DW on a budget. First time AI travellers. PLEASE HELP!

[sandybeach]

Hey guys. I would like to start off by saying hello i am new to the site. I have been reading and browsing along for about a week now and thought this site was amazing! all you ladies(i believe some men aswell!) are extremely helpful! So i decided to join!

 

My FI and I are planning on getting married (end of jan or beginning of feb 2013) We are still debating between cuba or mexico (although i believe so far it looks like mexico is our main choice) We have a few resorts in mind but we would like to keep it affordable not only for us but for our guests aswell.

 

Now i know i have read a couple of threads in regards to this but everytime i look for them again i can never find them. Our little problem is....justifying paying per person for a after wedding dinner when the resort is AI....we were thinking of maybe just making dinner reservations for us and our guests (about 20 people) at the a la carte restaurant.  How many of you guys have done this and how did it work out?

 

Also, since its our first tiem at a resort....we had a few other general questions like...

 

What time to the bars stay open until usually(im assuming different resorts=different times...but in general)

 

Are you aloud to stay out on the beach until whatever time you want or...does it "close down" sort to speak.

 

pools...can you swim until you want or just like the beach is there a pool closing time?

 

sorry for all the questions but this is ours (and most of are guests first times) at an AI resort. Thanks in advance!

 

[starchild]

Hi!  I think a lot of your questions really vary by resort, i.e. I've stayed at AI resorts where there is always a bar open and also where the bars close for the night. 

 

I would check out the ones that you are interested in and see which ones offer what you want.  Here are some general threads on Mexico resorts:

 

 

Cabo Wedding Forum | Cabo Wedding Resort Reviews

 

Cancun/Riviera Maya Wedding Forum | Cancun/Riviera Maya Wedding Resort Reviews

 

Puerto Vallarta Wedding Forum | Puerto Vallarta Wedding Resort Reviews

 

Also, do you have a travel agent?  A TA can do a lot of the leg work for you if you in terms of finding a resort to meet your needs and booking for you.  We have BDW travel agents who specialize in destination weddings.   You can contact them HERE!

 

Happy planning!

[JessiTaylor]

 

I know the idea of paying twice for food is pretty annoying. I guess you could try to reserve the a la carte restaurants for a normal meal if you do it in advance (or might not be space) but im assuming you couldnt have any special decoration (you know flowers etc). might not bother you though!

 

pools normally do have a closing time, i think around 8ish for a lot of them. i was just in grand coco bay (dont look it up, i dont recommend it haha) and that was at 8. Pool bars may close earlier

 

bars...really vary. depends if you are looking for normal bars or more like a disco type place. sandos caracol (which i did like, is a lovely place) had one 24 hour bar, and the lobby bar might have been 24 hours too. the pool bars often shut earlier..so at sandos i think it was 5-6ish

 

beach...you can walk on the beach at any time so i assume you could swim too? but at your own risk as lifeguard wouldnt be working

 

Originally Posted by sandybeach 

Hey guys. I would like to start off by saying hello i am new to the site. I have been reading and browsing along for about a week now and thought this site was amazing! all you ladies(i believe some men aswell!) are extremely helpful! So i decided to join!

 

My FI and I are planning on getting married (end of jan or beginning of feb 2013) We are still debating between cuba or mexico (although i believe so far it looks like mexico is our main choice) We have a few resorts in mind but we would like to keep it affordable not only for us but for our guests aswell.

 

Now i know i have read a couple of threads in regards to this but everytime i look for them again i can never find them. Our little problem is....justifying paying per person for a after wedding dinner when the resort is AI....we were thinking of maybe just making dinner reservations for us and our guests (about 20 people) at the a la carte restaurant.  How many of you guys have done this and how did it work out?

 

Also, since its our first tiem at a resort....we had a few other general questions like...

 

What time to the bars stay open until usually(im assuming different resorts=different times...but in general)

 

Are you aloud to stay out on the beach until whatever time you want or...does it "close down" sort to speak.

 

pools...can you swim until you want or just like the beach is there a pool closing time?

 

sorry for all the questions but this is ours (and most of are guests first times) at an AI resort. Thanks in advance!