colleenandclint

ToBeMrsDavis, I did not have a legal ceremony. It was symbolic. It was originally scheduled for 630 then cocktail party 7-8. But two weeks before I switched it to 6 because Anel (photo) suggested that if it was at 6 she would have a bit more light for the photo shoot after the ceremony. I didn't know what to do but went with her advice and was glad I did. My guests watched us get some pics and then went on to the cocktail party. They didn't complain that they were waiting around or anything. And then we got to enjoy the most/half of the cocktail party too. I had read that some brides had too tight of a timeline and they didn't get to go to the cocktail hour at all. Hope this helps!

Hi asanyc! So, I brought the sand ceremony down. I ordered it from sandsationalsparkle.com. It was pretty cheap and they had a lot of colors of sand to choose from. As for the centerpieces, I did not pay extra for those. However, I did want the tower of lanterns and apparently it was broken. So they threw in the centerpieces and put the lanterns on the pool deck filled with some sand. The lanterns lined the whole pool deck. Looked good, but would have still preferred the tower. Not sure how much those centerpieces would have cost. We did not do the dance floor. I was quoted $600 and am glad I didn't do it. Our party danced all night and it wasn't necessary. One way to keep control of cost. The cake. That was standard. I did not upgrade it. It was included in the ultimate package. I was pleasantly surprised to see that it was layered. One funny thing, we ordered chocolate and when we went to cut it, it was difficult. The cake seemed like there was something hard in it. We cut thru it and it was a pineapple filled cake! Who know!!!! It was kinda funny, and my husband actually preferred it. So a few hiccups that night, but we just rolled with it. Let me know if you have more questions, hopefully I helped.

I have been waiting on my slideshow to share to write my review. And now I have it!!! My husband, Clint, and I got married on July 19th and it was amazing. Let me start by telling you that this site is incredible. I did not write too much but it is a so helpful to hear from past brides and I was so excited for it to finally be my turn. I don't want to be too repetitive from other reviews, but if anyone has questions, I'm more than happy to share. In the one year that we booked this resort, I went thru 6 wedding coordinators and freaked out every time. It is no big deal, all of my information was always transitioned. My final wc was gina and she was awesome. Once you get within 3 months or so, the communication was sooo much better. Remember they have weddings almost everyday, so there are lots of brides that want their attention. They know exactly what they are doing. Timeline night before: rehearsal dinner at el patio at 6pm. we did pay extra for this and now after the fact, I realize you pay for the service. we had 37 people and could have just walked in at 6pm, however since we were booked, we were sectioned off and had a personal bartender and incredible service. Clint did get his own room the night before that was included in the ultimate wedding package. we actually made it all day the day of the wedding without seeing each other! day of: till 130- relaxed by the pool with my family. nice! 230- my sister and i went to spa to get hair and makeup done 515- Anel from adventure photo came to our room to get pics. we upgraded to the 999 package and anel covered the whole event. she was great. very happy with the pics. one note, adventure photos seems to be busy a lot of the time. if you walk past and see there is no one in there, take advantage. we chose our pics while we were there. they said it usually takes about 5 days for editing. 550- gina came to get me to walk to the beach 6pm- ceremony on the beach. i didn't know if the sand would be too hot in july at 6 but it wasn't. i went barefoot for the ceremony. we had my brother in law perform the ceremony. he was ordained online. ha. the weather was perfect, breezy and cooler than i expected. 7pm- cocktail hour w mariachi band by jacuzzi area 8-11- reception with sit down dinner. very nice. we were happy to have just shy of 40 people and do the sit down dinner. we selected escargot, crab cake, broccoli soup, choice of seabass or beef, and wild berry pastry. for the entree, i sent an email to all of our guests and asked them which they preferred. then my mom and i made place cards in two different colors to determine fish or beef. this made it super easy for the staff to just serve the food. we had rodrigo as our dj from avi and he could not have been better. i'm horrible with title and artist so i could not really tell him what i wanted. i just wanted people to dance. he said he would take care of it and he did!! he was great he phased in and out of the songs and the dancing never stoppped. total blast. worth the extra money for a dj (300/hr) we brought down chair sashes due to the cost. i recommend this, they were so easy to pack. they are .59 to buy and pack or $5 a piece to rent. The resort will move the sashes from the ceremony to the reception free of charge. here is a tip for oot bags. I bought them online from http://baggubag.com/#Shop and just got the small size. they worked great. everyone used them every day to put the key and suntan lotion and magazines in to bring to the pool. perfect bc then everyone knew where our group's stuff was at the pool. another tip: take advantage of everything included in the ultimate package. clint and i used the spa services and loved it. also, the dinner on the beach was really romantic. we were literally on the beach having a candlelit dinner with our personal server. this place is on top of everything. although clint and I were very familiar with all inclusive resorts, many of our guests were not. they raved about the resort, the rooms, the restaurants. even our skeptics were impressed. again, if anyone has questions, feel free to send them my way. enjoy the slideshow....... http://190711copenhaver.dreamsriveriacancun.adventurephotos.com.mx/ Colleen and Clint

Alaina, I loved your hair for the wedding. Did you have an inspiration picture? Can you email me what you used or a pic of your hair. I can't figure out how to save a pic from your slideshow. Thanks so much!!! Colleen [email protected]

Lindsay, I can't believe it is finally here. Exactly one week from today, I will be landing at the cancun airport. I still have a few little things to do but all in all, I am really calm and just excited. I have Gina as a wedding coordinator, and her communication has been excellent. I can't wait. I forget when is your wedding? Are you after me? Im the 19th. Sharon, I think you are the 17th right? See you all in a week!!!!

any past brides that did a rehearsal dinner at El Patio have any suggestions as to what to choose for the menu?? thanks, getting very excited. it is almost july!!!

anyone have any advice on how to best get pictures. I have the ultimate package so it includes the ceremony and photo session and 50 photos. however, i would like to have them shoot the cocktail party and reception, but it seems so expensive. it's an additional 999 but i will get the 50 photos included in the ultimate package. is this how everyone else is doing it??

Sharon and Lindsay, Not too much longer!!! Our month is almost here. I had Lisbeth as a coordinator and was concerned when I heard that she was gone. Good news, I got an email from Gina, my new coordinator, and she assures me everything will be perfect and she has all of my info. I don't think I will ever be done with all the wedding details, I just keep updating my list. Haha. Are you all done with yours???

Congratulations, I hope everything will be amazing!!! Kinda disappointed to hear about Lisbeth. She was my fourth wedding coordinator and I really liked her. My wedding is in 30 days and I was crossing my fingers that this wouldn't happen.

for the previous brides......what size table overlay is needed for the dinner tables? thanks!

can you email me the official wedding playlist? this would be sooo helpful, im not much of a music person. thanks!!! [email protected] thanks! colleen

Lcranley- such a great review. It's awesome how involved your new husband is. Sounds like you all had a blast. Question: what about shoes? Is the sand hot? Did you have any problems walking in your heals in the sand or on the pool deck? What do you suggest? Thanks!

Hey girls, my wedding is July 19th!!! We will be there from the 16th to the 25th.

Chrissy, I'm curious about this too. I can't remember the pricing/rules for a semi-private rehearsal dinner. It seems some brides have just chanced it and it worked out but i'm nervous to chance it. any suggestions???

i am planning on having my brother in law perform our cermony. anyone know of a website to get him ordained? thanks, i can't believe my wedding is only 2 months away