Great people

The Be Live Collection Marien has everything you need to enjoy your stay. The safe in the room is offered at an extra cost, the wine or beer at the buffet at night is extra and if you paid for a waterfront room make sure you have the documentation to prove it otherwise you will not get it. The employees will try to sale you timeshares. The entertainment is fun, there's a volleyball court in the sand and pool activities.

Not the best resort

This resort is a one time only resort! Staff here where very unfriendly, not there fault but it rained for 5 days out of 7 and Water was all over our room floor in the morning I payed for a ocean view and couldn't enjoy it because the water was ankle deep on balcony. But sunwing was amazing! And the food was very good the restaurants where amazing all in all I would give this resort a 3

Never Again!!!

Hotel: First impressions of the hotel were good but during our stay that impression continued to disintegrate. During registration, we reminded the clerk that we were celebrating our 50th wedding anniversary (the tripcentral.ca agent was supposed to inform them in advance) and we even provided a copy of our wedding certificate - which they kept. This was in response to the information included in the hotel description at tripcentral.ca. This was supposed to entitle us to a 1) welcome lett [... read more]er, 2) bottle of sparkling wine plus fruit basket in our room upon arrival, 3) One breakfast in bed incl. mimosas, 4) a room upgrade, 5) a free 55 min. massage for both of us, plus a few other privileges. Although the clerk said she would provide us with a "superior" room, it turned out that it was no different than any other room in the resort. We received none of the advertised benefits, in fact, in talking with a supervisor later in the week, she clearly stated that the hotel DOES NOT provide any of these services! Later in our first week, we encountered a leak from the ceiling in our bathroom. I called the desk and they said someone would be there 'right away'. I waited 1 1/2 hours and no one arrived. I informed the maid and she called for maintenance again. While waiting, I happened to notice that the small canopy over the bed was coming loose from the wall and sagging at a 70 degree angle and could easily fall and injure us I waited another 1/2 hour and finally went to the beach. The leak was slowed but never properly fixed that afternoon. 2 days into our second week, I awoke early to find water on the floor in our entrance as well as the bathroom floor. I reported it to the office and again they said someone would be there ‘right a way’. No one came and after breakfast, my wife went to the office and requested another room. Well that pretty much screwed up the whole day as we were unable to have another room before 3:30 p.m. It was after four before they finally assigned a room and only then could we transfer our repacked luggage and than unpack again. That evening when I my wife went to take a bath, the door handles came off the bathroom door. The wood was rotten and the screw just fell out unto the floor. Although we called the office the next morning, no one came to repair or replace the door and it remained hanging as long as we were there. And if that wasn’t enough, we were unable to even get warm water in the second room and my wife called the office at least 4 times. After 2 or 3 efforts on the Hotel’s part to rectify he situation, nothing improved. The patio door was so far out of adjustment that it was unable to be fully closed (one half inch gap at the bottom), never mind locked! Grounds: The resort area was nicely landscaped and quite attractive although there were a lot of fallen and falling leaves from Lariata and Ficus trees that littered the lawns and sidewalks. They were occasionally raked during the two-week stay – but not regularly. Not a serious problem but looked untidy. Public Areas: The public areas were neat and clean. There appeared to be adequate numbers of lounges at the pool and at the beach, however, at least 25% of the ones at the beach were broken, i.e., the backs were missing braces to hold them in the upright position. The beach as well as the pools were very good. We were quite taken aback when one day a pig from the adjacent farm strolled among the lounges rooting for morsels that may have been left behind by bathers. Fortunately, she did not stay long, although she did stay long enough for photo ops with the tourists. Electronics: The ‘free’ Wifi was at best, hit and miss. It was out in the designated area at least 3 nights and my wife ended up having to purchase internet time (at $7.00 US for an hour) to contact family back home. Television service too, was out a for a couple of days although on one of them we did receive a few channels but with a very snowy picture. Food: One of the highlights of our stay was the food. The buffet, snack bar and specialty restaurants always had a good variety of foods. They were flavorful, hot when they were supposed to be, and nicely presented. Beverages were average and lacked the flavor that one tends to expect from cocktails. Beer was good! Service in the bars and restaurants were very good. The weakest part of the food services was the ‘bouncing’ floor boards in one of the wings of the buffet. When ever someone walked by, your chair or table (or both) bounced up and down. Very annoying! We soon learned to sit in a different section.

Great Vacation

Great all around resort. Service was spectacular, food was great, especially the a-la carts. Grounds are well kept and the beach was beautiful. Upon arriving I read reviews about check in difficulty but ours was very smooth. Would definently go back.

Great vacation

My boyfriend and I stayed at Be Live March 2nd-9th. Great trip! Food was great - especially the Mexican restaurant! Their drink menu was awesome - lots to choose from! The bartenders were always friendly and making sure everyone is having a good time! I found the resort clean and the staff extremely friendly. The service was great in all the A La Cartes but the buffet service wasn't always good - hard to get coffee and water some meals and tables were sometimes dirty. The entertainment was a hit [... read more] and miss - not bad but I've seen the entertainment done a lot better at other resorts. My biggest complaint is that we paid the $50 for the ocean view upgrade and I think we would have been better off without. They put us in building #1 on the ground floor in a room with a broken lock on the patio door, which was fixed the night we arrived after calling maintenance. On our 3rd night after we show up to our room at the end of the evening, we find our patio door open part way with the lock broken again - we are guessing someone tried to break in. After calling reception and demanding we be moved, they were helpful after some push and upgraded us to a better room for the rest of the vacation. We didn't feel safe on the ground floor in this building - I recommend getting a pool view or a room towards the lobby. Also, to the left of the resort where they tell you not to go, is full of garbage! And when they clean the beaches in front of the resort, they dump it towards the left on the beach and it all piles up! Not safe to walk very far to the left. Recommendation: Do not talk to the solicitors on the beach front - they charge high prices for everything and won't leave you alone if you make conversation with them. And the 'shopping mall' they try to bring you to is more expensive that anywhere else I seen - American prices and they are very pushy.

Not amazed

Recently spent 7 days at Be Live with a 4 year old and a senior. Overall, good features for kids and people with disabilities (pool, kids food...)but nothing amazing. Food was average, service average, rooms average....seems like a great resort once but time has made it worn in a unimpressive. Close to the airport, about 40min total. Our bus dropped off at about 6 hotels and ours was last. Check-in takes forever. Make sure you run to the front desk first!! They were overbooked when we went.  [... read more]Common issue apparently. After check-in they give you a ride in a golf cart to your room. When we got to ours, after taking 15-20min to check in we had no room keys and only 1 towel card. Luckily the guys who brought us to our room went back to get them because it was 11pm, it's a huge property and we had no idea where to go. Love the layout of the property. It's like a giant circle and the pool's in the middle. There are 3 bridges over the pool so you can take shortcuts depending on where you have to go. there are 9 buildings with rooms. I read reviews that said one was better than the other but they're each close to something. You'll have to walk a lot no matter where you stay. The rooms were average. Nothing special to them. There was a leak in the ceiling that started our 2nd day. We told the front desk but no one ever came. Then it became 3 leaks...and we just learned to adapt. Our phone was buzzing for no reason. Had to unplug it for the week. Cleaning staff were great. No issues. Super friendly to us. Especially my son. Buffet food was average. The best part was the options. They have a lot of stations for different foods. Fresh omelettes, pancakes, churro, grilled fish and chicken, pasta... On different nights there was someone carving legs of lamb or roast beef. There was a theme each night but the food rarely matched the theme. But we never left hungry. There's something for everyone. There's even a kids-only area where they Serve all kid friendly food...that ended up saving me for a lot of meals. Ths servers in the buffet wouldn't give you the time of day until you tip. The first day no one would bring us drinks, you couldn't get anyone's attention. As soon as we left a tip we had smiling service, drinks right away, the server knew our order. HUGE difference. And you could see it at other tables. One table would get their own jug of coffee and the next table couldn't even get a coffee. Tried the Mexican a la carte. Big disappointment. Brazilian I heard was great but we dicidely not to try it after being disappointed already. The pool was great. It's one big pool that goes off into 3 different areas. One has all the entertainment going on, one is quieter, and the other is has a volleyball net. You can swim under the bridge to go into each area. They all start level and gradually get deeper. Great for kids and people with disabilities. Lots of shallow area for the little ones. Pool entertainment was good. But they'd play a game or two then that was it for the day. Pretty quiet the rest of the day. Nighttime they always had some sort of show. All pretty decent. I saw a movie playing in the theatre once in my whole stay...wish they had move of that. Even if it's just for the kids. There are plenty of stores onsite to shop at. There's a flea market about a 15min walk down the beach that the hotel pretends not to know about. You'll see guys with blue shirts on walking up and down the beach. They'll take you to the market to the booths they work for. First, you have to be good at negotiations if you want to shop there. Second, they work for one of 10 booths. They'll try to pressure you into buying from one spot. But they can do negotiations for any of them so don't feel like you can't shop around. I had no safety issues going there. If you spend a lot of time on the beach you'll know all the guys working there pretty quick. Worth the walk for something to do for the day.

Everything we expected and more!

This was our first trip to the Dominican, and it will not be our last. Upon arrival while waiting to check in, we were treated to a tropical drink. Check in was quick and we were brought to our room in no time. The room was beautiful. Large, clean and fresh. The resort was easy to get around and well maintained, the beach was clean (many reviews complained about the state of the beach). What people need to realize is that beyond this resort is an old resort that is no longer open. If you walk to [... read more] that area, the beach is not maintained. The Buffet had a great selection of food each day. Jeanette was our main waitress. She was fantastic. Friendly, cheerful and always ready to help. Franko (the pasta man) made perfect pasta to order. By the third day, he would take our plates and make it exactly as we liked it without needing to ask. We didn't partake in any of the al a cartes (Mexican, Mediterranean, and Brazilian) as we were happy with the buffet. The staff was friendly. Patelina was our housekeeper. So sweet! She kept our room spotless and our towels and mini fridge well stocked each day. There were many excursions on offer that would fit any budget and interest. Melvin set us up with the waterfalls trip. What an experience!! I suggest this to anyone who enjoys water slides. (Natural water slides that you go down as you descend from the falls). There was always security on the beach which kept the vendors from disturbing us. Even when we spoke with the vendors, they were respectful and not pushy. They took no for an answer while remaining friendly. The pool is huge and super clean. The bars were well placed and the bartenders were funny and generous with the drinks. Although the weather didn't fully cooperate (rainy the last three days), it was a fantastic trip. This resort was perfect. Great value. It was much better than we expected for what we paid. We are already planning our next trip!!! Thanks to Lisa Selig for all she did to make this such a refreshing trip!

Nice Resort

Grounds well groomed ,lovely pool , great walkable beach,renovated rooms large and nice.Food very good except fairly poor in snack bar. We did find the servers in the upscale restaurants to be very efficient and smiling but the buffet and snack bar people were far from congenial and some appeared to care less about the service they were providing.

Great family resort.

I stayed early February and it was pretty amazing. The staff were friendly and the food was great especially the Mediterranean restaurant above the pool bar. It was the best snack bar I've been to with crisp fries, wings and ribs with HEINZ ketchup. I was a bit disappointed that the room fridge was stocked with Coors light and not Presedente beer. Half cans at that. The only downside to the beach was that there were only cabana's for shade that housed 4 loungers and the tree line didn't go very [... read more] far out on the beach if you were looking for shade by yourself. They can be easily saved by 8am but if you are a couple or alone it seems unfair to do so. The pool shade is adequate but be early (6am) to get one. There was no swimup bar and that really fine with me. Service was quick. If you like to gamble the Kviar Casino/disco is right there. Not part of the resort so drinks $$$$. The dance bar is enclosed with AC and opens to the lobby or an outside terrace. Very nice. The nightly shows were a bit different from other resorts I stayed at in the area. It was a nice change. The entertainment team wasn't that great in getting ppl together during our rainy days. The bed was firm but comfortable and the pillows were a dream. Be careful of the shops on site. a bit pricey but go to the right on the beach for about 15 mins and you can get your stuff almost 1/2 price. Another thing is the vendors on the beach stayed at waters edge and there was maybe only 4-5. They weren't on the beach bothering you like horseflies.

Very good

We had a wonderful holiday. They upgraded our room which very quite. They cleaned and serviced our room daily and we found the food very good. The small problems we encountered were: Because of a storm we left twelve hours later and we arrived there noon time, tired and hungry. We had to wait a long time to register since they were only two people at the counter. The free internet service did not exist. I tried to notify my family, but the emails were received two days after our arrival home!

Nice resort.

+ Amazing food (both selection and taste), service, and entertainment. + Everything was very clean and tidy. + Room was decent, not the nicest (a bit outdated) but still nice. + Great pools & pool games - Toilet in the room had a leak so there was always a bit of water on the floor. - I personally didn't like the view of the large mountain that was near by, it steals a bit of sunshine since that's where the sun sets (in turn saw no nice beach sun sets) - Description states "8 restaurants"  [... read more]but two are not included in the 'all inclusive' price; you can eat there but must pay for meals and one is open to the Dominican public ("for the rich" they say). - If you want to use the safe you have to pay for it ($3 American a day, not a huge deal but still a drag that you are hit with additional costs upon arrival. cost $25 CND for the week) - "Free wifi" only works in one area of the resort (outside the buffet restaurant), for one hour per day

Wonderful resort

Was impressed from the start. Front desk helpful and greeted with a refreshing drink. Room was beautiful with a great view. Always was able to find something I wanted to eat and drink. Beach was kept clean. Public washrooms also kept tidy. Would absolutely stay again!

Good value resort

Nice grounds, food was good, service wonderful. There are too many people trying to sell you something on the beach and at the resort The Dominicans are very friendly and service oriented. Large beach and pool. Restaurants good. Smaller resort, better to navigate

Loved this resort

My husband and I have stayed at many different resorts in puerto plata. We really loved this resort and found it to be the cleanest resort. The food was good and the staff were very friendly. We will most certainly stay at this hotel again. Our room was absolutely beautiful and comfy, and didn't have the typically hotel room smell which all other hotels seem to have. We can't wait to go back.

Great Resort!

Public grounds were very clean and the people who work at this resprt take pride in making sure the resport is always spotless. The room we had (Superior Deluxe) was nice and looked exactly as it did on the website, we had an issue with our safe being broken but it was fixed immediately. The pool was lovely and the views of the mountain were breathtaking. Veronica at the kids club was awesome and the kids had a blast playing with her. Checkin took way too long (about 45 minutes wait and the [... read more]re was only 4 families in line).

Beautiful resort.

The resort was very well kept. I can say I noticed there was no litter around at anytime. The service was excellent. The pool was clean. The weather could've been better but it was good. Warm, better than snow. Our room was spacious, the maid service was excellent. The food was excellent. I can't say anything bad about the resort. I would go back to that resort.

Relaxing resort

Overall the hotel was organized clean efficient the food was above acceptable hot and always full The staff was friendly and the beachfront was clean The resort could use one more bar by the pool and it even could be a swimmer

Great resort

Grounds were great pool was nice but closed a little early food was good drinks were good could of used a swim up bar.the alacart restraints are all very good shows were fine wouldn't suggest taking bus into town 27 people in a mini van all in all good trip

We were at lest out of the cold

We are none smokers and found smoking to occur in all the common areas. It took nearly all day to have the room fully cleaned. The desk was not helpful or friendly., we asked for an early morning wake-up call and did not get one. We did not get sick from the food but did get sick of seeing wieners as a main course. Drinks were too sweet

Nice Resort

The resort was nice, but check in was somewhat disorganized. People had rooms booked that weren't available, requiring the guests to bunk with others in their group until rooms became available. One person in our group had booked a superior room with accessibility for people with disabilities. She had paid a significant amount for the upgrade, but was given a standard room with no accessibility (no grab bars in the bathroom, bathtub which she couldn't access due to mobility issues, etc.). Sh [... read more]e was finally moved on day four into the room she had booked and paid for...this for a seven day booking. The other person (40 years old) in our group ended up having to share a room with her parents due to the resort having overbooked. Another family of five (not part of our group) ended up sharing a room because of overbooking. We found the staff in general friendly, and we did enjoy the facility once we settled in. If they can sort out their overbooking of rooms, I would recommend this resort. Otherwise, no.