2013 Paradisus Palma Real

[Rotha Penn]

Originally Posted by angelnjewels 

 

Thanks for the Info Rotha!! I appreciate your honesty...I know we all do...

 

How did you get the ocean front room in royal service? Thats what my fiance and i want but are not sure if the Romance office will upgrade us to that.

 

Just wondering...

 

We paid for the upgrade. We started off with the Royal Service Garden Suite (which was the same price our TA quoted for the Luxury Suite) and then upgraded for the honeymoon phase to the Royal Service Oceanfront because we wanted the honeymoon time to feel more special.

[angelnjewels]

We paid for the upgrade. We started off with the Royal Service Garden Suite (which was the same price our TA quoted for the Luxury Suite) and then upgraded for the honeymoon phase to the Royal Service Oceanfront because we wanted the honeymoon time to feel more special.

Yea we have to figure something out! Thank you Rotha!!!

[angelnjewels]

Hi Ladies! Below is the link to a preview of our wedding photos. As stressed and upset as I was about the wedding, this slideshow put everything back into perspective. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did and it gets you excited for your upcoming wedding. http://nordicaphotography.com/slideshow/rothaanddavid/ These should give you an idea of what a garden wedding looks like.  This is from Altos de Chavon: Beach shots: And the fire show - yes, they ask you go stand in between them at the end (scary but awesome).

Rotha, I have to say that your pictures are lovely. I just watched your slide show and it was amazing. It really had me tearing up... This is what it's all about. Wow!!! Amazing! How long was the fire show? Was it done on the beach or at the Apollo terrace? Congrats again! I was blown away!!!

[Kel123073]

Thank you so much for sharing your pics!  and the video clip....amazing, I loved them and you look absolutely gorgeous!  congrats again!!!!

 

kelly

[darleneg2b]

Hi ladies-

 

Just got back last night from our week stay at Paradisus Palma Real for our wedding/honeymoon and I bring reviews!!!!!!

 

I will start with the positives first:

 

Hair & Makeup: All of the ladies were great and they did a wonderful job! We had a total of 5 people doing hair and makeup and everyone was extremely satisfied!!!! They do take their time (about 2 hours per person for hair and makeup) but it is well worth it!!!

 

Wedding Coordinators: Yessica and Natalia were a pleasure to work with. During the reception my hubby stepped on my dress and pulled out a stich from the bustle and Natalia actually sewed it back on the stop. Unfortunately Yessica cut her finger during the setup and had to leave and was replaced with Mariela (her review will follow below).

 

Ceremony: OMG I can't express how beautiful and perfect it was!!!!!!!!!! There was an amazing breeze (mostly due to the rain that was coming) but it was perfect and the pictures are spectacular.

 

Photographers: We stuck with Arricefe (the hotel's company) and they did not disappoint! They did a great job and were soooooo nice!!! Most importantly they don't mind that other guests are taking pictures as well!!!! (I'm going to try and upload some pics a post them). Of course I decided to purchase more pictures than the ones included in my package and they gave me a great deal!!!!

 

Dominican Trio: This was a last minute decision and I'm so happy that we decided to go with it!!!!!!! My guests really enjoyed it!!!!!!!! They were great entertainment!

 

Abentos DJ: They did a good job

 

Resort: The resort itself is absolutely gorgeous!!!!!!!!!!

 

Pool Bartender: Ramon at the pool is the best!!!!

 

 

So now on to the negatives:

 

Wedding Coordinators: Like I mentioned before, Yessica was replaced with Mariela right before the wedding due to an injury. My husband, wedding guests and myself were so disappointed with the customer service we got from her. I've never met someone so rude in my life. I don't think that she understands how special this day is for everyone because they have about 2 weddings a day. I'm in the process of discussing the lack of service with the directing manager from the hotel.

 

Caribbean Celebrations (décor company): It started off great... During our initial meeting Lara was very nice and we went over all of the details. However, the aftermath of the wedding was the complete opposite. So it began raining right before the cocktail hour started. This is when the romance team decided to make the decision to move the events inside (cocktail hour and reception). Needless to say everything from the reception got soaked so I couldn't use the overlays and Chinese lanterns that I paid for. According to the romance team you don't get any type of refund/credit if something gets delivered whether it is used or not. I reviewed all of my invoices and contracts and its doesn't state that anywhere so I'm in the process of trying to get some sort of refund from Caribbean Celebrations. I understand that the weather can be risky but I don't think that it's acceptable to decide to move everyone after it starts raining! The centerpieces were also wrong so they gave me a $20 credit per centerpiece. However, I had to be on top of them constantly to get this done!!!!!!!

 

Communication: There is a major lack of communication between the romance department and the rest of the hotel. The romance department made reservations for my group (without telling me) and they other members of my group were given a hard time when it came time to make dinner reservations. It wasn't a huge deal but just a pain in the butt....

 

 

Misc.

 

Food: The food was your typical "all inclusive" food... it wasn't bad at all but it wasn't 5 star either. I would recommend Bana and the Market Grill.

 

 

At the end of the day all that matters is that I got to marry my best friend and our pictures are amazing so I decided not to sweat the small stuff. However, I have to be completely honest... If I had to do it all over again I would pick a different resort because I was so disappointed with the service we received from the romance department and Caribbean celebrations. I'm hoping they had a "off week" and that the upcoming weddings are the complete opposite.

 

I'm sorry to be such a complainer but I'd want to hear the truth ;-)

 

xoxo,

Darlene

[engaged1230]

HI Ladies

 

Congrats to all the new brides and all the new wives!!!

 

I havent been posting often because I have been working with Theresa and she has been a LIFE SAVER!!!!!! If anyone is interested in her information please let me know and  I will give it to you. She is AMAZING! I gave her my wedding budget and she is managing to pull of everything i have been dreaming of and Gabi Beach which I didnt think we would be able to afford.

 

I also wanted to tell you that she offered me a great alternative to flower centerpieces, these large crystal trees. I cant seem to upload the pic but if someone is interested in seeing them please PM me.

[Rotha Penn]

Rotha, I have to say that your pictures are lovely. I just watched your slide show and it was amazing. It really had me tearing up... This is what it's all about. Wow!!! Amazing! How long was the fire show? Was it done on the beach or at the Apollo terrace? Congrats again! I was blown away!!!

Thank you! Not sure on how long because it felt longer than 7 minutes. It was seriously awesome and I'm not easily impressed. We had it on the Olympus Terrace where we originally were going to have our reception but they moved the reception to Apollo Terrace because they were afraid it was going to rain, but it didn't. Olympus Terrace does not have a roof whereas Apollo does.

[Katie83]

Rotha

  My goodness girl, you looked absolutely stunning in all of your pictures and you photographer did such an amazing job. The photos are full of emotion, I had goosebumps watching your slide show:)  Were some of your pictures taken at altos de chavon?? If so did you have them taken the same day as your wedding or the day after?  Just curious because I thought that trip was approximately 90 minutes but I could be mistaken. I would love to have pictures take there, the scenery is breathtaking!!

 

Congratulations again!

Katie

[Katie83]

Originally Posted by Katie83 

 

Rotha

  My goodness girl, you looked absolutely stunning in all of your pictures and you photographer did such an amazing job. The photos are full of emotion, I had goosebumps watching your slide show:)  Were some of your pictures taken at altos de chavon?? If so did you have them taken the same day as your wedding or the day after?  Just curious because I thought that trip was approximately 90 minutes but I could be mistaken. I would love to have pictures take there, the scenery is breathtaking!!

 

Congratulations again!

Katie

 

Opps, Sorry Rotha I see that you did write that some of your pic were jot at altos de chavon. How did you fit it all into your wedding day?

[angelnjewels]

Originally Posted by Rotha Penn 

 

 

Thank you!

 

Not sure on how long because it felt longer than 7 minutes. It was seriously awesome and I'm not easily impressed.

 

We had it on the Olympus Terrace where we originally were going to have our reception but they moved the reception to Apollo Terrace because they were afraid it was going to rain, but it didn't. Olympus Terrace does not have a roof whereas Apollo does.

 

Wow Thanks Rotha!

 

We are having our reception at Apollo and are thinking of adding the fire dancers if it fits into our budget. Right now we are trying to figure it all out.

 

 

I decided to not go with the passport invites and do some linen starfish ones....which are 1.90 from zazzle.com

 

We are trying to spend less and add more later on. The chill out chic seems to be the best right now....not sure!!!

 

 

Thanks for you input. Please let us know of anymore tips.

 

 

EV you are next CONGRATS Lady!!!