TA Wendy

Welcome and congratulations! I am going to be staying at the Royal for 5 nights in early August as I do site inspections around the area and meet with the WC folks of a number of hotels. If there is anything you would like for me to inquire about for you at the Gran Porto, or photos you need taken I would be most happy to offer my services! TA Wendy

Jannae, you look so beautiful! These are just the most gorgeous pictures! Hurray for you guys and congratulations!!! Wendy

My college degree was in Anthropology... what to do with that So I became a travel agent and I love my job!

Congratulations and welcome! I have worked with a number of brides and grooms on weddings at the Royal and the Gran Porto next door. I am going to be visiting on a site inspection early next month, and if there is anything specific you would like to get an answer about or photos taken of any part of the hotel I am happy to offer my help. Best wishes to you as you go through the planning process! TA Wendy

What an awesome review, Jennifer! Your writing style and warm enthusiasm really come through, and makes me wish I was sitting in that lovely suite eating eggs Benedict and sipping hot chocolate and gazing out through the French Balcony doors listening to those tree frogs! Thank you for sharing what sounds like an awesome trip! TA Wendy

I am just sure you have plenty of time! Often brides who are trying to book at 12 or more months prior are frustrated by not being able to get pricing on airline tickets, resorts dont have their contracts in place with tour operators and everyone plays a waiting game. With 7 months lead time you will be able to price, book and get the guests reserved and it is all very timely! If you are looking now for dates in February I am just sure you will not encounter problems...

Hi Tanya, That is a good question that unfortunately requires a crystal ball to answer! The price of airline tickets is dependent on so many things.... how many travelers are flying, how much competition there is on any given route, whether one airline kicks off a sale, price of fuel, even things like weather. You can be seated on the plane next to someone who paid twice as much as you or half as much and there is not a whole lot of rhyme or reason to it. Sometimes I think the airlines just throw a bunch of prices into the air and whichever lands face up is what they will charge. : ) My best suggestion if you are traveling in Oct. is to begin to watch for airline sales, check newspapers, and online every week or so, and when the price seems good to you take the plunge. Unfortunately, if the price drops after you have purchased your ticket you will not often be able to get the lower rate. If you are purchasing a package that includes your air, transfers and land it may be bundled all into one price and you just need to purchase the airline ticket when you first make your reservations. Good luck to you in finding a great price! Oct to Jamaica there should actually be some pretty good rates available both on hotel and air!

Welcome, Ann! There are so many great locations in Mexico! I bet you will find the perfect spot! Feel free to ask any questions that come up for you!

Wow, thank you so much Jannae and Lindsey! You guys are making me blush! Really, you have both been so much fun to work with! ...and the exciting part is that I will be in Cancun at the same time as Lindsey's wedding and maybe get to have a toast in person! It has been a pleasure!

Welcome to the forum! Spend some time, read others reviews of various locations and I bet something will strike a chord with you. Often the resorts on the beach will have an alternate location for a wedding, ie a gazebo, courtyard, or some even have small chapels on site. Good luck!

Finally getting around to doing some profile personalizing!

Like! Cilantro?

Hi Samira, I have been thinking about you and hoping the wedding went well! Thank you so much for the kind words! You were so lovely to work with! I am really happy that your wedding was all you hoped for!

Thanks for the facebook link! I am doing a site inspection in August, and really excited about this property!

Welcome and good luck with the site hunting! There are lots of great places to choose from in the Riviera Maya area!

Welcome and great choice! The Royal is a great place!

Hi, TA Wendy here. It seems like with just about every bride I work with we begin by having the Groups vs Individual Bookings discussion. So here is what I normally tell clients and I hope it is helpful! This is my "in a nutshell" version of group vs individual booking procedures. With blocking group space, you must have a minimum of 10 rooms. Typically this is the best way to guarantee that you will get the most from the resort in terms of upgrades, complimentary events or free nights. Some definitely offer more than others in terms of incentives. It is all laid out in a contract that the hotel proposes, and the tour operator, myself and you all sign. The perks and freebies are all spelled out for you. A deposit of at least $100 per room is due within about 1 week of getting the contract set up. Usually this would be coming out of your pocket, since it is not likely that the guests would be booking or putting up money this early. Then as time goes on, if your guests want to add additional rooms, or arrive early, or stay late, or fewer nights than you have booked requests can be adjusted within the block. Some brides choose to block roughly 3 or 4 room nights around the wedding date for their group block. You always know you have the rooms, and the price will not go up, but if rates go down, the hotel and tour operator will usually accommodate a price drop and make an adjustment. Group rates are not always lower than what you can find shopping as an individual, but most times they are. Final payment for groups is due about 60 days prior to departure, and once all payment is in the rooms can be nonrefundable if the hotel chooses. Travel insurance is highly recommended. Alternately, you can have your guests all call one central agent, and as for me, I keep track of everyone, booking them the lowest available pricing as they come, (price matching and such if necessary), and you as the wedding couple have no financial responsibility for any of the guests bookings. I still will gather up all the bookings and I write to the hotel manager just before your arrival asking for any possible amenities they can offer the group and especially for you yourself, but this is not guaranteed to get you an upgrade or free party or anything... Also, the hotel COULD possibly sell out, and then late birds could find that they are out of luck with no rooms left. Either way, unless the entire wedding group is coming from the same city, and traveling both directions together with no changes or deviations, it does not make sense to try to block airline space as a group. It is best to have each of the guests book air individually either through me as part of the package, or just on their own, letting me know their flight schedules so that I can provide airport transfers to and from the hotel. So I hope that explanation helps a bit! I work with both types of wedding groups, and find that both ways of booking have their bonuses and drawbacks, we just have to find what will work best for each bridal couple and go from there!

Remember that a travel agent is just that.... YOUR agent, acting on YOUR behalf with the hotels and / or tour operators. They should have your best interest at heart, and work for you to find the resort that is not maybe the one they would pick for themselves, but the one that is just right for you! Keep at it, and best of luck!

I think two weeks is wonderful! The time before, during and just after the wedding will fly by so fast it will be a blur! The second week will be for relaxing, unwinding, and getting to know each other as a married couple! Maybe it is because I am a travel agent, but I know for me, the chance to make a hotel switch for the second week would really appeal. Even if you are taking off each day for different excursions and little side trips, there is something fun about moving to a different resort, and discover new pools, a different beach, new restaurants, a new look to the room, an new view... to me that is part of the fun. If you are further to the north for the beginning, why not switch and move to a property in the south in Playa Del Carmen or below, or maybe even out to Cozumel or Isla Mujeres for a few days? When I got married in Hawaii we married on the big island with all the family and friends, then after the wedding moved to Kauai with just a couple friends along, then moved again to Molokai for a few days of all alone together time. It was a perfect way for us! I would be happy to give you some suggestions if you choose to make an after the wedding move! TA Wendy

Hello all,I am working with a bride and groom whose wedding will be held at the Now Jade in November. The pricing is good, especially with the promotion that they have going on for travelers between now and the end of the year. They have a "pay one night stay one night free" deal that is making it a very affordable alternative. The Now hotels are part of the AMResorts that manage Zoetry, Secrets and also Dreams properties. The resort itself is also really beautiful. I am going in August to make a site inspection and will write up a report! If I can be of any help answering questions about this property, feel free to contact me! You can click the TA banner at the top of the page and direct to me, TA Wendy.

All of these stories are so funny! I attended a wedding once that was held in a private Redwood grove... very pretty setting, but the "facilities" consisted of some old rickety picnic tables, a pot luck spread, and port-a-potties. After the ceremony, and just to keep the fun rolling, the groom brought out two Sumo Wrestler padded suits that he had rented, and the bride and groom and many of the guests proceeded to take turns getting into the costumes and bashing each other around a make shift wrestling ring... it was different, that is for sure!

Back in the "good old days" travel agents used to get bumped to first class quite often.. not so much anymore, but for your best chance at it, I would suggest dressing very nicely, no jeans or shorts, and being very very polite and friendly to the gate agent. Ask if you can wait for boarding to complete and see if it is possible to stand by for a first class seat. You may lose the space in the overhead bin of your assigned seat if you dont get bumped up, but your chances are better if you are sitting and waiting politely then if you are already boarded and settled in in coach. Most of the time Frequent Fliers using Mileage are filling up the first class section, but the gate agents do have the power.... Another tip I have had great success with is to stop by Sees or other candy/treat shop in the concourse and buy a box of candy, and once boarded call the flight attendant over and present it and say "We just wanted to thank the crew for your hard work". They will be so surprised and pleased you may find yourself upgraded on the spot, or offered free drinks, meals, or ... and if nothing else you will have made someone's day!

One nice thing.... TA Wendy here, and I wanted to share that the Reservations Dept at the Royal has been nice to me twice this week when they really did not have to be. I have been working with a bride and groom who are getting married there at the end of next week. In the last couple of days, 1 guest needed to cancel altogether, and another had to modify her stay and leave a day early. In each case since we are so close to arrival the hotel could have charged 100% cancellation fees, but in both cases they waived them for me and refunded the clients for the canceled stays. Probably the fact that they are totally filled and over sold had something to do with it... I am sure they could probably use the room nights I turned back in, but at least the clients did not have to pay in full for a stay they were not going to use. Anyone who is using a group booking, with contract should be aware that cancellations of rooms within about 30 days or less prior to arrival can result in 100% cancel fees...yikes! Cancellation insurance is really a good idea for just about everyone!

Welcome, Kathi, My name is Wendy and I am one of the TAs on the forum. I just worked with a bride and groom who were married on Grand Cayman last fall, and I have been there myself many times over the years. If I can be of any service or answer any questions for you I would be happy to help.

Hi Megan, My name is Wendy and I am one of the TAs on the BDW forum. If you find you need assistance with your travel arrangements to Cancun for yourself and your guests I would be happy to offer my help. You can reach me at [email protected]. Best wishes to you! TA Wendy