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We gave our venue the final, FINAL guest count and paid the balance for food and beverage in cash the day before the wedding.

Just wanted to add my experience. We just had our wedding last Saturday. We sent out save the dates last April (over a year in advance) and then sent out formal invitations in February (4 months in advance). Our RSVP deadline was April, and I think on the day of our deadline we had something like 20 official RSVPs from ~ 100 invitations sent, though many more people had verbally told us yes or no. Only 7 people booked anything until a month before our wedding, and the WEEK BEFORE, I was still hearing "oh surprise! we're not able to make it after all" as well as "hey guess what! I can make it after all". In the end we had 58 guests attend our wedding, but the exact number was fluctuating until the very last minute. I really wish people were more organized, but what can you do?

I just got back yesterday from our wedding this past Saturday in Mexico. WOW. I never bought into the whole "your wedding is the best day of your life" thing, but that truly may have been the best week of my life. The experience of being surrounded by family and friends in a gorgeous tropical setting, seeing old friends reconnect, watching grandmas dancing with little kids, drinking tequila with your best friends and jumping in the ocean... I can't even describe it. It was everything I hoped it would be, and even better. What I would do again: Choose great vendors and trust them completely. We held our wedding at Ana y Jose hotel with the amazing Jackie and Claudia as wedding coordinators. Marvin Kunil of Maya Diseño did our flowers, Citlalli Rico of Claudia Photo was our photographer (I haven't seen the photos yet but I just know they're amazing), and the Shine Band was our entertainment. I spent a lot of time researching vendors, and it was totally worth it because they were all incredible professionals who made everything look beautiful, run smoothly, and happen without us lifting a finger. When you have great vendors, you really can just sit back and enjoy. Book a band instead of a DJ. I went back and forth between getting a DJ vs a band, but at the end of the day the Shine Band's energy, performance, and props made for an amazing party that no DJ could have matched! Do photos before the ceremony. We did our first look, family portraits, and couple portraits all before the ceremony. It was really great to see my husband before the ceremony because I was so nervous and taking photos helped me calm down, and I'm also really glad we got it out of the way because after the ceremony all I wanted to do was hug all my guests and have a drink with them! Delegate like crazy. On the wedding day, we put two of our friends in charge of decorations, another one in charge of making sure audio was set up for the ceremony, and our dads in charge of place cards and seating. This was on top of having two professional wedding coordinators from our venue. I made printouts in advance with the wedding day timeline and vendor contact information, gave them to our friends and closest family, and then let go. For the entire day, we were able to just enjoy being in the moment and let other people worry about logistics. Keep things simple. We didn't do OOT bags, favors, or formal dances. Instead of doing a traditional wedding cake, we just served tres leches cake (already cut) as dessert. We gave our guests maracas to shake as we walked down the aisle instead of playing a song or hiring a musician because you can't screw up maracas, and we served dinner family-style so there would be no mix-ups with people being served the wrong dish. During the entire planning process, I kept asking myself "how can I make this as error-proof as possible?" and it was great, because there just weren't that many details for me to worry about. Be present to enjoy all the unscripted moments. There were so many great moments during the day that we could not possibly have prepared for, and because we kept things simple and delegated all the worrying away, we were able to be present for them. For example, halfway during dinner a giant blue crab came crawling through our restaurant on the beach! The guests all gathered around, some people were trying to catch it, and it was just a great, hilarious moment. Another great moment was when my new husband and I snuck away for about ten minutes during the crazy dance party to sit in some hammocks outside and just be alone in the cool night breeze. What I wouldn't do again: Worry so much. During the planning process, I worried about everything that could go wrong: what if there's a hurricane, what if the food tastes bad, what if the guests don't have fun, etc. etc. Now looking back, I can tell you that there is absolutely no reason to worry. This is going to sound super cheesy, but it's true: the love between you, your new spouse, and all the people there for your wedding will just completely overpower everything else. Even if we had gotten married in a parking lot in the pouring rain with no food, everyone still would've been thrilled for us and we still would've had a great time. Choose a dress early. This is embarrassing to admit but I ended up buying, changing my mind about, and then selling my wedding dress TWICE, and the dress I actually wore was the third one I bought. If the wedding was a few months from now, I might even have changed my mind again. Ladies, if you know you're fickle like me, wait until the last possible moment to buy your dress so you don't have time to change your mind. Worry at all. Really, everything will be perfect, and the things that don't go perfectly you won't even notice.

We just got back from our wedding at Ana y José Hotel on Saturday. Wow, wow, wow! Our wedding on Saturday was unbelievable. Everything went perfectly, and we didn't have to worry about a thing the entire day. They did an amazing job setting up the beach ceremony, the palapa, the tables, and the patio. The setup looked a million times better than I had hoped for; I literally gasped when I saw how beautiful everything was. And everything ran so smoothly. Jackie, Claudia, Ignacio, Sandy — all of them are incredible professionals. I was a little worried the day before the wedding when they told me that there was another wedding happening on the same day as ours at Ana y José beach club (our was at the hotel), because I thought that meant our event wouldn't get enough attention. But I shouldn't have worried at all. Every single little thing was perfect. Drinks and food just appeared after the ceremony, music during dinner was great, everyone found their seats easily, the band knew exactly when to start playing. The Ana y José staff even found us a piñata at the last minute. That was an incredible memory that would not have happened without their help. All of our guests were raving about what a wonderful wedding we had, and the amazing venue. Several of them told me that it was the most beautiful place they'd ever been to. If you're thinking about holding your wedding at Ana y José, definitely go for it!!

Kate, what.is your wedding date? Mine is June 8. If we're getting married the same weekend, would you be interested in combining flower deliveries, as Marvin charges a flat fee of $100 to Tulum?

I'm not sure how many people El Camello can hold, but it's not the kind of place you'd want to do a cocktail party. Emphasis there is definitely on food over ambiance. You can look it up on Tripadvisor to see photos. The fried fish is so amazing though, I still crave it months after my trip to Tulum!

Actually, it looks very cohesive to me! Soft pastel colors, romantic tulle and lace dresses... and a wicked sense of humor. Love the Ryan Gosling pin.

Is anyone else on here using Pinterest to plan their weddings? I thought we could share inspiration boards with each other for color and decoration ideas. Here's mine, lots of papel picado and bright colors: pinterest.com/juliazhou/mexico-beach-wedding/

Would love to. I noticed you're planning a wedding in Grand Cayman - one of my best friends is from there, so I've been quite a few times and love the island! PM me with contact details.

Honestly, I wasn't really impressed with any of the food on the hotel strip. I ate at Ana y Jose, Cabanas Tulum, Playa Azul, Casa Banana, and Zamas. While the food was pretty good, it was all priced at mid-to-high end US prices (~$20 entrees), and I just didn't think it was worth it. If you go into Tulum Pueblo, however, the food gets really cheap. I highly recommend a place called El Camello for AMAZING fried fish and ceviche at rock bottom prices; that place is constantly packed with locals, so that tells you something! I wouldn't really choose your wedding venue based on food. Feeding 100-130 guests at the same time is a HUGE challenge for any kitchen, so I think realistically, you'll have to settle for pretty-good-but-not-mind-blowing food. Ana y Jose has a big palapa that can do a reception for 100+ guests, and I think Las Ranitas does too. You might also want to check out El Pez.

Sorry for the late reply! I haven't been on this site much recently, as I got busy with work and life stuff. I booked Citlalli Rico of Claudia Photo for photography, and Marvin of Maya Diseno for flowers. I think we're going to go with a mariachi band during cocktail hour and a DJ during the reception for dancing. I'm leaning towards DJ Doremixx as he has amazing reviews on here. Both Marvin and Dj Doremixx have been great in correspondence and they have great reviews on here, although I can't testify first hand as to the quality of their work yet. Our plan is ceremony on the beach, cocktail hour by the pool, and dinner + dancing under the palapa. We were thinking about doing the reception outdoors, but decided to go with the palapa just in case it rains - the space will already be decorated and ready to go! Let me know if there's anything else I can share.

I've heard from several outdoor brides that candles just won't stay lit when it gets windy. But you could try battery-powered candles (they have some very realistic looking ones now) in hurricane candle holders, or maybe some lanterns, or decorated paper bags (aka lumineres). I've also seen wine bottles with the bottom cut out used. Here are some photos for inspiration:

Have you seen this purple beach wedding? One of my all-time favorites on BDW: http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/t/78973/melissas-planning-journal-azul-sensatori Also check out this link: http://www.elizabethmedina.com/blog/tag/purple-wedding-colors/ I love deep purple and light gray, those are the colors I used in my living room at home. I'm sure your wedding will he gorgeous!

I have my venue, photographer, and florist booked, save the dates sent out, and I finally settled on a dress! But honestly, I haven't done any wedding planning in a months (this is my first time on this site since like, July). I plan on sending out invitations and getting a final headcount in February / March 2013. I'll also finish up the other things I need to do then: Write our ceremony!!! Book our plane tickets to Mexico Finalize headcount and menu with venue Figure out what accessories I'm wearing Fiancé needs to figure out his whole outfit Order invitations and thank-you cards Music - we still need to decide if we're doing DJ or band and book, plus make a playlist for them Put together and send out travel info packet for all our guests on things to do, places to eat, etc. Figure out the day's schedule Am I forgetting anything??? I'm not doing OOT bags or having any bridesmaids / groomsmen, so that's a lot of things off my list.

Sorry, my questions "Is that a Paloma Blanca?" was for KIM02242012.