Where And Why Did You Choose Riviera Maya/cancun!

[moni79]

We chose the Riu Palace Mexico.

 

I fell in love with the gazebo onsite and i knew that was where i wanted to be married.

 

Plus, i have a few friends who have stayed at the resort and all have recommended it and have said this resort is a fabulous choice.

[JHarwood2Be]

I came across this thread and I thought it would be good for all the undecided girls--like me

[rodent]

Quote:

Originally Posted by JHarwood2Be I came across this thread and I thought it would be good for all the undecided girls--like me

Great bump. I haven't seen this one yet. It's always fun when old threads resurface.

[Dijawana Diva]

We chose the Basico Hotel because we didn't want the "cookie cutter" wedding that the larger resorts offered (no offense..), even though it meant that we would have to select our own vendors and do most of the leg work ourselves.

 

Because we occupied the entire hotel, everyone from the front desk, housekeeping, restaurant and bar treated us like royalty and gave us everything we needed or wanted - by our 2nd night, most of us were partying with the crew at the Basico, and were treated like locals everywhere we went!

 

Just like New York City, everything was "instant gratification" - and for a big crew like us - that is exactly what we wanted!

[melglnh2o]

We originally wanted to be married in PDC or even Tulum but when we went down on a site visit, we instantly knew that the Fiesta Americana Condesa was the place for us. In hindsight, it worked out the best because we are having 100 people and the logistics of everyone getting to PDC or Tulum would have been a nightmare for us. Plus there are so many more things to keep everyone occupied in Cancun.

[TATrisha]

I chose the Gran Bahia Principe Akumal for many reasons:

1. It's away from touristy Cancun

2. All buildings must be 3 stories or less so it looks more natural

3. It's all inclusive

4. Great beach for snorkeling and it's just a very LONG beach in general

5. Very close to many touristy attractions that I'm interested in.

6. Family friendly

7. Large! This is a turn off for many people, but honestly... I love my family, but I need my time alone too Plus we have some divorced couples and things like that.

8. I could have a private reception

9. Paperwork for getting married is easy peasy. None of this translating birth certificate crap.

10. On-site spa with rave reviews

[nylalany]

I posted on the other similar one, but here is a reply to the various aspects of this post:

 

I picked Riviera Maya area b/c -

1. Cheaper beach hotel rates than Santa Monica, Laguna Beach, or Santa Barbara, all of which are near me, and I wanted all my guests to have a mini-vacation together.

2. Kind of in btwn NY and Los Angeles (my pref would have been Hawaii or Caribbean island, both of which I frequent, or Cabo, which is closer to me and has surfing).

3. Direct flights available from most major airports (unlike Hawaii, Caribbean, or Cabo from one caost vs. the other).

4. Cheaper hotel rates for guests than Hawaii, Caribbean, or Cabo.

5. More swimmable beaches than Cabo (though I'm disappointed in the water in Riviera Maya compared with Hawaii and Caribbean.

 

I picked my wedding venue - Al Cielo Hotel b/c -

1. Location is very private - not too many hotels around it.

2. Feels like a remote location that is truly different than what I might find in CA or FL or anywhere else.

3. Rustic chic / elegant

4. Not sure if this is a bad one but, since I'm having a large group of guests and would have had to pay a lot to have a private wedding at an All-Inclusive, this way the guests would realize that we are paying for the wedding instead of assuming incorrectly that it is free. Of course, we still ended up spending a lot more at Al Cielo than at an AI, but the AI prices we were quoted for private wedding receptions were pretty high.

5. Food was pretty good and presented well.

6. Could handle our 100 guest group.

 

I picked my resort - Grand Riviera Maya Princess b/c -

1. Due to just opening in 12/07, rates were 1/2 the price of the other resorts we looked at and we wanted to make the vacation worthwhile for our guests.

2. Rates, to allow our less well-off friends and family to be able to come.

3. Rates, to encourage our well-off friends and family to stay longer.

4. Even though it is a big resort (which is the opposite of what I wanted), the design of the buildings and resort seems pretty tasteful and pretty.

5. No buildings or other hotels in direct view of the beach.

6. Good food reviews.

7. Allows children (we have 9 guests under the age of 4 attending).

8. Can handle our 100 guest group.

 

If I didn't have child guests, guests with budgets, and/or such a large group, or time limitations on finding a place, I would have picked:

1. Maroma hotel

2. Fairmont Mayakoba

3. A Karisma Hotel property

4. A cute little place in Tulum

5. One of the other upscale adults only AIs

6. Somewhere on Isla Mujeres or Cozumel

 

If I really had my way I would have picked:

1. Maui or somewhere in HI, b/c my FI and I love HI

2. St. John or one of the BVIs (St. John is beautiful and I hear the BVIs are even more so)

3. Barbados (I hear it is beautiful and has surfing)

[tlomlad]

we went with dreams cancun! 1st off we fell in love with the gazebo 2nd all inclusive

3rd we choose cancun over tulum as alot of our guest would want to go out a few night and live it up so more to do and last the price was right!

[SIMBASIM]

Dreams Cancun for so many reasons but most of all:

 

1. Awesome wedding site

2. Affordable and kid friendly for my family

[slw266]

We've decided to get married at Presidente InterContinental Cozumel:

 

1) Carolina, the WC, is amazing!

2) The price is right

3) We like that it's sort of away from the city

4) Family friendly

5) We wanted to get married in the sand

6) We have never been there

7) Not too big of a resort

Great scuba diving