Playabachata Hotel: Good Budget Friendly Hotel

My mom and I went on a trip and chose the cheapest 4 star resort in all the DR/Mexico and this one was in our budget/cheapest deal. I went for the sun and sand and that's exactly what I got! I'm a picky eater and was able to find food for all meals. Breakfast I had potatoes and chocolate muffins, lunch I usually had pizza (which was so good!) and dinner usually pasta and some sort of meat (pork or chicken and they did have some beef options). We always sat where Gabriella and Raymond were serv [... read more]ing. They were great! The rooms was cleaned every day but had lots of ants. We also only 1 bed sheet. The showers were pretty narrow and we didn't have hand soap for the first few days. The AC was noisy but didn't bother me too much. Apparently at the sister resort the Senator's AC was broken the entire week we were there. Wifi was slow and only in the lobby but again, that didn't bother me as it's nice to disconnect. The beach was beautiful and seemed pretty private which I loved. Beautiful scenery. There were some broken chairs, but again, this didn't bother me. It was a place to sit and relax. The red flag was up for a couple days and some people went out too far and the lifeguards had to go out and help them but the lifeguards seemed really great and on top of things! I didn't have high expectations as it was a spectacular deal and I knew we weren't going to a 5 star/newer hotel but I would go back again if the price was right!

Barcelo Bavaro Beach: Good value but.....

We've now been to Barcelo Bavaro Beach all adults at least half a dozen times and have noticed there's still some catching up to do since COVID. Some of the rooms are getting tired with A/C problems, very heavy sliding doors to your balcony, no USB charging ports, limited electrical outlets but they are kept very clean. The pool is brilliant with easy access and is not very crowded except the same old problem of people reserving chairs early in the morning and then hustling off to the beach to  [... read more]reserve more chairs. The beach is wonderful with plenty of space so you're not crowded in. The food choices means everyone can find something they like however, the Dominican's for some reason like (or don't realize) near raw potatoes. They often offer roasted in various sauces but the potatoes just aren't cooked as we know it. And french fries? Same thing. Under-cooked, floppy and generally barely warm. There was always fresh cooked fish, roasted chicken, hammy's & dogs, pizza, pasta station, breakfast omelet station, crepe station etc. No-one goes hungry at this resort. Covid is no longer a going concern and only a few servers and cooks wore masks. One problem we had concerned my wife who is handicapped with MS. Although I did notify the resort prior that she could NOT climb into a bathtub fitted shower, we had to wait two days until their very limited (5 rooms out of ~600!) handicapped rooms became available. If you are handicapped and need a sit-in-the-shower, make sure you notify them well in advance. This concerns me and will undoubtedly become more and more an issue as the majority of the WORLD is now over 65. Help me and others if you can by noticing and advising the chains of their impending situation. As I told the manager, a non-handicapped person can use a handicapped room but it doesn't work the other way around. As long as you don't expect this 4-5 star resort to treat you like a seven star, I would and have recommended this resort to many of our friends.

Barcelo Bavaro Palace: Always a good stay

My husband and I have been to this resort 10 times and always have a great stay. He loves the golf and I enjoy the spa. The grounds are well kept, the rooms clean and the beach is amazing. The only complaint I have that has become more of an issue as time goes by is being able to get dinner reservations at a decent time. We tried to book our a la cartes they day we arrived for the week and had a difficult time getting anything before 8pm or anything being available at all. The buffet has a good  [... read more]variety but I did find that serving utensils were sometimes missing or people were using the same utensil for multiple dishes. Due to food allergies and sensitivity I started using my own utensils from the table. The staff work very hard to keep things running smoothly. This year we travelled during US spring break and will definitely make sure we do not travel during that time again.

VH Gran Ventana Beach Resort: Second visit

Our first visit was in 2016 and we enjoyed it then. After pandemic, we decided to visit again and were no disappointed. Not much change in hotel, same restaurants, entertainment, and quality of service. Our concierge Jejeydy, not sure about correct spelling was very helpful in meeting our needs. We purchased with two week stay with Royal package which we recommend highly. The Vintage Club is very nice place to relax, have cappuccino or what ever international quality drink, have a conversation,  [... read more]play cards or what ever. Unfortunately, some guests can be little noisy with group laughs, but it can be tolerated. In order to get to restaurants, you must reserve early, especially for first or second seating. Menu does not change and that is little drawback. In restaurants they serve same wine as in buffet and it is not the best quality. You can purchase by bottle, but I did not recognize brands. For Royal package they should serve better wine inclusive. Assistant beverage manager (Carlos?) listened to our comments. Bartender at the Club remembered our "usual" drinks and was appreciated. Amar, the one of many servers was working very hard in the morning, lunch and dinner. Private beach was very clean, well served by attendants Jose, Lukas and others. In some cases the original architect made minor mistakes in design, especially in public washrooms. It could be remedied at the minor cost, if management decides to do it. Overall, hotel was very clean and maintained as such.

VH Gran Ventana Beach Resort: excellent resort and stay

WE STAYED HERE ABOUT 14 YEARS AGO, I WAS VERY IMPRESSED WITH THE EXCELLENT CONDITION OF THE PROPERTY, FOOD WAS GREAT, SERVICE WAS GREAT, OVERALL VERY SATISFIED WITH OUR TRIP. ONLY COMPLAINTS WERE TOO MUCH SPANISH MUSIC AND TOO LOUD. MAJORITY OF PEOPLE WERE CANADIAN AND MORE POPULAR ROCK AND COUNTRY MUSIC WOULD BE APPRECIATED. LADY WHO RAN THE POOL BAR WAS VERY FRIENDLY AND GREAT SERVICE

Playabachata Hotel: Amazing Resort

Just got back from a two week stay, the best advice our travel agent told us was to bring our water shoes, the beach was lovely but grainy to walk on. Ensure you bring a proper charger for your phone/pad ours didn’t fit as the outlets were circular and edges raised, some rooms had been updated but ours wasn’t. The resort was massive, two huge pools, I liked the landscaping everything was lush and green a lot of vegetation not stark and cement. Very little English spoken by staff which could  [... read more]be frustrating for some people. If you want to go somewhere to be totally immersed in the culture this is the place you want to go. I am already looking to go back next year for 3-4 weeks. Red and white wine on tap, beer on tap, a pot of coffee or tea with a small pot of warmed milk, these little extras make you less dependent on being served.

VH Gran Ventana Beach Resort: Gran Ventana

This resort was nice,very friendly staff. Food was excellent. Entertainment was the same every day. Not much to do there.If you just like laying around for a week or two,fine. That's about all there is to do.

Sunscape Puerto Plata: Best resort ever!!

We loved this hotel, we have been to many all inclusives and this was the only time the front desk ever called us twice to see how everything was and if we needed anything. It was friendly and very clean and the food was good. What we liked also was that one pool was for the party people and the other was for relaxing. We also loved the coffee and dessert room that we visited every day! Martha was also very special and kind to us, wonderful customer service well beyond expectations. Keep up [... read more] the good work, we will certainly return and tell others.

Senator Puerto Plata Hotel: So Disappointing

Let me start by saying that the food was good and the bed was comfortable. Now let’s get into the reality… we arrived at 12:30 am and had to stand in line to check in, 1 person working the desk with 20 people incoming. Once that was done we were taken to our room, we requested a ground floor for health reasons and when we entered our building in the last row of buildings on the resort we were informed we were on the 4th floor with no elevator. We made the climb and we’re then greeted with  [... read more]a musty smelling room that had no air conditioning. Not at all what we wanted, back down to the desk as the phones did not work, after about an hour we were given a room in the building next door on the ground floor, after moving everything down to that room which also did not have air conditioning. The next morning we inquired about air conditioning and were told they were fixing it…. That never happened. We attempted to find chairs at both the beach and the pool but apparently people get up at 5am to put their towels on their loungers for the day so good luck finding a chair. Most of the workers spoke no English at all which made communication very difficult. When we approached our concierge about our issues she offered us VIP but we would have to pay extra and listen to the Timeshare opportunity… no thanks. The alacart meals are a joke, you have to make reservations which is fine but we arrived on a Tuesday and could not get a alacart until Friday night as they were all booked, however when you walked by those same restaurants at prime time they were 1/2 empty. In order to book meals you had to get in line at 8:30am-10:30am to book them and they tell you they are all booked. You are allowed 2 towels for pool/beach, if you misplace them or don’t return them be prepared to pay. The beach was red flag all except 1 day and very wavy and rocky. It is a very pretty resort with nice grounds that are well kept however they have serious issues in the back of house and need to think more about their guest then their pocketbook. Getting bottled water and pop in your room was difficult and limited 2 bottle of pop and 2 bottles of water per day ( if you’re lucky) The drinks were subpar and so full of sugar you felt sick. Juice at the buffet was available IF they had glasses. Breakfast at buffet was good but if you want bacon be there before 8am as they only make 1 tray and when it’s gone there is no more for the morning. The VIP golf carts are always forcing you off the walkways in order to get through. The friendliest people on the resort are the cleaning staff. Special thanks to Benjamin for hooking us up with excellent excursions! I will not go back to this resort, it should only be rated a 3 not a 4.5 star

Barcelo Bavaro Palace: Great resort and golf course!

Close enough from Punta Cana airport. Booking for restaurants was a bit difficult. Checking in & out took long time juts like any other resorts… Golf checking in for early morning took extra long as some redundancies of process.

Occidental Punta Cana: Excellent Resport

The grounds, food, etc. were all very good. It was very difficult to communicate with staff due to lack of English. Even for recreation everything was only in Spanish. Having said that, the staff tried to understand, we google to translate and they were all so very friendly. As a diabetic, it was disappointing to see that they did not have any sharpes containers available in the main lobby washrooms. We had an amazing time overall.

Iberostar Selection Bavaro Suites: I would not stay at Iberostar again.

The beach, pool and grounds were all great and well maintained, but the rooms were disappointing and needed a lot of maintenance. Out of four rooms, two had ground floor patio doors that didn't lock. The cleanliness of the rooms was poor. Despite asking the maids each day to change the sheets they completely ignored this request and the floors were never swept which meant the sand you continually drag in from the beach even though you try not to accumulates on your floor and in your bed. One o [... read more]f our group actually took the sheets off the bed and bundled them up. Their sheets were changed but the maids were put out that they had to do this. The maids did change the towels but didn't clean the sink, which again accumulated sand through the week. Many of the ice and water machines around the property were broken. You are provided with water bottles to fill at the machines for filtered water, but I'm not sure the bottles are cleaned between guests which may be the cause of the stomach issues half of us had. Communication with staff was challenging at times which could be expected, but the process of trying to book one of the specialty restaurants should be made a bit easier. The flood was good and varied and the hostess of the main buffet was awesome and took care of our party of 12 very well. All in all, great beach but I would not stay at any Iberostar again.

Playabachata Hotel: Has potential

Great little nook in the heavens! However, no electricity, no telephone or air conditioning for the week. The set up was flat, simple and food decent. Quite a walk to attend dinner/shows. Stay at 1, play at 3. It was a haven for peace and ease. I will be bringng my ageing parents (60 years married) here next year. The staff were pleasant, accomodating and the ground were well kept.

Viva Wyndham Dominicus Beach: Viva Whyndam Dominicus Holidays

We wore pick up at Punta Cana by a driver,brought us to the hotel.We changed our room 3 times,finally they give us a nice room,in mean times lost couple day by the times everything was over.Also they hotel gave us the fobes to open the door,and we had to change the fobes 3 times.Over all essential that bad.The rest was good,I will be back next year again.We wore there eleven times.Coming home the Sunwing rappresentant told me the pick up is at 7.20 a.m. the bus show up at 9.00 a.m. The plane was [... read more] late 3 hours.We should arrive at 4.00 p.m. we arrive in Toronto at 8.00 p.m.

Occidental Punta Cana: Beautiful resort

The resort itself is beautiful, well landscaped and clean. The rooms are clean and the minibar was stocked with water and pop (no beer for except for 1 day) the beds were comfortable and the air conditioning worked well in our room. There was a decent sized balcony with a patio table and chairs as well as a clothes drying rack. The pool bar(only 1) has a weird waterfall you have to walk under to get a drink so be prepared to try and cover your drink on the way out so recycled pool water doesn’ [... read more]t fall in it. The buffet was great, lots of options for everyone. We tried the steakhouse a la carte and was not impressed. It was a very long wait for service and the steak was over cooked. The Asian restaurant was amazing. The bar could use more drink options and the blended drinks were mostly melted since they don’t use blenders, just the machines that spin the liquid around to freeze. I would definitely avoid early March since we were greeted with about 100 American kids on spring break that took over the bar causing extremely long waits and liked to return to their rooms around 3/4am crashing and screaming and slamming doors. The beach is nice was very windy most of the week so we spent most of our time around the pool. If booking water excursion check the wind before booking we were driven about 20 minutes away to board a catamaran that essentially drove back and forth along the beach since the waves were too rough to cross so we didn’t get to do the snorkeling portion of the trip. There is some shopping nearby within walking distance and there are some vendors that will come and setup around the main grounds of the hotel. The vendors can be pushy and make sure to haggle with them to get a better price. All in all we enjoyed the resort but probably wouldn’t return.

Bahia Principe Grand Bavaro: Great time

This was our first time in Bahia Principe Grand Bávaro! We were really surprised to see how beautiful this resort was. We liked our room, which was right by the pool and walking distance to the beach and to the lobby. Food was great, service was excellent, staff - very friendly and attentive. One thing about the beach ,- it was quite crowded, Beds were very close to each other and IT was a problem to find an umbrella or palapa. Otherwise everything was great, we’ll definitely come back

Viva Heavens by Wyndham: Beautiful resort

First time for us going to Puerto Plata...we were really impressed with how clean the hotel and the grounds were...we enjoyed the walk on the path that took us to the ocean it looked like a little Amazon river...the food was great, room was nice and big, dining room was great...people were very friendly...overall everything was great .

Barcelo Bavaro Palace: Great resort

Huge property, well maintained. Went during March break, so was very busy. Food was great, lots of options. Pool, bars, beach, everything was fantastic. Staff were very helpful. Rooms were good, but layout a bit strange. Open washroom/shower might take a bit of getting used to. Hot tub on patio was a great treat.

Sunscape Puerto Plata: Great resort

This resort is older Caribbean style but freshend up and very clean . Rooms were a nice size and bathrooms were updated and clean . The pools were decent had a nice pool bar with friendly staff everywhere lots of loungers und umbrellas. Food at all the restaurants was good and large selection . Entertainment was fun and decent at night shows . From the front staff Miss Rosa was very helpful to bell boys and bartenders and wait staff and monica of the maid staff all were pleasant and helpful. Wou [... read more]ld recomend this resort to all looking to get away for fun in the sun for a reasonable price is a good 4+ resort . If impressed by mordern big glass n marble lobby etc this is not for you but for the average person looking for clean good food n drinks its great. Also this beach might not be the white sands of Punta Cana but clean soft sand and can walk for miles each way safely was enjoyed by many each day great swiming.

Melia Punta Cana Beach Wellness Resort Adults: Loved Melia Punta Cana❤️

We loved this resort! The Level is a must! The resort is adult only but The Level upgrade comes with your own concierge/butler who helps make life simple for you. We loved Jose Minaya❤️ The rooftop patio for pre dinner cocktails was an every night thing with premium liquors. They do need to step up the peanuts and olives but on the 2nd floor you can catch great snacks like cheeses, salami and great guacamole. The Level restaurant Quimera was excellent for dinner and breakfast. Lunches we hi [... read more]t the buffet and had fresh grilled fish, great burgers or fresh made stirfry. The usual challenge of trying to get a shaded hut was our biggest challenge with us having to snag them super early. The resort is immaculate and the grounds are stunning. We stayed in Villa 8 which is lovely and very close to pool and the Quimera building. Entertainment was okay. We did walk next door and played in the small casino and the vibe was slightly more lively with all the families around. Ocean was nice but not on sunset side of island. My biggest complaint will come from the 3 nights of “unexplained” smelly smoke that filled our area of the island (not just our resort). No answers to what it was but 1 night it was horrible. Overall, we would return but will try the other side of the island next time for more Caribbean waters and sunsets.