2013 Gran Caribe Real/ Royal Cancun Brides

[mae1564]

Hi Ladies, I thought I might jump in on your WC convo. I had the same wedding coordinator all the way through my process from beggining to end. I had Liza at The Royal PDC. I'm not sure if any of you are using a Beach Bums travel agent, but I did and when I wouldn't get a response my TA would step in and get the answer for me. I hated having to do that, but sometimes it was the only way. Someone mentioned that the WC have a timeline that they stick to, and that is correct. It can be frustrating but just know it will all work out in the end!

[Billandstina]

Thank you! Yes, my amazing TA has stepped in already and gotten answers for me We're running out of time so I'm hoping my WC will be a little more responsive now!

[Christen Jean]

Quick answers to questions on here based on my experience:

 

Yes the cost for the priest is included in the Royal Catholic Wedding Package.  You BOTH have to be catholic, anullments completed, and approved by your local priest to get married in the chapel by a priest.

Yes, they charge you $5 per room to put any item in them (welcome bags, favors, etc.).  I handed mine out as people checked in.  It was free and gave me a chance to great each guest individually.

Yes, you get an onsite wedding coordinator once you get closer to the date of the wedding.  I had Diana Rodriguez at GCR and Royal Cancun and she is amazing. The hand-off from corporate to her was seamless too.  Do not worry!

Yes, you get charged an outside vendor fee EVEN if your vendor is a guest at your wedding and staying at the hotel.

The DJ the hotels suggest (Doremixx) is awesome, we have Ivan and he was AMAZING.  Every guest danced, even the one with a broken foot!  He was worthe every penny of the $950 we spent for the 3 hours.

Church and State are separate.  I would not have a legal marriage in Mexico (expensive, blood tests, etc.), so we did a legal ceremony in Illinois at the court house.  It was $30 and took 5 minutes.  A religous marriage in any country is not recognized by the state, you will always need to head to the court house and get your license and then take the required steps to have it legalized.

The Royal is SUPER strict about who is let inside....I had a make-up appointment and it was worse than customs/immigration trying to get in there....

 

Now on to the juicy details of our wedding 1.26.13:

 

So we got married here a week and half ago!  Like all of you, I had concerns, all brides do.  We had 43 adults and children attend our wedding and spend anywhere from 2-9 nights at GCR.  The reviews online had us extremely nervous, so we weren't totally sure what to expect.  We had people traveling with us that had never left the country before and then people who are professional travelers, especially with all-inlcusives.  Every single person loved GCR.  The kids, the older adults, and everyone in the middle.  The food was good (some excellent, some just ok, but all good), the drinks were good, the grounds are immaculate, the rooms are really nice, the beach is amazing, the service is second to none, and the location is perfect.  Our wedding was everything I had dreamed of as a little girl and more.  If you have concerns, they will be alleviated the second you step on site.

 

In the beginning, we had opted for the Royal Catholic Wedding (the Chapel is the reason we chose this site) and had issues communicating with the corporate WC.  As the date got closer, we received information that our priest would not write the letter for us to have the catholic ceremony, so we changed our package.  We decided to have a Classic Wedding and added a Christian Minister (included :-) to our ceremony.  We chose the Gazebo to get married in, and low and behold, the construction people had complained about at GCR in December was because they were building a new Gazebo!  It is on the pool deck so when Diana showed it to me upon our arrival, I became extremely worried about loud pool guests, children, walking through water on the deck, etc.  Rest assured, Diana doesn't let a thing slip!  None of these things ended up being valid concerns!  Everyone stopped for the ceremony, watched, took photos, and even recorded our wedding with their iPad!  I was shocked and so appreciative of everyone's respect.  It was flawless.  I walked down the aisle to a song I chose and brought on my iPod, and Diane took care of the rest.  The Christian Minister was outstanding and our ceremoy was beautiful.  Also, I wasn't really worried about anything once we arrived at the hotel and met Diana.  I trusted Diana to get everything done, so I didn't see her after our first meeting until 3:53 on my wedding day.  I walked down the aisle on time at 4pm.  :-)

 

We chose a private reception on a terrace.  We wanted to be outdoors but not on the beach (too windy).  We skipped the cocktail reception and just let the guests move into a cocktail half hour on the terrace while we finished our photos on the beach.  The Terrace was the Sunset Views Lounge 2.  It was amazing.  We could watch the waves crash on the Caribbean or the sun set over the lagoon...the photos are beautiful, I will share them as soon as the photographer gets them too us.  The drinks are top shelf (rare at an all-inclusive), the food was amazing (filet), the scenery is beautiful, and the staff is fantastic.  I opted to have my dinner music play on shuffle on my iPod, but I am certain Ivan with Doremixx would have done an amazing job if I had let him play songs himself.  We did not add any extra decorations.  Everything had white linens, they had candles on every table with boxes of sand, and there were no floral arrangements on the tables.  I hadn't wanted to spend the extra money and am glad I didn't - everyone is ranting and raving about how great the reception was, even with no flowers.  :-)

 

Every single guest we had danced.  Our reception was only 3 hours, so as soon as we finished photos we did the bridal party entrance, we cut our cake, did our first dance, danced with our parents, and then started dinner.  We had one hour of dancing after dinner and it was PERFECT. The DJ did fireworks during our first dance, had balloons, masks, and glow sitcks to dance with for our guests, and played the perfect mix of music.  My reception was over by 7:30, we all changed, grabbed a few drinks in the lobby bar, and then later headed out to Senor Frogs!  It's 5 minutes down the road by public bus for $0.65/person.  You can walk to Margaritaville if you want, but we were looking for more of a party.  The buses can take you anywhere along that road and there is only one stoplight on the entire road!  I recommend you get on and close your eyes until you get where you're going.   Then as soon as your off the bus, DON'T close your eyes becuase the cars/buses/taxis drive crazy down that road!

 

I found good value in the DJ and Private reception. We didn't need extra decorations, flowers, linens, or time. I made my own flowers for my girls and guys, but the bouquet and boutonierre that came with our package were beautiful. It also included a nice centerpiece for our ceremony that they brought to the head table.

 

To all of you stressing, I promise this will be the easiest experience of your life once you get there. You have to keep in mind, they do this sort of thing all the time.  There were no extra charges we didn't know about once we got to the hotel.  I didn't once have to argue over a final bill due.  I had printed all of my emails and invoices to prove payment, and never needed any of them.  The included decorations were beautiful.  Just breath and enjoy your wedding!  They take care of the rest!

[Christen Jean]

Here's a few photos from GCR.  The first is of us at sunset on the terrace where our reception was held.  The other is the Gazebo they built on the pool deck where our ceremony was held!

[Christen Jean]

Quick answers to questions on here based on my experience:

 

Yes the cost for the priest is included in the Royal Catholic Wedding Package. You BOTH have to be catholic, anullments completed, and approved by your local priest to get married in the chapel by a priest.

Yes, they charge you $5 per room to put any item in them (welcome bags, favors, etc.). I handed mine out as people checked in. It was free and gave me a chance to great each guest individually.

Yes, you get an onsite wedding coordinator once you get closer to the date of the wedding. I had Diana Rodriguez at GCR and Royal Cancun and she is amazing. The hand-off from corporate to her was seamless too. Do not worry!

Yes, you get charged an outside vendor fee EVEN if your vendor is a guest at your wedding and staying at the hotel.

The DJ the hotels suggest (Doremixx) is awesome, we have Ivan and he was AMAZING. Every guest danced, even the one with a broken foot! He was worthe every penny of the $950 we spent for the 3 hours.

Church and State are separate. I would not have a legal marriage in Mexico (expensive, blood tests, etc.), so we did a legal ceremony in Illinois at the court house. It was $30 and took 5 minutes. A religous marriage in any country is not recognized by the state, you will always need to head to the court house and get your license and then take the required steps to have it legalized.

The Royal is SUPER strict about who is let inside....I had a make-up appointment and it was worse than customs/immigration trying to get in there....

 

I'll post my review of our wedding in the review section!

[NinaO]

Is anyone getting married at GCR in June or July? I have seen a lot of other cooler months and wanted know if I am the only ding dong that picked hottest time? Or how did other do if they had last summer? ???

[Emily11386]

Christen, Do you have any other pictures of the new gazebo? It wasn't there when we did our site visit and I'm trying to figure out where it is. Can't wait to see your review!

[Alicia415]

we're getting married July 27th! so it will be equally as hot for us!
 

[NinaO]

Really? We are doing beach ceremony, gazebo as dance floor and dinner at tables arou d gazebo. I'm wondering if I should move reception inside. But I hate to that cause if I was gonna have a hotel type reception I would stayed here. But now we are thinking it my be too hot. What are you doing? Hope I don't pass puto my big dress! Lol

[txbrideinmexico]

Emily,

 

I was just reading an older GC thread and saw that yall are getting legally married before you go. We are only doing the religious ceremony in Cancun, but haven't decided whether to do the legal before or after. Will getting married before the Catholic ceremony cause any issues? I.e. is the priest making it a convalidation ceremony rather than a wedding and is there a difference?