2nd ocular

B2Bs and H2Bs ought to know, when  in doubt, do an ocular! And whether you liked what you see or not, it's still worth the effort because you got rid of your doubts anyway.

It's the 2nd time I did an ocular this weekend. The first time was October last year when I went to Zambales to find a nice resort and church. After that ocular, I thought I found my wedding church and venue but after a few days, we realized that we're better off somewhere else.

This weekend, I dragged my friend Jan to accompany me while I do oculars in the South. We first went to Hotel Kimberly in  Tagaytay. I wasn't really planning on having a Tagaytay wedding because it's overdone but my friend's visit to their booth in a wedding fair got me intrigued and so I ended up visiting their Tagaytay branch. Much to my surprise, the hotel is actually prettier in person than in their website! (which rarely happens) I fell in love (or did I?) Their facilities and services are impressive! They got a thumbs up from moi.

Next stop was in Club Balai Isabel, famed by the Oyo and Kristine nuptials. The resort was nice but the staff, not very much. It was disappointing to experience first hand how their staff acted like novices in what they do. I thought, with a pricey rate like that, Balai should've trained their staff on how to provide superb service. Even with amazing facilities, I said to myself, I will never get married there because I won't get a bang for our buck.

Still not contented with our two stops, me and my friend still went  to San Juan, Batangas to check out Palm Beach Resort. In all honesty, I still want to have a beach wedding just because we both love the beach so we went there with high hopes that maybe, this is it! The road is newly asphalted, locals are nice and helpful and the weather was just perfect. Going to the resort, the road was challenging and I felt good... this is so us!!! We were off the beaten path, we were home! The resort facility was awesome too but the beach, not quite. The staff are accommodating although you could tell that they're not trained for it. I would've considered it except that there is no nearby church or chapel and that every move you make has a corresponding price to pay. Their staff also didn't have answers for me although I have emailed them my concerns already a few days before that ocular. So, we went home totally eXing the whole Laiya and Hugom beaches.

After I gave my report to H2B, he was already sold to Hotel Kimberly. But, I'm still not ready to let go of my beach wedding dreams so I said I'm going to look for Bataan or Aurora beaches when I get home. So I did research of a few beaches where I can have our wedding. Problem is, the beaches are still not that pretty for us to spend our moolah. We will be paying for their resort facilities not the beauty of the beach in front of their resort. We also noticed that hotel staff are way better than the resort people so Hotel Kimberly nailed the customer service part. Reality check also told me that it's hard to hold a wedding in a place where weddings are rarely celebrated at. Experience in holding weddings is key. As much as great customer service just because you'll be dealing with the staff way before your wedding date. Therefore, Tagaytay wedding it is for my "Breakfast at Tiffany's" inspired nuptials.

Next question is, among the different beautiful churches around Hotel Kimberly, which would give us the "This is it!" chills? Hope we can find out next week. Wish us luck! :)

1st booking: FAIL!

I was at the Weddings and Debuts 2011 Bridal Fair in Megamall during the weekend and I booked a photo/video supplier. I think I got excited with the amount of discount that I got from this specific vendor so I called up H2B and asked for his sign off. Unfortunately, he was at the middle of his deep slumber so his decision to give the supplier a go was not at all rationale. I on the other hand, was not thinking too because I was charmed by the discount. I was also very eager to have my 1st booking and to finally convince myself that yes, I am getting married. All these factors helped in how my 1st wedding vendor booking failed.

Reality is, when you are in these discount fairs, you are easily swayed to sign a contract and give your downpayment. Why wouldn't you? Any savings that you could get is very important, most especially when you are spending big bucks for your wedding. On the bright side though, at least I learned my lesson on the early stage of my wedding planning. And that I wouldn't suck it up with the supplier just because its cheap.

Wish me luck in looking for that perfect balance between quality work and affordable rates.