Crimson Beach Resort and Spa - Wedding Packages

Crimson Beach Resort and Spa, one of the newest luxury beach destinations in Cebu, is also an ideal venue for a beach wedding or a wedding reception. They have three wedding packages, all of which are for a minimum of 100 persons.

Crimson Beach Resort and Spa Wedding Package A
- Php 4,500.00 net/person

Crimson Beach Resort and Spa Wedding Package B
- Php 3,500.00 net/person

Crimson Beach Resort and Spa Wedding Package C
- Php 2,500.00 net/person

The inclusions of their wedding packages are as follows:
• Dinner buffet with one round of soft-drinks
• Free use of the venue for four (4) hours
• Basic P/A sound system with microphone
• Violinist, Flute and Guitarist - A and B only
• Photo and Video Coverage - A and B only
• Wedding giveaways - A and B only
• Bridal car for maximum of four (4) hours w/ floral arrangement 
.......... - A and B only
• Flower arrangement
• Place cards for the presidential table
• One (1) bottle of wine for toasting
• Cake
.......... A - Three (3) layered fondant cake and fifty (50) cupcakes
.......... B - Two (2) layered fondant cake and thirty (30) cupcakes
.......... C - Two (2) layered fondant cake
• Guest signature frame
• Thirty (30) butterflies - A and B only
• Thirty (30) pieces of flying lanterns for the finale - A only
• Welcome fruit basket for the couple
• Welcome drinks for the couple
• Lechon
.......... A - Complimentary 1 lechon
.......... .......... plus waived corkage for 2 additional lechons
.......... B - Complimentary 1 lechon
.......... .......... plus waived corkage for 1 additional lechon
.......... C - Complimentary 1 lechon
.......... .......... plus waived corkage for 1 additional lechon
• Wine
.......... A - Waived corkage for five (5) bottles of wine brought in
.......... B - Waived corkage for three (3) bottles of wine brought in
.......... C - Waived corkage for two (2) bottles of wine brought in
• Complimentary overnight accommodation for 2
.......... at the Garden Suite
• 50% discount on rack rates for couple's relatives booking rooms
.......... during the wedding day
• Complimentary buffet breakfast for two (2) at Saffron Cafe
• Complimentary signature massage for the bride and groom
.......... at AUM SPA
• 15% discount when dining in Crimson outlets

Marco Polo Plaza wedding packages

I don't always know the answers to your questions or have the time to do the legwork, but I try. ^_^ Thanks everyone for dropping by! And extra hugs go out to people who take the time to shoot me an email. This one (and this other one) is for Boboh.

Marco Polo Plaza holds a special place in the hearts of Cebuanos. Back when it was still Cebu Plaza Hotel, it was the hotel in Cebu, the place to see and be seen in. The same prestige holds sway today, now that it is part of the Marco Polo group of hotels. Its Nivel Hills location gives guests a beautiful view of the city, and its posh interiors are just as breathtaking.

photo from the Marco Polo website

Here are the current (as of April 2011) Marco Polo Wedding Packages:

Tierra

PhP 1,026+ per person

Min. 100 persons, max. 150 persons

(minimum total P102,600)

• Venue at Manila or Shanghai Rooms
• Buffet menu
• Overnight accommodation with breakfast for two in a Deluxe Seaview room
• Welcome fruit platter
• Two-layered wedding cake or lechon
• One bottle of sparkling wine for toasting
• A pair of doves
• One guestbook
• Standard PA system
• Floral centerpieces per table
• Place cards for the presidential table
• One round of soft drinks
• Bridal car for a maximum of two hours
• One gift certificate for an overnight stay with breakfast for two in a Deluxe Seaview room

Oro

PhP 1,772+ per person

Min. 100 persons, max. 250 persons

(minimum total P177,200)

• Venue at the Garden Terrace
• Buffet menu
• Overnight accommodation with breakfast for two in a Junior Suite
• Welcome fruit platter
• Three-layered wedding cake or lechon
• One bottle of sparkling wine for toasting
• A pair of doves
• One guestbook
• Standard PA system
• Floral centerpieces per table
• Place cards for the presidential table
• One gift certificate for an overnight stay with breakfast for two in a Deluxe Seaview room
• One round of soft drinks
• Couple’s massage with herbal pack at the Wellness Zone
• Bridal car for a maximum of two (2) hours
  

Fuego

PhP 1,772+ per person

Min. 200 persons, max. 300 persons

(minimum total P354,400)

• Venue at the Grand Ballroom
• Buffet menu
• Overnight accommodation with breakfast for two in a Junior Suite
• Welcome fruit platter
• Three-layered wedding cake or lechon
• One bottle of sparkling wine for toasting
• A pair of doves
• One guestbook
• Standard PA system
• Floral centerpieces per table
• Place cards for the presidential table
• One gift certificate for an overnight stay with breakfast for two in a Deluxe Seaview room
• One round of soft drinks
• Couple’s massage with herbal pack at the Wellness Zone
• Bridal car for a maximum of two (2) hours

Viento

PhP 1,600+ per person

Min. 300 persons, max. 400 persons

(minimum total P480,000)

• Venue at the Grand Ballroom
• Buffet menu
• Overnight accommodation with breakfast for two in a Junior Suite
• Welcome fruit platter
• Three-layered wedding cake or lechon
• One bottle of sparkling wine for toasting
• A pair of doves
• One guestbook
• Standard PA system
• Floral centerpieces per table
• Place cards for the presidential table
• One gift certificate for an overnight stay with breakfast for two in a Deluxe Seaview room
• One round of soft drinks
• Couple’s massage with herbal pack at the Wellness Zone
• Bridal car for a maximum of two (2) hours

Aqua

PhP 1,198+ per person

Min. 400 persons, max. 500 persons

(minimum total P479,200)

• Venue at the Grand Ballroom
• Buffet menu
• Overnight accommodation with breakfast for two in a Junior Suite
• Welcome fruit platter
• Four-layered wedding cake or lechon
• One bottle of sparkling wine for toasting
• A pair of doves
• One guestbook
• Standard PA system
• Floral centerpieces per table
• Place cards for the presidential table
• One gift certificate for an overnight stay with breakfast for two in a Deluxe Seaview room
• One round of soft drinks
• Bridal car for a maximum of two (2) hours

***

The menus for some of the wedding packages are different from the others, but if I listed everything here, this long post would be even longer, so just email me if you're interested in getting a copy. To the Marco Polo banquet sales executive who very promptly sent me their wedding package brochures just one day after I made an inquiry in behalf of a friend, thank you!

Radisson Blu wedding package

I don't always know the answers to your questions or have the time to do the legwork, but I try. ^_^ Thanks everyone for dropping by! And extra hugs go out to people who take the time to shoot me an email. This one (and this other one) is for Boboh.

Radisson Blu is one of the newest and swankiest hotels in Cebu. I must confess I haven't been there myself, but I've seen friends express their approval and post fab photos in Facebook. (I know. I really should go there one of these days.) The hotel is right beside SM City Cebu and is a short distance from most of the major churches in the city center.

photo from http://www.radissonblu.com/hotel-cebu/dining/lobby

The Radisson Blu wedding package costs P170,000 for a minimum of 100 guests, plus P950 for each extra person. Their wedding package includes the following perks:

• a 3-layered wedding cake 
• a special gift for the couple
• a bridal car, maximum 3-hour use 
• a guestbook with pen
• place cards for the presidential table
• table centerpieces
• iced tea or soft drink 
• coffee and tea
• sparkling wine for the couple’s toast
• 2 nights stay in a suite room with buffet breakfast for two
• a welcome fruit platter in the suite room 
• late check out at 2 p.m. 
• a gift certificate for a buffet lunch or dinner for 2 at FERIA
• 50% discount on a lunch or dinner buffet at FERIA for a group of 10 persons
• 50% off on a suite room on the couple's first wedding anniversary

All this is from the Radisson Blu wedding package brochure, which their Events Manager kindly sent me just one day after I inquired about their wedding packages in behalf of a friend. Prompt attention to customers, even just potential ones, is always a major plus for me. Cheers!

I used to email a copy of the Radisson Blu brochure to readers who asked for it, but it's been a little over 9 months since I obtained that brochure. Since I can't be sure that all the terms and conditions there are still valid, I would suggest that you guys get the brochure direct from Radisson Blu. ^_^

ideas for wedding giveaways (or favors) - idea # 1

When the subject of wedding giveaways, or wedding favors, first came up during our wedding planning stage, my first thought was: I did not want giveaways like these. ----->

No offense to those of the traditional giveaways school of thought, of course. But -- and I hate to be the one to break the news to those who aren't already aware of it, but -- stuff like these do tend to end up in dusty shelves, get thrown away, or be given to the poorer relatives during Christmas. They look cute, and they were extremely popular in decades past, but sadly their charm has worn off.

A great wedding giveaway, for me, is something that is nice and useful, and ideally out of the ordinary. Easily sourced in Cebu? A definite plus. Something that immediately reminds the recipient of the couple? Brilliant. And inexpensive? Perfect!

Another thing is, I actually like the idea of having different wedding favors and letting each guest choose which one they'd like to take home. People who are always using pens at work might go for silver pens engraved with the couple's names, for example. Girls might go for cute stuff like candles and jewelry. And guys would be perfectly happy with food.

Some friends and I have been throwing around ideas for giveaways, and I thought I'd share them with you in the next couple of posts.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

IDEA # 1 - FASHION JEWELRY

Vintage-themed weddings are all the rage these days, so why not give away some "vintage" jewelry?

Having a garden wedding or a beach wedding? How about a necklace with a butterfly pendant, or a bracelet with silver dolphin charms?

Are you and your spouse more of the wooden-beads, music-loving, sand-in-feet, chillin' type? These will be perfect for your wedding then.

Want something with your wedding colors? How about these dreamcatcher earrings?

Do you prefer giveaways that are understated but pretty? These cord and metal bracelets should do the trick.

And, finally, nothing says "thank you for being my bridesmaid" or "thank you for being my friend" like a Swarovski bracelet, or earrings, or both.

Time for a little disclosure here: The reason why fashion jewelry is idea no. 1 is because I have ready photos of them. And the reason for that is because I'm actually selling some of this stuff. I don't make them myself, but I know where to get them for really low prices. This fashion-jewelry-as-wedding-giveaway idea actually came to me while I was out restocking my supplies. I know of a bride who actually bought Swarovksi bracelets to give away to her peer sponsors. And, yes, these accessories are all available in Cebu at prices less than P100.

Stay tuned for idea # 2.

Nupcias Cebuanas - February 12-27, 2011 - Parkmall

There's a wedding expo going on at Parkmall right now. I don't have a full list of exhibitors, as my family and I were only passing through, on our way from grocery shopping the other Sunday, but we did see Wenwen Zaspa, Abbai Pila and Jingjing Zaspa, setting up the Make-up by Wenwen Zaspa booth.

The Nupcias Cebuanas fair will culminate in a bridal fashion show this Sunday, February 27, 2010, at 6 PM.

See you there. ^_^

2011 Wedding Packages

I've been getting a lot of emails lately from brides-to-be, asking if the prices in my previous posts about wedding packages and wedding reception venues have changed. The simple answer to that was: I didn't know. I'd made my inquiries back in 2009, in preparation for my 2010 wedding.

As promised, though, I recently emailed all the people I'd emailed before and asked for their 2011 prices. I've only had a few responses so far, and I will put them up here, in the order that I received them. (This should give you an idea on which venues are the most responsive to their customers!)

City Sports Club Cebu

As always, Tea of City Sports was abtik, as we say in Cebu -- fast, friendly and thorough. She informed me that their wedding packages haven't changed yet. (You can read about them in my original City Sports post here.) She added that they did make some changes to their regular menus. If you are planning to hold an event there, you will find these useful:

For further inquiries, you can email Tea at salescscc@gmail.com.


Crown Regency Hotel & Towers

Ms. Mayet Belarmino has promised to have their banquet team send me their latest prices. I'm still waiting for them and I'll be posting them as soon as they arrive.

Back in 2009, their Sky Adventure wedding package cost P120,000. This included:

• International Dinner Buffet at Sky
• Menu is inclusive of One Round of softdrink
• Use of the venue for a maximum of 5 hours
• Sound System with microphone
• Rostrum with microphone
• Overnight stay for two in a Superior Room only.
• Two (2) Layered Wedding Cake
• Bridal car for a maximum of 3 hours use
• Coaster for the guest with maximum of 3hrs. use
• One guestbook
• One bottle of sparkling wine for toasting
• Floral centerpieces at the guest’s tables
• Place cards for the presidential table
• Pair of doves
• Invitation Cards (50 pcs.)
• Give aways (50pcs.)
• Free Hair & Make-up for the Bride
• Sky Walk Extreme or Edge Coaster Rides for the couple (for pre-nup or during the reception)
• Digital Video Coverage -- 100pcs. copies 4r (digital picture), 1 copy 8x10 picture, 1 cd soft copy of printed pictures, 1 copy of DVD (edited video), additional Php2,500.00 for every 36 shoots of excess pictures
• Waived corkage fee for the first 1 Lechon brought-in during the reception, succeeding will be charged at Php1,000.00/lechon
• Waived corkage fee for the first 1 wine or hard drinks (750ml) brought in during the reception, succeeding will be charged at Php500.00/bottle
• Charged Energy Fee at Php350.00 per equipments that consume electricity during the reception.
• Waived Energy Fee for the Video Coverage
• Waived Corkage Fee for the Additional Wedding Cake

***
I have yet to receive feedback from the other wedding venues, but I'll be updating this post when I do. Take care everyone! :)

make-up by Wenwen Zaspa

Even beautiful girls need talented makeup artists to make them look absolutely stunning, whether they are posing for a magazine or prepping for a high-profile show. But if you are an ordinary-looking girl like myself, you probably dream of looking and feeling pretty even for just once in your life -- on your wedding day. And you're probably wondering how.

Luckily, there are extraordinary makeup artists who can make even the plainest Janes look pretty. They don't do it by camouflaging your face and painting an entirely new one over it. Their talent and experience enables them to bring out your best features so that you will look beautiful and still look natural at the same time. For my wedding, I was really lucky to have Wenwen Zaspa and his team.

I first heard of Wenwen from my girl friends Jet and Osita, who both got married in October 2009, just a couple of weeks apart. Images are worth a thousand words, so here is what my friends looked like on their respective wedding days:

photo of Jet by Dondon Colinares / photo of Osita by the Banana Book team

Now, if you're like me and you're not rolling in dough, one of your first questions would probably be: how much? Well, the best person to answer that would be Jingjing Zaspa (09205578432 / 09322334097), Wenwen's sister, who handles the business side of things. The rates vary, depending on what you have in mind. Let me just put it this way: for someone of Wenwen's caliber, his fees are fair and totally worth it.

Here's why:

This is what I look like (L) on ordinary days, and (R) during my wedding.
(OK, I'm still no Anne Curtis, but I did love how I looked during the wedding.)

one of our prenup photos, by RockPaperScissors

My sister (in the yellow dress) also looked stunning.

In addition to making us look great, Wenwen and his team (which, at my wedding, consisted of Abbai Pila and Aries Baguio) had the priceless ability to make us laugh while getting prepped up. The few hours before your wedding can be the most tense moments you'll ever have -- all those months of preparation, after all, are about to converge in a single afternoon -- but their stories, jokes and verbal sparring had us laughing so hard, we simply forgot to worry.

Worth it? Definitely.

In the end, perhaps, beauty is only skin deep. The eye shadow washes off after the wedding; the blush fades. What's really important about looking good is its by-product: feeling good. It is the little kick that you get out of a dream come true. It is the self-assurance that enables you to walk on air as you walk down the aisle. It is the serenity that makes you forget about the crowds, the flashing cameras, the little details, and focus on what really matters: the person waiting for you at the altar, and the life you are about to have together.