Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda: Fun Holiday

Went to this hotel from January 26, 2019 to February 2, 2019. Enjoyed my vacation. Positives were the building location to the beach and pool, very clean, great food and wonderful staff. Negatives were the room was dated (could use a face lift), beach was eroded and in need of repair, lots of seaweed, noise carried through out the hallways right into the room, entertainment was very lacking as was the Black and White and wild life critters running around the resort.

Blue Bay Villas Doradas: Great Time, good food.

This hotel is dated inside the rooms, but we are not here to stay inside. Our safe did not work, the phone did not work. you can clearly see it is in need of repair, but when you are just there to sleep it is fine. Beds were comfortable. Food was good, they have a great selection at the buffet. The A la carts were amazing. The beach buffet chicken was a hit and many times would be out and have to wait for a fresh batch.. but worth the wait. The pool and beach, people hog the chairs/beds.. we not [... read more]iced that people went and put towels at the beach and were at the pool. But were still holding both spots. if you talk to the security guard on the beach they will get someone to get you chairs. The locals pushing sales on the beach are annoying when you are trying to relax. All saying they made these products when you know that they did not. The time share/Circleone guys are just as bad when you are trying to walk around the resort. But over all it was a nice visit. The bars, need to be addressed, the one in the lobby is always dead, as it is Paying bar.. and the pool bar service is SLOW.. and the other bar does not open until 6pm, when the pool bar closes. the beach bar is where most ppl end up for service, and that should be addressed. So there is only 2 bars at this resort for everyone

Blue Bay Villas Doradas: Great place for price.

Room was a third floor walk up which was updated nicely. A/C and fridge worked great, closet was big and warm and great for drying wet stuff. No musty smell which was a bonus considering age of complex. Grounds were kept very neat and clean. Food was excellent, drinks were good, service was quick and friendly. Bar staff could have been more plentiful at beach bar and pool bars. Beach was beautiful and loungers were plentiful. Could have used more facecloths when towels were changed. Enter [... read more]tainment was a little on the novice side but great efforts. Would definitely go back again.

Blue Bay Villas Doradas: Pleased

BlueBay was just as I expected! The staff were very friendly and went above and beyond to ensure our stay was exactly what we wanted. There was a quite a mixture of entertainment for everyone of every age! The staff worked hard to engage and encourage participation. The downsides are the circle one reprsentatives hounding you everytime you passed by one, and the peddlers on the beach who would constantly try to sell you their goods even when you firmly declined! All in all It was a good resort a [... read more]nd a nice vacation for the price. I am not sure I will return, but I have no real complaints!

Blue Bay Villas Doradas: Ok

Stayed here 2 years ago and liked it enough to go back. It’s not quite as good as it was. Food is ok, maybe above average but nothing to write home about. Entertainment is ok too, they did more 2 years ago, more interactive. Clean and well run. 3.5/5 stars.

Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda: Wonderful Holiday

This was the second time my husband and I visited this hotel. The food is plentiful and fantastic. The restaurant service is very friendly and staff are very knowledgeable. We were fortunate to receive a room upgrade to a suite over looking the ocean. This upgrade definitely enhanced our stay. Every morning we would take pictures of the sun rise and the beach view. Prior to the room upgrade, our view consisted of the jungle. A bit disappointing.

Blue Bay Villas Doradas: Great Vacation

This was a beautiful vacation. Food was good, beach was great, room was nice, staff was all pleasant and friendly, enjoyed meeting other vacationers. I have only one complaint and that was the fact that our room had an adjoining door to someone else's room and you could literally hear every word and every toilet flush! Other than that it was perfect and I would not hesitate to go to this resort again!

Blue Bay Villas Doradas: Good time was had!

Had a good time in DR. Weather was perfect. Resort was good overall...food, drinks, beach. Was a bit expensive though...and you have to pay extra for wifi and the room safe. Had the unfortunate occurrence to need to visit the resort doctor on call. If you need to go I hope you speak Spanish and have a credit card with a lot of available credit before visiting. They wouldn’t send me to the hospital without a guarantee of payment and the insurance company wasn’t quick enough. It was definitely [... read more] not a pleasant experience.

Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda: Average resort

The staff are super at the blue bay. Very friendly and try their hardest to please. The food was very good. Resort is a little tired and could do with some refreshing. Also the main lobby lacks. No nice bar nor entertainment. A live band would of been nice to listen too instead of the typical shows and disco music.

Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda: Bluebay grand esmeralda

Air canada made this trip prety bad for us , we took our flight to toronto a day early befor our transfer flight to mexico so that we could go visit toronto , cn tower etc.. arrived in toronto saturday night went to get our luggage following everyone who also came from our plane , we waited close to one hour befor the belt with the luggage started moving , only one bag came out , waited and waited thought maybe it was a little delayed , finaly we went to ask the worker and gave us the run around [... read more] for 20 minutes untill they finaly told us all our luggage was sent to montreal instead of toronto and that it would arrive to toronto at 8am the following day so at that time its close to midnight we decided to just go to the hotel because the night was done , we got up early to go make sure we got our luggage befor our transfer flight to mexico , got there still no luggage they said should be here at 12pm , kept waiting still nothing , finaly after waiting untill we had to board our plane to mexico they still had no answer , arrived at the resort we spend 3 days with nothing , dealing with air canada trying to find our luggage after paying so much money for this trip , we lost our night in toronto and lost almost 3 days enjoying our trip , but after this air canada nightmare our luggage finaly showed up with a couple days left of our trip so we made the best of it , the resort was amazing the staff was awesome verry friendly , loved the seadoos that where right on the beach at the resort ! Not one complaint on the resort , food was great !! Hopefully air canada can find a way to make it right for making the start of our vacation a nightmare !!

Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda: Hotel has seen better days

The hotel itself was not what I had expected from the photos. It was actually quite ran down in certain areas. Our room had a bad musty odor. The ceiling started to leak on my bed in the middle of the night. Which continued until the ceiling actually crumbled down onto the floor and bed. They did switch us to a suite which unfortunately when I went to shower had overflowed over the entire floor and into the hallway and down the elevator. This had to be repaired also. The grounds were maintained  [... read more]quite well and the food and service were amazing. There should have been more carts picking up the tourists on the grounds because the wait was quite long in between pickups. Entertainment was satisfactory but could have had a disco going later into the evening. Pools were not bad. The beach chairs were not the most comfortable. Beach was disappointing.

Blue Bay Villas Doradas: Calm and Relaxing Getaway!

My bf and I travelled here with another couple. Upon arrival we were greeted by Liliana who was absolutely lovely, we got to check in early at 1pm. We stayed in a superior room close to the beach (definitely recommend a 1st floor room). We headed straight to the buffet and the service was great. Our drinks were constantly refilled and the food was delicious. We tried all the El a Cartes, the grill being our favourite (the beef fillet is must try!). There are two pool areas, the spa pool is grea [... read more]t for R&R while the other pools had awesome music, pool bar and was lively. The crowd was mostly 50+ and the rest in their 20s. The night life wasn't crazy, the beach disco ends at 11pm so if you're looking for exciting night entertainment/ partying - this isn't the place for you. My favourite day activities were by the pool, they did something different every afternoon (flip cup, water olympics, etc). If you're looking to try some excursions, there's a great city tour/ cable car ride. If I had to be nit-picky the showers were never hot, in the morning we got warm water and the evening was cold. Overall we had a fantastic stay and the trip was a great value!

Blue Bay Villas Doradas: Amazing Value!

-Staff were excellent. Extremely friendly and provided a great experience. -Beach and Pools were great, not too busy, could always find a chair or bed to lay in by the pool or beach. -Room was large and clean, they provide you with jugs of water which is great too. -A la carte's were excellent, great variety with seafood, chinese, and the grill. Buffet was average but no complaints. -Activities throughout the week were varied and fun. -Overall had a great week and the price provides excelle [... read more]nt value.

Blue Bay Villas Doradas: a most fulfilling vacation

it fulfilled all my requirements for a most relaxing and trouble free vacation, in other words it more than met my expectations.it is a perfect vacation spot for me with direct flight from Ottawa to porto Plata and a sandy , sunny beach f9ur hours away...

Blue Bay Villas Doradas: Bluebay Visit #2

The Bluebay Villas Doradas changed the way we book hotels, and the second time we went there, the friends that we went with had the same feelings. From the furthest point of the hotel to the opposite side is probably a 5-6 minute walk (at the most). There are all the pieces that you would look for at any resort, but so well placed and nearby that you can't miss it. I find this to be so much better for me than the resorts that you can't navigate without taking a shuttle or a 15 minute walk from t [... read more]he lobby to the beach. The food is fairly good, as for the Dominican I have had better food, but I never felt like there wasn't a good option at any time of day. The a la carte restaurants are pretty par for the course (in a positive way) and the beach is beautiful. Pros: -Small resort, easy to navigate -"Good" food (not "ok" but not "fantastic") -Vibrant, upbeat (arguably a "party resort" but I think it always depends on the week) -A lot of cutr activities: washer toss, mini putt, guided bike rides, games, closeby (1 minute walk) to a souvenir mall... -Beautiful wildlife, you feel very immersed in nature there - Cons: -Rooms aren't considerably modern, we stayed in a platinum room and it was much more modern than the last room, but at a cost) -Challenges finding beach and pool chairs -Staff doesn't offer too many perks, if you ask for any birthday banners or any sort of recognition for a friend's birthday they will direct you to an uninteresting menu of items $100 USD or more for things I wasn't interested in for a quarter of that) -They try to give you a single key to share when you get there, you have to ask for another after the fact -There are always upselling attempts, but it's easy to just say "no thanks" and the leave you alone For the premium room, we enjoyed having additional canned beers at our disposal at the paid bar, we're not into many shots but it was nice to have a Bailey's or a few Presidente's included. If you're ok with draft and local alcohol it might not be worth it. Since the beach was busy it was nice to have access to the "VIP area" on the beach to find a spot, but it was pretty shaded in the afternoon and really windy, so you have to find a balance with the sun and the VIP in January or else the afternoons are a bit cold. Overall I would recommend this resort, but I would say that you should expect to pay a bit extra for any add ons, but it's so reasonable compared to the price of other resorts that you get some good choice if that what you want. If it's your first or second all inclusive resort I say absolutely go for it!

Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda: Pretty Nice Resort

Resort was clean, people were friendly. Cleaning staff were amazing with the full on clean they did of our room every day. Mini Fridge was stocked daily with plenty of water and other options for drinks Didn't like being bombarded with Time Share people the minute we hit the ground at the airport and again at the hotel. Food was good, beach smelled bad but the water was warm. Hotel should wash/disinfect bar glasses instead of dipping them in dirty water. Bartenders should stop pouring alcoh [... read more]ol down tourists throats. Seen a lot of people get hurt, falling down drunk and passing out where they shouldn't be passing out. Be careful of golf carts as they go too quickly down paths. Party pool was fun, but preferred the quiet pool.

Blue Bay Villas Doradas: Fully exceeded all expectations!

We don’t usually go on all inclusive type vacations, but took and chance and it paid off big! This adult only is amazing, fun and relaxing, whichever you choose. You can party one day and be lazy the next without annoying kids running around. The food blew my mind, every meal was surprising and delicious. The a la care was lovely too, other than the steak house we heard from several that wasn’t very good, so we skipped it and stick to the buffet. Great staff, great water sports! If you want  [... read more]to go on excursions, get a better price with Luis on the beach. So much fun! The dancing shows were nice, but got a bit old after a while. Stay away from the VIP presentation people if you’re not interested in paying $5000+ for ridiculous packages and wasting an hour or more or your vacation time. Love this resort!

Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda: Nice place but not for young person

The hotel is very nice. Food in buffet and italian restaurant were really good. The staff was gentil and every thing was beautifull and clean. The only thing that I less liked is ‘’the americanisation’’ of the hotel... I felt like was in the USA. Ex: The buffet food, the music, the travelers, every employes was talking in english... It takes four days to have new water bottle in the room and they never change the sheets during the 11 days we were there.

Blue Bay Villas Doradas: Great resort

Great staff clean rooms and good food.The beach was nice and we didn’t need water shoes. The only thing was at night there was no shows. They push the time shares but you can avoid it. The people that sell things on the beach asked if you wanted to buy things but “no gracias” worked well. Great bang for your buck!

Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda: Good and bad

The Good- Service was great, premises were clean, lots of chairs on the beach and near the pool, lot's of wildlife to see, animation staff were great and many games to play, buffet was ok and restaurants were great. The Bad- Loud hallways, early door knocking from cleaning staff, no swim up bar, food poisoning on the last day that I'm still dealing with. At least 6 other people were sick throughout their trip that I know of. In conclusion I had a great time and for the price it was what was ex [... read more]pected but there are better hotels in the area (barcelo, palladium)