Venue Guide
Your Wedding at
Grand Velas Riviera Maya
Playa del Carmen, Riviera Maya
Grand Velas Riviera Maya is an all-inclusive luxury resort on the beach at Playa del Carmen, about 35 minutes south of Cancun airport, with a Catholic chapel set in the jungle, oceanfront terraces and a 35,521 square foot convention center on the same property.
Check your dateWhat couples ask first
5 figures, each with the caveat that comes with it.
- 1.1Outside photographers
- Grand Velas Riviera Maya publishes no outside vendor fee or day pass policy on any page it controls, and it sells photography and videography as part of its own wedding services.
- 1.2Capacity
- The chapel holds up to 143 guests.
- 1.3Wedding packages
- Quoted, not publishedNo public price we could source. Expect a proposal.
- 1.4Best months
- November, February, March and April are the driest and most settled.
- 1.5Airport transfer
- About 35 minutes from Cancun International Airport and four miles from downtown Playa del Carmen, per the resort's own location page.
What couples choose it for
- 2.1
The resort sits on the Caribbean beach four miles from downtown Playa del Carmen and roughly 35 minutes from Cancun International Airport, which keeps the guest travel day short.
- 2.2
One property covers white sand beach, a jungle chapel, tropical gardens, a reflecting pool garden and indoor ballrooms, so ceremony, cocktails and dinner can each have a different setting without anyone leaving the resort.
- 2.3
The Virgen de Guadalupe Chapel is a Catholic chapel built on the grounds in the Mayan jungle with capacity for up to 143 guests, which is rare for a beach resort in this corridor.
- 2.4
Weddings are handled by the resort's own planning team, and the Velas Weddings FAQ states there is no additional fee for that coordination.
- 2.5
Cocina de Autor at Grand Velas Riviera Maya holds a MICHELIN star, and the property was named a 2025 MICHELIN Service Award winner, which matters if the dinner is a centrepiece of the day.
- 2.6
Zen Grand tucked into the jungle, family friendly Ambassador, and oceanfront Grand Class.
Where you would actually get married
Ceremony
3.1Grand Class Beach
Oceanfront white sand ceremony site in the Grand Class ambiance, which the resort lists as guests 12 and over, with turquoise sea and sunset views.
3.2Virgen de Guadalupe Chapel143 seated
A Catholic chapel immersed in the Mayan jungle in the Zen Grand ambiance, with capacity for up to 143 guests and no need to leave the resort.
3.3Chaka Garden
A small private garden setting surrounded by the greenery of the Riviera Maya, suited to intimate ceremonies.
3.4Grand Class Deck
A raised terrace in the Grand Class ambiance with the open Caribbean Sea as the backdrop.
3.5Ocean Terrace
A 3,799 square foot terrace on the first floor of the Bistro restaurant in the Grand Class ambiance, built so a ceremony and cocktail hour can flow together in the same space.
Reception
3.6Zen Garden
An open air 19,860 square foot garden beside the lobby in the Zen Grand ambiance, built around a reflecting pool and a massive ceiba tree, for large cocktail receptions and seated dinners.
3.7Zen Pool
A poolside area next to the Zen Grand pool that divides into sections of 1,722 and 1,625 square feet, or combines for larger celebrations, so cocktails and dinner can share one location.
3.8Grand Velas Convention Center
35,521 square feet of flexible indoor space that can be configured into up to 32 rooms and two large dance halls, with marble detailing and double height ceilings.
3.9White Ball Room and Foyer
An indoor ballroom finished in white with an adjoining terrace, giving an alternate spot for the ceremony, cocktail hour or reception under open sky.
3.10Ocean Terrace
The same 3,799 square foot Grand Class terrace also takes the cocktail hour or a seated dinner with unobstructed ocean views.
When another venue fits better
Every point is drawn from the venue's own published terms and documented weddings. None of it makes this a bad venue.
- You are bringing your own photographer.The resort sells photography and videography as part of its own wedding services, so an outside studio should be raised at contract stage rather than assumed to be open.
- You want the outside vendor cost priced before you sign.No outside vendor fee or day pass policy is published on either the English or the Spanish site, so the cost and the conditions of bringing your own photographer have to be confirmed with the wedding coordinator in writing.
- You have young children in the party.Ocean Terrace, Grand Class Beach and Grand Class Deck sit in the Grand Class ambiance, which the resort lists as guests 12 and over, so which spaces are open to your family has to be confirmed.
- You are hiring a full service planner.The Velas Weddings FAQ positions the resort's own coordinators to run the day at no extra charge and describes an external planner as helping with invitations, guest list and design, which is worth clarifying before you sign either contract.
- You want the legal marriage done in Mexico.A legal civil ceremony in Mexico requires the couple to arrive at least three business days beforehand and to complete a blood test, so those days have to be built into the trip.
- Your date falls between May and October.Sargassum reaches this stretch of coast most heavily between May and October, so a beach ceremony in those months benefits from a backup space and a portrait plan that does not depend on clear sand.
The honest considerations
- The resort sells photography and videography itself, so raise an outside studio at contract stage rather than assume the slot is open.
- No outside vendor fee or day pass policy is published in English or Spanish; confirm photographer cost and conditions with the coordinator in writing.
- Ocean Terrace, Grand Class Beach and Grand Class Deck sit in the Grand Class ambiance (guests 12+); confirm which spaces suit young children.
- Coordinators run the day free; an outside planner helps with invitations, guest list and design, so clarify if hiring a full planner.
- A legal civil ceremony in Mexico requires arriving at least three business days early and completing a blood test; build those days into the trip.
- Sargassum hits this coast heaviest May to October, so a beach ceremony then benefits from a backup space and a portrait plan not dependent on clear sand.
Arrival, and where you get ready
- 6.1Fly into
- Cancun International (CUN).
- 6.2Then drive
- About 35 minutes from Cancun International Airport, per the resort's own location page.
- 6.3Arriving at
- The beach at Playa del Carmen, four miles from the town centre.
- 6.4Build in
- A legal civil ceremony needs the couple on site at least three business days ahead with a blood test completed, so the couple's flights land before the guests' do.
- 6.5At the airport
- Ignore anyone offering a ride between the arrivals door and the curb, however official they look. Only pre-arranged and federally authorized transport may pick up at the terminal, and the walk-up offers are where the overcharge stories come from. Ride-hailing apps work for the trip back to the airport but are unreliable for arrivals, so do not plan a pickup around one.
- 6.6Book the drive before you fly
- Reserve a private transfer in advance: the driver meets you with a name sign, at a fixed price agreed up front, and tracks your flight if it runs late. We use Private Driver Cancun, WhatsApp +52 984 132 3989, mixofcultures.com. USA Transfers and eTransfers are two long-established operators for larger guest lists.
Where you get ready
Details below are venue-published.
- Bridal suiteThe Forbes Five-Star SE Spa, which also has a full-service beauty salon.
What to ask the wedding office
- 6.7
Are outside photographers and videographers allowed? What's the vendor fee and day pass fee, in writing, since neither site publishes one?
- 6.8
Which spaces our guests under 12 can use, since Ocean Terrace, Grand Class Beach and Grand Class Deck sit in a 12 and over ambiance.
- 6.9
Exactly what the resort's own coordinator will and will not do if we bring a full service planner.
- 6.10
A current package sheet, since no wedding package price is published on any page the resort controls.
How the light works at Grand Velas Riviera Maya
This is an east facing Caribbean shoreline, so the sun rises over the water and sets behind the resort and the jungle rather than over the sea. That means the oceanfront sites, Grand Class Beach, Grand Class Deck and the Ocean Terrace, fall into open shade in the late afternoon while the sky above the water stays bright, which is flattering light for vows and keeps guests from squinting. The trade is that you do not get a sun dipping into the ocean behind you; you get a soft pink and blue gradient over the sea instead, and once the sun drops behind the treeline twilight arrives quickly, so couple portraits need to be run efficiently. The inland spaces read differently: the Virgen de Guadalupe Chapel and the Zen Garden are set into jungle and hold cooler, greener, shaded light through the middle of the day.
The best time to start your ceremony
Arch's own rule for this coast is to begin the ceremony about 90 minutes before sunset, which leaves the vows in soft light and still keeps time for portraits afterwards. Start times are rounded down to the half hour. Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo. UTC-5 all year: the state left daylight saving in 2015. Times are town level, so they run within a couple of minutes of the property.
- 4:30 pm
- January, October, November, December
Sunset around 6:00 pm - 5:00 pm
- February, March, September
Sunset around 6:30 pm - 5:30 pm
- April, May, June, August
Sunset around 7:00 pm - 6:00 pm
- July
Sunset around 7:30 pm
Planning a wedding at Grand Velas Riviera Maya?
We are based in Playa del Carmen, so there is no travel fee anywhere in Cancun or the Riviera Maya.