Riu Palace Macao: Second time there and will be back again!

This resort is amazing! The grounds are well kept and the facility is constantly being cleaned by staff. The food quality and selection is great. The staff are very friendly and helpful. The beach is amazing, except when we were there it was windy and therefore there was more seaweed being swept on shore, but once you got through it the water was wonderful. These people who work in the resort work very long hours, something I'm sure most people wouldn't do and I'm very disappointed that some  [... read more]guests don't leave a tip at the end of their meals. I understand that tips are included, but if you can't afford a dollar or two after you dinner you shouldn't be going there. We will definitely be coming back to this beautiful resort. It was awesome!!

Grand Sirenis Punta Cana Resort: Beautiful Resort

This is a beautiful resort with beautiful people. We had an amazing time. Tge rooms were wonderful & always clean. The service we received in tge buffet restaurants was beyond amazing. A special thank you to David, Anderson, Anna, Erick, Deniisa & Wanda. We were treated so well & looked forward to seeing their smiling faces each day. We will definitely visit again.

Be Live Collection Punta Cana Adults Only: Beautiful Resort

Second visit to this resort. Jorge our butler was amazing. He worked so hard to please us and made our stay so memorable. The food was very good. Our room was in a prime location by the pool. Would recommend to visit.

Bahia Principe Grand Bavaro: Updating needed

After staying at this hotel many times, I can say this was my least favorite stay. Hotel needs major updating specifically in the rooms. Hotel buffet has gone downhill with less options and quality is less. One night i seen a massive roach behind the bread station and makes me believe their kitchen is infested as well. Only option for lunch was the beach as bavaros buffet was always closed. Staff is always amazing and extreamly friendly just hope they update the hotel and add some higher stan [... read more]dards on food and clealiness of eating areas.

Wyndham Alltra Punta Cana: Amazing resort

The grounds, public areas, including dining areas are excellent. Rooms are mediocre. Food is nice too. Not much selection on international drinks. The bartenders are super nice...so is the concierge staff.

Cofresi Palm Beach and Spa Resort: Being there do it again

Ive been to this resort many times, why i like it is because the pools and grounds are kept well and clean, walking around the hotel areas is amazing always something to see. The workers from the grass cutters to waiters and waitress to those who keep your room clean are all amazing what they do each day after day.You must realize that I went for a Month stay and see this every day. My room 43203 was always clean when I asked them to clean the room, The girls at the door in Italian Mexican Indo [... read more]china Brazilian Indian and Blue Lagoon were very gracious and polite. Like I said the people employees working there were great and now to tell you what was not to my liking first Internet was very expensive but never worked always shutting down, the general areas to eat food was the same every day and never changed, i no its not the workers fault its at the top.What the hotel and staff did for Covid was excellent very impressed.

Bahia Principe Explore Punta Cana: Fantastic Vacation

I was thoroughly impressed with this resort & would return in the future. The food was excellent, with lots of variety & al a carte restaurants. The grounds are clean and well groomed. The protocols in place for Covid were excellent and the majority of guests did abide by those guidelines. The only thing I was disappointed in was the beach area. There were far too many people crowded together and there was lots of seaweed. I preferred to spend my days at the a pool, of which there are many to ch [... read more]oice from. Overall rate this resort 4 out of 5. Excellent!!!

Lifestyle Tropical Beach Resort: Invaded by the local riff raff

We stayed for 28 days. By the second weekend we realized that every Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday the Tropical lets in swarms of unruly, rude locals with their entourage of screaming, screechy kids that were not disciplined in any way. One local told me they get to come at a cost of $2.50 Canadian per day to enjoy the facilities and all you can eat and drink . Kids stay and eat for free. They butt into line, overcrowd the buffet, causing long line ups to enter the buffet because their tick [... read more]ets had to be checked. Buffet was open, but nothing had be started on the grill. On the weekends the locals would commandeer the serving lines and it would take at least 20 minutes to get some food. I was told by staff the locals were vaccinated, but I believe this only applied to the adults. Each couple had at least 4 kids. Covid is spread by screaming and yelling. The kids would play tag, screaming at each other, unmasked, and throw their beach toys around in the buffet and staff did nothing to address the issue. Temperature check was done upon entering the buffet followed by use of hand sanitizer. Most of the time this was a mere formality since the temp reading was not even looked at. There is absolutely no social distancing entering the buffet, waiting for food, getting served at the bar. Masks had to be worn to enter the buffet, get your food or get drinks from the bar. The bars strictly enforced proper mask wearing, but in the buffet, only upon entering, after that on your chin or just over your mouth was okay. Our area had 3 stalls in the public/guest washroom to accommodate 6 buildings, roughly 360 rooms. Better to go back to your room to use the washroom. The locals over took the washroom on weekends and used the stalls as their change room. Half an hour into lunch, the greeter showed m the clip board with the number of locals already in the buffet. The count was 95 not including children. On weekends, you are lucky to get a table at the buffet, midweek NO PROBLEM. We made sure we had a la carte tickets for every weekend. The locals congregated in groups of 20-30, blocking walk ways and stairs. They ran up to the bar shouting their orders and got served first. No kids in the adult only pool was only enforced if they voluntarily left after being told. Check in/out takes at least 20 minutes and that is after you reach the counter.. You get a flimsy paper wrist band that is covered by a hint of plastic that costs $200US if lost. Wifi $7US per day. Safe almost $3US per day. Food redundant, a la carte hit and miss. At one a la carte the waitress went and grabbed toilet paper from the public washroom to wipe up my spilt balsamic vinegar. Cabanas and lounge chairs reserved by 7am with personal items, not to have anyone using them for 5-6 hours. Dead bug evidence over all the walls. One tiny garbage can per room. Some rooms smelt so moldy or were so dirty guests would ask to change rooms. Ice bucket, but no ice in building. Bring a wrench to open the water bottles that were supplied. bar fridge in each room. Individual soap/shampoo/conditioner/body cream supplied. Rooms cleaned daily. Free shuttle service around the resort which is a hot bed for spreading Covid as most had masks just on their chin. Artificial environment, just trying to sell time shares. $50US per taxi to get off the resort to get into the city as it is not in walking distance. Locals mounded their plates so full of food we called it the Dominican Food Bank/ Soup kitchen. The quality of food definitely was poorer on the weekends. Canadians need to pay 79US$ each for a Covid test to get back into Canada. My guess is that the resort lets in at 300 - 500 locals per day. I emailed the resort to get the correct figure, but they have not responded. Often at the buffet my soup was cold by the time wait staff gave me a spoon, not to mention the three times I was given a plastic spoon. A few occasions our meal was done before we were served our beverage. Wait staff looked over the diners instead of looking at them, more interested in what was going on outside. We will not come back here due to the number of rude, self centered locals allowed in each weekend. I was told on the airplane by others at different resorts they had the same problem.

Royalton CHIC Punta Cana: Great Resort

Great clean resort. The food was half decent had great entertainment and pool area. The only concern was if you aren’t diamond club you cannot reserve restaurants, so you need to line up at 6 in a crazy line only for them to tell you to come back at 8 and then come back again at 9. The food at these restaurants was also amazing and delicious one night and then mediocre the next. But overall we had a great trip.

Marien Puerto Plata Hotel: Hmm

The room had a great view. Beds were comfy. A/C leaked and I slipped on water and hurt myself. Food was mediocre and the same every day. Staff other than bartenders were not helpful. I would not recommend this hotel. View from room wsas great

Bahia Principe Escape Aquamarine: Disappointed...

Aquamarine should be re-labelled as a 3 Star resort. The product and services have been gutted. Aquamarine should be re-labelled as a 3 Star resort. The product and services have been gutted. Aquamarine should be re-labelled as a 3 Star resort. The product and services have been gutted.

Iberostar Waves Punta Cana: Iberostar Punta Cana - resort to come back to...

I chose Iberostar Punta Cana based on it's pools configuration, landscaping details and beach proximity. I was right on! We loved lounging in it's pools, particularly on the steps, partially submerged in the water, sipping on our cocktails. It doesn't have a swim up bar, but that was no problem at all - more the reason to get up from our spot and move to another comfortable location. We were at a great time - Nov/Dec, not too many people yet. The price point was also very good at that time. Sm [... read more]ooth sailing thru Toronto airport, slight delay on departure - wings have to be de-iced. Great transfer to our resort - we were the only ones in our van, and we didn't pay extra for private transfer - maybe it had to do with not too many people going our way yet? On second day there we scheduled our PCR Covid test which was at 2 pm on Dec. 01 /we were coming back on Dec. 03, departure at 4:00 pm/. After congregating at the lobby, @ 15 people were taken by golf carts to a location in one of the Iberostar Bavaro villas. There we paid our fee which was 70 usd per person /cash/. Our results were e-mailed to us next day at 8:00 am. Very fast I would say. Also, I loved eco features of the resort: dispensers in the bathrooms /soap, lotion, shampoo, conditioner, body wash/; air dryers for hands, no paper towels at the resort restrooms; recycling containers in the room and all over the grounds... The resort is also big on QR codes - everything - menus at a la cartes, information, maps etc is done by scanning QR codes, so get your phones ready, lol. But some printed menus were also available. Covid protocols: basically at the buffets and a la cartes only - entering you have to have your mask on, once seated - mask off. But I have to applaud all the employees of Iberostar - masks on all the time! All in all - a very relaxing and pleasant stay, beautiful grounds, great pools, great food... On day number 2 there - I was already planning extended family /more relatives/ possible stay here next year :) And special "thank you" to our Tripcentral agent for being on top of everything and sending us helpful informational e-mails every step of the way and answering our questions promptly. Tripcentral website is my favourite site to go to and explore possible vacations! Great vacation! Makes it easier to go back to work to be able to plan another great stay!

Bahia Principe Explore Esmeralda: Outdated Resorts

This was our (me and wife’s) third stay but unlike the previous ones it was a disappointment. Most waiters/servers either new or haven’t got proper training. Even the manager we dealt with was very defensive while handling complaints. Our room phone didn’t work for 5 days out of our 7 days stay. So our package which included room service but to no avail for us. None of the TV channel was working. We were told that it’s cable fault. We couldn’t understand that how it was our concern. T [... read more]hey simply said that it can’t be repaired. On the 6th night the roof leaked. We were told that someone would come right away but it didn’t happen. So we went to the concierge. The night duty officer sent us with the porter to two different rooms which were either dirty or ineffective. He should have first ensure beforehand that rooms are ok and ready. We were denied to be moved to other group resort where rooms were available. So we were forced to stay in our original room whose had started dripping. That was a nightmare for us and also a shock that how come hospitality business could be so mindless to their guests. Next morning when we asked manager if she is aware of the problem we had last night, she had no clue. I asked that do have of their own internal system of incidental reporting but it seemed liked they she didn’t pay attention to any of those reports or no report was made. We are the people who understand that issues could arise, but we also expect that it would be addressed in a appropriate manner which didn’t actually occur.

Hyatt Vivid Punta Cana: Wonderful Vaca

We had a wonderful vacation at Dreams Palm Beach. The staff were so helpful (Noemi, Ambi and Albertito were especially great). We enjoyed all the specialty restaurants. Our room and the resort were always clean. We would return to Dreams Palm beach

Dreams Onyx Resort and Spa: Awesome trip.

Over all it was a great trip. Dreams Onyx was a actual dream. Air Transat needs a little focused on logistics. Was sitting in a bus at punta Cana airport waiting to go to resort for an hour and a half. But the resort made up for that lack of organization from Air Transat. We had the preferred club package, it’s worth the extra cost. Kevin from trip central made booking and searching so easy. His recommendation was perfect.

Paradisus Palma Real Golf and Spa Resort: Beautiful resort but lacking management quality service

We spent a week at the Paradisus as I had read reviews of this resort being one of the best in Dominican to have a wedding and I wanted to do in-person research and possibly book the wedding. The resort is architecturally beautiful and all of the main areas, pool and beach are kept as clean as possible. The wait staff and entertainment staff were very friendly especially Imael at the lobby bar who makes the best happy coffee, Ruby at Gabi Bar, Alejandro, Darlin and Jairo from the entertainment  [... read more]staff. We had fun dancing with them most nights! But the hotel and management side of the resort doesn't work as well. The hotel rooms are nice but the washrooms are open concept - fine for couples not so great for friends or families visiting. There really isn't too much privacy. The huge bathtubs looked nice but didn't look clean enough to use. There were discolourations and marks on it. There is a definite issue with the phones as some of them don't even work. We had to use the phone in the bathroom to actually talk to someone. The cleaning service for the rooms did do a good job on a daily basis but I found the mini bar wasn't replenished every day. Our entire contact with the management team was really uninviting. When we checked in we were told we had a concierge who would contact us but no one ever did. We had asked for a room with 2 double beds but despite asking twice, we ended up with 1 giant bed and a roll-away bed (we were 3 girls in 1 room and we all wanted our space). On our 2nd night, my friend sleeping on the roll-away bed realized she had bed bug bites all over her legs. She had experienced bed bugs before so knew what to look for on the bed as proof. As it was late at night, we decided to wait till the next morning to inform management. They didn't seem to recognize the signs of bed bugs (rusty blood stains and fecal matter residue) but that could have been a language barrier. We asked for a new room and they were good enough not to argue about that. We met with the supervisor Emelin at registration and she initially did suggest they were mosquito bites but didn't push further when my friend said this was her 3rd time and she knew the difference. We were promised a new room that afternoon and once again I asked for 2 beds and the sofa bed to be opened up - we were not going to get another roll away bed. We had also asked about the concierge that was promised on day 1 and were told we actually weren't eligible for that service but they would give it to us now. We met with Reina who gave me her phone number and said to call or text her if we needed anything! That afternoon after spending the day at the beach, we went back to the lobby, picked up our suitcases and got escorted to the new room only to find we had 1 bed again (the beds are pushed together). We asked the person who escorted us and they said they would get someone to fix it. We then opened the fridge to get some water and it was empty!! We had to call someone from the bathroom phone but it is impossible to get through and talk to someone who understands. We tried a few times and we weren't sure if the person we spoke to understood as there was no clear response from them. I texted our concierge who said she would look into it and I walked back to the desk to tell them that we still don't have 2 beds and no water. It took 2 hours for our fridge to get filled! I understand that they might be short staffed after COVID but they are also only at 40% capacity. My concern is that the service issues is not a temporary issue. We went out for dinner and came back at 10 and we still had just 1 giant bed for the 3 of us. So we started again with calling from the room, texting the concierge (with no response from her at all) and we got the service in under an hour. The concierge never even responded to my message. The next message from her was the activities for the day received the next morning. We did not see her or receive any more messages from her for the rest of the week - not even the activities for the day! I also asked when I checked in to talk to someone about wedding inquiries. It was friday evening and no one was available till Monday. I had to email them to get an appointment. My email was returned by Monday aftenoon at which time we were waiting for water in the new room after having bed bugs! I emailed them back the next morning and told them the list of issues we were having and that I wasn't sure about having a wedding here anymore. They apologized and asked which resort we were staying at. I was sad that they couldn't even coordinate that information on their own! My friend posted her review on our 3rd day in and on the 4th day, we got told we were getting upgraded to the Reserve service - access to a separate buffet restaurant for breakfast and lunch, the adult only pool and bar with premium drinks and 1 separate restaurant. While we really enjoyed all of the perks, the hotel did not see fit to give us this as soon as we reported our issues - only when we complained on a public forum. Lastly, there is a management practice that we really did not appreciate. The entertainment staff who we had so much fun with knew when it was our last day and literally were forcing us to give the hotel a 5 star review. I can't blame them for following the instructions they were provided but management has told them that if they don't get a 5 star review with their names mentioned, their jobs are in jeopardy. You cannot give the hotel a 3 star review but mention their names and give them credit. They went so far as leaning over you and hitting the 5 star button on your phone to make sure it gets done. This really turned me off the hotel management as the final straw. Exploiting their staff's connections to force a review. I can easily say that I will not readily choose Paradisus again because of all of this even though I enjoyed the sun, the beach and the food!

Occidental Punta Cana: très beau site

Un terrain très bien entretenu, bien éclairé, musique en bordure des allées. Chambres de belle qualité, ascenseur, balcon avec table et chaises. Le côté le plus déplaisant c'est le personnel, peut souriant, surtout à la réception, manque de formation, menteurs ils inventent les pire conneries, te font patienter de façon abusive, font des promesses qu'ils ne tiennent pas très déplaisant comme attitude. La nourriture bonne mais toujours la même chose, service aux tables corrects. Se [... read more]ul emplacement sans palapas comparativement aux voisins. On peut comprendre que la pandémie à frapper durement, mais ils ne sont pas prêts. En général pour un Barcelo on repassera. Je ne considère pas cet hôtel comme un quatre étoile, mais un trois étoiles

Bahia Principe Explore Punta Cana: A Resort To Go To

During Covid worries, don't hesitate about going here. Immaculate and safety precautions that I definitely felt good about. In addition the resort itself was beautifully kept, grounds are amazing and rooms are satisfying, comfortable and very clean. The staff from administrative to cleaners and to buffet and restaurant/bar staff were receptive, accommodating to requests, and overall have a very helpful and kind attitude. Flying in and out of Punta Cana Airport was a very good, effi [... read more]cient and safe/healthy experience.

Ocean Blue and Sand: Ocean blue and sands punta cana

The grounds and rooms were beautiful very clean . Food was delicious .All a la carted we’re yummy. They did a amazing job keeping cleanliness and looking after the guest .I definitely felt comfortable and would recommend this resort.

Catalonia Royal Bavaro: HONEST REVIEW

My boyfriend and I stayed at the Catalonia Royal Bavaro from November 22-29. I’ll go through step by step how our experience was from booking until home. First off, initially booking with trip central was great! Carol was able to find us the best room for the best price and the majority of the work of booking was done through her. She ensured to include what we needed for travel, including what we need to get into the DR and everything we needed to get back home. The night before we left how [... read more]ever, we weren’t able to check into AirCanada for our flight. Obviously concerned, we called air Canada and were told the information, specifically our names, were incorrect for our flight. This was a 2.5 hour problem literally a few hours before take off. If we had not called, we wouldn’t have been able to get on the plane. This was extremely frustrating on our end and caused a huge inconvenience/ stress all because of one simple mistake from trip central. Getting to the resort was easy as airport transfer was included. Once we arrived at the resort, it took us almost an hour to check in. Hotel staff was incredible nice though, took care of our luggage and ensured it made it up to the room. The room itself was definitely not a 5-star. The bathroom was musty, mouldy, and very poorly constructed. We wore our sandals in the shower because water would just pool at the bottom and sit for days. The outlet also would come right out of the wall and expose live wires. The bed mattress was as hard as a rock, made it very uncomfortable for sleeping and was very creaky. The aesthetics of the room were good and house cleaning was fantastic. Always checked in and made sure we had everything we needed. I had a birthday surprise package purchased for my boyfriends birthday which was done very nicely. It included balloons, chocolates, a cake and rose petals. Our first nights dinner was great. I honestly can’t say enough good things about the service and staff at the hotel. Everyone was very welcoming, little bit of a language barrier but that’s to be expected! Breakfast is also very good. Lots of options available for every kind of food intolerances. The food had labels as to which allergies it contains, such as wheat, dairy or seafood. This was super helpful, but not always accurate so keep an eye! Flash forward to day 3. We had lunch at a restaurant by the beach and roughly two hours later, I was projectile vomiting into a garbage can. I got the worst food poisoning I have ever had in my life!!! I was violently ill for 24 hours straight, didn’t leave the room for 2 days. This put a little bit of a damper on the rest of the trip as I was extremely weak and had bouts of nausea and an upset stomach for the remaining 3 days, made it a little difficult to fully enjoy. My boyfriend didn’t have any issues and thought highly of the food however. Once again, housekeeping was incredibly courteous bringing me lots of water, extra garbage bags and even brought me some tea. Heads up.. there’s no ginger ale and it was pretty difficult to find Gatorade. Our AirCanada rep, Juan was very kind and offered to drive over some as well. We did an excursion on the Friday to Catalina Island. It was a catamaran full day trip booked with GoExcursions, which was through our AirCanada rep. It was well organized, but the food and snacks they offered were bare minimum. Some store bought croissants, the tiniest single sandwiches I’ve ever seen, and a fruit skewer. The alcohol was also bottom barrel rum in an unlabeled bottle lol. The island itself was really nice, we were able to snorkel off the boat as well as the off the island. There was a snorkel expert there that toured me around and showed me some pretty cool marine life. Lunch afterwards was alright. It was buffet style and the everything tasted good, no food poisoning! This was probably the highlight of the trip. The beach was good, lots and lots of sea grass this time of year though! Staff did a good job of raking it every morning and there was a wake that caught most of it as well. The sand was beautiful, very white! We had privilege status and had a private sector off the main beach which had beds and more comfortable chairs, as well as full service for drinks. This was a great addition but there really wasn’t any other major differences between privilege and not, a little disappointing. Checking out was a breeze and transportation was comfortable again. Once at the airport, prepare to wait in a lot of big lines! Once again, because our names were typed in incorrectly at booking, we weren’t able to check in for our flight. This was extremely nerve wracking, considering we’re in a different country. We weren’t able to use a kiosk and had to speak directly with a desk rep. They gave us an extremely difficult time and we spent almost an hour sorting everything out with them. They almost didn’t allow us on the flight plus with how long it took, we were minutes away from missing our flight. At the airport, be prepared to wait in a lot of big lines! Getting back into Canada wasn’t difficult. Just make sure you have all the appropriate paperwork, vaccination status’, and the ArriveCAN app. All in all, traveling in the pandemic wasn’t as bad as one would think. The hotel did a good job at keeping everyone safe and ensuring cleaning practices were don’t effectively. AirCanada was also great with upholding mandates. Masks had to be worn at all times on the flights, and around the hotel inside buildings. Which was not a problem coming from Canada, being used to it! The adults only resort is also attached to the main Catalonia resort which was actually nice to have! We walked over there a lot. Just gives different options for entertainment and food! Overall, not the most relaxing trip and definitely would have changed some things. Trip Central caused us the biggest grief with the mistake in names with the flight information. Food poisoning wasn’t great either. Great hotel staff though and the hotel itself was picturesque. But first trip for both of us in 7+ years and a good learning experience!