5/23/09 Hotel Finisterra wedding review*long and w/ pics*

[bridetobe959]

hi everyone Im not super active on this forum but its been a great resource and I wanted to share my experience hoping to help out another future bride. Like many other brides I was worried about the swine flu ruining the wedding but all turned out well.I got married on 5/23/09 at the hotel finisterra and it could not have been more perfect! We had 18 guest total and had the ceremony on the beach at 5:30.

 

Hotel Finisterra:A

This is the third time my FI (now DH!) have stayed here and we have loved it every single time. They were super accommodating from the start and Yvette the sales coordinator gave us a great group rate ($115 per night for rooms that were running around $250 all with an ocean view) and upgraded us to a beautiful 2 bedroom suite.The service was spectacular and the food in the causal restaurant by the pool was excellent. There is usually a fine dining restaurant as well at the resort but it was closed due to work being done. Our guest loved the pools and swim-up bar and we found that everyone just naturally meet down by the pool for breakfast, did their own thing during the day, then meet back up for the 2 for 1 happy hour by the pool. The resort is small enough that we could easily find everyone but large enough for people not to feel smothered and it is just a quick 10 min walk to town or a $6 cab ride.

 

Lupita finisterra wedding coordinator: A++!

Lupita was great! At first I was worried as to what to expect since all the planning was done over emails but when we had our meeting with her all my worries vanished. She was extremely organized and booked all my vendors for me and I feel that I got pretty good prices( our wedding total for everything was under $6,000). The day of the wedding she was out and about setting everything up from 10am on till the reception dinner ended at 10:30pm. She made sure the flowers were in the room on time for photos and had champagne and chocolate covered strawberries sent up to our room. Thanks to her our stress level was very minimal.

 

ceremony/cocktail hour/reception:A+

The set up was exactly how we wanted it on the beach. everything looked beautiful and the staff was constantly grooming the sand trying to keep it level for us. My grandfather performed the ceremony and I think he got nervous because it ended up only being 8 mins due to him talking about a mile a minute. It ended up working out well though because it was pretty warm out. We decided to add the cocktail on and Im glad we did since it prevented our guest from just kinda wandering around while we were doing photos and loosened everyone up for when we came back for more candid pictures. The reception was beautiful and set up exactly how we wanted it and everyone kept commenting on how delicious the food was. The service staff was great very attentive and helpful. We just rented their ipod equipment and didnt plan on doing dancing since it was such a small group but we all ended up getting on the dance floor anyways.

 

Shadias flowers:A

our flowers were beautiful. I had a bouquet of calle lillies with matching boutoniers/corsages. Our centerpieces were lillies in 4 inch shot glasses(we brought them from home so our guests got to keep them) on each plate and they by far exceeded my expectations. I was worried how they would look since I settled with them but the pictures online did not do them justice.

 

Photographer Gilda Badillo:A+

Gilda was great! she was so fun and very organized! Once again all was worked out over email and when we met with her in Cabo she was so organized I didnt even stress. On the wedding day we were running late but she said not to worry thats why she never books 2 weddings the same day. She had an assistant with her and both of them were very patient especially after the ceremony when we were trying to get everyone to stop messing around during the group shots. The pictures she took of us were what we had wanted; some posed and some just candid shots. We did a TTD shoot with her on the monday after the wedding and she drove us to a beautiful beach that was in a residential area and got some great shots. all and all she was amazing and I cant wait to see her photos!

 

Neysa Berman:A+

Neysa was great as well. When she came to do my trial she looked so well put together (she is gorgeous!) did such a good job on my hair that I just told her I trusted her so we didnt even do a make up trial. The day of the wedding she brought an assistant with her to do my mom and MIL. I was getting a bit stressed and nervous and she was really patient and calmed me down. I had clip in hair extensions and she did a great job placing them and blended them so good that my guests didnt even realize they were fake. My make up was beautiful as well. She did smokey eyes and individual eyelash extensions and it looked amazing in pictures. She also directed me to the salon she co-owns, Salon Blanc, for manicures and pedicures. I ended up going with my mom,MIL and SIL and while I was waiting they gave me a great deal on a hydrating facial.

 

Rehearsal dinner at Lorenzillos:A

We always make it a point to eat here everytime we go to cabo because the food is awesome and the service is always fantastic and they did not disappoint us. The group sales manager Jorge was prompt and answered my emails all same day. They sat us on the patio at 2 tables immediately when we got there and were patient while everyone went on a picture taking frenzy.All our guest loved the food and the service was perfect.

 

All around the wedding went perfectly. We stay from the 19th to the 26th and I am still missing it! All our guests loved the hotel and even talked about coming back next year for our anniversary! I cant think of even one thing that I would change about it except maybe staying a couple nights more with just me and the new husband!

[bridetobe959]

here are some pics that were taken by guests:

 

ceremony set-up

 

my bouquet

 

 

my Dad and I

[bridetobe959]

ceremony:

 

 

 

 

[bridetobe959]

just a few more I promise!

 

[sunstarsmoon]

beautiful pics your setting was breathtaking

[Bali83]

Congrats!! Beautiful pics!! I am also thinking of the Finisterra & would really appreciate any advice you may have. I am so excited to hear that you were able do everything at such a reasonable cost (that is exactly what we are budgeting for...I was worried it couldn't be done). I can't wait to see more pics!! I am going to PM you my email address. Thanks again for the great review...it is VERY helpful!!

[iwantadreamswedding]

nice pics! your makeup looks great!

[dinogomez.com]

Very Nice! Congratulations!!!

[zethers]

Thank you, Thank you, for the review, I'm getting married at the Finisterra on June 13, 2009, there isn't a lot of reviews on the Finisterra so this was a relief to read. Everything looked beautiful and you looked gorgeous!

[Erika J]

Great Review!! Thanks for sharing, and I loved all the pics!! Keep em coming