abbypoo

Quote: Originally Posted by Vanessa C that's true-4 hours is good. I'm wondering if that includes while you're getting ready and the reception....? What about video, are u getting that too? You can pretty much choose when you want them to start taking pictures, the only thing is that the hours have to be concurrent, no breaks. I actually think I will skip the candid getting dressed photos (I'm going to be flustered enough!) and just have them get there 10-20 mins before the ceremony and through the first part of the reception. I figure it will be dark and everyone will be drunk and silly by the end of the reception, so no need for professional pictures then.

Quote: Originally Posted by celinacenee Are there several color options for the linens? My wedding coordinator that the linens can come in pretty much any color.

Quote: Originally Posted by Vanessa C Yay! I'm so excited that u will share your photos with us! Okay, I just wanted to get your opinion about their photographers because I'm worried about that and not sure what I'm going to do. Photos are important but we don't want to spend too much. How many photos does your package include? That's good that your package includes the coctail hour-mine doesn't but that's okay it's only like $10 a person extra for us. Yeah Vanessa it's all about what's cheaper if you ask me! Always crunch the numbers and make sure the package is your belt deal vs. ala carte. This is how we ended up choosing the luxury option b/c we knew we wanted most of the things included. The photo package we chose was the Caribbean package. It's $1250 and includes 120 prints and digital photos. The reason we chose this package, though, is because it's 4 hours long. We figure that's the perfect amount of time needed. Not too long, not too short.

Quote: Originally Posted by Soon-to-be-McRae Hi Thought i would start a thread for anyone getting married at the Gran Caribe Real Resort and Spa in 2011, i know there is a 2011 thread already but thought i could start a thread were us Gran Caribe brides can share any information and planning ideas. We are getting married in November 2011 but not decided on a wedding package yet or if i will book through a TA or direct with the resort, what's everyone else doing? Hey there, I am getting married Dec. 2010, but hey close enough! My entire wedding is pretty much planned and set, so if you have any questions let me know. I'm getting married at the gazebo at the Gran Caribe and having my reception at the villas terrace. I'm choosing the Luxury Wedding option (which is the most bang for your buck if you ask me). I have TONS of information, so whatever you need to know I can probably help.

Quote: Originally Posted by Vanessa C Hey abbypoo! This was really helpful! Thank you so much! I would love to see pictures when it is all over and done with! So u are using thier photographers? How do u think the quality will be? I don't like that the packages don't have many photos included in them. Which cocktail hour package did u choose? I will def. post pictures as soon as the wedding actually takes place Yes, I am using their photographers, I'm sure they won't be the best that you can get, but I am confident that the a hotel that has SO MANY weddings, would have halfway decent photographers. One of the reasons we upgraded our package was to ensure that if they do suck, there will be plenty of photos to pick from. I'm pretty laid back about the whole deal, if you can't tell Well my wedding package includes a cocktail hour, so I didn't really have to "choose" a package. if you mean what hors d'oeuvres we chose, I don't actually remember!

Hey Everyone, I am getting married at the Gran Caribe December 4th 2010. I saw that a lot of people were concerned about not hearing from their wedding coordinators. The same thing happened to me, but all has been resolved. If you haven't heard from your WC, try to contact them by phone or send them an email about how upset you are, chances are you will hear from someone soon. That's what I did and I haven't had a problem since. My new WC usually gets back to me within the same day or the next day. Anyway, I will try to tell everyone a little bit about how my wedding planning is going because I know I had to search these forums high and low to get info on Gran Caribe brides. The wedding planning begins by setting a date and time and giving them a $200 deposit. At that time you will also sign a wedding contract. We chose the Villas Terrace for the reception and the Gazebo for the ceremony. Also, we are having a "symbolic" ceremony so that we don't have to jump through the hoops of getting married in Mexico, and officially getting married here the week before. So here's some helpful hints: Go to the real website and "book your wedding." Make up fake names and dates so that you can get to the end to see all of the options (you'll see what I mean once you do it). Your WC will eventually send you all of this stuff, but this is the easiest way to see most of their options (flowers, cakes, prices etc..) before committing to this resort. If anyone's interested in having a signature cocktail during their cocktail hour, it is an extra $5 per person (I'm having blue lagoons!) Table linens can be rented in pretty much any color available (that was another question I had). Table linens are $12 each to rent and napkins are $1 each Ok so I'm pretty much going to walk you through my wedding and tell you how much it is going to cost so you brides thinking about the Gran can get an idea. First of all, my guests are quoted at $355 per person (based on double occupancy) for 4 days... pretty dang good for all inclusive. We're having the Luxury Wedding. Ceremony is at 4 with a guitarist and a few floral decorations (standard ceremony decorations are white tulle at the entrance, white chair covers and red carpet). Also we are purchasing 3 bridesmaid bouquets, bridal bouquet, and 3 boutonnières. We have also upgraded our photo package which will be about an additional cost of around $1250. (we're using the hotel b/c outside vendor fees are $350, plus the cost of the vender, of course) From 5-6 is cocktail hour w/ signature cocktails and a live mexican trio. From 6-10 is the ceremony with a DJ. There will also be 5 centerpieces. The total cost of the wedding will be about $8200 for 40 guests. If you're wondering how the luxury wedding went from $3800 to $8200 I will try to add up the additional costs. $400 for a judge (or minister or priest, this is not included in the package) $1250 for photography, $850 for DJ, $400 for reception extra hour (wedding package comes with only 3 hours) $200 for signature cocktails, $250 for couture cake, $150 to feed extra guests, $500 for bouquets, boutonnieres, centerpieces, table linens, and ceremony decorations. And also a $400 surcharge for all weddings Thur-Sun after 4pm. I hope this post wasn't too long and that it helps future Gran brides. Feel free to ask me any questions.

Quote: Originally Posted by SMARIE78 Has anyone had the free wedding? I emailed the wedding coordinator and asked if the ministers/Justice of the peace fee is included (we are doing a symbolic ceremony). She answered one of my questions but did not asnwer my question about the fee. I emailed her about it again last week but have not recieved a reply yet. She might not have answered you because it says right on the website that this is included with the free wedding package. Might be a little rude, but that's probably why. But to answer your question, the package includes a non-denominational Christian Minister, or a Justice of the Peace.

If you're very concerned about it, it might be a good idea to change coordinators. If it helps, I've also heard that the realresorts WCs are a bit flaky at first (because they're so busy), but when it gets close to your wedding they are very attentive. I believe your WC will go over everything with you in the days before your wedding and you will be able to confirm everything you want then. Don't get yourself too worked up, this is your day!

Congrats and welcome! I'm also getting married at the Gran, but in Jan. 2011. Please let me know how the planning is going!

I'm also getting married at the Gran Caribe. I was considering getting married at the Royal, but all of my guests are staying at the Gran and I just thought it would be easier that way. I've also heard the Gran's gazebo is a bit more secluded than the Royal's. If anyone's interested in knowing, the WC told me today that they charge $350 per vendor for outside vendors... so if you're thinking about getting photography, DJ etc... from outside vendors, remember to keep that in mind when planning your budget.

Well this weekend my FILs came into town to stay with us for a long weekend. I can't say that they're terrible, but I definitely feel like I'm starting to deal with a momzilla. The whole reason we wanted a destination wedding was because we wanted something small and we wanted to incorporate a honeymoon into the mix because we have a limited amount of money to spend. Momzilla seems to think that just because it's in Mexico doesn't mean she can't invite a ton of people. *sigh*

I've also read that you're supposed to pay for your wedding party's accommodations, but not travel expenses. We've decided to pay for our BM and MOH's lodging, but no one else's since the other 4 will be our brothers and sisters (and they are receiving help from either his parents or us). But we are probably going to be on a pretty tight budget as well, and will either have to only pay for a few nights at the AI, or put them up in a less expensive hotel down the beach. I guess it depends on how long they want to stay and if they want to spend any extra money themselves. Paying the lodging of other guests is probably going to end up being about a fourth of our budget, actually. My mom is on disability and so I already know I'll be paying for her room, and I've also agreed to pay half the expenses of my brother and his girlfriend. When you think about plane tickets, passports (several of my guests don't have current ones), lodging and misc. expenses it really adds up. Not to mention most people feel obligated to give gifts (even if you tell them not to). To me, I'd rather have my loved ones at my wedding then have an extra awesome reception without them. Even if my reception sucks, they'll still have gotten to go to Cancun and be there for my special day!

Quote: Originally Posted by thefuturemrslutz There are so many things you can do to reduce your budget. One main thing is getting "Real Touch" flowers. A ton of girls on this site are using them. I emailed the lady today about them to see if I can get a sample. Also, is it an "all inclusive resort?" If so, you could do welcome "drinks" one night. Just have everyone meet at the bar for drinks and heavy appetizers. If it is not a private function, you won't have to pay for a thing! I am doing that and a "rehearsal dinner." My resort offers me a free party if I book a certain number of rooms. Have you checked into that? So, that party should be "free." Also, if you take a lot of your own decorations, that will help a ton. For example, I know a lot of resorts charge $10 per chair bow. You can find them online for maybe $2 per bow. This site has soooo many DIY ideas, it's crazy. I am totally not a DIYer, but I did my Passport STD's. I got tons of ideas from this site to help me pull it off. In regards to your FI...it wil be SO funny how he will have ZERO ideas about anything...until he comes across something that it is important to him. If my FI was adamant about something, I let him handle it. So, good thinking with leaving him in charge of the dancing. I think that's so cute!! I am having my guests book their rooms through my travel agent, but I am leaving the flights up to them. If they want to book them now, then great! But some people may want to take the risk of waiting til the last minute to get them cheaper. If so, that's their problem if they sky rocket!! I will definitely look into the flowers! I don't plan on having a ton of flowers, and since the guests can't bring them home they're not super important to me. I guess I will have to get a sample as well and see what I think. The rehearsal cocktail sounds like a great idea, but I am pretty sure a few of my guests won't be staying at the AI. If I had to pay for day passes for these guests it would get pretty expensive, so it might be more feasible to go to a little restaurant nearby. My FI's parents might be willing to pay for this (they did at his brother's wedding), but I'm not sure because of the extra costs associated with traveling to our wedding. If it's not in the budget, maybe we could all meet at a nearby bar type place for cocktails to meet and greet and hand out the OOT bags. To me a cocktail sounds more fun anyway, because I don't want to schedule my guests entire vacation. Ahh, so many things to think about! Yes I was definitely thinking about shipping and taking most of my extra decorations with me. Not only do I think this will end up being cheaper, but I think it will be the easiest way to have the ceremony and reception look like what I want. Thanks for all your good advice! You and your FI are so cute!

I have seriously been thinking about a welcome dinner/ rehearsal dinner. I know I want to have a rehearsal dinner, but with such a small wedding (about 40 people), I would feel bad for the people left out. I also know that I want to do OOT bags and having a dinner for everyone would be the easiest way to distribute them, especially if my guests are staying at different hotels. Also, because I'm sure at least a few of my guests are staying at different hotels, I was thinking we could have the rehearsal dinner at a nearby restaurant instead of the AI, which might cut costs a little. Who knows, I suppose it all comes down to what's in the budget!

Wow, this is a great thread! Here's my list: - No garter toss, bouquet toss will be for all women - Groom has seen the wedding dress - Groom will see me before the wedding to take pictures - I won't be "given away," but will be walked down the aisle - Groom is walking down with both parents - Wedding dress is tea-length and has teal tulle - Boutonnieres will be feathers instead of flowers - No father/daughter mother/son dances

I am wondering what to do too! My FI's parents and my step-mom (my father died last year) are contributing equal amounts to the wedding. My gift to my real mom will be her accommodations, but I want to do something really special for the parents that are contributing. I really don't have any ideas!

This thread has really helped! I was wondering what I should do because there are going to be so few singles at our wedding, and this has given me a lot of ideas. I don't think I'm going to do the garter thing because I'll be wearing a tea length dress and I don't want to give my guests a bigger show than they expected... ha ha. But I think I will do a bouquet toss for everyone that has a spa prize. I would just give it to my mom, but I also have a step-mom I'm very close to so I don't want to hurt either of them. Hopefully my guests don't think it's too cheesy that I have everyone involved in the bouquet toss!

My dad died about a year ago, and since then I've been debating on who would walk me down the aisle (my brother, groom and I together, uncle, godfather, groom's dad, mom etc..). I finally decided on my godfather because he was my dad's closest friend and I thought my dad would really want him to take his place. I was really scared to ask because although he and my dad were close, I am not really that close with him personally. Anyway, FI and I went over to their house and told them about the engagement and I asked and he was DELIGHTED. I didn't do anything special, but I think the question itself makes it a special moment.

I have heard the best way to make it clear is to list both of their names, but also include an RSVP where they can write in _ of 2 (or whatever number you put) guests will be joining. I think this makes it CLEAR that you are only inviting two people, who names you've already written.

My FI plans on walking down the aisle with both of his parents. I don't think it's weird at all. Since its pretty common for the parents and the grandparents to walk down before the bridesmaids, I don't see the harm in your FI and MIL walking together. If she's single this might be why she wants him to walk her, so she doesn't have to walk alone. Last year at my FI's brother's wedding, my FI was the best man and had to walk down the aisle TWICE b/c his grandmother (who is recently a widow) wanted someone to escort her down the aisle. It was so cute, he led her to her seat and then did another lap to walk down the MOH.

I'm glad to hear someone thinks that I can pull this off on my budget. Last night the FI and I were sitting down to dinner and seriously wondering if this was a good idea or not! It was much more plausible when we thought we'd have 15-20 guests, but as that has more than doubled I started to get nervous. I think we'll be fine if we can keep it around 40 (50 max) which won't be too hard because my immediate family is small and I am not too close to my extended family. Jon likes the ideas I have, but he hasn't come up with any ideas/input on his own. All he's said so far is that he doesn't want me wearing a giant fascinator in my hair (he thinks I'll look crazy... ha ha), he wants to wear a tux and he wants to take dance lessons. I'm leaving him in charge of the last one, I'm glad we have a year to figure out how to dance! So, I was thinking if we could keep our guest list small, we could have a "rehearsal" dinner for everyone, not just the wedding party. That way it would be more of a welcoming dinner for everyone who traveled so far away to share our day. Is anyone else doing a welcoming dinner? I also really like this idea because I could hand out all my OOT bags then, instead of tracking people down at their various hotels. I'm sure I should post these questions in other forums, but I thought it couldn't hurt to start here. I'm also wondering how early everyone is booking their flights. Am I crazy to book them an entire year in advance?

So I have a different take on things. Is it possible that your mom wants you to wait so long so that she can save up money? Either for her own personal expenses, or to help you out? It might be something to take into consideration. Although still not valid reason for postponing your wedding for three years, it's a possibility. I feel your pain regarding other people trying to make you feel bad about your big day. My FI's brother flat out told us that if he had to pay to go to Mexico for our wedding, he didn't know if he was going to go. I would understand if this had come from someone who didn't have a lot of money, but he is very well off and even just bought a boat! gah My step-mother has given me great advice that I think you should follow as well "This is your wedding, you do whatever you want." She's right... while it's nice to try to accommodate others and listen to their opinions, not everyone is going to be happy, and ultimately you get to decide whatever you want! Have a great wedding day, and don't let others spoil it

Yay! Someone else who is getting a short dress. I'm absolutely in love with tea-length dresses and I can't wait to see pictures!

I've only been engaged for a week (of course I've been mentally planning a wedding for over a year now.. ha ha) but I've got a lot of definite ideas for the wedding so far. I'm going with a turquoise/brown/apple green theme with some peacock feather accents. I've for sure decided on The Royal's Luxury Wedding package for hopefully Jan. 8th 2011. We thought it would be a small reception (like 15-20), but my future MIL has informed me that we should expect no less than 30 people to attend from the groom's side! I think when all is said and done we can count on 40-50 guests... but we might be surprised by who can make it, or who doesn't! We decided on a destination wedding because our families and friends are equally dispersed between MD, IL and FL. On top of that, the groom and I have moved around so much that we don't have a ton of friends, so having a big wedding at home felt kind of silly. Both of us as well as our families have been to Cancun in the past, so everyone is really excited about the idea. As far as planning goes, everything is just in the "idea" process right now. Next week the families are coming together to discuss logistics, and we'll probably book the date and plane tickets after that. Believe it or not I already know EXACTLY what wedding dress I want, and emailed the designer two days after I was engaged! I am going to wait 4-6 months before I order the dress, though, because I am going to try to lose some weight. I want my wedding to be perfect, but I like the idea that the hotel takes care of the basics so if I forget something it won't be that noticeable. I plan on bringing a lot of my decorations with me to save money and insure I get exactly what I want as well. Speaking of money, we have a total budget of 20k. I already know that my dress and hotel accommodations for the wedding party will be about 5k, so I'm thinking we have about 15k left for the ceremony/reception and our plane tickets/hotel room for a week. Does anyone think it can be done or generally how much these things cost? I've done lots of searches on here, but not a lot of brides have been married at the Royal in Cancun, mostly Playa del Carmen. My biggest stressors are coordinating reception music/entertainment, finding a good and affordable photographer and being able to get/afford the flowers I want. I would be extremely grateful for any advice! Also, I've created a blog with pics of my ideas if anyone is interested: Gettin' Hitched

Hey everyone. I'm planning on a Jan. wedding at the Royal. Does anyone have any advice on things like how you go about customizing things like flowers, linens and centerpieces. Also, which venue is best for the reception? Any help would be greatly appreciated!