El Dorado Royale (EDR) Brides - POST HERE!

[TheWolferts]

So my FH and I leave for the wedding in 10 days and I just had 3 guests tell me they dont think they can make it. One couple that was coming just broke up, so now only the guy is coming and the other is a good high school friend and his date. I think I had let me guard down being so close to the wedding that I figured that at this point, everyone was all paid up and going, and I only had to worry about the little things. Now I cant help but be a little upset obviously because my friends aren't coming, but also because we have already paid in full for the cocktail hour, rehearsal dinner, OOT bags, reception, etc for the those people and I dont think we can get any of that back *sigh*

[Jillsepher]

So sorry to hear that! I would have thought they would have paid by now as well? That is such a bummer! Maybe they'll give you a partial refund? That totally sucks!

So my FH and I leave for the wedding in 10 days and I just had 3 guests tell me they dont think they can make it. One couple that was coming just broke up, so now only the guy is coming and the other is a good high school friend and his date. I think I had let me guard down being so close to the wedding that I figured that at this point, everyone was all paid up and going, and I only had to worry about the little things. Now I cant help but be a little upset obviously because my friends aren't coming, but also because we have already paid in full for the cocktail hour, rehearsal dinner, OOT bags, reception, etc for the those people and I dont think we can get any of that back *sigh*

[Stina9562]

Hey everyone! I am here at edr packing for our departure tomorrow it was a wonderful experience and I can't wait to share more info with you guys!

[TheWolferts]

Rooms are paid for, but they have waited until now to book a flight...

Originally Posted by Jillsepher 

So sorry to hear that! I would have thought they would have paid by now as well? That is such a bummer! Maybe they'll give you a partial refund? That totally sucks!

 

 

[AllieH]

oh that's a great site - thanks for sharing!! what size did you get, do you remember? are they big enough to stuff a towel, book and sunscreen in? 

Originally Posted by TheWolferts 

Thanks! I found a great site to get OOT bags for a low price with great quality. http://search.store.yahoo.net/igreetu/cgi-bin/nsearch?catalog=igreetu&query=tote+bag&.autodone=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ingreetings.com%2Fnsearch.html

 

Because she had to do so many (about 25), she hand painted the brush strokes in the blue and aqua on all the bags, then she drew the nautilus and created a stencil so she could just place the stencil over each bag to get the same design. She used a sponge and some white paint to create paint the design on each. Michael's probably has some great stencils to do something similar. It ended up only taking her a couple of hours once she created a design my fiance and I both liked.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[AllieH]

ok so this sucks. I'm so sorry!! 

Originally Posted by TheWolferts 

So my FH and I leave for the wedding in 10 days and I just had 3 guests tell me they dont think they can make it. One couple that was coming just broke up, so now only the guy is coming and the other is a good high school friend and his date. I think I had let me guard down being so close to the wedding that I figured that at this point, everyone was all paid up and going, and I only had to worry about the little things. Now I cant help but be a little upset obviously because my friends aren't coming, but also because we have already paid in full for the cocktail hour, rehearsal dinner, OOT bags, reception, etc for the those people and I dont think we can get any of that back *sigh*

 

 

aw Stina, I'm sorry you are headed back already, but can't wait to hear about your wedding and your stay!! 

 

Originally Posted by Stina9562 

Hey everyone! I am here at edr packing for our departure tomorrow it was a wonderful experience and I can't wait to share more info with you guys!

 

I'm a tipper. Usually about a dollar per drink or every couple of drinks (assuming they are pretty small at the AI). I have always tipped extra on cruise ships, and it almost always results better service the rest of the trip (cruise ships already add a tip automatically, but I give cash too). It's worth it to me to take a bunch of singles to pass out. I usually will tip housekeeping too if they've kept our room  clean and are responsive to any requests (we usually need extra towels like crazy people). On the ships, we would tip our room steward $20 the first day, and he took care of everything. While AI is different than a cruise, I will probably stick with what I've found to work...and go from there. If I tip a waiter/bartender and he/she is slow, well then I won't be tipping him or her again! 

 

As far as the wedding vendors - I will tip my photographers (friends), and the day-of/onsite coordinator assume she does her job well. Probably our bartenders and wait staff too for the reception/dinner. 

 

Originally Posted by TheWolferts 

My fiance keeps asking me why we "have to tip." When I was there in 2010, I noticed that it was about 50/50 of people tipping versus not tipping. I think even a little something goes a long way and they probably dont get paid much base salary. As having been a cocktail waitress in NYC, we got paid next to nothing to be at work and only really made money off of tips.

 

I know it's customary wedding etiquette to tip your vendors, so in our case photographer (though she is a good friend of ours and is coming down with her husband, so I dont think she is expecting that), our videographer, and DJ.

 

I understand our fiances' thinking, it is an all inclusive which is nice that once you pay the fees up front, you dont have to bother with doling out yet more money, but I think it's a nice gesture and quite frankly, I am scared after what happened to my friend!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[murmel]

 

Originally Posted by TheWolferts 

For any brides that have already gotten married at EDR... did you tip? I know it isnt required but its a nice gesture and you can tell they appreciate the tip because they tend to be more open to helping you and go above and beyond to make you happy. I was at EDR in 2010 with a friend that was ordering a bunch of complicated-to-make shots at the "Swing Bar" and she wasnt tipping. An hour, she asked for a cup of water and she was sick for the next 3 days! I think the bartender got a little pissed off and slipped her something because we ate and drank the same things except for that one glass of water!

 

So keeping that in mind and the fact that I appreciate good service, we plan on tipping, but I wasnt sure how much and to whom would be appropriate. I saw some threads on DW board, but I was hoping to find some pointers specifically for tipping at EDR. I read that some people will offer a larger tip at the beginning of the week, rather than dishing out tips at every meal/drink/room service etc.

 

For brides getting married at EDR soon, what are your thoughts on tipping?

 

11 more days until we leave!

So excited for you! Good luck with the last minute prep and packing. Really sorry to hear that a few people have cancelled out last minute. Talk to you WC and inform them that people have cancelled. You might be able to get a partial refund-or maybe get some extras instead? (more flowers, longer cocktail hour?)

 

As for tipping, my husband and I travel to AI's quite regularly. Even though the staff gets paid, you're right, tips go a long way for them. Usually we tip our maid a buck or two, and don't forget to leave a dollar or two in the fridge-it's a different person who stocks your beer, water, soda! We take lots of singles with us. On the first day we find a spot we like (pool/beach/etc) then we find out if the waiter/bartender will be there for a few days. If they say yes, we usually will tip them $20. This always results in great service,and then me not having to worry about carrying around soggy $1 bills LOL. Then we usually tip a little more at the end of the week (another $10). As for lunch and dinner, usually we bring a few bucks to leave at the table. I think if you want to be generous and tip, I would plan for about $10-15 a day. That will cover everyone you come across.

[TheWolferts]

Thanks for the tipping tips! LOL

Originally Posted by murmel 

 

So excited for you! Good luck with the last minute prep and packing. Really sorry to hear that a few people have cancelled out last minute. Talk to you WC and inform them that people have cancelled. You might be able to get a partial refund-or maybe get some extras instead? (more flowers, longer cocktail hour?)

 

As for tipping, my husband and I travel to AI's quite regularly. Even though the staff gets paid, you're right, tips go a long way for them. Usually we tip our maid a buck or two, and don't forget to leave a dollar or two in the fridge-it's a different person who stocks your beer, water, soda! We take lots of singles with us. On the first day we find a spot we like (pool/beach/etc) then we find out if the waiter/bartender will be there for a few days. If they say yes, we usually will tip them $20. This always results in great service,and then me not having to worry about carrying around soggy $1 bills LOL. Then we usually tip a little more at the end of the week (another $10). As for lunch and dinner, usually we bring a few bucks to leave at the table. I think if you want to be generous and tip, I would plan for about $10-15 a day. That will cover everyone you come across.

 

 

[ElDorado2012]

UGH that is so frustrating. That's insane that they hadn't booked a flight and you are like 3 weeks out... we have a few guests who are waiting on booking their flights and I have a sneaking suspicion that they may fall out last minute as well. We've followed up with them numerous times to remind them that we are finalizing things and will be paying for all this stuff for each guest (I think they think we aren't paying for anything since it's an all inclusive), and they assure me they are coming, but they haven't paid for their rooms yet, or purchased flights. SO FRUSTRATING!!!

Originally Posted by TheWolferts 

Rooms are paid for, but they have waited until now to book a flight...

 

 

 

 

[ElDorado2012]

Has anyone heard anything regarding the safety of personal items being left in the rooms? We are planning on bringing a portable ipod player to have music at the pool and I assume it will be too big to fit in the safe for when we aren't using it and leave it in the room. The player was like $150, so it's not something I'd be happy about getting stolen... I'm wondering if maybe it's not even a good idea to bring it?