Kristine624

hi gals! i purchased a petticoat/slip for my gown, and never ended up using it at the wedding. at this point, i am looking for it to go to a new home! it's a size medium. it slims very nice through the waist and thighs and adds perfect volume to a flair/mermaid-style/a-line gown. please let me know if you're interested! i live in nyc, so you could pick it up if you're local, or i will ship it anywhere (you pay shipping) thanks!

Hi Gals!

I bought a bridal petticoat/slip to go under my wedding gown and decided not to wear it at the last minute.  It is sitting in my closet and I want it to go to a happy home! 

It's a mermaid style trumpet control half slip.  Essentially, it's a spandex piece on top, with tulle at the bottom.  Great for giving mermaid or trumpet gowns extra flare and fullness.  It's a size medium. 

If there are any brides who are looking to save $100, let me know!  I live in NYC, so would prefer that someone in the area pick it up - but if you do not live in the area, I am willing to ship anywhere (taker pays shipping)

Kristine

so pretty! thanks so much for sharing, gabi! you did a great job

hi there! i am using wendy hicks, who is highly recommended on this forum. she's just great! i will agree, la amada does not give insane discounts off their listed web price (IMO, i think they are trying to build themselves up as a more premium hotel and do not need to heavily discount since they are getting such traction now. i wouldn't be surprised if rates increase)

that being said, my guests have a really great deal that includes transportation and the all-inclusive rate option. everyone is really happy. and, it's an absolute blessing to have someone as organized and on top of things as wendy and it's nice not to have to be involved in everyone's booking - we have enough to handle as brides! feel free to PM me if you want her information!

i'll PM you! thank you so very much!!

we have a little over 40 booked, and we anticipate about 60 will come. what about you? we are also in love with the idea of having one of our dinners (i am thinking the welcome dinner) at the lupita lounge. it's an awesome space - relaxing and large. they usually have live entertainment at night, too! can you share the pictures you saw of the december wedding? i would love to see them! fernando charges about $300 for hair and makeup for the bride and i think $100 for the makeup for the bridal party (hair costs range, depending on what you want). it's pricey but SO worth it - from what i have seen, he is a serious artist. everyone who uses him looks absolutely stunning! no charge for having him come to the hotel. i would def use him, if you can.

hey there!

you are so lucky to be heading down, and trust me, you will no be disappointed! it's a beautiful hotel. i have my dress, too! it came in at the end of december, so now i am just working on setting up time with a seamstress to get it fitted.

the all-inclusive is a great deal. we are actually paying for half of everyone's all-inclusive rate since we sprung the additional cost on them (we were notified of the all-inclusive after everyone started booking - i was actually really upset that they communicated this to us so late in the game. i wish they were more communicative!) so, while it's definitely an added expense for us, it's keeping everyone very happy.

i don't have any pictures of the decor from la amada, but have seen so many pictures from other brides/other hotels and it looks just fantastic!  it's surprisingly expensive, so we are trying to figure out how much everything else is going to add up to before we officially add this stuff on. but, i do love the look of the lanterns/floating candles.

i will totally send along pics after my wedding! and it's funny - we do have very similar visions great minds think alike!

we are holding 3 dinners for our guests - a welcome dinner, rehearsal dinner and the wedding dinner. for the welcome dinner, we are likely to do the bbq menu - sort of a beach bbq! we love the idea of keeping the first night laid back and relaxing! for the rehearsal dinner, i think we are going to do the tastes of mexico menu. then, for the wedding, we are going to give guests the choice of the beef tenderloin/lobster entree or the chicken/lobster entree. we are going to start with the crab cakes, and we are going to have the caesar salad. our cake will be very simple - just a couple of layers of tres leches. in my opinion, with the heat, it's not worth doing anything too fancy - the cakes just melt!

we have our songs picked out, and i have started the master list for the DJ (want to give him songs i definitely want - and definitely do not want - played at the wedding)

and, i just booked fernando fuentes for hair/makeup! so excited!

thanks for your thoughts - what i am really struggling with is building a multi-city trip, at a reasonable cost. travel agents come in handy there! just trying to find one who doesn't have packages that are too scheduled/packed with hour-by-hour tours and activities. 

hi all!

my fiance and i are getting so excited! only 4 months until our wedding at la amada

as for recent news - we have decided to take advantage of la amada's new all-inclusive option.  we think that our guests will be much better served under this option, since drinks and food at the hotel is generally very pricey. it's an extra $80.00 per day per person, but we think it's worth it (when we were on our site visit in august, dinner alone cost us $150, so we want our guests to avoid big bills at the end of the trip!)

we have also been working with gabi on our wedding decor. i cannot give her enough props - she has been so attentive, helpful and fast! we have decided on a mix of fuschia and orange roses, orchids and calla lilies for the flowers. we'll be using white chairs for the ceremony, and will be hanging flowers at the end of each row. the centerpieces for the reception will be two vases (one larger, one smaller) with votive candles around them. we're using navy blue napkins (my bridesmaids are wearing navy blue) and our table numbers will also be navy blue. we are also going to have floating candles in the pool and hanging paper lanterns. i hope this creates the "soft light" we are looking for!

the bridesmaids have their dresses and my flower girl also has her dress (so cute!). we are buying my fiance's suit from jcrew - he is going to wear light gray pants, a white shirt and a gray vest (no jacket). 

i just love the casual look - it's very much his type of look!  the groomsmen will wear the pants and the same white shirt, no vest. we're still working on the ring bearer's outfit.

we have our songs picked out, the menu is set for the wedding dinner, rehearsal dinner and welcome dinner. my fiance's brother is going to be our officiant, and the reader's are all picked out.

i feel like we are in a good place! we're ordering invitations this week and we'll work on programs and menus. the biggest "to do" at this point is get my dress to a seamstress for fittings, and get our honeymoon sorted out...

how are the other la amada brides doing??

Hi there!

We are in desperate search for a fabulous travel agent who can help us book our honeymoon in Italy.  We are not looking for a trip that is too "scheduled" but want to visit multiple cities - Florence/Tuscany, Rome, Almafi Coast/Positano.  We have tried booking on our own, but it's just been overwhelming.

Ideally, we would like something a little more customizable. We love the idea of a cooking class and wine tours in Tuscany, we want to visit the top sites in Rome and we want to hike and relax on the Almafi Coast. We want to stay in 4 star/5 star hotels and are looking to stay for about two weeks (end of May/early June)

Does anyone have any suggestions? I have a fabulous TA who is helping me with my wedding in Mexico, but she only has options for guided, set tours.

Thanks so much!

Hi there!

We are using a travel agent to help us with the group booking rate - to be honest, the hotel will do nothing unless you have a travel agent. The rates we secured are better than what's advertised on the site, but they are not heavily discounting. I would work with a travel agency, for sure.

Originally Posted by Rmarino222 

What kind of rates did you guys get for the room block?  La Amada is being a little difficult and as of now is only giving me a $6 discount.  Did any of you have problems getting them to give you a break for a group booking?

I am so sad that I missed your meet up - I would love to get to the next one.  I was at my friend's wedding this weekend in Westchester, so I am just seeing these responses now.  Did you guys get to share a lot of good tips?

Thanks SO much for the heads up on the beach - When we were there in August, it wasn't windy at all at night.  So, I assume it's a seasonal thing.  We could always look to the lounge area if we needed to.

The interesting part about the vendors is that Ileana told me that we could not bring in outside vendors.  She mentioned that they work with a union of vendors, and that all brides and grooms had to stick to those particular vendors.  This was in August, so perhaps they have changed it up but  I'll be emailing her now to straighten that out!  I would LOVE Denise's email if you have it!

I am using Daniel Aguilar.  His photography is STUNNING.  We are SO excited for him to shoot the wedding - everything we have seen is just beautiful.  He's shooting a ton of pictures for us (wedding day, rehearsal dinner, two hours at the ruins, brunch the next day).  It's been really fun planning with him!

K
 

Originally Posted by TilliePiper 

 

Hey ladies! This is a LONG post, so be forewarned. :-)   Kristine, if you're free tomorrow night jfuller and dmarr and I are getting together in the West Village at 6:30-ish to meet up, chat weddings, La Amada, etc. Want to join? Feel free to email me at laurelpetriello [at] gmail.com for details. Hope you can join!   Uhleesa, depending on where you are in NJ, if you can make it, you wanna meet up with us, too, tomorrow? Just email me for details if you can. :-)   So Kristine, on the welcome dinner, I know they can accommodate dinners on the beach (I've been thinking about doing my welcome dinner in the palapa on the beach), but like I mentioned a few threads ago, it gets very windy at night...like more windy than you're average beach at night. BUT, I was there in the October. Maybe it's different during other parts of the year?   Also, as for outside vendors, I'm gonna venture a guess. Did you get that info from Nayeli? Since you met with her instead of Ileana, she might not have all of her facts straight because she is the wedding coordinator for their sister property Excellence Playa Mujeres, which is all-incusive, so that makes sense. Since La Amada is not all-inclusive, they don't have as many restrictions (or any that I've run into for that matter).   I've had a great experience bringing in outside vendors, but I'm also working with Denise Courtney from Tropical Wedding Experts. I would HIGHLY recommend working with them. I can even give you Denise's email address if you like. They are essentially a wedding planning aggregator. They work with brides and grooms just like any wedding coordinator would, but instead of charging you, they get commission from the vendors you choose to work with. It's a win-win situation, because it's not extra cost to you (save for any gratuity you choose to give at the end) AND they know the area and the local vendors inside & out AND they have dozens of vendors they work with to choose from. Denise and TWE have kinda been a godsend for me, so I will definitely sing their praises from the treetops. :-)   You should have no problem hiring an "outside" photographer. I'm using Samuel Luna. I haven't met him, which is a downer, but his portfolio is beautiful!   As for hair & makeup, I am freaking out about this a little bit. I didn't have a trial either while I was there a few weeks ago, but now I'm feeling like I should have because I'm less than 4 months out so things are becoming more real. There are good makeup artists and there are BAD makeup artists. My best friend's (and BM) older sister is a makeup artist here in NYC and she INCREDIBLE. I invited her to my wedding and I'm crossing my fingers she can come and do my makeup. If not, I might have her just teach me how to do it myself. Not sure yet. As for hair, not sure either. Was planning on going with the salon at La Amada, but I might see who Denise has up her sleeve, too. She was telling me recently about a makeup artist who just moved to Cancun from LA who is amazing. We'll see on that one.   Uhleesa, on the table set-ups, not sure why the price difference, because I got the two separate quotes, too. Maybe it's dependent upon your amount of guests? Size of centerpieces? We're having a very small shindig--like 15-20 people.   As for tables & set-ups through Gabi at Planner 1, it definitely varies. I work in the design industry so modern decor is a big deal to me. The table set-ups we're going with are $200 for 6 people...but, here again, we're only having a small group, so it's not as big of a deal. I will say, however, that that was the most expensive set-up and she has ones that are a lot more cost effective. I have her pricing list I can send you. Just shoot me an email at the address at the top of the thread.   On the off-site welcome dinner thing, I TOTALLY hear you! I don't want my welcome dinner to cost more than my reception! I sent an email off to Denise last night and hoping she has some good ideas offsite and have her hire a shuttle for us. I'd like to come in at close to 50% of the cost of the reception. If that doesn't work out, I'm gonna talk to Ileana about it a bit more, because I really like the idea of doing a taco bar with Mexican beers in the palapa on the beach and maybe even have them have the bonfire pit going, too...it's just a matter of cost right now. :-(

Hi there!

When we visited in August, we found the weather to be absolutely beautiful!  It was definitely warm, but it did not rain at all.  They mentioned that it's normally a little more tropical/rainy during that time of the year, but we did not have any issues while we were there.

K

hi everyone!

my fiance and i are getting married at la amada on may 20th, 2011.  i am SO excited to meet other people on this forum who are getting married at this hotel! with it being so new, it seems there are not many la amada brides-to-be out there.  and...i live in nyc, too!  my fiance and i bought a condo in astoria two years ago, and before this, we lived on the UES. 

we went for our site visit in august and fell in love with the hotel.  ileana was not there, so we met with nayeli (the other wedding coordinator).  we had a tasting and everything was just amazing.  i do agree, the lack of attention from ileana is challenging - she is so difficult to get in touch with!  she also said that we do not need to worry about the details at this point, but we are less than 7 months out at this point, so i am making her start these conversations now.  i get too nervous not having these things planned!  at this point, we have established group rates with our travel agent, and people are starting to book  

we are having a welcome dinner the wednesday night beforehand (i am thinking a beach bbq, if they will do it) and then we want to have our rehearsal dinner on thursdsay.  our wedding will be on friday night and we are going to do brunch after on saturday.  we anticipate about 70 people will be in attendance at our wedding.

it sounds like you guys have gone with vendors outside of the hotel - they told us that we could not do this.  how did you get away with it?  would love to know!  it was a bit of a fight to get an "outside" photographer.  so, i'm curious to know who all of you are working with, and want to confirm that la amada agreed to that.

also, have any of you met with the makeup/hair artists?  i met them in august during the site visit, but didn't have anything done.  i would love to know if they are good.  we did use the spa, and it's AMAZING.

again, glad to know there are more la amada brides to be here!

My fiance and I are considering having our wedding at La Amada next May.  Going down for our site visit in a couple of weeks!  Did anyone do welcome dinners/rehearsal dinners outside of the resort?  We would love to do something off hotel grounds one night.  Just trying to think of possibilities!
 

Hi All!

Does anyone have recommendations for great restaurants/dinner cruises in the Playa Mujeres area? 

We are having our hotel at La Amada and would like to book a group dinner off the hotel grounds.  Would love to do a dinner cruise if there is a good one in the area.

Let me know if you have any suggestions!  Thanks!

we have emailed a travel agent recommended by the BDW forum, hoping they can help. with work being so crazy for the two of us, we don't the luxury of time to do much planning! hopefully, that will help us out. our photographer is amazing and will come anywhere, we just need to make sure that he is available in case we need to look to a new date. we are lucky that we have a good amount of time. i cannot IMAGINE being a bride who was supposed to get married there this fall. ugh!

thanks everyone! we are just trying to move on and stay focused. just so nervous that it will happen again with the next hotel

My fiance and I had put down our deposit for our May 2011 at Blue Tulum Resort & Spa. We were so excited and ready to go - STDs printed, dress and shoes purchased, bridesmaids gowns purchased, deposit on photographer, etc. Then, we were checking in with our wedding planner and she emailed us back saying that she had "news" - turns out, The Blue Tulum was sold and is closing down for the year, opening next year as a hotel that is clothing-optional and caters only to gays/lesbians. They told us that we could have our wedding at The Great Parnassus in Cancun (they bought out the hotel and the management is handling all wedding transfers) or could get our deposit back. I definitely don't want to stick with this management and so we are starting our search all over again, but I am fighting against them to pay us back for the deposit, STDs and photographer. So upset! Literally, 6 months of planning is down the drain and we have to start from scratch. We have put so many time, money and energy into this already....

Thank you so much for your help, Tammy! This is so helpful!

Hi Everyone!

I think my fiance and I are going to bring a photographer from home to Mexico with us for our wedding. Does anyone know if we need to secure permits for our photographer to shoot the wedding?

Just want to make sure we square this away! If you have had a photographer travel with you to Mexico for your wedding, please let me know if you have had to do this and if so, what is the process?

Thanks!

Thank you! Indigo82 - are you doing a site visit? We are heading down in April for ours and I am curious to know if you had the chance to personally try out the food, meet with Angelina (she seems great!), stay in the rooms, etc. If so, I would love to hear your thoughts on how it went! Also, what made you choose this hotel over others that you were considering?

Hi everyone! My fiance and I love the look of the Blue Tulum hotel, but have not found any reviews on the place. Has anyone had there wedding here, or does anyone plan to have their wedding here?? We are in discussions with WC and will be planning a site visit, but I would love to hear your thoughts on the hotel! Thanks