Leah22

Hey! I'm getting married in June at the Iberostar Grand and I chose the "free" wedding package. I thought it was a great deal and came out to be less than getting married at the Suites. BUT, nothing is included with this package and everything is starting to add up...it is definitely turning out to be a pricey wedding! Have you considered staying at the Grand and having your wedding off property? I've read many brides on this forum who have gone this route and it seems to be the best of both worlds. I think it is more affordable, plus you can still take advantage of what the Grand has to offer.

From my understanding, the beach party at the Suites and Grand DOES have food, as well as drinks and entertainment. I was told that the night of the week varies based on the time of year or other events that might be going on.

Does anyone have information for a wholesale florist in or around Montego Bay? I want to do a very simple centerpiece for my June wedding, which will consist of a 4" jar or vase with 2-3 stems each. But I want to use rectangular tables and have a full line of these jars at each table...which may be about 10 jars per table. I received quotes from Tai Flora and Floral Fantasies for $15-35 per jar. Which is extreme since I may have around 100 guests and 12-15 tables (you do the math). So I want to do the flowers myself and I just need to locate a wholesale florist where I can purchase only the flowers and then cut them and arrange them myself. Any ideas or contacts? Thanks!

Hi Delgadot, After touring the Iberostar property, why did you decide to hold your wedding off site at Hummingbird Hall? Thanks!

Hi Maria! I'm actually getting married at the Grand, but I'm sure I'll see you around since I'll have several guests staying at the Suites. As of now I've got my dress ordered (it's scheduled to arrive in early April), the STDs went out in late October, and my invitations are designed and set to go out in the next week or 2 (although we already have several people booked based on the STD info). I hired a local photographer (Brian Nejedly...he's actually from Atlanta, but now lives in Ocho Rios). And I'm now trying to figure out the flowers/decorations. I received a few quotes from local florists and they're all very high for the really simple design that I want. So I'm trying to find a wholesale florist in Montego Bay or figure out a different approach to bring the costs down. But I figure I have plenty of time to work that out. I plan on doing OOT bags as well, but I've made no progress on those...just lots of ideas of what I want to include in them.

We are getting married stateside and doing a vow renewal in Jamaica. It just makes more sense for us. The process will be easier, with less foreign paperwork and hassles to do with. Plus we know that are marriage will be recognized immediately. Versus getting married in Jamaica (or elsewhere outside the country) you may have to wait several months to receive your paper work and then you have to wait for it to be accepted by your state. I think people will understand if it's a vow renewal. We view the Jamaica wedding as the "real" wedding. The stateside marriage just covers the legalities. You need to figure out what will work best for your needs/desires.

It depends on your package. I believe some packages come with centerpieces/flower decorations for the reception. The resort uses Tai Flora and you will need to contact them to tell them what you want. My package comes with no flowers and I've found Tai Flora to be on the high side (for what I want)...plus they're very non-responsive. so I am looking into outside florists and/or bringing my own centerpieces and decorations. There are several wedding florists in the area, you can do a simple google search and find at least 4 companies who do weddings in Montego Bay. But the resort with charge a vendor fee ($250) if an outside florist comes onto the property...but they can drop things off in the lobby without the extra charge. Good luck.

Also, I found out that rates will vary greatly from week to week. We tried to book the last week of June originally, but we found out the rate at the Suites would be $200 per night instead of $160! So we switched to early June. You have a lot time. I would contact some travel agents now and see what kind of rates they can give and when those promotions will end. If you don't like the rate, then wait and ask again 2-3 months later. I locked in my group rates 9 months in advance (I would have preferred to do it at 12 months but my fiancé didn't officially give me my ring until September and I refused to start planning any earlier). But this month I've seen some really great promotions for my dates at the Iberostar that are lower than the rates I reserved!

What's included in the prices you both listed (number of days? Airfare?). It's hard to compare without that info. I have group rates through a travel for both the Suites and the Grand. For the Suites the cost is $528 pp for 3 nights plus $160 each additional night. This includes all taxes and roundtrip airport transfers. But airfare is separate and obviously varies. I've been checking out airfare for my guests and it will run between $200 to $700 depending on the part of the country they're flying from (I have guests coming from all over, including a friend from Sweden). But I contacted at least 10 travel agents before I settled on this rate (some agents were much higher).

I would suggest that you contact a few travel agents. You can lock in a discounted group rate for the hotel, but the airfare will always fluctuate. There are several travel agents that specialize in destination weddings who can help you figure out what's best for your needs and budget.

The package prices are the same for 2012. Only the reception prices changed at the Grand (and the bonfire and disco rental rates). I didn't mean to freak everyone out! If you were already planning to add on a premium bar, then this won't affect you too much. But if you wanted to save some money and go with the standard bar, then you're out of luck since it's no longer an option.

The Grand has increased their reception prices to include a REQUIRED premium bar. To rent Port Maria with a group of 31-50 people, the price is now $3000 (it used to be $1750 with a standard bar and an optional $12 pp per hour extra to upgrade to the premium). 51-75 people is $4500, 76-100 is $6000, 101-150 is $9000. Also, the rates to rent the disco and host a beach bonfire party increased. The disco is now $650 for 20 people and the bonfire is now $500 (I believe they used to be $375 & $300). The only positive is that the Grand now no longer requires day passes for wedding guests IF you have a private reception. But if you have less than 30 people you can't do a private reception and their day pass rate increased to $75 (it used to be $50). I complained to Janielle & Angellie and informed them that I had planned and based my budget on the 2011 rates and I saw no need to upgrade to a premium bar. And if the new rates were going to jncrease they should have told me at the time of booking. Janielle responded with "I'm sorry for the inconvenience, but these are the new rates. The Grand now requires a premium bar for all events." I just can't understand why I'm paying so much extra money for a reception dinner at an all-inclusive when my guests have already paid a premium at this resort.

Saab photography looks really really amazing! They were recommended to me by Half Moon resort (which I almost booked before the Iberostar Grand). But they're very pricey! A 7 hour package with 2 professional photographers (no assistant) is $3700 and the 5 hour package with 2 photographers (again 2 professionals, no assistant) is $2900. They also have associates who have packages that are about 2/3 the price. For me I think it's between Saab, Sungold, and Brian Nejedly. I was going to book with Merrick Cousley. Who has great prices and really good pictures...but I think I want to spend the extra money to have really great quality images and editing.

Check out negrilonestop.com (lots of reviews of them on trip advisor). They use a reliable company for transfers and i think it costs $125 roundtrip for 2 people (i think the company is malcolm brothers). also try clive's transport service (you can google it). my fiance and i used them on a past trip. they are cheap, reliable, and will provide beer for the ride.

A catamaran cruise is a great idea! You can also looking into renting a private villa. The wedding party could stay at the villa and your guests would find other hotels nearby (or nearby villas to share). With this option everything could be hosted on your property. I looked into this originally and I thought it would be more expensive, but I think it is actually more economical to do it this way if you have a large number of guests.

Iriegirl, Where did you end up having you ceremony and reception? Did you work with anyone in Jamaica to plan it? I am considering hosting my reception (and maybe ceremony) off property since I just received the 2012 rates for the Grand (and they're almost double the 2011 rates).

The Grand also increased all of their prices! A premium bar is now required for all private receptions, which almost doubles the price. Plus their fees to host a beach bonfire and to rent the disco went up 85%! It's a little insane how they changed their pricing and rules. Also the rates for day passes went up to $75 for guests at the Suites and Beach resorts. BUT if you have a private reception, your guests will not need to pay for day passes. With the increased cost for the reception and the $20 per person fee that's part of the wedding package, the package is coming to about $80 per person (excluding flowers, music, decorations, etc.). I may start to research options for hosting the wedding off property.

here's one of all 3 resorts.

Did anyone see which night they have the beach party at the Grand?

After seeing your images I've definitely ruled out a beach wedding. I never wanted to go that route anyway, but I didn't think there many other options. I'm getting married at the Grand and the lobby terrace wasn't offered as an option for the ceremony. The wedding coordinated sent me pictures of the lobby staircase and some indoor space with a wood floor. Both are pretty but i want some connection to the exterior and a view of the ocean. At the moment I'm leaning towards the lobby but facing the exterior window (all of the other weddings I've seen there face the stairs). I'm only afraid the space will be too small for my 50 guests (estimated number). Has anyone been to the Grand? Is the lobby spacious for a ceremony (or do they have a terrace)?

Yikes! That's why I'm nervous about getting married directly on the beach. But I'm worried that the other ceremony locations will fall flat as well.

Hi clonedtwice, You said 45 weeks, but I see your date is in January. So you have 45 days! Almost there! That's very close to your wedding to send out invites, especially when you already have several people booked! I think it's great to give additional information about the wedding, but probably unnecessary to send formal invites (unless you're trying to persuade more people to book their trips). For me, I sent out my save the dates a little late. I just got them out a couple of weeks ago, with about 7 months to go to the wedding. I was planning on sending out formal invites in January and ideally I want everyone to book by March to take advantage of the group discount. But my STD's and website and very thorough with full travel information, info about the hotels and Jamaica, and info about the wedding events (although those are not really planned and may change). I'm starting to doubt whether I need to send out invitations, but I actually wrote on my STD's "formal invitations to follow", so I feel obligated to send them out! Plus I think some people may be waiting for the invites to book their trip! Good luck!

FYI, after complaining to the WC earlier today, I heard back from Tai Flora within 4 hours.

I really love your photos! Did you bring your photographer with you to Jamaica? My fiance and I are also planning on going to Negril for a few days after the wedding. I can't decide where, but I was thinking about some place smaller like the Caves or Rock House or Tensing Pen. I will look into CSA as well, I've heard great things about those resorts.

I just wrote to the WC at the Grand to complain about Tai Flora! I've written to them several times and they still haven't responded. I just want to get some initial prices so I can compare with an outside vendor (Godfrey Guy). I don't know how they can require us to pay a vendor fee for the florist when their chosen florist is so unresponsive.