Destination Wedding: A+++++++

This was THE best decision the hubster and I made!  Having all of our best friends and family there was simply amazing.  The resort and their staff went OVER THE TOP to make everything perfect and treated everyone like they were the most important people in the world.  I would recommend a destination wedding to ANYONE!!  Yes, there was a lot of blood, sweat, and tears, but seeing it all come together was an amazing feeling and experience.  All of our guests raved that this was by far the best wedding they had ever attended!!  Enjoy the review…

 

Travel Agent: A+++++++

 

Wendy Hicks has got to be THE BEST travel agent in the world.  You have NO idea how annoying I probably was to her, but she made it seem like she loved doing it.  I went though about 5 or 6 travel agents, including DW.com (which I do NOT recommend), before I found Wendy Hicks.  The process was a nightmare.  I didn’t trust anyone I was dealing with and just felt they were giving me the run around.  Wendy made sure she got us the best prices and best amenities.  She ALWAYS responded to my emails within a few hours and was always a phone call away.  My guests loved working with her…she made the booking process extremely easy and worked with my guests on payments and special requests.  If it wasn’t for her, I know I would have had a nervous breakdown. Going through Wendy was the best decision we made, after deciding on a destination wedding.  I honestly do NOT have a single negative thing to say about her services.  Here is her contact info:

Wendy Hicks

[email protected]

707-794-9671

 

Le Blanc Spa Resort: A++++++

 

There are no words to describe my experience with Le Blanc.  The service was IMPECCABLE and the resort was breathtaking.   Just to preface, we took 50 guests to Le Blanc.  This was the LARGEST wedding they had ever done, and they NAILED IT!!!!  SO professional and fun and easy to work with every step of the way.  LE BLANC IS WORTH THE EXTRA MONEY!!!!!  I am going to break it down piece by piece…

 

Amenities: A+++++

This place is BEAUTIFUL and BREATHTAKING.  The hubs and I were looking for a minimalistic, modern resort, with a TOUCH of beachy flare.  Everything was ALWAYS clean and pristine.  They had staff members cleaning the property 24 hours a day.  The flowers on site were always beautiful and there was ALWAYS the most welcoming fragrance throughout the resort.  They had soothing music playing at all times...everyone kept saying "this is the nicest resort we have ever visited!"

 

Check in: A++

As soon as we stepped out of our transportation, they greeted us with a cold towel, pleasant smile, and “Welcome, Mr. Lutz and Ms. Hayes.”  They then took our bags and escorted us into the lobby. When I took my first step into the lobby, I was blown away.   We smelled the most beautiful fragrance and saw the most pristine lobby!  I had been looking at pictures of this place for a year, so I assumed I knew exactly what it looked like.  It blew my expectations away.  We were immediately handed a champagne glass filled with delicious coconut milk and ask if we would like anything from the bar.  Once I told them champagne, they would remember that was one of my favorite drinks from here on out.  Check in was a piece of cake.  They even gave me flowers!!!!  SO SWEET!  At that point, they showed us around and escorted us to our room.  When I first looked outside and saw the infinity pool, I knew I was in heaven. 

 

 

 

 

Rooms: A+++

 

The rooms are AMAZING!  We decided to upgrade to the Royal Governor’s Suite.  WOWZERS!!!! It was beautiful!  It was clean and crisp and modern and big and gorgeous!  It had a HUGE Jacuzzi that looked out over the pool and ocean.  Every room is stocked with a licquor dispensor and tons ofsnacks. We had 2 balconies!  One small, French-style balcony that overlooked the pool and another LARGE balcony that overlooked the beach.  They also welcomed us with a little chocolate cake that said CONGRATS!  It was amazing!!  We have stayed at Ritz Carlton’s, etc and this was by far the nicest room I have ever stayed in.  The bed was SO COMFORTABLE!!  Shortly after we arrived in our room, we were introduced to our butler.  He showed us the PILLOW MENU!  It was a full page menu of every type of pillow you could imagine.  And it was ALL included!  The room also has this amazing flatscreen that comes up from a piece of furniture in the middle of the room.  We didn’t watch any TV BUT at night, they would have beach images and soothing music playing when you came in forthe evening. The Royal Deluxe rooms were JUST AS NICE!  They looked exactly the same, except a little smaller and with a smaller balcony.  The rooms are amazing!

 

 

 

 

 

Butler Service: A++

 

WOWZERS!!  Every room has it’s own private butler.  Ours was AMAZING!  After he showed us the room, the room service menus, etc, he offered to UNPACK our bags for us.  We were a little hesitant at first, but we had 10 suitcases and needed to be downstairs for our meeting with Diana.  When we returned from our meeting, all of our bags were unpacked and ORGANIZED.  Imagine underwear drawer, tshirt drawer, jammies drawer, swimsuit drawer, etc.  ALL of my shoes were displayed in the closet, and my wedding dress was hung up neatly and hidden behind a sheet so Ryan could not see it.  AMAZING!  Everytime we needed something, we would give him a buzz, and he was there within a minute.  We were like, how does it do that?!?!?!  The turndown service was one of my favorite things!  They would make sure your room was spotless when you turned in for the evening.  They would lay out your robe and house slippers, dim the lights, and have the tv playing the mot relaxing music.  They also had all the pillows that you had ordered on your bed. Also, if you requested your tub to be filled, they would have your tub ready with bath salts, etc. All the bridesmaids got ready in the bridal suite in the spa.  You can imagine how much stuff we had!  All we had to do was put our room number on a piece of paper on our stuff, and the butlers delivered all of our stuff to our rooms during the wedding.  SO GREAT!!!!

 

 

Food: A-

 

Ok, FOOD was Ryan’s MAIN concern!!!  He wanted the food to be truly 5 star quality.  I explained to him that all-inclusive resorts usually don’t have food of that caliber, but I would find a resort with the best food ratings.  Le Blanc was about as close to 5 star quality as you can get.  It’s hard to imagine it was all-inclusive.  Obviously, it was not better than the nicest restaurant in New York City or Paris, but the food was DAMN GOOD and some of the best food I have ever eaten!!!!  The first night, we went to dinner at “the nicest restaurant in Cancun…” It was NO COMPARISON to the food at Le Blanc.  We were so mad we left the resort and spent $300 on a meal that was mediocre compared to the fabulous food at Le Blanc.

Italian:  We ate here after our welcome cocktail on the beach.  It was decent at best.  However, we talked to a lot of people that had awesome food here!

 

Blanc International: AMAZING!!!!  Their breakfast was to DIE FOR!  Every morning they made me this amazing egg white omelet with anything I could imagine it the omelet.  They also had steak and eggs and omelet bar and fruits and breads and cereals ANDYTHING you can possibly imagine for breakfast.  They would also make ANYTHING you requested.  The service was IMPECCABLE as well!!!!!!!  And fabulous bloody mary’s!

 

French:  This restaurant was truly gourmet!  It was a 5 course meal in the MOST beautiful setting!  It’s a small little restaurant that was decorated beautifully.  Very modern and serene. Truly amazing dining experience!

 

Asian:  I didn’t make it here because I fell asleep early one night.  Everyone said it was great!!!

 

Bistro:  We ate here the first day we arrived.  It was sooooo good.  We sat by one of the infinity pools.  I had a salad with ahi tuna and Ryan had a wood-grilled pizza.  SO DELICIOUS!  Also, out by the pool or on the beach, you can order food and it comes from here.  They had the most delicious ceviche I have ever eaten.  And their guac was TO DIE FOR!

 

Alcohol/Bars: A++

 

They had every kind of alcohol you could imagine.  They were VERY generous on their pours AND everything was top shelf!!!!!  Grey Goose, Don Hulio, Crown Royal, Johnny Walker Black, Opus One, Caymus, etc etc etc. The bartenders ALWAYS remembered what you wanted to drink.  It was so cool!  They also had TONS of specialty drinks that everyone enjoyed while at the pool bar.

 

Activities: B

I thought the activities at the resort were great!  The boys LOVED the beach and pool volleyball games everyday.  The staff was really excited about the games and really got involved.  They had some kind of live music or karaoke every night.  This was a lot of fun!  They kept the bars open as late we wanted!  One night they had a fire dancer show.  I REALLY hate we missed this!!  I heard it was incredible! They also had water sports and stuff like that.  Within our package, we had unlimited tours, but we didn’t have time to go on them.

 

Spa: A++++

This was THE most beautiful spa I HAVE ever been to!  SERIOUSLY!  The services were AMAZING!!!!  It’s also a Kerestase salon.  Only select spas around the world are able to call themselves a “Karastase Salon.” The girl who did my hair and makeup was AMAZING!  I was considering going to MAC in Cancun to get my makeup done, but after I got to the resort, I changed my mind.  Everyone was so sweet and accommodating…I felt guilty giving the business to someone else.  She did such a fab job!  My hair was EXACTLY like I wanted.  My makeup was so classic and natural with a little bit of pop!  Just perfect!  My hair lasted then entire night and even lasted until the next day for my trash the dress pictures. I do not have pictures of the inside of the spa (where the massage rooms, etc are located)...it is breathtaking back there!  I felt guilty taking pictures back there where it was so peaceful and serene! They also have a bridal suite for all the girls to get dressed in with the bride!  It was kind of small, but there were 10 of us in there!  Just look at the pictures of the salon area and of my hair and makeup!

 

 

 

Pools and Beach: A++++

 

The pools were beautiful!!!  Literally breathtaking!!  We spent 90% of our time at the pools.  THE BEST pools I have ever seen! The music at the pools was very relaxing, but they let us play our ipod dock at the Lagoon Pool.  So we made that the party pool!  The infinity pools were STUNNING!  They also have a huge hot tub!  The beach was one of the most beautiful beaches I had ever been too!  It was a beautiful white beach and the water was SO SO SO BLUE!!!  The service at the pools and the beach was impeccable.  You NEVER had an empty drink or and empty tummy. J

 

Service: A+++++

Ok, this was one of THE BEST things about Le Blanc.  EVERY staff member worked extremely hard to make everyone’s stay wonderful!  We would see them at 7 am working and still working at 11 pm that night.  And they ALWAYS had a smile on their face.  Their response to everything was “It’s my pleasure.”  We just laugh every time a waiter or someone says this now, because we know they don’t really mean it…the staff at Le Blanc MEANT IT!  They always had my favorite cocktails waiting on me and always gave me the biggest hugs and a bright “good morning Ms. Hayes (Mrs. Lutz after the wedding)!  The staff at each of our events was awesome!!!!!!  They had so much fun with all of our guests and truly treated everyone like royalty.  All of our guests said they felt like it was their wedding, because the staff made everyone feel so special.  The guys at the wedding were AMAZING!!!! Tipping is NOT required, but I found myself tipping everywhere I went!  Whether we were at the pool or on the beach or in our room or at the bar or in a restaurant, the service was impeccable.  One day at the pool, we wanted some red bull…um the bartender went to Costco and got us red bull and was back in like 20 minutes.  IT WAS NUTS how great they were to us!!!  Seriously top notch.  It was rather depressing leaving such a great service and coming home to mediocre service!

 

 

 

Wedding Services: A+++++

From the beginning to the end, everything was perfect.  I have read over and over and over again about terrible service with wedding coordinators and coordinators that takes weeks to write you back or never write you back!  Why would you EVEN deal with this!?!?!?!  It was weird if I went more than a couple hours without hearing from the girls at Le Blanc!  I will go through each wedding service below:

 

Melissa Gomez A+: Melissa is the wedding coordinator in the Miami office.  She was amazing!!!  At first, it was a little frustrating because I had to wait until 3 months prior to the wedding before I was assigned my onsite coordinator.  HOWEVER, Melissa accommodated all of my needs!  I have heard she is not there anymore, but I am sure the new person will be just as good.  She basically handles the contracts and general questions about the resort.  She also gave me her opinions regarding packages and upgrades, etc.  JUST BE PATIENT!!!  I PROMISE YOU!!!  You do not need to talk to Diana before 3 months prior to your wedding.  This is PLENTY OF TIME!

 

DJ A++: The ONSITE DJ WAS AWESOME!!!!  This was worth EVERY SINGLE PENNY!!  I let him take control of the party, and he did a fabulous job.  The only list I gave him was the list for the first dance, cake, etc.  Everyone raved about him.  He even let people requests songs and kept the party going nonstop.

 

Guitarist B-:  I am actually unsure about the guitarist because he played during the cocktail hour while Ryan and I were taking pictures.  People said he was good, but I would just save your money and extend the DJ an hour.

 

Florist:  We did not use the florist onsite, but I really wish we had used her.  We found a local florist who saved us a ton of money, but the flowers showed up dead a couple of times.  The florist onsite is expensive, but she will work with you!

 

Photographer: I did not use the resort photographer.  I brought my own.  Please see my photographer review at the end.

 

Décor company A+:  THEY WERE GREAT!!!!  My decorations were SO SO SO SO SO precious!  They have everything you need for your reception.  We had a very modern reception, and they were able to get everything we need.  They also have this AWESOME dance floor!!!  It was a white shiny dance floor.  Too cute!  They were very easy to work with throughout the process.  Lilly always answered my questions and got me the answers I needed in a timely manner.

 

Cake A+++++:  I emailed Diana a picture of my cake a few months before the wedding and totally forgot about it. WELL, I showed up to reception, and it was PERFECT!  It looked better than the picture…seriously!  And it was DELISH!  We had 2 different flavors: German chocolate cheesecake and another flavor that I can’t even remember now.  And my cake was FREE!!  Are you kidding me??!?!?

 

DIANA!!!!! A+++++++: 

DIANA IS SO AWESOME!!! She is so so so cute!!  She worked her BUTT off for us and made sure everything was perfect.  She ALWAYS responded to my emails within an hour and answered all 5 million of my questions.  One time I asked her about sparklers for the reception.  Over the weekend, she went to 5 party stores and 2 markets to find sparklers.  Can you believe that?!?  After working ALL day, she was at EVERY SINGLE EVENT working!  And she had so much fun doing it.  She was extremely organized. DETAILS DETAILS DETAILS!  When we met with her for the first time at the resort, she had our file with every single detail we had talked about over email.  She did not miss a beat!!!!  In the 11^th hour, I decided to bring one of my friends, who is a wedding designer, to help me throughout the weekend.  He helped design the reception and made sure the rest of the events were decorated correctly, ran smoothly,  etc.  Most resorts would NOT allow this, but Christopher and Diana became fast friends and worked WONDERFULLY together.  She was extremely accommodating to him!!  Please just be patient…3 months is plenty of time to work with Diana!  We brought 3 suitcases of stuff for her to use during the different events (menus, cake topper, napkins, matches, guest book, maracas, table cloths, candles, etc etc etc etc etc).  We went over each item and each event.  She made sure everything was placed wherever it was supposed to be placed.  Once again, she is extremely organized!  AFTER she had worked her butt off ALL weekend and ALL night, she ironed my dress and got the stains out and got it all ready for my trash the dress pictures the next day.  She will seriously make your dream wedding come true!

 

Wedding Location: A+++

Wedding Décor: C

We had our ceremony at the gazebo.  It was honestly one of the most beautiful and breathtaking ceremony spots I have ever seen.  It’s this modern white gazebo that overlooks the ocean.  They decorate it with white organza fabric.  SO BEAUTIFUL!  They also tied white organza ties on every chair.  I had brought hot pink ones with me, but decided not to use them.  So I assumed they would not do anything to the chairs, but they did, free of charge.  They had an aisle runner decorated with white and hot pink rose petals.  It really was serene.  Ok now to the bad part.  I assumed that they would not decorate the location since I only specified a few things.  BUT they were so nice, they did their own decorations.  Obviously, it is NOT what I would have chosen, but it was so sweet that they did it.  I just did the free package, so I assumed they would keep it bare.  I would recommend being specific with what you want here.  The decorations were still nice, but I would have done without the flowers and without the blue vases.

 

 

Officiant A+++:  He was a DOLL!!!  He was so charming, funny, and sincere! He spoke very clearly and seemed so in tune with us.  Everyone really enjoyed hearing him speak.  I would not change anything about the service.  We did say our own vowels, but we kept everything else the same. 

 

 

 

Reception Location: A+++

THIS WAS PERFECT!  It was on the rooftop, and you have the sun setting in the background.  The bar and DJ were outside.  They had the food set up inside in a small room that they partitioned off with a little lounge area that matched the lounge area outside.  Just look at the pictures…