LeShay's Paradisus Wedding Review Part 1 of 3

[madenerg2]

I apologize for the delay in getting this wedding review out to you.

I’ve been married for a little over a month now, and I have to admit, I was bit exhausted, I needed a brief vacation from it all, and now I miss it so much I need to join a support group for post-wedding depression. It’s a little sad, knowing the whole thing is over, but when I tell you I had THE BEST TIME OF MY LIFE during my wedding weekend, I truly mean it. THANK YOU SO MUCH TO ALL OF YOU ON THE FORUM, ALL OF YOUR THREADS & POSTS ARE PRICELESS AND I COULD NOT HAVE PLANNED MY WEDDING WITHOUT YOU. So sit back and read about my wedding….I really don’t have any complaints. I LOVE THE PARADISUS SO MUCH we’re all talking about going back for a re-union in a few years. So, I’ll start from the beginning to the end.

My wedding was officially on April 26, 2008, however the weekend went from Thursday April 24th – Sunday April 27th.

 

PART 1

TUESDAY – April 22nd, 2008

We arrived in Cancun early Tuesday evening and rented a car from Europcar. Although the prices for all of the car rental companies seem relatively inexpensive ($20 - $30) for a compact car, they don’t tell you about the insurance until you get there. Which ranges in price from $25 - $35/day, in addition to that they also place a mandatory $2500 hold on your card in the event that something should happen. On top of all that, when you finally get your car they inspect ever single detail of it, so be sure to take pictures. I witnessed a German woman very upset about the damages to her car that were already there, but she didn’t take pictures, but with the language barrier it was extremely difficult for her to communicate.

We then went directly to Walmart, which was pretty easy to get to. We got a little lost, but with a little ‘Adonde’ Walmart’ Spanish, it was pretty easy to follow the directions of the locals. Once there we purchased all the snacks for the gift bags, they had the same Lays brand chip variety packs, Mexican hard candies, and lollipops, and snickers. Since we had about 4 toddlers, we also purchased the sand pales for them – they were relatively cheap also ($4-$5)

 

Cancun in pretty easy to Navigate and since we’d been there for our site visit it was pretty easy to find the Paradisus, which is truly only a 15 minute ride from the airport. When we attempted to check-in at the main lobby desk, they promptly redirected us to the Royal Service lounge, which was serene and peaceful. It was nice to see our names on the podium entryway to the lounge.

As we checked in we were introduced to our personal butler/concierge, Daniel – I had forgotten all about this bonus. And I have to say Daniel was excellent for all of our needs throughout the wedding.

When we arrived at our Royal Service, Ocean View Room, it was decorated so nicely.

The only bad thing about it was when FI turned to me and said that he realized he forgot 2 bags back in LA! It was like someone put the needle on the record! I couldn’t believe it! He re-packed the bags so they would be underweight, and forgot to take the suitcase with all the welcome bags and it’s contents and all his shoes. I knew he was traveling light, but I didn’t think he actually forgot 2 suitcases in LA. Thankfully our friend was able to swing by our house and pick both bags up and bring them with her on her red-eye flight the follwing Day.

We then went to eat dinner at the Mexican Restaurant, The Tequila Grill, I ordered the fish and FI ordered the chicken, we both really enjoyed are food, and of course the drinks kept the edge off and my attitude at bay! What the Heck! There was nothing I could do about the forgotten luggage at that point.

 

I forgot to mention that we split all of our wedding necessities into 6 large suitcases, split between myself, & 4 people.

BAG 1: Welcome Bags & Bag Contents

BAG 2: Cake Cutter, Gazebo Decorations, Wedding Favors, Chair Bows, and Table Overlays

BAG 3: Actual Center Pieces & Center Piece Contents (Sand, Shells, Flowers)

BAG 4: All Flowers, and Petals

BAG 5: Place card Holders, All Wedding Paper (Fan Programs, Ribbon, Table Numbers, etc….)

BAG 6: Picture frame Table Numbers, Broom, rest of Welcome Bag Contents

 

NOTE – MAKE SURE YOU PACK YOUR BAG SO THEY’RE UNDER 50LBS TO AVOID ADDITIONAL FEES.

 

 

WEDNESDAY – April 23nd, 2008

FI & I had an all day marathon meeting with Elisa & Perla to finalize every detail of the wedding.

If you can do this, I would definitely encourage you to get there early and iron out all the details. This meeting definitely put me at ease and they answered ALL of my questions. I also gave Elisa and Perla a small 3 ring wedding binder of all my wedding pictures in color, that was very helpful for them, and if you have time I would encourage you to do the same. I can forward you what I gave them if you need it. We finalized all the food choices, walk the grounds…I actually had my ceremony here:

And cocktail hour here:

So I just wanted to make sure they would be able to accommodate all of our needs.

 

We also discussed the center piece,

and I did not know this before getting there, but Elisa and Perla built the centerpieces with all the materials I gave them. They even finished assembling my fan programs! These women are a GOD SEND! It was also helpful that there were no other weddings at the Paradisus that week, so they were able to give all their attention to our wedding.

 

Daniel (our Butler) made all of our dinner reservations, so we never had to worry about where we were eating. On Wednesday we ate at Sumire (the Asian restaurant) – Although the food was excellent, my only regret was that we didn’t request the Tepanyaki tables, so make sure you request that when you make your reservation there.

 

We had a few friends and family members trickle in that day, so you can guess what we spent our time doing in the Lobby Bar

 

Stay Tuned - I'm writing Part 2 this weekend

[Jenn3878]

Congrats and welcome home! Great review! You look amazing - I love your dress!

[Pisces]

congratulations! What a nice review and you look fantastic in that one teaser pic!

[MissyR]

Congrats and welcome home! I cannot wait to hear more!

[BarefootBride]

Congrats! Cant wait to see and hear more!!!

[yamille]

Congrats! You look gorgeous. Looking forward to the rest of the review.

[JHarwood2Be]

It looks like you had a beautiful wedding. I really liked your centerpieces! Congratulations!

[kelcrooks]

Congrats! You looked amazing. Can't wait to hear more about the day.

[KLC77]

Congratulations! Glad you had such a good time. I can't wait to hear more!

[madenerg2]

Thank You Thank YOU! I'm posting Part 2 Now