Gran Bahia Principe Akumal/Tulum/Coba - POST HERE!

[Danibunny]

Hi Sposa,

yes can see the pic :0) it seems you are uploading them fine,

 

abbie32-Sounds like you had an amazing day thank you for sharing your review -it gets me sooo excited 41/2 weeks till we fly out!

look forward to seeing the pictures xx

[Danibunny]

Sposa, yes can see the pic group shot at gazebo you look beautiful and very happy :0) look forward to seeing more ! Thanks for sharing x

[sposa]

Thank you ladies!

More coming soon.In the meantime,enjoy your planning!those moments are precious when you look back.

Hugs and kisses

Val

[Andree]

Yes Sposa, it works now !

[Sunshine2680]

Great review! sorry to hear about the bad experience at the Spa. I've heard that they don't do the greatest job...this concerns me a little.
The only solutions I can think of is dishing out for a trial and/or the updo the day of the wedding..
OR
Having an outside stylist and makeup artist come in??

Has anyone been able to do this? I know the hotel is very strict on outside vendors - but is that just for photography? Or ALL vendors?
I've heard of others brides bringing in an outside stylist and makeup artist -  but this was at other resorts.

[Tae123]

Thanks for sharing Sposa

[Julie2011]

Great Review...Makes me so excited...only 8 more day till we leave...ahhh

 

Any suggestions from past brides on excursions or any fun stuff I should tell my guests to do off the resort?

Can you buy excursion packages at the resort, are they good ones?

 

Did anybody go to Walmart in Playa?? I know random question- but Im trying to find out if they sell baby food and the Quality of it

 

 

[sposa]

 

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!)Im not sure if the whole review will go at once or I will do few bits and few pictures at the time.

Planning process

We live in England although I am originally from Argentina. The majority of my family lives there(we are a 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.

[sposa]

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.

 

 

[sposa]