Azul Beach Hotel - POST HERE!

[Amanda Hammett]

I feel your pain!!!!!!!!!!!!  I paid $1000 just to fly down there and check out the resort and try to negotiate with the wedding coordinators about our photographer.  They won't budge!!!!!!!!!!  Its extremely frustrating!!!!  I LOVE Azul Beach but their rules stink!!!!!!!!!!!  I feel like I am at their mercy.  I decided on a destination wedding to save money.  But with all these fees and over priced decorations, its turning out to be very cost efficient.  I have decided to go SIMPLE and simple as possible!! 

[Ashley Lovlin]

Do they have an issue with photographers too? In my email I was told that only outside photgraphers and videographers were allowed in. We have already paid our deposit to Sascha Gluck from Cancun Photos so I hope this won't be an issue too!

[Ashley Lovlin]

I've been reading on this site for months now and now I feel like its time for me to start asking questions too! We have booked our date at Azul Beach for July 4, 2013. Pretty excited about the place but now that we have picked it and paid the deposit and informed all of our guests we are running into issues. I think it was the agent we were assigned to. She was informative in some ways but not straightforward and we starting finding more things out once we had booked. So right now we are having a few issues with things but hopefully we will get it all figured out and I know it will be beautiful no matter what. So here's a question...does anyone know if the sky terrace gazebo is white or brown now? Or can you choose? I would like the brown one as I think it has more contrast, so I'm hoping its that one. Can anyone help me out? Thanks

[TarynM]

Hi Ashley,

 

I just got back Wed from Azul Beach. The Sky Terrace is bright white. We saw it during the day and it hurt my eyes it was so bright! There's also no shade up there for people who can't sit in the sun. I was thinking of doing a welcome cocktail hour (or two) up there from 6-8. there aren't any lights for after it gets dark.

 

I loved Azul Beach! There was a very low occupancy rate so it was like we had the hotel to ourselves. They graciously (after a few requests) upgraded us to a junior suite swim up which was FANTASTIC. I'll definitely be booking some form of up swim up suite during our wedding. The executive chef accommodated our last minute request for a food & cake tasting and everything was amazing. They even had the cake sent to our room so we could nibble on the rest of it. We were blown away by how delicious everything was. Our guests will love the food. Roma is an amazing restaurant, Saffron Risotto was my favorite there and the vegetable spring rolls in Tainan were delicious. Unfortunately, Hurricane Ernesto had done some damage to Blue's roof so we didn't get to eat there or see what it would look like for our reception.

 

The swim up pool bar, Bubbles, was a great spot. The Aquanox pool tended to be filled with kids during the day but is in a great spot next to the ocean. The beach beds were amazing. I loved lounging in them during the day when I needed a break from the sun. The beach butlers were fantastic; we never had to wait long for another drink! They also delivered food and picnic baskets (which need to be ordered the day before). You also need to give a beach butler a ticket with your name and room number by 2PM to enter your name in the lottery for the beach beds the next day. Since the occupancy rate is so low, we always got one! They will also drag chaises in front of the beach bed so you have the option of laying in the sun if you'd like. There was a lot of seaweed one day in the water and on the shore and the four other days there was a medium amount of seaweed. They work hard cleaning the shore all morning. There are some rocks/shells in the water, too. It would have been nice if there wasn't any seaweed at all.

 

The entertainment is ok. It's generally 9:00 or 9:30 until 10:30PM each night. There are shows in a theater and there was live music and a casino night in the open air Aquanox lounge which was nice. We preferred to not be inside a theater. All entertainment ends at 10:30 which is a bummer. It would have been nice to have the option to stay out later and listen to music. The Aguavera lounge is open until 1AM but it is inside the hotel and it would be nice for the option to sit outside somewhere by the beach. The hotel is immaculately clean and absolutely beautiful. The staff are all so nice and friendly. They are paid minimum wage so we made sure to tip them well!

 

I have one word of caution for everyone: sand fleas. I never saw a mention of them at Azul Beach anywhere online so I wasn't prepared. I had never heard of them before. I am irritated that the hotel neglects to mention them and warn guests. My last two nights, my fiance and I walked on the beach for a short bit (after being on the beach all day) and I woke up at 3AM with the most intense burning and stinging itchy bumps all over my feet and legs. I probably have 60 bites easily on both legs. I thought it was bed bugs or mosquitoes but my fiance didn't have any bites and there was nothing visible in our bed. I got home and googled bug bites Mexico and figured out they have to be sand flea bites. The bites vary from tiny to huge red welts and are insanely itchy. We are second guessing hosting a Beach BBQ Rehearsal Dinner on the beach because we don't want to subject our guests to these nasty sand flea bites! I guess dawn and dusk/night are when they come out and they bite you and inject you with an anesthesia-like liquid so you don't feel the bites and they're so small you can't see them. I'm really disappointed we weren't warned because I would have brought bug spray, skin-so-soft, etc. to prevent the bites. 

[Amanda Hammett]

The sky terrace gazebo is white

[karyc]

Originally Posted by Ashley Lovlin 

 

So I am thisclose to signing the contract for our wedding at Azul Beach but am having some issues. My biggest issue right now is that they are telling me we aren't allowed an outside DJ. I have seen tons of reviews on here from other brides that they had DJ Dorremix at their wedding (which is who we have chosen, arranged, and almost made a deposit on before the coordinator told me we can;t have him!). Why is it that we can't have him? Has anyone else had this issue??? And is there any way to work around it? I really don't wanna pay for a DJ that I have seen NO reviews on especially since it is almost twice the price! If any one has any suggestions or info please let me know! Thanks  

 

Wow, I am not having this issue at all, but maybe it's because I"m not asking? I told my wedding coordinator that we booked an outside DJ and an outside photographer and she didn't say anything at all! She just said she'll need the name for purposes of putting it into the spreadsheet. I already made deposits on Doremixx and Photos in Cancun....

[karyc]

Yikes! Do you think bug spray would have kept them at bay? I wonder why your fiance didn't get any bites!?

 

We are also thinking about doing a beach BBQ rehearsal dinner. Did you feel like there would be enough light to do that at 6pm? Also, after being there, do you have any ideas about good places to do cocktail hours?

 

I was also wondering what "stuff" the hotel provides for purposes of deciding what should go into OOT bags. e.g., suntan lotion, bug spray, sewing kits? Do they provide a lot of stuff in the rooms?

Originally Posted by TarynM 

Hi Ashley,

 

I just got back Wed from Azul Beach. The Sky Terrace is bright white. We saw it during the day and it hurt my eyes it was so bright! There's also no shade up there for people who can't sit in the sun. I was thinking of doing a welcome cocktail hour (or two) up there from 6-8. there aren't any lights for after it gets dark.

 

I loved Azul Beach! There was a very low occupancy rate so it was like we had the hotel to ourselves. They graciously (after a few requests) upgraded us to a junior suite swim up which was FANTASTIC. I'll definitely be booking some form of up swim up suite during our wedding. The executive chef accommodated our last minute request for a food & cake tasting and everything was amazing. They even had the cake sent to our room so we could nibble on the rest of it. We were blown away by how delicious everything was. Our guests will love the food. Roma is an amazing restaurant, Saffron Risotto was my favorite there and the vegetable spring rolls in Tainan were delicious. Unfortunately, Hurricane Ernesto had done some damage to Blue's roof so we didn't get to eat there or see what it would look like for our reception.

 

The swim up pool bar, Bubbles, was a great spot. The Aquanox pool tended to be filled with kids during the day but is in a great spot next to the ocean. The beach beds were amazing. I loved lounging in them during the day when I needed a break from the sun. The beach butlers were fantastic; we never had to wait long for another drink! They also delivered food and picnic baskets (which need to be ordered the day before). You also need to give a beach butler a ticket with your name and room number by 2PM to enter your name in the lottery for the beach beds the next day. Since the occupancy rate is so low, we always got one! They will also drag chaises in front of the beach bed so you have the option of laying in the sun if you'd like. There was a lot of seaweed one day in the water and on the shore and the four other days there was a medium amount of seaweed. They work hard cleaning the shore all morning. There are some rocks/shells in the water, too. It would have been nice if there wasn't any seaweed at all.

 

The entertainment is ok. It's generally 9:00 or 9:30 until 10:30PM each night. There are shows in a theater and there was live music and a casino night in the open air Aquanox lounge which was nice. We preferred to not be inside a theater. All entertainment ends at 10:30 which is a bummer. It would have been nice to have the option to stay out later and listen to music. The Aguavera lounge is open until 1AM but it is inside the hotel and it would be nice for the option to sit outside somewhere by the beach. The hotel is immaculately clean and absolutely beautiful. The staff are all so nice and friendly. They are paid minimum wage so we made sure to tip them well!

 

I have one word of caution for everyone: sand fleas. I never saw a mention of them at Azul Beach anywhere online so I wasn't prepared. I had never heard of them before. I am irritated that the hotel neglects to mention them and warn guests. My last two nights, my fiance and I walked on the beach for a short bit (after being on the beach all day) and I woke up at 3AM with the most intense burning and stinging itchy bumps all over my feet and legs. I probably have 60 bites easily on both legs. I thought it was bed bugs or mosquitoes but my fiance didn't have any bites and there was nothing visible in our bed. I got home and googled bug bites Mexico and figured out they have to be sand flea bites. The bites vary from tiny to huge red welts and are insanely itchy. We are second guessing hosting a Beach BBQ Rehearsal Dinner on the beach because we don't want to subject our guests to these nasty sand flea bites! I guess dawn and dusk/night are when they come out and they bite you and inject you with an anesthesia-like liquid so you don't feel the bites and they're so small you can't see them. I'm really disappointed we weren't warned because I would have brought bug spray, skin-so-soft, etc. to prevent the bites. 

[karyc]

Also, Taryn, may I ask what food you tried? Have you decided on what you're going to do for a menu? I am interested in hearing what people think about the food -- we are going down for a tasting, but it's kind of silly because we're both vegetarians so we're not going to be able to sample half of the stuff we would order for our menus!
 

[TarynM]

Hi karyc,

 

I hope bug spray works! I've been looking online and lots of people say to use Avon Skin So Soft to fight sand fleas. Maybe even using this spray called yard guard on the beach before the BBQ? I am thinking of just warning people beforehand so everyone can bring some bug spray (which the hotel does not provide or tell you that you need). Sand fleas love seaweed and there was a lot of the beach because of the recent hurricane so maybe that is why they were there. I hope it's not always that bad. I think my fiance just has a different blood type that they don't like!

 

The Wave Lounge is a cool place to do a cocktail hour. We'll probably do it there after the ceremony on the beach... it's just next to the ceremony spot on the beach. It has cover and chairs for people to sit in and they can bring in high tables. It also lights up but we didn't get to see how it looks lit up. We may do the Sky Terrace for "Welcome Cocktails" from 6-8 but it started getting dark around 7:30 while we were there this weekend but it may be a different sunset time in March for you.

 

The hotel does not provide bug spray or sunblock but does give you in the rooms: shampoo, conditioner, lotion, soap, shower cap, sewing kit and a vanity kit with a few q-tips and cotton balls. I'm thinking of including sun block, some kind of bug repellant, and maybe advil or something in case people get bit because it provides some relief. My bites are still burning and so itchy but I keep taking Ibuprofen and slathering myself in calamine lotion!

 

For the food tasting we did three salads: Mexican Caesar (delish!), a mixed greens with shrimp (my fiance loved it, I don't eat seafood), and a classic mixed salad which was great. For the entrees we tried the salmon which my fiance won't stop raving about, the filet mignon which was amazing and the chicken which was good but TINY. We tried three desserts: macaroon cookie (okay), mango cheesecake (very good), creme brulee and chocolate mousse (yum). I think we'll do the caesar salad, filet and salmon and we're going to do churros for dessert along with our wedding cake. I'm also going to look into having paella as another app because it was fantastic! The food in the restaurants is amazing - maybe try the saffron risotto we had at Roma which is meatless and so delicious!

 

Happy to answer any other questions!

[Ashley Lovlin]

Thanks for all the extra info! I was really hoping the gazebo was the dark brown one, I like the contrast more. But its not a huge deal, I will live! lol. I am going to try to see if I can squeeze in a food tasting while we are there too. What did everyone do for the wedding meal? I had to get my invites done as soon as I found out the date so that people would have enough time to book with our early booking bonus so I just winged it and put 3 meal choices on the rsvp card which I think are pretty generic and easy for the kitchen to come up with something. I chose chicken, seafood and vegetarian. Do you think that will be an issue? I am worried that people will respond and then something will fall through in our planning and we will end up with buffet or something! Not that I am opposed to buffet but I just don't want people to expect one thing and receive another you know? 

 

Karyc- Who is your wedding coordinator that let you book Dorremix? Can I use you in my argument against them that I can't book an outside DJ? I would be fine with it if it was a solid rule, but it really irks me that they seem to pick and choose who gets what. (although I am stoked for you that you will have an awesome party!)