Catholic Wedding at Xcaret and the Grand Hyatt – Cristy and Dan

“We share a passion for adventure and exploring new places. In one of our adventures, we traveled to Cancun and visited Xcaret. We thought that the Chapel of Guadalupe was one of the most stunning places we had ever seen! When we got engaged, Cristy knew right away that’s where she wanted to get married.” This is the story of Cristy and Dan’s Xcaret and Grand Hyatt Wedding.

“Our families and friends are also all spread out around the US and Mexico. Most of them had never met, so we knew traveling for our wedding would be the perfect opportunity to allow them to meet and get to know each other over a few days.”

Del Sol Photography is a photographer for Grand Hyatt Playa del Carmen.  Contact us at del Sol Travels and we can help with room blocks at Grand Hyatt Playa del Carmen.  We plan trips, we have pics of the hotels we love, we offer this service to all our clients.

“Traveling for our wedding and having our loved ones with us is an adventure we will always cherish and never forget.” #travelforlove

“Dan loves to ask questions and make me think about everything and anything. It was very much his personality to trick me on our wedding day with his gift. He knew the GPS coordinates on the bracelet was a puzzle I wouldn’t be able to answer without some help. Well, he was right! At first glance, I only had a guess based on one of them being significantly closer to the Equator than the other. I needed the help of my friends (and Google) to nail down the answer.”

“The outside of the bracelet had the coordinates of the Chapel of Guadalupe where we were getting married that day. The inside had the coordinates of the building where we met in college. His gift was a symbol of the chapters of where our love story began and where we would receive the sacrament of marriage.”

Cristy and Dan told us there was not a dry eye during their dads’ speeches. Everyone was moved by their words of wisdom.

“Dan’s dad told us to take mental snapshots during our big day to remember during the bad times. Cristy’s dad had some moving advice about always steering the sails of our relationship and go with the flow. “We wish you two the best on your new journey.  Life is tricky so as you sail into unchartered waters and the wind changes direction, adjust your sails never forgetting why you choose each other.” 

“Cristy was surprised by being serenaded by mariachi, not once but twice on our wedding day! As we walked out of the church, her dad had arranged to surprise her with mariachi and Dan had arranged to surprise her during cocktail hour. It was so perfect!”

“One of the most touching moments of the day was seeing our loved ones enjoy themselves so much! The tequila was flowing and the dance floor was always full. At some point, every person at the wedding was up dancing! The tequila and shot glasses had to be replenished a few times. We wrapped up the night dancing and singing to “Sweet Caroline”. The memories of everyone singing and dancing to this last song will forever be so vivid.”

“Having two different cultures in our family is a lot of fun. We’re always learning about each others traditions and the differences in our upbringings. We embrace where we came from so much and we really appreciate the differences that we each bring to our relationship. Both of our backgrounds shaped our personalities and our personalities bring out the best in each other. We always look forward to visiting family in our hometowns and sharing stories from our childhood in different countries. It also gives Dan lots opportunities to practice his Spanish!”

“On the wedding day, it was great to have each side of our family together and experiencing new traditions. During our ceremony, we embraced the Catholic wedding ceremony traditions. We also incorporated the American tradition of having a wedding party and had a bilingual ceremony. We had so much fun selecting a mix of typical Mexican party songs and American party staples for our reception. It was a blast to see our family and friends learning new dance moves and dancing to songs they may have had no idea what they were saying.”

“We still laugh about how some of the lines in Spanish songs when literally translated into English sound so silly! Our favorite was the lyric in “La Bomba” that says “un movimiento sexy” means a “Sexy movement!””

“The Hyatt offered an amazing experience for the guests being right in the heart of Playa del Carmen, and it was so accommodating to all of our needs. All of the planning for our wedding was done by us, but perhaps Cristy deserves a little more credit than me on that front :) We found our own local vendors, provided the decorations. Our event coordinator at the Hyatt helped us execute the day flawlessly. Cristy’s dad and stepmom were so helpful in helping us find the Mexican talavera vases used as centerpieces too!” – Dan

“Valeria was excellent and so creative! She knew all of the best locations at Xcaret to take photos and the sneak peeks she showed us were breathtaking. Everyone loved her, she was so friendly, and she made us feel very comfortable in front of the camera. We could not have asked for a better photographer for our big day.”

“The del Sol team went above and beyond for us since before we made the final decision to get married in Playa. Matt was so responsive to all of my questions I posted on a destination wedding blog! He was a key player in connecting us with the Hyatt too. Erika was a sweetheart to me in times of panic. She was always so patient when I called frustrated seeking advice, even when it was not even photography related! Vanessa was also amazing! She was capturing great candid photos all day. We are so grateful to the whole del Sol team.”

“The most important thing Cristy and I learned from our wedding experience was to treasure every moment together with no matter how stressful things get. We reminded ourselves to focus on getting ready for the marriage, and not only the wedding day. Planning a wedding can be extremely difficult, especially when you’re not physically present in the location where your wedding will take place; it is easy to get so wrapped up in the details for the wedding day and neglect taking time with each other that does not revolve around the planning. We found it very important to take time to embrace each other, focus on our marriage preparation, and talk about our daily lives outside of wedding planning.”

Thank you so much to Cristy and Dan for trusting our vision! We want to say a huge thank you to them both for their wonderful words!

We LOVE Dan’s super creative gift for Cristy. So cool to give a gift that makes your love one search for the meaning. We are also always really happy to see the mix of cultures coming together to celebrate the love!

Principal Photographer: Valeria

Second Photographer: Vanessa

Getting Ready: Grand Hyatt Playa del Carmen

Catholic Wedding Ceremony – Xcaret Chapel of Guadalupe

Destination Wedding Reception: Grand Hyatt Playa del Carmen – pool deck

Destination Wedding Coordinator: Alexis Brooks

Hair and Makeup: Sara Tamargo

Wedding Dress:  Pronovias

Florist: Floreria Jardin -“We really enjoyed working with Floreria Jardin. They are so talented. With very simple direction, they were able to bring my idea to life and did a gorgeous job on our flowers. I did not want to let go of my bouquet!” – Cristy