How Much Did Your Wedding Cost?

[MrsBtobe]

Hi newbie here! We are looking at getting married in Mexico's Riviera Maya in May/June 2017 and are desperately researching resorts at the moment. The original plan was to just choose an amazing resort and basic wedding package as it's only going to be a small wedding (there will be around 18 of us altogether, 6 of them being children) but after looking, I would like a few extras on top and there seems to be hidden costs all over the place! Could you tell me what the cost of your wedding was and which resort you chose so that I can get a better idea of whether it will be affordable for us on top of the holiday? TIA.

[calgarybride2015]

Welcome and congrats!

I feel your pain on the struggle to find a resort that not only works for your vacation but also your wedding.  A travel agent will be invaluable here to help you narrow down your list based on your wants/needs, as well as your price point!  They can also help you get initial wedding info for the resort.   My travel agent help steer us towards resorts that were coming back in our price point, as well as she priced out ones I had researched myself. We ended up picking one she had recommended.  

 

That said, we got lucky that our resort did not have any hidden fees. Their wedding package brochures were very thorough and they did not price gauge I didn't feel.   There was no set up fees, or electricity fees, or what have you that you will read about.   They also provided all services on site that were fantastic. There really wasn't a large need to go off the resort. I know some do for photography and their external vendor fees weren't absurd. When I got married the the photography vendor fee was only $300.  Compared to $1000 at some resorts. 

 

I had 45 people at our wedding.  We upgraded to a private palapa location.Our wedding packages were pretty inclusive as they included the music for ceremony, the cake, flowers for bride/groom, reception (type depends on package). I upgraded a lot - private location, extra 3 hours for reception (6 total), 1 hour cocktail party, Mariachi band, extra decor (Chinese lanterns, flower petals, chair sashes), 4 extra bouquets, 4 bouts for men, a larger bouquet for me, hair trial, wedding hair/makeup, DJ for 6 hours, private golf cart all day..... list goes on... and we paid about $5500-$6000 Canadian.. It's been 9 months already!

 

We got married at the Grand Sirenis Riviera Maya.    I would say it was a solid 4.5*, sitting behind the fancy resorts of the Karisma and Palace brands.   

Edited October 24, 2015 by calgarybride2015

[Moments That Matter]

Welcome to our forum community and COngrats on your upcoming Mayan Riviera wedding in 2017, MrsBtobe!!! How exciting ~ and what an amazingly picturesque location you've selected for you dw!!!

 

You've come to the right place for lots of great info, advice, support and suggestions from everyone here, so well done on a great start already

 

For some further inspiration, here are some magical wedding moments that matter we've captured in our magnificent area......enjoy!!!

Taken from our Cover Photos Album:

 

 

 

 

 

Wishing you happy research, and all the best with your plans - cheers!!! team MTM

[malyna]

Mine will be about 6k usd for 43 people

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[mark82]

Hi 

MrsBtobe

 

My wife and I were married in April last year at the Riu Caribe in Cancun.

 

you have about the exact same numbers as we did, luckily all of our guest stayed at the same hotel so that meant we didn't need to pay for any day passes for any of our guests.

the only real extra that we paid was the vendor fee for the outside photographer that we wanted and if i remember correctly it was only $200 USD.

 

i travel agent is your best friend at the starting out point, they will be able to tell you what will be included within your wedding package and what extras you might be likely to incur.

 

if you get a chance go to a few travel agents and talk to them about what you are looking for, they should be able to tell you what they have on offer.

 

being from the UK too we booked everything through Thomson and we really couldn't fault them for anything to be honest.

 

everything was handled by our wedding co-ordinator that comes as part of your wedding package and we both had an amazing day!

 

if there's anything else that i can help with please let me know

 

Mark

[Stephieee]

Hi,

 

I completely agree with you.

 

Im getting married in two months and figuring out costs and budgets are tough. We went with a $5,000 USD package for 40 people that includes the ceremony, cocktail hour and reception.

 

Our package also included things like, cake, trio, bouquet, mani/pedi, appetizers, pressing my gown and his suit, and a lot of little extras.

 

But, resorts always offer add ons like - floral center pieces, different color linens, DJ, extra hours, outside vendor and guest fee ect.

 

I would look at the package you want and ask the resort for a list of add-ons or a la carte services they offer so you can really come up with a realistic budget.

 

Also, photography is something I didn't really account for. Its TOUGH to find someone who is great. I want videography and photography and went with www.octaviomontes.com I would check him out!

 

I plan to write a blog after my wedding in March so you can check It out or ask me any questions!

 

Best of Luck!

[fluffykim]

We are 30 people at Dreams Tulum this April

 

While my package included everything, I still chose to upgrade (DJ, Photographer and Makeup/Hair)

 

We are about 6K USD (double the package price with upgrades, fees, etc)