Nizuc Resort, Mexico

For Daniela and Andrew, throwing a celebration that reflected both of their interests and values as a couple was of the upmost import. Being New Yorkers who met in San Francisco, “We wanted something a bit different for our wedding, especially since both of our sister’s recently got married in New York City,” explains Daniela. “We both wanted a venue that would allow us to spend quality time with the people closest to us.” Coupling Andrew’s love of the ocean and Daniela’s dreams of going on a vacation with the whole family, a destination wedding at Nizuc Resort in Mexico was an obvious choice.

Location
Nizuc Resort
Date held
Sat Dec 3rd
Walking towards her on the pier and seeing how beautiful and happy she looked was by far the highlight of the day.

Andrew

It was extremely important to us on our wedding day to make sure to find some alone time.

Andrew

Q1

What memory of one another on your day stands out the most?

Daniela: Definitely his vows to me when we were under the chuppah alongside the ocean surrounded by so much love. Watching Andrew make lifelong promises and express his love and commitment to me followed by him breaking the glass and having our first kiss as husband and wife was definitely a memory I will cherish forever.

Andrew: I will never forget our first look. Walking towards her on the pier and seeing how beautiful and happy she looked was by far the highlight of the day. Another very special memory of Daniela that stands out was our first dance. Having the dance floor to ourselves while being surrounded by our family and closest friends and dancing to “Wonderful Tonight” with the girl of my dreams was a very special and unforgettable moment.

Q2

Did you learn anything about yourself or each other while planning your day?

Daniela: I was surprised to learn how much I cared about many of the wedding details. I was not one of those girls who dreamed about her wedding from a young age and never thought I would become one! The planning process also underscored the importance of trusting others. It’s impossible to micromanage every single detail and our vendors went above and beyond – we couldn’t have done it without them. Most importantly, the planning process truly showed how supportive and caring Andrew is. He frequently reminded me that the reason we were planning a wedding was to celebrate our love for each other – everything else was just an added bonus.

Andrew: The wedding planning process confirmed that Daniela and I complement each other very well. I also learned that Daniela is a spreadsheet wizard, let’s just say that the spreadsheets she made were quite impressive!

The most important thing for us was for the entire weekend to truly reflect us as a couple and to create a happy, lively and fun atmosphere for our guests.

Daniela

Having our first kiss as husband and wife was definitely a memory I will cherish forever.

Daniela

Q3

What was most important to you on your day?

Daniela: The most important thing for us was for the entire weekend to truly reflect us as a couple and to create a happy, lively and fun atmosphere for our guests. Given Andrew’s love for the water and sailing, we organized a boat excursion and beach party for our friends and held the wedding ceremony on the beach. I have always loved photography and capturing moments so we hired the best photographer (thank you, Ira!), had an awesome photobooth with fun Mexican-themed props and integrated photos throughout the weekend. We both really wanted a high-energy party with upbeat music and tons of dancing. We spent a lot of time working with our wedding planner, band and DJ to create that atmosphere and we are so happy with how it turned out. The amount of energy and love that filled the room was truly a dream come true.

Andrew: It was extremely important to us on our wedding day to make sure to find some alone time. A very special moment for us was when we were in the golf cart on the way to the reception. It gave us a few minutes to take everything in and enjoy each others’ company before dancing the night away with all of our family and friends.

Q4

Why did you choose to have a destination wedding?

Both: While we met in San Francisco and were both born and raised in New York, we wanted something a bit different for our wedding, especially since both of our sisters recently got married in New York City. After reflecting on our interests and values as a couple, it became clear that a destination wedding satisfied all of our criteria and wishes for our wedding. Andrew loves the ocean and dreamed of getting married on the beach. Daniela loves going on vacation and was very excited by the idea of going on vacation with all of our family and friends. Most importantly, we both wanted a venue that would allow us to spend quality time with the people closest to us. So we thought…what better way to celebrate such an important day in our lives than gathering with our loved ones at one of the most spectacular places in Mexico?

Having the dance floor to ourselves while with the girl of my dreams was a very special and unforgettable moment.

Andrew

Q5

What was the first wedding planning decision you made?

The destination was the first decision we made. At first, we were considering venues in New York City but none of them felt quite right for what we wanted. We then started to explore the idea of a destination wedding, which we quickly got very excited about. Cancun and the Riviera Maya immediately jumped out to us as a destination given its close proximity to New York, the availability of direct flights from California, Daniela’s Latin heritage and our love for Latin music and food. After deciding on Mexico, our next decision was to find a party planner who had experience with destination weddings in Mexico. We connected with our party planner, Paula Jackson from Bsocial Events, who had planned several amazing weddings in the Riviera Maya and helped us find the venue of our dreams, Nizuc Resort and Spa.

Q6

Where did you turn for ideas and inspiration?

Daniela: I turned to my sister, Instagram, our florist, Etsy and the online galleries on the Ira Lippke Studios blog (now The Day Journal). I found Instagram to be the most useful source for ideas and inspiration. By searching for or clicking on specific hashtags, I was able to find endless ideas relevant to our tropical modern theme. Similarly, by looking at the photos taken at specific locations, I was able to get inspiration for interesting new ideas.

I also frequently turned to our florist, Vanessa Jaimes, for ideas and inspiration. She had amazing ideas for how to transform our vague and evolving vision into an incredible reality. She was an unbelievable resource and we can’t thank her enough for everything she did.

Andrew: I deferred to Daniela for most of the planning. Occasionally I would search on Google for some ideas when needed but mostly left the creative work to her.

He frequently reminded me that the reason we were planning a wedding was to celebrate our love for each other – everything else was just an added bonus.

Daniela

Full gallery

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Launch

Credits

  • Photography

    Ira Lippke