PKBride

We’re back from our wedding in Cabo. It was absolutely amazing and exactly what we wanted. For those contemplating a destination wedding….. just think about this - On the day of our wedding I layed out by the pool and relaxed half the day before going in around 2:30 to get ready for our 5:30 ceremony. No running around crazy all day and being exhausted at our wedding. We actually enjoyed our wedding and were able to spend time and have fun with our 40 guests. Sunset Dinner Cruise – We did a sunset dinner cruise for everyone on the Friday before the wedding. I went with Sunrider because it was so highly recommended on this site. Mario is fantastic and they completely lived up to and exceeded the great reviews others have given them on this site. They were so much fun. This was the hit of the weekend and was a great value. We paid $1800 for 38 people and 2 kids. Plus we left a big tip because the crew was so wonderful! Our wedding was held at the Westin Los Cabos and Juan Pablo Colmenero was our wedding coordinator. I really liked the Westin. The location was beautiful, resort was clean and nice. I will say that the resort was very quiet and at less than 50% capacity according to the staff but that made it even better four our group. It might be an entirely different place had it been full. The wait staff and bartenders were great. Our upgraded room was amazing. We had a hot tub and bed on our balcony! And almost every day we had some surprise in the room, rose petals, swans and other animals made out of towels, complementary champaign one night, wine and fruit the next. I travel to a lot of hotels around the world for work and I must say our room was one of the nicest I’ve stayed in, especially considering we only paid $189 per night. Plus with we got starwood credit for everything we spent at the hotel (wedding package and our room) so I have enough starwood points to cover a few free nights at a starwood hotel in Scotland for our honeymoon this summer. A definite advantage to using a chain hotel. We had our ceremony on the “On The Rock†terrace overlooking the beach. I’m really glad I went with the terrace instead of the beach. It was a beautiful view and we didn’t have to worry about the sand or my grandparents getting down to the beach. Our reception was on the bugambillas terrace and was perfect. We spent a week at the resort and after seeing all the location options, I don’t think I would have made a different choice. Both sites were stunningly beautiful. The food was great. We went with the filet and the baja fisherman’s sampler and I heard nothing but complements on both. Francisco Estrada was our photographer. He was wonderful. We only paid for the hour package that came with the Westin wedding package and that was plenty of time. He took pictures during the ceremony and afterwards on the terrace. We even had plenty of time to go down to the beach and take lots of pictures on the beach at sunset. He was so quick and got some really great shots. I couldn’t believe it when he left us the cd and the video with all the photos just three days after our wedding. Jennifer Hatton with Cabo Dessert Diva was amazing. The cake was beautiful. She made it look exactly like the photos I sent her. I can’t express enough how great she was to work with. Our only complaint about anything the entire week we were there was the front desk staff at the Westin. They were not friendly or accommodating. On three different occasions they tried to put our guest with 3 or 4 people to a room in a room with a king size bed and a roll away bed. I complained several times since these guests booked more than a month in advance and were charged the extra $40 per day for having more than 2 people to a room. My complaint to them was that they either needed to refund the $40 per night or give the guests 2 beds. Considering that we were spending a significant amount of money at the resort with the wedding and 46 room nights, the least they could have done was apologize and try to offer something to fix the situation. They did nothing until I contacted Juan Pablo and had to get him involved. Then they miraculously found rooms with two beds. Very annoying. Other than that one issue everything was perfect. I would recommend a destination wedding to anyone. My fiancé and I said over and over how it was exactly what we wanted. Now if we could just do it every year!!!

I found some great canvas bags at Bed Bath & Beyond. They were only $4.99 and had slots to put photos in them. We put our logo with a little Thank You note in the center slot and filled the others with pictures of us and the guests who received the bag. I've just finished them and they are really cute...although a little time consuming to prepare. Overall I'm amazed at how nice they are and at such a great price. They do not look like five dollar bags at all.

I found some great canvas bags at Bed Bath & Beyond. They were only $4.99 and had slots to put photos in them. We put our logo with a little Thank You note in the center slot and filled the others with pictures of us and the guests who received the bag. I've just finished them and they are really cute...although a little time consuming to prepare. Overall I'm amazed at how nice they are and at such a great price. They do not look like five dollar bags at all.

Thanks for the great review. We're getting married at the Hilton in February and are planning a sunset dinner cruise for the RD. Thanks for the recommendation on the Sunrider. We may just go with them after seeing so many great comments from everyone on this forum.

I'm confused. Aren't the sunrider and escape the sun dinner cruises both run by Cabo San Lucas Tours? I've been in contact with them to set up or Welcome Dinner in February but they are very slow to respond. I originally was looking at 40 people and they suggested the escape the sun cruise on their catamaran that hold 40 people and quoted me $53 per person for a private cruise. It now looks like we are going to be at about 50 people. I think the catamaran would be too small, especially after hearing some of the sea sick stories! What other boats have people used. It looks to me like my choice is either the 40 person catamaran or the 200 person shared option. Did anyone else have something in between? What was the price? Are there any companies besides Cabo San Lucas Tours that do dinner cruises for this size group? I'm getting married at the end of February and just realized I need to get this thing wrapped up!

Did everyone else have written into their contracts at the Westin that the full cost of the room would be charged at the time the reservation is made? I'm trying to figure out how to let my guests know that if they stay at the Westin under our block that they will have to pay for their room upfront. It's easy to tell family that but how do I let friends know this? Did anyone have friends that had an issue with that? How did you let everyone know?

We're thinking of going with sunrider for our welcome dinner and are expecting around 50 people. Thanks for the pricing info. It's very helpful. I noticed that someone said when booking they had to put half down. How far in advance did everyone book their cruise? We're getting married in February 2010 so I'm trying to figure out when I need to decide for sure and put money down!

Meagan good luck on your visit. We're getting married at the Westin in February 2010. We chose to get married on the terrace near the arricefes restaurant. My 89 year old grandma and her 92 year old friend will be there so we decided maybe directly on the beach wouldn't be a good idea but I think La Playa is so pretty. I'd love to hear more about your visit and see pictures.

Thanks for the great suggestions. I'm looking for some wedge flip flops with some height to them. I'm only 5'2" and my fiance is 6' so I need something to even us out more! but want to stick with flipflops. We're getting married on the terrace overlooking the beach so heals won't be a problem.

Wow good luck on this one! If it helps at all just know that you've made some of us who have FMIL issues realize that it could be much worse. I hope we don't get to the point that you are at and wish you a very "peaceful" and beautiful wedding!

Thanks everyone for the great advice. I think we're going with the Westin. Just waiting for the contract. Maira there has been so much more responsive than anyone else at the other resorts that I just feel like I should go with her. The photos are so amazing and the price is right. I figure wherever I am it's still in cabo so I'll be happy! I've read a lot on trip advisor, but have to remind myself that some people who will find something to complain about no matter what! We spent a week in Sedona, AZ and I was really worried about our resort because of a few bad Trip advisor reviews. The resort turned out to be amazing, so hopefully I'll have the same experience for our wedding. I will be sure to let everyone know!

It's beautiful. I know what you mean about putting it on and just knowing. I bought the second dress I tried on (even though I tried on at least another 30 to be sure!) It wasn't anything like I thought I wanted either, but it just felt sooooo right that nothing else was even worth considering.

This is sooo helpful. Glad to know the sunscreen wasn't all that helpful. I was recently at a wedding where they used white gift bags from Michael's and stenciled their initials in gold. It looked really nice and wasn't very expensive. Also, don't forget to include water and snacks. I loved the snacks in the bags.... especially at 2 am when we got back to the hotel!!!!

Congrats and Welcome! We chose Cabo but have good friends who were married in Riviera Maya. Both are excellent options and I don't think you can go wrong either way!

Congrats & Welcome