Need Help Picking A Resort For April 2017

[Jbwilli]

Hey Brides, 

My name is Jasmine. I got engaged to the love of my life in September. At first I was really excited about wedding planning and was having a good time, but I just found the whole process of trying to pick a resort sooooooooooo overwhelming. I took a long 2 month break :-) and didn't think about anything wedding. But i think i should stop avoiding this and get started. 

 

So we are looking to get married in April of 2017. What I am struggling  the most with is finding something that offers the most bang for our buck for the wedding without having our guest pay more than $200 a night, which is still a lot of money. 

 

It's really hard to get pricing so far in advance. Is it possible to plan a destination wedding for about 50-60 people for about $7000(not including flight and hotel)?

 

I really love Moon Palace because all that is included in the basic wedding package and love all the resort has to offer, but the cost of the rooms is well over $200/person/ night. 

 

Can anyone offer some advice with their budget and some economical resort choices?

 

Thanks in advance, 

 

Jasmine 

Edited December 29, 2015 by Jbwilli

[calgarybride2015]

Hi Jasmine

 

Picking the resort is the hardest part for sure.

My advice is to get a good travel agent (one who does destination weddings is even better) as she can help you narrow your choices based on your must have list. She can also suggest ones you may not have considered.

 

That said, I got married at the Grand Sirenis Riviera Maya /Mayan Beach and we had 45 people total. I took the free package and upgraded my location to the palapa and all the extras I wanted. Their base packages - even the free one - offered all the basics and some good extras. None the less we paid under $6000 and had A LOT of extras. Like 4 extra hours of reception, flowers for the girls, mariachi band, hair and makeup etc.

 

If you want more info let me know good luck.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Edited December 30, 2015 by calgarybride2015

[dreamweddings]

Hey Brides, 

My name is Jasmine. I got engaged to the love of my life in September. At first I was really excited about wedding planning and was having a good time, but I just found the whole process of trying to pick a resort sooooooooooo overwhelming. I took a long 2 month break :-) and didn't think about anything wedding. But i think i should stop avoiding this and get started. 

 

So we are looking to get married in April of 2017. What I am struggling  the most with is finding something that offers the most bang for our buck for the wedding without having our guest pay more than $200 a night, which is still a lot of money. 

 

It's really hard to get pricing so far in advance. Is it possible to plan a destination wedding for about 50-60 people for about $7000(not including flight and hotel)?

 

I really love Moon Palace because all that is included in the basic wedding package and love all the resort has to offer, but the cost of the rooms is well over $200/person/ night. 

 

Can anyone offer some advice with their budget and some economical resort choices?

 

Thanks in advance, 

 

Jasmine 

@@Jbwilli Welcome to the forum, 

 

I cannot stress it enough to all Destination Bride, having a TA who can advice you on resorts takes away a lots of overwhelming from you.  Let the pros help you find the right resort that is a best fit for you.  There are plenty of resort to choose from. 

 

One thing you also need to look out for is the season.  For example in the Riviera Maya we have low and high season.  Make sure you find out the prices, for the low season just so you can compare price points for the resorts.

 

 

Happy Planning!

Joyce

[Moments That Matter]

Welcome to our forum community Jasmine, and Congrats on your upcoming dw in 2017!!!

 

You've come to the right place for excellent info, advice, suggestions + support - like Joyce's post above - so well done on your great start already

 

To show you what kind of backdrop the Grand Sirenis (where calgarybride2015 had her wedding) would make for your Wedding Day Love Story in photos, here are some magical wedding moments that matter we captured there.

 

...from our Grand Sirenis Wedding Album:

 

 

 

 

 

Wishing you happy research, all the best with your plans and .....HAPPY New YEAR!!! cheers, team MTM

Edited December 30, 2015 by Moments That Matter

[MarieSamSanchezPhoto]

I would definitely suggest reaching out to Wright Travel Agency -- the official BDW travel agents --  and consider utilizing their services. They have so much knowledge about the different resorts and will help you greatly in providing you with suggestions for the price point range you're looking for. They specialize in Destination weddings and you can contact them HERE!    

 

Also consider maybe even looking at a different time of year when the rates will be less and fall into your price range -- again a skilled Travel Agent will be able to help you with that. Wright Travel happens to do A LOT of business with Moon Palace so I'm sure they will be able to give you all the ins and outs when it comes to that resort if that's your first choice!! Hope that helps

[tiffanyt]

Hi Jasmine,

Finally another 2017 bride! I am also looking into getting married in April 2017. After getting frustrated looking for prices and packages on my own for that time, I hired a travel agent and have felt better about the entire process ever since. Since hiring her, I have been able to narrow my list down to 3 resorts in Jamaica. She has even set up meetings for us to visit them at the end of January. She was also able to get us quotes for the packages available at the resorts for 2017 and estimates on how much our guests will have to pay to stay there. I definitely think that speaking with a travel agent will help ease the process. Good luck!

[Deannak]

Yay another April 2017 bride ! I'm having trouble picking a resort as well ! As the others said above, a travel agent will be your best friend ! We have narrowed our choices to azul fives, now jade, and beach palace . Leaning more toward azul fives right now . It's so hard!

[Jbwilli]

Hi Ladies~

I took all of your advice and contacted Barbara from Wright Travel. She has been a lot of help! I think we have narrowed it down to the Riu Palace Peninsula. I already feel a lot better and more excited about wedding planning, having narrowed it down. I just hope we can put a deposit in soon, so I can get to the fun stuff... like save the dates and the wedding website!

 

Has anyone been to the Riu resorts yet, especially the Palace Peninsula?

Yay another April 2017 bride ! I'm having trouble picking a resort as well ! As the others said above, a travel agent will be your best friend ! We have narrowed our choices to azul fives, now jade, and beach palace . Leaning more toward azul fives right now . It's so hard!

@@Deannak Good luck with picking a place! I absolutely Loved those choices, especially the Beach Palace. I just think it was a little too pricey for my guest to come, and the fiance and I decided that we really wanted as many people as we could to be there. But I think all of your choices are amazing!!!

Have you decided on one yet?

[Deannak]

Hi Ladies~

I took all of your advice and contacted Barbara from Wright Travel. She has been a lot of help! I think we have narrowed it down to the Riu Palace Peninsula. I already feel a lot better and more excited about wedding planning, having narrowed it down. I just hope we can put a deposit in soon, so I can get to the fun stuff... like save the dates and the wedding website!

 

Has anyone been to the Riu resorts yet, especially the Palace Peninsula?

 

@@Deannak Good luck with picking a place! I absolutely Loved those choices, especially the Beach Palace. I just think it was a little too pricey for my guest to come, and the fiance and I decided that we really wanted as many people as we could to be there. But I think all of your choices are amazing!!!

Have you decided on one yet?

@@Jbwilli I haven't 100% chosen. Leaning toward azul fives, it's just so hard to make a final decision !!! I love beach palace as well but my fiancé thinks it might be too small. We wanted smaller but he says it just feels like a hotel and not a resort . Also apparently it can get crowded when the other palace guests decide to visit ...

[Deannak]

@@Jbwilli I haven't 100% chosen. Leaning toward azul fives, it's just so hard to make a final decision !!! I love beach palace as well but my fiancé thinks it might be too small. We wanted smaller but he says it just feels like a hotel and not a resort . Also apparently it can get crowded when the other palace guests decide to visit ...

Oh and another thing in common, i got engaged in september as well, haha