taylorwd

I’m so excited to do this review and put a good word out there for this resort!! There aren’t many reviews of AB on BDW because the resort is small and does no more than one wedding a day. The ones that do exist are older and possibly outdated. Let me just say that this hotel fit the bill for what we were looking for in every way! We wanted: a boutique-style, intimate resort (AB is only 98 rooms) gourmet food 5-star service a real beach a wedding location not on the sand kid friendly FYI, most of the pictures of the resort on Karisma's website are extremely old from when the resort first opened. A lot of beach beds and foliage have been added and the palm trees are full grown. We were surprised (in a good way) to see the resort had been filled in and in no way looked sparse. Pre-Wedding Planning: DestinationWeddings.com- B: Our TA was through DW.com, and there are a lot of mixed reviews about them on here. I’ve put in my two cents on them elsewhere, so I’ll keep it brief here. We certainly had our ups and downs with using them, and our TA caused us trouble at times by giving misinformation or mixing things up. However, when things got bumpy with Karisma, it was helpful to have our TA fighting for us. Lomas Travel- F: We only used Lomas to book our transportation to and from the airport. Transport was already included for us through American Express, but we wanted private transport and Lomas had the better deal. What a mistake!! Our flight into Cancun was delayed by 3 hours and when we finally got there, they didn’t have a car for us. We waited for 20 minutes in the pouring rain, and when no car came, they finally just paid for us to take a cab to the hotel. The group van that left 10 min. before we did pulled up to AB right before us, so we would have just been better to stick with shared transportation. We’re still waiting to find out if they’ll give us any of our $$ back. Miami WC- C: All wedding planning for any Karisma resort is done through their Miami office. They then send all your info to the onsite team right before you go. Unfortunately, this means that you have NO CONTACT with the onsite team until you get down there. We had two different WC's: the first was terrible and gets an F, the second was awesome and gets an A. I've heard this said many times but it's true: If you can hack it with the Miami office and know going in that they are a pain in the *** to work with, it will all be worth it once you get to the resort! Okay, on to the good stuff!! Azul Beach Overall- A++++++++ Would we have our wedding their again? In a heartbeat!!! We cannot imagine our guests having a better experience anywhere else! Some have already written letters to the resort expressing their gratitude for the wonderful, customers-get-whatever-they-want experience! Customer Service- A+++ Every single person at this resort went above and beyond to accommodate us and our guests. From the moment we checked in we knew we were in good hands. Because the resort is so small, much of the staff knew us after just a couple days. The servers, the beach butlers, the concierge, the front desk, the room service people, everyone was incredibly nice and helpful. Our guests couldn't stop commenting on how great the staff was. Just a couple examples of the great service: This was completely our fault for not using the safe, but we had money taken from our wallets the second day we were there. They were sitting on the desk in the room in plain view of the maid. It was a lot of money and the resort was under no obligation to do anything about it b/c it was truly our fault. They ended up giving us a choice of either getting the money back in cash or giving us resort credit to use during our stay! They found out who it was and let them go, and we had ZERO problems with anything after that. My sister wanted to do a bridal luncheon for me and to accommodate us, they set up and decorated one of the restaurants and left it open just for us after it was supposed to have closed down after lunch. I posted some pictures below. We wanted each guest to receive a program and itinerary at check-in. The Miami team said we couldn't do that and that the programs could only be delivered to the rooms (for which we would be charged a per-room fee). Once we got there, the front desk willingly agreed to hand them out for us as people arrived. No questions, no problems. There was a beach BBQ one day and we were going to miss it b/c we were going out snorkeling. One of the beach butlers offered to keep plates of food for us until we got back. We wanted to do the Couple’s Moonlit Massage. Since they don’t schedule a massage to start after 6pm and the sun in April doesn’t set until 7pm, our massages would have been in daylight. To accommodate us they kept two masseuses on staff until 8pm so that we could have a true moonlight massage. It comes complete with strawberries and champagne when you’re finished—it was one of the best Swedish massages I’ve ever had! My bridal luncheon in Chil All-Inclusive- A+++ At AB, the AI includes everything but spa services and wine by the bottle. All premium liquors, the mini bar in the rooms (restocked daily, btw), 24 hour room service, the beach BBQs, the fish fry—all included. I can't tell you how many times we had champagne delivered to our room! Food/Restaurants- A+++ I've never eaten so well on vacation! As the hotel states, it really is gourmet-inclusive. The restaurants are all a la carte. The only time there is a buffet is during breakfast, and you have a choice between ordering off the menu or going to the buffet. The resort was at capacity while we were there but we never had to wait for a table. Ambiance- A+++ Being such a small resort, you would think it might feel crowded, but absolutely not! The grounds are spacious and well-maintained. There's foliage and flowers everywhere. Soft music plays as you walk around the grounds. You really feel like you're in your own quiet, intimate space. The resort is divided into two different sections by room type: the Deluxe half (the better rooms) and the Superior half. In terms of ambiance, the Deluxe side has more space, is more lush and has a lot more palm trees. I've posted pictures below, but it's not the best one of the Superior area (I was really trying to take a picture of Chil, the Mexican restaurant). On the Superior side, the rooms are closer together with plainer facades. Superior Side Deluxe Side Rooms- B We all had Deluxe rooms, so I can't speak for the Superiors. The resort claims that all the Deluxe rooms are the same size, but I would have to disagree. We were in a center room, and ours was definitely larger than the rest of our guests who were on the ends. Our only complaint is that there's no tub in the rooms. I really wanted the resort we stayed at to have jacuzzi tubs, but AB had everything else we were looking for so I let that go. Our room was spacious and clean—no complaints other than not having a tub, but we knew that going in. Oh, and every room at the resort has a view of the ocean, so there's not a bad seat in the house! Pools- B: There are 3 pools at AB, all very small. But, just like not having a tub in the room, we knew this going in. We never had a problem getting a lounge chair and the pool butlers are incredibly nice and attentive. Except for the kids’ pool, the other two are relatively quiet and empty—very pleasant! Most guests are on the beach. Beach- A: What the resort lacks in pools it makes up for in beach! It's a beautiful stretch of sand, often not crowded at all. You can snorkel right off the beach. There's hardly ever people walking down the beach from other resorts since AB is a bit off the beaten path. There aren't any large resorts next to it. Since there were huge storms while we were there, quite a bit of seaweed rolled in. However, the resort was always quick to clean it up and we never had any problems. Nightlife- B: The resort is very quiet at night, and for us this was perfect. If you're looking for dancing, then AB is not for you. There's nightly entertainment in the Aquanox Bar (pool bar) until 11pm. After that most people head to the Agavero Lounge (tequila bar). Officially they close at 1am but they'll be happy to stay open longer if you're in there having a good time. The Agavero Lounge is definitely where things are most likely to get rowdy. Kids' Services- A+ This resort does so much for families! Basically you don't need to bring anything with you b/c they've got it all—cribs, playpens, strollers, changing tables, toys. They even serve Gerber baby food in the La Mancha snack bar! Every day they had something different going on for the kids: painting pottery, making personal pizzas, etc. More to come...

Hi Andrew! I've officially posted our review. Thank you for being so wonderful to work with! http://bestdestinationwedding.com/fo...9/#post1293228

I feel so privileged to be doing this review on BDW since I’m Andrew’s first bride from this forum. He’s an established wedding photographer in Cleveland, OH, with a handful of DWs under his belt. Now that his family has a house in Puerto Morelos, he’s looking to grow his business to include the Riviera Maya. We feel like we stumbled upon such a gem with Andrew. If you haven’t already peeked at our pro pics then now's your chance!! andrew jordan photography I know I’m biased because they’re my pictures, but the comments we’ve been getting from other people are things like, “Wow, you look like you belong in a magazine!†and “You need to submit those to the dress designer!†By hiring Andrew, we knew we’d walk away with one-of-a-kind pictures, though even we were caught off guard at just how great ours turned out. There’s absolutely nothing cookie-cutter or ordinary about them. To start, we found each other on this forum, and as soon as DH and I looked at his online portfolio, we knew we wanted to hire him. His style is unique, creative, casual (not overly processed), and beautiful! Having good chemistry with your photographer is so important, and we clicked from the start. He’s easy to work with and talk to, is great at giving direction, is professional, confident, and really makes you feel like you’re the only couple he’s working with. Even when we communicate through just email or on the phone, I feel like we’ve got his attention 100%. You’d never know he’s got a booked schedule. Prior to the wedding he could not have been more helpful. He took a couple trips down there between when we booked him and our wedding, and each time he offered to scope out local restaurants for our group and great locations for our day-after shoot. He even did a site visit to the resort to check it out for us since we were going down site-unseen. Once we were all in Mexico, he came by Azul Beach a few days before the wedding so we could meet and walk through the resort together. The night before the wedding we took our guests into Puerto Morelos for dinner, and as luck would have it, Andrew happened to be having dinner there too! With no prompting from us he picked up his camera and started shooting. We ended up with great pictures of us wrestling Nacho Libre-style in the restaurant (that was the theme of the restaurant)! Priceless! The day of the wedding he showed up an hour before I even started my hair and makeup and stayed until our reception ended. He got the most amazing pictures and yet we never even knew he was there! Our family kept complimenting us on how well he gelled with our group. We did give him a list of group shots we wanted taken, but other than that we let him do his thing. And we’re glad we did because we never could have dreamed up what he came up with! Our package also included a shoot the day after the wedding. Andrew picked us up in a car he’d rented and drove us all over Puerto Morelos, both in town and on remote stretches of beach. He has such a creative eye and the pictures from that day are breathtaking! Our proofs were ready just a few days after we got back from Mexico. Our package also included a coffee table book, and that proof was ready about a week after the online proofs were up. He sent us hi-res images of all our photos, and all this within 3 weeks of our wedding! He's really gone above and beyond to make sure we're happy and even retouched some photos for me beyond the standard post-production retouches. Thank you, Andrew, for being the best wedding-related decision we made!

Gorgeous everything!!

LOL, funny speedo story! Yes, I second that the resort is really good about making people keep their distance. Even though our ceremony was not on the beach itself, since we were right at one of the main beach entrances, they cleared out the entire area surrounding us, beach beds and all. We did, however, have tons of people watch our ceremony. They were at the two neighboring pools. Everyone was quiet and respectful and not a soul came near us, but there were definitely people in the wings. As for the lobby location, same thing. It really is quite pretty! The wedding the night before mine was there and it was a beautiful ceremony. The acoustics are really good b/c of the marble floors. But again, people are allowed to pass through the back of the lobby while it's going on, and during this wedding a van of people arriving pulled up. Everyone was very respectful and quiet and they pulled everyone off to the side to wait until the ceremony was finished. Once I saw the inside location and how beautiful it was, I would have been fine having my ceremony there had the rain not held off for our ceremony. My only issue with the rain was for our pictures after the ceremony. We paid all this money to bring a photog down and then we would have had limited locations to shoot. Fortunately, it all worked out!

Nice job! All your hard work paid off!

Quote: Originally Posted by amybermuda You go girl! You can do it!!! I am telling you, I felt great on that diet. It took about 3 days but once I adjusted, I felt fab. Oh and they only have 3 restaurants at Azul Beach - so they dont want one booked off for like 20 people when there are 200 staying at the resort, cramming into the other 2 which are very small places to begin with. So actually, the resort was at capacity while we were there. Our wedding was on a Saturday night and we had our reception on the Blue Terrace. Let me tell you that there was PLENTY of seating available inside the restaurant the entire night. This whole bit about not letting you use the Terrace b/c it closes down their largest seating area and is a hassle for the other guests is a load of BS. We never once waited for a table in any of the restaurants our entire trip! Chil and Tainan are small, but Blue both inside and out have tons of seating. In fact, sometimes the Terrace and Blue International have different menus, so it's kinda like there are 4 restaurants.

Quote: Originally Posted by cjb0arder13 On a side note, I'm getting the photography thing figured out, which is a HUGE relief. I also decided that I am for sure doing a BD shoot here in Seattle. My FI always jokingly calls me a "prude" and I want to prove him wrong! There's an amazing photographer downtown who will do a 90 minute shoot with a 40-page album (re-touching included) for $500. Seems expensive, but that's what I was going to spend on a wedding gift for him anyway, and this way we both benefit! Now...just gotta lose that last 25 pounds before November...AmyBermuda, I'm starting the 21-day eat clean diet on Monday! Celina, $500 for a 90-minute shoot and 40 page books is an AMAZING deal! Go you!

Quote: Originally Posted by Sammyhawk we leave for Mexico on Sunday! Nice on the photographer working out for you! I can't wait to see pictures! WOW, Sunday!! Have a fantastic time!! Quote: Originally Posted by Sammyhawk Thank you for the reassuring words. I have been telling myself it will be like florida, thought I have had some trips to Florida where it has been a monsoon. As long as our wedding isn't rained out. I don't really want to travel all the way to Mexico to have an indoor wedding...Sigh...I will just keep my fingers crossed. I don't mind a quick storm, actually makes for some neat pictures, just no monsoons please.... No worries here. AmyF was worried the entire week up until leaving because the forecast called for rain every day. As far as I know she's had blue skies every day! BTW for the AB brides, the backup rain location is actually quite beautiful.

Suzanne, YEEEEEEEEA!!!!!!!!! Welcome back! I've been waiting for you! LOVE your photos! You look so happy Makes me all teary-eyed remembering our wedding there just a few weeks ago. Man I miss that place! Haha, I saw you have pic taken in front of David Luau's in PM. Did you actually eat there? Our photog took us to lunch there and the pizza was really good! I agree with you, isn't the service at AB just amazing?! I mean, they really do go above and beyond. I have so many examples where they just blew us away with what they'd do for us. Stay tuned for my official review...it should be up tomorrow!

Quote: Originally Posted by vleigh24 Yes we are definitely having 90+ people...we already have 85 booked! We invited everyone we would have invited if we got married locally and thought not that many people would be able to come. But we've been surprised, about 50% of people are coming. Wow that is amazing!!! Well, AB will not disappoint!

Quote: Originally Posted by GroomsArePeopleToo Wendy, Does that mean I delievered take-your-breath-away pictures? You have certainly express your happiness with the pictures, but that is a phase I'd be happy to be attached to. Of course if you didn't mean that, then I am kinda set my self up here :0. Is this a serious question?! I ask as I sit at my desk chuckling. You know me better than that! You officially have my permission to attach "provides take-your-breath-away pictures!" to your trademarked tagline

Andrew, all valid points! It's extremely important to be sensitive to the locals, especially if you're trying to make a good name for yourself. I feel that you get what you pay for, especially for wedding pictures. It's hard to expect spectacular, take-your-breath-away pictures if you're not willing to pay for it. I have a horror story that hit too close to home for my brother. Long story short, he chose to splurge on having a live salsa band at his wedding and then skimped on the photographer. They went with a local up-and-coming girl who was trying to break into the wedding business. Turns out her camera malfunctioned and the shutter didn't open. And she didn't realize it They have NO WEDDING PICTURES after the ceremony, well except for the ones we all sent them from our own cameras! Terrible, terrible, worst-case scenario.

Quote: Originally Posted by dstinationdrmr Thanks for mentioning that about the kids. My WC and I went back and forth the other day because they are trying to charge me half price for my 4 yr old flower girl to eat at the wedding. If we do the surf and turf that will be $14 for her and she'll be fine with chicken nuggets and fries. Ugh! Once again something that I wasn't offered. They don't really tell you about the kids menu unless you ask, and yes the kids menu is FREE. Don't let them make you try to pay. It's possible your WC is confused and thinking that you want the kids to eat the surf and turf with the adults. If you do that, then it's half price. We had 6 kids at ours; 2 ate the adult meal at half price and the other 4 ate for free off the kids meal. Quote: Originally Posted by amybermuda I am getting married at Azul beach so my options differ. However, I am having my cocktails at the Wave Lounge and dinner at the Blue Terrace - because I want my guests to all leave the cocktail reception, find their name cards, and sit down so that my HUSBAND and I can get introduced going into the reception area. I figure that 1/2 hour will be when FI and I go have our pictures taken, just the 2 of us. Is that how you did it Wendy? I know you had more time b/c you brought your photog down, but how did you picture schedule go? Something like that. You're right that we had a lot of time for pictures for just the two of us. We had a 4:00 ceremony and a 6:30 reception start time. The ceremony ended at 4:30 and we did a 1/2 hour of group pictures. Then we sent everyone off to fend for themselves for 1.5 hours while we did our pictures. I'm pretty sure most of our guests went to Aquanox to hang out. I purposely scheduled it that way for two reasons: to have a lot of picture time and so that we weren't pushing up against sunset for our pictures. I love it that you emphasized 'husband'! You're sooooo close!!!!

I second that Koh Samui is not touristy. I too stayed there on a more-removed part of the island and it was fantastic! No tourists or crowds at all. We stayed at a very luxurious resort, but it doesn't fit the bill for what you're describing you want (not many restaurants/ bars to choose from).

Quote: Originally Posted by vleigh24 Hi, I'm a newbie and have really enjoyed reading all these posts. I'm getting married at the Azul Beach and will have around 90 people at the wedding. Has anyone ever done a wedding that big there? They said they could handle it, but I'm getting worried because I don't know where this is going to work. They say they can do it at the Blue Restaurant or on the beach, but I'm doubtful. Any thoughts? A big to another AB bride!!! You made a fabulous choice! I second amyb's thoughts that you definitely run the risk of not having enough rooms. The only way to avoid that is to get a group contract through your TA that sets aside a block of rooms. That has its drawbacks, though, in that a deposit on all the rooms is due a month after signing your contract. Either you have to put down the deposit yourself or you have to get your guests to commit by putting down a deposit. But, it's the only sure-fire way to have enough rooms. Both the Blue International Restaurant and the Blue Terrace could accommodate your reception. The only place that would accommodate that many people for the ceremony is the beach. Are you sure you're having 90 guests or is that the number you're inviting?

Quote: Originally Posted by chong This might be a very silly question.. but for those of you who got married... are there sand flies in the Mexico sand? When we went to Cozumel, there were sand flies... they BITE! shouldn't be a big deal since we all be sitting on the chair.. but thought i ask. I do have a beach reception at night Chong Nope, no sand flies. You're in the clear!

Quote: Originally Posted by amybermuda Celina, who then did you want to use that the hotel won't let you? My cousin does wedding photography and charges very little b/c he is just starting out. Eric Wolfinger I am not selling him, I just showing you that there are options out there for budding artists! Good luck! PS - Yes, reading negative postings like that always worked me up to. Amy F was really good at making everyone feel better Too bad she's honeymooning now! Love your cousin's style! He's really great with faces. She had mentioned wanting Ivan Luckie. I'm googling him now And you're right, this is where AmyF needs to jump in!

Erin, beautiful everything!!! Talk about a gorgeous setting! I'll definitely post pics of my AHR, but it's not until June 26th. Thankfully! Cuz we've got a lot to do!

We're keeping all 4 panes and pouring sand between the last two. We already did this during our ceremony and it worked out fine...plenty of room to pour the sand if the other openings are covered up. So our setup is: front pane, second pane with picture, glue third pane (frosted), glue fourth pane (clear). IMO, the sand looks really cool when poured behind the frosted pane. Keeping all 4 panes allows you to remove the pane with the picture on it when you want to change it out. So onto the gluing... Unfortunately it didn't work well for us. We went to Michael's and bought glass glue, but when we used it, it got crusty around the edge. We were very careful not to use too much. So now we're not sure what we're going to do!

Celina, AmyB makes really good points about brides on other threads all having one issue or another and wanting to switch resorts. The upside here is that Karisma brides walk away usually 100% satisfied after their weddings. Chin up, you've still got time to figure this out!! Also, I PM'd you with some suggestions.

Oooooh, we thought about floating the river, too, as our AHR! We always go to the Comal and there are great condos along there. We always see large groups out BBQing and having a good time as we float along. I've been in Austin 7 years, so for a while now.

Quote: Originally Posted by cjb0arder13 Thank you so much for explaining their "reasoning"...I actually e-mailed Tiffany back asking that very same question, but I'm not holding my breath that she'll get back to me. I just looked up my contract...it says nothing about a minimum stay, only that it must be pre-approved by the hotel, and I must pay $500 per day for each day they are there. I'm asking my TA to get involved. Honestly, if I can't get the photographer I want, I'll have to go through Caribe, because I just can't afford flying someone in . Lots of luck!! We tried, too, to say that our contract didn't mention the 3 night stay, only the $500. They didn't bite. Maybe they will with you! The more complaints they get about their ridiculous policy the more likely they are to budge. Tiffany, btw, couldn't give me a good answer as to the why's of their policy. It took asking the resort once we got there.

Love your enthusiasm SouthernSweetie! Just remember that if you haven't lost everything by the time you find and order your dress, that's what alterations are for!