Heater's Wedding Trip Report

heater · 06-03-2005

hello brides to be just wanted to give a little advice and suggestions for you future playa brides. i think that it may be easiest by just describing the day and evening of our wedding on may 8, 2005. (wedding planner:manuela novak, photographer and videographer: claudia rodriguez and mike-her husband) all of these people were wonderful and claudia is the best that there is when it comes to photography. so many people have told us that our pics were the best wedding photos that they have ever seen. our wedding was my 6th time to playa so i am pretty familiar with it. we were there a year before the wedding and chose the locations for our ceremony and reception and also met manuela the wedding planner.

the afternoon of the wedding i had arranged to have lunch catered at the condo for us girls (thank you heather for your help in setting that up) i emailed tiffany and she gave me some suggestions. we ended up with limeade, spinach pie, little tuna and chicken salad sandwiches, cheese and cracker plate and champagne. i thought that the girls were just going to drop the food off and leave, but they actually stayed at the condo (www.royalpalmscondos.com) [great place to stay-will stay again] and prepared the food for us.
claudia and mike arrived to take getting ready pics. she even painted my nails for me! they are both great people and so comfortable to work with. i told her that i loved black and white photos and candid shots and i got plenty of both. most people seem to like the b&w the best.
the girls and i took taxis to las palapas hotel for the ceremony.
we had arranged for cocktails to be served upon arrival and for cocktail hour on the beach after the ceremony. guests were able to choose between sangria, margaritas, or beer. they had a great buffet of snacks and a little bar set up in a great spot at the ceremony site. there was a 12 piece maraichi band that played as the ceremony began and then at cocktail hour.

after cocktail hour and pictures on the beach everyone (60 people)was taken over in big white vans to la casa del agua for the reception.
the restaurant looked incredible. i chose to do all white, casa blanca lilies and white votive candles. the centerpieces were square glass vases with the lilies and then a bunch of other arrangements throughout the restaurant. (it smelled amazing)
the service was outstanding and the food was great. we opted for premium bar and it was worth it. after dinner two of the tables were removed to make space for dancing and mingling. we had the 12 piece mariachi come back at 10 to surprise everyone. they played for almost an hour and it was the highlight of the evening. they were so much fun.
well that about wraps it up.
the grounds at las palapas were beautiful with all of the palm trees on the beach.
la casa del agua is a beautiful restaurant with great food and phenomenal service.
manuela was great...i had some specific requests and she met everyone of them.
i would suggest brightly colored bouquets because that added pop of color looks great in photos next to a white dress.
don't use a photographer unless you can see some of their work. www.claudiaphoto.com-her website is great.

make sure that your jotp or minister speaks english.

think twice about having the reception on the beach because it's really windy. ceremony and cocktail hour were perfect for the beach-but all night would have been a little annoying.

i would highly recommend the 12 piece mariachi, it's worth the money!

let me know if anyone had any questions.

lisa1 · 06-03-2005

sounds like you had a dream wedding. I hear Claudia cannot do my pics for my wedding as the resort has a new rule on external photographers.

Cannot wait to see the pictures its sounds so amazing.

DallasTX · 06-03-2005

Sounds like a wonderful wedding. Was the wedding on the beach?

babs31 · 06-03-2005

and drum roll..........for pictures!?

heater · 06-04-2005

it really was a wonderful day....lisa that's too bad about the hotels rule regarding photographers. i had heard that about someone elses wedding and they still hired claudia to do a small photo session before the ceremony at another location.
yes, the wedding ceremony and cocktail hour were on the beach at hotel las palapas. it's a beautiful part of the beach and they have a lot of really big palm trees.
i will try to have my husband help me with getting the pics up this weekend.
one of our friends posted some pics on snapfish.com under mexicotrip2005. there are pics of the wedding along with pics of the 60 clowns that were down for the wedding!

lisa1 · 06-04-2005

can I view these pics on snap fish?

heater · 06-04-2005

i think that if you log in and look for the mexicotrip2005 that you would be able to find them.

lisa1 · 06-07-2005

Hello

Has anyone booked the IB Tucan direct. I am unable to find how to book directly with the hotel.

Anyone know how this works or have done so before.

Cheers

**TeeZet** · 06-07-2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by lisa1

Has anyone booked the IB Tucan direct. I am unable to find how to book directly with the hotel.

Anyone know how this works or have done so before.

Hi Lisa,

From the Netherlands we even HAD to book through an agent.
I have seen room rates at the check-in desk, but can't recall them.
I do recall that seperate hotel booking and airfares would, in our case, be more expensive than the package deal we got at our travel agent.

I just now checked the IB* website (look for the Tucan section) and noticed the following: "To book a room in this hotel please contact your usual travel agency."
So there goes for online booking, I guess...

cuffedlinks · 06-10-2005

Saw your pics...Really very, very nice...!!

Thanks for the TR as well - I'm sure it'll come in handy as a resource...

heater · 06-11-2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by cuffedlinks

Saw your pics...Really very, very nice...!!

Thanks for the TR as well - I'm sure it'll come in handy as a resource...

not quite finished with the pics, just ran out of time. there are a lot more.

lisa1 · 06-11-2005

heater

where do we go to view your pics?

lisa1 · 06-11-2005

wow wow wow- those pics are fab. who was your photographer?

heater · 06-11-2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by lisa1

wow wow wow- those pics are fab. who was your photographer?

the pics are in the members gallery. not quite finished, only 150 or more to upload

mikebuk · 08-11-2005

hi there!
just reading your wedding account and i am totally inspired by your story. my fiancee and i are planning our wedding at the moment for playa in april 2006. I hope you don't mind me "borrowing" some of your wonderful ideas to enhance our own day. If our wedding day looks and feels half as good as yours i will be a happy man! do you have an email for your wedding planner? how trust worthy are they? any help would be hugely appreciated. you have reassured, what was a nervous groom, into making the right decision to get married in playa. many thanks!

regards
mike from uk

06-03-2005	#1 (permalink)
heater life=playa Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: michigan Posts: 738	Heater's Wedding Trip Report hello brides to be just wanted to give a little advice and suggestions for you future playa brides. i think that it may be easiest by just describing the day and evening of our wedding on may 8, 2005. (wedding planner:manuela novak, photographer and videographer: claudia rodriguez and mike-her husband) all of these people were wonderful and claudia is the best that there is when it comes to photography. so many people have told us that our pics were the best wedding photos that they have ever seen. our wedding was my 6th time to playa so i am pretty familiar with it. we were there a year before the wedding and chose the locations for our ceremony and reception and also met manuela the wedding planner. the afternoon of the wedding i had arranged to have lunch catered at the condo for us girls (thank you heather for your help in setting that up) i emailed tiffany and she gave me some suggestions. we ended up with limeade, spinach pie, little tuna and chicken salad sandwiches, cheese and cracker plate and champagne. i thought that the girls were just going to drop the food off and leave, but they actually stayed at the condo (www.royalpalmscondos.com) [great place to stay-will stay again] and prepared the food for us. claudia and mike arrived to take getting ready pics. she even painted my nails for me! they are both great people and so comfortable to work with. i told her that i loved black and white photos and candid shots and i got plenty of both. most people seem to like the b&w the best. the girls and i took taxis to las palapas hotel for the ceremony. we had arranged for cocktails to be served upon arrival and for cocktail hour on the beach after the ceremony. guests were able to choose between sangria, margaritas, or beer. they had a great buffet of snacks and a little bar set up in a great spot at the ceremony site. there was a 12 piece maraichi band that played as the ceremony began and then at cocktail hour. after cocktail hour and pictures on the beach everyone (60 people)was taken over in big white vans to la casa del agua for the reception. the restaurant looked incredible. i chose to do all white, casa blanca lilies and white votive candles. the centerpieces were square glass vases with the lilies and then a bunch of other arrangements throughout the restaurant. (it smelled amazing) the service was outstanding and the food was great. we opted for premium bar and it was worth it. after dinner two of the tables were removed to make space for dancing and mingling. we had the 12 piece mariachi come back at 10 to surprise everyone. they played for almost an hour and it was the highlight of the evening. they were so much fun. well that about wraps it up. the grounds at las palapas were beautiful with all of the palm trees on the beach. la casa del agua is a beautiful restaurant with great food and phenomenal service. manuela was great...i had some specific requests and she met everyone of them. i would suggest brightly colored bouquets because that added pop of color looks great in photos next to a white dress. don't use a photographer unless you can see some of their work. www.claudiaphoto.com-her website is great. make sure that your jotp or minister speaks english. think twice about having the reception on the beach because it's really windy. ceremony and cocktail hour were perfect for the beach-but all night would have been a little annoying. i would highly recommend the 12 piece mariachi, it's worth the money! let me know if anyone had any questions. Last edited by heater; 06-03-2005 at 03:48 AM.. Reason: not finished yet

06-04-2005	#5 (permalink)
heater life=playa Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: michigan Posts: 738	heaters wedding it really was a wonderful day....lisa that's too bad about the hotels rule regarding photographers. i had heard that about someone elses wedding and they still hired claudia to do a small photo session before the ceremony at another location. yes, the wedding ceremony and cocktail hour were on the beach at hotel las palapas. it's a beautiful part of the beach and they have a lot of really big palm trees. i will try to have my husband help me with getting the pics up this weekend. one of our friends posted some pics on snapfish.com under mexicotrip2005. there are pics of the wedding along with pics of the 60 clowns that were down for the wedding!

06-07-2005	#8 (permalink)
lisa1 way into it Join Date: May 2005 Location: uk Posts: 122	anyone book hotel direct Hello Has anyone booked the IB Tucan direct. I am unable to find how to book directly with the hotel. Anyone know how this works or have done so before. Cheers

08-11-2005	#15 (permalink)
mikebuk sandflea Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 2	groom inspired hi there! just reading your wedding account and i am totally inspired by your story. my fiancee and i are planning our wedding at the moment for playa in april 2006. I hope you don't mind me "borrowing" some of your wonderful ideas to enhance our own day. If our wedding day looks and feels half as good as yours i will be a happy man! do you have an email for your wedding planner? how trust worthy are they? any help would be hugely appreciated. you have reassured, what was a nervous groom, into making the right decision to get married in playa. many thanks! regards mike from uk

06-03-2005	#2 (permalink)
lisa1 way into it Join Date: May 2005 Location: uk Posts: 122	sounds like you had a dream wedding. I hear Claudia cannot do my pics for my wedding as the resort has a new rule on external photographers. Cannot wait to see the pictures its sounds so amazing.

06-03-2005	#3 (permalink)
DallasTX sandflea Join Date: May 2005 Location: Dallas, TX Posts: 3	Sounds like a wonderful wedding. Was the wedding on the beach?

06-03-2005	#4 (permalink)
babs31 life=playa Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: south of Green Bay Posts: 849	and drum roll..........for pictures!?

06-04-2005	#6 (permalink)
lisa1 way into it Join Date: May 2005 Location: uk Posts: 122	can I view these pics on snap fish?

06-04-2005	#7 (permalink)
heater life=playa Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: michigan Posts: 738	i think that if you log in and look for the mexicotrip2005 that you would be able to find them.

06-10-2005	#10 (permalink)
cuffedlinks añejo Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: The City of Presidents Posts: 16,003	Saw your pics...Really very, very nice...!! Thanks for the TR as well - I'm sure it'll come in handy as a resource...

06-11-2005	#12 (permalink)
lisa1 way into it Join Date: May 2005 Location: uk Posts: 122	heater where do we go to view your pics?

06-11-2005	#13 (permalink)
lisa1 way into it Join Date: May 2005 Location: uk Posts: 122	wow wow wow- those pics are fab. who was your photographer?

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