JoannaBanana

Hey ladies. I've recently had a bit of a change of heart. I've decided I'd like to go a more casual look for my dress. It's going to be so hot, and I really don't want to spend $1000+. So I'm wondering if you guys know a place where I could find a nice casual white dress. I prefer full length (not a fan of my legs) but I definitely want the material to be light. I would even like the idea of something completely non-traditional. A nice designer (or not) dress that just happens to be white? I'm really willing to think outside of the box on this, I just don't know where to start.

It smells, yes. But I don't think it's really bad. I don't think I have the most refined noise though!

For some reason, when I'm on my work computer I can't quote other people. But I haven't run in to any problems (yet) with dress shop employees letting me take pictures. I think I saw a sign once, but it wasn't enforced. I guess each place is different. But I was *definitely* stopped from taking pictures at Spence Diamonds. So I just got sneaky about it. I think pictures in this day and age really help people make their decisions! I guess the theory is that you will find the dress online for cheaper. That I can understand.

I doubt it! My guess is that if it does stick around much longer then the resorts will get better and better at cleaning it up.

I think it really depends on your resort location and their cleaning routines. Like I was saying I saw it everywhere I went. But it was less at Sirenis. Equal in Playa del Carmen. I know Trinidad is experiencing the same thing. My co-worker just came back from Hard Rock and said there was seaweed but it was cleared religiously. I really hope for everyone who has already booked that I just had a perfect storm of bad conditions.

@@calgarybride2015 No! That's the one thing we were kicking ourselves about with the site tour is that we didn't take enough pictures. We took a couple of the lobby pretty much and then got so swept up with our tour that we totally forgot. There IS seaweed at Sirenis, but dramatically less. I'm not sure if location, or protection from the rocks... But it was way less, and easier to get around it. I think it must vary dramatically resort to resort.

I'm sure you were gorgeous. Can't wait to see your pictures and hear the rest of your story.

I wanted to share the information I learned about the seaweed in it's own post, here's the link to the thread: http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/topic/79300-sargassum-the-seaweed-phenomenon/ Honestly, I'm thinking we're going to end up at Grand Sirenis. I'll keep you guys posted.

I just returned from a trip to Tulum, in the Riviera Maya area of Mexico. The first 2-3 days of my trip gave us a lot of rain, and time to find answers to my questions about "What the heck is going on with all the seaweed on the beach?" I learned a lot, so I thought I would share. I have traveled to Mexico before. I have stayed in Neuvo Vallarta (other coast), Cancun maybe four times, and one of those times I stayed in Playa del Carmen for a couple of nights. I thought I knew what to expect. I heard this year was bad for seaweed, but I didn't expect it to be THIS bad. There was a lot of hearsay going around the resort. It's the weather (tropical storm), it's global warming, it's an oil spill that changed the balance in the water. In the end, when I looked online it seems that no one claims to completely understand the phenomenon, but it's agreed that the contributing factors are the unusually warm weather over the past year in the region, wind patterns, and sea currents. The weed originates in the Sargasso Sea and is affecting many of the beaches in the Caribbean floating in as great blankets of weed. Whether this is a "one off" or a cyclical event to be expected in future remains to be seen. How this affects you the traveller? Well I guess this depends on which resort you are staying at, where it's located geographically, and what measures they are taking to clean it up. I've heard reports of some resorts using tractors to rake up the beach. Others they shovel by hand. And others simply choose to leave it as it stands. At my resort there was a rumor that they were doing it by hand due to the number of turtle nests which they did not want to disturb. Sadly, this week also causes the baby turtles to have an increasingly difficult time reaching the ocean waters in the areas where it is more dramatically affected. Some marine life is affected negatively, and some positively. Where I stayed (Grand Bahia Principe Tulum) the beach was basically unusable. If you did want to go in to the ocean you would have to walk across about 20 feet of weeds, which were stacked about 3 feet high. On an overcast day (where the beach was not busy) we walked a little down to what we were soon to find out was the Privilege Club. As we tried to walk through the very small opening in the sargassum we were asked to turn around and go back to our assigned beach. We argued that we didn't want to walk through the weeds and we were gracefully given our requested 5 minutes in the water. We got in about knee deep and turned around and went back to the pool where we stayed for most of the week. Near the end we decided to get on a trolly and visit our sister resort Grand Bahia Principe Akumal. This area was cleared a little but more, but it was an uphill battle. If you are a pool person, you probably don't even need to consider this, but your guests may be. I would actively look at recent beach photos from the resort you are considering if you are still in the choosing stages. Some are probably AOK, where others may be suffering. Weigh it in to your decision, because even knowing it was a bad year for seaweed, I was pretty disappointed. Does it ruin your vacation? No. Could it change your decision? Maybe. It might change mine. No one really knows how long this is going to go on. I imagine the resorts figure out ways to adapt. I feel like I just wrote a 6th grade speech, but I really just wanted to share this information with my fellow brides. Hot tip: It's really fun to pop the berries, and the seaweed isn't slimy (though a little bit stinky).

So. We left Saturday morning. I left my ring at the jewellers to be sized, figured it's a perfect time to do it since it takes a week. We arrived and it was raining. This turned in to a torrential tropical storm. I think it was the tail end of a hurricane system. It rained very hard the rest of Saturday. As we were checking in palm tree branches were flying off the trees behind our agent and flying in to the glass behind him. It was something to behold. It rained all day Sunday. By Monday, when it was still raining, we decided we would go swimming anyway. The whole resort had cabin fever. I had a cough/cold, there was even more seaweed than I expected (even though we knew it was a bad year) and we weren't totally in love with Grand Bahia Principe. To be fair, our moods were a little sour. We did not go on our planned site tour of the wedding facilities. We had felt we'd seen enough, and this would not be a finalist. We tried to reach the coordinator, but had no luck. Tuesday the weather finally broke and we went to go see Grand Sirenis. Adrianna Gonzalez (sales associate, not a coordinator) met us in the lobby, and took us around on a golf cart. She is quite endearingly, a terrible driver. She took us to see the private wedding location (palapa) and then the semi-private. It's pretty hard to not prefer the palapa. She showed us the spa, all the restaurants, and pretty much everything in between. We loved the cleaner look of the building, the junglesque scenery, and how coming around every corner was a new surprise. The beaches are beautiful in a rugged way, and we were both probably more excited about the lazy river than the average pair. Only downside I think I'll list for this one is the kids pool area was quite...sad. Just a splash pad with an umbrella fountain. She told us they do take the kids around for other activies, which should help. All amped up after our successful site tour we decided HEY LET'S GO TO HARD ROCK!! Sean had been to the one in Dominican Republic and they let him right on in. Not here. We were firmly told to turn our butts around, and so we did. I emailed the weddings department to set up an official site tour and got a response pretty fast. She told me to fill out a form and she would let me know as soon as the resort contacted her. (Their wedding sales department I guess works centrally for all their locations). Being only a couple of days notice, I sent another couple of emails asking for updates. Wednesday she said no worries she'll let me know. Thursday I got her Out of Office Greeting. Friday I got an apology and confirmation of our site tour approval. At 1pm. For a 11:30 am appointment. I pointed this out and got no further email responses. Needless to say - we didn't go. What a disappointment. So that's my tale of our site tours̶ We have a lot to think about. Honestly the only thing we accomplished was deciding what we don't want. We're really debating Mexico in general now. I understand that the seaweed (it's called sargassum) is out of the hands of the resorts. It was in far better repair at Grand Sirenis, but the beaches at Grand Bahia Principe Tulum were unusable. Sister resort GBP Akumal had better tended beaches, but only by a little. Even as they bagged it up, more was washing in. The beaches in Playa del Carmen were no different. It's a phenomenon, and out of everyone's control. But is it something that really put a damper on things. And we could plan to go somewhere that isn't affected by it. We might consider Hard Rock in Dominican maybe, or the place we stayed at last in Jamaica, Riu Palace Tropical Bay Negril. I dunno. I have to digest the experience a little longer and think. Sean on the beach in front of Grand Bahia Principe Tulum. GBP Tulum GBP Tulum Ocean Swimming in the rain:

I have to read back and see the time, but it's Friday? I don't see why not. I work to 5 in Mississauga.

I'm a bit shy but maybe I'll come along.

Adriana Gonzalez, she was a sweet heart. The seaweed was much much more in control at Grand Sirenis. Sent from my SM-T330NU using Tapatalk

So I'll post a more detailed response when I come back. But the beach here at Grand Bahia Principe is a huge let down. There was a big tropical storm which we're told is the major factor causing the seaweed buildup. Additionally the clean up is hindered by turtle nesting. The end result is a completely unusable beach. Such a disappointment. I'll post more and pics Sunday. Grand Sirenis tour was great, and we're awaiting confirmation for our last minute decision to tour Hard Rock. Sent from my SM-T330NU using Tapatalk

I want to do it, but I chose my battles and this won't be one. I'd love to have the pictures. Oh well.

Hey! So I'm leaving Saturday morning. I'm just winding down my last night at work. I'm going to do some running around and then some cleaning tomorrow. I'll be there before you know it! I'll let you all know how the two resorts were, and how the weather and everything was. So excite! Oh, and one of my coworkers offered to do a courtesy engagement photo shoot for my fiancé and I. Ya. My fiancé doesn't want to do it. He thinks engagement photos are cheesy. It's okay, it's not really my style either. But it would have been nice to have some good pictures together, and I thought it was so nice of my coworker to offer!

So I think we've decided that we're only going to check out Grand Serinis and Gr Bahia Principe(s) while we're there. It will be too far to visit Royalton, and I think I already know it's beautiful there. 31 days!

Thanks, all. When DF suggested that we go away I pushed against the idea. I wanted to save the money for our wedding. He's going to Portland in the summer as well, so two vacations will add up. But he insisted, so who am I to argue. I think it will reignite the whole process and get things going. He has said "Let's just go to City Hall next week," about four or five times now. I might just take him up on that. Still want the symbolic wedding though.

So I've been hibernating a bit. I couldn't get my fiance to agree with anything, and honestly I think I was overwhelming both of us with the process. Well, we're going to Grand Bahia Principe Tulum next month for a much needed vacation. We've agreed it's a good chance to see some resorts. I'm thinking we will visit the Royalton, and Grand Sirenis, as well as, obviously Grand Bahia. 2/3 are very close to each other, but the Royalron is far - but close to the airport. And for fun here are some pictures of my favorite dress (so far).

This isn't terrible: Love Package: $999 USD Additional guests: $20 x 10 = $200 USD Semi-Private dinner: included in package with a set menu Private after party (8:00-11:00pm – based on availability): Sky Terrace: $1260 USD Open bar: $31.50 USD x 30 = $945 USD (3 hours) DJ: $315 USD x 3 hours = $945 USD TOTAL: $4349.00 USD

I find the price menu a little bit confusing and a bit nausea inducing. I straight up asked the Royalton wedding coordinator what I can get in a certain budget. Let's see what they come up with. I have second thoughts as well, but I want to try to make it work. It helps that I'm not fussy.

If you find some let me know. Paging @@MomentsThatMatter

I can't even take birth control, I react terribly including migraines with aura. Thankfully I don't bother anymore.

Thanks for the email address lady!

PM? Or email? What is your email?