Any Gran Bahia Principe Runaway Bay Brides out there?

[futurejohnson]

Hi Mekanabr!

 

Thanks so much for all your helpful info!!  Just a quick question - did you end up using parasols during your ceremony, and if so, did they hold up in the wind?

 

Thanks!

 

Originally Posted by mekanabr 

hi girls,  here is some info that might help some of you with the time issues etc...

 

-I know some ppl are planning on having their reception at the disco at 11... It is a lot of fun, but just a little warning, it is VERY Loud and pretty dark and it's not super huge.  I know my friends and I had a lot of fun there but none of my parents or any older guests went to the disco, I don't really think they would have enjoyed it.  But it depends who the crowd is that you will be taking there.

 

- for the 'semi private' dinner...I know that the wedding coordinators tell you they don't allow music etc... but if you have your own ipod dock or whatever to play music, I don't see any reason why you couldn't have your first dance there.  I wish we would've had a dinner playlist prepared bc it was silent when we got there (and there weren't any other ppl dining yet) so we asked them to play music.  However their speakers have a mind of their own and it would go to silent to very quiet italian music to super loud ridiculous opera music blaring..it was really silly.  But if you don't have anywhere else to do your first dance I def think you could get away with, plus the wedding coordinators only stopped in briefly to let us know the gazebo was set up, otherwise they weren't there.  I wouldn't be able to get along with lots of dancing in there but one or two slow dance songs would prob be fine.

 

-for renting the gazebo, as far as I understand if you do not pay for the dj, you must bring your own stereo to play music.  There are plugs down there but I would recommend bringing something that can run off of batteries, as they do turn the lights off at 10:45, so if you want to stay down there any longer, you need to have something battery powered. 

 

-someone had asked what size paper lanterns I used and I used 8" lanterns and I got them from Luna Bazaar.

 

- Also- for first dances, I think you would be able to have them right after the ceremony if you didn't have another place to do them.

 

- If the gazebo is rented on your wedding night, you can either rent a restaurant, the disco, or you could easily get everyone together at the terrace/lobby bar.  If you can have a few friends head up there a little bit in advance to get some tables together it would at least give everyone a place to hang out.  THere is live music up there every night and the terrace bar opens at 6-11.  When my group was there there were a few nights when 25 or more of us would meet there before or after dinner and just get tables together and hang out.  It was always a good time and you can request songs for the band to play, another option for your first dance.

 

-for the long times between ceremony and dinner...seriously, don't stress about that!  We had our ceremony at 2:30, stayed at the gazebo until 4 drinking champagne, eating cake and getting pics taken.  Then we headed out into the town for pictures and no one complained that there was time in between.  Our dinner didn't start until 6:30 and it really wasn't a big deal at all.  It's a huge place so ppl can def entertain themselves.  If you want a place for ppl to meet, they can all head up to the lobby bar and hang out and get drinks. Or just let everyone go cool off in the AC of their rooms (a lot of ppl did that bc it was so hot during the ceremony), also if they are hungry the main buffet restaurant is open until 3:30 or the beach buffet is open til 5 or so. 

 

-THe disco is called Ska Disco, for those who were wondering.

 

JayKay- for my pink and orange I brought with me just a few extra chair sashes and table runners, but I'm pretty sure they used their own decorations for the gazebo bc I don't think I would've had enough orange to put up there but who knows...they never charged me for anything.  I would just bring a few extras and I'm sure they will handle the rest.  I bought my fuchsia satin chair sashes (which I used for table runners on top of the wider orange organza runners) from www.save-on-crafts.com and my fuchsia and orange organza sashes and runners from efavormart.com. 

 

-AirJamaica- my aunt and uncle flew from Philly and they loved their flight, no problems with anything and they had an awesome flight that got them there at 8:30am!  (everyone else arrived at noon)

 

-for the birth certs, I ordered copies from the state for my husband and I and brought them along, they were pretty much just like originals since they were from the state so we didin't need to worry about notorizing them.  I don't know how much it costs to notorize them but the copies from the state were only $10/copy.  Just a thought!  Chandlyn really didn't look at them, I pulled them out and she said 'oh you have originals! you're fine' and also didn't even look at our passports, she just told us that she trusted us. 

 

-ok I hope I covered everything!  Good luck everyone, I'm sure your weddings will be so perfect!

 

Ps- here is one of our 5 free pictures from the resort photog...def the best one (he doesn't know how to deal with the sunshine, they were all super overexposed, so we realized how great it was that we brought our own photographer)

 

 

[futurejohnson]

Hey GBPJ brides!

 

Just a quick question to all of you, might sound kinda stupid/weird, but I figured I'd ask anyways in case somebody was interested!  

 

I'm getting married at GBPJ on Monday, October 24th, 2011, and will be at the resort from Saturday, Oct 22nd to Saturday, Oct 29th.  Just wondering if there are any brides getting married before/after me who are interested in sharing wedding decorations during the week, or selling them to me while in Jamaica after you're done with them?  We're already gonna be bringing down 50+ welcome bags stuffed with goodies, so I'd really like to avoid lugging down decorations if somebody's already brought them there.

 

My bridesmaid dresses are pink, but aside from this, I don't really have a set "wedding colour" so I'm open to anything that matches, or white works too....if you've got lanterns, luminaries, or any other decorations that you wanna share/sell, please PM me and we'll chat!

 

Thanks!

[ashley490]

Hi Ladies!

I've been doing some checking around regarding pricing for flowers and thought I'd share my experience.  I've received price quotes from Tai Flora (the florist the resort uses) and Jan's Flowers (another florist in Jamaica that other brides have used).  I had sent in photos of the bridal bouquet and the bridesmaid bouquets I want and asked if they'd be able to replicate them.  As a couple flowers I had chosen are not available in Jamaica each florist substituted what they thought would work well.  I liked the substitutions that Tai Flora had used better as it was more visually appealing to me.  As far as money goes, each florist had it's up's and down's.  In comparison, Tai Flora had a cheaper bridal bouquet (as they give a credit for not using the one that comes in the wedding package), a cheaper groom's bout (it's free because it's included in the wedding package), and cheaper bridesmaid bouquets while Jan's had cheaper groomsmen bout's and cheaper ring bearer bouts.  I didn't see taxes included in the quote I received from Jan's but there was taxes included in the quote from Tai Flora.  Despite the missing taxes from Jan's, Tai Flora ended up being cheaper for what I wanted although it really wasn't by much.  I'm all for saving every little bit I can so I'm going with Tai Flora for the small savings.  It's well worth checking with both florists though to get the most bang for your buck!

[tamandrob]

Hey

 

I just got quotes from both those places myself! I found them to be very close but Jan's was cheaper for me by about $50. Are your flowers around the $500 price? That is what I am getting and I thought it was kinda expensive but I don't know much about flowers?

 

Originally Posted by ashley490 

Hi Ladies!

I've been doing some checking around regarding pricing for flowers and thought I'd share my experience.  I've received price quotes from Tai Flora (the florist the resort uses) and Jan's Flowers (another florist in Jamaica that other brides have used).  I had sent in photos of the bridal bouquet and the bridesmaid bouquets I want and asked if they'd be able to replicate them.  As a couple flowers I had chosen are not available in Jamaica each florist substituted what they thought would work well.  I liked the substitutions that Tai Flora had used better as it was more visually appealing to me.  As far as money goes, each florist had it's up's and down's.  In comparison, Tai Flora had a cheaper bridal bouquet (as they give a credit for not using the one that comes in the wedding package), a cheaper groom's bout (it's free because it's included in the wedding package), and cheaper bridesmaid bouquets while Jan's had cheaper groomsmen bout's and cheaper ring bearer bouts.  I didn't see taxes included in the quote I received from Jan's but there was taxes included in the quote from Tai Flora.  Despite the missing taxes from Jan's, Tai Flora ended up being cheaper for what I wanted although it really wasn't by much.  I'm all for saving every little bit I can so I'm going with Tai Flora for the small savings.  It's well worth checking with both florists though to get the most bang for your buck!

 

[ashley490]

Mine are around the $400 mark.  It includes my bridal bouquet, groom's bout, 2 bridesmaid bouquets, 2 groomsmen bouts, and 2 ringbearer bouts.  I thought $400 was kind of expensive too but when I broke it down (divided total cost by number of people in wedding party) it only ends up being $50 per person which made me feel better.  I originally wanted other flowers for decoration, but then when I really thought about it I decided against it because it's not something that's going to make or break my day.  Plus, I'd rather spend that extra money on the entertainment for my guests.  I didn't really know much about flowers when I was shopping around either but one lady I work with seems to have a good idea of what flowers cost and she said that $400 for what I was getting was reasonable.  What's all included in your order?

 

Originally Posted by tamandrob 

Hey

 

I just got quotes from both those places myself! I found them to be very close but Jan's was cheaper for me by about $50. Are your flowers around the $500 price? That is what I am getting and I thought it was kinda expensive but I don't know much about flowers?

 

 

 

[mekanabr]

My flowers from Jans were $400 and included my bouquet, 2 bridesmaids bouquets, grooms bout and 4 additional bouts plus flowers for my hair and both bridesmaids hair, 2 wrist corsages for the moms, flowers for my cake and loose flowers for one table. the bouquets and wrist corsages were roses, orchids and lilies and the bouts and other flowers were all orchids.

[tamandrob]

Thanks for sharing ladies, it makes me feel a lot more comfortable with the quotes I was given. And I never thought of breaking it down by person that seems much more reasonable. Included in mine is bridal bouquet, groom's bout, 3 bridesmaid bouquets, 3 groomsmen bouts.
 

Originally Posted by ashley490 

Mine are around the $400 mark.  It includes my bridal bouquet, groom's bout, 2 bridesmaid bouquets, 2 groomsmen bouts, and 2 ringbearer bouts.  I thought $400 was kind of expensive too but when I broke it down (divided total cost by number of people in wedding party) it only ends up being $50 per person which made me feel better.  I originally wanted other flowers for decoration, but then when I really thought about it I decided against it because it's not something that's going to make or break my day.  Plus, I'd rather spend that extra money on the entertainment for my guests.  I didn't really know much about flowers when I was shopping around either but one lady I work with seems to have a good idea of what flowers cost and she said that $400 for what I was getting was reasonable.  What's all included in your order?

 

 

 

 Thanks for sharing! It seems like you got a great deal with all the things you got! Did your flowers wilt at all with the heat?

Originally Posted by mekanabr 

My flowers from Jans were $400 and included my bouquet, 2 bridesmaids bouquets, grooms bout and 4 additional bouts plus flowers for my hair and both bridesmaids hair, 2 wrist corsages for the moms, flowers for my cake and loose flowers for one table. the bouquets and wrist corsages were roses, orchids and lilies and the bouts and other flowers were all orchids.

 

[Kristo]

I'm looking for a great, creative photographer for my trash the dress session and was wondering if you ladies had any recommendations?  I got a quote from Merrick already and was wondering if there was anything more competitive out there.... thanks in advance!

[mekanabr]

 

Thanks for sharing ladies, it makes me feel a lot more comfortable with the quotes I was given. And I never thought of breaking it down by person that seems much more reasonable. Included in mine is bridal bouquet, groom's bout, 3 bridesmaid bouquets, 3 groomsmen bouts.

 

 

 

 

 Thanks for sharing! It seems like you got a great deal with all the things you got! Did your flowers wilt at all with the heat?

 

 

 

 

Everything held up really well except for the lillies. I wasn't surprised though, I didn't really understand why they would put them I'm a bouquet when it's 90 degrees out! But everything was beautiful, and they delivered on time. My bouquet wasn't really like the pic I had sent them that I wanted but it was still pretty and very tropical which I liked.

[acw271011]

Hey - where did you go in town, and what town? It now looks like we have a 1pm wedding and dinner only at 6 so its a long time to kill.... we're along. nobody going with us and Chandlyn & Donnalee will be our witnesses, but I don't want to leave our photographer hanging. It seems like a long time to spend taking pics but I don't know what else to do with 3 and a half hours.

 

Thanks.
 

Originally Posted by mekanabr 

hi girls,  here is some info that might help some of you with the time issues etc...

 

-I know some ppl are planning on having their reception at the disco at 11... It is a lot of fun, but just a little warning, it is VERY Loud and pretty dark and it's not super huge.  I know my friends and I had a lot of fun there but none of my parents or any older guests went to the disco, I don't really think they would have enjoyed it.  But it depends who the crowd is that you will be taking there.

 

- for the 'semi private' dinner...I know that the wedding coordinators tell you they don't allow music etc... but if you have your own ipod dock or whatever to play music, I don't see any reason why you couldn't have your first dance there.  I wish we would've had a dinner playlist prepared bc it was silent when we got there (and there weren't any other ppl dining yet) so we asked them to play music.  However their speakers have a mind of their own and it would go to silent to very quiet italian music to super loud ridiculous opera music blaring..it was really silly.  But if you don't have anywhere else to do your first dance I def think you could get away with, plus the wedding coordinators only stopped in briefly to let us know the gazebo was set up, otherwise they weren't there.  I wouldn't be able to get along with lots of dancing in there but one or two slow dance songs would prob be fine.

 

-for renting the gazebo, as far as I understand if you do not pay for the dj, you must bring your own stereo to play music.  There are plugs down there but I would recommend bringing something that can run off of batteries, as they do turn the lights off at 10:45, so if you want to stay down there any longer, you need to have something battery powered. 

 

-someone had asked what size paper lanterns I used and I used 8" lanterns and I got them from Luna Bazaar.

 

- Also- for first dances, I think you would be able to have them right after the ceremony if you didn't have another place to do them.

 

- If the gazebo is rented on your wedding night, you can either rent a restaurant, the disco, or you could easily get everyone together at the terrace/lobby bar.  If you can have a few friends head up there a little bit in advance to get some tables together it would at least give everyone a place to hang out.  THere is live music up there every night and the terrace bar opens at 6-11.  When my group was there there were a few nights when 25 or more of us would meet there before or after dinner and just get tables together and hang out.  It was always a good time and you can request songs for the band to play, another option for your first dance.

 

-for the long times between ceremony and dinner...seriously, don't stress about that!  We had our ceremony at 2:30, stayed at the gazebo until 4 drinking champagne, eating cake and getting pics taken.  Then we headed out into the town for pictures and no one complained that there was time in between.  Our dinner didn't start until 6:30 and it really wasn't a big deal at all.  It's a huge place so ppl can def entertain themselves.  If you want a place for ppl to meet, they can all head up to the lobby bar and hang out and get drinks. Or just let everyone go cool off in the AC of their rooms (a lot of ppl did that bc it was so hot during the ceremony), also if they are hungry the main buffet restaurant is open until 3:30 or the beach buffet is open til 5 or so. 

 

-THe disco is called Ska Disco, for those who were wondering.

 

JayKay- for my pink and orange I brought with me just a few extra chair sashes and table runners, but I'm pretty sure they used their own decorations for the gazebo bc I don't think I would've had enough orange to put up there but who knows...they never charged me for anything.  I would just bring a few extras and I'm sure they will handle the rest.  I bought my fuchsia satin chair sashes (which I used for table runners on top of the wider orange organza runners) from www.save-on-crafts.com and my fuchsia and orange organza sashes and runners from efavormart.com. 

 

-AirJamaica- my aunt and uncle flew from Philly and they loved their flight, no problems with anything and they had an awesome flight that got them there at 8:30am!  (everyone else arrived at noon)

 

-for the birth certs, I ordered copies from the state for my husband and I and brought them along, they were pretty much just like originals since they were from the state so we didin't need to worry about notorizing them.  I don't know how much it costs to notorize them but the copies from the state were only $10/copy.  Just a thought!  Chandlyn really didn't look at them, I pulled them out and she said 'oh you have originals! you're fine' and also didn't even look at our passports, she just told us that she trusted us. 

 

-ok I hope I covered everything!  Good luck everyone, I'm sure your weddings will be so perfect!

 

Ps- here is one of our 5 free pictures from the resort photog...def the best one (he doesn't know how to deal with the sunshine, they were all super overexposed, so we realized how great it was that we brought our own photographer)