kjb0528

@@roamfree check out my wedding website. I have an activities section that has some off-resort options explained. www.kimandryanwed.com I'm tried to attach the welcome info packet that I included. But it won't let me because its an adobe illustrator file. I'll try again later but here's a picture of it attached to my welcome bag. I included: Name tag, Pg1) Welcome Letter Pg2) Itinerary Pg3) Wedding Party Pg4) Resort Map (but my version had the schedule of events on it)

@@mam9p8 Sorry for the delayed reply! Things have been a bit hectic since getting back (always is after a vacation right)! I wish I had better pictures at this point that show everything but I haven't gotten my professional pictures back yet First, I loved Oregano's for my reception! It was the perfect location. For cocktail hour, I'd recommend the beach area outside Oreganos. I was honestly pretty disappointed in the cocktail hour at Las Olas. I expected a bar set up and an appetizer table but they didn't do any of that and it was pretty awkward. I think they came around and took drink orders and maybe passed some appetizers?? We showed up at the tail end and they had already started packing up, which I was annoyed about. They should have told the guests to go to the reception before they started to pack up. But I think this would have been a lot better and more organic at the beach location. Also, I brought my own string lights to the Oregano's restaurant and I think they added a lot of atmosphere so I recommend. Also, the DJ's lights were really awesome and added a lot. I highly recommend the DJ. How many guests do you have? I'll post my full review soon but attached are a couple pictures. Like I said they are not the best but I tried to find some that gave you a sense of Oreganos. [i'm not sure if my pictures are posting properly!] The Ceremony: I added two flowers arrangements on the shepherd hooks at the entrance. The Ceremony: I also upgraded the chairs which I think looked a lot better and made a big impact on the overall feel. Cocktail Hour musicians (these guys left early. I wish I would have specified that I'd rather them arrive late and stay until the end than leave early) FLOWERS: I got single stem king protea's for the bridesmaids and loved them! I sent in a picture of my bouquet and thought I could just pay the difference in price between what was included in the package and the picture I sent, but it wasn't until I got there that I found out I can't do that and had to pay full price. Oregano's outside (from beach) looking in. The DJ lights were great! SaveSave

I'm wondering all those things too! I've gotten a little frustrated with the the resort taking so long to respond to emails so I've kind of given up contacting them about layout or space (or anything else). I am nervous about space for dinner + dance floor + dj. I'm going to bring my own string lights down at the very least for ambience. Ceremony is at the beach gazebo and cocktail is at las olas. I'll try to take good notes for you on the space come January!

@@roamfree when is your wedding? Mine is in January and I'm having my reception at oreganos also with approx 40-50 people. I'll have Picts for you after that but I've also been looking for Picts of the setup and can't find any!

@@roamfree The beach gazebo is a permanent structure and is not extra. I don't believe the curtains are extra either. @@vanessajfelice Congratulations!! I would love to see pictures when you get the chance! How was the food and what did you choose? Also, I'm trying to work on my detailed day of schedule. Did you have one and what was the estimated timeline for everything (hair/makeup, ceremony, dinner, toast, cake cutting, etc.)?

@@JaimeCKL one thing to keep in mind about Chichen Itza is that it is a very long day and very touristy. I think it's about a 3hr drive each way. I'd highly recommend Tulum and Coba instead. Tulum is right by some of the most beautiful beaches and Coba is in the jungle (I.e. shade) and the only ruins you can still hike up. You could do both in a day and also fit in a cenote visit. We used Seasons Tours for our airport transportation. The driver was very nice and knowledgable and he also recommended Tulum over Chichen.

@@lynne1609 You look beautiful! I'm sorry about the rain but it looks like you got some neat pictures out of it. Those palm trees blowing in the background and the color of that sky look awesome! @@vanessajfelice for some reason, I feel like I read somewhere that there is no lighting at las Olas but I can't remember where and I may be mixing that up with the beach. I'm thinking of bringing my own string lights down because they kind of gouge you at the resort but I'm having trouble finding where to buy some. Does anyone know what the "Love Birds Spa Treatment" is? Its listed on my final decisions list for the gold package and I'm just trying to schedule spa appointments. It says it has to be at 7pm (with hydro therapy at 6pm). Our flight lands at 4:30 on a Monday and I would love to go straight to the spa but I'm thinking that probably is cutting it too close!

@@Tighev oh my gosh, thank you! I spent forever trying to figure that out. Kept going to my media and trying to upload PDFs in my profile...

@@mam9p8 If you want to have your reception at one of the restaurants, those might not be available on a certain day. For example, I know the Lobster House is only available on Fridays. I'm having mine at Oregano's on a Saturday and welcome dinner at Agave on Friday. I uploaded a lot of the brochures and info I received from the wedding coordinator to my public google drive folder, if you want to look at the full flower catalogue. https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B_zoyOhoKIAhellKeW03UWVPSWc @@Tighev how did you add the attachment! I can't figure out how so I just keep linking to my google drive where I have some of my info.

Past brides, I'm trying to figure out the menu. What did you guys choose for the vegetarian entree? The options my WC sent are basically a potato, veggie lasagna or a veggie casserole and none of them sound that good.

@@vanessajfelice I just uploaded the gold package guide and the flower bouquet options to my public gdrive. You can download them from here: https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B_zoyOhoKIAheDFUaTJxN3llc1k&usp=sharing

@@kathryn78 congratulations!! Wow 84 people? That's a great turn out! Did you have any issues with that many people whether for the wedding day or other days around the resort? I'm expecting 50 or so guests and was wondering how easy it would be to meet up with people at the martini bar or pool. I'd love to see pictures!

@@KeriT21 I've looked into it and here's my thinking: if it were me and I was pregnant, I probably wouldn't go. If they are worried about it, I probably wouldn't do any excursions or leave the resort. I think you are prob fine on the resort but I would still wear bug spray. I got a little concerned about my fiancé because they don't know how long the virus can stay in sperm so if you're trying to get pregnant very soon it's something to look into. He HATES bug spray so I told him he either has to agree to wear it all the time or we cancel the wedding . He agreed and so with those precautions/context I'm not worried about it. If one of my guest was super worried and didn't want to come because of it, then I would completely understand.

@@Tighev I just asked about having lights hung a couple weeks ago and she confirmed its a $50 fee for them to hang your own lights. I actually think that's pretty fair. I think other resorts charge a LOT more just to put out any decorations. I just ordered a bunch of different string lights from target as they are on sale and I'm going to see which ones I like best. The key is to make sure you can string together multiple strands. Some of the cheap ones you can only string together 2 or so strands. One girl suggested bringing them down in a cooler and just checking the cooler since the sides are heavy. Regarding responsiveness, Thamara got back to me a couple weeks ago and mentioned that it is their busiest time of the year and they have barely been in the office for the past few weeks. I guess with up to 3 weddings a day that makes sense so I'm going to try and hold off on any questions I have for her since my wedding is a ways out!

I didn't even think of lights for the cocktail hour at las Olas. I'm getting married in January, but I assume it will be fine. Does las Olas have any lights at all? @@LouisSLB32 I think the Lobster House should have sufficient lighting because they also serve dinner at the restaurant there, but some couples like to add additional lighting for the ambience. There are a few pictures in this thread that others have posted showing the Lobster House that should give you a good idea of the lighting set up. What day is your wedding? I know the Lobster House is only available on Fridays as we tried to do it for a Sat wedding and they said no.

@@Tighev My coordinator is Thamara. I think other girls have her as well so not sure if others have had the same response rate lately. That is frustrating that its still taking 2 weeks when you are that close! 2 weeks is a long time especially when you have to make decisions and have follow up questions. I've gotten to the point where I'm just afraid to ask. As an aside, I went to pick up my dress today! I was really disappointed with the quality of some of the stitching and the whole skirt is pleated and some of the pleats were not aligned properly. Like some spots were flat. I felt very bridezilla but they kept telling me, oh you can fix it in alterations that's because its hand pleated. I was thinking that I don't want to pay to have the entire dress re-pleated! Does anyone have any experience with altering a pleated dress? Not quite sure I can trust the bridal salon. This is my dress: http://www.sallyeagle.co.nz/index.php?view=c&a=29except where the bodice meets the skirt there is a big ripple that makes the lace flip up. @@victoriasalv Congrats!! I can't wait to read your review! I was thinking about you at the end of april and hoping everything went wonderfully!

@@lynne1609 I checked in about 2 weeks ago, still never heard back and about to check in again. Just a little frustrating because it makes it hard to make decisions! @@Tighev I'm having my cocktail hour at los olas and reception at Oreganos. I'm expecting around 50-60 people. Oreganos is tucked away but still close to the beach and feels outside. The suggested 2-4 strands was for hanging from the ceiling at Oreganos, but I'm thinking I'll prob do more like double that. I'm pretty sure for the beach, the lighting wrapped around the trees is extra. You may also want to consider renting a dance floor for the beach The price for lighting is a bit nuts for what you get and frustrating when I see other girls posts on here from less than a year ago that were just charged $220 flat for multiple strands. I think they gouge price on things that are really hard to pack (lighting, flowers, glass vases, etc..). I'm thinking of bringing my own lighting, although I haven't decided between globe lights or christmas lights just based on packability and will probably end up bringing my own centerpieces or doing no flowers. I am upgrading the chairs though to the ones without the covers.

I'd suggest a travel agent. I used Lindsey Johnson with Tropics Travel and not only did she get us a better deal than the resort, she also is just much easier to deal with and more responsive than the resort. @Tighev: For decor options, did you decide on lighting for the beach? One thing they told me was that there is no lighting provided for the beach and it may be a bit dark. The quote for strand lighting was about $235/per strand of 20 bulbs and they recommended about 4 stands. I'm thinking of just bringing my own down in a suitcase rather than paying a grand for lighting but haven't decided. As a side vent, the turn around time for emails with the WP at the resort is taking really long. I'm still waiting to hear back on a quote for centerpieces that I sent 3 months ago. Is anyone else having this issue? I get that they are busy but 3 months is ridiculous. I've checked in again but still haven't heard back.

I'm curious about this topic as well. I've looked around at other posts but it seems people are all over the place. I'm thinking about tipping the servers/bartenders for our welcome dinner and reception and the wedding coordinator. I am not planning on tipping the photographer or DJ. How much are you guys planning on tipping and on what basis (i.e.. % of total cost, an amount per guest or a flat amount per server?)

@@JulieStaad yeah slightly earlier than 5 would be perfect, if they offered it. I was thinking of putting 4:45 on my invitations anyways so that it really does start exactly at 5pm. From what I've heard the ceremony only lasts 15 mins so there should be a good amount of time for pictures still. We aren't doing a first look but I may try to still knock out some picts beforehand that just don't have the two of us together.

@@JulieStaad Do you have an option of 4? I was told only 3 or 5pm. We are getting married in January and debated the same thing and went back and forth and ultimately landed on 5pm, rather than 3pm based on our photographer's recommendation. A year or so ago, the cancun area changed their time zone so the sun now sets an hour later (approx 6:30pm in Jan). The "magic hour" for pictures is supposedly the hour before sunset so this gives us about an hour of pictures before the sun is fully set. I'm still nervous about it but basically I was worried about the flow of the day having the ceremony at 3pm and then having a long break before dinner.

@@JulieStaad I think I got those from the ERC wedding packet that I got when I first reserved our date (before being assigned a wedding coordinator), but I can't remember. I'll try to figure out a way to add attachments to this post to share with you. I was there last November so I know the resort well enough if you have any questions on it. How many guest are you expecting as that will make a difference on your venue.

@@JulieStaad Congrats!! I'm working with her as well. My only advice is to plan your emails a bit and try to ask for everything you need answered in one email. At first, I was asking a question and waiting for a reply and then asking another question and it took awhile with the back and forth, but now I try to list out all the things I want answered at the same time. That way even if it takes her a week or two to get back to me, I still have all the information I need to move forward on something once I do hear back.

We are doing ours at Oregano's and expecting 50-60 people (but its 11 months away so who knows!). From memory, it seemed larger than the Lobster House although I never ate at Oreganos so not sure. I just checked though and it says that a sit down dinner is 20-70 and with a dance floor it only fits 50 people. Anyone have any experience with a large group at Oreganos and if it was a tight fit? Can they move the tables out of the way after dinner?

For the extras lights, definitely get a quote sooner rather than later. I know others were quoted $220 about a year ago for lights but when I asked for the extras decor brochure, the lanterns are $348 per strand and the light bulbs are $232 per strand, and there are only 20 per strand so you will need multiple strands! Here's a link to the extras brochure: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_zoyOhoKIAhUHVpZGhIRHlNZGs/view?usp=sharing We sent STDs about a year in advance but no one was really ready to book that early. I'm planning on doing invites approx 7 months in advance with a 3 month RSVP deadline. I'm supposed to get final numbers and stuff to the resort 2 months ahead, so I figured that gives me a month to track people down that don't RSVP.