TropicLover

I'm really impressed with Sascha Gluck. His pictures are amazing and I found him to be reasonably priced. Just drop him an email with your wedding details and he'll get back to you right away.

Thank you CanadianLindsey! I'll just need to keep my receipts in order and hope for the best. I'll see what my TA has to say as well. For now it sounds like I'll be buying a luggage scale for extra decor distribution ;-)

Hellllllllllloooooo fellow Vancouverite! That's so cool there's another Canadian out there ;-) Wow 54 people is amazing! I think we'll get 30 - 40, but I'm really hoping for more. I would love it if everyone could come. We do have our group pricing already and people have until mid-month to put down their deposit. A few of our friends say they want to wait to see if they can get a lower price. My fingers are crossed that it works out for them. Our TA is based out of Vancouver and she's also helping with the coordinating as well...she does the chatting and "negotiating" with Ana. Overall she's doing an amazing job, especially dealing with my specific details, lol. So where are you doing your ceremony and reception? I think we're going to do everything up on the lobby terrace, but I'm just so scared of the wind. Lol I don't want to look like I'm in a wind tunnel the whole night, haha. How is everything else like the cake and flowers working out for you? Talk to you soon!

No problem! Glad it worked out

I'm totally worried about how things will look too. I'm doing things a little differently as my TA is also a wedding planner so she has been doing all the communicated to Ana. Either way I've been very specific and detail oriented with what I like and don't like. My suggestion is to use a TON of pictures to help explain what you like and ask for picture examples. I'm sure they could send you a picture of the tablecloth colors. Also, when you arrive Ana will go through all the wedding details with you and if there's something you don't like that will be time to change it. Hmm as for favors...we're not really sure yet. I like the idea of doing something editable. My first thoughts were mini bottles of hot sauce customized with a cheeky saying on it. My sister thinks it's a good idea, although she said I should have an alternative for those who didn't like hot sauce. Lol I didn't know guests could be picky with wedding favors! I think the patron would go over well for the younger crowd and depending on your other guests it could be a lot of fun too. Although maybe grandma and grandpa wouldn't get it I say to go with what works for you and that there's always going to be someone who complains. A first step might be to sort out what type of wedding you're having - will it be formal, fun, whimsical, classy, etc. After that if there's a common theme the favor type might fall into place. I'll keep you updated on what we finally decide.

Hi Sandy! Yes, we're using an outside photographer. We've decided to go with Sascha Gluck. We love his pictures AND there are a ton of great reviews of him on the forum. Prior to booking with the hotel we let them know that we already had a photographer booked. They were a little reluctant at first, but agreed as long as we paid the outside vendor fee ($400, ugh...not the best way to save money, but pictures were important to us). I'm totally clued out when it comes to flowers. Basically I just look at a picture and then say whether I like it or not. So far I haven't really liked any of the pictures I've seen from the hotel...they're just not my style. Instead I have a picture of what I'd like and my mom is then putting together a list of the flower types included. Once I have that I'll send it to Ana and have her price it out. If it's too pricy then my hopes are to cut back on the more expensive flower type. I hope I'm not shocked when she sends me the price. I'm sure you can go elsewhere for the flowers, but then they'd charge you that lovely $400 outside vendor fee A plan "B" alternative you could do is use another florist to pre-arrange the flowers and then on the day of the wedding have a family member pick up the flowers. I'd be curious to hear what other brides have done.

Hey ladies! We're also doing our legal wedding beforehand. I didn't want the extra stress of the paperwork and blood tests, also we're saving money and by doing a symbolic wedding in Mexico we can actually write the entire wedding ceremony ourselves (I've heard of other brides not liking what the officient said, i.e. "honor and obey"). I don't think you would have any trouble with the passport if you save the name changing until after the wedding. From my understanding (at least in Canada) the bride/groom doesn't need to change or assume a new name straight after the wedding. We plan to make it legal beforehand, do it again in Mexico ;-) and then deal with the name change paperwork when we're back at home. Hope that helps.

Good tip on the Oriental Trading shop...I've never heard of it until today. I'm still in the beginning stage of planning as the wedding isn't until May 2012, however I can see that I'll probably be in the same boat as you bringing along a lot of decorations. I've heard and read through a few forums saying when you go through customs in Mexico you need to have receipts for all wedding items and that there's a max dollar amount. Do any of you know the actual dollar amount? Also, does is work on a per person basis? For example if I exceed the amount I'd probably have my MOH or Mom be responsible for the other items. Do you think that would work? Originally Posted by canadiangirl Well although i cant post pics of my stuff right now, but i will once i get back home. This is what i got, with a breakdown of the costs for you as well as the location for each item OOT tote bags...... $ 6.00 for 12 9 oriental trading Star Fish 30 assorted sizes (for name tags)...... $ 6.00 oriental trading Tropical Notepads....$6.00 (25 books) oriental trading tropical tissue (with shells and star fish on it)..... $4.00 for 10 packs oriental trading luggage tags......... $4.00 for 12 oriental trading coloured coils....... $3.00 for 12 oriental trading star fish charms....$6.00 for 25 ....these will go on my luggage tags oriental trading peacock feathers.....$10.00 for 24 pieces (these will go in my TTD flowers that i will be making) oriental trading Paper lanterns-Dark Turquoise......$14.50 for 12 oriental trading Paper lanterns-Periwinkle.....$14.50 for 12 oriental trading Paper lanterns-Multi colour....$14.50 for 12 oriental trading Paper lanterns- Dark purple....$25.00 for 6 (these ones are big) oriental trading Table runner-Damask theme.....$3.99 dimension is (12 x 108) table clothes factory I have gotten more stuff as well from oriental trading but not all is for decorations....the rest of the stuff was for our OOT bags.... I highly recommend oriental trading my mom got the stuff on the weekend, and she said it is all great qulity, ill let you know and will post pics when i get back home. hope this helps hun, if you need more i have it lol

Thanks ladies! After hearing all that I really like the idea of doing the semi fake cake. Fingers crossed that the cake decorator can replicate the picture I submit ;-)

Hi Sandy! I love Elizabeth's work! If you have room in your budget (she tends to fall on the higher side) then I'd say definetely go with her. She's pretty quick at responding to emails and will send you her package pricing right away.

Beautiful pictures and make up! Love his work!

Hiya ladies! Just a quick question about the fondant - is it that a whole fondant cake won't last in the heat and that's why you do half real half fake? Or is it more of a money and extra cake factor? Any help would be great! The pictures my hotel sent me of their cakes are horrible so I'm not sure what I'll do. I just really want to avoid paying another outside vendor fee. I'm wondering if they'd be better with making a fake cake instead. So confused

Hey ladies! I don't have any food allergies and I'm not sure how a gluten free cake would be, however a guest of mine is allergic to nuts, eggs and shellfish. He's been to a number resorts in Mexico (Iberostar, Eldorado, Barcelo, etc.) and he said they were amazing at ensuring he was well taken care of. I'm sure if you tell the resort the severity of her allergy they'll do everything they can to help you out.

Hey Celticgirl! I still need to sort out my flowers for the wedding...the pictures the resort sent me aren't the nicest so I'm considering going elsewhere. Anyway I've been hearing a lot about these real touch flowers. I haven't quite decided what I'll do yet, but the heat and humidity kind of concerns me. Will real flowers not be able to last throughout the day? Or should I be going the real touch route?

Great story Coco YUL and welcome aboard! I was in the same boat as you trying to find a nice 4.5 - 5 star resort with a decent price. I was originally aiming for Jan - Mar 2012, however I quickly realized that the prices didn't fit within our guests budget. I opted for May 2012 instead and got (what I thought) was a really good price for the Ocean Coral & Turquesa in Puerto Morelos, Mexico (just south of Cancun). For November I'm certain you'll be able to find somewhere perfect for your day! We're fully booked and our STD's went out in June...now I'm just anxiousl waiting for people to start booking with our TA, lol. We also just booked our photographer too! Wohoo! Oh and my first wedding dress fitting is at the end of August! Here's hoping that it needs to be taken in

Great idea! Count me in! I'm getting married May 11, 2012 at the Ocean Turquesa in Mexico!

Great ideas! We're thinking of having a Mojito Bar during cocktail hour. There will be 4 different kinds all with funky names related to where everyone flew in from (Vancouver, Toronto, LasVegas and Australia). I haven't quite finialized the names yet, but we're thinking of something quirky for each. Most of our guests (actually all of them) have never been to a DW so hopefully this will go over well. I'll also need to include a couple of virgin cocktails for the non-drinkers. The actual reception will have a fully stocked bar. So excited!

Thanks again!

Thanks Tlseege, that's great advice especially from the photography side. With the airbrush, have you ever found the makeup to melt off during a shoot? Should I schedule a retouch before the reception?

Hey everyone! I'm getting married May 11, 2012 at the Ocean Coral and Turquesa resort! Right now I'm trying to sort out my makeup for the big day and need a little help. I've heard good things about air-brushed make-up AND good things about high definition...so I'm torn between the two. Does anyone have any recommendations? I'm looking for the best make-up for the heat and humidity, especially since it will be May when we're getting married. Thanks so much!

No way - To me photography is extremely important. In our resort search one of my must haves was the ability to have an outside photographer. If the resort said "no you have to use our photographer" then I didn't book with them. Also, the ability to have control over the style of the wedding is super important. Great flowers, decor and lighting are huge and can dramatically change a space. I've found that most resorts are fairly basic in that area and to achieve your "wedding look" you need to use outside vendors. The only thing I can complain about is the vendor fee. I think there really should be a one time lump sum fee rather than paying $400 for the photographer, $400 for the flowers, etc.

Adrian's prices are listed online, here's the direct link: http://www.stylingtriorivieramaya.com/?page_id=626 I've pasted the info below too. I was thinking of just make up with lashes and then get my hair done through the hotel. That would cost $110 USD which is comparable to a regular make-up application. For example, my sister who just went to a wedding in Toronto got her make-up and lashes done at Mac and she paid $120 CAD (and the dollars are pretty well on parr right now). Bride hair and airbrush: $ 375 USD (Includes trial and lash application) Bridesmaids package: Hair Styling & Airbrush makeup: $160 USD Separate Services: Hair Styling: $85 USD Airbrush Makeup: $95 USD Airbrush tan lines: $20 USD (please note this will reduce the appearance of your tan lines by an average of 50 percent but rarely will completely cover them, some tan lines are more prominent than others and the over use of makeup can cause running with the heat sweating combination) False eyelash applications: Individual lash clusters or strip: $15 USD (for a more dramatic, eye-opening effect) You are more than welcome to supply your own lashes & glue Application fee: $ 5 USD Reducing appearance of tattoos: Depending on size and color of tattoo: $10 USD – $25 USD (please note: because of the intense heat and humidity our team will reduce the appearance as much as is possible. If over-sprayed the makeup will most likely begin to separate in the heat and we will not be held responsible for stained white dresses.) Just Eyes: $25 USD W/lashes $40 USD

Great idea! I'll do that right now. We sent our save-the-dates out at the end of May beginning of June. We did DIY boarding pass invites which turned out really good....it was a lot of work, but totally worth it in the end On the STD we listed our website so people would know how to book the trip. It was one of those free sites through Wedding Wire and it was super easy!. You literally select a background theme, then layouts for each page and you can upload pictures from your computure (just like facebook). Here's the link to our site in case you're interested: www.weddingwire.com/carolyntysen We're going to do formal invitations too (probably send them out in Nov/Dec this year). The idea behind that was to get an actual rsvp for people who may have booked the trip on their own. Hopefully they all go through our TA, but you never know.

Hi Chambers2011! It's so nice that this board is becomming a little more active. Below is a link to a website which shows the sunset and rise for Cancun in Nov 2011. You can actually search a specific date for just about any city in the world. For Nov 16 it says it will set at 5:06 pm. http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/astronomy.html?n=923&month=11&year=2011&obj=sun&afl=-11&day=1 For our reception yes I plan to pay a little extra for it to go until midnight. I'm sure 3 hours is more than enough time, but if our dinner starts at 7pm I didn't want it to be done at 10pm. How have you been able to work around the outside vendor fees? My photographer won't require a room for the night, but it's way more affordable to book him a room and call him a guest instead of pay the fee (I think it's $400 or something). I'm also worried about make-up and hair too. It's incorporated in the hotel wedding package, but I've heard really good things about Adrian Guerra http://www.stylingtriorivieramaya.com/ He does airbrushed make-up which is apparently good for the heat. I'll have to think about that one because that would be another fee.

Thanks Sandy! It would be awesome if you could send over pictures! You can use [email protected] Thanks for the info on the restaurants. I’m expecting about 40 people in total so I doubt they’d close down the restaurant for that amount. I wonder if they would if we paid extra, although I’d need them to provide me with the dollar amount before deciding. The Villa Marina would be nice too, but I’m not a big fan of sharing the space with other people, I’d rather have it to the wedding only ;-) I do love the terrace so that’s totally an option. I’ll try and sort out the wind factor. I wonder if there’s a website that shows the wind patterns for the Mayan over the months, haha. Did you find the Terrace private enough? I know it’s off the lobby, but I’m thinking they’d close it off if there’s a wedding there. For your reception on the terrace did Ana say you could have a dance floor set up there too? Thanks for the tip on Fusion; I like the idea of doing the rehearsal dinner there. We’re probably staying as Privilege people, but our guests will be regulars. I’m hoping this will give us a bit of privacy from everyone when we need it. Good luck with the planning!