2:00 – 2:30 wedding meeting

2:30 – 3:00 buffer/walking time

3:00 – 4:00 rehearsal at ecumenical chapel

4:00 – 5:00 photo begins – immediate family, bridal party, us

5:00 – 6:00 welcome party – photo ends

7:00 Rehearsal Dinner at Arenal

 

Xtudio Xcaret: We used the 2 hour shoot that was included in our wedding package and was pleasantly surprised with this. We did a one hour shoot with immediate family, bridal party, and us, and then did the other hour for the welcome party. He showed us some snips on his camera and they looked cute! I will follow up once we get these photos back.

 

Rocio Juarez: We worked out a deal with Rocio to where we paid for her and her assistant to stay in our room block for a small discount and welcome party coverage. I don’t think this actually saved us any money in the end, but I felt better giving her a trip instead of giving Xcaret the vendor fee. Rocio was an absolute angel and I would hire her ten times over. She’s so kind, always has a smile on her face, and had sneak peaks ready for us the same night. She felt like family by Sunday.

Event Design: We got 3 small cocktail table arrangements and overall they were okay. The colors weren’t what I asked for but the guests didn’t know that so it didn’t matter. I wouldn’t recommend them for a wedding day though especially if you are looking for certain color palettes, color theory, etc.

 

Things I brought myself:

– Cocktail napkins

– Coasters

– Drink Stirrers

– Bar signage

– Themed towels for servers arms

– 3 photo frames

– Guest book sign

– Guest book (highly recommend bringing this to all events, I think we got all 60 people to sign ours)

– Welcome bags (I brought and packed these myself. We had itineraries, shot glasses, tajin, tequila, hangover kits, and towels. I’ll have more information on how I brought this all to Mexico in my wedding day review.)

I designed the napkins and coasters on canva and printed them through 24hourwristbands.com. The drink stirrers we made with a circuit. The bar signage I designed on canva and printed at FedEx.

The drinks and food were so good and we got many compliments on the food!

Overall, the welcome party was perfect. The theme was Bienvenidos Amigos and the color palette was pink and orange. I asked all guests to wear white and I wore pink!

One tip I have is that if you aren’t happy with the assigned location don’t be afraid to ask for another! Obviously this is based on resort availability so please be kind, but also don’t be afraid to advocate for yourself.