J-me

Glad to hear you got your credit back! Esp. if it was more than you were expecting!! I wrote my reviews (including ASP) a couple of weeks ago - still haven't managed to finish my planning thread though - ha - it's amazing how eager you THINK you'll be afterwards, but life still manages to be busy AFTER the wedding! And...I think I went into wedding/honeymoon withdrawal and didn't want to think about it right after we got home. But at least got all the reviews done

Yaay Del Sol!! The above pics are from my wedding!!!! Review on them coming soon, but they were AMAZING to work with and worth every penny! I can't wait to get the rest of our pics! PS. Slowly but surely working on my planning thread - underestimated how busy I'd be even AFTER the wedding lol

We hung up my dress (outside of the garment bag) as soon as we got to the room so it 'aired out' a few days, which actually made some of the wrinkles go away - though, side note - do NOT hang it near the windows - if there's even the slightest shower, it's true that the rooms leak a bit (and we had the Presidential) - but we brought a travel steamer and my sweet mom just worked on it a few times a day I originally planned to have the resort do it, but they outsource it (aka your dress leaves the property) so it made me nervous. If you decide to have the resort do it though, just make sure you do it RIGHT when you arrive to ensure it's back in time.

Hola Matt! No worries on not being able to reach me back that day - it was a long shot on a Saturday, knowing your team is VERY busy We are happy we followed our gut as well - it's just a shame they go about it in that way, giving brides unnecessary anxiety on their special day. YOU guys however, have been the absolute BEST team to work with - Melissa, Juan Jose, & Deborah were so much fun to work with and we can't WAIT to see the magic of the images!! Many thanks!! Quote: Originally Posted by Matt Adcock Hola Jamie, I remember listening to your message on our machine... we had 3 weddings on the saturday you called to ask advice about the WC's demands on a decision. I would have told you to go w / your gut and likely tough it out as you obviously decided to do, even against the scare factor of "choose now or it will be forever cancelled" approach. They are trained to put the ultimatum down I guess.... Your day was amazing...the images are stellar, happy to be sharing some sneak peeks with you soon. Sorry again I wasnt there to answer your question on Saturday the 21st amiga... Cheers and will be in touch soon matt

Hi ladies!!! We're BAAACK!!! Lots of catching up with work, unpacking, etc. but I will definitely post my reviews and planning thread this weekend. To recap, the resort is BEAUTIFUL, every single staff member was SO accommodating & friendly, but (and please don't let this scare you May brides bc I'll get to the positive too) there were a LOT of things that went wrong during our visit unfortunately. A few to note, the three 'major' things we brought were centerpieces, runners, and maracas and somehow they messed this up. The buffet at the reception was wrong (we ordered Yucatan and they served the Cajun, which was still tasty, but it's what our guests had the night before at the rehearsal dinner and we were looking forward to something more 'Caribbean'), several rooms flooded (including ours) after some rain the first two days, they misplaced our toasting flute/cake cutting set and had to send it to us at our honeymoon resort, they messed up all of my bridesmaids' (pre-confirmed) salon appts, and at least 5-6 guests (that we know of) had major check out/incorrect billing issues which delayed their shuttle to the airport (I'll elaborate more in my review and tips to avoid). Hiccups are inevitable, so the above probably would've been more easily brushed off but....the one thing that made this a less than stellar experience is their weather/back up procedure. Our contract/site visit assured there would be a back up in case of rain. Well, there was, but what they DON'T tell you is you have to make that judgement call hours beforehand. Edith called me in room on wedding day to tell me there was 60% chance of rain and I had two choices: move my ceremony & reception to the ballroom (whole reason we chose Aventura was venue) or keep it outside, but IF it rained, EVERYTHING would be cancelled, not able to be moved inside, and nonrefundable-food,dj, toasts, cake, EVERYTHING. I had to make the decision at 12pm for a 5pm ceremony (at 12pm it was GORGEOUS outside too) I wasn't going to let anything ruin the day, but I will say it robbed me of a bit of enjoyment, bc I spent most of that day upset at the thought of that serious gamble no one can predict/control the weather, but I felt like it was insensitively handled. We kept it outside, the weather was PERFECT, but I spend half the day w/my stomach in knots. It could've just been our experience, and/or maybe the Hard Rock transition, but after all the fabulous reviews of past brides I expected a lil more - but it was a bit evident their wedding department is unorganized. EVERYTHING else w/our trip though was great, our guests had a fun week, and a few must do's: La Hacienda, the Spa (treatments & hydrotherapy), & Playacrawl if you have any partiers in your group But MOST importantly, WE ARE MARRIED and overall, made it a great week!!!

Annnnnd we're OFF!!! Going to bed so we can get up at 3am to leave for the airport!! This is so surreal - after over a yr. of planning, it's finally HERE!! I'll be sure to do my planning thread & review when we get back from the honeymoon (30th)!!!! Big thanks to all of you for your help along the way! Cheers!

Right?! I haven't gone bridezilla yet, but WILL if they try to part me w/my dress LOL!!! We leave in just over 24 hrs. - weeeeeee!!!

Unfortunately, I don't have time before I leave to purchase them from you, but do you have the first aid template? I've seen a lot of that same template, but can't get the color to change and I like your color! Please & thanks if you're able to

Before I booked my flight, I did some research on which airlines are more 'bride-friendly' than other in terms of handling your dress. From everything I've heard, most airlines won't assist you (aka make any promises) in advance but most will help you once you get there - everyone loves weddings right?! We are flying AA, I'm bringing my dress in the garment bag and plan to carry it on since I've heard they will usually hang it up for you in first class closet. If your airline doesn't have a first class or pilot's closet, they maaaaay ask you to store it overhead....not ideal.....but still MUCH better than checking it! I plan to get mine steamed anyway once I get there.

Unfortunately, they do not allow us to ship items to the resort. We are taking the decor/extras down in a suitcase & just sucking up the extra baggage fee - even w/the baggage fee, it's still less than what they charge for the things we're bringing down. My advice though - keep decor to a minimum - it saves luggage space AND the location is beautiful enough so it needs very little!

Great pics - thanks for sharing! Del Sol is doing our wedding as well - so excited

Yikes - sorry to get your hopes up! I had a bridal brain fart - no, you can't use it towards individual services but CAN use it towards the wedding packages! I'm splurging for the horse & carriage and the violinist during the ceremony though. The credits unfortunately don't count towards events (ie. cocktail hr) - our group has more than 75 rm nights, so we qualified for the unlimited private events. Not sure if you got my email, but in the Wedding Guide packet, on one of the last pages it has the breakdown of credits & what they can be used towards....

I got fabric from my BM dresses to have made into runners (found a local cheap place to do it) and we are bringing most of our centerpiece pieces down w/us (real touch calla lilies & crystal rocks half off at Hobby Lobby, ordered submergible LED lights online) and just renting hurricane vases from the resort (didn't want to pack - bulky and breakable! You could also do Walmart for these) but here is the look we're going for: Do a search for centerpieces and/or OOT bags and hopefully you'll get plenty of ideas from other threads as well!

Thank you! Yeah, I read on TripAdvisor to definitely barter w/them bc the picture packages are apparently outlandishly priced & they don't let you take your own pics!! I'll take a look at your Facebook album! Hope you're starting to pack for your anniversary trip

Thank you! I actually have all of the info on the credits (but I'm glad you posted it - others will DEFINITELY find it useful!) We have 1500 credits and plan to use it towards golf, spa, and a few wedding ceremony extras (violinist). But we'll be putting some of it towards the dolphin swim I think too! Just wasn't sure if anyone had been and what their experience was (aka if it's worth it!) Thanks again

Friday is my last day at work too and I'm COMPLETELY not here lol!! Congrats on becoming a Mrs. tonight - so exciting!! We had our legal ceremony the weekend before last - but kept it very low key; I wanted our Mexico ceremony to feel like the 'real deal' Good luck to ya wedding date twin!!

Former brides - did any of you do the dolphin swim (Dolphinaris?) using your Palace resort credits? I've done Xel Ha on a previous visit and loved it but many of my guests are wanting to stick to tours they can use credits towards (understandably) so thinking of doing the Dolphinaris on one of our days if it's worth it??

Sorry for the delay! We leave next week (yaay!) so things have been a bit crazy Both Aventura and Playacar are beautiful! Aventura is by far the bigger resort - it's divided into two sides - Aventura Cove (family side) and Spa (adult side). I loved Playacar and the only reason we DIDN'T have our wedding there is I wanted our ceremony space to be a bit more private - at Playacar, you're on a public beach so you run the risk of drunken frisbee players jumping through your pics lol - that may not be a biggie to some, but we preferred the venue options at Aventura, so we chose to stay there. Plus, we plan to shuttle over to Playacar to use the facilities one day - ie. the beach, pool, eat/drink, do the nearby shops on 5th... If you haven't already, I suggest teaming up w/a great TA to help decide which resort best fits you & your group's needs! My TA has been a LIFESAVER throughout the process! Good luck & let me know if I can help!

Former brides - did any of you do the dolphin swim (Dolphinaris?) using your resort credits? I've done Xel Ha on a previous visit and loved it but many of my guests are wanting to stick to tours they can use credits towards (understandably) so thinking of doing the Dolphinaris on one of our days if it's worth it??

PS. I wasn't contacted by Edith until a few weeks ago, and we leave Tuesday - BUT - I wasn't too nervous because I utilized this site for everything I could, so take advantage of it - search through this thread and others for questions you may have, ideas/inspiration, etc. (I esp found the planning threads helpful!) so try not to worry those of you who haven't been contacted yet and let us know how we can help Pinterest is great too! PPS. I have been VERY laid back throughout this experience but I WILL turn bridezilla if I get there & they try to move my whole group & wedding events. Psycho-bride will erupt lol. PPSS. Crossing my fingers that WON'T happen, and I look forward to leaving ya'll with a positive planning thread when I return!

I'll email you the packet now! I'll include some other attachments as well for Salon/Spa, decor extras, etc. just in case you don't already have... We are actually leaving ASP on the 23rd for our honeymoon up the road at Grand Velas, so we might be in hibernation but hopefully we BOTH have positive experiences and I'll try to get on here before the 26th to let you know about the cost. For the vases, if you opt for the 'lantern-like' vases, they are complimentary. For the hurricane vases, her quote: $15.00usd per vase (28" high X 8" diameter). I thought about going to Wal Mart too, but trying to minimize my 'errands' once I get down there so I can maximize my R&R time - great option though! For our welcome cocktail, we chose Cove terrace. For rehearsal dinner - Maraca terrace. For the ceremony & cocktail hour - Coba gazebo & Pandero terrace. For reception - Mundaca rooftop/terrace. We went last year to look at everything & loved these spots! We have a few kids in our group though, so we couldn't have any events on the Spa side. Aside from Maggie, my Miami coordinator for 2 seconds, and Yesenia from Miami, Edith is the only one I've worked with - love her and hoping they don't switch me around! We leave next Tues. at 6am! 17 days will FLY by for ya!!!

Combo of both fun stuff AND stressful stuff! It went from little communication to TONS of emails back & forth w/Edith, Vania (Zuniga), Del Sol, Fernando, DJ Mania, and MOST of all - our guests that all of a sudden realize the trip is here and have a zillion questions lol - but glad it all seems to be coming together! Left to do: finish the welcome packets/itineraries for the OOT bags, finish the favor tags for the maracas, and just try to fit everything in suitcases! Beauty appts this week for highlights, waxing, etc. + Thanks for the tip on handing out the bags - been going back & forth to hand them out or have them deliver!

I leave a week from tomorrow - weeeee!!! I have been working with Edith and she hasn't mentioned any set up fee (I'm not going to bring it up!) but I'll let you know when I return on the 28th what the cost ends up being. We are doing the complimentary package, but bringing runners, chair sashes, and most of my centerpieces (renting hurricane vases from them). They charge $2.50 per bag to deliver the welcome bags to the guest rooms. As for the bouquets, we are bringing our own, but in the wedding packet - it lists $126 for the Maid of Honor bouquet and 'starting' at $154 for the bridal bouquet - so it's definitely less than $126! Here is the packet in case anyone finds it helpful Weddings Sales Guide - Palace Resorts.pdf

Haha love it!! Good thing I haven't uh...well....ok. Guilty

Wait WHAT?! They canceled your wedding???? How can they do that - I'm assuming you placed a deposit, have a contract, etc.? That's crazy, I'm so sorry you're experiencing those issues! My contact w/the Miami office has been spotty (w/the exception of Yesenia) but other than that, I've had no issues getting everything secured w/my on site coordinator and my TA. I sure hope they don't cancel mine as we leave a week from Tuesday! Good luck and let us know if we can help you!!