RIU RM Palace Brides??

[gina g]

Hi guys,

Posted something on here but i think it's gone to totally th wrong page...doh!!! Just booked our wedding at RPRM for 25/03/2011. Its the just the two of us travelling as this will be our second ( and last!) time, so any tips on what we can do to make it super special would be great! i have a few worries from readinf Trip advisor reviews of the hotel, does it really smell mouldy and damp!!!!

thanx,

Gx

[dana]

Gina-I stayed there last January 2009 and I didn't think it smelled moldy, but you are in the caribbean so it is a little damp for the most part. If you want to avoid the dampness we found that you just had to leave your AC on.

 

For the girls trying to lose those extra pounds. I'm a Registered Dietitian and I think what you are both doing is great with working out and watching your calories. At the end of the day it really is the amount of calories in plus your calories out. The one thing I could suggest is changing things up. If you do the same work-out all the time try something new or if you are eating exactly the same amount of calories or food everyday change it up. Our body likes to be "shocked" every once in a while. Just remember going less than 1200 calories a day in counterproductive because it will actually cause your body to go into starvation mode and slow down your metabolism. There is a great site called Free Diet Plans at SparkPeople where you can record your calories and fitness and it will calculate both. I really like it b/c I cook from scratch everynight and it will even calculate how many calories are in my recipes so I know my calories. Hope that helps!

[chloe55]

Thanks Sammygirl! My shoes are by Benjamin Adams, style Carmen. I got them in white dyable, and had somebody local dye them to match the guy's ties. I really wanted wedges because I didn't want my shoes to sink into the grass, and the few people who wore heels had that issue - I think.

[chloe55]

Gina -

 

All the people who had rooms facing outside the hotel had really musty smelling rooms. We think it's because they don't really use those rooms unless the courtyard rooms are booked, so they probably sit empty all summer when the hotel isn't at full capacity. We included travel candles in our welcome bags, and most people said lighting them for a few days solved the problem.

[LadyTrunck]

Lynn-as for the invites, we did a STD/invite combo. On the card, we just said, ‘for more information and RSVP, please visit our website. Non-traditional, but it has worked perfectly. Personally, I’m bringing a few things as far as decorations go. Some stuff for the semi private dinner (some vases in our colors, scatter jewels), and maybe a few things for the ceremony. I’m not a big dancer, so not having dancing because of the semi private didn’t bother me (us).

 

Katie- hey, if you go to the gym- have that dessert!! Haha

 

Jen- my friends and I tried to do a biggest loser thing too! I was all about it, and slowly, they started dropping like flies. Then I dropped too also, I think you are on the right track by thinking the wedding WILL NOT be lacking with a lesser cost dress. I have paid on both ends of the spectrum to be in weddings- and when I said I didn’t mind paying 250, I really didn’t. But also, I understand the guilt. FI’s nieces are our “BM’s” and the dress I originally loved was about 150, but they are 3-8 years old. Their moms loved it and said it was NO problem. But I was SO glad when we found dresses for 40. less guilt!

 

Chloe- OMG everything about your wedding was so beautiful! I remember seeing your inspiration board and BM dress choices a long time ago, and I was excited to see how it all turned out. I LOVE those colors together! You and new DH are super cute together.

 

Dana- thanks for the tips- I am a creature of habit to a fault. I really need to shock my body more with both workout and food. And my downfall lately has been the wine…. D’oh!

[JNagan2011]

Thanks for the tips Dana!

 

Chloe- how many people did you have with you and what did you end up doing for the dinner/reception??

[Nicyx]

Chloe55... Your pix are beautiful :-)

You look stunning, What a lovely couple you are....

you look so so happy!!

 

Ooooooo im so excited!!!!

 

x

[chloe55]

Thanks for all the compliments ladies!

 

We ended up having 25 guests, which was a big difference from the 80 people who originally told us they were going to come. I actually ended up planning like 3 different weddings as the numbers started dwindling. We had our wedding at 5, then went straight to the cocktail hour (which is what you see as the reception in most of the pictures) from 5:30-6:30. We had the mariachi band, champagne, cuban cigars, thats also where we had everyone sign our scrapbook guestbook. David and I did our first dance to the mariachi band, and we also did father/daughter mother/son dances there too. After that, we went to Chilis for dinner, we had the mezzanine area which was totally private. Thats where we did all the toasts and wedding cake. Dinner was so good! Everyone kept asking me if it was a special dinner for the wedding or if they serve that stuff every night. After that, we went to the lobby bar for more drinks and our photgraphers had prepared a slide show of some of the pics they had taken so far. That was awesome! Even my dad was crying, and he's not a cryer. After awhile, a few of the older people went to bed, and the rest of us went to the Riu Tequila to dance. I saw a few private receptions while we were there, and I actually think I prefered going to the Tequila, there just seemed to be more energy. We considered renting the Riu Yucatan disco, but it seemed pretty silly with 25 people and it was really expensive.

 

The whole thing was put together really fly by night because of people not being able to afford the trip at the last minute, but I really think it ended up being great! We even say to each other that we really wouldn't change anything if we could do it over again.

 

Oh, and I wouldn't suggest trying to write your own ceremony. We did, and we poured hours into it. They asked us to send them a copy well in advance so that the minister could get comfortable with it, but I think the first time he looked at it was 5 minutes before our ceremony and his accent was really strong. So strong that we couldn't understand anything he was saying. It was really funny, and we were laughing about it, but in retrospect, I probably could have used the time we spent writing it doing other things.

[LadyTrunck]

Thanks for the great info Chloe!! My ceremony is at 5 too- what a great idea to use the mariachis for the first dance! Did you have to pay for the cocktail hour? Or did you just use the champagne that came in your package? FI doesn't want to pay any extra, and just wants everyone to gather in a bar area w/ mariachis. Do you think that would work?

 

Sounds like you guys had a blast!

[vlvetter7]

Katie

Did you ever get any more info regarding the dinner options? I just got another email from Gabriela in the wedding sales department that says:

 

Private Receptions

The reception dinners offered in the Wedding Packages are semi-private at no extra charge.

Private dinners are possible only at Riu Palace Riviera Maya & Riu Palace Mexico. There are only for one our and a half and during the second seating, with the following restrictions.

 

Riu Palace Riviera Maya:

Brazilan Restaurant: Minimum of 50 guests maximum of 60 all staying at this resort. Second seating 8.45 pm

Steak House: Minimum of 80 guests all staying at the resort. Second seating at 9:00pm

 

Dinner Menu.

The main course of the wedding reception is table served by waiters. The restaurant´s regular menu is open for dinner selection. A self service salad bar and desserts bar is also set up.

 

Weird she would tell me that the menu is available for dinner selection and Ael is telling you otherwise? Let me know if you want me to forward you the email so you have it...

 

Virginia