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Does anyone know if there are any rooms that are suites at Now Sapphire? We have a few families wondering if there are 1 bedroom suites available so that the kids/adults can have separate spaces. We've asked our TA but haven't heard back yet. I don't see anything on their web site and I think our WC told us that all the rooms are the same, other than the view. Hoping that is not the case. Seems like there should be family suites, given that the resort bills itself as a family resort. Thanks for any insight!

So far we have done only the STD via email and have asked for RSVPs on our web site. But we are still about 1 year from our wedding date. I've sent out one reminder so far (again, via email) as our booking deadline is May 15. I'm thinking about doing invitations still, as I love pretty paper things Plus we do have a few older folks who do not have email (and they are my FH's grandmas, so we want to give them something, even though they won't be coming). But I won't be doing anything extra with the invites if I decide to do them (i.e. RSVP cards, etc.). The invites would just direct people to the web site to RSVP, if they haven't already. I will likely do the Etsy downloadable/print locally route that @@veryvalentine mentioned.

@@Smellsey Any idea when you'll find out whether those extra 8 guests are really coming? Do you have some sort of booking deadline coming up? I understand wanting to get it booked early, but I bet you still have lots of time to confirm with the excursion company, so maybe you can just wait a bit? Plus maybe there are some people who won't be interested for other reasons (I have one or two guests who are scared of boats/water, for example). Don't know if that helps. Good luck!

@@DinaQtobe - Are you saying that you were able to get into the club before it was open? I'm just looking at my budget and thinking about cutting back on the extra hours we add to our reception for dancing. Maybe we will move to the club instead - I'm thinking at 10, which I think is when it opens. Is it decent in there? I've only been in one AI club in Mexico and it was kinda nasty

Huh! Who would have thought? Are they actually painted or are they dyed (like they sometimes do here with carnations)? Thanks for the reassurance, although I still think I will ask about locally available blue flowers. Just to explore options. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I'm thinking of doing this. It seems like a fun thing to do and I loved pinatas as a kid. I noticed my resort charges $150 plus tax (total about $175) for a pinata with candies, though, so I'll be looking to source it elsewhere!

Weird question for you ladies. I asked for blue orchids (dendrobium orchids) and was told they aren't available locally. I get it and I'm not surprised. But my WC told me they could paint white orchids blue!?! Has anyone tried this or seen this? I worry that it would look fake or tacky or might wear off on my dress. The WC did say that the paint is not toxic (as I had asked about flowers on the cake as well). Here an example of the bouquet that I asked about: I'm thinking it's probably a better approach to find some local blue flowers, but thought I would ask to see if anyone has run across this before. I did really want the orchids! But any suggestions for other blue flowers would be welcome (haven't asked the WC yet).

I recently did a menu tasting at Now Sapphire. I'm not sure how the resort would handle the no seafood request - I would ask your WC. But it would be very easy for them to serve the surf and turf as "turf only" if you have guests with seafood issues. The chicken is stuffed with seafood, so I don't see an easy substitution there. We also wanted these dishes and I had concerns about the seafood (we have at least one guest who is allergic). But after doing the tasting, we actually preferred the beef bordelaise over the surf & turf, so problem solved. Also I think the wording on the RSVP card works well! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I was reading an article somewhere that suggested setting up games to play, such as croquet, giant jenga, hopscotch, etc. Some of these would require renting equipment and some may not be suitable at night, but maybe it gives you some other ideas. What about a photobooth? You can even set up a DIY photobooth so you don't have to rent an actual booth. Get props and let people take selfies or have a standard digital camera set up on a tripod. I've seen brides talk about ordering props on ETSY. http://www.hgtv.com/design/make-and-celebrate/entertaining/how-to-set-up-your-own-diy-photo-booth

See if you can get the resort to lock in 2015 pricing if you book your 2016 wedding now. Ours did! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

We are at Now Sapphire in the Riviera Maya. Now Jade has about the same pricing. Honestly, I looked at lots of resorts and most of them were similar in terms of the total price I was looking at. Yeah, some were less per person for additional people, but then they had packages that didn't include very much so you would be paying extra for other things. And there were quite a few that were charging between $75 - $100 for additional people for dinner.

Site Visit We booked a rather last minute trip to the Riviera Maya (4 weeks in advance) for the first week of April 2015. We had zero intentions of going to the area before our wedding, but we were looking for a getaway and it wasn’t much more expensive to do this than it was to go to Vegas for 3 days. And voila, it meant that I would get to do a site visit. We visited Now Sapphire 1 year and 1 day before our wedding. We arranged a meeting with our WC for a tour of the property and a menu tasting. Our WC is awesome. Juan Carlos has loads of wedding-related experience, including many years in the US, where he went to photography school, worked as a sous chef, did events for a caterer and eventually was a private wedding coordinator. I’ve also found that he is very responsive, even though our wedding is a year away. I usually hear back from him within 2 - 4 days, which seems record fast compared to some of the discussions I see in these forums. Unfortunately, I started to come down with the flu the day after we arrived in Mexico and by the time of our site visit (the day before we were to leave), the flu had turned into bronchitis. Pretty much my worst vacation ever. I was not feeling well for our site visit. I tried all of the food, but sometimes I could only manage a bite and felt nauseous off & on. It sucked. But the resort did not! The food was delicious (despite my issues at the time). I wrote a post about the menu tasting here: http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/topic/62152-now-sapphire-weddings-formerly-paradisus-riviera/?p=1892795 I loved the grounds, the rooms, the Preferred Pool, the beach. I freaked out a little bit about the main pool. It was smaller than I expected and it was ridiculously loud when we were there, with no escape from the craziness. They were having a foam party with a DJ. We're not college kids. Other than children, our youngest guest is about 26-27. Most people are 35 - 50 (FH is mid 30s and I’m early 40s). I just couldn’t imagine my parents or my 80 year old aunt and uncle enjoying this (and it’s not my thing either)! I’ve been told this is not a regular occurrence and that they were doing it over spring break. Fingers crossed that is the case. However, it prompted me to look into upgrading to the Preferred Club. It’s about $100 extra per person for the week and gets you access to a very lovely (and quiet!) adults-only pool, as well as other upgraded amenities. We were able to switch 6 of our 20 rooms in the block to Preferred. I am hoping we can grab more as other room blocks are released, as I think many of our guests would splurge for this. Some other pix & comments about our site visit in this post: http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/topic/62152-now-sapphire-weddings-formerly-paradisus-riviera/?p=1892970

Also, if I do approach my friend, I'll be very clear that I won't be offended if he would rather not work in order to enjoy his vacation. But I just like the idea of someone who knows us doing our photography. I feel like he might better capture our big day. And I do like his local work.

@@calgarybride2015 Who was the photographer you used with Adventure Photo, in case we end up going that route? Did you add onto your photography package or did you just get the one that came with your package? @ Which photographer are you using? That sounds like a good rate!

Yup. It's annoying. I asked myself the same question: If my guests are all paying for all-inclusive food & drink, why does it cost so much more for the wedding dinner. I do get it to an extent. It's outside of the regular service they are providing both at your event and behind the scenes in the kitchen. They have to staff for it. But they are still making lots of $$$ off us! Our package is $3300 for 25 people (and includes a lot of extras - flowers, photography, videography, makeup/hair, massage for 2, private dinner for 2 on the beach, soloist, etc.). Then it's $94 per additional person for dinner. This includes set-up, champagne toast, wedding cake, cocktail hour, etc. But these are also priced separately so, for example, I don't plan to add any extra wedding cake. We get a cake for 25 plus dessert, so that will save me $7 per extra person. Oh, BTW, this doesn't include the $5 per extra chair for the wedding ceremony! And, if we want our reception to go past 9, we have to pay $15/person per hour for EVERYONE. Don't get me started on sound systems, etc. I'm sad to say that DWs are a nickle & dime experience.

So, based on this thread, I'm gathering that I'm looking at a cost of $1000 - $5000 (I assume USD) to hire a local photographer. One of our guests is a wedding photographer in Canada and I would love to have him shoot our wedding. What do you think is the best way to go about it? Ask him for a quote? Offer to pay for his flight/accommodation (which would be around $2000 CAD)? Obviously I want to pay as little as possible, but I don't want to rip off my friend either. Maybe he doesn't even want the job, since it's his vacation. We do get 1 hour of photography and I believe 24 photos included in our package. That's with Adventure Photo (I think that's what they're called). But I am not sure of the quality and I think I would like to capture more than just the ceremony and the post-ceremony shots. Assuming I hire my friend, I may look at using them for something else - an optional family photo shoot for our guests? I know one bride who did that. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Oh and I believe I don't have to pay a vendor fee for my friend, since he's a resort guest. Or maybe it was $65. I know it was $0 or minimal. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Haha! Maybe I should have said sorry?

The deck had to be at Bridges - a big yellow warehouse/barn looking restaurant & pub. I don't love the restaurant (it's okay), but it's probably the best deck in the city. Vancouver is sadly lacking in them.

That's what I was thinking too

@@calgarybride2015 Oh, that sounds like a perfect set up for summer in the Okanagan. Too bad it no longer works. Yes, he's from Delta and I lived in Langley when I was a young child, before moving to the Okanagan.