girlinthecity97

@@Stacsoontobeegan - Ah! no worries I totally understand. I think depending on the size of your wedding party and how much you want to take with you etc. the cost for let's say 50-75 people can range from $5K over $10K. I have fellow destination bride friends who opted to source just about everything and take it with them in their luggage for the resort to set up up ($5K or less) and folks like me who tweaked the Karisma decor package to fit my "vision" without having to go the pricier a la carte decor route. I used the Lomas DJ at the last minute because I was concerned about folks not hearing the music too well if we just went with the speakers and was glad I did!! Ahead of time, I went on ITunes and found all the "safe" versions of songs we wanted played and labeled what music should be played when (e.g., music during dinner, 1st dance with dad, his 1st dance with mom, song for bouquet toss etc.) and he stuck to the list and blended everything nicely. We opted for Mega DJ who was cheaper b/c he didn't do any announcements but he had lights which made the pier dancing area much more festive. Room rates will vary depending on what time of year your wedding is being held. We got married over President's Day weekend in February which turns out to be a peak time so the rates and airfare was much higher than others I know who got married in October, April and May. I would ask your agent for a wholesale rates list, though they may not have 2018 rates available yet. I ran into that issue when planning so get the current rate list so you can get an idea for times of the year. Some guests had concerns about the rates but when they realized that they could pay it down over time and also would be completely done and not have to really bring money for food/drinks etc. while there they loved the idea. If you haven't done so, I would consider doing the Brides Dress Rehearsal weekend and maybe adding a couple of days either ahead of that stay or on the end to visit the Royalton for comparison. The Bride's Dress Rehearsal deal Karisma offers is really great and will help you get a sense of the food, decor, properties etc. As for hair and makeup - I'm african american so I flew down my hair stylist because I didn't think the resort salon would know how to style my hair. I am a makeup artist so I did my own makeup.

@@biesea81 - CONGRATS!! What did you decide about the beach. I took pics on the beach after our ceremony and the photographer did a great job getting us from angles so you don't see the giant rocks at all. If you do an evening wedding, I think you should be fine. My guests loved the beach at both El Dorado and Generations. @@VictoriaVanDyke - I think the cost will ultimately boil down to discounts/deals you are able to get via your travel agent and Karisma and the size of your wedding. It is important to lock in as early as possible as well because the rates do go up. For instance, we locked in for our February 2015 wedding in 2014 so they honored all rates from 2014 since that is when we locked in our date and contract. Initially, I wasn't 100% sold on the destination idea because I always envisioned getting married in my hometown where all of my family could attend. However, I LOVED having our wedding in Mexico and wouldn't change a thing. I would do it again and have encouraged others who were on the fence to go the destination route. Our guests LOVED the resorts and have planned trips to return to Mexico and the resort because they had such a great time. You will hear some complaints but ignore them. Everyone who is meant to be at your wedding will be there and it will be perfection! @@zoeyjane is right, re the cost and the food being significantly cheaper. I did the family style dinner that had lobster, steak, fish etc. and at the time it was $35/person which is a steal. CONGRATS to you @@zoeyjane! Note to All - when you are going over your paperwork, make sure all rates are accurate as I had to request adjustments on my menu and decor selections because they reflected 2015 rates but we were supposed to get 2014. @@Jacquelyn05 - CONGRATS to you as well! I got caught up and ended up doing letterpress invitations b/c I was really struggling to find ones that I liked that I also felt set the "resort chic" theme I was going for. Some others that I have become friends with did the passport style and one did a really cute booklet style she found on minted.com What's your theme? That's the beauty of a destination wedding, you can be as formal or relaxed as you want to be. There are no rules. Bags for guests - yes, I did beach tote bags that had packets of advil, alka seltzer plus, emergen-C, bandaids, Nauzene, and Dramamine (for the catamaran/snorkeling cruise) and baby bottles of Skin So Soft (for bug repellant) in them. I also included a welcome note and itinerary as well as a little packet that represented our roots and Mexico. Everyone loved them and put the bags to use especially on the cruise. The bags also ended up being ice breakers in that guests would go up and introduce themselves to each other when they saw people with the bags. Catamaran Cruise - that was probably me and it was a blast. We scored one free as part of the promotion we locked in on. We asked them to stock it with snorkel equipment so it was a cruise and snorkeling trip in one for those who wanted to go snorkeling. Those who did not just had fun on the boat. @@Stacsoontobeegan - welcome and CONGRATS! what type of info are you looking for.

@@CnBWedding - I think you will be just fine having your bridal party member doing it. Keep in mind this is a destination wedding and more importantly, YOUR wedding so there are no hard and fast rules to follow. Go with who you think will do the best job. Everyone will know that person is part of your party by their attire and the fact they saw them stand with you guys! Everyone is right re not sweating things like that. As the clock wound down on me, I started picking and choosing what mattered most (e.g., ditched doing programs & my own menus b/c I figured they'd just go in the trash and the resort provided menus for free). It sounds like you have everything under control so just savor and have fun!

@@CnBWedding - I agree with @@rtscent regarding having another guest who isn't in your bridal party emcee. That's what we did. One of our guests is pretty chatty and whitty so we asked her in advance if she would do the honors then let our onsite coordinator know who she was. In case she was tipsy we also had a friend who doesn't drink on hand as back up. The backup also was helpful in making sure our friend and the coordinator connected. As for songs I like @@rtscent idea of checking Spotify. I just used iTunes to make sure I was capturing the right song title for the versions I wanted played. I wasn't sure how/where Mega DJ would be pulling from but figured as long as I snagged the official title we'd be ok and we were. I can't believe you are only 5 weeks away! SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO excited for you! Are you getting nervous/excited? Married life is going well! Dear hubby has traded one round of stress for another. We've been on a whirlwind trying to finish decorating/furnishing our house. We have both sets of parents coming for Christmas so that should be interesting (and exhausting) to say the least. @@Christinagiovanni - CONGRATS! I love your decorations! Your pics are awesome

@@SunshineDreamKay - I had a similar situation with my now hubby's family. His dad passed so we were listing his mom & stepdad and my parents. Also, he doesn't go by his birth name but a nickname and I wanted to use include my middle initial or middle name but couldn't. We too were paying for everything but wanted to be respectful to the parents so we went with this wording: Mr. & Mrs. Joseph Jones (Bride's parents) and Mr. & Mrs. Isaac Prince request the honor of your presence at the marriage of their children Jane Jones & Nic Sharpe Insert Date & time Location Cocktail hour and reception will immediately follow. A friend did something similar for her parents who are divorced and did: Mr. John Doe & Mrs. Ann Smith (Bride's Parents) and Mr.& Mrs. Abe Lincoln (Groom's Parents) request the honor of your presence at the marriage of their children Jane Elizabeth Doe & Frank Joseph Lincoln

Hi Ladies & special heartfelt CONGRATS to those who are new to this thread! @@CnBWedding - @@rtscent is spot on re EDR. 99% of our guests stayed on that side many of whom are beach lovers and I had 0 complaints & tons of FB/Instagram posts of them enjoying themselves on the Bali beds, jet skis etc. over there. @@Kalie25 - Unfortunately, I can't really help re Sky Deck reception pics. I had my ceremony and cocktail hour up there and my reception on the Pier b/c I was worried it would be too chilly up there (we got married in February). As for photographers. I used Sascha Gluck (Cancun Photos) because I liked his photojournalist style and found his rate to be pretty reasonable. He was worth the outside vendor fee! I was not impressed with the quality of Lomas' flowers given the prices they charge so I hired Vanessa. To get around the fee, we rented a car (something we already planned to do for incidentals and to show new hubby around since he'd never been to Mexico before except for the Brides Dress Rehearsal event). We picked them up from her studio very early on the morning of our wedding. @@ErinSullivan - CONGATS!!!! We hired Mega DJ at the last minute b/c doing the speaker thing wouldn't work for our reception on the pier and he was great if you just need someone to play the music and have it mix/blend well. Using ITunes I found the exact name/version of songs (e.g., Radio Edit) & listed it on a spreadsheet for him to play to avoid having a raunchy version played since we had a few kids and the parents in attendance. He did a great job and to my surprise moved the songs around so they all flowed and blended well. He came with party lights so that helped make the dance area fun. He's the cheaper of the Lomas DJs and doesn't come with the glow sticks & crazy props. My group was fine without them.

@@calgarybride2015 - amen re dirty clothes taking up lots of space!! I was embarrassed to share but glad to know we weren't the only ones. DF was too afraid to send things to the laundry service - concerned something would get "lost" & not return, especially after only 1 of my dresses initially showed up when I sent both and my veil for steaming. I didn't get everything back until a 2 hours before the wedding although we sent it out the afternoon before.

@@Paolah - not sure where you would be shipping or which resort you are using but I'm in the U.S. and shipping wasn't an option so I had no choice. The resort we got married at won't accept packages and the U.S. Postal Service & FedEx staff I talked to advised against doing so citing the items would most likely not reach the intended destination or badly picked through. It worked out though b/c as much as we thought we wouldn't have a need for the suitcases for our return, we actually did need them. We put my dresses and his tux in one and a few guests brought gifts down (go figure) so we put those in the mediums.

@@lauralane - doubtful you are reading this but wanted to send you a big HUG and fabo vibes as it's the night before your big day! Truly wishing you an amazing wedding & that your vision becomes a reality and then some. Can't wait for you to return and hear all about it!

Hi All - I flew United and carried my dress. Unfortunately, the flight attendants were nasty and made me put it in overhead. My new hubby was sweet and thankfully had the foresight to pay to pre-board so we took up an overhead compartment just for his tux and my dress which was bulky. Once at the resort, we had them both steamed the day before the wedding.

@@NenaRoss - we packed everything in large suitcases. And took some things out of the boxes they came in to make more space. So the Welcome Bags, cosmetic bags, mallets were packed loose in one suit case. The individual packets and muslin bags were kept in their respective boxes since those were pretty small and packed in another large suitcase along with the bottles & tops for the insect repellant to go in. Thankfully my new hubby is a pro at packing so we managed to get everything all supplies in 4 suitcases (2 large and 2 medium).

@@rachelia160 - I just got married and opted not to do one. I too flip flopped but in the end had my hands full with all the things that I definitely wanted. Additionally, we had a small bridal party & 60 guests attending so I felt less guilty about not having one given the small scale of things. Also, @@calgarybride2015 raises a great point about guests getting to know each other in advance of the wedding. My guests did just that whether it was introducing themselves when they spotted others with our welcome totes, or over drinks at the welcome party or during nightly meet ups at the martini lounge. No one judged or commented about the absence of them & in the end, I am glad I skipped them. I know some people feel guests should receive something upon arrival for the ceremony, if that's you, I would suggest folded fans with a cute tag that welcomes them to the ceremony or something along those lines. Happy Planning!

@@rtscent - to quote you, your topper is on FLEEK!! I.LOVE.IT!!!!

@@kfracassi - That stinks the thread was archived! Based on what you described, I think people may have been having their ceremony in one location, cocktail hour in another and the dinner reception in another. I got married at Generations last month and when working with the onsite Wedding team, they kept referring to the "Reception" as the "Dinner Reception" & "Cocktail Hour" as the "Cocktail Reception" so that may be what's causing the confusion. It is totally up to you & the resort's available private event space(s). Some people do 3 locations others do 2. Generations has fewer private event locations than EDR so I limited mine to 2 and made my decision based on what I thought would flow best with the times we selected. Example - since my ceremony was on the sky deck (30 min long) & the cocktail package I selected had a 2 hour minimum, I decided to have both my ceremony & cocktail hour on the sky deck with the thought that guests would kill the 1st half hour taking pictures of the views, bridal party etc...then enjoy the rest of the time sipping cocktails & noshing on apps. Since evenings were chilly and breezy that time of year, I opted to have the dinner/reception on the pier. Hope this helps!

@@acw271011 - oooo that's a tough one. Well, I think you should be covered though if you get boxes and give out cake as a favor for your guests. Then it is a matter of guests just bringing it back with them on property and maybe you have a mid-sized box to bring extra mini-boxes back when you return from the festivities. They can't stop you or charge you for bringing something back. It's no different than if you went off property and brought leftovers.