Hello ladies of this forum!

I can’t believe is my turn to do my wedding review.

First of all thanks for all the tips and hints you have poured over these pages. I pretty much planned the whole wedding with bits of info I got from here.

That’s why I will try to be very informative in this review(and it will be long but I am sure you don’t mind that!)

Planning process

We live in England although I am originally from Argentina. The majority of my family lives there(we are a good old fashioned big family with lots of cousins and relatives)and I have a sister in Spain, where I lived for five years and where I met my now husband.

When we decided on a DW it was simply because we knew couldn’t afford two big weddings(one in each country) or that our families couldn’t really afford going either to Argentina or coming to England. And we wanted our families to meet and spend some quality time together. Plus we wanted an intimate ceremony and you know sometimes you are almost forced to invite some people.

And we looked at thousands of hotels. Ended up choosing the Grand Sirenis and a few months before booking we saw the GBP coming down in price and the reviews in trip advisor getting better and better, so we ended up choosing that. It was the best decision we could have taken.

Lots of good and bad things happened in the two years of the planning. The worst one was my dad getting cancer. He battled it like a hero for many months and we went ahead with the booking thinking the trip could be his reward for getting better and a family celebration. Unfortunately, seven weeks before we were due to leave for Mexico he died.

His wish was for my mum and sisters to never stop our lives for him. So we did, but you can imagine how much your perspective on life (and wedding small details)changes when somebody you love is going through that. And how much you learn to appreciate every nice thing life throws at you.

Travel agent

We booked with Thomas Cook in Southampton, England. Originally I went to other places to ask for info but the two ladies of TC gave me great service so we chose them. My advice to you: follow your gut feeling, your TA will deal with your money and more important your guests money.

And from the beginning they should be willing to go the extra mile. I remember talking to my lady every Sunday and she resolved so many technical and logistical questions about our group( we also did the hotel only booking of my family with her, in that way we were all one group although we travelled at different dates) For me the work of Thomas cook was more important than what I expected from the WC at the hotel. They were my real wedding planners.

Thomas Cook has a wedding department who sent us after the booking a pack with all the legal paperwork we needed and although the WC of Bahia didn’t contact me in the beginning I arranged with them the gazebo location and the Mayan blessing we had.

Trip(27 march-10april 2011)

12 of us travelled from the Uk,3 from Spain and 2 from Argentina.17 people in total with ages ranging from 3 months old to 60 something. Different cultures, different tastes in food, etc.

The GBP is the ideal place if your group is varied since is big enough for people to do their own things(eating times, shaded areas, times to go to beach,etc.)but also is so easy to navigate that you will meet really quickly without spending hours of your holiday organizing people.

My advice to you: don’t believe in bad reviews. Everything is perfect. The grounds are kept immaculate, the service is higher than any I have experienced in England and there is so much to choose in terms of food and drinks that you will need to stay for months to try everything.

We were upgraded for being the wedding couple to the golden section. Lots of nice details came with that. But I won’t spoil the surprises.

Wedding Coordinator at Bahia

Like I said before we did lots through Thomas Cook and about a month before departure Karla Rabadan emailed with some bits and bobs(info about witnesses she needed, photo packages prices, etc.)

I answered and she never answered back. Thanks to the forum I found out she wasn’t there anymore and Maria Hernandez was taking over. I sent an email to Paloma Flores, who I think is the events manager and she put me in touch with Maria.

By then we only had less than 2 weeks to go. I sent all the legal bits regarding witnesses to her and also she asked us to choose the restaurants and the menu.

We had the option of Mediterraneo, Pescador and Portofino. We went for the last one since the menu was more varied than the other ones and with more choices than fish, just in case our guests weren’t keen on that)

And I sent her our room requirements. Ideally we wanted in the coba section(Thomas cook sends either to there or the Tulum but doesn’t tell you when you book!)

And this is when I am going to be ever grateful to her:Thomas cook had booked us a group but the hotel had split us all over the hotel, both in Coba and Tulum section.

THANKS TO MARIA WE HAD ROOMS IN THE SAME BUILDING OR BUILDINGS NEXT DOOR and she gave me and Fiance building 26,which is golden section,to have a bit more of privacy.All in the Coba section which I thinks is the best hotel of the three.

It was perfect. My advice to you( and I know you all worry when she doesn’t answer emails)DO NOT WORRY,SHE IS VERY PROFESIONAL AND HELPFUL.BUT THEY DO GIVE PRIORITY TO THE WEDDINGS HAPPENING RATHER THAN THE WEDDINGS  FORTHCOMING)

She left us a letter in our room when we arrived and we met the next morning and in a couple of hours sorted all the small details. I also met somebody from the photographers office, but I WILL TELL MORE IN A MINUTE ABOUT THEM.

Wedding ceremony

We married on the Tuesday of our second week to give time to my family to arrive and to other guest to do excursions, etc. on the first week.

We wanted a legal ceremony and since I am catholic I would have loved a blessing as well but they haven’t got the facilities yet.(DID YOU KNOW THEY ARE BUILDING A CHAPEL IN THE COMPLEX TO ALLOW THIS VERY SOON??)

And I have seen somebody called Fannie and Pierre to marry with a Mayan blessing after the legal. We thought it would be something very spiritual to do and it will give an everlasting memory to our guests. Plus we all know legal ceremonies are rather short and impersonal.

So we had both, legal and Mayan.

Because of the length of the second and the fact they had a second wedding that day we had to compromise to do it 12:30pm.I worried so much about my guest standing under the sun at that time but luckily and without me asking anything Maria and her assistant Berenice fit them all sitting inside the gazebo.

All guest and FI were picked by the Maria half hour before the ceremony from the lobby in golf carts and she sent a second one to pick me, my mum, two sisters and the husband and baby of one.

I got ready by myself and they come later to share a moment with me and go to the location together.

By the way we didn’t tell our guests the location of the wedding or about the Mayan blessing and it was great! My advice to you: keep some element of surprise. Unfortunately nowadays there is so much info about everything online that you get the felling people will live a holiday through photos and reviews from other people before getting there and will spoil the discovery factor you should have on any trip.

The legal ceremony was in the gazebo with some music we took on cd:(she asked for 5 but only used 4 songs )

-2 from THE GUITAR FLAMENCO COLLECTION CD to remind us we met in Spain(one was used for the flower girl before me and the other while signing the papers)

- a gospel version of the AVE MARIA, from me walking down the aisle(if I can’t get marry in the church I still want the music!)

-and GABRIEL’s OBOE from the movie THE MISSION, filmed in Argentina in the 80’s.That was for the end.

After that we had a champagne toast and some group photos.

With my husband were taken away by Maria while Berenice took our guest to the beach area right next to the gazebo while the mayan shaman and his assistant/interpreter were getting the ceremony ready. Our guest thought they were going to have canapés( or a barbecue since there was some smoke from the incense!!!)

And we appeared from the bushes behind walking barefoot and joined them while the lady was chanting in mayan while playing a small drum.

From there everything was magical,the pictures will tell you more.

Our guest were sitting under two small palapas.We were standing up.it lasts about an hour, and is in mayan but the lady will guide the ceremony in English.Its a true cosmic union in between you and you partner but they will make your guest participate at some point.

We were concerned about our guests being bored or not interested but they loved it. Especially since the previous Sunday we had been to Tulum and they had a great tour with a Mayan guide.

Right after we took tons of pictures at the beach.

After that Maria sent us in a big golf cart to the TULUM LOBBBY. They have a great round semi open bar and we had drinks until 5 pm than were picked up again by Maria to go to our dinner reception.

DINNER RECEPTION

We chose Portofino and luckily any guest had been there as part of the a la carte options yet, so it was a new experience for everybody. We didn’t have a private reception because our group was small and we didn’t want to spend more neither.

THE PORTOFINO HAS A REALLY NICE ATMOSPHERE,THE STARTER BAR ARE ONE THE BEST OF ALL THE A LA CARTE and our meal was fantastic. We had mushroom soup, either salmon or chicken for main and dessert wedding cake. We chose the cheesecake and it was delicious!

The restaurant don’t take bookings until 6pm so your meal will be semiprivate. Some people did speeches as well there.

After that we went to the bar in the AKUMAL PREMIER LOBBY that has live music and outdoor seating area plus it was close to our rooms so I took a chance to change my shoes!!

We sat down for drinks and although we hadn’t planned doing first dances and all that(we are not that type of couple)our guest chatted the singer and she called us inside to have a dance in front of tons of guests from the hotel! It was fun and they all gave us an applause at the end!.

We planned originally to go to the disco but since we started so early that day by 11pm most of the guest  were ready to go home.

OUR OUTFITS,HAIR,MAKE UP ETC.

My husband suit is from Marks and Spencer and the shirt Hugo Boss.

In my case, I am former fashion designer and very crafty. The only thing about having a DW that didn’t like was that you know you won’t be able to DIY any of the deco or carry with you much luggage. So I decided to bring the only piece of DIY I could: my dress.

I wanted something light, different, with a certain Latin touch to reflect my background and didn’t want to take a second mortgage to afford it. Plus I wanted something that  would blend with the hotel and the wedding feeling. Not right at the beach, barefoot but not like taken out of a Disney fairy tale.(Although I totally respect everybody’s choices in wedding dresses)

It was made of cotton batiste but with an inner corselette to give me shape and with lots of broderie and lace trim.It wasn’t prefect perfectand I finished the night before leaving  but I loved it and felt really comfy in it.

My shoes are from Coast, in England. And I loved them although they killed my feet the whole day.

I did my own hair, imperfectly but decently. The prices in the spa are silly.85ussd for wedding hair when you get colour and cut for that price over here .I washed it and put a mask for 3 hours the night before and blow-dried it. And the next morning put some hot rollers for a few hours. My advice to you: if one of your guest can do hair you are better off than with the spa, because you will try it several times and know what to expect. If you do it yourself, don’t do like me that got new hot rollers and didn’t try them before hand until that very morning!.

We booked both mums as a present so they had their hair done and to be honest it wasn’t anything spectacular.

I did my make up as well. I wanted something really simple and natural. I put on a tinted moisturizer from Estee lauder that changes shade to match your own, great if you sunburn a lot. And I had some bronzer as blusher plus plenty of white eye shadow and some violet eyeliner, waterproof mascara and pink lipstick and lip gloss on top.

My advice to you regarding your bridal beauty(after all it is your day)

-Get some Bobbi brown blot papers(I think that’s the name)my sister gave me a few and they were great because they take the sweat out of you face but not the foundation.

-Take a comb or brush down the ceremony with all the beauty products one of your bridesmaid will carry for you. My hair got blown away in some many directions during the ceremony and photos. In fact I regret not having it up in a half ponytail. ITS VERY BREEZY DOWN THE GAZEBO AND THE BEACH

-If you marry down the beach, get somebody to carry a small bottle of water and a towel for you. I had to go and wash my feet inside the tequila restaurant because my shoes wouldn’t fit back after being barefoot at the beach. And couldn’t  arrive at my drinks reception barefoot neither!

-Whatever foundation you use(you will have such a lovely golden tan that you won’t need much anyway)buy it with SPF. We got really sunburned that day. Specially standing for the Mayan blessing. I had spf moisturizer but my partner forgot to put some on his head and got a really bad sunburn.

-Take to your holiday the best suntan lotion you can afford and be careful with the sun(I felt 30 protection wasn’t high enough). I barely exposed myself and yet I got really burned. Brides looking like prawns in the pictures are not very attractive, ja, ja.

-Take plenty of good hair masks, serums, etc. The sun, sea and pool can wreak havoc with your hair. I did a mask on mine every other night.

-If you choose to have a natural flower in your hair be advised it doesn’t have any pin or clip and although I had a clip my flower blew away after the first ceremony. Thanks I had bought also a nice artificial pink one that I put for the dinner party. Fresh flowers will wilt so fast in that weather.

PHOTOGRAPHY

We had 10 free pics as part of our wedding pack. When we met with the WC the first day a lady from the ARRECIFE STUDIO joined later to talk about prices, etc. We had been sent the list by Maria in advance and had a budget for photos.

The lady was very pushy and not having another option for photos we agreed a certain pack with her (73 pics in total of both ceremonies plus after at the beach. I didn’t want any pictures of me getting ready because as you can imagine I was very emotional and just wanted to have a moment with my family)We walked away rather worried. Thank God all that disappear when we saw the final product: Amazing!!!

We asked our guest not to take any photos during the ceremony(ies)since we hate seeing pictures of the bride arriving and everybody is taking pictures of her. We wanted them to enjoy what we planned for so long and to be there with us. Diego our photographer was so grateful for that since he could move around us clicking and clicking without interfering with the ceremony or being bother by amateur guests.

HE IS AN AMAZING PHOTOGRAPHER. He will tell how to pose and stand. Also we were worried the light will be to harsh at that time of the day but he took a flash to mellowed it bit.

We met him the day after and watch a presentation of 250 photos of which we ended up buying 115.It was so difficult to choose, they were all great, I promise.

My advice to you: budget for more pictures, you will want more than what you think. And don’t worry, this guys are real professionals. Perhaps they are still missing the press other DW photographers have that’s why people are still not sure about them. They have a Facebook page for you to look at pictures although it hasn’t been updated since October, shame.

One more piece of advice

I hope this was helpful and not too long. If you are still reading and the moderators of the forum haven’t kicked me out for the length of this yet, please allow me a humble piece of advice:

DON’T WORRY ABOUT DETAILS. They will be sorted for you.

And if you get marry at the gazebo(I suppose it’s the same for the other location)just before you get to walk down the “aisle” you will hide behind some plants. When you WC tells you to start walking, just take a second to take a deep breath and look at the beautiful blue sky and that gorgeous gazebo with all the people you love waiting for you. Trust me, that image will stay in your heart forever and it will make every effort of the planning process worthwhile.

Thanks for reading and once more thanks for all you advice.

Let me know if I can help at all.

Lots of hugs

Happy planning!!

Valeria