Turks and Caicos

[jenaya]

Hi! I have been reading all of the useful information here and I have several questions! I really need help! lol I will start out with only a few! 

 

1.Location- I am getting married in March 2013 in T&C. I do not have a venue but I want the ceremony to be in a gazebo/garden or on a terrace  NOT in the sand. Any ideas? I would prefer a 4 or 5 star resort. 

 

2. Humidity- I am concerned about the humidity and my hair. I am wondering if a curly updo will hold?

 

3. Budget- What type of budget is realistic for everything? I am inviting 50 guests but maybe 35 will actually come. I was aiming for $15,000.

 

 

 

[jenaya]

Brandy gave me tons of information and answered all of my questions!!!  Thanks!

 

 Does anyone know  of any photographers other than tropical imaging for use at Beaches resort. I love their work and may use them but wondered if there were others I could compare prices to. 

 

Also, I am still considering Palms and Grace Bay as second choices. I have heard several positives about these locations. Did anyone have any negatives to share? Thanks!

[jenaya]

Oh and I didn't mean at Beaches resort. I know they don't accept outside vendors. Thanks!

[Danie]

I am getting married in Turks in Caicos in 2013. I began researching the island back in 2011 and looked at many resorts, vendors and coordinators. I think as far as what you can get on your budget your best best is to narrow down where you are thinking about staying during your wedding. Once you narrow down your locations you should call them and ask if they have on site wedding coordinator and if not who they may use. I know those that do not have onsite coordinators usually recommend 1 of the 3 coordinators on the island and if they do not have an onsite ask if you can use any one of the 3 coordinators. I say that because once you know where you are staying and whether a coordinator is on site you will be able to know more about what you can get for you money. If they do not have an onsite coordinator and you can use any of the 3 you should go to their websites and look at their pricing. I know that Nila Destinations, Island Harmony and I forget the third all have pricing on their websites and will give you a free estimate. In the estimate you tell them what you want and they tell you what an estimate of the price is that way you'll know at least an estimate of where you stand within your budget. I am staying at Ocean Club West which is not a 5 star resort but a 4 star and it is not a hotel rather it is condos. I am also using Nila Destinations as my coordinator and I have approximately 30 guest and have been able to get an estimate. Granted the estimate if not a definite and can be higher or lower depending on what you want. I know so far including ceremoney decor, flowers, 2 tier cake, hair and makeup for me and bridsmaid, coordinator, rehearsal catamaran crusie with drinks prior to a bbq on beach with band and open bar, reception with open bar and dj I have an estimate for 18,500. Now my budget is 22,000 but it gave me something to go by and of course that estimate will go up for other things I have realized I have wanted and then those I may do without. So I really would suggest starting there in order to find outwhat you can get for your money. Also you need to thinik about if your hotel stay is included in your budget and how long you will stay. I do know that in March is is more expensive anywhere there and I know Grace Bay which is right next door to where I am staying is expensive. So if that is included in your budget you'll need to deduct that price. I was able to get a great group rate for my guest and money is due in September and it was very reasonable like I said it is not luxurious like Grace Bay but its intimate and homey and just what me and my guests will be looking for. Hope that helps and please let me know what you choose as I love talking to Turks & Caicos brides because I couldn't find any until I joined this site.

[jenaya]

Thank you so much for your reply! My budget does not include the resort stay or photography. Just the ceremony and reception costs. I am really loving Seven Stars and Gavensvoort. Is Ocean Club West were you are having your ceremony? My fiance is visiting on Thursday to take a look at the places. I have also moved the date to April because it is cheaper. I have spoken to several of the resorts and Nikki at Seven Stars is amazing and I am really leaning towards them. I also really love Grace Bay but it is more expensive and we would have to increase the budget. I prefer not to hire an additional planner and just work with the ones at the resorts. What date have you set?

[Danie]

Actually Ocean Club West is where I am having the wedding but on the beach and then cocktail hour and then I am thinking of doing cocktail hour on the new deck they just made at the seaside cafe but only cocktail as far as the actual reception I am not sure yet when we go in April we are going to look around and do some tasting and also meet with the flower and cake vendors. The date is May 17, 2013 which is a Friday but we are going to leave May 10th and return on the 19th. I think seven stars is beautiful so is grace bay club its just that my future father-in-law knows the owner of Ocean Club West and we were able to get an awsome deal on the rooms for our guest and it probably is more within our guests budget. I agree with you that if the hotel or resort you are looking at does have a coordinator I would definitely not hire an additional one. Unfortunately as I said before Ocean Club West is not a hotel and they do not have an onsite coordinator so I had to go with one from the island or do it myself which I didn't really feel comfortable with. Although I still have looked at certain vendors and do know of certain things I want like I will get me, my bridesmaids and the mothers' hair and makeup done by Shenique (it is expensive but i beleive well worth it) so there are vendors I new I wanted to use before hiring Nila. Do you have any idea of when you guys are looking to get married? I am so excited and not just because of the wedding but because of it being on the island. I am looking forward to going this April to site see and by then I should definitely know whats going on. I do know that as I was looking through these blogs the other day I seen that the flowers on the island are very pricey and one bride who was married a couple years ago actually bought flowers made of clay from an online store that were beautiful and identical to what she had wanted. I am debating if I would consider that. lol. What kind of things do you want planned for your wedding and how long will guys be staying?

[jenaya]

Oh wow! That is great you guys were able to get a good deal. I am still looking at several locations and narrowing it down. I will have to check out that one I haven't looked at it yet. Yes flowers are very expensive unless you use real touch flowers. I am thinking of using these because they don't allow you to bring real flowers back with you and if I pay 400 for my bouquet I want to keep it! lol I am still deciding on the flowers though. Once I decide on a location I will let you know. I have a stylist and makeup artist traveling with me.  We will be staying around 7 days. I just started all of this crazy planning so I have not made a lot of final choices yet. I do love Tropical Images for photos (AMAZING) and I am also considering Eye Spice. We will have a rehearsal dinner but not sure yet maybe Bay Bistro. I have heard really great things about them. I will keep you updated!

[Danie]

Yes you can check them out if you want its Ocean Club West but its nothing like seven stars or Grace Bay. Its more like the price of the sands and its not a hotel like i said before so it may not be what you are looking for. I like Tropical Imagaes also and because of all the photos I have seen believe I too will be using them  but I am not going to get into all that until April when I am almost 1 year away. Definitely keep me updated and as I continue to plan I will update you. Its cool to find another bride getting married there because you see so many getting married in jamica and bahamas, punta cana but I have not found any in T & C until I came on this site. Best of luck and congrats again.

[lolo411]

FYI - The food from Bay Bistro is amazing. It was the best meal we had on the island. They can also set up a tent on the beach for your rehearsal dinner. And it is on a great stretch of the beach that is close to some empty lots so you'll have more privacy. Another nice place for a rehearsal dinner is Mango Reef. They have seating out on a patio deck with live music and tarps overhead. 

 

Sorry, I don't have any suggestions for a wedding venue. The island is very humid. It rained for short periods of time every day we were there (which was actually a relief since it was so warm so it would cool down the island). I think an updo will hold better than wearing your hair down and it going limp. 

 

I like the location of Seven Stars more than the Gansevoort. I found Seven Stars closer to shopping, casino and restaurants. We stayed at the sands, which we loved because there we few kids, and since there are empty lots on either side of The Sands the beach was much more private and less crowded unlike Beaches, which was a zoo. The Sands also has a nice restaurant with a nice deck overlooking the ocean. I saw a couple of rehearsal dinners there during our week long stay. 

[kareyusc]

I am getting married at Grace Bay Club in June 2012.  I am getting so excited, I can hardly stand it.  My fiance and I got engaged at the Gansevoort and tried to plan our wedding there, but it did not work out.  They are disorganized and under new management...again.  We got screwed my their old management, so at least they are gone.  But I would be weary since the management now is so new.

 

Seven Stars seemed pretty solid when we researched it, but Grace Bay Club was a better fit for us.

 

We are using Geraldine for hair and Anne for makeup.  They both work out of Maxime's salon if you want to try and get a quote from them.  They were less expensive than Shenique and when I had my trial, they were fantastic.

 

We are doing our rehearsal at Bay Bistro.  We originally looked at their beach BBQ, but it was about $1,000 more and is the same food as the restaurant.  Thus, we picked the restaurant.  We had our tasting in December and the food was so good.  You cannot go wrong here.

 

We have are using Greg Bean for our DJ.  We got a tip that he was a more current DJ than most that the hotels recommend.  He is the Friday night DJ for the local radio station and has a good reputation.  We met him in December and he seemed great.

 

The only thing I am stuck on is my cocktail and ceremony music.  I want a steel drummer with a guitar or something, but can't find one.  If anyone has a recommendation, please let me know.

 

I am more than happy to answer any questions if you have any.  We went and tried many restaurants and scouted multiple hotels, so if you need anything, I am happy to help!

 

Good Luck,

Karey