Gran Bahia Principe Bavaro Wedding Dance

[robinkar]

We are having a wedding in April 2010 and are having trouble with the wedding packages. They seem like they could get expensive, if you are having a larger group. We are expecting up to 50 people.

Does anyone know if you have a private reception in one of the restaurants, do you have to pay for the meal and liquor above what we will already have to pay for the extra people.

In addition, we are looking to have a dance after the dinner. It looks like we will take an IPod and have a playlist. Does anyone have a suggestion or know where you can have the dance again without being charged an additional price. Would be great if there was somewhere outdoors that we could set up and have everyone enjoy themselves.

Any suggestions or ideas would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

[calchik]

we had our reception in the Picsas (might be spelling it wrong) restaurant which is outdoor and next to the pool but has a big hut roof over it. we had 24 people and it was $600 for the meal and liquor. my WC told me to ignore the part about paying for extra people, so maybe confirm if you have to or not?

 

they clear out all the tables and chairs normally set up for the lunch restaurant so it's only your wedding tables in the middle of the huge hut. i think it'd be enough room for 50 people. We had half that and it seemed really empty when we were dancing.

 

we hooked up our ipod to do the dancing after. we stayed up late making a play list and barely used it, we had only maybe an hour for dancing so keep that in mind. we started dinner at 6:30 pm. and was done dinner, speeches, cake by 9:30 pm. they close your restaurant at 10:30 pm, then we just all changed and went to the night club after.

[bahiabride2010]

Hey There...we've just booked our package for July of next year. For a private reception it is an extra $750 on top of the packages. We decided that it was definately worth it to guarentee a private space for us and our guests! WE've booked into the Garden Grille You'll also have to arrange for the bar to be open...they really get you in a situation you can't really avaid spending money. Good luck with the planning! CALCHIK...thanks for the tip about the IPOD list! Do you have any pictures of how you set up your reception?

[calchik]

yup there's reception set up pics in my wedding review link in my signature

ours was one big long table for 24 people. but i saw them setting up a wedding in a different restarurant and they were doing 5 tables in the shape of a U.

[robinkar]

bahiabride2010

How many people are you expecting for your private wedding reception. Have you actually chosen a wedding package - if so, which one. Are you going to have more people than what the wedding package allows. We are thinking about the Blissful Love package but it only allows for 30 guests. We could have between 50 and 60 people at what looks like $ 40.00 US a person. If we have a private wedding reception - then there will be another cost. Not sure what the Dinner & Open Bar charges are for. Wouldn't the food & liquor be included if you get a private wedding reception especially if they are going to charge us for each extra person.

Which location did you choose for the private reception. And does anyone know the difference between the Gazebo 1 and Gazebo 2.

[MelissaApril2010]

My Fiance and I have also booked for the Gran Bahia in April 2010. We have decided to go with the Unforgettable wedding package. We will be having between 40-50 guests joining us. The private dinner and reception is definetly the way to go for an additional $750 US! That way you arent sharing a resturant with other people. i believe that the extra charges are mostly for the set up and service - but also a way to make money! From my understanding, we have to pay for the wedding package, plus a cost of $45US for each additional guest as well as a $750US fee for the private reception - and an additional fee per guest for an open bar ($35 per person for 3 hours)! It gets very pricy! We have chosen the Piscis Terrace for our reception! the WC sent pictures and it looks beautiful! We've decided to have our reception extended until 12:00am which is allowable if you purchase the Open Bar for the extended time. Just wanted to give you an idea of our plans - good luck with planning your special day! If you have any questions please dont hesitate to ask! ~melissa~

[bahiabride2010]

Hey There...we decided to go with the Blissful Love package because we're pretty sure that at least 30 people will be there! The hotel is definately making some money on these weddings down there but when thinking about all the extras, I guess we really have to consider how much more everything would be if we were getting married at home! As for the reception, I like the idea of having one big table...I saw some pictures like that from the WC too! I'll definately check out your photos. We chose Gazebo 1 but I really don't know the difference...I think there is only 1?!

[robinkar]

MelissaApril2010

We had thought that we were going to go with the Blissful Love package and sent an email to the wedding co-ordinator to ask if we choose the private reception would we still have to pay the extra per person charge - the answer was no. Maybe you should check as I would like to compare notes.

Thought the open bar was pretty pricey considering you are at an all inclusive resort. I asked what liquor would be available at the private reception if we did not do open bar and at first we were told only domestic wines and then when I asked again now they are saying also domestic beer.

When did you book your private reception. I am wondering if we are a little late since our date is earlier than yours.

[calchik]

for our private reception we were only drinking the wine they provided but then people started ordering other drinks and i think the waiters went and got them at another bar and brought them over. not sure but we didn't pay for an open bar but my guests were getting other drinks besides the wine or beer. gin and tonic, stuff like that.

 

although we were good with only going til 10:30 so maybe that's why the open bar option wasn't offered to us?

 

i'm not sure what the gazebo 2 is either. once we were there we were only offered gazebo or beach, we weren't given a choice of which type of gazebo

[hepre]

Hi,

 

We are getting married at the Gran Bahia Principe in April 2010 and have chosen the Unforgettable package at the Garden Grille. We were also confused about the open bar costs since it is an all inclusive, but there does not seem to be any way around the extra hourly fee/per guest if you want an open bar. We have decided not to have the open bar since we were told they will serve domestic wine and beer just not other mixed drinks. If there are guests that want something else I think we will send someone out to the bar and get a few to bring back. The costs certainly add up and considering the packages aren't that cheap you think they could come up with one that covers everything.