Excellence Playa Mujeres Brides Post Here!

[Amanda Gardner]

It's included

[Momoarc83]

Hey everyone,

I am currently working on ideas for our OOT (out of town) bags for guests.  I plan on doing plain paper bags with a cute tag attached.  Does anyone know if the front desk will hand these out to the guests as they arrive?  If not, then I guess I can hand them out at the "Welcome Reception" we are having.  I'm curious as to what you ladies did or are planning on putting in your OOT bags?  Any ideas would be appreciated!

 

These are a few ideas of gifts I want to include:

spf chapstick

advil

shout wipe

magnet (either customized saying our names and date of wedding) or just a Mexico magnet

Mexico postcard

Welcome Letter

mini tequila bottles (Patron)...can we bring this in from U.S.?

 

Thanks ladies!

-Monica

[Kristen5469]

Hello Kim,

I am getting married at Excellence April 5th. I am starting to get a little stressed! What are you doing for music? DJ?

 

Thanks,

Kristen

[Kristen5469]

Bug spray, 5 hour energy, and medicine for tummy troubles (just in case).

[May12]

WIDE OPEN Bar....in fact, you can request certain cocktails to be served (in addition to whatever your guests order themselves) for any of the events you have going on...welcome cocktails, rehearsal-even at the gazebo, before your ceremony as guests are waiting, at your cocktail hour, and obviously the reception. We did certain drinks that matched our colors... had bottles of champagne at our welcome cocktails on the X-Lounge, tequila sunrises at the rehearsal while we were figuring things out, tequila sunrises and champagne at the ceremony, shots of tequila in champagne glasses for the wedding party RIGHT after we all walked away from the gazebo after the ceremony, kir royale and tequila sunrises at the cocktail hour, and margaritas  poured in glasses at the table, along with red/white wine and champagne-depending on what they wanted. There is a full bar at the reception as well as the cocktail hour as well.  Just ask and they will make it happen! 

Originally Posted by ExcellenceBride 

Hi everyone,

Does anyone know how much 'open bar' costs or if it's included?

 

Thanks, Kim

[May12]

Hi Monica!

They do not hand out bags as guests check in, they deliver them to their rooms at turn down service- $4.50 per room. The reason they do it this way is because many times people change rooms so they cannot do it ahead of check in. Also, they cannot have a ton of bags behind the counter "waiting" when guests check in a different times and days, and there are many weddings during week-too easy to get confusing. We had this dilemma. Half of our guests were checking in the Thursday before the wedding (which was on Sat). The rest of us were on an excursion to Tulum and were not getting back until most of them would have already checked in. That night at 9pm we were having our Welcome Cocktails. Soooo, if all of the info was in their OOT bags, they probably would be out to dinner while the bags were delivered hence not knowing to meet us, or where. We made a "check-in card" that the front desk put into their Guest Guide, along with their room key, resort newsletter, etc. This way we told them where/when to meet us and to expect their OOT bags....Here's what they looked like....

 

 

We had name tags made for them with their name on one side and our "logo" on the other in a lucite luggage tag holder, and attached these to their OOT bags. This way it was easier for the bellmen to ensure it was going to the correct room, and easier for us to include extras for the bridesmaids/groomsmen/parents, their thank you cards we gave them for being in the wedding party, etc.  In the OOT bags we had a Welcome letter rolled up with ribbon, a second page rolled with it for the wedding party detailing their activities, and a time line card for everyone. Here's the time line card proof.....

 

 

 

OK...now what we did for the OOT bags. As I was throwing everything into bags, I realized it looked just that...like I threw it in there. So in an attempted to pull it together a bit, I found little burgundy organza bags at AC Moore. Each bag had 3 bags filled with "like" items.

1 was filled with travel sized sunscreen, aloe and spf lip balm. (the "SUN" kit)

The 2nd had a packet of Tums, small bottle of ibuprofen, and a packet of Emergen-C. (the "hangover" kit)

The 3rd had 5 hour energy, a tin of Starbucks mints, and decorative nail file. ( the "pull it together" kit)    

In addition to these we had:

A flip flop bottle opener (I believe we found these at Michael's)

Custom do not disturb sign

Mexican blanket (We purchased these down there)

Mini bottles of Don Julio (purchased down there)

Recipe cards for our favorite tequila recipes attached to the tequila bottles

All of these things were put into tote bags that we purchased down there (with the exception of nicer bags for the bridesmaids, and backpacks for the groomsmen.)

 

As for bringing tequila, I'm not sure if you can bring too much without having to pay a surcharge tax...they DO go through all of your suitcases if you have a lot of them, which you probably will. One of the reasons we purchased a lot of things while we were there....AND it's way less expensive. It is super easy to hire a cab driver for a few hours or day to run errands-you can do this from the lobby bellmen. There is Mercado 28 downtown which is set up like a flea market with just about everything there, and also where we found the best prices for maracas, blankets, and such, was at a place on the 1st floor in the back of Plaza Caracol in the Hotel Zone. It's across from Plaza La Fiesta-which has an "outlet" in it. We got a bunch of 4 packs of mini Don Julio bottles with blanco, reposado, anjeo and cream tequila- $24 each. They have some others as well. There is a good tequila store in Plaza Kulkukan on the top floor-they have about everything there. 

There is also a flea market type of place in the Hotel Zone, but the prices are better at Mercado 28, which is downtown. If you forget anything, there is a Walmart close to the hotel in a quick cab ride!

 

We do not have pictures of the contents of the OOT Bags..I CANNOT believe we forgot to take those pics!  Here is the do no disturb sign, and I have some others, but I STILL cannot upload photos other than what I already posted. Is anyone else having this issue???

I also had an EMERGENCY KIT to put in the bathroom at the reception, and for guests if they needed anything vs including EVERYTHING in their OOT bags. All kinds of hair stuff-including flatiron and curling iron, safety pins, sewing kit, tide stick, lint roller, Imodium AD, Zantac, Bactine Spray (this REALLY came in handy for the really sunburned folks), and Nayeli provided the aerosol deodorant being that I couldn't find any at home!

Hope this helps!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   

 

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Momoarc83 

Hey everyone,

I am currently working on ideas for our OOT (out of town) bags for guests.  I plan on doing plain paper bags with a cute tag attached.  Does anyone know if the front desk will hand these out to the guests as they arrive?  If not, then I guess I can hand them out at the "Welcome Reception" we are having.  I'm curious as to what you ladies did or are planning on putting in your OOT bags?  Any ideas would be appreciated!

 

These are a few ideas of gifts I want to include:

spf chapstick

advil

shout wipe

magnet (either customized saying our names and date of wedding) or just a Mexico magnet

Mexico postcard

Welcome Letter

mini tequila bottles (Patron)...can we bring this in from U.S.?

 

Thanks ladies!

-Monica

[May12]

Hey Lynn!!

I just saw your engagement pics and they are just awesome!!! You guys are so good together...such chemistry!

If you have your songs pulled together in playlists, in order and labeled Ceremony1- guest arrival, ceremony2-Mom, ceremony3- bride, ceremony 4- Godsitter, etc, etc...They will play it in order...just make it easy for them to understand, and you can also have your DJ "overseeing" and Que-ing him, just in case...we had someone doing this. We had a song for everything as well including our signing and sand ceremony, and leaving the ceremony....It was timed perfectly and went off without a hitch!

 

No worries about picking my brain....we did a ton of legwork before the wedding and learned a lot so feel free to ask...I'm happy to help!

-Sheryl

Quote:

 

Originally Posted by danak71 

Hey there Mrs. Napolitano!!!!

 

Thank you so much!!!

 

I don't think we had talked about it and I've picked your brain SO much since  you've gotten married I was trying to give you a break! LOL

 

I probably just need to talk to Nayeli about it because there are several different songs I want played during the ceremony. Certain songs I want played during the prelude as guests are seated, then a different song when they seat my mom and the wedding begins, a different song when the bridal party starts walking and then my Godsister is singing yet another song live when I walk. That's a lot! But our DJ is willing to make that part happen with the right equipment.

 

As far as the reception, I don't think the BOSE will work for us. We definitely are bringing half of Atlanta AND Boston! LOL And they are a rowdy bunch unfortunately! But since our friend is going I'd much rather have him DJ because he knows us and knows exactly what to play and when. However, to rent the sound system is $500 and it just includes a speaker and a cordless mic. Mark and I are thinking it might be better for us to bring a speaker (if we can find one small enough with enough power) and our own mic.

 

I'll try and see if I can get in touch with their A/V folks and find out how many watts is the speaker that they rent and go from there.

 

Planning is going really well. Just got my invitations out a few weeks ago and I absolutely love them! Started getting the RSVP cards in the mail which made it all feel official! :-)

 

We're in the process of doing the rest of the graphic design pieces (door hanger, favor tags, etc.) The girls just ordered their dresses last week. 

 

We had our engagement shoot about a month ago. We actually shot on 2 different days because it started raining on the 1st day and cut our shoot short. Here's a link to our photographer's blog if you're interested in seeing some of our pics:

 

http://mwsphotoblog.com/atlanta-botanical-gardens-lenox-park-engagement-session-lynn-marcus/

 

Hope the rest of you ladies are enjoying your planning! I'm so excited to be only 6 months away!

[May12]

Hi Kristen!

Congrats! The in-house DJ- DJ Mannia was fantastic....perfect for the CECO Terrace. They have an MC and lighting and will do anything you ask. We were worried because most of their example playlist was just about everything we did not want to hear! Once we talked with them, they put us a bit more at ease. We like mainly Indie / Alternative music and were worried about their library. Well....after discussing with them, we converted my entire iTunes to MP3, put it on an external hard drive and gave it to them at a meeting earlier in the week to firm up details. (they returned the hard drive to us the next day) We had the best music-for us! Our group loved it and it worked out perfectly! So much so, that we wanted to extend the reception for another hour, but we didn't get the heads up that it was over until they were prompting us for the last song.  

If anyone is thinking of extending the reception, you need to let them know an hour and 15 minutes ahead of time...make sure you tell them ahead of time- at the "firm up details meeting" and before the reception to the DJ AND the Captain, to have them ask you at that point in the evening.

 

-Sheryl

Originally Posted by Kristen5469 

Hello Kim,

I am getting married at Excellence April 5th. I am starting to get a little stressed! What are you doing for music? DJ?

 

Thanks,

Kristen

[Moments That Matter]

Congrats Monica! and welcome to our forum community:) I agree with May12 about not traveling with the tequila......Mexico is the Land of Tequila! so if you're gifting small bottles, it'd be cheaper and better buying them in Mexico.....probably the small bottles you're thinking of bringing are actually "hecho en Mexico" ! ......they sure would be "well-traveled!" hehe

........CHEERS!

 

 

[May12]

Hi Ladies!

Finally got the uploading to work...here are some pics of the flowers we had, Monica.

Also, those of you having the ceremony at the Gazebo, I wanted to show you the "aisle", and some other shots that show the area...

 

 

 

This is the starting point. The building on the left is bldg 9 where you'll probably be staying if you're in an Excellence Club room, and the building on the right is Tuscana-the Italian restaurant (also the breakfast buffet) and the underside of the deck you see is the Spice Terrace. 

 

 

 

This is the "aisle" on the way to the Gazebo. Where you see the last bridesmaid is a sidewalk to the left of the photo...That is where you will be waiting at the starting point area. This is a bit of a hike! The building you are seeing behind the girls is the CECO Terrace.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Once you get to the Gazebo from down the path, you then go AROUND the Gazebo before you walk down the real aisle where everyone stands and you see your Hubby to be. Everyone will see you walking down the path except the groomsmen and your Fiance...make sure he doesn't turn around and look! BTW, it's about a 3 and 1/2 minute walk give or take...was for us and I'm 5'8" with no shoes...Make sure you time your music accordingly.   

 

Once you're at the Gazebo, this is the view your guest will have. I only have a few pics where my veil is not in my face! Wind was crazy so keep that in mind, just in case!

 

 

Behind us is Nayeli on the right, officiating, and the Judge on the left. For a legal ceremony the Judge must be there to observe, and there is signing by you AND your 4 witnesses, along with thumbprints.(If you want to see those pics, let me know) You'll also have photographers on all sides and a videographer (if you chose to have a video, or have the gold package) behind the alter next to Nayeli. And yes....my veil was tucked into the back of my dress and had to tuck my hair behind my ear...damn wind!

 

After the ceremony they had our celebratory tequila waiting for us with a waiter and a cart!  

 

A shot of one of the tables...wind was a major factor. Candles were supposed to be floating at the top of the vases with the flower floating in them and river rocks at the bottom. Orange and burgundy rose petals were to be on the table- none of that could work so rose petals ended up in the vases and the water level had to be WAY low. Would have had double sided tape for the runners had I known they'd be blowing around. Again, after EVERY scenario possible I could have and did think through, I NEVER thought of wind...Have a back up plan Ladies! All in all, we had a blast and in the end it didn't matter, but what I can do is pass it forward!  

 

 

We purchased ALL of our pictures so I have some not so perfect shots, but pics where I can show you different views of the areas. Let me know if anyone is looking for something specific.

 

Happy planning everyone!  

 

-Sheryl