TilliePiper

Hey ladies! This is a LONG post, so be forewarned. :-) Kristine, if you're free tomorrow night jfuller and dmarr and I are getting together in the West Village at 6:30-ish to meet up, chat weddings, La Amada, etc. Want to join? Feel free to email me at laurelpetriello [at] gmail.com for details. Hope you can join! Uhleesa, depending on where you are in NJ, if you can make it, you wanna meet up with us, too, tomorrow? Just email me for details if you can. :-) So Kristine, on the welcome dinner, I know they can accommodate dinners on the beach (I've been thinking about doing my welcome dinner in the palapa on the beach), but like I mentioned a few threads ago, it gets very windy at night...like more windy than you're average beach at night. BUT, I was there in the October. Maybe it's different during other parts of the year? Also, as for outside vendors, I'm gonna venture a guess. Did you get that info from Nayeli? Since you met with her instead of Ileana, she might not have all of her facts straight because she is the wedding coordinator for their sister property Excellence Playa Mujeres, which is all-incusive, so that makes sense. Since La Amada is not all-inclusive, they don't have as many restrictions (or any that I've run into for that matter). I've had a great experience bringing in outside vendors, but I'm also working with Denise Courtney from Tropical Wedding Experts. I would HIGHLY recommend working with them. I can even give you Denise's email address if you like. They are essentially a wedding planning aggregator. They work with brides and grooms just like any wedding coordinator would, but instead of charging you, they get commission from the vendors you choose to work with. It's a win-win situation, because it's not extra cost to you (save for any gratuity you choose to give at the end) AND they know the area and the local vendors inside & out AND they have dozens of vendors they work with to choose from. Denise and TWE have kinda been a godsend for me, so I will definitely sing their praises from the treetops. :-) You should have no problem hiring an "outside" photographer. I'm using Samuel Luna. I haven't met him, which is a downer, but his portfolio is beautiful! As for hair & makeup, I am freaking out about this a little bit. I didn't have a trial either while I was there a few weeks ago, but now I'm feeling like I should have because I'm less than 4 months out so things are becoming more real. There are good makeup artists and there are BAD makeup artists. My best friend's (and BM) older sister is a makeup artist here in NYC and she INCREDIBLE. I invited her to my wedding and I'm crossing my fingers she can come and do my makeup. If not, I might have her just teach me how to do it myself. Not sure yet. As for hair, not sure either. Was planning on going with the salon at La Amada, but I might see who Denise has up her sleeve, too. She was telling me recently about a makeup artist who just moved to Cancun from LA who is amazing. We'll see on that one. Uhleesa, on the table set-ups, not sure why the price difference, because I got the two separate quotes, too. Maybe it's dependent upon your amount of guests? Size of centerpieces? We're having a very small shindig--like 15-20 people. As for tables & set-ups through Gabi at Planner 1, it definitely varies. I work in the design industry so modern decor is a big deal to me. The table set-ups we're going with are $200 for 6 people...but, here again, we're only having a small group, so it's not as big of a deal. I will say, however, that that was the most expensive set-up and she has ones that are a lot more cost effective. I have her pricing list I can send you. Just shoot me an email at the address at the top of the thread. On the off-site welcome dinner thing, I TOTALLY hear you! I don't want my welcome dinner to cost more than my reception! I sent an email off to Denise last night and hoping she has some good ideas offsite and have her hire a shuttle for us. I'd like to come in at close to 50% of the cost of the reception. If that doesn't work out, I'm gonna talk to Ileana about it a bit more, because I really like the idea of doing a taco bar with Mexican beers in the palapa on the beach and maybe even have them have the bonfire pit going, too...it's just a matter of cost right now. :-(

Hi Uhleesa, Yeah, that's what I was originally quoted, too; however, I got my personal proposal back from Ileana a couple weeks ago and it had $14 pp. But I, too, am gonna go through Gabi at Planner 1 (via Tropical Wedding Experts) for tables & centerpieces. Are you girls planning on having welcome dinners at the hotel? I was initially planning on it, but now I'm second-guessing. I kinda wanna get my guests off the property to experience something else AND my welcome dinner actually costs more than my reception...lame. Any ideas?

No way! You're in NYC, too!? Let's totally meet up! I live downtown, too, and work in the Flatiron area. My schedule's flexible most of the time as well, so let's do it! Feel free to email me at laurelpetriello [at] gmail.com. Ok, so, woah, woah, woah...we can bring in our own alcohol for the wedding at La Amada?!?! That would be amazing! Or is this just at the Villa? Have you and Denise talked flowers and cake yet? We did a cake tasting when I was down there a couple weeks ago with one vendor, but I was like "meh." The cake was pretty dry. She's says she's got a couple others up her sleeve though. Then there's always talking to Ileana about it. Do you think you'll do a cake tasting at La Amada while you're there? I wonder if they use an outside vendor... Anyway, drop me a line! Drinks it is! :-)

Hey Sara, we're wedding date twins! Woot! I've met SO many Feb 19th brides, but not 18th! Props to the 2.18.11 girls!

I feel the same way! There aren't too many of us! :-) Out of curiosity, are you working with Denise Courtney from Tropical Wedding Experts? I live in NYC and she was here last night for a big bridal expo. We met up for drinks and she mentioned she was working on a 130-person wedding in April at La Amada in addition to mine. What a crazy coincidence if that's you! :-) As for where to host the reception, I'm not sure how many people fit in and around Isla Grill. Maybe if everyone gets cozy? Another thought is the owner's suite. Ileana took my FI and me up there for a tour and damn, it's gorgeous! We were thinking of using it for our reception, but I'm SO SO SO in love with the Lupita Lounge. One thing to consider with tables on the beach is that for some reason, that beach gets super windy toward to end of the day. BUT I was there a few weeks ago, maybe it's different in April? Maybe Ileana would have ideas on how to combat the wind? We're actually not using the minister supplied by the hotel because we're non-denominational and we're doing a Mayan wedding ceremony instead of a traditional ceremony. I'm so psyched about it. And that's being arranged through Denise, our WC. As fo florist, it'd be worth it to see who they use, but no, I wasn't planning on using there's. I'm working with Gabi from Planner 1 Events (through Denise again) for flowers and for furniture rentals (we opted to go with different furniture than what La Amada has, as well). On the night before, we're doing a welcome dinner at La Amada. We're doing the Taste of Mexico buffet on the beach in the Palapa gazebo. I'm a little nervous about the wind on that one, too, but I figure it's casual, so no biggie. I'm thinking about DIYing some fabric panels to attach to the gazebo to kinda keep the wind out. Are you planning on a welcome dinner or something the night before?

Hi Laura, I'm using Tropical Wedding Experts and working with Denise Courtney. I've had a great experience so far, so feel free to ask anything! Laurel

I'm planning my wedding at La Amada for February 18, 2011! I'm having a MUCH smaller shindig, but I think they can certainly accommodate 130+ people at the La Aroma restaurant. They have a pretty big front of house and there's always the patio outside, as well. I was just down there about two weeks ago and had an amazing experience, so feel free to bounce ideas off me and I might bounce some off you, too! :-)