I will add pictures later but here is my review.

 

July 2, 2011 

Wedding: A+

 

 

We decided on a destination wedding back in June of 2010.  We originally wanted to have a traditional wedding at home but with over 250 guests the costs were too much.  Playa del Carmen has always been a place that both of us have loved.  It was our first trip together and Playa is where we became engaged so naturally a destination wedding in Playa only made sense.  One of our favorite aspects of Playa is 5^th Ave and The Royal is only steps away.  After reading many reviews we decided to have our ceremony at The Royal and reception at Kool beach club.  All our friends have told us that it was the best wedding they have ever been to.

 

 
Travel Agent:

 

We booked our own travel and so did our guests.  We booked directly through the online wedding coordinator.

 

Airline: A

 

We used American Airlines out of Dallas.  They allowed me to place my dress in the closet.

 

Arrival in Cancun: B

 When we arrived another flight got there at the same time making the custom lines long.  Nothing unusual and we luckily all got the “green light.”  I did have a box of decorations that they just asked what was inside.

Transfer company: B

Our guests were done by through The Royal. Our guests said they were fine but did not like all the stops they had to make.  One of the groups van maxed out at 30mph so it took them over 2 hours to get to the hotel.  Luckily for my husband and I we have a friend that lives in the area so he picked us up from the airport.  I would always recommend taking a private transfer.  You can usually catch a cab back to the airport from Playa for $30-35USD

Resort: B

We loved this resort, but our biggest complaint was the check in process.  WHAT A MESS.  My husband did the 48hr check in online and picked our room.  When we arrived at The Royal we were told that we could not have that room because that guest did not check out.  They placed us in another room that was subpar, but luckily we were able to move rooms the next day.   The hotel is gorgeous and you will not be disappointed.

 

 

 

Room: A

The rooms were very nice but my only complaint was our original room they placed us in 901.  This was an ocean view room, but the view was more of the water tanks on the roof.  We then moved to 309 which was perfect because it was close to the lobby but had a great view.

 

Restaurants: A
 

For an all inclusive hotel the food was much better than expected.  I asked my server what the best dish was almost every night.  I would trust your server because my dishes were great.

ROYAL COFFEE HOUSE: Very good.  I got a mocha over ice many days.  They also have ice cream here which is nice during the hot days.

 

24 HR. ALL INCLUSIVE VIP LOUNGE: One night we stopped in and decided not to eat the food in there.  We opted for room service.   

EL MEDITERRÁNEO: We went here for breakfast since it is air conditioned and Spice offers the same breakfast but it’s HOT in there!  We had dinner here one night and the food was good but our steak was WAY too salty

TAPAS & PINTXOS: Very good

 

SPICE: Had breakfast here once but decided to go to El Mediterraneo from then on.

 

ASIANA: We had our “rehearsal” dinner here.  They were able to accommodate our group of 32 (4 tables of 8)  I loved this place but we found our less adventurous guest did not like this place.  I have one friend that is VERY allergic to shell fish and they were able to accommodate her.

 

PELICANOS: Favorite lunch spot. 

 

MARIA MARIE: We ate here for our “welcome dinner” and they were able to take care of our large group.  I actually liked the food here.

 

MARIA’S (AT THE GRAN PORTO): Mexican at the resort across the street – it’s ok

  

 

Room service: A

 

We generally used this service when we got back from the clubs as late night munchies.  We usually got a cheese burger.  The room service came in about 30 minutes.

The day of the wedding I called to get a fruit tray and mimosas.  They delivered a beautiful tray of fruit, 2 bottles of champagne and a pitcher of oj.  As all my girls arrived we called room service on 4 different occasions to get more food before the wedding.  Each time they arrived in a timely manner.  I was impressed with our room service.

Cleaners:

 

We did not use this service

 

Pools: A
Loved the pools but we usually just went to the main pool.  Drinks were a little slow at the bar but overall we had a great time.

 

 

Beach: A

 

Our guests hung out at the beach a majority of the time.  This side of the beach is much better than the Grand Porto side.  We went jet skiing one day and had a great time.

 

 

Welcome Dinner : A+

 

We had our guest meet in the lobby of The Royal for drinks first.  We even had 5 Grand Porto guest that were able to sneak in and hang out with us.  Our group ate at Maria Marie and we got 3 tables of 8 to avoid the charge of having one large table.  They were not very busy so they were able to get our 3 tables right in the same area.  Our Grand Porto guest ate with us too.  We found that the only people that really care which resort you are staying at are security. Dinner was good and then we headed to The Blue Parrot for the fire show.  On Thursdays ladies drink for free.  The Blue Parrot was a bit of a dud so we headed over to Mandala.

 

Wedding Coordinator: A

I first had Jael as my online coordinator and then was switched to Katina.  Katina was much more helpful than Jael.  Most of the time it did take several days for them to respond, but I was a really laid back bride and didn’t mind.  We used base camp to communicate.

 

My on-site coordinator was Michelle.  She was great and knew exactly what she was doing.  We had a meeting set up with her on the day we arrived.  We handed her our wedding ceremony script and told her we had music on our iPod for the wedding. I also gave her sashes for the chairs, programs and fans for the seats. She took notes the whole time.  We also talked to her at this time about getting my husband’s dad and best man into the hotel the day of the wedding.  She agreed to let them in 2 hours prior to the wedding, but they entered through the wedding center.  We had a few problems with getting our grand porto guests (that were in the wedding party) in to the hotel the 4hrs before as promised.

 

Side note: I waited until Mexico to print my programs because I didn’t like how they turned out at my USA printer.  My friend that lives in Playa found me a GREAT printer.  This company prints all the posters and signage for all the clubs/bars.  They are called Raya and are a minute walk from the hotel.  VERY professional and they turned out so good.

 

 

Hair and Makeup:

We all did our own hair and makeup so I can’t say much regarding the spa.  My mom did have her toe nails done there and was impressed.

 

I went and got a spray tan at Tanners Playa.  There are located right next to The Royal.  You can get mystic for $30 or hand sprayed for $40.

 

 

 

Photography: A++++

 

We used Derek from Photos in Cancun.  We got their unlimited package.  We booked him a room at The Real to avoid the outside photographer charge.  When they got to the hotel they did get questioned and Michelle, wedding coordinator, did call my room to ask why I never told her I was using an outside photographer.  I just said they were my friends and they had a room at The Real and also mentioned that they were on my guest list.  She finally said it was ok and had the front desk send them up.  Derek also brought his second photographer.  Lorena was also wonderful.  They both were so warm and welcoming and got right to work.  One of my favorite things about them was their personality, creativity and they give you all your photos on disk at the end of the night.  They caught all the great moments of the night.

 

 

 

Ceremony at the gazebo: A+

Our ceremony was at the gazebo at 6pm.  The gazebo was a perfect location, far more private than any other part of the resort. 

 

The minister was a little hard to understand at times but since we wrote the script we knew what was coming up next.  We were lucky enough to have a minister in the family so we had him sign our marriage certificate back home on the same date as our wedding in Playa.  The ceremony lasted about 25 minutes and was perfect other than the wind blowing my veil like crazy.  My maid of honor held it down the whole time.

 

At first we were not going to do a cocktail hour, but a week before we decided to go ahead and do it.  We all gathered around and we thanked our family and friends.  For whatever reason we did not get charged extra for our weekend wedding or the after 4pm wedding.  I think between all the changes of our online coordinator it got overlooked.

 

 

Reception at Kool Beach Club: A+++++

We chose to have our reception at Kool Beach Club and it was fantastic.  We left The Royal and walked down the beach to Kool.  A few days before the reception I took them colored paper lanterns to hang and few other decorations.  They executed my ideas perfectly.  We had them set the tables under the canopies and had the dance floor near the pool.  Kool created a signature drink for us and handed them out as everyone arrived. 

 

We chose to do a buffet: BUFFET TAQUIZA

Fish Tacos

Chicken Tinga

Beef Barbecue

Green Sauce, Molcajete Sauce and Xnipec Sauce

Rice with Milk

Potatoes with SausagesUFFET TAQUIZA PRICE PER PERSON: 336.00 PESOS, TOTAL PER 50

Mixed Salad

Nopales Salad

Fruit Salad

Italian Dressing and Tartar Sauce

Chicharron

Corn Pie

Sweet Potatoe Candy

 

 

Wedding Cake: Tres Leches .(We brought it over from The Royal)  We got many compliments on the Tres Leches flavor

 

Many people complimented the food because it was good authentic Mexican food.

 

DJ: A+

We chose Ivan of Doremixx due to his great reviews.  He was as awesome as his reviews.  We gave him a suggested play list.  He had all the lights, cold fireworks, balloons, glow sticks… you name it.  He got the party started after the first dance and the other traditional dances.  If you are hiring a DJ you HAVE to get him!!

 

 

Bartenders and Servers: A

The bartenders for Kool were amazing.  I told them once what I liked to drink and they made sure I always had a drink in my hand.  They were great!