Paradisus Punta Cana (PPC) Brides POST HERE!!

[maridr2012]

Hi Katie.  I was married at PPC on Nov. 9th of this year, and I had a fabulous wedding.  Feel free to read thru my review; I gave a rather lengthy one, lol.  In a nutshell, PPC and PPR are both lovely venues.  In my opinion, PPC is a bit more casual/laid back, whereas PPR is much more upscale and formal - and a bit more expensive for yourself and your guests.  Both are owned by Melia, and both sit on rather big properties.  My parents are from the DR and persuaded me to stay away from October due to the hurricane season.  Technically hurricane season runs from June - November; but typically by mid-October the storms are far and few in between which is why we chose early November.  Just take your time read up on all the reviews on this forum; you'll find virtually answers to virtually every question you'll have!

Originally Posted by Katie83 

Hey ladies!! I am in the process of planning a destination wedding in the Dominican Republic and keep tossing between PPC and PPR as the resort options. My Fiance and I have been engaged since September 2011 and we are so over the planning process as we have had a lot of resistance from family members regarding the decision to do a destination wedding.  With that being said we are buckling down and being a bit selfish I suppose and hammering down a date!!!

 

We are hoping for the end of October or early November. We have never been to the DR and do not know what month would be better.  We are loving the pictures of a wedding in the Gardens.  We are hoping for feedback on the resort, date, and ceremony/reception locations and ideas also the pros and cons of PPR vs. PPC. 

 

We feel so hopeless thus far and would love your input!

[Katie83]

Maridr,

 

   Thank you so much for your quick response.  I have been reading practically every review on this forum and YOU have been SOOOO HELPFUL! I feel you have been a God sent and should probably take up a career in wedding planning.  Your information has been above and beyond:)   Your wedding was absolutely beautiful, I love your classic taste! 

 

I actually decided to have a destination wedding in the DR after coming across a photographers blog, ***** Nova, and the weddings she has photographed have been breathtaking. Most of the weddings she has photographed were held at PPR though.  I am feeling a bit rushed and crunched for time in this planning process as we had originally had been planning a wedding in Mexico and have recently switched to the DR after reading a million reviews.

 

Do you know the difference in the night life between the PPC and PPR? 

The dates we were considering were based on the PPC and were October 25(Friday)  and 27(Sunday) 2013. I originally had my heart set on a Saturday wedding in the Garden only because I thought there maybe more to do to keep the party going after the reception. 

 

I seriously wish I could hire you to plan this wedding:) I was talking and considering hiring Theresa from barefoot bride but didn't really want to pay the $900 plus after reading all these reviews it seems most of the brides have had good luck planning it by themselves. 

 

Aggghhh I am sorry about the novel, I just have a million thoughts and much anxiety and stress consuming me!

 

Thank you again for all of your help and detailed information on this blog, you have been a life saver!

[LoriOlivia]

Hey past Brides!

 

Can someone tell me how many songs they used for the ceremony and when?

I have no idea how many to pick and how it works

 

HELP!!

[maridr2012]

Aw you're very welcome!  I actually am a production planner - not for events but for consumer goods, but I am super detailed about planning everything..sometimes to a fault, lol.  I wasn't at the PPR during the night so I can't speak on their nightlife scene, but when I was doing my site visits I stayed 1 night at the Melia which is actually their parent company and their other hotels - Melia Caribe and Melia Tropical sit on the same property as PPR.  Honestly, I wasn't too crazy about the nightlife at the Melia..but that was on a Wednesday night in early December last year.  So, I'm not sure if its any reflection on what the PPR nightlife is like.  Either way though, the people who you are with is what's going to make your stay alot of fun!  The Melia's night life was at the lobby, they had about 3 bars in the lobby and that seemed to be where everybody was hanging out - all ages.  I didn't see a nightclub or casino, but that doesn't mean they don't exist.  The PPC nightlife was great - but then again we had alot of partyers and drinkers in my group ha.  The lobby is where everyone usually goes to after a late dinner, they have a band, live music, and dancers come in every night, and then the nightclub opens at 11 pm which is also in the lobby area.  The casino is also in the lobby area, it's not very big, but it does the job.  I really just liked the vibe of PPC more, I felt it was more suitable to the atmosphere I was looking for. 

 

Nova does do some beautiful photography, I agree with you.  I ended up hiring HDC and am thrilled with their work.  They also had wonderful reviews on here, and they have a Facebook page which you can "Like" and that way you can see some of their work.  I also think they offer something like a 5% discount if you tell them you were found them on this website.   My word of advice is just be careful of the vendor fee that you may have to pay if you hire any other photographer other than PPR/PPC's preferred vendor:  Arrecife.  Personally...I disliked their work.  But, everyone has different tastes. 

 

Regarding on having your wedding on a Friday vs Sunday...I had my wedding on a Friday.  I also had my heart set on a Saturday wedding but the gazebo had already been booked and that was a non-negotiable for me so I settled on Friday.  And honestly, it was the best thing in the end.  I had alot of folks that were coming just for the long weekend, so it worked out well for them to just take off from work and fly out on Thursday early morning, have that afternoon & evening to relax, Friday was the wedding, Saturday was another fun/relax day for them, and some flew back on Sunday or Monday.  That way they didn't have to sacrifice alot of time off from work.  Of course there were others that took the whole week off, but you may want to consider the Friday option for that reason.  

 

Try not to stress too much my dear. If you choose to just work directly with the Miami folks, try to have calls with them about 1x per month leading up to your wedding.  They do have a "power planning" session with you 3 months before your big day, but I like you was super stressed and had a zillion questions and it helped a great deal to have those regular scheduled conference calls, so when the power planning call came it was a piece of cake and we breezed right thru it, and it also allowed me to get details on any extras I would need and there weren't any surprises.  Try to enjoy your wedding planning as much as you can!

 

 

 

Originally Posted by Katie83 

Maridr,

 

   Thank you so much for your quick response.  I have been reading practically every review on this forum and YOU have been SOOOO HELPFUL! I feel you have been a God sent and should probably take up a career in wedding planning.  Your information has been above and beyond:)   Your wedding was absolutely beautiful, I love your classic taste! 

 

I actually decided to have a destination wedding in the DR after coming across a photographers blog, ***** Nova, and the weddings she has photographed have been breathtaking. Most of the weddings she has photographed were held at PPR though.  I am feeling a bit rushed and crunched for time in this planning process as we had originally had been planning a wedding in Mexico and have recently switched to the DR after reading a million reviews.

 

Do you know the difference in the night life between the PPC and PPR? 

The dates we were considering were based on the PPC and were October 25(Friday)  and 27(Sunday) 2013. I originally had my heart set on a Saturday wedding in the Garden only because I thought there maybe more to do to keep the party going after the reception. 

 

I seriously wish I could hire you to plan this wedding:) I was talking and considering hiring Theresa from barefoot bride but didn't really want to pay the $900 plus after reading all these reviews it seems most of the brides have had good luck planning it by themselves. 

 

Aggghhh I am sorry about the novel, I just have a million thoughts and much anxiety and stress consuming me!

 

Thank you again for all of your help and detailed information on this blog, you have been a life saver!

[maridr2012]

Hi LoriOlivia.  They have a few select songs that you can choose from for the ceremony - it's all the traditional stuff and you just pick what you want played.  I, like most of the brides on here, gave them an ipod (some give them a CD) loaded with all the songs you want played during your ceremony.  The onsite coordinators - I had Miguelina - will go over the list with you and you just tell her what you want played and when exactly.    I made 2 playlists on an iPod:  Music for Guest Seating (with enough songs for about 30 min, figuring some folks with start coming to your ceremony area a bit early for pics, seating, etc.) and Ceremony - including procession song, bride entrance song, and recessional song.  They did a perfect job of playing the songs.  

Originally Posted by LoriOlivia 

Hey past Brides!

 

Can someone tell me how many songs they used for the ceremony and when?

I have no idea how many to pick and how it works

 

HELP!!

[Katie83]

I was going to say, if you are not working in some career where you need to plan or be ultra organized than you are missing your calling girl!  I am no so much as organized as you are but I am definitely a perfectionist and seem to be very indecisive! 

 

I am begun the planning process at PPC with Theresa finally!!!  I felt so much better about the process following all of your amazing advice, so again THANK YOU!!!!  I am am currently in the processes of filling out the paperwork and down payment for October 26, 2013... which is a Saturday, yea!!! But very nerve wracking!  I am hoping for the Garden location of the ceremony and then Theresa wanted me to book the same area for the cocktail portion but Im not sure how i feel about that as I don't want my guest and myself to be able to see the table set up etc as we are sitting and performing the ceremony. Do you have any suggestions on the set up etc or what to expect?  I just can't imagine how it will look.  Also, she currently has me booking the pool Terrace for our reception but I don't know if I should book the ball room or if you have heard anything about Gabi Beach.  Our guests will be ready to party until the wee hours and all love to dance and I didn't know which area would best accamodate us:)

 

I tried to call to book Gabi Beach initially but the person who I spoke to worked for the Miami company and she told me it wasn't ever available for wedding receptions, I am thinking I was misinformed.  I know I am full of questions and realize you may not have the answers but your expertise is much appreciated:)!!!

 

Thank you again for all of your help during this process:)

Originally Posted by maridr2012 

Aw you're very welcome!  I actually am a production planner - not for events but for consumer goods, but I am super detailed about planning everything..sometimes to a fault, lol.  I wasn't at the PPR during the night so I can't speak on their nightlife scene, but when I was doing my site visits I stayed 1 night at the Melia which is actually their parent company and their other hotels - Melia Caribe and Melia Tropical sit on the same property as PPR.  Honestly, I wasn't too crazy about the nightlife at the Melia..but that was on a Wednesday night in early December last year.  So, I'm not sure if its any reflection on what the PPR nightlife is like.  Either way though, the people who you are with is what's going to make your stay alot of fun!  The Melia's night life was at the lobby, they had about 3 bars in the lobby and that seemed to be where everybody was hanging out - all ages.  I didn't see a nightclub or casino, but that doesn't mean they don't exist.  The PPC nightlife was great - but then again we had alot of partyers and drinkers in my group ha.  The lobby is where everyone usually goes to after a late dinner, they have a band, live music, and dancers come in every night, and then the nightclub opens at 11 pm which is also in the lobby area.  The casino is also in the lobby area, it's not very big, but it does the job.  I really just liked the vibe of PPC more, I felt it was more suitable to the atmosphere I was looking for. 

 

Nova does do some beautiful photography, I agree with you.  I ended up hiring HDC and am thrilled with their work.  They also had wonderful reviews on here, and they have a Facebook page which you can "Like" and that way you can see some of their work.  I also think they offer something like a 5% discount if you tell them you were found them on this website.   My word of advice is just be careful of the vendor fee that you may have to pay if you hire any other photographer other than PPR/PPC's preferred vendor:  Arrecife.  Personally...I disliked their work.  But, everyone has different tastes. 

 

Regarding on having your wedding on a Friday vs Sunday...I had my wedding on a Friday.  I also had my heart set on a Saturday wedding but the gazebo had already been booked and that was a non-negotiable for me so I settled on Friday.  And honestly, it was the best thing in the end.  I had alot of folks that were coming just for the long weekend, so it worked out well for them to just take off from work and fly out on Thursday early morning, have that afternoon & evening to relax, Friday was the wedding, Saturday was another fun/relax day for them, and some flew back on Sunday or Monday.  That way they didn't have to sacrifice alot of time off from work.  Of course there were others that took the whole week off, but you may want to consider the Friday option for that reason.  

Try not to stress too much my dear. If you choose to just work directly with the Miami folks, try to have calls with them about 1x per month leading up to your wedding.  They do have a "power planning" session with you 3 months before your big day, but I like you was super stressed and had a zillion questions and it helped a great deal to have those regular scheduled conference calls, so when the power planning call came it was a piece of cake and we breezed right thru it, and it also allowed me to get details on any extras I would need and there weren't any surprises.  Try to enjoy your wedding planning as much as you can!

 

 

 

[Katie83]

Awww I was going to say if you are not in a career that requires you to plan or be highly organized then girl, you missed your calling;)  I am not always the most organized but I am definetly a prefectionist  that can be a faut as well which makes this process so daunting, so again thank you  for all of your help in the process in planning my destination wedding, it is very much appreciated.

 

I have been talking to Theresa and you are correct, she does know all the ends and outs of the resort! I am currently filling out the paper work to save the date of October 26, 2012 (a Saturday, YEAH!!!).  We are currently plannign on the Garden for the ceremony and Theresa wanted me to have the cocktail hour in the garden as well. I am struggling to invision this as I don't want the ceremony site to be cluttered with cocktail tables etc and have that distraction during the ceremony.  Do you by chance know how the site is laid out and organized for Ceremony/cocktail?? 

 

Theresa also has me booked for the pool terrace for our reception site.  I love all of the photos of the pool terrace and how it is organized for a reception however like you, my group is ready to PARTY and I am a little worried how the dancing etc will go as it appears to be limited in room. 

 

I feel so overwhelmed and almost rushed in making a final decison on reception/cocktail locations.  Theresa keeps reassuring me that the document that I sign is not official as regards to my location sites and that changes can be made after I pay the 500 dollars to reserve my date. However, I am so nervous that it will be final and I would rather have it all documented correctly from the get go!

 

Thereasa is also recommending that I use the resorts photographer vs. paying an outside vendor fee of $1,000 (ridiculous) anyway, I personally would rather pay a little extra money and have pictures I love as they will last a lifetime. I have not yet looked into HDC photography as ****Nova is the only site I had originally scoped out, so I will be adding that to my to-do list!!! Bummer on the $1,000 fee though!

 

One last thing, for now anyway:)  I am so interested in the bridal suite for the wedding day. Did you reserve that with your date or is there more than one available as I am nervous that another wedding party is goint to beat me to the punch!  

 

Ahhhh, so many questions and so little time:(  I hope it all works out! I feel like once I get the paper work in I can breath and relax for a little bit anyway!

 

Originally Posted by maridr2012 

Aw you're very welcome!  I actually am a production planner - not for events but for consumer goods, but I am super detailed about planning everything..sometimes to a fault, lol.  I wasn't at the PPR during the night so I can't speak on their nightlife scene, but when I was doing my site visits I stayed 1 night at the Melia which is actually their parent company and their other hotels - Melia Caribe and Melia Tropical sit on the same property as PPR.  Honestly, I wasn't too crazy about the nightlife at the Melia..but that was on a Wednesday night in early December last year.  So, I'm not sure if its any reflection on what the PPR nightlife is like.  Either way though, the people who you are with is what's going to make your stay alot of fun!  The Melia's night life was at the lobby, they had about 3 bars in the lobby and that seemed to be where everybody was hanging out - all ages.  I didn't see a nightclub or casino, but that doesn't mean they don't exist.  The PPC nightlife was great - but then again we had alot of partyers and drinkers in my group ha.  The lobby is where everyone usually goes to after a late dinner, they have a band, live music, and dancers come in every night, and then the nightclub opens at 11 pm which is also in the lobby area.  The casino is also in the lobby area, it's not very big, but it does the job.  I really just liked the vibe of PPC more, I felt it was more suitable to the atmosphere I was looking for. 

 

Nova does do some beautiful photography, I agree with you.  I ended up hiring HDC and am thrilled with their work.  They also had wonderful reviews on here, and they have a Facebook page which you can "Like" and that way you can see some of their work.  I also think they offer something like a 5% discount if you tell them you were found them on this website.   My word of advice is just be careful of the vendor fee that you may have to pay if you hire any other photographer other than PPR/PPC's preferred vendor:  Arrecife.  Personally...I disliked their work.  But, everyone has different tastes. 

 

Regarding on having your wedding on a Friday vs Sunday...I had my wedding on a Friday.  I also had my heart set on a Saturday wedding but the gazebo had already been booked and that was a non-negotiable for me so I settled on Friday.  And honestly, it was the best thing in the end.  I had alot of folks that were coming just for the long weekend, so it worked out well for them to just take off from work and fly out on Thursday early morning, have that afternoon & evening to relax, Friday was the wedding, Saturday was another fun/relax day for them, and some flew back on Sunday or Monday.  That way they didn't have to sacrifice alot of time off from work.  Of course there were others that took the whole week off, but you may want to consider the Friday option for that reason.  

 

As far as Teresa goes, I actually started working with her when I first started planning my wedding.  As you've probably already heard, she actually used to be the Wedding Planner for PPC & PPR, and then they laid her off when they decided to hire a 3rd party - AskMe - the WC's in Miami, to do all the planning.  In the short time I worked with her, Teresa had sooo much knowledge and info!  She really had every trick in the book and had all the options memorized like the back of her hand on how to make your event beautiful yet budget friendly if that was a concern.  She knows those properties like she's lived there her whole life...whereas the Miami folks they don't know it and everytime you ask them a question on a location, a particular detail, they have to get back to you because they then have to contact the folks in Miami and get the answer for you.  I had some luck working with a WC from the Miami office named Jessica, she was wonderful to work with.  But there were still sometimes when I got a bit frustrated due to the back & forth.  By the time that I learned that Teresa had started her own planning business I was pretty much already done with my planning so I didn't need her services very much..but if I could go back, I would hire her in a heartbeat.  That woman knows what she's doing..she planned her own son's wedding at the PPR, and also had her own wedding vow renewal ceremony there.  Goes to show you that she has full confidence in those properties. 

 

Try not to stress too much my dear. If you choose to just work directly with the Miami folks, try to have calls with them about 1x per month leading up to your wedding.  They do have a "power planning" session with you 3 months before your big day, but I like you was super stressed and had a zillion questions and it helped a great deal to have those regular scheduled conference calls, so when the power planning call came it was a piece of cake and we breezed right thru it, and it also allowed me to get details on any extras I would need and there weren't any surprises.  Try to enjoy your wedding planning as much as you can!

 

 

 

[Katie83]

Maridr: Awww I was going to say if you are not in a career that requires you to plan or be highly organized then girl, you missed your calling;) I am not always the most organized but I am definetly a prefectionist that can be a faut as well which makes this process so daunting, so again thank you for all of your help in the process in planning my destination wedding, it is very much appreciated.

 

I have been talking to Theresa and you are correct, she does know all the ends and outs of the resorts! I am currently filling out the paper work to save the date of October 26, 2012 (a Saturday, YEAH!!!). We are currently plannign on the Garden for the ceremony and Theresa wanted me to have the cocktail hour in the garden as well. I am struggling to invision this as I don't want the ceremony site to be cluttered with cocktail tables etc and have that distraction during the ceremony. Do you by chance know how the site is laid out and organized for Ceremony/cocktail??

 

Theresa also has me booked for the pool terrace for our reception site. I love all of the photos of the pool terrace and how it is organized for a reception however like you, my group is ready to PARTY and I am a little worried how the dancing etc will go as it appears to be limited in room.

 

I feel so overwhelmed and almost rushed in making a final decison on reception/cocktail locations. Theresa keeps reassuring me that the document that I sign is not official as regards to my location sites and that changes can be made after I pay the 500 dollars to reserve my date. However, I am so nervous that it will be final and I would rather have it all documented correctly from the get go!

 

Thereasa is also recommending that I use the resorts photographer vs. paying an outside vendor fee of $1,000 (ridiculous) anyway, I personally would rather pay a little extra money and have pictures I love as they will last a lifetime. I have not yet looked into HDC photography as ****Nova is the only site I had originally scoped out, so I will be adding that to my to-do list!!! Bummer on the $1,000 fee though!

 

One last thing, for now anyway:) I am so interested in the bridal suite for the wedding day. Did you reserve that with your date or is there more than one available as I am nervous that another wedding party is goint to beat me to the punch!

 

Ahhhh, so many questions and so little time:( I hope it all works out! I feel like once I get the paper work in I can breath and relax for a little bit anyway!

[mariel12]

Do any of you ladies know which resorts or other hotels are adjacent to PPC? Or maybe one or two hotels down the beach of PPC? I would like to offer people who might be on a tighter budget some other options that would still be somewhat convenient and so that we could all still meet by the beach? Did anyone do the same? Thanks in advanced!

[SimplenSweet]