Hello everyone! I'm going to write my reviews here because I found them so helpful while I was planning my own wedding. I'm going to use the alphabetic scale with A+ being the highest and F being the lowest. So here goes:
Caesar's Palace A
As far as rooms, they were amazing. We stayed in the Palace tower our entire time and it was lovely. A word to the wise, if you arrive before your scheduled check in time, you may have to wait for a room. It was a busy week because our wedding bumped up against the holiday weekend. It sucked, but it wasn't terrible. We left our bags with thee bell hop and had lunch and met friends that were already in town. By the time we did that, they called and said our room was ready. There was some confusion with our free nights through our wedding package, but I remained calm about it and it was quickly settled. The person checking us in was looking in the wrong place. In the end, everything worked out.
Caesar's Palace Wedding Chapel Services A-
Let me start off by saying that since I planned a destination wedding from across the country, I wasn't interested in customizing every detail or having a wedding planner that would contact me every week leading up to the wedding. I was finishing my thesis and trying to complete a master's degree. So, I loved that I didn't need to make decisions until a month leading up to my wedding. It made things a lot less stressful! I had Rebecca who pretty much did her job as she was supposed to. She contacted me the day before and made herself available the day of as well, but I didn't really need her until I showed up. She told everyone where to go so there was no need for a rehearsal. Our preacher was amazing. We had a religious ceremony and he was perfect. Even though he met us that day, I really liked his approach. I had my wedding in the Venus Garden and it was beautiful. Everyone loved the setting and we didn't have to walk all the way through the pool area to get to it. This is great if you have elderly guests. It's smaller than Juno Gardens, but I had about 50 guests so it was the perfect size. It didn't look half empty, it was the perfect size. My flowers through CP Wedding Chapel were fabulous. I loved them, but did my bridesmaids flowers myself. They were fake so we weren't charged a fee. We used their photography and had our own (there was a fee, but it was worth it because their packages are expensive!), but I will say that their photographer was great at taking posed portraits. We ended up getting some great shots of us together.
I'm still waiting on our DVD. In fact, I just emailed Rebecca today about that because it hasn't come. CP wedding services is huge and so navigating the system can sometimes be difficult if you're not used to such things. However, they offer convenience if you're not into putting together every ceremony detail like I was.
There was some confusion with our limo package to go get our marriage license, but it was eventually straightened out.
Like I said, CP is huge and so it can be difficult if you're not persistent and patient. And I was determined not to let my trip be ruined by small things like that. If you're polite and patient with people, they will help you get what you need. The CP staff are great even if they are decentralized. I highly recommend pre-registering for your marriage license in Vegas because that line was crazy long and we ended up waiting maybe 20 minutes instead of over an hour.
I highly recommend the Cleopatra package, especially if you plan on staying a several nights in Vegas like we did.
David's Bridal A
Everyone has mixed feelings about this place, but I had no problem. I loved my dress (Galina Signature) and the alterations people did a great job. I wasn't one of those people with crazy requests. I just needed my dress taken in and the hem brought up because I'm short. They added bustles to my dress and the price was what I budgeted for alterations. I will say this, if you go during busy times then your service may suffer. It's a big chain store. So, I usually went during the week for alterations. When I picked out my dress, I went with my mom on a weekday evening. Our sales person worked with only us the entire time. I also got my bridesmaids dresses here because of the discount. It worked out great because everyone was in different parts of the country. No one had a problem getting their dress as far as I know. I also ended up buying my veil online from them. It was perfect. I didn't want a traditional veil and ended up having just a birdcage.
My mother also ordered our favors from here. She wanted them. I was ambivalent about it, but I decided on heart shaped bookmarks because we love to read. I was satisfied with them, though it was just a small detail. If you must have favors, do it cheaply and don't wait until the last minute like my mom or you will pay through the nose for shipping.
Accessories (Internet!) A+
I got my shoes from shoebuy.com. I was extremely happy with getting $200 shoes for $35! They ran big, but some inserts helped and they were good for most of the day. I still had flip flops because they are heels and in Vegas, you do a lot of walking. I got my jewelry from amazon.com believe it or not. It was a beautiful set that came with earrings and necklace. Those pictures didn't do it justice and it was only $20.
Simply Violet Photography A+ (
http://www.simplyvioletphotography.com/)
I can't say enough good things about them! They are destination wedding photographers based in Greenville, SC (where I was living at the time) and they were worth every penny. We took engagement photos in Vegas too and they were fabulous. April and James work together. Unlike other photographers, they didn't charge us per hour or per photographer. Their package deals are great. This is the one thing I didn't skim on price wise. They were easy to contact pre-wedding and when we arrived in Vegas, they were tons of fun. They were with us from 10 am until 11pm at night on our wedding day. They took great photos and everyone loved their personalities. They put their photos on a flash drive instead of a CD, so your photos are more high res. I highly recommend also checking out their blog. They sometimes do blogs of their weddings and every one that I've seen is amazing. Again, cannot say enough good things about them. It was a positive experience all around.
Trevi A
I went in blind on this one and I'm glad I did. We held our reception at Trevi. The food was amazing! We did basically a buffet style with stations. Everyone loved the food. I know most people wouldn't tell the bride and groom the food sucked, but my mother is extremely picky and honest and even she liked it. And my mother isnt' a huge Italian food fan. I was very happy with the service. Instead of doing open bar, we had a tab. It worked out because my family isn't heavy drinkers so that helped us come under budget. We didn't use decor and I'm glad because the private dining room on the top floor was gorgeous! I will say this, there wasn't much room for dancing, but we hosted a short cocktail style reception. It was a little over two hours. It's Vegas! We wanted to get out and on the street to have fun. Who wants to sit in a room for 4 hours? Besides, most of our guests were older and so I wasn't too concerned about having dancing. We used an iPod and speaker for music. It was great. Most restaurants in Vegas don't allow DJs so if you want dancing, you might try a more traditional banquet hall.
I will say this, having my reception inside Caesar's Palace made it soooooo much easier. My guests only had to walk and that cut down on transportation costs and confusion of getting people from point A to point B. You know, I never actually met the manager in person. We talked on the phone and email and that was it. But everything worked out perfectly.
Trevi seems to be a solid choice (based on other reviews) if you've never been to Vegas and can't afford a scouting trip (like me).
Presidential Limousine Service A
We used them for our engagement photo shoot to take around Vegas. They were reasonably priced and our driver was great about not going over our time. It was a good experience. He arrived on time and was very good about getting around Vegas. We went to the Las Vegas sign, New York New York (for the arcade), and to Old Vegas.
Cakes on the Move (based in Las Vegas) A+
I took a chance and went with this company because Trevi recommended it. I was not disappointed! I sent a photo of my dress and she made a cake that was inspired by it. I loved it! It was simple and elegant and it tasted amazing. She's very friendly and is great about keeping in contact if you need to. She didn't charge extra fees like most other places I checked and I liked that the service was personal. I never met her in person, but she made such an impression over the phone that I felt very comfortable hiring her to do our wedding cake. She makes the cakes herself and runs her business alone as far as I can tell. So there was no chance my order would fall through the cracks like it would in some big bakery. If I lived in Vegas, I would use her to do our anniversary cakes.
Make Up at MAC in Caesar's Palace Forum Shops A+I called ahead a few weeks early and made an appointment for bridal makeup. They were great. I wanted simple elegant make up and the woman who did mine was fabulous. I wear glasses and so I didn't want something too crazy, but she made my eyes pop and I feel like they're always hidden behind my glasses. She picked out a fabulous shade of lip gloss I ended up buying then and there for my touch ups. Totally worth spending $50. My hair I was done by my mom's stylist who has also been doing my hair since I was three years old. I paid for her to fly in to Vegas and I'm glad I did rather than deal wiith someone I don't know. If you're African American and concerned about the hair thing, I would say its worth going with someone you know rather than gambling. I'm very particular about my hair. It's natural and I don't like to wear braids or weaves. That said, of the places I found, many wanted to charge hundreds of dollars for bridal hair. I just took that money and paid for hotel/flight instead for someone I trusted.
Overall, I was so pleased with my destination wedding in Las Vegas. I can't wait to go back there. It was an amazing week and I wish it could have lasted longer.