On a beautiful sunny day in Mexico’s Riviera Maya, Jennilyn and Justin tied the knot at the romantic Royalton Rivera Cancun, An Autograph Collection All-Inclusive Resort & Casino in an oceanview ceremony overlooking their tropical locale. With a relaxing Royal Spa, gourmet restaurants, and multiple sparkling pools perfect for lounging and sipping on cocktails, this beachfront getaway was the perfect spot for the couple to throw a colorful Mexican fiesta with 36 of their friends and family.

Plus, with the thrilling Casino del Mar and Splash Safari water zone, this lavish resort is an ideal destination to entertain guests of all ages for any wedding in the tropics.

For details from Jennilyn and Justin’s wedding full of margaritas, fireworks, and special turtle guests, and how they celebrated the start of their next chapter together, keep reading.

about the couple

Bride: Jennilyn Petelo (formerly De Galicia)

Groom: Justin Petelo

Occupations: Bride a project engineer, and Groom an electrician

How You Met: The couple met through mutual friends at a night out at a local shisha bar, in 2013.

What attracted him to her, and vice versa: If you can believe it, we were both attracted to each other’s sense of humour and love of food.

Engagement story: We had a family photo shoot with both our families to “celebrate” Justin’s parents anniversary at Bakers Park, Calgary, AB.  While taking photos per couple, when it came to our turn, Justin popped the question with all our family watching us!

The wedding day

Wedding date: October 28, 2022

Number of guests: 36

Her most memorable moment: Fireworks towards the end of the reception and our first dance where we surprised everyone with choreography.

His most memorable moment: Baby turtles hatching and crashing the reception after father daughter dance and during mother son dance.

Advice to couples: Have fun, the day will turn it better than you imagined. and don’t stress too much on the little things or whether guests getting along. Everyone has fun in Mexico whether its just relaxing or partying all night.

Wedding song: I’m in Love by Terrian x/ Ian Alxndr, we chose this as our first dance song.

Favourite wedding detail: Memorial table for my late brother and dried rose petals thrown by the guests for our recessional.

Signature drink: Mango Margarita

Most unexpected moment: Of course, the baby turtles hatching and crashing the reception, but also a tiny crab crossed the dance floor while were partying and a tiny drizzle of rain right at the moment our reception was done.

Honeymoon destination:  We are planning for the Maldives!

The day in three words: Unforgettable, Perfect, Happy!

wedding info:

Ceremony location: Ocean View Gazebo

Reception location: Nautica Beach Bar

Bridal gown: Calle Blanche L’amour collection

Bridal party attire: Park and Fifth Co. Clothing for the ladies and Indochino pants with white long sleeves and suspenders for the men.

Groom’s outfit: Hugo Boss

Favours: Maracas Mexico – maracas and mini tequila bottles, palm fans, Dutch stroopwafels in a custom baggie that we printed with a pic of our dog.

Music: Spotify playlist – mix of pop, rap, Spanish and R&B

Flowers: Royalton Riviera Cancun vendor, Tulipania

fun stuff:

Astrological signs: Bride is a capricorn, Groom us an aquarius

Type of rings: 14K white gold rings.

Wedding colors: Dark blue and mauve.

Bride’s shoes: Kelly & Kate

What did you put in welcome bags? First Aid kits, mini mosquito spray, welcome note and summary of events for the week

Most romantic moment: Saying our vows and then dancing down the aisle to Peaches by Justin Bieber during the ceremony processional.

Is there anything else that helps tell the story of the day? It was a beautiful sunny day – we danced the macarena during cocktail hour as the mariachi band was playing and we had a cigar bar. Fireworks in the sky during the last half hour of reception was such an amazing moment.

feedback:

If you could give a couple of tips to newly engaged couples about planning a destination wedding, or advice for the wedding day what would you say? If you are debating about doing a destination wedding, 100% do it. It is an amazing experience and if you are lucky to have expert planners like Tiffany at LUXE, you will be in good hands. The wedding teams at the resorts in destination absolutely know what they are doing, as well. It’s a bit scary because you won’t know what happens or what everything looks like (in its final place, at least) until day of but it turned out to be everything I ever dreamed of and wanted. On the wedding day, try to enjoy it as much as possible – it will show in your photos – and have a good group of people you know you will have a good time with.

Can you please tell us a bit about your experience (prior to departure) working with your LUXE wedding planner and travel manager? Tiffany was amazing, very prompt with her responses and thorough with every question I had. She really made my vision come to life and always provided suggestions to help me make my decisions. I had a few travel managers from Jennifer to Marrida and then Michael a few months before our travel dates, but each one of them were prompt with their replies and it was a great experience.

Congratulations again to the happy couple!

dream team:

Travel and Planning: Michael (Travel) & Tiffany (Planning) – Luxe Destination Weddings

Venue, Catering and Stay: Royalton Riviera Cancun

Floral: Tulipania

Decor: GAMA

Photography & Videography: Love Rocks Wedding Films

Wedding Favours: Maracas Mexico