The new Paradisus Playa del Carmen (La Perla and La Esmeralda)

[yodabaura]

I'm new to this board as well.  I am getting married at Paradisus on Feb. 28, 2015.  I actually have my planning call with the resort on Thursday.  I have not been to the resort yet.

 

So far the planning experience has been up and down.  We had a horrible time getting a group contract set up for our guests to book their rooms through the resort at a fixed price.  It literally took about 3-4 months before we got a meaningful response from anyone at the resort.  It is still a slow process to hear back from the booking agents, but we finally have about 65 people booked (some through the resort directly, but most through Hotwire/Expedia etc.)

 

That being said, the wedding people in the Miami office have been much better to deal with and are quicker to respond.  

 

I also noticed that the Blue Lens website is different -- I have a signed quote with Blue Lens, so I am assuming it is still valid and that perhaps they are reorganizing or joined a different company.  I'll report back after I have my planning call.  Blue Lens and the DJ (JSAV) have been really quick to respond, which is nice since the resort is typically pretty slow.

 

We requested the Gabi Bridge and Esmeralda Poolside for our ceremony/reception.  I think we might add another hour on to the reception otherwise it is only 3 hours (Chill Out Chic package).  Perla has been somewhat slow in responding regarding flowers/decoration, but if you bug her enough, she'll get back to you.  She just sent me more info last week now that I am about 4 months away.  I think she prefers to speak to you closer to your wedding and not too far out when she is working on other events.

 

The main lesson I've learned with dealing with Paradisus is to be really patient.  It sounds like things come together pretty well the day-of, but don't expect thing to be set in stone too far in advance.   Give people a week to respond before bugging them again :-)

 

Any other tips from people who have had their weddings at Paradisus recently would be appreciated!!

[Catfoxinabox]

I just got back from my wedding at Paradisus (Oct. 26th) and had an amazing experience!  We chose the Gazebo and Gabi Club for wedding/reception.  We did the Tailor Made package. We used their provided vendors Alquimia Events, JSAV, and Blue Lens for decor/audio/photography.  Some tips along the way:

 

1) We took advantage of the LAFS package and visited back in March '14.  At the time we thought it was amazing and we accomplished so much there.  What we failed to do during this though was confirm everything in writing from the meeting.  We thought we had the menu done, locations hammered away along with some miscellaneous things.  Problem was that this manager eventually left the company and none of our decisions were documented and we basically had to start over.  Lots of tribulations later, we eventually had to settle on menu choices and other items that were not what we wanted. So in the end, we treated this as just a cheap vacation where we only paid for airfare!

 

2) Communication between Miami office and the onsite office is extremely slow and frustrating to get answers back from.  Be very patient and take everything that they say literally.  Don't try to read between any lines and think what they said is what you wanted.  Re-ask the question in a different manner if it doesn't quite sound right.

 

3) Once in contact with the onsite office, information does seem quicker.  Aurora was my onsite person and she was fantastic as a couple of others have mentioned.  You will meet with her when you arrive at the resort and hammer out all other questions that there might be and decide on all of the timelines.  Extremely helpful!  She even cleared up our confusion from the LAFS meeting before about our menu options and changed out menu on the spot to exactly what we had previously wanted!  Aurora and all other romance coordinators on site are always walking around and will ask everytime if there is anything they can help with.  Don't hesitate to ask as they accommodated every one of our requests!

 

4) We did go with the Bridal Suite option to prepare us for the day.  Makes hair/make-up very easy for the spa personnel to work with and allowed for a large space for family or friends to walk in and out of.  I knew the suite would have fruits, coffee, and mimosas provided, but what I did not know was that a ton of club sandwiches would be delivered later (My bridesmaids and I all ordered room service prior to this since we didn't' know).

 

5) Alquimia Events - very poor communication back and forth.  I was 2-3 weeks late in giving my proposal to the romance office.  I started an email chain in May and it took through September to get it all squared away.  In the end, everything turned out ok, but patience was extremely key in dealing with it.  Probably my biggest point of stress throughout the entire planning and I am not a picky person by any means! I thought I had everything discussed with what I wanted, but I was still missing pieces the day of.  So if you want specifics for your wedding, make it very clear and go over it yet again during the on-site planning meeting once at the resort.  The outcome was very pretty and more then we hoped for so I really can't complain.

 

6) JSAV - we only had a very basic setup with a projector and audio equipment.  Absolutely no problems!  We used the projector to just play a slideshow of pictures throughout the entire cocktail/reception and everyone loved it!  The slideshow randomized pictures of the bride/groom together and each growing up, along with group pictures of family and friends that would were attending.  So many callouts happened when somebody saw a picture with them in it.  For the music, we created a playlist and just hit random for the reception.  We hate dancing, so we weren't trying to encourage it.  By the end of the night though, guests of course were dancing and the engineer for JSAV started acting like a DJ and taking requests even though we didn't ask for it or pay for it!  Exceptional service!

 

7) Blue Lens - They were on-time for all of the events.  Even 15-20 minutes earlier then we agreed on!  We had 2 photographers and a videographer.  We received a 10-minute slideshow and ~700 pictures 36 hours after the event before we left the resort!  It will be another 3 weeks or so before we get the video, but so far we are very pleased!  It did feel very pricey, but they worked with us and made it all fun for our special day! 

 

8) Random info - Make dinner reservations!  The food is very good at all of the restaurants.  My guests did not enjoy the family-style dinner at Mole, but anybody who ate off the regular menu thought it was their favorite place! 

We specifically requested room 1008 (Master Suite - Swim-up) after visiting.  This room is right next to the gazebo and Bridal Suite and in the closest area to the restaurants and rest of the resort.  Best decision, as we constantly had friends stopping over for board games and swimming.  You can order drinks straight to the room or through the pool.  

 

About all I can think of right now.  I would do it again in a heartbeat as having a vacation with all of my friends was a ton of fun and I only wish it didn't go by so fast!  If anybody has any questions, feel free to ask!

[asabatino]

Hi all,

I’m new to this board! My fiancé and I are looking to get married at Paradisus July 2015.  We recently noticed that the website bluelenscaribe.com no longer seems to be working!?  When you select a wedding to view the pictures, an error message appears.  On their facebook page, there’s a picture of their logo with a red X but then there’s other pictures of what appears to be a party celebration.  Is it possible Blue Lens no longer exists but now they all called “Wedding Day Story”?  Is it still the same company?  We were looking to go with Blue Lens as our photographers but now we’re not quite sure…

I've noticed this as well.  I've been talking to them through email the last few weeks and will let you know if I find anything out.

[asabatino]

Hi all,

I’m new to this board! My fiancé and I are looking to get married at Paradisus July 2015.  We recently noticed that the website bluelenscaribe.com no longer seems to be working!?  When you select a wedding to view the pictures, an error message appears.  On their facebook page, there’s a picture of their logo with a red X but then there’s other pictures of what appears to be a party celebration.  Is it possible Blue Lens no longer exists but now they all called “Wedding Day Story”?  Is it still the same company?  We were looking to go with Blue Lens as our photographers but now we’re not quite sure…

So I found out some information from Blue Lens (Soon to be called Wedding Day Story).  Below was sent to me through email:

 

To provide you further information about some recent changes, Blue Lens Caribe is now being re-branding to WeddingDayStory!

This is the name under which we have been performing weddings in Dominican Republic, Costa Rica and Los Cabos for the past five years. We found this name saying much more about who we are and what we do. We are story tellers... 

Therefore, the "Blue Lens Caribe" identity was just no longer a good fit.

We are still working on proper changes towards our web site and blog. Please bear with us

[MikeCantarellFilms]

Hola Brides-to be

 

We have been part of this wonderful hindu wedding at Paradisus, take a look at it

 

[bamachicke]

We are having our wedding at Paradisus Playa Del Carmen January 17, 2015. Planning has been somewhat nightmare-ish with the slow responses. Also, I noticed that during my LAFS visit - everything was laid back and yes you can do that, yes you can do this - but when you actually have to deal with the Miami planing office - It is not that way - Luckily I had some items in writing from Pilar to validate what was communicated to us during our visit - which is also a plus since Pilar is now gone from the resort.

 

I'm hoping all goes well - We chose Tailor Made and are getting married at the Gabi Bridge with the reception being held at Hadar. We are (for now) having our welcome bbq dinner at the gazebo on the la perla side - however, I have been told no children can come at all - which is odd because Pilar told us children can come to any privatized wedding event with no issue. We have one 4 year old child coming so I'm hoping it wont be an issue for him to come to the gazebo for our 2 hours dinner Friday. 

Has anyone else had issues with using the wedding gazebo for an event if they had children in the wedding?

 

I also had issues with Alquimia responding - Perla took over a month to get to us and I had to beg and please our planner, Jessica, to do something. Finally Gabriela with Alquimia responded and she usually takes about 4-5 days to return questions - which is much better than waiting a MONTH! 

 

@@Catfoxinabox - Do you have pictures from your wedding setup you can share?

@@asabatino yes we got a comfirmation April 26 2015 we will have our ceremony on gabi bridge at 6 pm and haven't decided about reception yet until we see the rooms in person. We are trying to go there in September for the love at first site visit.

As for the access, I was given the same information as posted above - adults can access both sides regardless of which side they stay on, and kids can only be on la esmeralda side (other than when they are at a private function).

 

 

I'm having my wedding Jan 17, 2015 and I was told at my LAFS visit kids could come to the privatized wedding events on the La Perla side - but when I tried to book the wedding gazebo for our welcome BBQ dinner,Jessica in Miami said "no" because my one nephew is coming - We are going to book it anyway and bring him over - I've seen wedding images from Blue Lens that show kids in the wedding gazebo - I just wish I had what Pilar told me about kids in writing.

[bamachicke]

I just came back from my wedding and it was fabulous! Had ceremony on Gabi Bridge and reception at Gabi Club with guests staying on La Perla as well as the La Esmeralda side! 

 

Our onsite wedding coordinator, Aurora, was great! Paid $2000 extra for using 2 outside vendors ( DJ and photography) but it was money well spent! All of my 64 wedding guests loved the resort.  I think it was a very successful wedding because we had never visited this resort or met with any of our vendors in person. Crazy, right?  

 

Do you have pics of your wedding to share? I'm booked for Jan 17 2015 - Interested in your decor and locations. I'm STILL trying to get answers and nail everything down. email emily.e.terral@@gmail.com if you dont mind.

[zillakas]

Hey former brides!

I have an important question for you. For those of you who had the tailor made package- did you feel like you had enough food at the reception? We have to pick 5 appetizers for cocktail hour, and then for dinner we have to pick 1 appetizer (same choice for all the guests), the guests can pick 1 entree, and then desserts. We have a feeling that this isn't enough food... how was your experience with the tailor made reception? Should we request additional items?

 

Thank you!

[Catfoxinabox]

@@zillakas

I had the Tailor Made package back in October and I believe the food was more then enough.  The cocktail appetizers were amazing (the few my bridal party were able to sneak to us)!  I could see most of my guests finished off the appetizer, entree, and dessert that came with the meal, but almost nobody touched the actual wedding cake once it was cut and served as they were stuffed already.  I really wouldn't worry about food options.  Being at an all-inclusive resort, if the party ends and they are still hungry they can stop by a quick buffet line or order room service. I hung out with most of my guests long after the reception and none were going to get more food though only drinks!

 

@@bamachicke

Do not worry about your 4 year old nephew being able to come to the welcome bbq.  On site they asked me again about kids and said they would be escorted over if I had any.  I did not have any, but they are more then welcoming for the romance packages.  Especially considering the gazebo is so private area, a single kid isn't an issue.  Yes, the Miami office is a complete pain to deal with, and I changed many things from the LAFS visit.  BUT, once I got on site, their coordinators did everything that I asked for originally with no problems!  They do a very thorough job to make sure everything goes as planned and even asked questions for things we might have missed.  Just get through the Miami office and life will be easier.  I was so completely stressed out from the Miami office and I am not even a picky person or asked for a ton of details.

 

I don't have any pictures of just the setup in a easily shareable space, but there some scattered throughout our highlight reel if you would like to filter through: 

My theme was everything white as far as decor, but have red roses and yellow calla lilies to go with aqua bridesmaid dresses.

[asabatino]

Great pictures @Catfoxinabox 

Everything looks beautiful!  I'm currently planning for my wedding and undecided about certain menu items.  What selection of appetizers did you decide on for the cocktail hour?  Any suggestions?  Also for the welcome party I'm thinking I might do the mexican BBQ but I noticed that there are 2 types of Mexican selections.  What did you go with?  Any suggestions for welcome BBQ?

@@zillakas

I had the Tailor Made package back in October and I believe the food was more then enough.  The cocktail appetizers were amazing (the few my bridal party were able to sneak to us)!  I could see most of my guests finished off the appetizer, entree, and dessert that came with the meal, but almost nobody touched the actual wedding cake once it was cut and served as they were stuffed already.  I really wouldn't worry about food options.  Being at an all-inclusive resort, if the party ends and they are still hungry they can stop by a quick buffet line or order room service. I hung out with most of my guests long after the reception and none were going to get more food though only drinks!

 

@@bamachicke

Do not worry about your 4 year old nephew being able to come to the welcome bbq.  On site they asked me again about kids and said they would be escorted over if I had any.  I did not have any, but they are more then welcoming for the romance packages.  Especially considering the gazebo is so private area, a single kid isn't an issue.  Yes, the Miami office is a complete pain to deal with, and I changed many things from the LAFS visit.  BUT, once I got on site, their coordinators did everything that I asked for originally with no problems!  They do a very thorough job to make sure everything goes as planned and even asked questions for things we might have missed.  Just get through the Miami office and life will be easier.  I was so completely stressed out from the Miami office and I am not even a picky person or asked for a ton of details.

 

I don't have any pictures of just the setup in a easily shareable space, but there some scattered throughout our highlight reel if you would like to filter through: 

My theme was everything white as far as decor, but have red roses and yellow calla lilies to go with aqua bridesmaid dresses.