25 March, 2015

By M&J Photography

A few weeks back, the lovely team at M&J Photography were kind enough to share with us their advice on planning a destination wedding on the Riviera Maya. Today, they're giving us a complete run down on the various wedding locations on the Riviera. Thank you once again Michael & Jennifer!

Isla Mujeres

A lovely little island with a beautiful beach, some very nice hotels and condos, a very cool downtown pedestrian street lined with good restaurants, and off-shore there is decent diving. We love visiting and working here. The vibe is definitely small town and laid back - think Mexico 1970s. Isla is probably not the best choice for the late-night party, clubbing group. We think Privilege Aluxes is one of the best resorts with one of the best planners in the entire Riviera Maya. Villas Rolandi is a nice choice, the Palace resorts have a property here and there are several villas for small groups. Also, like Cozumel and unlike the mainland, Isla has beaches where the sun sets across the water.

Location: Zama Beach Club - Isla Mujeres

Cancun

The hotel zone is a massive strip of land with exclusive hotels, all-inclusive resorts and one of the nicest strips of white sand in the world. There is so much beach, that weddings here surprisingly tend to be more private than beach weddings in Playa. Our experience has been that the beaches tend to be more sparsely populated when late afternoon weddings take place. For a non-AI experience you've got the Ritz-Carleton and JW Marriott. Cancun is the opposite of Isla Mujeres.

Location: Hotel Zone (Beach Palace) - Cancun

Cancun to Playa del Carmen

This strip includes the real little fisherman's village of Puerto Morelos, which is becoming a little more sophisticated with some good places to eat. The town has mostly small hotels and condos, but a nice beach and the reef not too far offshore. Making your way south are lots of all-inclusives (A-I) and exclusives, including some of the better run places: Azul Sensatori (high vendor fees), Now Sapphire, Mayakoba and Grand Velas. However, the beaches in this stretch sometimes suffer from excessive seaweed and seagrass. Check them out before you book if the beach life is important.

Location: Azul Sensatori - Puerto Morelos

Playa del Carmen

Is hip, international, sophisticated, and has something for everyone. Boutique hotels, A-Is, gelato, Argentine Parrillas, all-night discos, a wide sandy beach and an hourly ferry to Cozumel. We like Le Reve, a small boutique hotel just north of town. 20 years ago Playa was a small beach town, but today the concentration of hotels and beach clubs in centro means that beach weddings in central Playa can be a spectator event.

Location: The Viceroy - Playa del Carmen

Cozumel

Is our home. It is has some of the best coral reefs in the world, one of the longest unspoiled beaches in Mexico and the nicest people you can imagine. There are several good beach clubs, hotels and A-Is on the island. Like Isla Mujeres, and unlike the mainland, the island has a west coast for cool sunset pictures. Check out Hotel B Cozumel, Occidental Grande and Nachi Cocom beach club as possible venues.

Location: Isla de Pasión, Cozumel

Playa to Akumal

One of our favorite stretches of the Riviera Maya has a couple of all-inclusives, features several world class cenotes along the highway, and has two very special boutique hotels. The beaches are great, there is very little seaweed and a small reef is just offshore for good snorkeling. The very posh Esencia resort is a former private property that now has very upscale villas and cabañas. On the same bay a little south is Al Cielo, a boutique hotel that blends Caribbean funky with Italian style.

Location: Cenote - Playa del Carmen

Akumal

Quite possibly one of the hidden gems on the Riviera Maya (if it's possible for anything to be hidden on this coast). This small community is predominantly villas, condos and a couple of small hotels. There is a nice bay for swimming and snorkeling, a nearby lagoon that is pristine, and small restaurants and bars. We have worked with Andrea Salazar several times. We recommend her without reservation.

Location: Villa Bellamar - Akumal

Puerto Aventuras

Mostly for the yachting crowd, due to the man-made large marina, there are a few all-inclusives with a nice beach area. Like Akumal, there are large all-inclusive resorts to the north and south of the central area.

Location: Dreams - Puerto Aventuras

Tulum

Small, intimate, new-age, super-hip, eco-lodge, and great beaches are all superlatives that apply to Tulum. There is a Dreams resort to the north of the Mayan ruins, but the coast south of the ruins is dotted with small, boutique hotels of varying sizes and price ranges - almost all off the grid. Ana y Jose Charming Hotel is one of the best locations with a great beach club separate from the hotel. Both are great places for a destination wedding. Las Ranitas and B Hotel are both worth a look.

Location: Ana y Jose Beach Club - Tulum

We hope some of these tips help you decide if a destination wedding is right for you. It's not for everyone, but it was for us. We were married here, on the beach, one month after moving to the Riviera Maya. I can't imagine a better location.

About The Author

M&J Photography is Michael and Jennifer Lewis, a husband and wife photography team based in the U.S. and in Mexico. Between them, Michael and Jennifer have more than 30 years of experience shooting weddings, as well as shooting for magazines, book publishers and various corporations including National Geographic and TIME Magazine. Michael and Jennifer held their own beach wedding on the Riviera Maya, and shoot all of their weddings together. They believe that photography is the most important part of your wedding and that it is the one thing that will last long after the memories of the dinner, the dancing and the cake are gone. All Photography By: M&J Photography