2013 Paradisus Palma Real

[EVKnowsitall]

Nice. My fiancé was born in DR but his fam is from the capital. How far is that church from the resort? We are still waiting to hear back from Jesus Maestro parish which is ten minutes away but they are taking a long time and I'm holding off on sending my save the dates bc I have my wart set on a traditional catholic church ceremony and was willing to work around the church's schedule. Once I nail down those details I'll be more relaxed. Thank you for the kind wishes.

[MissyBee]

Is anyone planning on having the private Welcome BBQ or doing a private Welcome Cocktail Party? Or are you planning on doing a semi-private Welcome Dinner at one of the restaurants? Does anyone know the max amount of people a restaurant could accomodate for a semi-private dinner?

[DP1andDP2]

EV Thanks! Was the packet physically mailed to you or was it sent via email? I have not been getting consistent info from the folks in Miami. We are now working with a new planner so I will ask her for the packet. We may bring a photographer if the budget allows--I think the $1k is extreme! 

[DP1andDP2]

Originally Posted by micheleann 

 

I think the photographer fee is something new for 2012.  It's not in the calculator by your wedding planner should make you aware of it.

I did a site visit in March for my wedding this November...Olympus Terrace is next to the pool on a paved surface.  Very nice location if you don't want it on the beach  Let me know if you have any more questions...

Thanks for the info Michelann. We are still trying to figure out the best place for the reception. Any thoughts?

[Kel123073]

Hi Ladies,

 

was wondering if anybody else got an email today from the romance department.  I now have a new wedding coordinator because the email said they did some reorganization and restructuring.  I was actually waiting for a response to a question I had for Lauren.  She had mentioned in an email that there were going to be an extension possibly on group rates for brides from may 2013 to dec 2013.  has anybody heard this also?  I had sent save the dates our and assumed people would contact the travel agent to get info and pricing but only about two or three people contacted her.

 

thanks

Kelly

[MissyBee]

Hi Kelly,

What do you mean an extension? Do you have a group of rooms blocked?

[Kel123073]

Hi Missy Bee,

 

It was a little confusing because we went thru a travel agent.  At first when we put deposit she was going to block rooms in her system.  Therefore we put 500 down on room and several thousand down on wedding portion.  Several weeks later, and after some confusion she ended up having to book our room and my mom and dad's thru the hotel.  We ended up with only 5 rooms blocked.  I asked last week if they could swap some of the deposit over to the room block but the hotel was unable to do so.  the group rates were only good thru Aug 15th that the hotel had given me.  I then emailed Lauren at Paradisus who was my wedding coordinator to see if they would extend the date for the group rates.  She advised me that they were possibly extending rates for may 2013-dec 2013 brides.  Yesterday I reached out again and heard back from Cecilia who is now handling the room block and she said they are going to have new group rates available soon for us.  As soon as they are released she will forward them to me.

 

I was really stressing out because I am in the middle of changing jobs, have had a lot on my plate, and we are working on a budget.  I felt like I dropped the ball in regards to letting everyone know to put a deposit on room by aug 15th to guarentee the group rate. 

 

kelly

[EVKnowsitall]

DP1- Who was your Romance Salesperson? I had Lauren and she was great. The way I understand it is that you are assigned a romance sales agent (Lauren was ours) and then once you pay the deposit to hold the date and its confirmed, she passes your information to a romance planner (Bianca is ours). The romance planner handles all the details of the wedding and will call you 6-4 months before to finalize everything. Then you are set up with a Romance Manager who is based at the resort and actually executes the plans you make with the Romance planner. I actually like this set up and it was one of the things that attracted me to Paradisus- I dealt unsuccessfully with wedding coordinators at two separate resorts and I wanted a no fuss no muss experience so I didn't book at those resorts. 

 

I called Lauren (use the 877 number) and asked about the wedding calculator because other ladies on this thread discussed it. Lauren sent me the necessary paperwork to book my date and I faxed it back. Once the charge went through, she sent me an email explaining the whole process up above and with a confirmed and dated contract, the wedding calculator again, and a planning guide. The guide is a lengthy document that you fill out and send back anytime before the phone call. It has every nook and cranny covered from lighting, flowers, locations etc. 

 

I'm sorry you haven't had a necessarily positive experience but don't lose faith! I have literally spent hours of my life like a neurotic person reading reviews and that's how I came to Paradisus. It has the best reviews on every website I visited. My friend was also in DR and stayed at a resort I was considering and delivered some disconcerting news to me that helped me not choose that one. I also have been in communication with a photographer I had hoped to use and she gave me the scoop on resorts too. So trust when I say you're getting married at the right one! 

 

Her name is ***** Nova and here's a Paradisus Wedding she photographed- she's actually has done quite a few at Paradisus. Unfortunately she isn't available on our date which makes me sad  but she might be if other ladies are interested. She lives in Punta Cana http://www.*****novablog.com/siobhan-nick-paradisus-palma-real-wedding-punta-cana/

Sorry for the super long post! I'm wordy, I know lol

[EVKnowsitall]

Hey Kelly- The same happened to me. I called on the 15th to reserve a room block but they wouldn't let me which got me a little irritated because they were telling me the offer expired and I said "yes I know, it EXPIRES today, I should still be able to book the rooms" It was difficult for me because we only booked and confirmed our date a week before the expiration so I couldn't really get people to block rooms and I clearly haven't sent invites out LOL so I didn't have a good sense of who was coming.

 

 

Cecilia told me the same thing- that they are working on a new deal. I told her I hope the price is better than the last one and she said "I hope so too" which indicates to me that the prices could rise. Lets pray they don't. We are also on a budget but more concerned about our family and friends being able to afford the rooms.

 

I also have a TA. She said if we book through the hotel, there's nothing she can do for group rates. I asked her to look into rates while I await Cecilia's info. I'll go with whichever is cheaper.

[Demetrice Smith]

I too am waiting to hear back from Cecilia about the rooms. I faxed my contract and deposit for 15 rooms and never received a confirmation. Unfortunately, this has been a very frustrating experience for me.