kellygrrrl

wow, smckinney! thank you SO MUCH for such a great review. there were a TON of helpful tips in there, and you looked fantastic. it's great to hear such a glowing review re the hotel spa hair and makeup. congrats on all your time and energy that went into planning - I bet all your guests LOVED IT! : ) thanks again for all the details.

and YAY for all the 10.10.10 brides. it was all I could think of yesterday : )

prettypigpig - glad to hear someone else reserved as far in advance as I will!! please keep me posted on what you find out from your WC, and fingers crossed. also, did you reserve online or by calling?

Hey JHarris - Sorry to hear about the rescheduling, but I think you're right that getting married on Friday will work out better in the long run (provided your hair/makeup person agrees!). I think it'd be so much easier to arrive on a Thursday for a Friday wedding and stay through the weekend than leave on Wednesday for a Thursday wedding. Maybe it's just me, but getting off work can be tricky at times. I'll keep my fingers crossed for you that the final pieces fall in to place. Also agree with what others said about the Save the Dates - no need to redo, maybe just an email instead? The guests know when the wedding is, another day shouldn't make much difference. Also, if you're planning to send booking info with the invites, you can easily make sure they're aware there. LisaDSO re the flower petals - I don't think there are any restrictions at the Royal (whether they're real or artificial), though customs may prevent you from bringing real ones into Mexico. The Royal will sell you a bag of petals for $20, I believe - they recommend 5 - 10 to line an aisle runner, and I think someone on here was fine with 5 bags.

I believe the WCs will request that you address any mailings to their attention. Most brides have had shipments arrive successfully, although they say to allow appropriate time for customs, just in case. Shells are the most common thing that cause a hold-up. Other brides had packages returned to them in time to carry them onto the plane. And I don't think anyone had an issue with boxes being misplaced once they arrived at the resort - customs was the biggest headache. Best of luck, msglave!

I think the dress code thing is more in keeping with the spirit of the resort. You're outside in a swimsuit during the day, so adding a coverup is fine for the more casual places (Spice, Pelicanos, Tapas and Pixtos). But evening dinner is sort of like an event - think 'date night', something you'd WANT to get dressed up for. The only place I felt like the dress code was critically important was Chef's Plate because it's private dining with only 12 tables. Otherwise, I think a non-t-shirt and jeans are absolutely fine. I can't remember if my b/f wore his flip flops or his sketchers, but you get the idea. It's not so much 'NO sandals' as it is, "hey, you're going out to dinner, please make an effort." ; ) I think that's all they're politely trying to say. The Royal is a REALLY nice place, and you'll like looking good while you're there. : )

Hi SWallace - I think the majorty of women on here are getting married at the Royal, so I'm not sure how it would work to just schedule the other events separately. That said, in the wedding price packages there are fees listed for private receptions, and based on an earlier conversation I had with one of the WCs, if you're looking to do a welcome dinner, cocktail hour, and/or rehearsal dinner, you'd just pay those prices (e.g. $10pp for cocktail hour, $15pp for semi-private dinner, 15 people max, or $30 pp for a private dinner with minimum of 20 people). However, because you're not booking a wedding package, I'm not sure if that will impact the cost. I believe you're also able to eat together in any of the restaurants at anytime if you have fewer than 15 people - they'll just push tables together for you. The wedding coordinators are assigned once people book their ceremonies, so you may instead try calling the 800 number on the website and finding an appropriate contact for the event scheduling that way. As far as the salon goes, some people have had good experiences, some just ok, and some not so good. The general concensus seems to be that if you have a pretty specific idea of what you want, they'll likely be able to mimic the photos you bring. I think they also have a book of bridal hair styles to choose from. Makeup-wise, I don't know if I'd trust their choice of foundation (there's another forum on here about the right makeup for pictures), and I know some brides have brought their own makeup and paid the salon to apply it for them. There's also a MAC counter right around the corner from the hotel, and they'll do a trial for a $70 purchase and day-of makeup for another $100. It's pricy, but at least you get makeup that you can keep. Finally some brides are paying for outside people to come do their hair and makeup, but it generally costs around $350 and then you may have a $350 outside vendor fee on top of that (some brides were charged, others were not). All in all, I think you'd be fine with the Royal spa, provided you knew what you were looking for beforehand. Best of luck, and please respond if you have any additional questions.

Ah liberal arts! I got my Bachelor's in Liberal Arts from Plan II, a program at UT. LOVED it!! The concert thing is a bit tough, but maybe you can schedule around it? I've seen people there for a concert and the hallways are crowded 1) when people enter (before the hotel opens the ballroom), 2) during intermission and 3) when the concert ends. Not that it would be concerning, as you'll be inside a ballroom (with a DJ and/or your own music?). But one thing to check on would be the ambient sound. Are the ballrooms actually separated by permanent walls (e.g. across the hall from each other and/or well-insulated) or are the walls retractable? Of course, the upside of this would be not having to pay for music at the wedding. : ) (j/k)

Thanks, JHarris. I was going to try to keep that info in there, too. For example, regarding flowers, I'd explain that the top nearby vendor is Maya Diseno but depending on your coordinator, you may or may not have to pay the vendor fee. I know one person pasted an email quote from a WC that said if the florist isn't setting up the flowers on the Royal property, there's no fee but others have been charged regardless. I don't know much about Southwestern but am glad to hear from another Texas bride! I know there were several earlier -- it's great we can continue the tradition! : )

whew, ok here goes. hi ladies!! : ) after reading hundreds of pages of messages (I started somewhere around page 200...) I feel like I know most of you already. it has been really great hearing about all the ups and downs of destination weddings, not to mention gathering all the in-depth knowledge of the royal from previous posts and reviews. I've kept pretty good notes up until this point and am thinking of compiling a BDW FAQ document for the royal so that newbies can quickly catch up on the past year or so of questions. not that I want to deprive anyone of the experience of reading through everything, just that I found a lot of, "remember when we talked about XXX... I forgot how much/what size/where I could find, etc." someone should write a book about this one day, hearing about the disasterous dress alterations and the mexicana airlines debacle - I DIED!! ok, so a little personal information - my fiance and I both live in austin, he's a high school biology teacher and part time rock star (he sings in a 90s cover band), and I'm a marketing gal and part time groupie. : ) in 2009 we took our first vacation to the royal (it felt like an early honeymoon) and have been dreaming about going back ever since. two years before that, I treated my mom to a vacation there, so I'm hoping the on-site knowledge will help those of you who are planning without having visited. here's the catch - we're not getting married until may of 2012. yes, that's right. not next year, the one after. : ) it just seemed like scheduling in 2011 would have been too quick, and we wanted to give our friends and family time to really prepare for the trip, hoping that would ultimately allow more of them to be there with us. if nothing else, I'll hopefully get my choice of locations/vendors (fingers crossed!! : ) so before this gets too long, I just wanted to thank you all for everything. I'm hoping I can return the favor by being a frequent contributor over the next year and a half. I think it's really great to have this resource for us girls and look forward to all that is to come. best of luck with everything. I'm eager to help!