Royal Playa del Carmen Review - A&K

[allison&kevin]

Travel Agent: Enchanted Honeymoons in Omaha, NE. C-

I was not completely satisfied. It seems a lot of miscommunication happened here and for this reason not sure if some of the issues we had were because of them or the resort. I got a number of complaints about this company, everything resolved in the end an no major issues, just small ones being promised something and then them not remembering (ie parents private transfer). Our tickets were purchased through Funjet, another organization than was just ok. They confirmed our transfer home 3 times, and never got the time right even though we had a private transfer. Private transfer was so much nicer too, if you have the option.

Gift Bags:T-shirts w/ octopus logo, Beach bags, waterproof playing cards, antibacterial, gum, flip-flops, & a wedding letter with maps and things to do. All items were big hits!

 

Hotel: The Royal Playa del Carmen. B+

Overall the hotel was very nice as far as features, food & drink quality for an all inclusive, location, & rooms though the Royal was problematic at times which caused some notable frustrations. It is a beautiful resort, perfect location, great staff, etc, but some of the logistical issues need to be addressed. The week we were there, the hotel was pretty much sold out, so there was no upgrade upon check-in. Do not expect an upgrade and if you get one it is an added benefit. Actually they had us in a room with 2 Double beds instead of a King, for our wedding?? They did get this fixed after I vehemently complained. They actually did not even know we were getting married when we arrived (ie there should be a note on your file and there was not one on mine). I gave the hotel a list of all the guests and their bed choice (King or Double) to ensure they could get the proper room type. It ended up that all who requested doubles got kings and vica versa. Tammy, the concierge was super helpful in fixing this, it just took a ton of hours to get all guest situations sorted out and wasted our time to get these issues resolved. There were some other issues too (ie never getting room service sent on the wedding day, giving us issues about Gran Porto guests coming to the royal the day of the wedding even though they had upgrade status, no romantic breakfast (included in the luxury package) without numerous phone calls, etc, etc). In the end they were very apologetic for the situation and upgraded us for our last 3 nights to the presidential suite (they knew they made a lot of mistakes). Anyways their efforts were greatly appreciated. The presidential suite was SWEET!!!

(FYI – The Royal is totally worth the extra $$ over the Gran Porto if you can afford it)

 

Wedding Coordinator: Lily. B

The coordinator was very organized. We spent a few hours getting everything hashed out – they are so efficient. Anyways Lily was pretty good with the exception that there were some miscommunications on the package. I thought I would get the new luxury package for the old quoted price, but it was in fact the package you purchase (so keep records of what that includes). So she said we would get some things, but then they were not included since we were paying for an old package. (examples for the luxury package included: mens face saver, musician during the ceremony, 30 vs. 35 included guests). We did pay less than current pricing, so I would recommend picking a package up front to protect yourself if prices go up again. If they go down you can just pick the newer package. Keep documentation of everything before you head down there.

 

Dress: Billie Whitmarsh in Omaha, NE. A+

I loved the look of the Maggie Sottero dress, but did not like some of the details/quality. We know this fantastic seamstress who was able to make me a beautiful dress from the pictures I gave to her. I got fitted one week and then never tried it again until the wedding day, but she had it perfect! She got every detail and it cost us less than the actual Maggie dress.

 

Rehearsal Catamaran Ride: Catamaya. A+

They were awesome! So enjoyable and easy to work with. We did the sunset cruise which was fantastic. People did get sick at first due to the rockiness of the boat, but it did calm down after about 30 min. We snorkeled, saw turtles, danced, did upside down margaritas on the bar. The staff was great and really kept everyone entertained. So worth it and everyone had a blast!

 

 

Couples Massages: Great and needed! But I did like Veronicas better for a massage.

Nails: Just fine, nothing special, but I did bring my own polish since I knew what color I wanted for my fingers-glad I brought it 

 

Wedding Day/Evening: A+++++

 

Hair and Makeup: B+

Mine turned out perfect, exactly what I wanted, though I did bring my own makeup & pictures of the hairstyle I wanted (don’t forget the waterproof mascara). My mom hated her style, so my sisters had to re-do it, but both my sisters were happy with their hairstyles.

Mens Face Saver: D

BAD!!! They cut my fiancé various times and the following days his skin bothered him.

 

4 PM Ceremony at the Gazebo: A

AMAZING!! Best day ever!! We lucked out with perfect weather (the next day it rained all day). We did it at the Gazebo, brought some decorations, did not use the carpet, had people sitting on the floor and NOT on the gazebo, and created our own ceremony (if this is something you want to do, make sure you have it ready before meeting with the wedding coordinator, so you can give her all the info and it can be passed on to the Minister or JOP). We also wrote our own vows and gave this to the wedding coordinator too. As for music, we gave Lily a cd with the songs and when we wanted them played. They played the processional and recessional songs, but did not play the songs before the processional that we had given them on the CD.

5:30 PM Cocktail Hour: A

We did this on the grassy area in front of the gazebo. Band was great! The only thing is we had a break from ceremony to cocktail hour to do some pictures and it just created some confusion. It worked in the end, but just a heads up.

 

6:30 PM Beach Reception at the beach in front of the gazebo: A++++

It was WONDERFUL!!! Everything was perfect. We gave lily seating cards, seaglass, and gifts to be placed on each plate (handmade chapsticks). It was all beautiful. No complaints whatsoever. We got so many compliments on the whole event. We did not do the beach in front of Pelicanos b/c there is beach restoration going on at the Gran Porto, and some ugly piping laying there, so we did not want to see that and therefore moved it over to behind the gazebo.

 

DJ Doremixx: A++++

Ivan is outstanding. He is a great communicator and even better DJ. HE was so easy to work with and the music was fantastic. Do be prepared with songs, and types of music (we gave him a list), but he really works hard and everyone loved his style.

 

Photographers Artistique: A++++

Portland Photography - Artistique Photographie, Award Winning Oregon Wedding Photographers - Home Page

Michelle and Justin are from Portland, OR and they were fabulous! Pictures will be coming in the next month or so, but they really have a different style and they really added a special touch to our day. Justin helped keep people out of our wedding since there was a DJ party going on down the beach…hehehe. They were Portland Wedding Photographer 2009, which can show in their work. There are a couple of example photos, but not sure how to post them. Will try and figure it out here soon. Overall the wedding was absolutely perfect, everyone had a fantastic time and are talking about going back next year! I wish I could do it all over again 

 

Enjoy every minute! And let me know if you have any questions. This forum helped me a lot initially.

[*Nadine*]

sounds like everything went perfect on your wedding day, congrats! Cannot wait to see pics

[Lady_Di]

I am glad you had a fab wedding! I am discouraged about the check in issues but in the end, it all worked out.

 

How far in the advance did you set up an appt for your hair/makeup?

 

Looking forward to the pictures!!

[autjo]

Congrats on a great wedding! Your review will be very helpful to b2bs!

[allison&kevin]

I will share more photos when I get them, but these are a couple pics I have gotten as examples. Overall thank you all for your help and good luck planning!! It is so much fun!

 

Catamaran Ride - Catamaya

Ceremony

Cocktail Hour

Reception Site (Beach in front of the gazebo)

Some Couple shots

[astreit]

Congratulations on your wedding! You review helps a lot. I am also using Enchanted Honeymoons in Omaha, but you have me a little worried now. Everything has gone smoothly thus far though, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

 

Thanks again!

[astreit]

Your pictures are beautiful!!!

[allison&kevin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lady_Di I am glad you had a fab wedding! I am discouraged about the check in issues but in the end, it all worked out. How far in the advance did you set up an appt for your hair/makeup? Looking forward to the pictures!!

I scheduled everyone's makeup, hair, nails. romantic dinner, massage sessions, etc about 3 weeks before the wedding (you should actually be sent an excel spreadsheet with the things that come in your package). Once we got there we changed some things, but it was better to have appointments sooner rather than later

[allison&kevin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by astreit Congratulations on your wedding! You review helps a lot. I am also using Enchanted Honeymoons in Omaha, but you have me a little worried now. Everything has gone smoothly thus far though, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed. Thanks again!

At first it goes smoothly and then there are things forgotten. Get everything in writing. A lot of our issues came when pricing went down (even though we got the insurance) and some promises made, never followed through, getting phone calls returned - communication is the biggest issue. I worked with Kem, who is the owner, and I can say it was better than the few agents I spoke with, but nothing glowing. Just make sure you get everything documented so you have record of it. I got some complaints from my guests too, and that is why I realized it was not me.

Anyways good luck, and like I said keep everything documented for tracking and that should help.

[~Melissa~]

Thanks for writing your review. Your photos looks fantastic. I can tell they really knew how to control/use the light which is very important when it comes to photographers. I think my favorite photo is the one of you on the beach with the wind. That sky is so dramatic, beautiful!