HELP !!!
My son and his finace (both in late 20s) have decided to get married in Puerto Vallarta next March and have asked me to help them with the planning. Their budget is apprx $5K.
They want a casual and simple wedding with 30 to 40 persons attending. They would like the wedding on a beautiful/romantic beach followed by a casual dinner/party afterwards.
Any advice, tips or recommendations would be much appreciated especailly from recently-wedded couples or their parents ! Thanks

Do they want to actually do their legal wedding in Mexico? Or is this only a celebration after they are already married in the US?

I can help with some information on Puerto Vallarta, both restaurants that do weddings, and/or some wedding planners in town (since I vacation there quite often and am active on 2 PV net boards). But I suggest looking into what is necessary for a legal wedding in Mexico, if you haven't already, and if that's what they're wanting to do. My understanding is it is a bit complicated.

first things first.

Drop an e-mail to my friend Michael at
[email protected]

I agree with that web site also I was planning a wedding and a Tamara Bradley at that site helped me. We still email back and forth. She or whoever,will be able to do everything you need. What a wonderful place to get married there are so many many sites. Good Luck

Try Laura at www.idovallarta.com

My friend's daughter was going to get married in PV. The hotel that would have hosted it recommended that they get married in the U.S. and have the ceremony in PV. It's a little complicated otherwise.

As Suze and Dori mentioned, the legal part of getting married in Mexico is the complicated part. A wedding "ceremony" on the beach or even in a church does not make it legal. There is a 4-7 day process of applications, blood tests, getting everything translated and appearing before a civil officer to have the legal part done. Do a Google search on "getting married in Mexico" and you will see what is involved in making it legal. I would recommend the couple have a civil ceremony in their home state or province, then have all the friends and family go to PV and have the nice romantic ceremony they want. That way they can use their time for the fun stuff, instead of the legal hassle. They can still go through a wedding planner as mentioned to set everything up, or also I've heard that Le Kliff restaurant (see www.lekliff.com)which sits on a cliffside outside PV, does beautiful weddings. Whatever they decide, good luck to all of you.