Mlite83
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Posts posted by Mlite83
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Originally Posted by Susannah
So is there any wine included in the 'all inclusive' do you know please?
Yes wine (by the glass) is included - All Inclusive means all meals, snacks and drinks (alcoholic and non) are included.
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Originally Posted by aarosenthall
Okay, someone who has recently been to NJ please ease my concerns! So my mother arrived to the resort yesterday and granted she is not the most worldly of travelers. However, this morning I received a couple texts from her saying that the only included restuarants are the buffets, the rest take vouchers or money? I have never heard of this before and am hoping that this is not the case!!!
I was just there 2 months ago and don't worry this is not true. All of the restaraunts, bars, coffee lounge and room service are included thus making it All Inclusive. You can opt to purchase a bottle of wine (if you prefer high end or something in particular) but they don't push it at all..in fact I only know about that option from reading reviews, we didn't inquiry about it and no one ever tried to push it on us.
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Originally Posted by Adrianne
So I came in contact with Cecilia right after I read your post! Everything was going great, booked the boat I wanted, transportation as well as food. Then she told me the boat I had booked was broken and would not be fixed by April 24th, as well as she increased the prices she originally gave me for that boat and the other boats I was looking at and for transportation. Meaning the cost went from $2500 to $3700!!!!!!!! Which is now out of our budget. So being less then 3 weeks away, everything is booked up. Pretty frustrating. I have no ideas for what to do after my 11am ceremony. Any suggestions?! From my experience I would not recommend Catamarans Cancun.
Wow sorry to hear that - have you spoken with the resort travel and tourism department? They have catamaran tours too - maybe they could get something together for you? We flew Air Transat and they also had similar excursions (and a rep on site we could book through)...we also looked at a few other companies (this is going back almost a year though so I don't know if they are still in operation/prices/availability etc
- Emotion Cancun [email protected]
-Marina La Bonita <[email protected]
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The arrangements on the pergola are included if you have the divine package - I would assume if you were using another ceremony site they would have something similar but I'm not certain since I used the pergola. I think they price them incase you are using another package or doing a la carte pricing.I can send you the entire .pdf if that would be helpful? PM me your email address if you want. I'm not sure about the Columns and Arrangements (2), I'm a bit confused if that's what's on the pergola or if that's included in the Divine package. Maybe someone else can clarify for us
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FYI Castaways is an open air restaurant so it is not air conditioned at all. From previous reviews I have read it can get very hot during receptions but I used the Bamboo Room so I can't speak to that from my experiences. It is where many people eat lunch since it is right beside the pool on the non-preferred side. When we were there is was open for dinner once I think but it is mostly a lunch or snack type restaurant again due to location.
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Originally Posted by shannonmarie
According to my PDF, the premium ones are $185. Still not sure where $350 is coming from...
My pdf might be out of date since it is about a year old but it says premium centerpieces are $230...I think the confusion with 350 comes from bridal bouquet - that is the price for a premium bouquet. But again, brides who are planning right now should have more recent info that I.
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Just a thought for those of you trying to cut down on centerpiece costs - we did DIY luminairies that were inexpensive to make (under $40 for 25 of them) and laid flat for packing (bonus!).
I bought vellum paper from Staples and printed our name, date and starfish image on the vellum paper and then used glue dots (from walmart) to stick the edges together. I put a battery operated tea light in it and tada inexpensive centerpieces! Honestly, my guests thought they were glass - when my FIL knocked into the table and bumped it over a bunch of people tried to catch it so it didn't break on the floor, haha!
Below are a few pictures of the luminairies - we used these with sheer table runners and some "diamond" decor scattered on the table. The last picture also shows the centerpiece provided by the resort (in divine package) that was on the table during the ceremony.
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The $350 centerpieces are the premium ones - think the super tall ones with lots of flowers - those would be in that price range. The more average wedding centerpieces (depending on size and flowers) are in the lower price range.
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Originally Posted by annettea1021
omg I cant wait to hear the details when you get back. I'm still in the process of attempting to book my wedding date... Pilar is just so S L O W with responding I've been emailing with her since late February. I attempted to book April 12 and she got back to me 2 weeks later telling me the locations i was requesting were booked and so I emailed her right away for availability for other dates and she has yet to respond and its not about to be a week... I dont know if I'm just getting too anxious but I'm beginning to think maybe I should look into another resort...
Just call Pilar at the resort if you are trying to get your date and spots reserved - that is what we did and it was so much easier. We called once to get availability during our planned week of travel and then called back a couple days later to book. She held the booking for 2 weeks (or until we put down our deposit) - again so much easier to do in real time than email!
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Originally Posted by mizpriya
Hi Ladies,
Need your help or ideas on how to pack my bouquet. I have 2 real touch bouquets (mid size to small) and I need to figure out the best way to pack them. I am thinking I should probably pack it in my carry on just in case the suitcase gets lost but I am already packing all the other necessary items I will need. If I pack it in my suitcase...where should I put it and how should I pack it so as to not get it squished???
I just put mine (all calla lilies) in the bottom on my garment bag- I used some bristol board to make a cylinder to hold the shape of the bag and prevent any major squishing. They faired out just fine - we only had a bit of reshaping to do once we got there but we figured that. I also put our fedora hats in the bag to prevent any squishes! No one questioned it at the airport so it was easy breezy!
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Originally Posted by shannonmarie
We are flying in on the 12th and leaving the 19th. I wanted to get there as close to the wedding date as possible b/c I know I won't be able to relax before the big day! My relaxation time will start the day after the wedding is over! Right now we are at 62 guest! And I'm really hoping THATS IT! Wayyyyyy more than I ever expected. I'm very over-whelmed. We invited everyone we would invite to a local wedding thinking people wouldn't come....WRONG!! Boy were we wrong! I thought maybe 40-50 max. Whew, the cost are really adding up but oh well. Nothing we can do now :-) People on my FI's side that I have never even heard of are coming. I'm just coming to terms with the fact that my idea for a small/intimate wedding isn't happening! My poor dad--when I mentioned a destination wedding he thought we'd have about 10-15 guest... lol...I'm honored that all these people are coming but I just didn't expect it. But I suppose it's better than a 200+ guest wedding locally! I'll take 60 over 200 any day!
Good song choices! I'm sure everything will come together for you! Go ahead & download the songs on your iPod and then hopefully you won't change your mind once they are on there!
What time is your wedding?
Pilar said she'd block off a section of the lobby bar for cocktails the evening before.... That was before our count of 60 guest... Anyone know if this area will be big enough for us??? PLEASE SAY YES ;-)
The lobby bar will definitely be big enough to accommodate you - it's the main lobby and there are dozens are couches, benches etc.
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Here are a couple of my low back dress - it was from Jasmine Bridal. Had lace, a bit of sparkle and was perfect for our DW!
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Originally Posted by kfritz
Mlite83 I hired sweetfire photography also...how long did you end up using her for?
We booked her for 5 hrs.
We had a 4 pm ceremony so Lori and her assistant (Tanya) were scheduled to arrive at 3pm for getting ready photos - they actually got to the resort closer to 2:30 to check out locations, take photos of the ceremony set up etc. After the ceremony we did family and wedding party pics (maybe 30mins total?) and then had about 1.5 hrs of newlywed photos around the resort. We finished out the night with dinner/speeches/first dance etc photos from about 630 till 830.
Lori definitely knows her stuff and can help plan a perfect timeline based on your needs/wants. You'll be amazed by her photos - we still are!
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As a side note - TTD did not hurt this dress at all. The salt water (and maybe sunscreen?) cause a bit of yellowing around the seams at the top of the neckline but some Oxiclean fixed it up no problem. No rips, tears or lasting damage as a result (mind you it was a simple strapless dress with a bit of beadwork on the neckline and a soft flounce down the front so no tulle, lace or elaborate beading). Just thought I'd put it out there for anyone who maybe wondering.
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We used our resort photographer (Adventure Photo from Now Jade, MX) for a TTD two days later. The pictures turned out great so it was hard to pick just one to post!
Pictures to show off the dress (a friend's dress, I didn't wear my wedding dress since it would have been HEAVY and I am having at AHR so didn't want to risk it).
Just a couple cute shots!
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Originally Posted by khunt29
I have a question about the vegetarian menu. I have it already, but emailed Pilar to ask if those people also get their own soup and appetizer and dessert, or if they just get to choose a different entree. Her response was
FIND ATTACHED HTE VEGETARIAN OPTIONS YUO CAN SELECT THEIR MENU
Does that mean the entire menu or just the entree?
For your veg guests you can select separate appetizer and salad since the other options mostly have seafood/meat. That's what we did - potato/asparagus soup in lieu of lobster bisque and a different salad (can't remember exactly what) in lieu of the salad with shrimp.
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Originally Posted by ToBeBride
Hi girls -
I'm getting married at the Now Jade on January 24, 2014! We're very excited and have been doing some of the early planning. We've decided to go with an outside photographer, but I have a question on that to the brides that have used outside photographers as well. Do we have to provide dinner for the photographer? He will only be staying for about 1-1.5 hours of the reception including the dinner.
Also, I know that the Divine Package includes a guitarist or violinist at the ceremony. Does anybody know if we can give them specific songs to play or do they just play something generic?
We used Sweet Fire Photography on a 5 hr package and they didn't require meals at our reception, they simply went to the buffet to grab a bite while our guests ate (they don't take pictures during dinner since no one looks good eating ha). If we had booked above 6 hrs dinner was required, I remember seeing that on her package/price list.
We used the guitarist during the cocktail hour and he was fantastic - he played a mix of tunes, many covers and some originals. We didn't specify anything (particular songs, genre etc) and he did great. Lots of positive compliments from guests and a few even bought his CDs (he gave us one as a wedding present which I thought was very sweet).
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Originally Posted by pmkaraan
I love this! Do you have the template you used?
We made them in publisher - hopefully you can open them!
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Originally Posted by mic813
Got back on Friday from 11 glorious days and an amazing wedding at the Now Jade. Like all other previous brides have told you, relax and Pilar and her staff are amazing. They take of everything and more. I plan on catching up on the thread and answering any questions I can and starting my review this afternoon.
If you have any questions please let me know. I couldn't have planned a wedding without this thread and want to pay it forward. No official pictures yet, but here is a candid from my friend
Congrats - looks lovely!!
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Originally Posted by Retro Couple
I love this shot by Lorie! Is that the natural colour of the bamboo room or did you guys opt for the $350 lighting package?
Chris
We didn't do the lighting package since our colours were already shades of blue so the blue/turquoise on the wall worked out perfectly for us. And thanks - we are in love with all of our wedding photos - Lori does a FANTASTIC job!!
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Originally Posted by khunt29
Thanks for posting a pic of that layout, I think we've decided to do the same. I have a question though, since you've now been and seen the room....would that work for a head table of 15 people? We have a large wedding party but don't want to have to split us up, so we wanted to do 15 across, and then 14 down each side, as you did (total of 43 people). Is the room big enough for that length of a head table, if 15 of us want all sit in one long line? i am stressing about this, big time! We calc'd out the room measurements - Pilar gave us a diagram that shows the length of the room as 15 meters (49 feet) and figured that if we put 4 of those rectangular tables across as one big head table (total of 32 feet), that would still leave about 8.5ft on either end of the head table. is that too cramped?
And the 14 down each side, were they all side-by-side, or did you have 7 place settings facing each other? I would prefer to have everyone all face the dance floor in the middle, so nobody's back is to each other.....hope this makes sense- I can visualize in my mind, but it's so hard to explain!
Yes I think this would fit just fine. We had 8 across for the head table and the ends of the tables weren't inline with the friends and family tables (ie there would have been room to expand the head table). Our guest tables were 14 people at each, all side by side looking towards the middle (dance floor) so no one had their back to the dance floor or head table or speeches. We originally thought about having guests face to face at the long tables but Pilar said we had the room to go side by side down one side of the table so we did that to help fill the space and still had plenty of room.
Here is a photo of the room from our photog (SweetFire Photography - amazing!) - straight ahead is the head table and you can see the guest tables down either side. The middle part is the dance floor. There was lots of room behind the guest tables too so if necessary they can be bumped out a bit to make additional space.
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Originally Posted by Retro Couple
The $15 per person per hour fee really bothers me since most people are only extending their reception by an hour or two anyway and what possible use could the space serve from say 9:00 PM until 11:00 PM? I have 38 people attending our reception, so 38 people x $15 a person is $570 for one hour and I would need two hours, so $570 + $570 = $1140. I know some people have said that Pilar has waived the extension fee or "forgot" about adding it on to the final invoice, but if we were required to pay I would say to heck with it and head to the sports bar for the last 2 hours of the night.
Sorry, mini vent there. Maybe I'm turning into one of those rumored creatures known as the groom-zilla. haha
Chris
The fee is not just for the use of the space, it is for the dedicated staff to your event - we extended our reception and had had at least 6-7 staff members waiting on us to ensure everything was going well, drinks were flowing etc. I know it is pricey but looking at it that way may help explain the cost. Also Pilar gave use a deal - we had 35 guests and extended for 2 hrs so we dropped the $15/hr by a few bucks.
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Originally Posted by khunt29
Hi ladies,
i can't remember if I had seen it in here or not, but does anyone have a template they wouldn't mind sharing for a master room list at the resort? FI and I are taking the private xfr from the airport and thought it would be nice for us to have sheets for everyone with everyone's name on it and a space for us to fill in the room#. I suppose this is something I could doctor up in excel, just wondered if anyone had one already
Thanks!
kristen
Not quite what you are looking for but FYI Pilar will give you a list of this (and ask if/how many copies you would like). She offered it to us during the planning meeting (on day 2) since everyone had settled in their rooms and it reflected any upgrades (ie to preferred club). Not pretty looking (just an excel doc) but got the job done.
And honestly, I think we were the only ones who used it...the resort is not huge so it was easy to find people wandering about or at a meeting place (ie lobby bar). If we needed to call between rooms the concierge was very quick and helpful. Just a thought
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Originally Posted by khunt29
We also haven't received a response from Pilar in almost a week. We sent her our original planning form and got her invoice, which we almost threw up on haaha, so we adjusted some things and sent back a revised planning form, now just waiting for a revise bill.
I know everything falls together, but it's so hard to let go of the control! We're in Ontario, our travel agent is in BC, and then throw Pilar into the mix, aned everything just takes forever! So stressful.
As an aside- I just took a trip to Ikea yesterday and got a ton of stuff, white table lanterns, artificial orchids (which actually look pretty nice), and they have cylindrical vases on for $9.99 - a set of three, so we bought 3 sets- haven't figured out how we're transporting them yet...
Just a note about your invoice - during your planning meeting with Pilar she goes over all of your details, requests, special notes etc and then will revise the invoice if necessary at that point...for us she had to remove an entree (last minute cancellation) and add on the two day passes for our photographer. We didn't fret too much about our initial invoice knowing we could cancel/change/add to once we met with her.
OFFICIAL NOW Jade Wedding Thread
in Riviera Maya and Cancun Accommodations & Site
Posted
I had 35 guests at our wedding and was not charged for the extra chairs - or moving them between Pergola and Bamboo Room. During our initial meeting Pilar just asked me to confirm how many chairs necessary for the ceremony (ie total guest count who will sit down during the ceremony) and then mocked up a plan for number of guests per row and number of rows. She also quoted me $1/chair bow to iron and tie them on but didn't end up charging me for that.