grooms and guests, and did not notice any rudeness or people horning in... Love the Royal! It is a great choice for anyone considering their location!