TRS Turquesa: Great resort

This review is for the people who’ve booked at the TRS turquesa resort, these are some tips from our experience last week Jan 27-feb 3rd. We’ve stayed at TRS yucatan in 2018 and these are some differences from its sister resort. We are not active travellers outside of North America and these sun destination trips every few years are a big luxury for us. When we purchased a $2500CAD ‘5 star’ AI resort we expected it to be top of the line level service in every way. TRS Turquesa resor [... read more]t is overall great but it is generously a maximum 4.5 star resort in comparison to other countries/islands. Many small details are overlooked which is unfortunate as the buildings and grounds have the capacity to be 5 star if managed and staffed a bit better in key areas like the restaurants and security. We stayed in the old buildings 50-52, room 5138. Bring Dominican pesos, get them from your bank about a month before your trip. We brought US dollars but the exchange rate for us Canadians is brutal! The staff prefer US$ but pesos go way farther if you’re leaving the resort. If you book with sunwing there’s an extra hidden fee of $20US/person when leaving the country. Sunwing didn’t have in flight movies (even though there’s screens) or alcohol for sale any longer on board either of our flights from/to Hamilton yhm. Avoid the palladium travel club people in teal shirts at all costs, if then con you by saying ‘go for a tour around the resort and receive 2 free 30 min massages’ it is a lie-do not show up for the appointment! they will waste a whole morning of your trip while they try to sell you on their travel club and not give you an actual tour of the whole resort that you need. The tour is of their club and a lot of it is you sitting by yourselves twiddling your thumbs waiting on them. It’s extremely uncomfortable, learn from our mistake! Ask a cart guy or butler for a tour of the resort instead. Anyone who approaches you on the beach is generally a professional con artist very skilled at lying. There will be people who say they work for the trs hotel and will significantly undercut the hotel’s excursions (in the lobby), these people are 100% liars! Beware and please learn from our mistakes😣 We fell for ‘a 2 hour snorkelling trip in the Caribbean Sea’ they took us about 5 min south of the resort to snorkel and when I said no we are supposed to go to the Caribbean side, they took us only 15 min south still within the Atlantic near the dolphinarium and there was no fish to be found, it was not at all what we agreed to. It cost $180US for 4 of us and only lasted 1 hour. Huge mistake, be sober when buying anything - the hotel has tons of water activities included, have your butler walk you to the people who can set you up who actually work for trs/palladium. Security needs to be improved to protect guests I think from the people on the beach. you’ll be okay knowing this info. Anyone who approaches you on the beach, highly recommend ignoring them. Music plays from 8am to midnight or sometimes 1-2am depending on the party at the IO main pool and secret pool. If you don’t want the party vibe literally every waking hour, upgrade to the buildings with swim ups in the rear section of the TRS resort which does not have constant noise. Some rooms in buildings 50-52 do not have wifi due to the stairwells blocking signal which means the tv also has no content. You may want to bring or download alternate entertainment. The pop activities are amazing! Try to do as many as you can and don’t miss the paint and wine night! The rooms were okay, we didn’t have wifi or tv content but the most notable thing about our room 5138 was the motion sensor facing the bed made a click noise whenever we moved so during the night it was detrimental to our sleep so we covered it for our stay. It didn’t affect anything so I’m not sure why they are there. Of the two robes, one was not useable as it was missing the tie-string. Also the air conditioning is not adjustable, the room is very cold around 19-20 degrees. Bring your own hair shampoo/conditioner, theirs are greasy. We had the same brand name products at trs yucatan and we loved them but at trs turquesa we couldn’t use them for more than 1 wash in a row. Our hair dryer was con-air but didn’t turn on/work. Use the safe. It has instructions that don’t make sense they reference a # symbol but there’s no button for that. Ask your butler for help if you can’t figure it out. The butlers were not actively interested in helping plan our activities/restaurants and they let us decide our own activities and approach them instead at this trs. The whatsapp information is great, get the app for the daily activities list. We had a very difficult time getting responses on concerns from our butler like the wifi and also the resort’s activities like the archery and included water activities like snorkeling. We were told different information by different staff many times trying to find answers. Ultimately we ended up not being able to do the archery at this resort due to lack of staff attending the sports centre desk. The mini put course is in disrepair. Have your butler walk you to what you’re looking for if you’re having a hard time getting accurate info. At trs yucatan there were activities staff that walked around everywhere asking when we were ready to go on the catamaran etc it was very different then trs turquesa where they kind of kept a lot of the water activities hidden and instead the resort staff were trying to sell us on the spa/massages and chic show (which were included at yucatan at the time). Food quality and temps (including food handling) is not what you’re used to back home. Where trs yucatan was very close to Michelin star dining, trs turquesa is close to mainland 3 star dining. Bring pepto bismol and Imodium, sticking to foods that don’t need refrigeration at the buffets will help with standing dairy/meat products and avoiding spiced foods will help with the overuse of msg at this resort. Check your meats are fully cooked before eating, we were served uncooked chicken more than once. If you’re going to trs, we don’t recommend booking the non-trs restaurants except sumptuori*, we couldn’t get a reservation at that one due to very limited availability but it looked really cool! La paisana was horrendous for both food quality and service, we received raw chicken and the service was awful we arrived at 6:15 and didn’t get our main courses until 8:30… brutal! Do not order sweetbread. The restaurant menus overall could be improved by having hard copies available (no one wants to carry their phone everywhere) and by detailing descriptions better. Portions could be smaller across the board for lunch and dinners. Like at Capricho I had tenderloin and received two full steaks on my plate plus the sides so it was way too much. Hiring a few quality chefs would really help this resort sort out these minor issues! Ordering food and drinks was often a surprise it wasn’t always what we ordered. If they don’t have the ingredients they don’t tell you or say anything they just surprise you with something else. Beef tacos turned into a hamburger, a Bellini turned into a pineapple mimosa, the ‘surprise chocolate sphere with lime coolis’ came out as a chocolate cake rectangle lol. I recommend use some caution going to this resort with allergies. The magic show is great, go approx 30 min. early to get a seat, there’s a bar there in the theatre so get a drink too for the show. We didn’t go to the chic show since the food wasn’t for us (primarily seafood without alternate options) and we’ve seen it for free in Mexico at trs yucatan where it was a perfect experience. Look up the menu ahead and also there’s coupons in the book provided at check-in! There’s also coupons for the escape room and spa, we used them on the hydrotherapy area to go into the hot tub as all other pools were cold in January/February. do the mud mask for sunburns even if you dont have a sunburn it’s great! Don’t be surprised if there are kids in the adults section at the secret pool. Don’t yell at the staff if you travel here and can’t speak Spanish. the number of English people who were frustrated with the language barrier and thought yelling their English words louder was interesting. 🤨😔 the staff were all very gracious. At the end of your trip there will also be people working at the PUJ airport that will grab your bags before you can, even when you say no/protest they won’t let go until you tip or make it weird. Generally beware of people. Don’t let these tips concern you, it’s still a great resort away from home. Have fun, use your sober brain and hope these notes help you be better prepared and avoid some of the mistakes we made. As soon as you notice something is off about a situation or something is not right in your room, ask your butler for their help. We spent approximately 300$US on tips at this resort for great service for 7 days. Our trip cost $2500CAD each person for 7 days from Hamilton yhm on sunwing via tripcentral. We feel since the services advertised were not provided (especially the room wifi as well as most water activities and the archery) we slightly overpaid for this resort. You’re better prepared than we were for your trip! Enjoy the beautiful bavaro beach and the wonderful staf! 😊🛫☀️🌴🥂🏝️🐠

Lopesan Costa Bavaro Resort: Recommended

We read some bad reviews before going but it seems people are just picky. We have been to many nice hotels (all inclusive and not) and we really liked this one. It was at the top of our list. We knew to expect that service in Dominican is not what it is in North America. Also the food is different from home. But the food was good (fresh fish and meat every day at lunch, can’t go wrong. Steak restaurant was good. French restaurant steak was comparable to a high end steak house in canada). The s [... read more]ervice was hit and miss - some staff were grumpy. The grounds and decor were beautiful, modern and extremely clean. Very little wear and tear on this property. Fountains and greenery everywhere, which was beautifully lit at night. No bugs. Restaurants were all really nice, especially the seafood and the steakhouse which are on an upper level and have a beautiful view. Rooms were bright , spacious, modern and very clean which is extremely important to me. I am picky about rooms and this one didnt disappoint. Only bad thing was that the water in the shower was not very hot. We loved the outdoor dance floor beside the bar at night. One night there was a beach party which was very fun. Huge indoor auditorium with entertainment at night though we only went once as we’re not so into that. Live music on Saturday at the lobby bar was also great. Beach was very wide, comfortable chairs. It was not too difficult to find a chair at the beach or pool Clientele was diverse , people speaking many different languages. Not too many kids other than babies (perhaps due to time of year - not a school break time). But there are 2 kids water parks - one closer for younger kids, and one at the entertainment complex which was large and looked super fun, though we left kids at home so we didn’t try it ). Also a kids club, bowling, arcade and teen club with activities , so very family friendly Overall a really great experience. I would return

Bahia Principe Escape Ambar: Disappointed

Room was not available the day of check in. Had to stay in another room the first night. Very inconvenient. We did receive a 100.00 voucher for the lobby shop which is minimalistic for the inconvenience. And it was time consuming to redeem and to top it off they charged the voucher to the room. Twice!!! Had straighten that out at checkout. Drinks at the bar were sub par. Local stuff is not that good. Paying the extra at the Amber there should be higher quality drinks available.

TRS Turquesa: Amazing Resort

Excellent meals. Rooms very clean. Grounds were impeccable. Transportation to and from airport was reliable. The Sunwing representative, Rafael, at the resort was awesome. The chef, Pablo, and staff at Helio's restaurant were the best! The entertainment in the restaurants was fantastic, especially Carlos the guitarist. Francis Fernandez, the Bell Boy, was the best. He always had a beautiful smile and was so eager to help us out.

VIK Hotel Arena Blanca: A piece of peace

We thoroughly enjoyed our stay The weather, ocean, pool, food and accommodations were fantastic The people were so helpful The place screams peace and quiet The gardens the cleanliness and restaurants/bars were excellent!

Caribe Deluxe Princess: Beautiful and amazing resort

The hotel exceeded our expectations. They did a great job renovating. The rooms were amazing. Restaurants were fantastic and the ice cream and coffee shop were great and fun to visit. Regarding the buffet it was very nice and the food was very good especially the desserts! The grounds were immaculate and always clean and tidy. The wildlife was a treat to see. Weather was perfect to 28C and sunny. We would also like to comment that the grounds people, working staff and management were kind [... read more], sweet and extremely friendly. Great job everyone. This was our 3rd time there. Looking forward to many more years. Great trip. On another note nothing to do with the resort. West jet was very disappointing airline. The West jet agent was not available even after talking to him personally by phone made no attempt to come to the resort. We were informed he would be there between 1-5pm. He actually came at 11am and stayed till 12:00 noon. Another person from West jet called and said he would come to the resort for a fee$. When trying to call the West jet toll free phone number at least a half a dozen times there was no answer or recording available. Very disappointing. The other airline reps at the resort did offer assistance especially Sunwing agent. West jet will not be my preferred airline going forward.

Catalonia Royal Bavaro: Trip was just ok

We arrived from Toronto Jan 18/23. For 2 weeks of well deserved vacation. ************************************************************************************* - Booked in witch took 1/2 hour very unorganized. - Room is very dated, in need of new bed mattress worn out, new chairs seats cushion weak using patio furniture for chairs, bathroom mirror so on. - Constantly asking for towels for our room, always shortage of towels for the bathroom. again wasting our so-called all inclusive relaxat [... read more]ion time. - The bar pool is in need of repairs, tiles falling off, cement patch work decaying, and pollen off leaving lots of cement pieces on the bottom stepping on them was painful lifetimes. - Bathroom toilet plugged a few times due to water issues chain came off the handle. I WILL NEVER GO BACK TO THIS RESORT. Being disrespectful, lied too, making me waste my time back and forth, the resort was hopeful that no one would complain about the water issue. All they had to do was send an email and explain instead of having many of us asking why there was no water one couple left after two days of being there, and being lied to very poor management skills. *************************************************************************************** After being there for a day went to take a shower NO HOT WATER or water at all! Went down to talk to them they said in half hour it will be on. So we used bottled water to wash down our bodies. 12 hours later that morning still no water, went down again and they said in a half hour by now I’m frustrated and don’t believe them. Well we still had no water at the end of that day :( So 3rd time l go down and said l want to talk to the manager. The receptionist hesitated so l told her it has nothing to do with you please get the manager, the manger ( Natalea) said the would have the water on by the end of the day, l explained to her that it’s been 3 days now without a proper shower and we are very pissed as we payed for ALL INCLUSIVE $$$ big money to have all the luxury of what the resort offers. Natalea said Sorry of the inconvenience should have hot water today. Finally we have hot water but only that day. The next 2 days no water some cold at times. So l decide to go talk to. Natalea to see about compensation for not having the all inclusive luxury. Show offer us a Spa massage, $50 gift card for their store only, supper supper on the beach, lobster dinner lol. Natalea said we can pick any 2 of these items lol. So l said you’re making us pick as a choice why aren’t you offering us it all. Natalea said l can’t give you all as l would have to explain this to my boss. So l said you should be offering us all and doing what ever it takes to make this up. Natalea said sorry l can’t do that, pick any to items l can make that happen. So we did. Next day our friends who came to meet us from the UK went to see their trip rep TUI. They gave them the Spa massage, $50 gift certificate and a choice of any excursions they offered RIGHT THERE ON THE SPOT. I S WENT TO TALK TO NATALEA again to see why she didn’t offer us an excursion deal. After talking she said l quote this people “ I WILL TAKE BACK WHAT I OFFERED YOU AND YOU CAN TAKE AN EXCURSION YOUR CHOICE “ I THEN LOST IT ON HER SHE SHOWED NO SORROW. My wife said she wanted the excursion so Natalea took back the massage and gift certificate WOW I WAS SO UPSET. I have left a lot of BS out to shorten this long story lol. Keep I’m mind that all the time l went to the reception desk roughly 4 HOURS OF MY TIME due to how slow they are. After hearing this feeling upset that Natalie didn’t offer us an excursion. l went to see out rep WestJet who is Jerson Tejada to see if they would do the same. He looked in to see if west jet could offer us an excursion. He sent an email to WestJet and said that we would hear from them in 24 hours. 24 hours went by and nothing yet. Jerson went to see Natalia. She came over to talk to us about the situation and stood strong that the offer on the table is all she could do so my wife said will take back the massage and gift certificate. Natalea went to go get it, and gave it back to us with a smirk on her face, as if she won the battle. Jerson seen her look, and said to me after she left. I’m going to give you some paper to write everything that happened and then he would send it to WestJet directly. We have did the report he did his part and said in 24 hours we should hear from West jet. Jerson said we will probably be home by the time we get a reply as we were leaving the next day to keep an eye out for an email while it’s been four days and nothing yet. We are very honest people and what is written here is the plain truth. I have been to Dominican in the last 12 years many different resorts. I’ve never seen something like this ever in my life and hope to never again, so people you can take this for whatever it’s worth, but if you feel that you wanna waste your money on a worn down resort this is the place.

Bahia Principe Grand Bavaro: Slightly better than average Resort

The hotel overall was a little better than average. Check in was a two hour ordeal that I would not wish on anyone, by far the worst check in experience I have ever had. The grounds were very well kept, and the public areas were generally clean. The rooms were a little dated, and the TV in ours did not work at all. The room service was lacking, as the bar fridge was not regularly stocked, and we had to ask staff several times to get beverages. Coffee and cups were not provided every day, and ag [... read more]ain, had to ask staff to restock. The dining was slightly better than average, and there were lots of options available. The pools were average at best, and the main bar regularly had large line ups, and it could take some time to get a drink. Always seemed to be understaffed.

TRS Turquesa: Beautiful Amazing Resort

The resort was beautiful with well manicured trees, bushes and flowers. The restaurants were clean, food was delicious and the beverages were great. Public washrooms were clean and well maintained. Accommodations and room services were exceptional. The resort workers were so happy, friendly and helpful if we needed anything.

Caribe Deluxe Princess: Wonderful resort

This was our 8th trip to this Resort and we absolutely love the beach, pool and the walk through the mangrove is our so wonderful. The updates to your resort since our last trip are amazing. Your staff couldn’t be nicer, friendlier and more helpful and the food is exceptional. Lots to do do never feel you have to leave the resort ..looking forward to our next trip🥰

Excellence Punta Cana: Amazing Resort!

My wife and family have been to a number of resorts in the DominicanRepublic. Although we try not to get our expectations too high I must say that my wife and I, as well as our two adult daughters had a very nice time at this resort. We were pleasantly surprised by all the offerings of this resort. So much so that we have only positive things to say and as a result would highly recommend this resort. Be sure and visit the parrots, they are a hoot! I am a bit sad though that we aren’t able to [... read more] return to share the experience with our grandchildren, as it is an adults only resort.

Grand Bavaro Princess: Bavaro Princess All Suites Platinum

Pro Clean/Excellent service/Food had got better CON Very family focused Children in bars at 11 at night Screaming children in dining room at 9 pm Gone here 5 times but time to change Platinum not roped off from Vendors on beach any more Having to use cell phone for menus and book restaurant is a pain Platinum is nice but too big now

Royalton Hideaway Punta Cana: Wonderful Time at the Hideaway at Royalton Punta Cana

Initially my wife and I were preparing ourselves for average food and average service as the resort is quite large. BUT, since we arrived on Feb 23 and returned on Feb 30 we were both truly amazed and impressed at how well the establishment is run. The food was incredible. The staff were always friendly and extremely helpful. Not to mention it seemed like 3 staff members for every guest. We would HIGHLY recommend this resort to anybody me! Just wish we would have stayed longer!

Riu Palace Macao: Excellent Service

We had a great time the service,food, rooms and people were amazing. Glad we went with this resort. Highly recommend it. The entertainment was good the beach had ample room and chairs with sun and shade available. If you want a spot by the pool it maybe a early rise to get one.

Riu Republica: Not 5 star resort!

Grounds very nice as where the pools,can't say the same for the room or food. It being called a PARTY HOTEL is very accurate. Just good for drinking and partying! A hotel for the younger crowd to let loose!!

Royalton Splash Punta Cana: Great family resort

The hotel was great, loved the layout of the family room. Great restaurants, a bit disappointing that we couldn’t eat at all of the restaurants at the other Royalton on the beach, as promised. Getting back and forth between the two resorts and the beautiful beach was less than a 10 minute walk or a quick ride on the transfer cart. The kids loved the shows at both resorts. The water park was another hit with the kids.

Impressive Punta Cana: The resort ALMOST lives up to its name

This resort is lush, intelligently thought out, has a great buffet with lots of choice, diverse dining options, a quiet pool for those who don't want noise and lots of people, a lovely beach with palm trees for shade, amusing entertainment and a massive lobby in the entrance and a disco. My ONLY big complaint is the Front Desk. The check-in was slow and a nightmare. Guest services are not overly friendly unlike the rest of the staff. Check-in should of taken half the time and when I inquired as  [... read more]to where my room was located (its a large property) I was rudely told to look at the map in my check-in envelope.

Melia Punta Cana Beach Wellness Resort Adults: Highly Recommend the Level - Incredible Value

Just got back from the Melia Wellness Resort for our anniversary and had such a wonderful time. We booked rooms that were a part of the "Level" and I seriously recommend this upgrade. The atmosphere was truly restoring for the soul. We took advantage of the free 30-minute massage as a couple and I later had an 80-minute hot stone massage. It was incredible. There are almost constantly really fun and engaging activities taking place, some of which are exclusive to the Level guests. I highly recom [... read more]mend taking advantage of these. I have been to many all-inclusive resorts around the world and can attest that the food and service here, especially at the Level, are top quality. It was great to have many healthy (and some vegan) options as well. We had an outstanding experience with our "butler", Jenfry De Jesus. He was a personal concierge who took amazing care of us. He was so helpful during our trip and made sure all of our questions and concerns were addressed. He also had a few surprises up his sleeve that made our trip extra special. Overall, I wouldn't have wanted to have experienced our anniversary at any other resort. It was perfect.

Occidental Caribe: Terrible Resort

The front desk service was terrible! Took 3 hours to get a room! Our bathroom flooded everyday, toilet leaked. Our safe broken, patio door doesn’t lock. Other people had the same key card coded to our room. 5 people just walked in! A la Carte restaurants were all booked up. No one ever answered the front desk phone all week. Said there was a 24 snack bar, there wasn’t! Not enough chairs at pool or ocean. People were fighting over them! Food was just ok. Disco was in the basement like a dunge [... read more]on that smelled like a pool and smoke. I DO NOT recommend this hotel!

Royalton Bavaro Resort and Spa: The Royalton

Overall thoroughly enjoyed our time at the Royalton, great food, service and amenities...I would however, suggest more attention to the small maintenance items in the rooms. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________