Destination Weddings Discussions

mexico wedding

hi all,

i am looking to plan a wedding in mexico on a beach for august of next year.  just wondering if anyone has any ideas or suggestions.   thanks so much!!

jen

Re: mexico wedding

  • I don't have an y recommendations for specific resorts, etc. but make sure to budget in a few more nights at the resort and blood tests so that you can make your Mexico marriage legal.
  • It is hard to get married in Mexico if you're not Mexican. It isn't impossible, but there are a lot of legal hoops to jump through. Also, just because you are in the budget board, rarely do destination wedding = budget friendly. Check out the destination wedding board.
  • We were married in Mexico, and it wasn't difficult to go through the legal process!  All that was required was being in the country three days in advance (which we were going to do anyway) and then a blood test, which we actually had done onsite at our resort.  

    Good luck with your planning!
  • We were married in Tulum last month which is about 90 miles south of Cancun in the state of Quintana Roo, on the Yucatan peninsula. We both love it there. We honeymooned 45 minutes north in Maroma Beach. We opted for our wedding at a big AI resort so our guests more or less knew all their costs ahead of time. Had we gone with a smaller, more intimate location we would have chosen either Rosa del Viento, El Pez or Be Tulum. All of which are on the beach road.

    DW's can be as inexpensive or as expensive as you make them. The biggest cost savings you'll mostly find going with a DW is that your guest list is usually much smaller and easier to manage. Unless you have very large families or tons of people you feel you absolutely MUST invite. 

    The entire Riviera Maya is gorgeous and you can find tons of great deals. The single best way to save money is travel off season (Sept. - Nov.) if you're willing to change your date.
  • I'm currently planning our destination wedding in Cancun, Mexico in April of 2015. We have decided to do a symbolic ceremony instead of the legal ceremony. (Just to save the headache of paperwork). We just have to arrive 2 days before the ceremony. It will be at an all inclusive resort because the wedding packages really worked with our budget. We also chose a resort that will allow children since we will have our daughter with us SO be sure to check into that too.

    We had invited 35 guests but most of it will be our family since we are paying for most of them. Destination weddings are expensive. I think MOST of our income is just going to the hotel stay and airfare. 

    I learned after researching about DW. some of the rates starts to drop during August-December which is usually their off-season. 

    Good luck!
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  • OP you'll see that some posters choose to not have their legal ceremony in Mexico because requires one additional day in country (3 business days total) and a blood test. If you decide to go the route of having a symbolic ceremony, it is considered proper etiquette to inform your guests that it's a symbolic ceremony and celebration of your marriage, rather than an actual wedding. That way, your guests are aware of the intent of the event taking place and can be fully informed prior to making the decision to spend money and time traveling to the event.

    While a lot of posters choose to do their legal paperwork prior to leaving, it's also considered to be a bit more appropriate to wait until your return to do the paperwork. That way, when exchanging your vows and rings on the beach, it truly is the first time you will be participating in a wedding-like ceremony and you are still considered to be a bride and groom rathern than husband and wife. 

     







  • I had a friend that was married in Key Largo but had "legally" been married for a year prior. I did not feel that that was not there actual wedding nor did anyone else. Just because they had paperwork taken care of does not mean that their ceremny was not special. This was the first time they were saying I Do's in front of family and friends and this is the wedding date they celebrate. They also did not let everyone know this was just a symbolic ceremony nor should they be required to.

    We are planning our DW in Riviera Maya for Sept 4, 2015  at the Secrets Maroma Beach and we are not legally getting married there. It is not just a matter of a blood test (we will already be there 3 days prior). It does cost an additional $1400 to get legally married there. We can save this and use it towards other things to make our guests happy and comfortable. Good luck @jenashton !

  • Latillo said:

    I had a friend that was married in Key Largo but had "legally" been married for a year prior. I did not feel that that was not there actual wedding nor did anyone else. Just because they had paperwork taken care of does not mean that their ceremny was not special. This was the first time they were saying I Do's in front of family and friends and this is the wedding date they celebrate. They also did not let everyone know this was just a symbolic ceremony nor should they be required to.

    We are planning our DW in Riviera Maya for Sept 4, 2015  at the Secrets Maroma Beach and we are not legally getting married there. It is not just a matter of a blood test (we will already be there 3 days prior). It does cost an additional $1400 to get legally married there. We can save this and use it towards other things to make our guests happy and comfortable. Good luck @jenashton !

    Well, to each their own, but I was offering up what is considered to be proper etiquette on how to deal with the legalities of a foreign wedding. No one is forced to follow etiquette, but it's something that should be considered if you do not want to risk being rude to your guests. 

     







  • Latillo said:

    I had a friend that was married in Key Largo but had "legally" been married for a year prior. I did not feel that that was not there actual wedding nor did anyone else. Just because they had paperwork taken care of does not mean that their ceremny was not special. This was the first time they were saying I Do's in front of family and friends and this is the wedding date they celebrate. They also did not let everyone know this was just a symbolic ceremony nor should they be required to.

    We are planning our DW in Riviera Maya for Sept 4, 2015  at the Secrets Maroma Beach and we are not legally getting married there. It is not just a matter of a blood test (we will already be there 3 days prior). It does cost an additional $1400 to get legally married there. We can save this and use it towards other things to make our guests happy and comfortable. Good luck @jenashton !

    I would be very upset if I spent thousands of to watch my friend pretend to get married and she led me to believe she was actually getting married. The least you should do is be up front with your guests. 

    Why is ok to ask guests to shell putt he extra money when you aren't willing to spend the additional $1400 to get married there? 

    Lying is not cool and this would make me reconsider my friendship with the couple.
    :kiss: ~xoxo~ :kiss:

  • Mexico has some beautiful places to get married. I got married in Cozumel earlier this year. There are a lot of considerations. Budget, being first and foremost. One of the biggest pieces of advice I can give, is to prepare your budget for 100 percent attendance. Many brides expect a high decline rate due to the travel, then find themselves in trouble because they got much less than planned. 

    As for pp, I agree that if you choose to get married prior to your symbolic ceremony, that should be explicit and your guests should know that ahead of time. Another option that one of the other brides mentioned a while ago was to sign the license after the ceremony in Mexico, but use a different location. That way your anniversary is still truly the day you got married. 
    "There is always some madness in love. But there is also always some reason in madness." -Friedrich Nietzsche, "On Reading and Writing"
  • Without turning this in to "one of those" threads that will never end well, it's all very simple:

    Know the costs and decide what is important to you. That applies to every facet of planning a wedding, not just where or when you'll sign your marriage license. 

    Lots of people seem to have an opinion on what's right or wrong where the marriage license signing thing is concerned. And that's all well and fine, but valuing and following what is best within your own relationship (and subsequent marriage) trumps all that comes from the peanut gallery (you can apply that logic to pretty much all facets of wedding planning as well).

    Research what fees and what the rules and regulations will be in MX for your particular desired style of ceremony before you decide on anything. I think it was legally binding civil marriages must be performed in Spanish when we started planning. That may not work out well for everyone. If I remember correctly, religious ceremonies are not legally binding there. Or only catholic ceremonies were, or something like that. I didn't spend any time researching that option as we're not religious.

    Divorced people pay more because the Mexican government requires a copy of the divorce decree(s) on file and it must be translated (by them) for a rather pricy fee.

    If these things seem worth it to you or are important, most certainly follow the guidelines for whichever route you choose. If not, there are alternatives. Just educate yourself and make an informed choice. It doesn't have to be super costly to get married in Mexico. And what's "worth it" to spend on making it official south of the border is relative, just like everything else is.




  • msuprincess04 do you mind sharing where you got married in Cozumel? How big was the resort and what month? I've read a few of your posts and you seem to speak quite highly of it. Advice is much appreciated!
    Thank you
  • @dwhereicome, I know Cozumel very well as I spent a lot of time there. It was the natural place for our wedding. We were married at Mr. Sancho's Beach Club in mid-May. It was warm, but it rained during the day and that helped cool things down for the reception. It was cloudy during the ceremony, but still beautiful. It's also just past the high season, so it was cheaper than if we had done it in April. The marjoity of the wedding party stayed at a rented villa (Villa Yak'alil) and the majority of guests stayed at the Iberostar. Some chose to stay in other rented condos, and others stayed at different resorts. Since our wedding was off resort (we wanted privacy and more control over extras), people could stay whereever they wanted. We had an awesome local wedding planner, Stephanie at Cozumel Wedding Planner, that helped make everything run very smoothly. If you have any other questions, don't hesitate to ask!

    "There is always some madness in love. But there is also always some reason in madness." -Friedrich Nietzsche, "On Reading and Writing"
  • We are having our wedding at Dreams Puerto Aventuras in Riviera Maya next month. It's a smaller resort, but part of a large chain. Because of this and the "shoulder" date, we were able to negotiate a fantastic room rate and all sorts of other discounts for our guests (15% off at the spa, etc). The wedding planners have been amazing! You can go as "cookie-cutter" or unique as you like, just send them pictures or ask them to look at your pinterest board and they will help to translate your vision. It's all been super low stress, and I'm so glad we went the DW route. Less than a month out and I actually feel more than on top of things! Good luck with your wedding planning!
  • We attended a wedding last June at Now Amber Puerto Vallarta and it was amazing! The resort was beautiful, service- outstanding and food and drinks to die for!
    Had my family not just traveled down there less than a year ago for my cousins wedding- I would have gotten married there FOR SURE! Just hate to ask everyone to go back to the same resort less than a year and a half later.
    HIGHLY recommend Now Amber PV!!! 
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