BeaBride

Thanks maxandkatie for the vow information. I haven't even looked into that yet...lol. I'm still looking into decoration stuff for the ceremony and reception sites. I was also under the impression that the chapel is air conditioned, but don't ask me how I got that information. I'm thinking of hanging either tissue pomanders or battery operated Chinese lanterns at my reception site. I have requested to rent the Seaside Grill so I'm really hoping/planning my reception around that location. For anyone that has been to the resort, what would be more appropriate at that location to hang overhead? Also, when you order battery operated lanterns off Ebay, they seem to not come on a string. How have you brides (past or present) ordered and set them up? What do you end up bringing with you to the resort? Taegan: I'm also having my ceremony in the chapel. I was just planning on using different ribbon to decorate the pews. How are you planning to decorate the church? Also, does anyone know how many guests are seated at the round tables.....tables of 8 or 10?? So many questions....

Hey AppKate I'm getting married November 21, 2012. I'm really not completely sure yet on the decorations. I would be willing to share depending on whether or not I need to bring any of it back for my AHR.

Rdschick: Thank you so much. My main question is about decorations. I have a vision for my floral chapel and table decorations. I am seriously thinking about hiring an outside florist in Mexico. What did you do for decorations/flowers? Did you have a DJ?

sbg75: From my perspective the email was extremely rude, and wow....the cousin's wife.....???! That is pure thoughtlessness. I don't even know what to say to that. I don't think that in either of our cases, the individuals are trying to be spiteful, but I just find them to be completely without regard to the hosts of the big bash..if you know what I mean. Are people really that unaware of proper form/etiquette or do they just not care? To me, it is becoming more and more clear that having proper manners is not universal. So frustrating.

Hi SBG75: It feels great to vent, doesn't it!!? I'm glad that a forum like this exists because there is always someone out there that knows exactly what you're feeling. I know EXACTLY how you feel, and I was soooo angry about it all. In fact, I'm still angry about it because we STILL have NO IDEA how many more or who the extra guests are...even though we clearly requested that information in our email to the fiance's father. How messy! It's coming time to poke my fiance into dealing with his family on this matter and pressing the importance of getting this information. I'm going to wait until everyone gets the official invitations which I'm working on right now. As for your comment on how you feel everyone is using your wedding as an excuse for a holiday, that is EXACTLY how we feel! In fact, my fiance said that very thing. It seems that instead of a destination wedding limiting people from coming, people seem to be planning a convenient extended family/friend reunion. It is NOT our responsibility to foot the bill. Our response is that people are welcome to come for the same week that we are all there, but that does not mean that they are invited to the wedding. I guess this all kind of gets me mad because having the destination wedding has limited 3 people that I really care about from coming. Now all these people that I don't care to have at my wedding are going to be there, and I really wanted an intimate experience. I'm probably making too big of a deal out of this, but the anxiety of having to pay for this is also very overwhelming. I did not save my pennies over the last few years JUST for one day!!!! I don't believe in spending all my hard-earned savings on my wedding since that is not what life is all about. Life is actually about what happens after the wedding, and I don't want to start out completely broke.

I haven't been posting a lot lately but I try to log on and take a look at what's happening on this thread. I just wanted to say thanks to everyone for posting where they are getting all their wedding supplies! I am not there yet, but I'll be looking into them when I get there!!

Hi My BIBI I think I'm going to have my cocktail hour in the courtyard outside the chapel. Also, I think I'll have some cocktail tables set up there and there is a bar nearby apparently. I don't have pictures or anything but from all the information that I've received from this forum, that location seems to fit my wedding; I'm getting married in the chapel.

Hi Bride81 I booked in January and at that time, if I booked 6 double occupancy rooms (a room with 2 ppl in it), I got that 6th room for free. That means that 10 people pay and 2 are free. They will give you a maximum of 3 free rooms which means you would need to book 36 people (or 18 double occupancy rooms) to get 3 of those rooms for free. In the end, I got 2 free rooms, and I will also be getting 1 free room upgrade. I was a room shy of a 3rd free room. Ah well. I can choose whether I want to give people free rooms or whether I want to split the free monetary value between my guests. If you go to the Dreams Tulum website, there is a section entitled "Current Promotions", then "Dreams Gatherings, Getaways, and Groups". I showed this to my travel agent and I was entitled to everything except for the $200 worth of vouchers as the package I got through my travel provider didn't offer this. I thought that because it was a Dreams promotion, I was entitled to all of it but I guess it has something to do with your travel provider as well. I think that the only person that can answer this clearly for you is your travel agent. Also, have you looked into booking with Wright Travel with Tammy, who is also the owner of this forum? I think that if I had known about her in the early stages, I would have looked into that. Her agency apparently has a great relationship with the Dreams Tulum and I think she's pretty familiar with all this stuff.

Hi Ladies! Dee Dreams: Sheena 2011 is right. There is more than one ballroom. I don't think the reception can be in any of the other restaurants other than the World Cafe...but I didn't specifically ask that. I did ask if a reception could be at the El Patio restaurant and the wedding coordinator at the webinar said it wasn't possible. Ashk: Welcome and congrats! I have the ultimate wedding package so the bride's bouquet is included. However, the bridesmaids bouquets are not. Ideally, I would like the resort to provide the flowers or an outside vendor in Mexico to drop them off because I don't want to have to bring everything with me. It all depends on the price. Right now, I'm making my invitations so I'm a bit preoccupied with those.

Hi Emily Sounds exciting. I'm also getting married at the Dreams Tulum in November 2012 and have found "The New Dreams Tulum Thread" really helpful. Just a heads up in case you haven't found it. Happy Planning!

Dee Dreams: I attended the webinar and learned that the 2 backup locations in case it rains are the the ballroom and the World Cafe. If it's at the World Cafe, you can only have a maximum of 40 people. Hope that helps.

Thanks BeachBride24!

Sheena2011 and Amjohnson: Thanks for all your answers! We really appreciate you sticking around to give us newbs this information. After all, you Dreams Tulum wedding veterans ARE really our eyes and ears. All we can do is imagine the place! I pretty much knew we needed to get a DJ/sound system. It's just a matter of whether the resort DJ is any good or whether we should get an outside DJ. Would I need to pay a vendor fee for an outside DJ? I will be attending the webinar so hopefully I will have a bunch of info to share with the rest of you guys.

Dee Dreams: FYI: I PM'd you with what our guests paid for the group price.

Dee Dreams: I think your centrepieces sound romantic and pretty. I'm sure they will look great. BeachBride24: About the chairs...you wrote that the white linen covered chairs are included in the ultimate package, but I thought that was just for the beach ceremony. Do they just set them up for the ceremony and then move them for the reception? 2 for 1? I'm getting married in the chapel...so how would that work. Did you have that clarified by the resort? For the centrepieces, I was planning on bringing the vases with me. So much to think about!! You were talking about using those little lanterns, so what about spray painting them orange and putting a little bow on them or something to incorporate that colour on your reception tables? Just an idea. I'm really not very creative!

Amjohnson: Thank you so much for your input. I really appreciate it. I think we will end up with the ultimate package and having them for the reception sounds like a great idea. Did you have any AV equipment at your wedding? Also, I forgot how many people you had at your wedding, but where did you have your cocktail hour? I know that one of the brides back in 2010 (I think) had about 60 guests. She decided to have her cocktail hour at the lobby bar and they brought out the champagne and hors d'oeuvres that were included in the package (for 20 people). She decided not to pay for any additional food/drink. I am thinking about doing the same since the reception would be starting soon, but do you think my guests would miss the additional food or is there enough food/drink available close by that is included on the "all-inclusive" resort stuff? Also, the other idea I had was to have cocktail hour outside the chapel in the courtyard. However, I'm thinking I would have to pay to have them set up tables/chairs there and I'm not sure there is a bar nearby...so I would have to definitely pay for more food/drink, right?

Hi Sheena2011: We are bringing our own photographer but will have pictures included in the package. I was hoping to get a longer video of the ceremony instead of having the pictures but as you've old me before, I can probably forget about that, right? If I can't swap that, what would you suggest I use the resort photographer for?

I'll ask about backup locations for you. I'm not sure but I feel like I may have seen on here somewhere that there was a bride that paid for the Dreams of Love package but had the gold menu instead of the silver. You may not need to switch packages just for the menu. I can ask that too. I think I may do a combo of fuschia/coral and yellow?? I don't know for sure yet. How did you guys decide!!!?

Hi!! Yay another Canadian bride in November!! Looks like November is a popular month I guess! I'm not sure whether I'm going to need paper lanterns because I would like to have our reception at the EL Patio restaurant or at the Seaside Grill. I'm not sure if they will allow private receptions at El Patio so I'm thinking that it will likely be at the Seaside Grill. I just wish the resort would let us book it in advance. If the reception is at the Seaside Grill, we likely won't need lanterns because the ceilings look like they are quite high so I was thinking of doing the fabric draping with lights. I feel like I still have some unanswered questions, so I'm hoping this webinar on Saturday will really help me out. Yesterday I thought of something that I think I'm going to stick to for decor. I'm getting married in the chapel so I'm planning on making DIY pomanders and bringing them with me to hang on the church pews....and then reusing them to put on top of vases with nice crystal type beads in the base of the vase as centrepieces for my reception. The only thing standing in the way of getting started is that I don't really have colours yet because my bridesmaids won't be ordering their dresses until April 22 (because of scheduling conflicts) so the dresses they choose will depend on the colours for the wedding. I'm hoping to have them wear something on the brighter side like some type of coral or fuschia. Also, I think I'll also have tealight candles surrounding the centerpieces. I'm not sure if I should bring real tealights or battery operated ones because of the wind. As for chair sashes...they are really pretty but I have a lot of guests and am not yet sure I want to spend money and time on them. Does anyone know what you call those bamboo-like chairs and how much they cost? I think that getting those might create a nice colour contrast without having to do any extra work. We're expecting about 60 guests. What about you guys?

Hi! I'll let you know what I find out on Saturday. Is there anything you want me to ask for you? When I originally registered for the wedding I wrote that we wanted the Dreams of Love package but my FH hubby and I think that in the end, we're probably going to go with the ultimate package because for an extra $800, we get a video, mexican trio, the gold wedding menu, and extra floral decor. We haven't told the wedding department yet because we still have to crunch numbers. Yay to November brides from Canada!

Hi Beachbum21: When you say Powerpoint is easier to work with, are you saying that the Word template is much harder to work with? What are all the programs that you could use the templates with and which one is the best? I am soooo not computer savvy so the easiest way is the way I'm trying to go. Can you tell me where to go on this forum to get your templates for the boarding pass and the jacket? I will pay the fee to download if it means that I can get these done easier. Also, do did you find your little pictures for the invitations by googling them and then just inserting?

Dee Dreams: Sharing decorations/cost sounds like a great idea. I will be leaving Mexico on November 25th (the day before your wedding, I believe) so we may just be able to meet and I can give you anything that we agree on. I'm not sure about lanterns yet but I will hopefully be able to let you know in the next little while. I am attending the Dream Tulum webinar this Saturday and I'm hoping to have some of my questions answered this week regarding reception spaces, which will help me determine what I might need for decorations. I'll keep you posted. I'm so excited that you're on here!

Hi Tammy Host I registered for the webinar the proper way and now I'm just posting to you that I will be attending the webinar this Saturday in case the registration doesn't go through. Thanks for letting me know about this. I wasn't sure if I could attend because of work but now it looks like the timing is going to work out. I'm really looking forward to it! Thanks again!

Hi Ladies I haven't yet decided on ceremony music but I think that they is a thread on here somewhere about ceremony related stuff like music and readings. I copied the hand blessing reading off of there. As for reception beach vs. pool, I know it can be windy at night and from what I've read on here. I'm not sure how much the pool areas are sheltered from the wind vs how windy it may be on the beach. I'm not even sure that it would be windy enough to have sand blow on the tables. On earlier posts in this thread (maybe the first 100 page...I can't remember), it has been said that you can't really go wrong with whatever you choose food-wise since it's all good. That was back in 2010 or around there though. I don't think that I've read any recent food reviews. I'm thinking that they make these menus so often with all the weddings and special events that we don't really have much to worry about. I think that it boils down to personal preference. We will probably go with the steak option. I've heard that the "3 milks" wedding cake is really good so I think we'll go with that one. I think it's called "tres leche" or something like that in Spanish. I will be bringing extra decorations but I haven't decided what yet. I'm kind of stuck on what to do for centrepieces. I don't want to spend too much, I'd like it to be easy to transport there but also pretty. Any thoughts? I would love to see pictures from past brides but haven't seen any.

Dee Dreams: Congrats! Try not to stress. I've been spending a bit of time on here to find questions to my answers. I'm going to have a larger group,so I will pretty much have to pay the fee. I think that if you want a free reception space, you can do a beach reception, poolside reception, reception in the wine cellar, in the hut on the beach (not sure if this is still available), or they can section off a part of one of the restaurants. I know that if you decide to have a reception in one of the restaurants, it won't be private and you won't be able to have a DJ/dancing. As for setup, I think that you can have family set things up as long as they don't have to get up on a ladder and it doesn't involve electrical work; they won't let you do that in case anything were to happen. That's what I've read on here so far. As for packages, it really depends on what you want and need. It was more cost-effective for us to get the ultimate package because of the amount of stuff that it offers that we want and the amount of people that we are going to have (about 60). You'll need to crunch some numbers and see if you even need a package to begin with or if you can get the free package and add to it. You may have already done this. We chose the ultimate over the dreams of love because for $800 , we get the mexican trio, the video and the gold wedding cake that we wanted...plus some other stuff. When you add it all up for us, it's worth it. Hope that helps.