Wedding in Mexico?

January 4, 2008 6:30 AM

We are getting married at The Reef Playacar resort in Mexico in June and we feel as if we are getting the runaround from the staff. Does anyone have any experience at this resort or others in Mexico?

We decided to go with this resort after one of my fiancee’s friends got married there for approx $5,000. However, after nickel-and-diming us, the cost of our ceremony has gone up to over $11,000. Still not bad in the grand scheme of things, but double what we expected to pay.
One of our many issues is that it is an all-inclusive resort and we have about 100 guests coming down and staying at this resort. There is a daily per person charge of approx $80-95 per night, which covers all meals and drinks, yet we are being charged an additional $20 per person for a cocktail hour following the ceremony and $30 per person for the meal at the reception. The guests are already paying for meals and drinks! I understand charging us for the large room and service personnel required...no argument there, but don't charge us twice for food and drinks.
Other ridiculous charges are $450 for a mariachi band for 45 minutes, $6 per slice of wedding cake, and $250 per hour for a DJ. At one point on our estimate, there was a $90 charge for microphone rental. We had this absurd charge removed. Additional problems are the event planner’s weeklong lag time to answer an email and a slight problem with the language barrier over the phone. Overall it just seems like the service sucks and we cannot get a straight answer on any of our issues.

Has anyone gotten married at The Reef Playacar or any other resort in Mexico? Were you happy with the level of service you received and the price list? Any additional info you can provide would be helpful. Email in profile for private responses.

I am not looking for alternative wedding locations or other Mexican resort recommendations. Well, not yet anyway.

posted by nineRED to travel & transportation (10 comments total)

"I am not looking for alternative wedding locations or other Mexican resort recommendations."

Why not? It sounds like your vendor is trying to dick you over, and because it's a resort you don't have any choice but to deal with them directly. You have no leverage (because you're dealing with a single vendor for everything) other than to say "Fine, we won't get married at your location."
posted by bobot at 6:47 AM on January 4, 2008

Consider posting this over on TripAdvisor. The Mexico section there is huge.
posted by docpops at 7:03 AM on January 4, 2008

$450 for a mariachi band for 45 minutes

Maybe the price list is in pesos, because there seems to be an extra zero on some of those prices.

I'm kidding, but yeah, what bobot said -- why not look at alternative resorts? If you are bringing 100 guests, one would think you would have some leverage on the wedding pricing. I think that this (much more so than the car insurance ads) is a situation where one or two phone calls to competitors could save you an awful lot of money.
posted by Forktine at 7:33 AM on January 4, 2008

Do you know how many musicians are in a mariachi band? Lots. $450 for 45 minutes isn't excessive for live music.
posted by footnote at 7:59 AM on January 4, 2008

Try TheKnot.com (link goes to their Mexico resources page)-- my wife joined while planning our destination wedding and it was a huge help. Most likely multiple people there will have used the resort.

The other thing that made a difference was hiring a local wedding planner (this was in the Bahamas). Not just for knowing vendors and getting things done, but for the crazy rush of the actual wedding day, which is only exacerbated by having it take place somewhere we had no resources.
posted by yerfatma at 8:28 AM on January 4, 2008

$450 Pesos for a Mariachi is a little too cheap. In a big city, where there are lots of mariachis fighting for your money, you can get 30 minutes of mariachi for aprox $1,500 Pesos.

On the other hand, $4,500 Pesos its waaay to much for a Mariachi, maybe a top of the line one.
posted by edmz at 9:06 AM on January 4, 2008

Yes, the Mariachi costs are absurd, if they are in dollars.

I think the extra costs for food and drink are stupid, but this might be a special dinner just for your wedding, and this might include any guests who aren't staying at the hotel.

Did your friend get married in low season? That could make a big difference, too.

That said, if you don't feel confortable, look for other venues. You are not happy with the service, the prices are absurd, there are suspicious extra costs. What are you waiting for?
posted by clearlydemon at 9:28 AM on January 4, 2008

Was your expectation solely based on what she person paid? What was the original estimate for costs that was communicated to you?

Did you two talk to your fiancee's friend about how she handled the arrangements and why she paid less? How long ago did she get married there -- the area has grown immensely each year for the last several years. Was the time of year a consideration? Did she work with a different planner?

You should be able to bargain them down somewhat. But honestly, these charges only seem slightly inflated to me, and I would expect somewhat inflated costs for a wedding at a resort. Yes, the guests are paying for food, but I bet everyone attending the wedding isn't just going to the regular dining facilities at the regular times, right? Of course $6/per slice of wedding cake sounds high, but the cost of wedding cake is typically incredibly inflated...consider what you would pay for a simple wedding cake in the States.
posted by desuetude at 9:34 AM on January 4, 2008

Being charged extra for the meal at your reception actually doesn't seem out of line either. I presume it's a meal you're selecting for the party, and not just the buffet or whatever they'll be serving the other guests?
posted by JaredSeth at 9:46 AM on January 4, 2008

Who said that having your wedding at a resort was going to be cheap? Your guests are paying for normal food + drinks, not a wedding dinner or cocktail hour. If you dont like it shop around!
posted by outsider at 9:57 PM on January 5, 2008