The new Dreams Tulum thread! (Post all DT Qs&As here)

[BeaBride]

Originally Posted by Tulumbride2013 

 

Ahhh! Your awesome. You look great first of all. Dress hair veil..everything! And I LOVE the idea of having my hair hold up until after my TTD shoot. Were hopefully doing the cenote the day after. I don't want him to see me before the ceremony, so we may be a bit rushed for pictures but I'm hoping it will workout ok.

So glad I booked a professional photographer. The picture differences in your photos are like night and day different in terms of quality. Love them! You guys are such a cute couple. Looks like you had a great time.

Did you do a package with a reception and did you bring a lot of stuff down with you?

Going to the cenote sounds great.  I actually only decided to trash my dress about a week before the wedding and by that time, I didn't have the energy or time to look into going anywhere other than the resort to do it. I really just wanted a few beach/water shots so I don't think there will be any crazy, super creative shots in the TTD section.  

 

Oh yeah.  I forgot to mention that we went with the most expensive package.  I think it's called the Ultimate package with a 3 hour reception included.  We paid to rent the Seaside Grill and paid to extend the reception by 1 hour until 10:30.  They won't let you have it any later than that. After the reception, some of us headed to the bar and beach to check things out.  Many were too loaded or tired to continue.  We had a great time. Initially in the planning process, I was a bit panicked thinking that we would not have nearly enough time to celebrate, but I was wrong.  I think I definitely would have appreciated having about an hour or so more but it was great the way it ended up anyway.

[Tulumbride2013]

Ya know... I totally did read that haha. I tend to be quite the spaz sometimes, forgive me! I feel like I have a lot of decor, so your list makes me feel better about it all. I can understand how a small detail like your chapel pews could bug you! I guess I'm worries about fees adding up. I'm sure it will be nice to have everything all done for me though. We have the ultimate package as well! I would love to extend our reception... I just need to talk my fiancé into it.

[JamieT]

Hi everyone,

 

I am getting married at DT in June 2013. I am new to this site, and excited (and thankful!) to read about everyone's ideas regarding planning a wedding at Dreams. I have 40 confirmed guests so far, but we're thinking maybe 50 people total will attend. Any ideas on music for this size group? ipod? Dancefloor? Also, I am thinking of getting a photographer outside of the resorts (since they are not getting very good reviews). Before I go digging around for quotes, does anyone have a photographer that they could recommend, as well as the prices that were charged?

 

Thanks for any ideas!
 

[BeaBride]

Extending the reception is quite pricey, but we figured that it's an hour of a really important day that we'll never get back.  No regrets!  I would say that if you can, skimp on some of the less important stuff to get the things that really matter. That's what we did. 

[Tulumbride2013]

Extending the reception is quite pricey, but we figured that it's an hour of a really important day that we'll never get back.  No regrets!  I would say that if you can, skimp on some of the less important stuff to get the things that really matter. That's what we did. 

I remember reading about the extendd reception charge some where, isn't it per person? How did the bar work out for your reception? Can ppl have whatever they want, do the servers run and get it, or do guests go to the nearest resort bar? I just saw the wedding guide said additional charge for international bar... So I'm like ok... It's an all inclusive resort lol...

[BeaBride]

To extend the reception, it cost us a whopping $18.90 USD per person. They charge you %15.00 plus 11% tax and 15% service fees.  Robbery!!

 

As for the international bar thing, I'm not sure about that. Natalia just told me that if there was a particular type of wine or alcoholic beverage that you want, you had to pay for it.  

 

The servers were completely on-the-ball and super friendly.  We were happy to tip them but wish we had given them more after all the compliments they got from our guests.  They got people whatever they wanted in shots and drinks, including coffee (which apparently is not included in the meal).  

 

I should mention that we were pretty disappointed by the food.  It generally was not what we expected and it was brought out lukewarm, which should not happen considering we were at the Seaside Grill that has it's own kitchen.  We had the vol au vent appetizer which tasted good but the pastry was a bit moist instead of light and flaky like it should have been.  The salad was presented nicely but a bit bitter and had way too little salad dressing.  Maybe we should have opted for the chicken salad. The main course was the flank steak which was good but too well-done for our liking and not hot enough when they brought it out.  The fruit tart was tasty but the tart shell was so hard, I ended up only eating 1/4 of the tart shell and I just scooped out the fruit filling which was yummy. The wedding cake tasted awesome  and it was nice and moist.  We had the three milks cake with pineapple filing, and our only regret is that we didn't get the leftovers boxed up so I'm not sure what happened to the rest of it.  I was really happy that the servers cut it up and served it to the guests but not everyone had some.  I even ordered a bit less and we still had leftovers.  I was warned by a forum bride not to expect to see the type of wedding cake that you might get in North America, so I wasn't surprised when the shape/height of the tiers weren't perfect and it didn't look exactly as in the pictures.  I haven't yet but I'm planning on writing Natalia an email about what was good and not so good with their services, mainly the food.  My husband, guests, and I ALL agree that despite us paying almost $82.00USD per plate over the 20 guests in the package, the all-inclusive food at the resort was better than the reception food.  We ate at the Seaside Grill a few days after the wedding for dinner, and my husband went there twice for dinner to have steak (he even ordered 2 steaks one night) because he liked it so much.  The kicker is that the normal food/salad they serve at the Seaside Grill  is better than when you have a reception there, which makes no sense because you're paying a tonne of money to rent the place and feed your guests. Also, we had 4 vegetarians who did not want their vegetarian lasagna so by email, we requested a plate of grilled vegetables and tofu with a side of rice for the main course.  All the other courses were already vegetarian, which we chose that way on purpose.  What my guests got was rice with pieces of carrot......and we paid $82.00 for that!!!!  That was a total lack of respect and a complete rip-off!

 

On a completely different note, the Italian restaurant "Portofino" was the best one according to us and all our guests.  The pace of the service is what you would expect here and the food was fantastic.  We wish we had gone there earlier  in the week because we would have gone twice.  TIP: bring a shawl or some sort of cover-up to wear in the restaurants or you'll freeze.  They like to crank the A/C .

 

Anyway, hope that helps!   

[Tulumbride2013]

19 bucks a head? That is CRAZY. I thought it was like 200 bucks or something.. For my 22 guests . Was it because you got the seaside grill? That freaking blows my mind. My heart is breaking as I type to hear that your dinner was not up to par. I've eaten at this resort in the past and was pleased with the food, so this really is devasting news for me! Plus a lot of our family are food snobs... So I can see this not going over well! Over all it sounds like your experience was still ok. I really can't understand why we would have to pay extra for a particular drink.... Makes no sense. Anyway, that info def helps and I am still looking forward to seeing more pics and reading your review. ...although you have basically told me everything already!

[texasmandy]

Great info BeaBride - thank you for sharing!  I am also a bit disappointed to hear about the food.  At the cost - I was hoping it would be delicious.  I am also a bit confused by the bar/drinks.  If they don't have what someone wants, I assume they could just walk to one of the other bars and get what they want, correct? 

We have decided against extending the reception and were just going to move the party to one of the other bars.  Hopefully that will work out!  I still have a little over five months and am STRESSING out about all of these little details.

[BeaBride]

I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news about the reception food.  I should also mention that although we had the ultimate package, we chose to go with the silver menu for all our guests which came to about $500-600 USD cheaper for us (because we would have had to pay more than $90.00 per head over the 20 guests included in the package for the gold menu). We really wanted the surf 'n turf but we felt the cost was not worth it.  If I had 22 guests like you Tulumbride2013, I would probably have chosen the gold menu for all my guests and paid per head for the extra two guests.  I hope by me saying something to the resort about the food, it will be better for you guys.  Like you know Tulumbride2013 and I mentioned before, the resort food in general was great.  

 

The charge of extending the reception is universal and has nothing to do with renting the Seaside Grill. On the invoice, they actually write "extra hour of open bar".

 

To clarify what I meant about the alcoholic drinks, she told me that if we wanted a specific brand of bottled of wine or scotch or what have you, they would charge extra per bottle.  We did not pay anything extra as they just served us the alcohol available at the resort.  The reception servers were happy to bring us whatever we requested so our guests did not have to serve themselves at the bar.

 

TexasMandy:

Let me assure you, on my wedding day, I was not the least bit stressed about the details....only about having enough time/daylight for pictures.  I just let go of ALL the planning the day before the wedding. You'll do all the pre-wedding prep and hand off your instructions/decorations, and then you can sit back and relax knowing that a team of people will take care of the rest while you enjoy your day.........assuming you're not stuck at the spa!!  lol!  I loved that we had a wedding planner, photographer, and servers that made sure things were set up/cleaned up, on-time, and that people were taken care of.  It goes so fast that you don't have time to worry about every detail.  In fact, we had to tip the minister, wedding planner, and mariachi band the day after the wedding because we forgot. Also, to this day I'm not sure if our DJ got fed because we paid for his meal.  I think I'll email him...........

[dee dreams]

I'm back from my wedding and still wishing I was there , lady's when past brides say your stress goes away when u get there it's very true!!our coordinator was Anabel and she was so wonderful and organized . I'm gonna share all my details and even the small hiccups that happen but they just adds to the memories Check in C One of my complaints is the front desk. I don't know if they are always disorganized or just because its busy season but many of my guests and I felt that was the main complaint of this resort . There is a man there not sure his name but was very rude. My husbands best man was checking into his room and we went with them and as soon as we opened the door we all plugged our noses because it smelt so bad of sewage. The floor was dirty and when we called he said I'm gonna send someone to see if its really as bad as you say . Then no one came for a hour so we had to go back down there and after arguing for 10 mins we finally got another room Hotel A The hotel grounds are gorgeous and everything is laid out very well so it never feels crowed . There is so much greenery and the people work very hard to keep it up. Food A Everyone loved the food here My grandpa who is use to Alberta beef was very pleasantly surprised with the steak at the seaside grill . Even the buffet food is tasty. There are 7 different restaurants so I don't think anyone will go hungry here . Only thing is about 10 people out of our 19 group including my husband and I at some point in the trip spend a day in the bathroom and for my husband had to pay for a doctor because he couldn't even keep water down and the doctor was asking a lot on what we ate so kinda got me thinking but not sure if its just the different food were not use to it but I have been to Mexico 3 other times and it has never happened but i can't be positive it's the food but just thought I would give a heads up Rooms A- all of the rooms were beautiful and spacious except that stinky room lol , we got ocean front but make sure ur on the second or third floor in the building by the sea side grill or the other far building because you get a view of the ocean . Our first building was on first floor and very loud and only a view of the pool. If the ocean view is very important to you get ocean front but I didn't find it worth it as the rooms are no different and exact same in size . My moms room which was a junior suite garden view was bigger and never upgrades so that was kinda disappointing as we paid an extra 1,200$ for our ocean front room Hair and makeup A+ Beatriz did my hair and makeup and was such a sweet lady and did exactly what I wanted it did take a bit longer then I expected so give urself lots of time !! Wedding A + Wedding coordinator ( Anabel Wedding (beach by seaside grill) Wedding dinner ( beach by seaside) Wedding time (4pm)