nishabella

Hi ladies! I'm getting married Jan 8 and 9, 2012 at Majestic Elegance in Punta Cana. Are any Toronto/Canadian brides getting married in Punta Cana around that time? Who are you using as a photographer? I'm just trying to get a sense of what price range is reasonable...and if there are ay opportunities for sharing photogs!

I'm using L'Escape Destination Weddings. They're really organized and have been very helpful so far. Tell Jasprit that Nisha sent you! Her email is: [email protected]

Good to hear! Where and when is your wedding? We are booking at Majestic Elegance in DR for the first week of Jan

Hey ladies, I've been working with L'Escape to narrow down resorts and rates for my 2012 wedding. They've been really professional and prompt so far, and their rates are quite competitive. We haven't officially booked yet but I'm hoping to do that this week!

echraide, The reason i decided to cut Palace resorts from my list was because someone told me they try to sell timeshares to people staying there. I didn't want my guests to be subjected to a salespitch! Can anyone else confirm whether they do that or not?

veronica, june - november is hurricane season in DR. it might be better to go before or after that.

Oryx, islandbride8 - that's helpful thanks!

Dmitri, do you have any links to the photos of these Indian destination weddings that you could post?

Hey kjanda I found out that some Excellence Resorts in Mexico actually have an Indian a la carte restaurant called Basmati. So if it's important for your guests to have Indian food this is a great option. Unfortunately, it's an adults-only resort. We need to have kids so we can't have ours there.

I read on a different thread that this was the price for open bar: Disco / Sports bar / Parrots Bar / Wet Bar $500.00 per hour National drinks + sound system up to 40 guests

Hey ladies, You all are so helpful! We're considering Majestic Elegance for our April 2012 wedding. Do any of you know: 1) If there are any ceremony locations that can accommodate 120 people? We don't want to do the beach, would rather do a garden or gazebo location. 2) If we rent Tiffany chairs for the morning - can you use them again for the reception? Or do they charge you double? 3) Does ME allow fireworks? (That would be amazing!) 4) What's the weather like at the end of April? Would it be too windy for a beach reception? 5) Canadian brides, what kinds of rates are you getting from TAs? Mine quoted between $1700 - 1900 per person from Toronto, but said they would likely go down. Thanks!

Hey all, We're having a big, fat, hindu, catholic, destination wedding! I'm talking about a minimum of 120 people. We're leaning towards an all-inclusive resort in the DR. But it seems that if you have anything beyond about 20 people, you have to pay a pretty outrageous amount per person for a private reception with open bar. Can you recommend all-inclusives you've been to/are going to that are good for hosting big groups with lots of private events?

Is it possible to create a new area for discussions about "cultural" destination weddings? That way people could post about how to find different ministers (pandits, rabbis, etc), which resorts serve Indian food, where to find religious statues of Ganesh in Mexico, etc. It's hard to sift through all the regular threads for this info, even using the search function. Thanks!

Hey ladies, I've come across a few companies that bill themselves as DW planners and travel agents all-in-one. So they co-ordinate all your travel for you for free, and if you pay a fee they will also come with you to the resort. Have any of you used any of these companies? Thoughts? They are all based in Toronto. Luxe Destination Weddings (there is a separate thread on this company and it doesn't seem to be getting very positive reviews) http://luxedestinationweddings.com/ L'Escape Destination Weddings http://www.lescape.com Weddings in the Tropics http://weddingsinthetropics.com/ The Wedding Holiday http://theweddingholiday.com

Hey Kjanda, Congrats! Where are you from? I am an Indian bride planning a Hindu/Catholic destination wedding. We are aiming for Feb or Apr 2012. So far I've found that Mexico, Dominican Republic and Jamaica will have the best facilities and will be most cost-effective for a group of that size. We are also expecting 120-150 guests. We haven't settled on a resort yet but are leaning towards the DR. One of the issues I've found is holding private events with such a large group is that the resorts charge an obscene amount per person for anything beyond the package. For example, having a private open bar can cost $25 per person, per hour. Yikes! I'm still researching all of this so if I find a good solution, I'll let you know. Keep in touch! Nisha

Hey ladies, I'm tying the knot in early 2012! We're looking at Mexico, DR, and Jamaica. It's a bit complicated because it's an interfaith wedding (Hindu + Catholic), so we have a lot of requirements that don't fit into the packages the resorts provide. We're planning for about 150 guests. Does anyone have any suggestions about what a good all-inclusive resort fit might be? Are any of you using a planner?