MJKH

These are beautiful...are you thinking of using the wedding arch on the beach by the palapa? I just posted some pics on the GS thread this morning of that area. I'm wondering if they are long enough that, if it's a super windy day like we had, the bottom square could be weighted/buried into the sand. If there is a gentle breeze, you'll be totally fine, but if they're flying around and clinking into each other, it might be a bit of a distraction...?

Ok, so just to clarify (as most people want to get married at/near/on the beach)...are you looking for an indoor ceremony site and/or one indoor site to have your ceremony and reception (like completely closed in, four walls and a roof)? Or do you want an indoor venue with views out to the beach/ocean? Or do you want just an alternate/covered venue in case of rain? Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, but I can't think of a strictly indoor venue at this resort for a ceremony. I suppose you could ask the wedding planners if you can have your ceremony in one of the a la carte restaurants and go right into your reception in the same space. With the a la cartes though you'd have lots of windows/no views and lots of pedestrian traffic going by outside (some of whom might get snoopy). Also, in the hallway in between the main lobby bars there are indoor spaces where they hold meetings, conferences, etc. but I've never heard of a ceremony taking place in one of these rooms. I think they're typically used for time share staff functions. But it wouldn't hurt to ask. We had a beach ceremony and the reception at the palapa which I was super happy with. I could never really picture what the trip out to the palapa looked like, because I had always read about them needing to transport you out there...pictured guys with machetes helping cut the jungle out in front of me... ; ) No, the stretch out to the palapa is a very lovely 10 - 15-ish minute walk from your room...just far enough out to keep general traffic to a bare minimum. Here are some photos we took when we walked out one morning the week after our wedding. This first pic is the perspective of standing on the beach looking back towards the resort. The thatched roof on the left of the photo is the chapel, the roof on the right is the palapa, and in between is the huppa/seating area for an outdoor ceremony (keep in mind there are other beach ceremony sites at the GS, so always clarify what you want with the WP). The chapel: The palapa: View from the palapa out to the beach/ocean: The disco next to the palapa (just across the entrance to the disco is a security station):

They'll be fine...my honey wore sandals to every a la carte and never had any issues.

Our resort had drink/cocktail menus on each bar. If you were to do this, maybe the best thing would be (if you're staying at an all-inclusive) to have the WP scan the drink menu from the resort and send it to you to include in your welcome brochure or something like that. Just a thought...

I thought of a few other things I wish I had done: 11) Ask the wedding planner to see the officient's ceremony "script" prior to the wedding. My FI wanted to keep things short and sweet, so we didn't add anything to the ceremony to personalize it (honestly, I wish we would have). But, besides that, the officient mentioned something about "raising children" and we have no plans to have children, so had I known that piece was in there I would have asked for it to be removed. 12) Sent my BFF out to the ceremony site prior to everyone arriving out there. We were running short on time and I told her "don't worry about it...I'm sure everything is under control". Well, our chair sashes were the wrong colour, and by the time she realized that, our guests were there already and it was too late to remove/replace the sashes. 13) Kept an ongoing master list of things to talk to the WP about...had I done that, I would have remembered to ask little things that had popped into my head as I went thru photos and reviews on BDW...like to ask the WP NOT to serve seafood canapes during the champagne toast...and to ask that they set the tables in the palapa with the white dishes and not the southwest-printed dishes that we ended up with. But I'm a type A...and a stickler for details...and I tend to over-analyze things to death...so don't be surprised if this isn't my last entry on this thread! ; )

Oh wow...GOOD LUCK!!! What an awesome venture! : ) J~ P.S. Are you hiring?!? Heehee...not sure what my new husband would think about a career change!

I'm working on it!!! : ) Still waiting for the pro pictures too.

We actually placed something very similar (cards we made with Vistaprint) in sinamay envelopes on the chairs at our ceremony as we didn't have a wedding party, everyone knew each other, and we had no idea the names of the people who were officiating, playing music, etc!

Yes...I sure do!!! Things I would do again (besides marrying my best friend and true love!): 1) Stay a second week at the resort on our own. OHHHH YES, DO IT!!! That first week with everyone was so busy...if I had had to leave with everyone else I would have been miserable. Honestly, that first week was no holiday for me! 2) Get a bit of a "base" before I left for the tropics. I had never tried a tanning bed before, but after seeing a friend's wedding pics (she's fair like me...and had some bad tan lines which I also knew I had...eeeep...no thanks!!!) I decided it was time to try it out. I started three months before the wedding...didn't do it to "tan" but just to get a hint of colour and even everything out. It was slow and controlled...never a burn...just 2 or 3 times a week. No one ever commented before I left or asked "have you been tanning???" which was good. I got a tiny bit more colour before the wedding when we were on the resort, but I'm super happy with my skin colour (i.e., lack of tan lines in my strapless dress!) in our photos. 3) Beg my FI and his daughter to NOT get sunburned before the wedding. They listened...enough said. 4) Hand out the wedding week survival (OOT) bags ahead of time, but save a few special things to give out at the resort. We had so much stuff to take with us, there was NO WAY I was dragging all of that other stuff down. http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/t/76768/mjkh-wedding-week-survival-bags-are-done-lots-of-pics 5) Use 3 large (72L) Rubbermaid containers (sealed well with packing tape!) to transport our wedding stuff down to Mexico. The airline didn't charge us for the excess luggage...the totes were super sturdy and cheap ($3.99 on sale) and we just left them behind. 6) Arrive at the airport well before everyone else (almost 3 hours) to get rid of all the luggage and be free and breezy to greet and help our guests as they arrived! 7) My FI was happy that we spent a bit of extra money for private vans (USA Transfers) to transfer us from the airport to the resort, rather than using the transfers included with our Sunquest packages. We got to the resort quickly and didn't have to make X-number of stops on the way down to drop people off at other resorts. 8) Have a Mexican trio or Mariachi play during the cocktail hour when we returned from our photos. One of our favourite memories of the wedding day is making our way back to the reception after photos and finding three large Mexican men all dressed up, getting out of their 20 year old white Chrysler sedan in the parking lot, straightening themselves out and putting on their hats. They actually played us back on to the beach...their timing was perfect!!! It was sooooo fun and festive!!! 9) We decided, at our photographer's encouragement, to see each other before the wedding and take photos. That was, HANDS DOWN, the best moment of the entire day...it was just us and the photographers. I can tell you all that if it was up to us, we would have just eloped...we wanted to be married but we didn't want to have a wedding. In the end, we had this wedding for our parents. But...when we were alone to see each other for the first time...that moment was just for us...it was so emotional and spectacular! I can't wait to see the photos : ) 10) NOT wear a veil! It was quite windy the day of the wedding and that thing would have been whipping everyone in the face had I worn it. I did have a really inexpensive one that we used for the TTD the next morning. Things I wouldn't do again: 1) Order maracas from a certain etsy seller. That was a waste of $300. They're still in my basement...smudged, wrong colour...soon to be thrown in the garbage. Order from Amols!!! The same maracas on Amols were available in Playa del Carmen, but were really roughed up in these huge baskets the shops keep them in and customers rummage through. Amols has excellent customer service...one of my biggest regrets was not ordering through them. 2) Stress about what people think/do/say...I actually had certain people (who shall remain nameless) e-mailing news reports to my parents about things happening in Mexico (two thousand kilometers away from the resort that we would all be staying at). Shame on them! I wish I had had the guts to say, "If you have hang ups about your own personal safety, and your desire to never travel to X, keep it to yourself. Don't ruin this experience for the rest of us!!!" I am happy to report that all 32 of our guests left Mexico LOVING it and wishing they could have stayed the second week with us! 3) Not sit with my FI on the flight down. Yes, if you can believe it, the airline actually had us sitting 7 rows apart and the flight was totally full. Saaaaad...I felt like an idiot when the flight attendant announced "So, where are our brides and grooms to be? Hands up!!!" and the two of us weren't sitting together. Things I wish I had done: 1) Spent time at Sephora (or a major department store) finding my perfect wedding lip colour. The girl that did my makeup didn't have a whole lot of options and we had to try 4 different colours before I found one that I kinda liked. But then I didn't have it for re-applying the rest of the day!!! I also wish I would have asked the girl if I could have applied my own mascara. I'm SUPER picky about my mascara and I HATE when it's clumpy (which it was...so I had to waste time working it out). Actually, I wish I had done a hair and makeup trial at the resort spa before the wedding...I think it would have been money well spent, especially when "glamour/updos/etc" is not my day to day look! 2) We hired Elizabeth Medina to take our photos for 8 hours on the wedding day and for a TTD the next morning. I only wish we had asked Elizabeth to shoot for 10 hours the day of the wedding and start earlier. As hard as I tried for the day not to feel rushed, it did...and I think more time with a photographer before the ceremony would have helped that. 3) Get after the DJ to JUST play our playlist that we had spent hours compiling on our iPad (as it was I had to get after him twice!). Instead, he chose some HORRIBLE tunes and seemed to lack the intelligence/intuition that a DJ requires to look out at the dance floor and say to himself, "Huhhh, well that song isn't really working for anyone!". We should have sent him home and just played tunes off our iPad. 4) Trusted my gut more...when I did, things worked out great! When I left it to someone else, notsomuch!!! 5) Taken time one night before leaving for Mexico when I was by myself to compose a really nice letter to my husband to be. But I ran short on time and had to write him a sweet little note instead. It's amazing how people and events eat up your time once you get to the resort! 6) Hopped on to BDW earlier to see all of the amazing resorts in the Riviera Maya and read all of the reviews before making a decision...we likely would have chosen another resort rather than going back to a resort we had already been to. Here's hoping these little tidbits will help some of you out with your destination wedding!

I can tell you a bit about orchids for your hair...we purchased a stem of white orchids for my FI's daughter's hair and used all but one or two blooms on the stem in her case. The stem was around $15.50 USD. We did inquire about one large fuschia orchid, and the price they quoted us was almost $40 USD! Needless to say, we went with the white orchids....here's a pic of how they looked:

Yes, for the women pretty much anything goes except beachwear. We certainly saw men turned away who were wearing shorts and capris. If you join this FB group, I posted exactly what it says on the reservation slips for the a la cartes while we were staying there. Sandals are fine for men. If I recall correctly, it also says no sleeveless shirts for men. https://www.facebook.com/groups/5987048236/

Hey all! Our wedding has now come and gone, but I wanted to share my experience re: maracas. Last summer, I contacted Amols and because I was uncertain about the colors of their maracas, they graciously agreed to send samples of those I was considering...really awesome customer service!!! However, I was on an etsy kick at the time and ended up paying A LOT MORE MONEY to order personalized maracas thru "Suzy Q's" (SusieSuesCuteDesigns) on etsy...and what a BAD, BAD, mistake that was. Even though I ordered my maracas in October, they didn't show up until the middle of January this year (I'm positive they kept bumping our order for weddings with dates before ours). I asked for bright fuschia...I got a muddy rose colour. Our names and wedding dates came completely smudged. We had no recourse thru Paypal because of the length of time between placing and receiving the order. When I contacted the shop owner, she apologized but was not prepared to do anything for us (like, what could she do when we were leaving for our wedding a week or so after her maracas arrived!)...we didn't see a dime back!!! Long story short, they're sitting in my basement in a box...we didn't take them to Mexico because they looked so bad...the day will come soon that I must swallow my pride and throw my $300 order of maracas in the garbage! : ( Knowing what I know now, I DEFINITELY would have ordered from Amols. You can purchase the exact same maracas in towns like Playa del Carmen, but the stores keep them in large baskets that people rummage thru/play around in and they get really roughed up. I would have had a hard time finding them in as nice condition as yours came in from Amols. So, sadly...no maracas at our wedding...I did get a picture though of me with a sad face shaking a maraca in a store in Playa! ; )

We had an issue with one of our guests...they booked in at our resort for 5 nights with a "sketchy" company online and were required to attend a timeshare meeting during their stay. Long story short, they tried to confirm a couple of weeks ahead of time...no reservation!!! This couple tried then to secure a reservation thru our TA, but she couldn't help as none of her suppliers had any nights available. We even went to the WC for assistance. No luck. In the end, they went to a TA of a work colleague and she was able to get them on the resort for 3/5 nights...the other two they stayed in PDC. My advice would be to talk to the WC at the resort and to try at least a couple of different agents and their suppliers...

Ohhhh TLS...what an amazing day for a talented, hard working, well deserving bride! : ) Loved it all...can't believe your bouquet and how much it looked like your inspiration photo! Your shell pomanders and place card holders looked spectacular...and you were totally stunning in your dress. Great job girlie!!! It was so much fun to share these last few months of planning with you. I need to work on my review now too! I learned so much from BDW and even more from my own wedding (what to do/what not to do)...is it bad that I want to do it all over again?!? Anyway...wishing you both the very best as husband and wife...thanks for sharing your story and talents with us! Janelle

I ordered from minimus...I loved the little eco bamboo foot files...they're hard to locate on the site, but if you type "bamboo" into the search window they pop up I think. One tip...when I placed my order with minimus, I asked that any items with an expiration date expire no sooner than one year after our wedding date. I noticed they highlighted it on the warehouse form and everything came just as I had asked. Otherwise, you may end up with a box full of OTC meds that expire before or right around your wedding!

YESSSSSS!!! That is her...THANK YOU SO MUCH! : )

Wow...everything looks amazing! : ) My favourite is your little wish pot...oh and the placecards are super cute. Have an awesome day...I'll be thinking about you guys on my birthday!

I'm just going to throw this out there in case anyone knows who I'm talking about...I've been searching for her planning thread/review for the last three hours, kicking myself for not bookmarking it! This girl was from out east...maybe Toronto...and had an invite or STD done by someone on etsy. It was a really cute illustration of an airplane flying across a map from their hometown to their destination wedding which I think was in Mexico. Anyone?!?

Here's the start of the lazy river with the tubes hanging...we took this picture yesterday morning just for you all! ; ) Returned home tonight and will have lots of feedback soon!

There are definitely tubes still here at the GS for the lazy river. They´re different than the last time we were here...they had singles and doubles back then...now there are only singles. On a super busy afternoon, you may have to wait a couple of minutes for one, but usually they´re easy to get.

Hi all, we are here at the GS for a second week...for a bit of a honeymoon after our FABULOUS wedding here last week. Let me tell you this...we sent 30 people back home today who had never been to Mexico before and they could not stop talking about what an amazing time they all had. Each and everyone of them would have loved to spend a second week here with us! There were a lot of rumblings on the resort about the wedding group mentioned in the story, and their behaviour while they were here. Of course, you must be cautious WHEREVER you travel...stay safe, be smart and keep your wits about you. I am all for a good time, but when I heard about some of the issues with this group, I wasn´t at all sympathetic.

That's what we're hoping...a room key and a few bills folded should fit just fine. There's a pic at the end of my thread...we used Vistaprint business cards, printed front and back. Here's the link: http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/t/76768/mjkh-wedding-week-survival-bags-are-done-lots-of-pics/70#post_1721380

Here's our last official project...the key card and tip money holders. Cards are double-sided business cards from Vistaprint with some helpful Spanish words/phrases on the back side. The plastic card holders were ordered from ebay and the bright pink and chocolate brown stretchy bracelets came from Wal-Mart. Now just to finish the packing...tomorrow is my last day of work and we're leaving in 4 more sleeps! : )

Sorry if this tip is already somewhere in a thread, I just don't have time to check...hopefully it helps: I was working on my key card holders this week and I wanted to give you guys a little tip if you struggled like I did. I ordered some of the vertical waterproof badge holders (with the clear zip at the top) off ebay and fought with them the first night...so much so I was ready to give up on them and made trips to Staples and Walmart to see what else I could find. The problem was I couldn't for the life of me get the plastic zip open at the top...I had to pry them open with a butter knife and in doing that I was just making a big mess of the plastic. Plus, when we finally did get them open, it was impossible to get them closed and re-opened smoothly. Nothing else I found though compared in terms of the weight of the plastic and the fact that they were waterproof. So, I decided to try something last night that worked like a charm! I simply ran the warm air of my blowdryer over each one for 5 to 8 seconds-ish, until they felt a bit softer in my hand. Then VOILA! The middle oval bit at the top that the wrist coil goes thru popped out no problem and the zipper began to glide open and closed with ease.

And just further to that...regarding my own personal "issues" with a couple of Etsy vendors (one of which was an order for maracas for almost $300 which went horribly wrong!): * Paypal only helps with resolution issues within 45 days of the payment being processed. In my case, I'm out of luck because I paid 11 weeks prior to receiving my maracas in the mail (her shop information says 8 - 10 weeks...but I'm certain that my order kept getting bumped for brides with wedding dates prior to ours).