Excellence El Carmen: Very clean, modern and new.

The resort is in top shape and everything was impeccable. The first impressions were amazing and that lasted all the way through the entire trip. All the restaurants are clean and quite nice and food is very decent.

Excellence Punta Cana: This resort was "Excellent"

The hotel certainly lived up to its name. The staff were exceptional as was our garden view room: No line ups at the restaurants - most were very very good! The grounds were beautiful.. SMOKING !! everywhere except the restaurants. Pool areas, lounge areas - the evening shows even permitted cigar smoking. There should be designated areas for smokers at the resort and those who wish to indulge can go to those areas while the rest of us can enjoy a smoke free vacation!!

Excellence Punta Cana: Excellent Resort

What can I say that has not been said already. This was our first time at the Excellence Punta Cana. We have stayed at the Excellence in Mexico and knew what we should be getting and we were not disappointed. From the time we arrived we were welcomed with open arms. The staff were very friendly and accommodating. The newly renovated rooms are nice and clean. The food was excellent from the buffet to the restaurants. The beach was fantastic and you could go for walks along the beach withou [... read more]t any issues. We were a group of 10 and no matter where we went at night time for our meals they were very accommodating. thanks to the help of Yaritzabel who helped in making this possible. The only drawback was that there were no floaties for the pool. I know this is minor but for a non swimmer it meant that I did not spend to much time in the water. All in all if you have not tried an Excellence please do you will not be disappointed.

Excellence Punta Cana: great location

room grounds dining all 5star location although great too far from the airport dining was good not great excellence mujeres by far the better resort a small problem with smokers no control over where their supposed to light up

Excellence El Carmen: Beautiful resort, wonderful beach

Loved this resort but I’m a little jaded, Excellence is my favourite chain. Have stayed at the Excellence PC a number of times so was pleased when I saw they opened a new resort just down the beach from the old one. If you’ve been to a newer Excllence or Secrets your will find this resort very familiar. This resort is mid sized I would say, adults only and never seems busy. There were two weddings at the resort the week we were there but we wouldn’t have known if we hadn’t bumped into so [... read more]me of the wedding party after the fact. Lots of room on the beach, no need for towel game here. We were in 7152 which was quiet and had a terrific view of the ocean. The staff here are first rate, there are a few on the Entertainment team that truly make you feel like family and while I seldom mention individuals I feel obligated to do so this time: Shakey- Shakey, Black Coffee, Diana, Kassandra, Coca Cola and John Brown. They are a hell of a lot of fun, if you want to participate but leave you alone if that’s what you want. Yoce and Carmen at the Excellence Club beach and Bar. Miranda at EC beach station. Food is good, no reservations required except for if you want to sit at Himachi within Spice, you can just walk in to Spice if you’re not into the show. French was my fave, Buffett with stir fry, pasta bar, onelette bar and all you would expect. Resort is spotless clean with staff constantly cleaning. They are in the pool every morning cleaning. Roberto, the guest manager is an incredible man. His question to me every time he sees me is; “can we do anything to make your vacation more enjoyable?” How can you beat this? First rate for me, I’ve been to Secrets/Sandals and a few others...as I say, a Excellence hits all points for me everytime.

Excellence Punta Cana: JUST MIGHT BE MY FAVOURITE RESORT SO FAR!!

Just got back from this beautiful resort last week. I was a little hesitant in going as I have been to Excellence Riviera twice and loved it, except you couldn't get in the water there as there was tons of seaweed, although they kept the beach cleaned up, the water was too dirty for me. Therefore I liked ERC much better. I was concerned after the renovations, that maybe it wouldn't be lush or green enough for me, I like the tropical feel of a resort. I had nothing to worry about, everythi [... read more]ng was beautiful and pictures do not do this place justice. The food and service was every bit as good as in Mexico. I liked the set up of the martini bar and theatre so much! The only negative things I can think of are, I would have liked a screen door on my patio and I would like to see some live music, out by the pools in the afternoon. Neither of these things would keep me from booking here again.

Excellence Punta Cana: Beautiful getaway

We visited this resort from April 5-12, 2018 and took advantage of their Excellence Club offering (which we highly recommend since it offers quite a few perks). The property itself is absolutely stunning, with a very wide beach frontage and immaculately kept grounds with lots of amenities. There is never a shortage of towels or beach chairs/palapas. We found a place to sit every day at various times of the day. Through the Excellence Club we had access to a private pool, bar and beach area, as w [... read more]ell as an exclusive restaurant called Magna, with a fantastic patio. There is a wide variety of restaurants at the resort and it's nice that you never have to make reservations. The one exception is at the Asian restaurant, Spice, where you do need to reserve a spot if you want to sit around the hibachi grill. This was a fun experience and is highly recommended! We thought the resort food itself was a solid 4 out of 5. It was always good, but rarely did we consider it a "gourmet" experience by North American standards. Our favourite was the Lobster House and we were not as impressed with the French restaurant. Salad bars are lacking the wide variety of ingredients we've seen at other resorts. The buffet restaurant offered excellent custom omelettes and a wide selection of other foods, all of which were very good. We visited the specialty coffee and dessert shop many times and loved it. What makes this resort stand out is the staff and the superior service they offer! Everyone was very friendly and couldn't do enough to ensure we enjoyed our vacation. We met many people who are repeat visitors and we can see why. There are also quite a few shops on the property offering a good selection of clothing, jewelry and souvenirs at reasonable prices. We did a shopping excursion organized through Air Transat, but found the prices and selection were no better than on the resort. Considering the long bus ride, it was pretty much a waste of time. The resort's gym has amazing equipment that is new and clean. The yoga class was fun and very relaxing. You can also borrow bicycles or play tennis, pool, ping pong, etc. We visited the disco one night and had a blast. There is no shortage of things to do at the Excellence Punta Cana. As for our Excellence Club room, it was nice but not outstanding. However, the bed was comfortable and everything worked well, and room service was good. All together, we'd definitely recommend this property for those looking for a relaxing holiday complete with all the amenities in beautiful surroundings. Note that the water is quite rough at the beach; conditions were red flagged on several days during our visit. A special thank you to Adan, Danny and Randophi (sp) for the above and beyond service.

Excellence El Carmen: Beautiful resort!

This resort was close to the airport, very clean and modern and the staff were amazing! Food was delicious! The place felt empty even though it was full. I’d go back in a heartbeat ! Loved this resort !

Excellence Punta Cana: Amazing Stay!

From start to finish we had a fabulous vacation! The service, food, cleanliness and location were all superb! We would highly recommend this resort! We never had to wait for seating at the a la cartes and there were plenty of lounge chairs and huts available. Excellence Club is worth the money. The spa was fabulous!

Excellence El Carmen: Great Resort

Excellent property rooms are quite spacious Restaurants are good Beach is nice you can have long walks No sea weeds Amazing service and staff is friendly Would love to go back! Lobby has the wow factor

Excellence El Carmen: Very Good Choice

All the staff at the Excellence El Carmen were friendly and worked hard to make our trip enjoyable. Despite that, this hotel falls just short of being a true 5* experience. It began when we arrived at 11:45 pm and we had to find our own way to our room using a map that the desk staff provided. It continued with little things daily that showed the hotel has not yet matured into its desired state. They will get there but the staff will need specific training and customer feedback will be criti [... read more]cal in the process. Our room was beautiful. It was one of the largest rooms we have ever had at an all inclusive resort. We had a swim out room and deck was large with lots of options to relax and enjoy. I liked that the pool was not heated as the air was so hot it was refreshing. There was very inconsistent bar service when at the swim out room, it seemed actually more by chance than any planned service. However there was a bar in the room and a fridge and it even had clamato. If you wanted you could also order drinks to the room. The beach was beautiful and the sand so soft. You could walk for miles. This was so nice and we really enjoyed it. The food was good, some of the service staff would benefit from additional training. There are so many choices for dining that we did not get to sample all of them but our favourite restaurant that we did go to was the French one. The entertainment staff were hard working and energetic and some of the shows were well choreographed and showcased some terrific singers. Overall we really enjoyed our week and we would consider returning and recommending this hotel to others.

Excellence El Carmen: Incredible resort!!! Adults only

I don't think there are enough good things to say about not only the resort, but the staff, food and spa at this resort. On the first day we arrived, the weather was a little rainy. So we went to the sports bar where we met Felix, our new friend and bartender. This guy made my day with a Crown Royal and soda, and made a variety of drinks for my wife. Now you would think that with as many guests that show up at this resort, Felix would have a hard time remembering not only the people, but the [... read more]ir drink orders as well. NOT THE CASE! This guy was awesome. Thank you Felix! We also went to a variety of the restaurants while at the resort and the food and staff were great. Alexander from the Grill, Leonardo from the Lobster house and the Kitchen Table just to name a few. We stayed in a Junior Swim up suite and can't stay enough good things about it. The room was always clean, and to be honest, nicer than our own room at home! The swim up option was perfect as it gave us some privacy but also allowed us to catch some sun and still take a swim. We also took advantage of the Spa which assisted in the relaxation of the trip. The massage therapists we had were Ana Delia and Eva and they did an excellent job. The hydrotherapy prior to the massage was pretty cool as well. Very well thought out spa. And I know it was a vacation, but I still hit their gym a couple times and it was very high end. Their equipment is all brand new and the facility is very clean. Fresh fruit, nuts and bottled water is provided while at the gym. I would recommend this resort to anyone.

Excellence Playa Mujeres: Yet another wonderful trip at this resort!

This is my second time staying at Excellence Playa Mujeres. I went last year on a mother daughter trip and we had an amazing time. This year I came with my boyfriend and he was absolutely blown away by how great everything was. Wonderful rooms (particularly love the shower and the jacuzzi), can't go wrong with a soothing turn down service either. Immaculate grounds and pools- I like how the pools are refreshing. Great food, loved having the fresh pizza's on the beach, highly recommend the Italia [... read more]n, French and Indian restaurants. Surprisingly good bloody caesars! I wish we could go back tomorrow!

Excellence Punta Cana: Save the best til last

When you're the last one off the bus from the airport you're on edge wondering.... but from the minute you step foot into the lobby you are greeted with champagne and a cooling towel that is just the beginning....the staff is happy and it shows.. anything you ask for they truly try their best to get it for you. The entertainment staff treat you like family.....Marco is #1... The Oregano was our fab breakfast spot.....other than the buffet.... Aroma cafe was our daily afternoon treat...the spa w [... read more]as totally amazing...the hydro therapy a must do......just avoid the parrot enrout e...they attack buttons and all jewellery ....take pictures from a distance. All the restaurants are superb...no reservations required..... very short wait times well worth the wait This being our first adults-only all inclusive Resort we would definitely recommend the Excellence group of hotels We went at high humidity season I would recommend taking a damprid but they do offer dehumidifiers for the room if it is too damp for you... the resort has been newly renovated and all rooms are very spacious and modern.

Excellence Riviera Cancun: 25th Anniversary Excellence

This is an amazing 5 star resort where the staff are friendly, kind, helpful and plentiful. The grounds are beautiful and well kept. The food is wonderful although we mainly ate at The Grill. The rooms are gorgeous and the housekeeping staff do an excellent job. I enjoyed the turn down service as well. Our swim up room was on the heated pool thankfully since the weather was not very hot. I wish they would heat the pool with the swim up bar. They have daytime and nightly entertainment which I wou [... read more]ld call average. The beach has many palapas to sit under, but is not good to swim in due to an abundance of seaweed. The staff work tirelessly to clear the seaweed from the beach. Overall it is an truly amazing resort!

Excellence Riviera Cancun: THE WORD "EXCELLENCE" DESCRIBES IT ALL!

We recently had the pleasure of staying at the Excellence Riviera Cancun and no words can truly describe our experience. This resort exceeded our expectations in so many ways. The management and staff pay attention to every detail to ensure you are pampered and cared for. It is the people who work at this resort that make it stand out above the rest. Everyone smiles and greets you with a genuine "Hola" to make you feel welcome. The food was incredible, the pools were amazingly clean (we wer [... read more]e fortunate to be near the heated pool), the grounds were cared for to perfection. I would highly recommend this resort to anyone looking for a place to unwind, relax and get pampered! My only suggestions would be to perhaps have more heated pools so that guests would be more inclined to swim on cooler days. The pools can be very cold, even the swim up bar. Some days there was no one in the water as they were so cold. Also, we wished we could have a better variety of night time entertainment, perhaps that was more reflective of the culture.

Excellence Punta Cana: Gorgeous resort, fantastic food, be careful of room you book.

Absolutely beautiful setting, food was super. Pools and ocean perfect. However, be careful of the room you book. My wife and I booked a Junior Suite with a small pool attached to deck. Requested oceanfront. Our room was at the far end of the resort, looking at the woods, pool was in the shade and only 2' wide as opposed to 6' wide pools In all the other rooms. THE RESORT CLAIMED, they were full and didn't have any other rooms. They gave us a new oceanfront room without a pool, BUT, REFUSE [... read more]D to refund any money for the downgrade. I don't think this the fault of Trip Central, but a suspect business practice on behalf of the resort. Nightly entertainment was also very enjoyable, just be cautious when booking.

Excellence Punta Cana: Excellence Punta Cana

We really enjoyed our stay there. The grounds were well maintained and beautiful. The restaurants were amazing as was the staff. Everything was exceptional. The shows at night were also very entertaining.

Excellence Punta Cana: Excellent Experience at the Excellence

I am a fairly experienced traveller that has stayed at numerous different resorts in the Caribbean and overall I would have to say this was my best experience to date. Overall this resort was quite good, and had above average quality food and resort grounds (compared to like rated resorts) and generally excellent service. There was some areas that could be improved (which I will highlight below), but they are minor in nature. I guess the biggest drawback from the week was the rough waters off [... read more] the beach. The red flag was the common sight with yellow appearing only very infrequently. I don't know if it was because of the time of year but if you walked half a mile on the beach either direction the waters were much quieter. So if you value swimming in the ocean everyday, you may be disappointed with this resort. My opinion on some of the major categories of the feature of this resort are as follows: Restaurants/food In my opinion, this is one of the strongest features of this resort. The food was excellent everywhere, from the buffet restaurant to the myriad of a la carte and specialty places like the sports bar and coffee/bakery/ice-cream shop. I found the food fresh, tasty, and the variety excellent. Although the steaks at the Grill Restaurant had fairly thin cuts, it was always perfectly cooked and seasoned. The buffet restaurant near the beach had a theme everyday, and we enjoyed taco Monday, as well as BBQ Day (the BBQ ribs were delicious). For Club members, the Magna restaurant offered a la carte breakfast (which we enjoyed everyday), that had fantastic variety and quality. The only minor point of improvement would have been to better label some of the food items at the buffet. Although some stations were labelled, some others for example the Asian cuisine portion was unlabelled. It would have been nice to know the types of sushi and the variety of sauces (that all looked alike). The no reservations required at the al la carte restaurant was awesome! The only reservation required was the Japanese Show Cooking which was done on the same day. We never had a problem getting seating at the restaurants between 6-7 pm, however from 7-9 pm, there was often a wait on the more popular restaurants (ie the French and Lobster House). If there was a wait, we would have a drink at the closest bar and they would come and get us (not unlike waiting at a restaurant at home). I however heard from other guest that they had made reservations by asking some of the staff (there was probably a nice tip involved). There was a rather very pricey wine list available at all restaurants ($15 wine bottle at home was listed for about $80... ouch). The premium drinks for Club members was only available at the Magna Restaurant. It would have been very nice to have it accessible to club members at all the restaurants (especially since they checked you off a list before you ate there, so they knew that you were club). The Resort Grounds Another very strong category for this resort was the beautiful and well maintained grounds. The resort was very well laid out, and the grounds were constantly being maintained. There was a very nice walking/running trail on the inside perimeter of the resort which ran through ponds with wildlife like flamingos, parrots (a red one with quite the personality), and other exotic birds. Beach/Pools There are 2 rather large winding and river like pools in the main area and 2 smaller pools in the club area. I had the opportunity to enjoy all the pools and I liked the quieter nature of the club pools. The main pools had all the water activities and the swim up bar. Overall the pools were nice. One of the hot tubs required some maintenance on the handles (unfortunately a women received a rather nasty black eye from a fall from the loose handle bar leading into the tub). The beach was beautiful and well maintained. We took long walks on the beach everyday and you easily go several miles on either side. One of my favourite features was the variety of lounge/seating options at the beach and pool from regular lounge chairs to very comfy beds under huts and some had adjustable screens. We never had problems finding either beds or lounge chairs at the beach or pool although the screen adjustable ones were scarcer. As stated above the ocean waters were rough throughout the time we were there. I waded in a few times but they were not swimmable. The temperature of the water was perfect however. Resort Rooms We stayed in a club room with ocean views. The room was very nice. The room was clean and updated. The bathroom in particular was fantastic with a rather large shower which offered both rain shower on top and a wand. Counter space was plentiful with 2 sinks and closed in toilet area. The TV had a remarkable amount of channels available, and we ended up watching a few movies late at night. We liked the soaker tub in the room itself (I guess some people found it strange), and there was a lot of little extras that enhanced the experience such as a steaming appliance for cloths, and incense sticks. The mini bar was well stocked with a good variety of items and there was premium bottles available (ie vodka, rum, gin and whiskey). Unfortunately, we enjoy red wine and although the quality at the resort isn't the best, the Club Wine which is Fontera from Chile was certainly drinkable (house quality in my opinion). However we could not get it stocked as part of the mini bar and we could not get a bottle of that brand delivered to the room (only available at club bars and magna). Finally the maid service was excellent. We received "petit four" deserts and towel animals nearly everyday and the room was cleaned very well. As well turn down service was also done, and you would receive the activities list for the next day with a few chocolates. Be careful when you reserve a swim up room as well, some of them where located in shade all day and the water was pretty cold (according to some of the guests we talked to). Bars and Service I think there is nearly 10 bars on site, and we never had to wait and travel long to find a drink. The variety and the quality was quite good. At the sports bar, they had a german beer and some other varieties and the martini bar had some pretty tasty concoctions. Club members were only able to get the premium drinks (Frontera wine, Grey Goose Vodka, etc..) at the club bars near the club pools, the magna lounge, and the Club Lobby area. The service overall from the staff was excellent. They were frequently doing the rounds at the beach and around the pools. I never really felt neglected. Tipping certainly does help but I never felt obliged. I certainly got the impression that the staff at the resort are generally happy people and some of them had been working there 6 years + which is telling. The language ability overall of the staff is pretty much on par with other resorts. Some spoke very fluently in English and others had only rudimentary skills although my Spanish also needs a lot of work. We found the service based at the Magna Restaurant however was just a notch above everywhere else. If they could get the waiters to be able to express themselves a little more about the food they are serving, it would definitely improve the overall service but their skills (less the Magna) was pretty basic in taking your order and providing drinks. I would like to express my thanks to Joana and Viktor at the Magna, Jhon at the Club pool bar, and especially Orlando at the Club Lobby for providing outstanding service and improving our experience. Entertainment and Activities The nightly shows were pretty typical and average for this type of resort. We watched a portion of nearly every show and they were pretty average in quality. I can't say any one of them stood out. The theatre (conveniently located beside the lobby) was always packed and you needed to be there an hour before to get the best seats (ie around 830 pm). At about 9 pm, the only seats available were usually in the back or sides of the theatre. There wasn't really any bad seats however. There was the typical activities and games you would find at other resorts ie aqua aerobics, Spanish lessons, dancing lessons, beach volleyball, darts, variety of beach games. The activities crew were pretty subdued and they rarely hounded you to participate. For most of the time, I was unaware that they were occurring, however I did manage to participate in a few by seeking them out. This was also a great feature of the resort, since I have been to a few that constantly hound you to participate in daily activities. There was also a games area at the resort which included tennis courts, a full basketball court, billiards, ping pong, a very small mini put area, and archery. I only visited the area twice and it was deserted but it appeared well maintained. There is a disco on site, and even though I did not go, I heard the music there was pretty loud ie ear ringing range (not a young crowd which would probably appreciate it more). The Spa onsite was amazing as well. We received the included hydra therapy session which was pretty awesome. It was even better then a couples massage we had received at another resort for over 200 USD. The stores that line the front right side of the resort are very, very pricey, which included souvenir, jewelry, and pharmacy. There was some souvenir shops on either side of the resort on the beach. If you choose to go, go to the left facing the ocean, more variety, and better overall. Overall Overall, I was pretty happy with my stay and I would recommend it to my friends and family knowing what they value in a vacation. I felt the Club upgrade was really worth it. Another couple we met regretted not getting Club after their travel agent told them that it was not worth the extra cost. I think it was worth it, and I would definitely do it again. The resort is about 40 mins away from the airport so definitely not the closest but it was nice to be able to walk on the beach on either side of the resort for about a mile on either side before hitting another resort.

Excellence El Carmen: Amazing retreat!

If you want/need to relax and reconnect, this is where you need to be! The rooms, the general feel, the pools, the people and the spa made our stay a total bliss. Luxury and calm all while having lots of activities should you want to be more active. Its really has it all.