El Beso Adults Only at Ocean El Faro: Nice Resort

This hotel is well maintained both inside and out. The gardens are lovely and frame the buildings and pools beautifully. We did not receive the ElBaso wrist bands and were therefore not allowed to partake in any of the upgraded pools, Restaurants, etc. that this review request suggests. We were asked to leave the beach side restaurant as our wristbands were not the correct ones. This was disappointing as we were given the upgrade at checkin.

Ocean Riviera Paradise: Nice resort

Ocean riviera paradise is a nice resort. We stayed in the adult only were to have a pool view but the room we ended up with was not a pool view but still worked out. Restaurants were good when open enjoyed the Japanese and route 66, steakhouse was also good. Buffet was as expected hit and miss for hot food. Entertainment was good 1 night 2 guys playing on a Monday they need to have it Thursday, Friday and Saturday with bands. For us it was too big of a resort.

Ocean El Faro: Great Resort!

The resort was very clean, with beautiful pools and amenities. Lots of food options at the buffet and nice restaurants for dinner. The beach party was especially fun! We brought snorkel gear and saw lots of fish, sea urchins, and a stingray.

Ocean Riviera Paradise: Amazing trip!

I thought the hotel was beautiful. I had a room in the Eden bldg which had a swim up. Couldn't have asked for better. Everyone was super respectful and kind. Food was good. Has a coffee shop and the ladies were fantastic. Guest services was phenomenal! I wish I could remember all their names but as I can't I'd like to give a huge thanks for all they did for me.

Ocean Riviera Paradise: Cant Wait to go back!

Everything was great, the beach was not as expcted. is it as wide and white as other places NO but it was clean and the kids were playing. Seaweed was minimal and people were cleanign it up! The food was AMAZING, so many options and never went hungry. Definitely eat that the beach restaurant - pizza, nachos and fish tacos were great and the view was unforgettable. The staff was always helpful, people came aroudn askign if you wanted drinks and cleaning up dirty cups all day. We stayed at th [... read more]e Daisy, without kids and went to the Eden during the day. Room had no issues, AC worked, bed was good and lots of pillows. Mikes coffee shop was great for coffee any time and all day. I cant wait to go back

Ocean Blue and Sand: Ocean Blue and Sand

When we booked our trip, we asked our agent to request a 1st floor room, close to the beach, due to my wife having knee issues. At check-in we were told we were in 8 block on the 3rd floor. We told them about our request for a 1st floor room through our booking agent but were told there were no other rooms available. This seemed very odd to me because it was quite obvious they were nowhere near capacity. After the first night, we noticed our air conditioner didn't seem to be working properly [... read more] so we went to guest services to request someone look at it. They said they would send someone right away. That night, the same issue as the room was quite hot. Next morning we went to guest services and again asked to have someone look at our air conditioner, told them this was our second day complaining about it and again were told they would get on it right away. Well nothing changed. The coldest our room ever got was 26.5 C. Could l or should l have gone back a third time to complain? l guess l could have but why get upset and have to argue when on vacation. If Ocean Blue and Sand wants to be considered a 5 Star Hotel, they should have made sure our concerns were taking care of. The room, other than the air conditioner not working properly was actually quite nice. The grounds are kept amazing and there are 2 pretty good sized pool areas. The beach was also nice but lacked many Palapas. The only ones available were all in the back in the shade for most of the time. They have lots of room on the main beach to add some, and this would be a great addition to the property. The beach was nice. If your susceptible to mosquito's, make sure you bring lots of bug spray. l learned the hard way after the first night as l was eaten alive. My legs were a mess the next day while my wife had no bites. The restaurants were fairly good in our opinion. The main buffet was ok with lots of choices and although it wasn't on the better side of what we have seen over the years of travel, it was adequate enough in our opinion. The Sensai (Japanese), the Steak House (El Bodegon) and the Italian (Mascherati) were all good. We weren't allowed in the Blue Moon as long pants and shoes were required, something l don't bring down south. Route 66 was ok for a quick bite and more of a pub style dinner. At the beach, Villa Marina was also ok. Some of our favorite servers were Kelvin (Cline) Morales at the main lobby bar, Hugo and Edwin at the sports bar. This was our third time in the Dominican and we have also been to Aruba, Curacao, Barbados, Antigua, St. Marten, St. Thomas, St. Kitt's, St. Lucia, Jamaica, Cuba, Grand Cayman, Mexico and Turks and Caicos, just to give you an idea of how extensively we have travelled and to summarize how we rated this Hotel.

Ocean Coral Spring: Great resort

Visited the Ocean Coral Spring for one week in January. The restaurants are all great and our room was amazing. We spent the money on the oceanfront and are certainly glad we did (although there are good views from many rooms). The beach was not that great in terms of swimability as there's a lot of coral, so you have to walk around it. However, it was very easy to secure loungers on the beach probably because of the lazy river and the pools, which looked amazing, but as we aren't pool people - [... read more]- so we didn't spend much time there. We enjoyed the bowling alley and lots of other activities. The staff seemed to be hit or miss -- many were great and friendly but some were abrupt and standoffish -- we've not experienced this in Jamaica before. Overall we had a great time!

El Beso Adults Only at Ocean El Faro: Fantastic Trip

Overall this resort was fantastic. The best parts were the rooms, pools, grounds and staff. The food ranged from good to very good. The beach was rough in spots, but had a beautiful lagoon next to the resort. There was ample chairs by the beach and pool. If you wanted a pool cabana you had to get up early. We had a great time.

Ocean Eden Bay: This was a great resort

The grounds are very well kept the pools were always clean a little on the cool side for my liking. We found the ocean was warmer than the pool. The beaches were kept very clean. The rooms are big enough. They were clean just a short of bath towels, the food was excellent wide variety lots of restaurants to choose from and very tasty the staff were extremely friendly always willing to help

El Beso Adults Only at Ocean El Faro: Beautiful & Clean

We arrived at El Beso adults only on Monday, January 20. Check-in was quick and the Bell boys brought us and our luggage to the room in a golf cart. We arrived in the evening, This hotel is massive and although we were staying on the adults only side, we would walk every morning and evening to the Ocean El Fero side for coffee, buffet and restaurants, entertainment, and to book adventures. There was a golf cart train that circled the entire resort every 15 minutes for people who need assis [... read more]tance or didn’t want to walk. We walked approximately 11,000 to 13,000 steps per day which we enjoyed. The cart was nice when we were too hot, too tired, or if it rained.. We stayed in block 17 next to the beach and there was also a beach bar and beach restaurant on the adults only side. We managed to get beach chairs each day at the beach and spent most of our time swimming in the lagoon. We brought our own snorkeling, equipment, and saw sea turtles, small fish, and sea urchins at the lagoon. The lagoon was huge and the water was turquoise with a Sandy bottom and just enough waves coming in. The main beach was rocky, and the waves were very strong. The lagoon was only a five minute walk and well worth it.. Our room was extremely clean and staff came to clean every day. We couldn’t get the air conditioning working properly and we found it quite cold in our room. We just went to guest services and got an extra blanket. Staff brought pop, beer, and water every day to our room. The buffet was our favourite place to eat, but we did try the steakhouse and the Italian restaurant. They had a coffee shop which was fabulous and offered everything that Starbucks does. Our last night we tried the route 66 restaurant, but it was extremely greasy and we left most of our food on our plate.. We didn’t spend much time at the pool because we noticed everyone drinking at the swim up bar never left to go to the bathroom. That kind of grossed us out, but we loved the beach and swimming in the lagoon. We had the option of Privilege, but decided it was not worth the cost of $60USD/day. We tipped well but didn’t buy anything from the gift shop as it was very expensive. We decided to purchase one adventure from our Air Transat rep to go zip lining for half a day in the mountains. $90USD Was well worth it. When we checked out of our room at noon Saturday, we didn’t leave the resort until 5 pm. We were able to spend four more hours at the beach and then we’re able to book one of two shower rooms with a bathroom and change room. Shampoo, body wash, and towels were all provided. We would definitely recommend this resort and would go back again.

Ocean Eden Bay: Lots of fun & tons of amenities

Rooms are a little tired and rough. Really great food and selection, excellent service. Love the restaurant street set up. The disco is a blast ? Beach is very natural, maybe a bit rocky so bring water shoes. The best watersports services on the beach for kayaking and glass bottom boat was a highlight too.

Ocean El Faro: Ocean el faro overview

The lobby is absolutely gorgeous. The bar tenders there are knowledgeable. The rooms were spacious, clean, up to date. Absolutely loved the swinging hammock, though not all rooms came with them. Buffet had lots of good variety and mixed it up every night. Baked goods were awesome. No shortage of bacon. Though sometimes finding a clean table and cutlery was difficult if you didn't arrive within the first hour. The a la cartes were awesome. The beach front was rough but to the left is a calm natur [... read more]al lagoon. We stayed mostly at the lazy river. We brought our own tube and pump system. The bar tenders there were friendly and conversational. A drink menu would have been cool to have. Some annoying sellers who stayed close to the lobby were on us daily. Over all we would go back!

Ocean Coral Riviera Cancun: Great travel agent support

Thanks to Tammy for her great support in accommodating our request not to use the outbound flight included in our vacation package. Despite having an uncommon request, Tammy managed to make our vacation work seamless.

Ocean Coral Riviera Cancun: Average Resort

We enjoyed our time at this resort. The rooms were nice and the resort was clean. The pools are nice and so is the beach. However, initially our room was not what we had reserved and paid for and could not accommodate our family size. Guest services resolved this but this was frustrating when arriving very late after a long travel day. We also ran into issues booking dinners at restaurants, especially around New Years, they do not have the space to accommodate guests who are not a preferred m [... read more]ember (i.e. time share) UNLESS you spend money on wine...once you spend money on wine you will get into the restaurants. This shouldn't be the case. I wouldn't stay at a resort again that operates this way with tiered memberships around restaurant bookings.

Ocean Coral Riviera Cancun: DISAPPOINTING HOLIDAY

The resort sells itself as a 4 star resort with and Adult/Privilege option. We upgraded to the privilege option at the resort because we realized the standard we booked would be subpar. With the privilege they assign you a "BUTLER". Who is simply there as the gatekeeper to the al-la carte restaurants. YOU MUST BOOK through him/her to get reservations at restaurants. Checkin was quick and easy at the EL BESO front desk as we took a taxi and had no other groups were checking in. The room we requ [... read more]ested was remodeled and was clean and spacious. The view amazing from the 4th floor. As we don't mind walk stairs or taking the elevators. In fact, this was not a privilege room since we didn't have a hot tub on the balcony. The water pressure was weak. MINI bar was fully stocked with beer pop and water, booze not so much The grounds are beautiful, covered walkways, romantic pathways, lovely large pools 4 to be exact. 1 party pool one quiet and for kids and then the Adult section. No shortage of chairs no shortage of drinks. The privilege section had its own sunbathing area, which got full. still plenty room around pool. The beach was super. Wide super soft sand. Beach chairs were available under the palapas, but by afternoon on a sunny day not available.( we unfortunately had five days of cloud and some rain, so sunny days the beach was packed. The location of the hotel was great has you could walk for kilometers. The water was rough on most days so the water is not blue or clear, but this is Mexico. They did a good job, with an old MASSEY FERGUSSEN tractor, to remove the sea grasses that would wash up. The privilege dining area was new and very comfortable. The views awesome as it was next to the sea. and the AL FRESCO breakfasts and lunches were memorable. NOW THE BAD: THE FOOD was bad to mediocre and sometimes non existent. I give it an F. The al la carte breakfast and lunches were ok. PORTIONS small and often lacked flavour. Salt and pepper nowhere to be found. The coffee was like they used rebrewed coffee grinds even the espressos and other specialty drinks were yuk. AND Mexico has good coffee. The Buffet had no variety, small portions, and lacked abundance. For a 600 room hotel that had 80% occupancy there should have been many many choices. The food available had no flavour and was subpar quality. I'm in Mexico and wish to see guacamole at every meal. They had some at the buffet but it soooo SPICY even the locals didn't touch it. The a-la-carte restaurants were not much better. They get a C for overall service, the house wine was like vinaigrette and the salad dressing was like wallpaper paste or non existent, they get a B for presentation. They are renovated and new but lack ambience, the decor is mismatched and missing the WOW factor that they are trying to convey. SERVICE: ABSOLUTLEY the worst ever. The staff are great and friendly until u complain. The total lack of organization and service protocol is a joke. THIS COMES from management and not the staff themselves. You will have been greeted by three staff and still NO menu, NO coffee, and NO drinks. once you order you will again get one item from one staff another from another and down the line it goes. And yet ask for ketchup, nobody brings it. ask for a spoon nobody brings it. HALF the time we received only half of what we ordered. Like they are controlling the food you consume. The BUTLER thing is also nonsense. If you don't have one then you will never eat the al la carte restaurants. If you ask for a reservation on your own the answer will be not until 9.00pm, then you walk by at 7.30 pm and the place is empty. THEIR idea of trying to convey exclusivity wears very thin for people that want to relax and be not adhere to their schedule. I'm happy to give them advise on how to manage turnovers in a restaurant setting. ENTERTAINMENT: They have a great team and try to engage the kids alot. They do a good job as there are alot of kids all ages. The shows themselves, Amateurish. I give it B for effort but C for quality. My OVERALL opinion is I won't come back and I like to be a repeat guest. I paid 5 stair price and received 3 star service and food quality. The location is the best as it was close to the airport and PUERTO MORALES which is enchanting and has a great music scene and night life.  But my vacation is about service and food quality.

Ocean El Faro: Great time Great resort

the hotel is very nice, it was our 3rd time at this resort. The 1st 2 times we had swim up rooms but we booked late and they did not have any available this time. we had a 1st floor pool view room that was okay but should have requested an upper floor with a balcony, but that is personal preference only. They do a good job at up keeping the place, always have workers in the grounds & cleaning the place.. In the lazy river we found that this time there was not enough tubes to float around, not [... read more] sure if it was the time of year or that other people were just keeping them when not in the lazy river. Just a reminder to bring your own. Over all had a great time and would go back

Ocean Blue and Sand: Beautiful Resort

This resort was spotlessly clean and staff were constantly maintaining the property. The staff we're exceeding friendly and very helpful. The food was very good in both the buffets and the restaurants. You hear many comments about don't drink the water in the Dominican but the water in the bars, restaurants and buffet was perfectly safe to drink. (and so was the ice which is all brought in in bags) They DO SAY do not drink the water from any taps in your rooms. We stayed away from the salads  [... read more]due to warnings online about resorts in the Dominican, but many people were partaking daily and we did not hear of anyone having any issues. The pools were beautiful and clean and so was the beach (beach swept each morning by machines to clean up any seaweed) Both the pool and the beach were short of chairs for the number of guests. We had beautiful weather (January 7-14) and absolutely no bugs. We did hear of others being there in May and the mosquitos were very bad. I had hoped to do some snorkelling from shore but it was very poor. There is a reef a ways in from shore and I did swim out there once and had a great time snorkelling. However, the boat traffic between the shore and the reef discouraged me from trying it again (and I was warned not to) The only real complaint I might raise about this resort is that all of the entertainment was ridiculously LOUD !! We often let the area of entertainment due to the level of noise, which is a shame because it did seem like decent programs. There was a shortage of things to do at the resort but they did offer excursions for a substantial fee. Overall we were very pleased with this resort and would suggest it to friends looking for a beautiful place to rest and take in the sun.

Ocean Blue and Sand: Beautiful resort!

Positive: Nicely maintained buildings and property. Lots of activities available Nice beach Good variety of food Clean rooms and lounge areas Park-like setting Friendly staff everywhere Negative: boat traffic is pretty close to shore …didn’t feel comfortable to swim out to the reef to snorkel. (There is a bouy line to define a swimming area) We did not go on any excursions …mostly relaxed on the beach. They could use a few more chairs at the beach and at the pool. All in all  [... read more]it was a great experience!

Ocean Coral Riviera Cancun: Average Resort for the cost

We recently stayed at Ocean Coral and Turquesa for two weeks over the Christmas Holiday. The airport transportation wasn’t very friendly or good. When we arrived at the hotel, we tipped the driver three dollars Canadian, which we thought was fair as other passengers didn’t even bother to tip. The driver insulted us saying that he doesn’t accept “metal” and demanded that we provide him bills instead. Off the Start we did not have a good experience and found that to be quite rude as we didn’t have [... read more] any American money at the time. The reception was quite friendly and it brightened up our day. We had to wait until 3 PM to check into our room, but we were able to enjoy the amenities of the resort. Overall, we found the rooms to be quite dated, although adequate. The king size bed was extremely hard and almost felt like we were sleeping on a brick. The maid service was quite good and we did tip our maid as we now had American money. Overall, the food was actually quite good at all the restaurants and the buffet. Although the buffet was quite repetitive and was pretty much the same food every night with minor differences, it was still quite good and we enjoyed it very much. The one thing that we found foolish was the first come first serve at restaurants so you could not make reservations for those restaurants and you have to break up your day and wait in line 30 to 40 minutes prior to the opening of the restaurant. They gave priority to The upgraded Privilege customers who were permitted to make reservations at first come first serve restaurants. They often held at least HALF the restaurant tables empty just in case others from the privilege would book. I really think they should just get rid of this waiting in line process and just have all Reservations. If they want to give priority to privilege then that’s fine but at least we should be able to book a reservation so we don’t have to queue up in a line for 30 to 40 minutes. A bit of a downer was my wife suffered an injury on the fifth day of our trip at the pool on a broken tile inside the pool. It caused a gash on her big toe while walking into the pool as her toe got caught on a sharp broken tile and she required 17 stitches at the hospital. Although the staff was very nice and seemed to be sympathetic, they did not really offer much to compensate us for the loss of basically the rest of our trip due to disrepair of their pool. The hospital doctor ordered my wife could not go into the pool anymore and could not go on the beach as it could infect her injury. So this caused a bit of depression on our part because we were unable to enjoy the rest of the trip as we should have. Although accidents do happen, I believe something could’ve been done to mitigate the fact that their pool was in disrepair and was the cause of her injury. On another note, the beach had a lot of seaweed on it however we noticed that this was one of the only resorts in the area that actually use the tractor to try and get rid of it and clean up the beach so this is definitely a plus for them. However, we would recommend Water shoes for the beach. The shows provided by the animation team were fairly average as we have been to other resorts that have provided better entertainment. This would not be such a big deal if the location of the resort was closer to the town or other amenities around. Also, they shut their indoor theater and all the shows were outside. Given the season it did rain a fair bit so they had to shut some shows down. They did not have a disco, although you could go to the pool area where there was a DJ, but unfortunately, they needed a little bit more nightlife at this resort. A bit of a letdown on the entertainment and dancing part. The taxis to travel to other places were all triple the price even the resort was aware of this. Thus the extra cost was quite big as the resort is fairly secluded. Serving staff was a bit aggressive when it came to tipping. We tip and feel this is important but it should not be aggressive to make guests uncomfortable. The Gym area was terrible. It was misrepresented online. Tiny gym could not accommodate hundreds of people - fail marks on this. OVERALL, the resort is average. Quality wise we would give it a 3 star.

Ocean Maya Royale: Great Resort!

Great Staff, facilities, and overall service. Very well maintained and tidy. We were quite pleased with our entire stay. I would say that we got very good value for the quality of the resort. The sand on the beach was amazing. The lounge chair availability was very good. Patrons were all very respectable.