ChiTiff

Hi Ladies! I'm truly considering using WeddingMix to make a DIY Wedding video, but I was wondering if any of you have actually used it. http://www.storymixmedia.com/weddingmix/ I was planning on doing one of the packages with just the app, but I don't quite see how it's better than using iMovie + Dropbox or some other online storage option. Has anyone ever DIY'd a short wedding video? Any suggestions or ideas for how to do this?

I wish I had known about Vistaprint before I ordered my invites on Wedding Paper Divas. Literally 1/3 of the price. We got our reception cards from Vistaprint and they look great!

Hey Girls! I just wanted to share a wedding at the GRM that was featured on Style Me Pretty. http://www.stylemepretty.com/destination-weddings/2014/09/08/destination-mexico-wedding-at-generations-riviera-maya/

We're doing it. Our ceremony is just before sunset, which leaves us very little time for pics before it gets too dark. We figured sharing a "special moment" before the ceremony was better than rushing around stressed out afterwards!

Thank you @@kmk2016 and @@AllieH . I also heard back from my WC today, so it looks like we'll at least get a ceremony run through with the onsite coordinator on Friday. I also got a copy of the standard script, so if anyone wants it, please let me know! We're definitely modifying it somewhat, but it's a good starting point!

Hi @@AllieH I think I'm a little frustrated by the lack of communication from our WC regarding the details of the wedding ceremony. We would just like to have some information about our officiant - background, speaking style, etc. since it's such a big part of the wedding ceremony. We are just having a symbolic ceremony, but FH is NOT religious at all and would probably melt on the scene if they officiant mentioned anything religious or God oriented. Do they have a script that they use? Should we write one? I'm also not clear about the ceremony rehearsal time. Most of our guests are arriving on Thursday, and our wedding is on Saturday. We have a fairly large wedding party(20 people including ourselves, bridal party, flower girls and ring bearer), so I need to get confirmation on a ceremony rehearsal time sooner than later. My WC is refusing to tell me a range for time of the wedding rehearsal on Friday, saying that it must be determined by the onsite coordinator. Friday is the only day most of our guests will have to explore the area, and I'd hate for it to be a last minute scramble. Further, we have some kids that aren't coming until Friday evening due to school obligations.

Officiants... Does anyone have details of what your officiant was like with them? I assume they came to your wedding rehearsal? Any details about them would be lovely as the resort is giving us info about them.

@@kfracassi You can always put down your deposit with the resort for the date if you're worried about losing it, and find a travel agent later. One of them will be able to help you. I lost my preferred location (I originally wanted to get married at the pier, now we're doing it at the SkyDeck) because I waited just a couple hours too long, so get your date booked at the hotel! Good luck!

@@kfracassi Congratulations! I'm also a Chicago bride, I'm getting married at the Generations Riviera Maya (which is connected to the EDR) on April 25. I'd also recommend checking out Legacy Travel - my travel agent is Nicki Squittieri, and she's been amazing to work with! I wish I had called more than one destination wedding travel agency before committing to one, you can often get deals and perks directly from the agency or negotiate for some things based on the details you get from them. They have a local office, as does Wright Travel, but you end up working with your travel agency so much more than you'd think, and you want the peace of mind that you're getting the best service (and deals) possible!

I heard from my WC, and as long as you paid the deposit prior to the price change, they will honor the old price.

Try Fibi & Clo. They have some great designs for under $50 that are perfect for a beach wedding. I just for the "cascade" and they're super comfy! https://fibiandclo.com

I'm searching EBay... I figured if you girls would eventually resell yours, there's got to be someone else out there selling one!

Hey Ladies - Not sure if you noticed, but Lomas Travel has raised the prices on the food menus (so far that's the only change I have noticed), pretty significantly sometime this week. For example, we had selected the "Pick and Choose" Dinner Menu with Steak & Lobster, which was originally priced at $26/pp. Now it's $33/pp. Since we paid our deposit BEFORE the price increase, I believe we are locked in at the previous rate, but I e-mailed my WC to confirm. Additionally, the language at the bottom of the document says that "prices cannot be guaranteed until a full deposit is paid", which I interpret as meaning that the prices are confirmed once you pay the deposit. So you may be exempt from the increase as long as you confirmed your food choices already. Does anyone have a copy of the Weddings and Banquet Menu PDF prior to the change saved to their hard drive? If so, do you mind e-mailing it to me? My e-mail address is tiffany.sanders@@gmail.com Thank you!

Thanks ladies! This has been tremendously helpful! So the $5 fee is per person, not per item. I also had no idea that the pre-planning coordinator was different than the onsite wedding coordinator. I got kind of annoyed when I was told there was going to be a $5/pp charge to bring my own table numbers, particularly because 1) I said that we would set them up and take them down 2) Lomas doesn't offer table numbers, so it seems ridiculous that we would be charged for using our own and 3) they're tiny table numbers! That being said - have you run the numbers on bringing your own stuff? We're anticipating 50 to 75 people, which means between 8-10 tables. Once you consider the actual cost of materials, plus paying the airline baggage fees (at least 2-3 bags for just decor), how much could actually be saved? I guess I also think a lot of it is kind of a hassle to bring, but if we could save a significant amount of money it could be worthwhile. So I guess the question is... do I try to get them to give me a quote for setting up everything, and then use that to figure out if I want to bring my own stuff? I'm slightly terrified that I would haul all this stuff down there and then they'll tell me it's $1000 to set it all up.

Hey @@rtscent - So after I continue to go back and forth with them, I'm leaning towards bringing my own decorations. Are they charging you $5 per person for bringing your own decor? My WC told me about this today when I said I wanted to bring my own table numbers, which I think is ridiculous for just table numbers. If I just did ALL of my own table decor entirely, would it still only be $5/pp? At this point, my WC takes about a week to get back to me, so I figured posting here was faster!

@girlinthecity97 Thanks for the tip on Bloom Bridal! Welcome!

Also - Do any of you know what the Always & Forever Ceremony actually looks like (as in, pictures, not just a description)? I can't get a reasonable response from my WC, but because we're doing our ceremony on the skydeck I'm hoping the landscape speaks for itself - I didn't want to have to spend another $3k to upgrade the ceremony as well.

Hi Ladies, Do any of you know what the Always & Forever Ceremony actually looks like (as in, pictures, not just a description)? I can't get a reasonable response from my WC, but because we're doing our ceremony on the skydeck I'm hoping the landscape speaks for itself - I didn't want to have to spend another $3k to upgrade the ceremony as well.

So I met with my travel agent today, and someone else from her company is out at a site visit to the GRM right now. She told me that the skydeck is essentially completed, so yay! Are you all using a travel agent to arrange your trip? Have you had any guests give you an issue with trying to book things?

@@lauralane You are awesome! Thanks for the pics! @Christinagiovanni I can send you the pics of the SkyDeck that I got as well, if you want me to forward those to you.

@nicatella @ChiTiff @Christinagiovanni @@lauralane Laura - Thank you so much for the comprehensive review! I am surprised to hear about the swamp thing... no one ever told me anything about that! As for the bricks in the ocean, I'm sure my FH is going to be a little annoyed. Did it impact your experience hanging out at the beach? I'm already changing some of the parts of the Pure Glamour package (I did not like the pink colors) - nor am I doing the food package they put in the brochure. It was $13 less to do the "pick and choose" dinner, and our guests still get three courses. I also think we're getting a very small cake for ourselves which is only $28, and then getting cupcakes for each wedding guests. We have about 50 people coming, so that was cheaper than doing the big wedding cake. Does anyone else think the chair covers in the packages are a bit ridiculous? Is all that really necessary? I might try just customizing my own thing and having simple bows instead of the full covers that are in the pictures. Congratulations Ladies! Congrats @@nicatella Thats so fun to meet my "twin"... we should all try to have dinner or lunch with our husbands once all the wedding celebrations die down! How long are you having your guests stay? I'm asking them to arrive on Thursday and depart on Sunday. We're staying Wed-Wed (7 days) on the GRM side. We are having both our ceremony & reception at the SkyDeck. I don't think I'm going to bring all of my own decorations in a suitcase - that seems like it could be really cumbersome. However we are incorporating both of our heritages, so I may be bringing my own decorative broom so we can "jump the broom" (it's an old African-American tradition). FH is Jewish, so we'll be breaking a glass as well. Does anyone happen to know if you need a special glass for that? I can't imagine that a normal glass would break very easily - and that could be kind of a nightmare at the ceremony if we keep stomping on a glass and failing! Please report back on what you see at the brides dress rehearsal! So delighted to meet you!

@chistinagiovanni Do you know if doing customizations was worthwhile? I was worried the costs would really add up by doing things that way.

AHH! I just booked my 4.25.15 wedding at GRM today at the SkyDeck! I'm so excited. Do you ladies know if you can customize the memorable moments packages? None of the colors in those packages are really my thing. It looks like we are wedding day twins! We are doing a 6:00-6:30pm wedding with a reception starting at 7:00 at the SkyDeck. Good info about the sunset. If you aren't doing a cocktail reception, I think 6 is the ideal time. It won't be too hot, and then you have the evening to celebrate. I'm not sure about the post-ceremony cocktail reception... is it worth it? We're doing the Skydeck, so they will all be at the same location.