Now Sapphire Weddings Formerly Paradisus Riviera

[tschooley]

May 15, 2014

[kylat]

Hello, are there any Now Sapphire Feb 2014 brides out there? I would love to have a few ladies to share ideas/planning with. Our date is booked for February 14th 2014! Let the planning begin...now where do I start..ha? Any tips or advice from past or upcoming brides? Our reception will be held on the beach at 3:00 PM with the reception to be held on the beach terrace. I would love to see any pictures or hear any comments you have on these locations? Question about the time frame of the day..as I mentioned our ceremony will be held at 3:00, does the cocktail hour and reception have to follow immediatly after the ceremony or can I request specific times ? I would ideally only like to hold the cocktail hour around 530-630 and then follow with the reception for the alloted 3 hours from 630-930. Thanks!

Hi!! I wanted to do the same thing and Anel said it was doable! I'm having my ceremony from 1-130, followed by the cocktail reception ( an I think it is) then I wanted to head into Playa del Carmen for photos with my crew. So Anel said it was fine to take the break in between and then have the reception starting between 630 and 7

[zeman321]

Originally Posted by Riviera Bride14 

 

Hello, are there any Now Sapphire Feb 2014 brides out there? I would love to have a few ladies to share ideas/planning with. Our date is booked for February 14th 2014! Let the planning begin...now where do I start..ha?

 

Any tips or advice from past or upcoming brides? Our reception will be held on the beach at 3:00 PM with the reception to be held on the beach terrace. I would love to see any pictures or hear any comments you have on these locations?

 

Question about the time frame of the day..as I mentioned our ceremony will be held at 3:00, does the cocktail hour and reception have to follow immediatly after the ceremony or can I request specific times ? I would ideally only like to hold the cocktail hour around 530-630 and then follow with the reception for the alloted 3 hours from 630-930.

 

Thanks!

We are trying to book my daughters wedding at Now Sapphire for Oct. 25, 2014. I am already starting to get frustrated,,,,something I swore I wouldn't do! Sent my request and payment to the TA last week and she has not been able to get a response from Anel after 4 emails and 3 phone calls! I really just want to know we have the date we want. I can't imagine the date being taken at this point, but you never know! Oh well, I guess I need to learn to be patient, but I'm excited to get started and I feel like we really can't until we know we have the date! My daughter is hoping for a wedding on the beach and cocktail hour and reception on the tequilla terrace. Cross your fingers for us!

[CAmomofbride]

We're also working with a TA who has had trouble getting a fast response but we finally did. To help alleviate your anxiety, we checked the website of the resort and they actually have a calendar in the wedding section that shows the availability of wedding dates. It may not be completely accurate but at least it will give you an idea. Good luck

[tschooley]

We are trying to book my daughters wedding at Now Sapphire for Oct. 25, 2014. I am already starting to get frustrated,,,,something I swore I wouldn't do! Sent my request and payment to the TA last week and she has not been able to get a response from Anel after 4 emails and 3 phone calls! I really just want to know we have the date we want. I can't imagine the date being taken at this point, but you never know! Oh well, I guess I need to learn to be patient, but I'm excited to get started and I feel like we really can't until we know we have the date! My daughter is hoping for a wedding on the beach and cocktail hour and reception on the tequilla terrace. Cross your fingers for us!

My wedding Is booked for may 15, 2014 and I had a similar feeling while trying to get the specific date set. I think a big issue with response time is the amount of weddings they are doing right now...I think 2-3 a day. I feel like communication can be limited but from reading blogs I have been able to find a lot of answers. Once the date is secured I feel like a lot of the pressure is off. There is a page under romance on their site that shows you a calendar with availability on it.. They may give you a little piece of mind until you hear from her. Good luck!

[tschooley]

Does anyone know how the drinks pricing works? I know it says 15 per person per hour but is it already included in the cocktail hour and dinner? Also I am doing the divine package but plan to have more than 25 ppl. Will I have to pay the extra per person for dinner plus the 15 for drinks ? I was hoping to clarify this because 15 per person times 40 ppl for a couple hours is more than the whole original package practically which seems extreme at an all inclusive. Hopefully someone has wondered this too and found an answer

[tschooley]

Whi

Jzutz- did you just go ahead and send her the two courses and seating chart with it or did you ask first to make sure it was okay to pick two? I just don't know how to go about asking her.. Also I was thinking I would make place cards with whatever course option they pick and have the guests grab them so they can sit where they want.. Do you think that would be okay?

Which two meals did you choose? Any suggestions?

[jzutz002]

Originally Posted by tschooley 

 

Does anyone know how the drinks pricing works? I know it says 15 per person per hour but is it already included in the cocktail hour and dinner? Also I am doing the divine package but plan to have more than 25 ppl. Will I have to pay the extra per person for dinner plus the 15 for drinks ? I was hoping to clarify this because 15 per person times 40 ppl for a couple hours is more than the whole original package practically which seems extreme at an all inclusive. Hopefully someone has wondered this too and found an answer

Ok, from what I remember our wedding was at 5, cocktail hour at 6 and dinner at 7:30.  The ending time was then set to 10 pm.  We then paid $15 per person to keep the bar open for every hour after that (in our case we had 50 people so it was $750 plus tip and tax - so it worked out to be almost $1200.)  For each guest over the 25 alloted in the package we paid about $124 (including everything) per person. (includes chairs, drinks, dessert, meal).

 

The price for the wedding that is advertised is cheap, but once you start planning everything this is not a cheap way to do a wedding.  It worked for us though because I got everything I wanted and it was still cheaper than doing a wedding in the city of Toronto where we live.

[cmoreno]

I agree with jzutz002. While it is not cheap to have a wedding for over 25 guests at the Now Sapphire, it is still WAY cheaper than having a wedding in the US or in Canada. I live in NYC, so having a Manhattan wedding would have been completely unnaffordable. Plus, you are getting the peace of mind that the resort will take care of most of the vendors. 

 

Originally, our guests number was 35, and now that number has duplicated! Anel has told me the cost per additional person is approx $99 plus taxes. This price includes the standard setting arrangements for the ceremony, cocktail hour, cake and toast.  Also, remember you might end up paying an additional $65 per person (wedding pass) for those wedding guests that aren't staying at the Now Sapphire. 

 

It adds up, that's for sure!  According to my own spreadsheet, for just the basics (ceremony, cocktail and reception) for 70 people, we are hitting 10K.  This does not include travel arrangements, centerpieces for the guests tables (which are not included in the Divine package), wedding favors, photographer, or DJ. Oh, we are also having the Mariachi, so that adds 1K to this estimate.  

[zeman321]

Originally Posted by cmoreno 

 

I agree with jzutz002. While it is not cheap to have a wedding for over 25 guests at the Now Sapphire, it is still WAY cheaper than having a wedding in the US or in Canada. I live in NYC, so having a Manhattan wedding would have been completely unnaffordable. Plus, you are getting the peace of mind that the resort will take care of most of the vendors. 

 

Originally, our guests number was 35, and now that number has duplicated! Anel has told me the cost per additional person is approx $99 plus taxes. This price includes the standard setting arrangements for the ceremony, cocktail hour, cake and toast.  Also, remember you might end up paying an additional $65 per person (wedding pass) for those wedding guests that aren't staying at the Now Sapphire. 

 

It adds up, that's for sure!  According to my own spreadsheet, for just the basics (ceremony, cocktail and reception) for 70 people, we are hitting 10K.  This does not include travel arrangements, centerpieces for the guests tables (which are not included in the Divine package), wedding favors, photographer, or DJ. Oh, we are also having the Mariachi, so that adds 1K to this estimate.  

We are hoping to keep it at 25 - 35 for that exact reason. My daughter never wanted a large wedding and this was the perfect solution...as long as we keep the guest list under control!