Our wedding was 3/14/13 at the Our Lady of Guadalupe Chapel at 4pm followed by a private cocktail hour (5:30-6:30) and reception (6:30-9:30) at the Albatros Terrace. We had the Classic Catholic Wedding Package, however I think they discontinued that package.

We stayed at The Royal, however, our guests were evenly split between the Royal and the GCR.

Welcome Dinner - A

We had a Welcome Dinner instead of a rehearsal dinner. It was at the Albatros Restaurant at the Gran Caribe for 30 people. It was an extra expense but I think it was worth it for us. We wanted to make sure to spend time with people staying at both resorts and this was an easy way to make sure we saw everyone before the wedding. We were seated at a huge table lining the window. It was beautiful. We were greeted into the restaurant with champagne. It definitely felt special.

Wedding Coordinator Services- Before: B; Onsite: A+++

During the planning stages of the wedding communication was a little slow and there was a little bit of a language barrier, but I think that will happen with any destination. I cannot say enough about my onsite coordinator Elizabeth. She answered every email very promptly and made sure we got exactly everything we wanted. I would recommend printing any emails with your original coordinator to bring down there. She did not have confirmation about an open bar during cocktail hour, but I had printed the conversation so I was able to show that to her and she changed it without question. We were able to drop off all of our décor (table numbers, place cards and other décor) for the reception with her beforehand. She was at the every event and made sure everything ran smoothly. She had everything from both the church and the reception delivered back to our room the next day so we didn’t have to worry about keeping track of anything. My mom started to collect our guestbook and things at the reception but I told her to relax and give it all to Elizabeth. It was so nice to not have to worry.

Hair and Make-up at Spazul: A++

My mother, sister and I had hair and make-up appointments at Spazul. We were all very satisfied with their services. My mother did not like her make up at first and they redid it for her with no problem. They were great! None of our hair moved or came out, despite the very windy day. I would not hesitate making appointments there (and you do not have to pay an outside vendor fee).

Flowers and Centerpieces: A+

I did not do anything custom for a bouquet or centerpiece. I choose CP44 for the flower centerpiece and B12 for the bouquet. My MOH carried the bouquet because I had made a brooch bouquet. I loved her bouquet so much; I almost wanted to trade! Everything was exactly as pictured in the online catalogs. I could not have been happier.

Bridal Bouquet

Altar Flowers

centerpieces

Wedding Service at the Chapel: A+

We were able to meet with the priest a couple of days before the wedding. We were both very comfortable with him. We had our readings picked out before we got down there, otherwise he would’ve helped us pick those out. He said it would be easiest if each reader had an individual copy of their reading to bring up to the pulpit. Our wedding coordinator made new copies for us without a hassle on the day of the wedding. We did not choose to do any decorations besides the altar flower arrangement that was in our package. I am glad we did not spend money on that because the chapel was beautiful in itself. After reading reviews on here we chose to have a harpist play at the ceremony. I am so glad we did! I would definitely recommend having some music playing. We took some group pictures at the chapel after the ceremony. It was nice to have some formal pictures with the family.

Videographer from the resort: A

We chose the Sunrise Video package from the resort add-ons so we could video the church service for our grandparents who couldn’t be there. I think it was a good way to spend our money. They got everyone entering the church and hanging around the church before the ceremony (set the music) the entire mass with the audio from the mass and then ended with us taking pictures after the mass at the chapel (set to music). I wish I could post it on here so you could review it for yourself. I was very pleased with the result. It was delivered to our room 2 days after the wedding.

Private Cocktail Hour & Reception: A+

We had the private cocktail hour and reception at the same venue, the Albatros Terrace. There is a separation; the cocktail hour is on a raised platform away from the reception setup. We took pictures on the beach during the cocktail hour so we did not get to spend much time there, but I think it was nice to give our guests some food and drink and not have to stray away from the wedding while we took pictures. The reception food was good; our guests said it was better than the typical resort food. The open bar also had some top shelf liquor that was different/better than the typical liquor served at The Royal. We added the chair sashes ($4/chair) which I really liked the look of and we brought maracas, place cards and table numbers from home. My only issue with the reception was that we started dinner at 6:30 and it was already pitch black as the sun had set. It was VERY dark on the terrace. I had asked beforehand about lighting because I was worried about that and I was shown pictures of tall lanterns- however- they were not out on my wedding day. It ended up being okay, just a little annoying to not really see your food. We did not upgrade the cake or really spend any time thinking about it (even though the cake that was included was not enough to serve all of our guests) and I am so glad we did not waste our time!! Hardly anyone ended up eating the cake. Our WC had the rest of the cake delivered to our room the next day.

Cocktail Hour

Sweetheart Table

DJ & Lighted Dance Floor: A+++

I already reviewed DJ Doremixx on the appropriate page, so all I will say here is he was AMAZING!! We got the lighted dance floor and everyone LOVED it! We danced the night away!

Overall: A+

In the end, this was definitely the wedding of our dreams! Everything we asked for was provided and was perfect. While I was planning I had prepared myself for thing to not look quite like I ordered them, and tried not to sweat the small stuff. I think that really set me up for success. I truly enjoyed everything about our wedding day and felt that we got everything we paid for and we did not overpay. All of guests, both at The Royal and the GCR, really enjoyed themselves and are already planning return trips. I cannot say enough positive about the all the workers at the resort they were phenomenal and made our wedding group feel special, like we were with old friends.

I hope this helps your planning! You can always Private Message me on here if you have any questions about how things went :)