acw271011

I was wondering what had happened to you and how your wedding went!!! I hope in spite of the drama that it was wonderful. Personal opinion only, I wouldn't send the cancellation note with your wedding announcement. That really should go separately. You're announcing a happy event. How many people were supposed to be going to the reception? Could you not take an evening and cancel by phone? Enlist family to help you out. Your mom, or get your new husband to talk to his side of the family as well. Things like that happen all the time. Weddings get cancelled, or even downsized and plans have to change. If you really want to send something out, go to Staples and buy the plain white cards they sell that go with invitations. Print them out on your printer and sent them out. It doesn't need to be anything fancy. And from the etiquette that I've heard about, you don't have to give a reason. You can simply say that due to unforseen circumstances, or circumstances beyond your control the event has been cancelled. Period. The family gossip tree will do the rest of the work for you. If there are certain people that you want to provide more detail to you can do that. Otherwise, the event has been cancelled and that's it. Hope you can post some pics soon!! Welcome back and congratulations on being a new Mrs.!

we're november 17 but not Iberostar, Gran Bahia. I'd be interested in details - pricing, size, etc.

wow. I'm blown away at the number that are booked for 2012 already!!! we just finally booked a couple of weeks ago for november and I thought that was way ahead!! we didn't get the day and date we wanted because GBPJ is booked up but I'm ok with it. JayKay - you got your dress already? talk about organized!! we're doing them tomorrow but everyone is on a diet so I'm not ordering until probably may. unfortunately booking so far in advance yes you run the risk of the company changing their departure date. there is a formula too it that involves gate time at the airports when they leave and return, generally first come first served. so if another airline beats you out, you have to pick other times and days. we may be in the same boat. we plan (at the moment) to leave on sunday, but it's very possible we will get a saturday departure. our wedding is on thursday. could mean we do our wedding thursday, get one day to recover then have to turn around and fly home on the saturday, which would totally suck. compensation is we'll probably go away again a month later for a week at Xmas. somewhere there is always a bright side girls. take that from an old lady that is doing this for the second time and loving every minute of it. I know it's your wedding but try to just roll with it. we always want everything perfect but sometimes the best moments in life are the ones not planned. now I received a quote from Transat out of Toronto that is terrible - over $1500 so we'll definitely be waiting a while to book. it's really tough to realize they are charging these amounts now but it you go online by July to book it yourself, you would probably get it for no more than $1,000. we actually saw GBPJ in January of this year for $700 taxes all in. that's less than half of what they are askng for now. I know everyone is getting upset about the resort prices, but doesn't it make you wonder where the airlines get off charging someone $1800 for a vacation that 6 to 8 months later someone else will pay half that amount for??? maybe that's where there should be a protest??

wow. step away for a few days and you really miss a lot!! not sure if I can help out here at all except to pass on what I've been given. all of the AI resorts I've ever been to guys are NOT allowed shorts - dress or otherwise - for dinner and shirts must have a collar. I plan to check on the sandals bit cuz my guys are wearing them with their wedding clothes. I had completely forgotten about that until I saw it mentioned here, but again, my FI has always had to wear proper shoes at the dinner restaurants and we've been to different AIs in several different places. I was told there are chair covers even with the free package, but that you pay for the sashes, and that's from the 8 page information thing I got from Bev before she left. there are actually 3 choices of bouquets that you can chose from and for some reason I can't paste them here, but if anyone wants them I can send them. I think I might email tomorrow and see what kind of answer I get back about the price changes. we're nov 17th which is ALMOST 2012 right? that should cound for something. it's also coincidentally 8 months from tomorrow!!! exactly in fact. thurs 17th tomorrow and we're thurs 17th. dress shopping is on for this saturday. anyone else getting guys into Tommy Bahama? that's what we've picked. they actually have a destination wedding section on their website!! as an FYI, I got another email today about another fuel surcharge, sunwing again. they're adding more - another $30 per person for new bookings.

so here is a little tidbit of info for anyone that still has not firmed up their travel quote. I'm so frustrated over this part of it that I might just scream at somebody!! I found a TA this morning - Marlin Travel in downtown Toronto where I work and they declare themselves "destination wedding and honeymoon specialists". she gave me a few good reasons but one of the key things is they deal with Transat and Nolitours - if you're looking for good rates, they are 2 of the best. the second thing is if you're an air miles collector, or any of your guests are, they can use their air miles toward their trip and bring the costs down. she said 800 air miles = $100 up to a maximum of $400 per person if they have enough to get that much obviously, and in our case where we're trying to get costs down for our kids, we can purchase the certificates and help the kids out with their costs because you just apply the certs to the final balance, which isn't due generally until 60 days prior to departure!! I think most people collect air miles, and if you don't this is a good reason to start. they can wrack up pretty darn quick depending on where you get gas, if you shop at Metro, Rona, any of those stores. well worth it I think. I would definitely like to know about the new rates as to a late 2011 wedding November. that's pretty darn close to 2012 lol if anyone gets an answer, I'd love to hear it for sure. the same would apply to us - we could do other things if we were saving.

Thanks stacey for all the great info but now I have a few questions lol we're doing 2:30 so I think we'll be good for sunset pics, right?? I was already warned that Jamaica time is different and that we probably won't start on time so I'm not worried yet. I've been told sunset in november is around 5:45?? we just figured we would head back after and do our best to stay out of the way of the other wedding. when you look at the area, there's tons of space!! how much was it for the extra cake layer? we'll only have about 14 people total so that sounds like an awful lot of cake??? help?? Chandly sent me menus but the way they're set up, it sounds like you have to take what is listed? maybe because we want the Grill and not the Italian the menus are a little different?? again, help?? I only had a quick look at the new packages - they look fantastic price wise, but now I'm wondering if you have to have the number of people specified at the bottom??? does anyone know? like I said, we're only a really small group but if it means I'll get a bit more then I'll definitely pay for it but we won't meet any of the numbers they're showing, like 24 or 30 people.

definitely the second one!! it's classy and I like the starfish. maybe just widen the circle a little so the name letters don't hang over so far. otherwise, way to go!! wanna do one for me too??????

The one in Mississauga, unless you can go during the day, is booked solid every weekend until early April. they have a catalogue online if you want to look - www.davidsbridal.ca all dresses are approximately $50 or more higher than the US, bridesmaid dresses roughly $20 or more. timing is anywhere from 10 to 22 weeks for item to arrive. for me, with the exchange on the dollar, the taxes and how close I am, not worth it to go here. plus I go to PA all the time to see family and Erie is even better. tax rate is only 6%. if you're gone a weekend the way we are, $400 per person to bring back. between 2, $800 covers a dress pretty much. can't beat that if it's tax free on top of the exchange and the lower prices!!

that's what she goes by. the day I phoned down there before Bev left, she was talking to Chandlyn while I was on the phone and that's what she called her. btw - did anyone catch the thing on the news last night (for GTA area brides) about the David's Bridal opening here? pretty good actually and if you go to davidsbridal.ca they have a catalogue online. I have about 5 dresses picked out that I want to try because I know exactly what style I want, and they are all $50 bucks more than what I was looking at in NY. mind you, given what the dollar is at and the fact that gas is still cheaper in the good old US of A, it might still be worth going to Niagara for dresses, but the Davids here is definitely taking a pretty good run at trying to get the business!!!

if anyone wants to do the sand ceremony as part of their wedding, Tai Flora can do it. you chose your sand colour and the container can be closed up for you to take home with you. cantact Jennivie at Tai Flora at [email protected]

I'm totally with that Steph. I'm finished with them. I asked for a quote on Jan 28th and they just got back to me last week. That's just for starters. Then to call me 2 days after giving me a quote and giving me a different one, I was NOT impressed. And I definitely do not find there is anything good about the prices they're getting. They aren't any better than anyone else. I got the whole story about if we don't do a group booking we may not get on the same flight, blah blah. We've done enough travelling and have family in the airline business that we're going to either do our own, or wait until June. Keeping costs down is too important for us if we want our children at our wedding, which obviously we do. We've booked several trips through itravel2000 and really like them, and 1 trip through sell off vacations and did just fine. You aren't going to tell me that if we find a good price, get everyone to call the same day in May or June for November that we won't get on the same flight if we're going to the same resort. Either that or I'll deal with someone else. Belair travel maybe or Sell Off. Weddings are big business and everyone wants you to part with your money. On a happier note, we did some browsing shopping yesterday and think we have our colours, my dress, maid of honour dress, flower girl dress and the guys Tommy Bahama shirts!! Woohoo! Try ons are scheduled for Mar 19th. Guava, watermelon, and fuschia pink. De colours of de island mon!!!

Hi. I attended a wedding show in Toronto at the end of January and I was given a sheet from Sunquest with a deal on it. I've been talking to Weddings By Oceans here in Toronto. They do nothing but destination weddings. Check out their website - www.weddingsbyoceans.com they have a blog they run too, and they also review different resorts all over - St Lucia, Mexico, Jamaica right now, Aruba Most of what they recommend is pretty pricey - definitely out of our price range. We picked Gran Bahia ourselves. But the 1352 is what they gave me. Now I've said that. They actually called me 2 days later with a different quote of 1462 which totally pissed me off. My FI's first question was who else are we paying? I called Transat and Nolitours directly and they both told me they don't deal with the public themselves anymore. you have to go through a travel agent but I've generally found with all of our travels over the years that they are 2 of the cheapest. itravel2000 also does group travel and so does sell off vacations. I think the trick is just to keep at it. I doubt we'll be booking just yet. I know if we wait a bit we can get better prices. our thing is if we aren't willing to spend the amount of money being asked to travel why would we ask everyone else, and we have kids that are paying for their own so we have to get the cost down. hope that helps somebody.

these are some terrific ideas!! thanks everyone that posted. that gives me things to work with without being big, bulky and expensvie!! I'm surprised now because the link from toes says "notarized" but Chandlyn is saying everything is ok with what erin sent. but I wonder if that is because of the new NS raised seal that makes it look like it's notarized. I have a day off tomorrow and I'm going to phone and try and settle this question one way or another. I'm too worried about getting all the way down there and finding out we need cert documents and we don't have them!!

lmarie - we actually got our first quote yesterday. there is one deal on right now at $1352, with $200 off for the bride & groom and everyone else in the group, minimum of 10, gets another $50 off their price. and you have to book by Mar 31. my FI said it's still too high though so we're waiting to see on Transat and Nolitours. we've travelled with them before and they're always cheaper than everyone else. the tough part is we always travel last minute so we get ridiculous rates that you wouldn't normally get. our thing is we're older and have kids that don't live at home anymore, but want to be in Jamaica so our biggest worry is making it affordable for them because we definitely can't afford to pay for them!! we also have friends from the US trying to get there and also possibly from England and Scotland. we're doing November so that is low season and supposed to be really cheap. I'm anxious to get people booked but we may also hold out a bit for a better price if we can get one.

It's a bit different here in Canada. It isn't just anyone that can be a Notary. A Commissioner of Oaths, yes, but not a Notary. And the fees here are quite a bit higher than the US because of the certification required. You have to be a lawyer, paralegal or law clerk to be a Notary. We looked at getting married in Mexico and everything - all of your documents - have to be translated to Spanish first, then notarized and certified by the Consulate. We gave up the idea because we were looking at easily $700 in translation and notarial fees!! Generally, no matter where you go documents such as birth certificate or passport copies have to be notarized, as somebody else said, to prove that what you're sending is really yours and that it's legit. They may start the processing of your marriage licence in Jamaica without the notarized copies but to everyone, I would be prepared with both your original to show and a notarized copy to leave in Jamaica. If you haven't been married before, it isn't that expensive for just a birth certificate. In Ontario you should be able to get both copies (bride & groom) done for between $50 and $100. It will be more if, like us, you've been married before and need to notarize divorce decrees too. Hope that helps! as to the OOT bags - WOW! some of you are really putting them together. My question is how the heck are you going to get all of that stuff down with you????? I love everybody that is going to be at our wedding but not to the extent that I'm willing to pay a fortune to the airline to get the stuff down there!! I like some of the smaller ideas though!!

Hey ashley - when I talked to Chandlyn I asked about an outside photographer from Jamaica and she told me "no problem" but never mentioned a charge for it. but now I'm going to ask. we're using merrick cousley in jamaica. his cost is $1050 US for: all day coverage - preparation to reception dvd with all images (300 to unlimited) high res photo retouch his brochure says a travel fee is applicable but in one of his emails he said it was included with my package, so I want to double check. but for $350 more you get 150 4x6 prints, 3 8x10 matted prints, a wedding album that holds 200 4x6 prints and 3 months of a family online gallery to share all the pics so I think both are comparable in terms of price i'm curious about the OOT bags too??? I'm trying to figure out how to transport them along with all the other stuff... and what do you do for the older people? they won't care about flip flops lol I checked on ordering travel mugs and they ain't cheap!! not when you only need a small number of them. so hey - I'm open to ideas and suggestions!!

hey that's cool! that's where we're planning to have our hors d'oeuvres I think. do they call that the lobby terrace? it looks great! it doesn't solve my problem of "first dance" though if we don't get the gazebo. it's not like they'll clear the dance floor in the disco. hey lmarie - send an email to Tai Flora who are the florists for GBPJ. I've received 2 "catalogues" from them - the bouquet options (all of them) and everything else. bridal party bouquets, corsages, boutonnieres, petals, the whole works. I was told if you don't want what is in the packages, you get a credit towards whatever else you want. I don't have all the price quotes yet because obviously dresses aren't final yet but from what I'm hearing the prices are way better than what you would pay for flowers up here!! the lady is Jennivie and she's great!! I've talked to her on the phone too and she was so helpful. her email is [email protected] we're doing the sand ceremony too and they'll do that plus the mixed sand container can be closed up to transport back home. now we just need a good price to travel........ then we can start getting people booked!!

hey StephAli - yep. we're booked. unfortunately we ended up after all with Thursday. not what we wanted but what we could get. all other days of the week were gone in the space of about 4 days. it's ok. I'm fine with it and we're just working out the other details now. we only have one week in november that we can travel because of other family events so we fly nov 13th and get married on thursday the 17th. yay!!! looking forward to it. we also booked a photographer in jamaica that I got from here and he sounds great. I'm still thinking about the gazebo for the evening if someone hasn't already taken it. not sure what our first dance options will be if we don't take it. we're going to be a really small group - only about 10 or 12 so not sure about the cost for the gazebo. still waiting for our travel quote too and I think we'll probably be about $1400 for that, which I know will be a problem for some people. eight and a half months to go!!

hurricane season doesn't start until June 30th so you June brides should be fine. aug and sep are the usually the prime hurricane months. we originally wanted october, but we had people that were worried about it even then, so we went to november instead, even though the season ends nov 30th. from what we hear a hurricane in Jamaica in november is very, very rare so we should be good!!

I have a question maybe someone can answer?? soontobemrsdow - you may be the resident expert now! lol one of the people that is planning to attend our wedding in november read some really negative comments about the beach at GBPJ. I looked up the site she was on and sure enough - there are some comments that are pretty awful. some about the food and a few about how the beach is rocky and full of seaweed and ugly, etc now I'm worried. I really want the people that attend our wedding to have a good time, but if the beach sucks then that doesn't work. same deal about the food. any comments from anyone??? thanks a ton!!

If nobody minds a suggestion, it's really worth it if you live in Canada pretty much anywhere to buy a $5 or $10 phone card. you can buy them at any convenience store. I got some company called CiCi but it's great. for $10 I got 80 minutes worth of time to Jamaica and I'm in southwestern Ontario. email is great but sometimes, like now with Bev being gone, just for the reassurance a telephone call would really help. same with the flower info I was looking for on pricing. it was a holiday here yesterday so I did a bunch of stuff, one of which was calling the flower place. I'm sure everything is fine. all of the contact I've had is with Chandlyn even the day I called. Beverly was asking Chandlyn my questions while I was on the phone with her, so I really question who was doing all the work. it may take Chandlyn a few days to get organized and I doubt very much with the size of the hotel they will leave her on her own to manage everything but I think it will all work out. this process has enough stress with it already. if anyone is really and truly worried about any of their wedding stuff, I would definitely recommend a phone call.

Newsflash to GBPJ brides: Beverly is gone as of Tuesday last week. I phoned Tai Flora today to get some info on flowers and pricing and the lady there told me that Beverly left. So anyone waiting for her to get back to them should contact the assistant, Chandlyn. I heard Beverly calling her Chandy when I phoned to confirm our date and time. But I also think Chandlyn was doing the emails anyway so she may just be trying to catch up. I was told that Chandlyn has been with GBPJ six years and is very good and she was with RIU hotels before that so she said we're still in very good hands.

ok. it's time to call it a day. his name is MERRICK COUSLEY. sorry for the typo in the last message. website is right but his name wasn't.

damned old age..... forgot the photographer name: Merric Cousley merrickcousley.com check him out. his work is gorgeous!!

Yes - you can take your own decorations for tables, etc. I have that info in the package Chandlyn sent me. Resort photographer is Digipix and I think the website is digipixltd.com Just google Digipix Ltd. and it should come up. Their website is ok, but I didn't like the look of his photos. We have a photographer in Jamaica booked that I got from this site. He sounds great and his website is terrific. His prices are really reasonable and you have him for the entire day all to yourself. I think we're also going to have him come early in the day and do some engagement pics as well. Not sure yet. A word of warning for anyone still trying to get their travel group together, i.e. anyone like me with a November wedding. All of the tour companies - Transat, Sunquest, etc are all instituting a fuel surcharge. If could raise your resort package prices by as much as nearly $200 per couple. I know for us, for some people, that's going to be the difference between attending our wedding and not attending our wedding. I've asked that our trip quote include the new surcharge so that people get a real price, not get hit with another $200 bucks after they say yes. If you're still waiting for a group package quote, be sure to ask to have the new surcharge included. You don't want any angry guests that are pissed at you cuz you didn't give them the whole story!!