Jwed12

@kaitstr I'm so glad the review was helpful! We ended up with about 50 people total at the wedding. When you're looking at wedding packages offered by the resorts, make sure you look at how many guests the packages account for. For example, the free wedding package is only for like 4 guests. We went with the Caprice package and reserved the Mahoe Bay Steakhouse for the reception. I highly recommend it

http://staceyclarkephotography.com/index2.php?v=v1 Send her a message, and she'll get back to you. She's awesome!

This isn't a great thread for answers. Click the link below to go to a much more informative thread about Riu-Montego Bay. We had our wedding there June 23, 2012, and it was awesome. Several girls have posted their reviews on the following thread which are super helpful. Good luck! http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/t/72216/riu-montego-bay/80#post_1789429

We did one hour, but that hour went by fast!!! If you want to do underwater stuff (not just like....splashing in the surf or getting waist deep) I'd definitely plan on two. It also depends on where you're having your shoot. If you're going off resort, you're going to need to talk to your photographer and see if travel time is included. If you're having the shoot at your resort, it will save some time.

I LOVE this dress! Great choice. It will definitely be light and airy. A belt might be hard to add since it's not a straight waistline, but I think a glitzy headband in your updo would be gorgeous! Add some jewlery and a veil....you'll never be able to tell this was a bridesmaid's dress.

Yup, the WC set up everything. Well...not her exactly. She had some helpers, but it all got set up. I gave her place cards and a seating chart, centerpieces, the guest book, tea lights, and votives. The Caprice package also comes with flower petals that she laid as I walked down the isle and later used on the tables. It also comes with fresh flowers that decorated the gazebo as well as our table. The top is open air, but I totally recommend it. The reception won't start until 6:30 (we were a little late taking photos, so it didn't start till 7). There was a great breeze, though, and there's also ceiling fans. Once the dancing started, I was literally just dripping sweat and so was my hubby, but we didn't care. We were having too much fun. The groomsmen and the dads all got changed into shorts and polos after the photos were done. Honestly, all of the restaurants are open air pretty much. The Asian and Italian are sometimes "air conditioned" but it was soooo warm when we ate in there.

You should be! I'm excited for you. We did have to pay a vendor fee. It's $350 to bring in a photographer, and $200 to bring in a DJ. Sometimes, the vendors will split the fees with you. Our photographer had a wedding on Wednesday before ours on Saturday, so she just stayed at the resort as a guest, and the vendor fee was voided.

Thanks Mrlddst! The Dj was $750. He came around 3ish to set up and began playing music at 3:30 for the guests. Wedding was 4-4:30, so he played for that. Then he broke down his whole sound system to take up to the reception and played from 6:20-10:30. He was so great. Videographer is separate. You'd have to talk to your photographer about that one. Stacey works with a videographer who is $200 for the whole thing which I really didn't think was bad, but we ended up not going with that.

Riu Montego Bay Review Hotel: A I would definitely go there again. I. Rooms: - I have heard some complaints about the rooms. We had 46 guests with our group for the wedding, and we had NO problem with the rooms. They had AC, they were plenty big enough, balconies were great, and most of all…we were never in there! We were outside the whole time unless we were getting ready. If I had to be picky…our bed was two beds pushed together which I did have an issue with at first, but it turned out to be, “No problem, Mon!†It was totally a non-issue. II. Food: A - There are three specialty restaurants open for dinner: Asian, Italian, and the steakhouse. There is also a buffet. I’ll break it down by restaurant. (If you want to eat at one of the specialty places, make reservations!) Asian: This was my favorite! The seared tuna was awesome, there was a small selection of sushi, but it was enough to satisfy my craving. Spring rolls and lo mein were delicious. J Italian: I liked the salmon from here. They have a huge “appetizer†buffet-although this could have been my dinner. Then you order your main course. It’s hard to get into though, so make reservations. Steakhouse: We had our reception here. I really liked the food. Also hard to get into. Buffet: It was fine! They always had fresh fruit and delicious fresh blended juices in the morning. There is always a lot to choose from, however…you won’t want to eat there for every single meal. It just gets boring as does any restaurant if you eat there every day lol. Jerk Chicken Hut: This was pretty much our lunch every day. They open for lunch on the beach at 12 with great chicken, sausage, and sides. Line can get long, so get there early! III. Drinks/Bartenders A -One thing is for sure, they definitely do NOT skimp out on alcohol. The drinks were awesome. The pool bar was definitely my favorite, and we hung out at the Coconut bar later on. Caprini was my favorite. It’s like a mojito. J In room mini bar is included. There is also a liquor dispenser in your room which they refill every other day. IV. Entertainment: A -There is a show every night. The entertainers are awesome! They’ll play beach volleyball with you, they’ll play water polo in the pool with you, and they’re awesome dancers. If you are lucky enough to see the King of Fire show or the Michael Jackson show…you’re in for a good time. V. Beaches/Pool: A -Water is beautiful on the beach! We hung there every day just hanging out in the water. We usually made our way over to the pool bar around three. Then we’d head up around 6 to get ready for dinner/entertainment. Water at the beach and pool is warm and perfect. Pool is cleaned every night. VI. Excursions: A -Jamaica Tours is a great company to use. There are lots of desks set up in the lobby every day. You can talk to them all and get info on excursions. -We did a booze cruise for $59 a person (kids and teens had a lower price $25-$30). I’m so glad we went with them! Scuba Caribe offered a lower price, but their boats are soo small! All 40 people who were still there were able to go on ONE boat which had a bathroom on it (this is a big deal!). We were out for 4 hours, we snorkeled, we went to Margaritaville, we danced, we drank….everyone had the BEST time. Do this for sure if you can. Definitely compare companies, so you know what you’re getting. -We also did the zip line tour. This was a bit expensive, but it was still a lot of fun. You were up in the Jamaican mountains and saw some great views. I think there were 10 drops. It was about $90 per person. - We did not do the waterfall. It’s 90 minutes away from Montego Bay. I’ve heard a lot of people say that it’s beautiful, but it’s not something you have to do. Plus, who wants to be on a bus for three hours? Transportation plus the waterfall climb and that’s your whole day. It can also get very crowded since it’s such a big attraction. I’m not saying don’t do it! It just depends on how long you’re there. It just wasn’t a priority for us. J VII. Customer Service: C+ -I’m giving this a lower rating because it’s just different than America. In the U.S., the customer is always right, and you want to please them. This is not the case in Jamaica. If you want something (room upgrade, help with something, question…), you need to go in CALMLY! Having an upset or angry attitude will get you nowhere. They honestly don’t care. It’s just a different culture. I didn’t need to talk to them much, so I wasn’t affected, but I could see how it bothered other people. Like I said, our rooms were fine, but I can’t imagine taking a problem to them to be solved. Entertainers, waiters, and bartenders were amazing, but I was not impressed with the customer service. Wedding: A++ -Wedding was everything we imagined it would be. It was perfect. I would recommend it to anyone. I. Hair: A -We did the Caprice wedding package so my hair and nails were included. Since I wanted tips, I got my nails done before I went, but I did use my pedicure which was very nice. If you do the Caprice, you also get a free couples’ massage. We did this the day before the wedding. It. Was. Awesome. My hair turned out great. I took some pictures, a hair flower, and my veil. She was very fast, and I loved it. II. Flowers: B -I was not a fan of the free flowers that come with any of the packages. Plus, you have to buy the bridesmaids flowers, and they were soooo expensive. I wanted nothing to do with Tai Flora. I’m sure they do beautiful work, but I wasn’t willing to pay. I made all of the bouquets and corsages. I got the flowers from Hobby Lobby for $1 a stem. It really wasn’t bad to make. I definitely recommend it. They were beautiful, looked real, and of course they held up under the heat. Traveling with them was no problem. Each bridesmaid took her own bouquet down. Plus…I had them the next day for the TTD. So…on the flowers I made…I give an A. J (This was the free bouquet pictured above. We used it on our sweetheart table as decoration.) III. Decoration: A -Ceremony site is beautiful all by itself. Wedding coordinator put some fresh flowers, tulle, and petals around which added to the beauty. -We were going to use the beach gazebo until we got down there and saw the plaza. It is absolutely gorgeous! We changed our site right away. The view is awesome. Also, I was a little disappointed with the beach gazebo. There is almost no beach after the gazebo! Your guests are sitting on the grass. Also, there’s no isle. You come in kind of sideways. Also, there was seaweed all around and beach people literally right next to you. It was nice, but I still think the plaza was a better choice for us. -I brought centerpieces, votives, and tea lights for the reception. Again, it’s just so beautiful there, that you hardly notice the decorations, but they did add to it. Very happy with the way it all turned out. IV. Ceremony: A -Great ceremony! Minister was funny, but he did keep it religious. We did traditional vows, and he even had us bless the rings which I thought was special. You sign your marriage certificate right there as part of the ceremony. It was great. V. Cake: A -So happy with the cake! I honestly wasn’t expecting much. It was a vanilla cake with strawberry filling and butter cream icing. I do not like cake, but this one was awesome! All of the guests were saying how good it was. I brought cheapo tiger lilies from Michael’s and leftover ribbon from the bouquets. They did a great job with the cake decoration I thought. If you want fondant, you have to pay extra. You just get a white cake, so bring decoration for it! VI. DJ: A+++ -We used Kevan Stewart from JA Events. www.jaweddingdj.com I cannot recommend him enough! He was so great. We met with him on Thursday, and the wedding was Saturday. He played all of the ceremony songs that we chose, and he did a great job with the reception. Every guest was literally dancing the entire time after dinner! He is willing to work with you, and he’s professional and reasonable. If you haven’t booked a DJ….contact him immediately!!!!! VII. Photographer: A+++ -Similar to the DJ, I can’t say enough good things about Stacey. She is professional, friendly, and so funny! She knows exactly what she wants which I love. Every now and then she would flip through her pictures and show us, and they are amazing. I honestly check my mailbox every day hoping to see the pictures in there. I can’t wait to see them. Sorry I don’t have any to show you. She is willing to break down her time to give you a TTD the next day. Please check her out!!!! VIII. Reception: A+++ -We opted to have our reception at the steakhouse. It is $1000 to do this, but it is worth it! That includes the entire top floor of the steakhouse which is beautiful and overlooks the ocean, food, and drinks for all of your guests. Your dinner is waiter served. The waiters set it all up and took good care of my friends’ beverage needs. They were constantly bringing pitchers up to us. It is a four hour reception and you can have music. With the free reception you can’t since you’re sharing the restaurant with other guests, and it’s only two hours. The dance floor is on the roof which was awesome. It’s worth the extra cost to have a real reception. Overall, we would definitely recommend this hotel for your destination wedding. We are not big spenders, but our expenses were… Caprice Package: $2,300 Steakhouse Reception: $1,000 Flights (depends on airline and when you book) Hotel (depends on room and # of nights) We brought down with us… OOT bags Favors for guests at reception Flowers Guest book Centerpieces Good luck as you plan! I hope this review is helpful. Take everything you hear (good and bad) with a grain of salt. It is your day, and it is about how you feel. When it is all said and done, you will have memories & pictures that last a lifetime as well as a beautiful start to your marriage. ~Alli Additional Notes: We had a "Welcome Dinner" (/Rehearsal Dinner) the night before the wedding at Rose Hall which is the buffet place. They set up tables for us before we came in. So happy we did this. It's a nice chance to have all your guests in one place before the wedding. Hubby gave a little speech thanking everyone for coming. OOT Bags: We did one bag per couple. We included...a brochure (info about excursions and restaurants as well as an itinerary), cups for all guests (these were a great idea! You can fill them up at the bars. Everyone used them every day.), mini hand sanitizers from Bath and Body Works, chapstick with SPF, and a CD of island music and love songs from our wedding that we made. I think it came to around $9 per bag.

After much deliberating...I went right in with my wedding dress, and I'm so happy I did. It was fine! I put the dress in the tub afterwards, and most of the sand fell out. Then I hung it, and it took about two days to dry. Looks fine now. Sorry..no professional shots yet. Just this one so far.

I made my bouquets using $1 calla lily stems from Hobby Lobby, some floral tape, and some orange ribbon. They were super cheap, traveled well, and I couldn't be more happy with them. Sorry...not super great flower shots, but it's the best I have so far lol.

I posted in here when I first found my dress 18 months ago! Here it is on our wedding day. It was style Vivianna by Wtoo dresses.

Here is our cake!!! It turned out so great. It was just buttercream icing. I brought the flowers (bought 1 bunch from Michael's for like $3) and the ribbon (Hobby Lobby) which was leftover from my bouquets. I was very happy with it. Delicious too!!!

Haha that's okay! It's a great tradition, and I'm happy that everyone will be able to partake in it. Pass the journal too so everyone can write in it! I found something else to stick in my bouquet as a replacement. Thanks for keeping the tradition alive!!!! You ladies are amazing.

These are amazing! You look fantastic. So brave!

Thanks so much for posting this. Every time I hear good news about the Riu, it makes my heart breathe a little sigh relief! I've heard from a lot of friends that the Riu was fantastic when they went. It's all in what you make of it! Can't freaking wait for June to get here....

Everything in this thread is amazing! We have been searching for excursions for our June wedding, and this is all so helpful! I will definitely be posting some feedback in July. Stay tuned!

I say keep the strap too. It really helps to tie in the bottom of the dress.

I second that. You have so much love in your eyes!

Oh you gotta go with A! Those babies pop. I love the color and bling

This is a stunning dress!!! Well done

Thanks JayKay!

I'd love to be added onto this list too, if there is another blue starfish.... My fiance and I will be married June 23rd 2012 at the Riu in Montego Bay.

@blue lens, Thanks so much for sharing those pictures! I am getting so many good ideas for our TTD shoot. Those are really fun pictures. Can I ask what your favorite location is to shoot TTD? My fiance and I were going to do Ochos Rios in Montego Bay the day after the wedding, but it's like 2 hours away from the hotel. With travel and picture taking, we'll miss about 6 hours from our first day as a married couple. I was thinking of just doing it on the beaches at the hotel. Do you ever have problems with crowds or other guests? Thanks!