amylynn77

Hi Shannon - Â Your posts have been extremely helpful in my planning process. Thank you so much!!! I have a question for you regarding the actual ceremony. We are getting married at the Maya on October 8th. We have opted for a beach ceremony and a private reception. Regarding the ceremony, I am working on drafting/preparing the text/lay-out for our programs. I have emailed my WC, but it always takes a few days for them to respond, but I was wondering how the actual ceremony is performed? We are getting legally married in Mexico, and are hoping to write our own vows and have a reading or two. I think we're under some time constraints with the judge b/c she has another wedding to "perform" at right after ours. I guess I am wondering what the layout of our programs should look like. Would you be albe to share any information with me based on your recent experience? Â Thanks a bunch, Â Amy

So helpful! Thank you very much. I am going to double check with Mayra as well re: the chair rental. I think the white chairs included in the wedding package are the chairs used for the ceremony. When I asked about the room set-up for the cajun restaurant she told me that they have the square tables with the captains chairs - basically the chairs that are in the restaurant permanently - but have the ability to substitute the square for round, but don't have the according chairs. I think it would be too much work/not enough time for the staff to move the chairs from the ceremony site to the restaurant in time for the reception. This might work if you're planning to have a cocktail hour in between. Actually, I am going to pose that question. I'll keep you posted.

Lindobride - I spoke to Mayra and they do have round tables that can be used in the cajun and mexican restaurants for the private reception, however you will need to use a separate vendor for the according chairs. The vendor offers two types of chairs, the Tiffany Chair, which rents for $6 dollars a piece and the acrylic chairs, which rents for $8 bucks a piece plus shipping/freight charges. The Maya can coordinate the rental for you. It does not cost extra to use the round tables. I think we are going with the acrylic chairs and white linens. The same company that offers the chairs offers different colored bows and table cloths, napkins etc. Do you mind sharing information on the lighting vendor? Do you know what type of options they offer? Tiffany Chairs for rent Acrylic Chairs for rent

Thanks! That stinks about the themed plates and granny curtains. Did you get a chance to see their linens? Any thoughts there? I would love the Mexican restuarant, but we're not going to hit the 70 mark. It's sounds like they're pretty strick on that too. I am bummed about the table set up at the Cajun. I much prefer round tables. Was the restaurant a good size? From the picture below, it looks like the dance floor is set up between the two tables.

Hi Lisa - We are getting married October 8th and have the presidential suite on reserve for the night of the 8th per our wedding package. I just emailed Mayra/Lily and asked them to reserve it and they did. I am also reserving it the night of the 7th so thay my sis and I can spend the night there sans my finance. It also ensures that the room is available bright and early the day of my wedding becasue that is where my bridesmaids and I are going to get ready. Because there is only one suite, the prices are a tad high. I was quoted $600 for the upgrade on 7th (free for the 8th as the upgrade's included in the wedding package), however Mayra stated that this will probably come down due to occupancy in the hotel/change in rates closer to the time we'll be arriving. All you need to do is shoot them an email and ask them to reserve the suite for you since it's a part of the "dream civil" package. I hope this is helpful! Best, Amy

Lindobride - Thanks for your feedback. I spoke with Mayra on Friday and you will need the following for a legal wedding in Mexico. Since neither one of us is religious, we are doing the "Dream Civil - $5K" package and are not planning to have a separate "legal" ceremony back in the states. We will be legally wed in Mexico. If you are planning to have a legal ceremony you will need to provide the following to the wedding coordinator's: Please note: Names on all documents must be identical. SINGLE Birth certificate Passport Tourist card (Which every foreigner obtains on the flight down to Mexico) 4 witnesses If bride and groom are single the birth certificate does not need to be legalized or translated. DIVORCED Birth certificate Passport Tourist Card (Which every foreigner obtains on the flight down to Mexico) 4 witnesses If bride is divorced and has kept her maiden name then no additional documentation is required, however if the bride has kept her married name then her birth certificate and decree absolute will need to need legalized and translated. (The translation needs to be done here in Mexico by official Mexican Translator cost approximately $60.00USD per page). Another option is if the bride wish her parents names to appear on the marriage certificate, the birth certificate needs to be legalized and translated , if the bride do not find this necessary, the papers do not have to be translated. WIDOWED Birth certificate Passport Tourist Card (Which every foreigner obtains on the flight down to Mexico) 4 witnesses If the bride is widowed and has kept her married name then only her birth certificate will need to be legalized and translated. (The translation needs to be done here in Mexico by official Mexican Translator cost approximately $60.00USD per page.) IF THE GROOM IS DIVORCED OR WIDOWED THEN NO ADDITIONAL INFORMATION IS REQURIED. NAME CHANGE If the bride of groom has had a name change then the birth certificate and name change document needs to be legalized and translated. (The translation needs to be done here in Mexico by official Mexican Translator cost approximately $60.00USD per page). We are having a beach ceremony and then moving inside for the reception. We have about 50 guests attending, so we are going to have a private reception at the Cajun Restaurant. I am still not 100 percent certain on the location. Did you check out the Cajun Restaurant as a venue? We thought about having our reception outside, but it's an additional $50 bucks a head, so we nixed that idea. I have hired Claudia Rodriguez as my photographer and D.J. Bob as the D.J. Do you by chance know what they offer by way of set-up for the reception? Round tables vs. rectangle etc. What private reception venue will you be using? If you have any pictures to share from your recent visit, I would love to see them. I am nervous about the food, I sent my invitiations out last week and gave my guests 4 options to choose from. We're doing the "steakhouse" dinner and an additional veggie option for the non-carnivorous.

Hi Amy - Congratulations! I was just reading your post and I was curious as to what documents you brought with you to legitamize your nuptials. Did you have a legal ceremony or religous? If it was the former I am curious as to everything you brought with you. Mayra informed me that I won't need to have my birth certificate translated, but I am nervous b/c there seems to be a lot of conflicting information on this site and I've run into some miscommunication on certain things with the coordinators. I am getting married at the Maya on October 8 and am in full on preparation mode. Also, did you choose your flowers prior to your arrival or once you got there. I am having a hard time figuring out what I want based on the available options. Best, Amy

Quote: Originally Posted by Lindobride14 Hi all- Anyone past/future Lindo brides mind telling me what rates you paid for a 7 nt stay? We are about to send out save the dates w/ pricing info and the current rate is 1329 (not including airfare) Is this comparable to what anyone else paid? Seems a bit high . . . Tara - Thanks for the email with the additional reception pictures. I had not seen the El Tapito, Mexican Restaurant or the Beach reception pics. Very helpful. I was perusing the site this morning and noticed your question earlier this month about rates. My TA was able to secure the following rates at the Maya - not including airfare - for our guests: 3 nights - $405 4 nights - $532 5 nights - $655 7 nights - $910 (All based upon double occupancy) $1329 seems really high. My fiance and I are staying for 9 nights (at the Maya which is the pricier of the 4 hotels, aside from the Grand) and we are paying $1150 a piece. This stuff makes my head hurt. -Amy

Quote: Originally Posted by Lindobride14 Hi Amy- Saw your post and thought I'd chime in. I was told by Mayra that the El Tapatio mexican restaurant is also an option if you have more than 60 people. It's the one that's right off the pool. SHe also said you can have your reception on the beach, but I believe you have to do a buffet style dinner. I am not sure about the ballroom and whether you can have dinner there. I cannot wait till our July site visit so I can pick out our reception venue!! It's so hard to decide based on these pics! Hope this helps! I will email you the pictures Mayra sent me if you're interested. Thanks for butting in. Very helpful information. I have come to find in my dealings with the WC's that while they're very good about responding to emails and thoroughly answering my questions, however they're not good at providing all of the information in one fell swoop. I did not know about the Mexican Restaurant or the beach reception option. I am wondering if they can accommodate a rehearsal dinner on the beach? I think I might go this route. We were originally planning to treat all of our guests to a night on the town/dinner in Playa del Carmen, but the costs keep adding up so that is slowly becoming less and less of an option. That's fantastic that you're planning a site visit. I will definitely be picking your brain when you return! Are you familiar with what the formal dinner options are? When I learned about the cajun restaurant being one of the only venues for the private reception I wondered whether we would have to have "cajun" food for dinner. I am slowly learning from other posts on the site that we will have a choice. If you wouldn't mind emailing me the pictures, I would really appreciate it. Mayra sent me a few, but they were only of the cajun resturant and the areas (ballroom I'm assuming) where we could have a private 2 hour reception after dinner. My email address is [email protected]. I can also share information I received on the documents they require and the cost associated with the blood test if you are having a legal ceremony like we are. Best, Amy

Quote: Originally Posted by lisanicole I am getting married at the Maya on November 12th. I am having a private reception. I am told I can have it at Cajun restuarant or ballroom depending upon occupancy at resort at the time. They would shut down the restuarant for us if occupancy is low. If not, we will use the ballroom. Hi Lisa Nicole, I am getting married at the Maya on October 8th. I was told by Lily and Mayra that the Cajun Restaurant is the only option available for a private 4 hour reception where we won't have to switch locations in between. Are you able to have a sit down dinner in the ballroom or were you planning to have dinner at another location and then move to the ballroom for dancing/cake/etc. I would like to know more about the ballroom as a potential option as well. Sounds nicer than the cajun restaurant. Did they send you pictures? They provided me with a bunch of picture of reception venues, but told me that the cajun was the only full service (dinner included) private option available. Thoughts?

$500 is not bad at all. Thanks again for the info. I'm sure I'll have many more questions for you/the other hitched gals on the site. Thanks again!

Hi Shannon! Thank you for your thorough review. I just joined the BDW forum this week to find out a little more about things like flowers and photogs. I am getting married at the Maya on October 8th and thanks to your review, have booked Claudia Rodriguez' as my photographer. I damn near died when I saw the hotel's photoshop - photocaribbean's - work. Nothing creative and total cheese. They are def laughing all the way to the bank. So, thank you for your review. I wanted to inquire further about your centerpieces. You mentioned going with a local floral shop that contract with Iberostar. Was the hotel not able to provide flowers for your centerpieces, or did you just feel comfortable using an outside resource? Also, did you reach out to them prior to your wedding week arrival, or when you arrived? How was their pricing? Thanks in advance. Best, Amy