Need Serious Help! 2013 Indian Wedding

CookiePants · January 18, 2012

Hi All!

I'm new to the boards and was hoping to get some insight. I'm of Indian decent, but my wife-to-be is not. However, we've decided to have an Indian (Hindu) wedding.

We figured that a DW would be different (noone in my family has had one before) and we could somewhat limit the number of guests (although we're still looking at around 250 people). The problem is, we have no clue where to start - don't even know how much this would cost.

Our initial thought was to look into Cabo. Any clues on the range it would cost for food/open-bar at the reception for 250? I know it's a vague ask given the quality of hotels varies. We'd like to keep it at a somewhat nice place if possible, but again don't know what would fit our budget.

Thanks!

starchild · January 19, 2012

Hello and welcome to BDW! I would suggest reading Cabo resort reviews and checking the Cabo forums:

Cabo Wedding Forum | Cabo Wedding Resort Reviews

If you want to get some ideas of air/resort pricing, you might want to try one of the BDW Travel Agents. They Specialize in Destination weddings. You can contact them HERE!

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Moments That Matter · January 23, 2012

Congratulations and welcome to the forums! I love shooting Indian weddings!!! They are so colorful and the traditions just blow me away. Promise your going to go with the shorter 1 to 2 hour wedding OK!?!?! haha
Here is a link to one of the weddings I captured down here at Dreams Tulum:https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.465039429486.252466.18683524486&type=3

Best of luck with all your plans! Let me know if you have any questions.

Linkn

Indian Wedding Images

boscobel · January 24, 2012

Congrats and welcome! I'm very excited to follow your wedding and see the final results b/c I think Indian weddings are among the most gorgeous!

CookiePants · January 31, 2012

Thanks! Does anyone have any experience with having the wedding party staying at an all-inclusive but having the wedding/reception offsite? Our concern is the food at the reception given we want to have an Indian weddding.

Also, does anyone have suggestions on a reasonable budget for ~200 people?

JayKay · February 2, 2012

Welcome! If you are considering specific resorts I would contact them to make sure they can accomodate the large size of guests you will be having. Some resorts aren't able to handle a large number of guests. Happy planning!

essandpea · May 1, 2012

Hi CookiePants,

Welcome! I'm fairly new here myself, but have been planning for months. We're having a Hindu ceremony in November 2012 in Tulum (Riviera Maya) (groom-to-be is Indian; I am not). We knew we wanted coastal Mexico, but quickly learned that Cabo was possibly the most expensive place to have a big wedding in Mexico. In addition to loving the idea of a relaxing getaway with our closest family and friends, we also thought we would keep our numbers down by having a destination wedding. Not necessarily true :-). We might have invited 500 in California, but still ended up inviting 300 to Mexico. We're expecting/hoping for about a 50% acceptance rate!

We didn't want to have our wedding at a big hotel or resort, so had the challenge of finding a unique venue that can hold more than a 100 people. My dream venue is a hacienda like those in Merida, but unfortunately those gorgeous relics don't exist along the Mayan Riviera. We did find a replica hacienda in Cancun that can fit 500, but it ended up being too expensive for us. We've landed on a boutique hotel (Las Ranitas) in Tulum. For our 150, venue/food/beverage is going to cost around $15,000. But you're right -- this varies *widely* depending on the venue and how hard your coordinator (if you choose to have one) negotiates for you.

The photographers we just booked (del Sol Photography) were kind enough to send me photos of Hindu weddings they've shot -- I believe these are all in the Mayan Riviera. Check out these links for ideas and possible venues:

Karen + Chuck Hindu Wedding and Reception - Photos by Sol Tamargo
Palka + Joe - Mendhi Party  - Photos by Sol Tamargo
Palka + Joe - Grah Shanti + Pithi  - Photos by Sol Tamargo
Palka + Joe - Hindu Wedding and Reception  - Photos by Sol Tamargo
Raquel + Jay - Photos by Sol Tamargo

Good luck!

Fairytale DW · August 18, 2012

Hello,

First off, congratulations on your engagement. I actually got married in Mexico and it was an Indian Sikh wedding. I myself am Hindu my Husband is Sikh. I married at Riu Palace Riviera Maya. I searched for months for a resort and comparing pricing and at the end of the day none of the resorts seemed reasonable. I then decided I would plan my own wedding and find my own vendors. You wont believe this but I saved thousands of dollars on my wedding. Upon returning I decided to open my own Destination wedding planning company because I felt that others who aren't capable of self planning a wedding shouldnt have to pay ridiculous pricing from the resorts. I specialize in everything from venue set-up, decorations, Henna, Hair and makeup, Indian catering, video and photography and the list goes on. Because I have experience in planning an indian wedding and I myself am Hindu I understand and know everything thats needed for an Indian wedding. If you are interested please Private message me or send me a message on facebook; Fairytale Destination Weddings Mexico. I will be more than happy to answer your questions.

Take care

Fairytale DW · August 18, 2012

I am an Indian Destination Bride and how have my own destination wedding planning business. please PM me or send me a message on facebook ; Fairytale Destination Weddings Mexico and I can help you with your wedding planning and even Indian Catering.