jenconrad

wow they are in a fun nonsequential order! haha...sorry ladies!

Pictures I stole from family and friends. 2 weeks till professional ones

I posted my review...I feel like I left out so much stuff as there was tons to say! About the ceremony...wow the Royal gazedbo is beautiful i cant say enough about it! I would not recommend the beach, it seemed way too busy! Thoug i am sure they stop people from walking around it. The prettiest beach spot I thought was on the Porto side of the pier the way it looked with the giant palm trees was beautiful! Not sure how to link my review so here it is in full : Jen and Coreys Royal PDC wedding review Check-in/Arrival B+ (for having to explain we were the bride and groom) Everyone had a pretty smooth check-in. Most of us picked our suites online so that was great. The best man had picked a room for him and his friend with two doubles online, but when they got to the room it was a king! They ended up with a decent room but on the poolside bottom floor. They definitely weren’t expecting us so there was some confusion over which concierge would take us- the romance concierge or the oceanfront one. The romance concierges Veronique and Anna were fantastic and booked golf at Mayakoba (which was amazing) and quickly booked all of my luxury pkg appts which hadn’t been done as I never got a response prearrival from the onsite wedding coordinator. Room A+ The room was amazing, we picked 539. Third floor Oceantfront and pool view in one, as it a corner window over the hottub. Awesome room other than the lack of a hammock. Not noisy past 1030pm. Our friends stayed oceanfront on the gazebo side and it was actually noisier because the palm trees there kept smacking their window with the wind. Restaurants A+ All were good. Spice was hot and not airconditioned so breakfast was quick! Asiana was our favourite mmm springrolls and tempura icecream. El mediterraneo for lunch buffet was so good with grilled anything right infront of you. The coffee house was awesome to grab a coffee then put some baileys in it. All of our guests raved about the food all week. Room service B We didn’t really order it except breakfast on the wedding day and it came as part of our package the morning after. The waffles were tasty. The included breakfast was very rich and we didn’t really like it but the fruit kabobs and dips were awesome. Friends said dinner was hit or miss with temperature and the burger and clubhouse were good. Pool A Get up early to grab chairs! We had so much fun by the pool. The only downside is the swim up bar is not accessible from the big pool, you have to get out to get a drink. The resort was booked solid but it never felt crowded other than having to get chairs early. We had a group of 38 and you saw everyone all day no matter where their chairs were. Beach A Lots of places to swim with no rocks, but be careful on the end closest to the Porto. Its a bit rocky and it tripped when we were doing TTD photos. Loved the water spritzer guys! Probably would have been faster to walk to the bar to get a drink, but we ordered them anyway and it can take some time so order two haha. Lots of beach chairs so no problem getting these. Spa A The girls did an awesome job on our nails. Hair wasn’t exactly as natural looking as I wanted it. She used ALOT of hairspray! But I let her do her thing and it sure didn’t fall out haha. My MOH updo was awesome. They have lots and lots of pictures btw. Makeup isn’t really my thing so i thought she used too much but everyone else said it was nice. I will judge when i see the professional pictures haha. In room couple massage was incredible! Wedding Review> We had ALOT of trouble with the WC in the US. They never put our wedding in the master system and we ended up getting overbooked and our wedding put at the PORTO gazebo 7 months after we booked even though we had all of our guests staying at the royal. Too make a REALLY long story short. Denys our WC at the Royal did everything in her power to remedy this along with Zulma and we ended up with our original wedding time and place at the Royal Gazebo. So thank you, thank you, to them. All I can say is patience worked out in the end but wow it was hard to keep that way when our wedding time was changed the night before the wedding for the second time that week (due to another bride freaking out haha that our wedding was after hers). Our wedding day time line: 1200 hair + makeup at Spazul 1340 back to the room to get ready and eat french-fries haha 1500 Pictures in the room 1600 Ceremony (we did symbolic) 1630-1700 Pictures at gazebo 1700-1820 we did pictures- our guests went to the lobby bar for cocktails 1830-1930 Cocktail party on beach 1930-1030 Reception in ballroom (should have been on the beach but there was a chance of rain and they would have made me sign a 2500.00 fee 3 hours before if it rained during the beach reception) 1030-0200 Party at the Blue Parrot Beach Club Vendors JDflowers on Etsy- we got all the bouts and bridesmaid bouquets here. They were gorgeous and nobody knew they were fake. Also they travelled well. Jeff Babineau Photography- awesome to work with. From Truro, NS. Took so many pictures on three different days! I can’t wait to see them! Discountmugs.com – we ordered awesome drawstiring beach/pool bags form here and got them screenprinted with our logo. They were well used and loved by everybody! Everything else was DIY or part of the luxury package! Except our clothes of course haha. Pretty much all I can say about the wedding day was that it was perfect . We really didn’t bring any extras to the luxury package other than I gave my ipod to Denys with a song to walk down the aisle to and a song to walk back to and she handled it perfectly. We also had place cards and a maraca on each table that said “shake me for a kissâ€. We had our own music on an ipod for the reception. The reception was short and sweet as our real party was at the blue parrot after. We had beef and salmon as our menu choices (delicious!) and marked the place cards for salmon with a little jewel. Our salad was pretty plain wrapped lettuce with stuffed tomato. Our soup was the asparagus cream and it was sooo good. We had the paris chocolate shell for dessert and would not recommend it. It looked pretty, but the chocolate was hard as a rock and the cream wasn’t very flavourful. Our wedding cake was vanilla and it was awesome. I was so full I hardly could eat it! The service was amazing bringing tonnes of drinks to everyone. They even brought coreys’ favourite drink (mango tango!) by the tray load and served it to everyone as we walked into the reception. They decorated the ball room beautifully and even gave us the light up dancefloor! All I can say is for the brides that are afraid of rain, the backup plan is wonderful too, and I was very stressed about having to move it inside as all I ever wanted was a beach reception! Our cocktail still was on the beach thankfully as I risked the 500.00 fee if it rained for that and it didn’t! And the after party at the blue parrot on the beach made up the night perfect! For those wondering about the resort photographer and videographer, I would suggest if you feel strongly about these things to really consider going with outside vendors or bringing one with you. We didn’t have the photos done by the resort, but the video by the resort is a bit short of professional. You can see dirt spots on the camera and the editing is choppy. Overall it does the trick, but if you are looking for top notch it isn’t that. Another thing I want to add is that for those on the fence about doing al la carte or luxury package we really didn’t think we would want the extra things either but the romantic dinner on the beach, the in suite massage and everything else really made our vacation unforgettable as our wedding week. We decided to do the romantic dinner at the last minute instead of giving it away and it was so worth it. Please feel free too ask everything and anyhitng I am sure I forgot stuff and this is way to long already! Also, we have alot of pictures that I will be adding as well as professional ones later when I get them! Jen and Corey 

Jen and Coreys Royal PDC wedding review Check-in/Arrival B+ (for having to explain we were the bride and groom) Everyone had a pretty smooth check-in. Most of us picked our suites online so that was great. The best man had picked a room for him and his friend with two doubles online, but when they got to the room it was a king! They ended up with a decent room but on the poolside bottom floor. They definitely weren’t expecting us so there was some confusion over which concierge would take us- the romance concierge or the oceanfront one. The romance concierges Veronique and Anna were fantastic and booked golf at Mayakoba (which was amazing) and quickly booked all of my luxury pkg appts which hadn’t been done as I never got a response prearrival from the onsite wedding coordinator. Room A+ The room was amazing, we picked 539. Third floor Oceantfront and pool view in one, as it a corner window over the hottub. Awesome room other than the lack of a hammock. Not noisy past 1030pm. Our friends stayed oceanfront on the gazebo side and it was actually noisier because the palm trees there kept smacking their window with the wind. Restaurants A+ All were good. Spice was hot and not airconditioned so breakfast was quick! Asiana was our favourite mmm springrolls and tempura icecream. El mediterraneo for lunch buffet was so good with grilled anything right infront of you. The coffee house was awesome to grab a coffee then put some baileys in it. All of our guests raved about the food all week. Room service B We didn’t really order it except breakfast on the wedding day and it came as part of our package the morning after. The waffles were tasty. The included breakfast was very rich and we didn’t really like it but the fruit kabobs and dips were awesome. Friends said dinner was hit or miss with temperature and the burger and clubhouse were good. Pool A Get up early to grab chairs! We had so much fun by the pool. The only downside is the swim up bar is not accessible from the big pool, you have to get out to get a drink. The resort was booked solid but it never felt crowded other than having to get chairs early. We had a group of 38 and you saw everyone all day no matter where their chairs were. Beach A Lots of places to swim with no rocks, but be careful on the end closest to the Porto. Its a bit rocky and it tripped when we were doing TTD photos. Loved the water spritzer guys! Probably would have been faster to walk to the bar to get a drink, but we ordered them anyway and it can take some time so order two haha. Lots of beach chairs so no problem getting these. Spa A The girls did an awesome job on our nails. Hair wasn’t exactly as natural looking as I wanted it. She used ALOT of hairspray! But I let her do her thing and it sure didn’t fall out haha. My MOH updo was awesome. They have lots and lots of pictures btw. Makeup isn’t really my thing so i thought she used too much but everyone else said it was nice. I will judge when i see the professional pictures haha. In room couple massage was incredible! Wedding Review> We had ALOT of trouble with the WC in the US. They never put our wedding in the master system and we ended up getting overbooked and our wedding put at the PORTO gazebo 7 months after we booked even though we had all of our guests staying at the royal. Too make a REALLY long story short. Denys our WC at the Royal did everything in her power to remedy this along with Zulma and we ended up with our original wedding time and place at the Royal Gazebo. So thank you, thank you, to them. All I can say is patience worked out in the end but wow it was hard to keep that way when our wedding time was changed the night before the wedding for the second time that week (due to another bride freaking out haha that our wedding was after hers). Our wedding day time line: 1200 hair + makeup at Spazul 1340 back to the room to get ready and eat french-fries haha 1500 Pictures in the room 1600 Ceremony (we did symbolic) 1630-1700 Pictures at gazebo 1700-1820 we did pictures- our guests went to the lobby bar for cocktails 1830-1930 Cocktail party on beach 1930-1030 Reception in ballroom (should have been on the beach but there was a chance of rain and they would have made me sign a 2500.00 fee 3 hours before if it rained during the beach reception) 1030-0200 Party at the Blue Parrot Beach Club Vendors JDflowers on Etsy- we got all the bouts and bridesmaid bouquets here. They were gorgeous and nobody knew they were fake. Also they travelled well. Jeff Babineau Photography- awesome to work with. From Truro, NS. Took so many pictures on three different days! I can’t wait to see them! Discountmugs.com – we ordered awesome drawstiring beach/pool bags form here and got them screenprinted with our logo. They were well used and loved by everybody! Everything else was DIY or part of the luxury package! Except our clothes of course haha. Pretty much all I can say about the wedding day was that it was perfect . We really didn’t bring any extras to the luxury package other than I gave my ipod to Denys with a song to walk down the aisle to and a song to walk back to and she handled it perfectly. We also had place cards and a maraca on each table that said “shake me for a kissâ€. We had our own music on an ipod for the reception. The reception seemed short and sweet as our real party was at the blue parrot after. We had beef and salmon as our menu choices (delicious!) and marked the place cards for salmon with a little jewel. Our salad was pretty plain wrapped lettuce with stuffed tomato. Our soup was the asparagus cream and it was sooo good. We had the paris chocolate shell for dessert and would not recommend it. It looked pretty, but the chocolate was hard as a rock and the cream wasn’t very flavourful. Our wedding cake was vanilla and it was awesome. I was so full I hardly could eat it! The service was amazing bringing tonnes of drinks to everyone. They even brought coreys’ favourite drink (mango tango!) by the tray load and served it to everyone as we walked into the reception. They decorated the ball room beautifully and even gave us the light up dancefloor! All I can say is for the brides that are afraid of rain, the backup plan is wonderful too, and I was very stressed about having to move it inside as all I ever wanted was a beach reception! Our cocktail still was on the beach thankfully as I risked the 500.00 fee if it rained for that and it didn’t! And the after party at the blue parrot on the beach made up the night perfect! For those wondering about the resort photographer and videographer, I would suggest if you feel strongly about these things to really consider going with outside vendors or bringing one with you. We didn’t have the photos done by the resort, but the video by the resort is a bit short of professional. You can see dirt spots on the camera and the editing is choppy. Overall it does the trick, but if you are looking for top notch it isn’t that. Another thing I want to add is that for those on the fence about doing al la carte or luxury package we really didn’t think we would want the extra things either but the romantic dinner on the beach, the in suite massage and everything else really made our vacation unforgettable as our wedding week. We decided to do the romantic dinner at the last minute instead of giving it away and it was so worth it. Please feel free too ask everything and anyhitng I am sure I forgot stuff and this is way to long already! Also, we have alot of pictures that I will be adding as well as professional ones later when I get them! Jen and Corey  A note: I would totally recommend this resort for a vacation! It is amazing. The wedding was amazing too but you definitely have to have alot of patience to deal with the inadequate US coordinators and I would be hesitant recommend if it isnt fixed. Also, be prepared for everything not to go as planned and as long as you remeber the most important part is that you and your love are getting married, nothing really seems all that bad If you like to sweat all the small stuff and are not flexible I wouldnt recommend this resort for a wedding.

Quote: Originally Posted by dianep the odds of rain are low. even when it does rain in places like PDC, it's usually pretty fast and moves on quickly. i'll be absolutely fine with a little delay, but really (really!) don't want to be moved into a ballroom. my ceremony mentions the ocean, sand, waves, etc. several times. it wouldn't be right if we were in an interior room (not to mention the cute shoes i could have found if we weren't on the sand!). We had issues with rain...if there is a chance of rain they make you sign a 2500$ waiver if it rains on their equipment. Problem is I had to make this decision 3 hours (!!!) before the wedding. There were lots of clouds so i didnt take my chances and ended up having the cocktail outside and the reception in the ballroom. It didnt rain haha but we had a blast and then all headed to the blue parrot bech club to keep the party going.

Quote: Originally Posted by dianep for fabric for the huppah, i'm just going to buy whichever looks better (or whichever is less expensive!). i think any somewhat sheer fabric would look great and provide the pop of color we're looking for. so i finally got my final payment in on friday! i e-mailed both my WC and the manager at the royal (thanks LadyDi) and told them i wanted to take care of it that day. my WC responded later that day, saying that she had already sent me the corrected invoice (it showed in her e-mail, but i've been watching my inbox like a hawk and i NEVER received it). so i don't know what happened there. she was extremely short with me, but at least i got my final payment done! so my FSIL e-mailed my WC about a month ago to try to set up spa appointments the morning of the wedding. she never heard back from her until today, when the WC gave her the info of the mexico coordinator. my FSIL e-mailed me, all excited about a new coordinator (she knows my frustrations with the michigan WCs). ha, i hadn't even heard that i'd been assigned a coordinator in mexico yet! what!? haha has anyone had any experience with Denys Magaña? this is my assigned onsite coordinator. i'm hoping for good things! She is awesome! Just got back and will post my review soon

Hi Ladies! One more night shift tonight then off till we leave Sunday! I am sooo excited. I just wanted to post the wicked real touch flowers I have coming to me this week from jdleggans on etsy (thanks Lady Di- i think!). Imagine how much this would of cost through the crazy resort and it only cost me $133 US + shipping! 1 more point in the brides column vs the royal . hehe

Quote: Originally Posted by LynnieS Hey, any of your FI's going golfing or anything with the guys, and if they are, where are they golfing at? Oh, has anyone been able to book at Veronicas or have a phone number for them? Hi Lynnie, My fiance is going golfing at Mayakoba he says its five minues away and awesome!

Quote: Originally Posted by LynnieS what do you mean by negative attention? What's the reason for leaving it at home other than the risk of losing it (which happens almost daily to me anyways-haha!)? I meant geting mugged or something haha..f.amily people were freaking me out

Quote: Originally Posted by jesmcan We got engaged in Playa and I wore my ring everywhere the whole week lol I don't think it will get any negative attention. I saw lots of beautiful bling including at the Tiffany's store which is one block from the Royal I also feel safe since everything is insured. For going to the pool in the beach I would leave it in the safe. That is what I did this last time. Thank you for saying exactly what I wanted to hear...hahaha :)

Hello ladies! Leaving in less than 2 weeks! its crazy! Still have not found shoes, lol. I was wondering if anyone has any insight on wearing your diamond rings down in Mexico. A little worried the "rock" (haha) will get negative attention. Some people have advised me to leave my ring at home. What are you girls doing? I really want to bring mine down!

Quote: Originally Posted by LynnieS Oh, and one last thing I had to vent about. FI just told me he booked his bachelor WEEKEND!! arghh, and what else. . . its on my B-DAY!! I mean, seriously! Men. haha...i hear ya...mine is going on a friends bacholer party ..in vegas..a month after we are married...haha

Quote: Originally Posted by dianep for those recently married or with dates coming up soon, when did you make your final payment? i thought they were due 45 days out but i haven't seen or heard anything about it yet. i got my checklist in a week ago along with entree selections and a guest list, but haven't heard anything back. i just sent another e-mail, but i'm curious about when i'm supposed to make the payment. thanks! I had to request my ivoice multiple times around 45-40 days out. The manager Carole seemed quite concerned my payment wasn't in yet...so I kept asking for an invoice so I could acually pay it.. oh my. hahaha. It was after my payment was recieved that I was given the name of my onsite coordinator. Just a heads up, the invoice does say that the wedding can be cancelled if not paid 30 days in advance. Though, I am pretty sure each wc does things a bit differently depending on who you have! I was happy to pay to free me from that silly office! Jen

Quote: Originally Posted by Lady_Di I will have her as my WC for my wedding. They're supposed to contact you two weeks before your wedding. Awesome! thanks

Quote: Originally Posted by dianep so i settled into a conference room with my phone, my lunch, a pad of paper and a pen and was ready to get down to business! rebecca answered the phone. angie is there but busy. i said i would take ANYone who could help. she said it had to be angie and she'd take a message. boo! so i am carrying my phone with me to the printer, etc. and not letting it out of my site. the sooner she calls, the nicer i'll be... so the saga continues... I am sorry you are having so much trouble. I feel for ya. Unfortunatly the wc in question was very helpful and nice at first but ended up making a pretty significant mistake with my wedding time. My advice for everyone is dont trust that they have actually read your emails even if they have responded with confirmations or yes's. Contracts may be incorrect even if you have it in your hands and have confirmed times etc. The best solution is to call and have them verbally confirm as well as in writing i think, but really there is no 100% as far as I can tell. Its all very odd business too me... I still have faith the resort wc and the wedding itself will be wonderful though! Thanks to this site!! I am also still waiting to hear back from the onsite coordinator Lili. Has anyone worked with her yet? Jen

Where did you get those clutches? I love them

Quote: Originally Posted by beachbum1285 To make a long story short... what would y'all do if you WC was basically calling you a liar and pointing the finger and you for all of their mistakes for their miscommunication? Would you stay or go somewhere else if your wedding was in a month in a half? you should email me, [email protected] went through a similar sounding situation...I am staying with my wedding at the royal because I have faith it will be beautiful and well handled down there. However, it was been heartbreaking the way things have been handled at the wedding office. Sorry you are going through it too

I am pretty sure you can have your dinner start at any time as long as the location is available. Mine is at 730 pm for example. I was told the usual timeline is wedding, then 1/2 hour for pictures, then 1 hour for cocktail reception (if you are having one), then 3 hour reception. So my wedding is at 530pm, cocktails at 630, reception at 730pm. Hope this helps! Jen

Oh and can anyone who did a site visit compare and contrast the royal vs gran gazebos for me? Thanks

Hi everyone, Does anyone have a contact for someone higher than the US office. I am pretty much depressed and worn out with what has happened with my booking/contract and trying to get the ceremony time place that is on it back that I just dont know what to do. I dont want to post the details till I get it figured out but if anyone knows someone I can talk to that actual cares about the bride that would be awesome. Thanks! Jen

Quote: Originally Posted by 2mckee I think we are going to upgrade, based on the amount we are having. (Around 50-60.) Tastewise, I prefer buttercream over fondant as well, but do you think there might be a melting issue with that? A couple of the girls have mentioned that the tres leches flavor is really awesome, so I think we will prob go with that. Dont know about other flavors though. I was hoping to have the tres leche cake as all the reviews said it was so delicious...however I was informed today it is not an option anymore due to a melting issue

Quote: Originally Posted by duprk452 Does anyone have links to beach bridesmaids dresses? I don't want anything too casual, but at the same time I don't want anything too dressy. Sounds stupid I know, but I see it in my head. lol I absolutely love my bridesmaid dresses I found and your desrciption sounds like what I was struggling with in my search. Here is the link: Venus Bridals My bridesmaids look sooooo good in them. My maid of honour is wearing long and the other girls are wearing it short. It is light and airy and beachy, but definitly not casual. The red colour they show doesn't do them justice though

Quote: Originally Posted by Lady_Di it is too soon...i'd just wait...i haven't sent in my wedding checklist yet because i dont know how many guests are attending. they will ask for the checklist when it is time. the WC told me to turn in the checklist 45 days before. This is great advice. While I know that the office is bad with consistency of info being given to people. I think part of the problem with them being overwhelmed is they have way too many brides contacting them while they are trying to figure out the weddings for the next 45 days I think a great solution would be if the WC in the US would give us brides a distinct timeline as to when the planning phases and checklists need to be completed and discussed and of course give us concise information packages when we are deciding to book with all of the prices and options! Then we could all have a some zen I can't wait till April 29th!!! Jen