Excellence Punta Cana: Wonderful resort, with lots of variety.

We enjoyed this resort very much. The beaches and restaurants are wonderful and belonging to the Club is definitely worth while. Their restaurant is excellent. We definitely would prefer more written info, especially a map of the grounds and restaurant menus. We do not all own cell phones so having to deal with everything online is not convenient. This may prevent us from returning to this resort. Also they need to supply you with more info on what is required to get your PCR test when you fir [... read more]st arrive. That way you are prepared with passports, masks, VISA, etc when you go to book your appointment.

Excellence Riviera Cancun: Amazing resort

It was our first time at this resort. We had previously been to another excellence resort and decided to try this location. We were not disappointed. It had the same service and format. From the moment we arrived we were taken care of and pampered by the wonderful staff. We stayed in the excellence club section in a swim up room. It's well worth it. The room was very comfortable and clean. The bed and pillows were very comfortable. The resort has their own app and you can see the restaur [... read more]ants and menus before you go to eat as well as other services offered at the resort. The beach was very clean. There was lots of chairs and cabanas to lie on. The drinks were great as well as the food. The night time shows were very entertaining. Overall the Excellence is a resort you can trust to be safe and entertained, a place to relax and enjoy your vacation.

Excellence El Carmen: Beautiful Resort!

The room, restaurants, and entire resort grounds were immaculate and well maintained. Food was excellent and staff were all very friendly. Service was exceptional. The PCR Covid testing for returning to Canada was easy and quick. I cannot find anything to fault with our stay at Excellence El Carmen.The perfect place for a much needed week of R&R.

Excellence Punta Cana: Paradise at a friendly resort

The Excellence lives up to its name, with beautiful landscaped gardens, large beach, many pools and restaurants. The Magna restaurant at the Club is the perfect way to start the day, sitting outside and enjoying fresh fruit , French press coffee and a variety of breakfast choices. Be prepared for digital menus only, sometimes irritating to navigate.

Excellence Punta Cana: Overall a wonderful experience!

Great food, pools and beach area was always so well maintained and clean, friendly staff wearing masks all the time, great restaurants and food was exceptional. Though lunch buffet has been temporarily discontinued due to covid (i think). Room service food is good too. Rooms were cleaned and beds made every day. Entertainment nightly was so fun especially the solo sax player created such an amazing atmosphere most evenings. Evenings can get a bit cooler and a cardigan is a good idea. So well man [... read more]aged. Highly recommend. 5 stars!

Excellence El Carmen: Info For Those Wondering About Covid

As I’m sure that there are many people wondering if they should travel because of Covid. Here is some info. For insurance purposes, we got the Manulife Covid-19 Pandemic Travel Plan - medical and trip interruption coverage. I purchased it online a couple of days before we left. It was $65 total for both of us. It covers you if you get Covid while on vacation and if the government changes to a level 4 travel restriction. If you go to the Excellence website- there is a long explanation o [... read more]f their Covid safety protocols and there is a Frequently Asked Questions page that explains their complementary stay if you test positive on your Covid test. We left from Toronto in the early afternoon. We found that the airport was not too busy. We wore N95 masks and didn’t eat or drink on the plane (you can if you choose to but are encouraged to not keep your mask off for very long). At the resort, most staff wear the clear masks that go up from their chin. Some staff wear the blue surgical masks. Most guests do not wear masks inside or outside. Some guests do - so it is up to your comfort. For the Covid tests, you can go to the Concierge Desk at 8:00 am two days before your departure. You pay for your PCR test at the front desk and fill out a form for each person at the Concierge Desk. You will need to have your passport numbers, flight date and flight time. You then go to the concierge room of building 10 for the PCR test (building 8 for rapid test). There is usually a short wait for PCR tests and sometimes a longer wait for rapid tests. Make sure to bring a phone or tablet for each person (they don’t tell you this). When you enter the room, you need to scan a QR code and basically fill out the same info that you fill out on the paper form - including passport number and email address. They emailed the results to us in about 36 hours. They have hand sanitizer at all bars, entrances to all restaurants, and at the front desks and elevators. The buffet is like it used to be - you serve yourself. The tables at some restaurants are well spaced out. At some restaurants the tables are quite close together. Many restaurants have an option to sit outside or inside. You can also get room service 24 hours a day for any meal if you prefer to eat in your room. We chose to get a room with a private pool and we used private transfers to be extra safe. The two pools near buildings 12 to 16 are quiet if you are not comfortable at the busy main pool. When we arrived in Toronto, after doing the usual declaration and customs, we got our luggage and then we were directed to the area for our PCR test. I had registered on the Switch Health website ahead of time so I didn’t have to frantically do it at the airport. I would say it took about 30 minutes to go through the line. They email the results within 72 hours. We felt safe at Excellence El Carmen. We were outside most of the time and were able to be socially distant from others. We are happy that we didn’t cancel. It was much needed break from the Covid world in Ontario right now. Here is a list of things to remember to do: The day before you leave for your vacation: *Do the Dominican Republic online form to get a QR code to show at the airport - I took a screen shot of it. *Download the Excellence El Carmen app and do the online check-in *Do your online check-in for your flight *Download the ArriveCAN app and fill out traveller info and get started on your ArriveCAN form. *Download the Canada eDeclaration app *Download or print your proof of vaccination QR code *Search “Arriving into Canada - Toronto Pearson Airport” for the link to Switch Health Arrival Tests and info about your arrival test *Register on the Switch Health website - this will be so you will be ready for your PCR test at the Canada Airport 12 to 24 hours before your flight home: *Take a screen shot of your proof of negative PCR test to show at the airport * Do the Dominican Republic online form to get a QR code to show at the airport - I took a screen shot of it *Do your online check-in for your flight *On the ArriveCAN app complete your ArriveCAN form - I took a screen shot of the QR code *Complete the Canada eDeclaration app form - I took a screen shot of the QR code *Have $20 US cash for each person to give when you go through security. Don’t cancel your vacation. You will be so happy that you went

Excellence El Carmen: Excellence El Carmen

The Excellence Staff were amazing. Restaurants were so inviting and personal. Special mention to Emilio and Franchiely at the Lobster House. Another Special mention to Frialyn who stood out above all others. Frailyn represented the resort with such a dynamic and professional service at the Excellence Beach Club. This was our second time at this resort but it won't be our last.

Excellence El Carmen: Great COVID Christmas Trip

First time visiting an Excellence Hotel, and we will be back. Beautiful spacious property with lots of greenery, palm trees, and places to sit and relax. The staff attentiveness and overall service level was top notch. Bars & washrooms are plenty and conveniently located. A very large beachfront, but it had some erosion that staff were actively working on repairing. Minimal seaweed which was cleaned up daily. Most days the ocean had just the right amount of waves to swim/play. We stayed  [... read more]over Christmas and they were fully booked but it never felt crowded, most days we could still get a front row palapa on the beach at 9am. Restaurants were all spacious, and most had options to eat outside. No dinner buffet, and no dinner reservations, but only a short wait for the restaurants. Food was hit or miss and I did get food poisoning one night. The menu's can only be accessed via the Excellence App (covid protocol) which is a nuisance if you're trying to "unplug" on vacation. Men need to have pants, shoes, and collar shirt for dinner. Due to COVID we mostly kept to ourselves, which was easy to do at this resort. All staff are vaccinated and wear clear mouth shields, but shields were often sitting low on their chin and not really doing much. Its up to the guests discretion if they want to wear a mask once on the property and most did not. For the pre-departure COVID test ($80USD) Reception did not provide clear instructions. They do not make appointments and you have to wait in line. Prepay for test at main desk, bring receipt to concierge desk to pickup test paperwork, then go to test building where you'll need your phone to fill out the same information again online. Results took about 36 hours and go to your email (junk box). We had a swim up room on the A side of building, but request B side for better sun exposure. We did not do the Excellence Club upgrade and did not feel like we were missing anything. Previously staying with Royalton, the base level at Excellence El Carmen was on par with Royalton Chic Diamond Club. If our visit had not been during a pandemic we might have rated this resort lower, many returning guests commented things were not up to pre-covid standards, but the staff were working hard to get through shortcomings. Overall we loved this resort and had an amazing vacation!

Excellence Oyster Bay: Best resort EVER!!!!!!

My husband and I travel at least 4 or 5 times a year to different all-inclusive resorts. The Excellence Oyster Bay EOB has now become one of our favorites and was even better than our trip to EPM. Our previous trip to the EEC in October of 2021, left us feeling like Covid had taken the shine off of travel. We were disappointed with the service received as well as supply issues. Staff were not friendly or very accommodating. We were concerned that our trip in December to EOB would be a r [... read more]epeat. Boy were we wrong. The service at EOB is outstanding. They were so friendly and accommodating of our every need. I cant say enough about how amazing everyone was. Any issues that arose were dealt with quickly and they would follow up to ensure the problem didnt reoccur. We have never felt so pampered as we did at EOB. Did they run out of things ie mint for the mojito - yes. But they would try and come up with a delicious alternative for you. When the mint came in, you would be suddenly surprised with a mojito being delivered (without asking) to let you know they had some. Everyone went above and beyond to make this trip fabulous. I cant say enough about the staff. Even the gardeners and the security would stop and chat with you and ask how your day was going. We spent our days in the Excellent Club Pool at Magna. Danielle made sure we were well taken care of as did all the staff at The Excellence Club. The bartender at Magna was superb!!!! I am so sad that I lost my note with the names of people that went above and beyond as they were truly so spectacular they deserve recognition. Mosquitoes were bad. There are mixed comments on this issue. They fog everyday and we never had an issue anywhere at the resort except when we sat outside on the deck of our room. We had a private pool with a large deck and I think the issue maybe that the mosquitoes live in the dampness under the deck. I got eaten alive and I wouldn't use the deck. Also the pool was very cold. I personally wouldn't spend the money on an upgraded room. Take the basic room and upgrade to the Excellence Club - it was worth it. We also noted the rooms are very damp and would recommend damprid (as noted in other peoples post - but we have never used this as other resorts). We loved this resort. It was our favorite of all of the Excellence All-inclusive Resorts and we will be back.

Excellence Playa Mujeres: Great to Travel Again, Nice Resort

This resort, like the other Excellence Resorts is very nice, well kept. Staff super friendly and caring. They have sanitizing stations through out the resort, masks optional. PCR testing ran smooth, pretty well organized. Overall I would go back after covid cases lower and restrictions decrease again. A lot more restrictions implemented while away making it hard to decipher what was required upon returning home.

Excellence Punta Cana: Resort Parallel to the Beach

Love the fact that the resort is relatively small and parallel to the beach. Ample beach lounge chairs so no need to wake up super early to reserve... There is plenty available all the time. The food is really good and the rooms are spacious and clean. Note to consider: The beach flag is always RED meaning Danger. Therefore, for those hoping to swim in the ocean at your leisure, beware. You can "stand up" in the waves, close the edge of the sand but you can rarely go out and actually swim [... read more] since the waves are pretty strong and high. This is our 2nd time at this resort and we love it. BUT, this time, I must admit that help and reassurances concerning getting our negative Covid test back in time were not handled with empathy. It was really late coming in. We had found the phone number of the clinic to enquire but the staff at the clinic only spoke Spanish and none of the Desk clerks were willing to take the call and translate for us. We had to wait. Were extremely worried. It finally got resolved but there seemed to have been a sense of "it's not really our problem.

Excellence Punta Cana: Fantastic 1st wedding anniversary

Fantastic resort! The food, the people and the rooms were all very wonderful. Ceaser, part of the excellence club was very helpful and polite. Joendry on the beach always made sure we had what we needed along with all the staff at the resort. We will be back!

Excellence El Carmen: Amazing Honeymoon

My husband and I stayed at the Excellence El Carmen and we had an amazing time. Wearing a mask was optional at the resort but we never felt safer with all the protocols they had in place. The restaurants were clean, the staff was amazing and the beaches were pristine. Everyone was so helpful. Our suite with our own private pool was breathtaking. We can’t wait to go to another Excellence property soon!

Excellence El Carmen: Not up to the Excellence Standards

We love the Excellence hotel chain and have stayed at EPM, EPC and are booked at EOB in December. The service is always amazing. Our recent stay at EEC was a bit disappointing. There was nothing major that would ruin our trip and most of the issues were minor and were fairly easily resolved. However, it wasn't the level of service that we have come to expect from the Excellence hotels. When we arrived, there was no glasses of champagne waiting or cool towels. We checked in and found the f [... read more]ront desk staff not overly friendly. Usually they cant wait to welcome previous guests "home". They didn't give our bellboy our room key which was easily resolved. Getting ready for dinner on day one we realized that none of the plugs in the room were working. They did send someone fairly quickly to rectify the situation. We ordered a bottle of wine which took over 2 hours to arrive and repeated phone callsrequired but when it arrived we were not given an opener or wine glasses. We requested early maid service for our stay and would leave the please make up the room sign on the door (we were the only ones in our hallway that put the sign out) but unfortunately one day it was 5 pm before the room was made up and 630 when they came for turndown. We requested wine in the room daily which we have done at other Excellence resorts with no issue. We only received wine in the room on one occasion and that day we came back to the room and found a bottle of wine, again no glasses, but the other alcohol from the room had all been removed. This was the only day we received wine in the room without following up. My husband drank the beer in the fridge on day one and it was never replenished. The clothing steamer in the room was broken as well. The food in the restaurants was good. We did note that one night there was no lobster at the lobster house and one evening very limited cuts of meat at the steak house. They didn't have syrup on a few occasions at the buffet. Again, we just didn't find the same level of service we have experienced in the past. At lunch they have nacho's on the menu. We requested just the chips and guacamole but they wouldn't do that even though it was the same as the nacho's without the cheese. I assume that finding staff and getting supplies may be impacted by covid as all hotel staff at this resort have been doubly vaccinated (which is amazing). It was the little things like going for a nice dinner and them running out of glass ware so you were given plastic cups for the wine. There was never any toilet paper etc. I know these things sound knit-picky but we have come to expect better from this chain. Complaints to the front desk were disregarded until the second to last day when a young woman finally listened to our concerns. There were also some issues with noise as we were very close to the theatre and one night the karaoke went on till after midnight only to be woken at 7 for a tree being cut down. That being said, there were some standouts - Mac Donald in the coffee house, Raphael in the breakfast buffet and at the French and Jasmine by the pool - great job and great service!!!. All in all it was not the level of service expected but the resort is lovely and we had a good time.

Excellence Oyster Bay: Good but not excellent

My partner and I just completed a one week stay at EOB last week. Overall, we really enjoyed our time here. The private beach was beautiful, the amenities were lovely and the rooms were spacious and well-designed. Staff were generally very friendly and attentive. Most of my negative feedback was related to the food: *This was some of the worst resort food I have had anywhere. The produce was bad, fruit and veggies were wilted, flavourless and colourless. *There were few healthy options  [... read more]and gave up on salads after day two as no matter how the salad was described, i.e.'Creole salad, Crunchy slaw" etc it was all the same dark green shredded lettuce mixture, usually no salad dressing and definitely no slaw-like veggies in site. *It would've been nice if there was always a buffet meal option, other than just for breakfast. *Stick to basics and Jamaican food. So many of the menus featured overly-complicated and fancy sounding descriptions, when in reality, it was just a flavourless variety of whatever you may have ordered i.e. pasta pizza fish meat etc. *Portions could be tiny and my meat was always undercooked or tough and chewy. *For people who don't day drink, or drink at all, having the option of various fruit juices and smoothies by the pool and beach all day would've been awesome. *The blended cocktails were not the best, tasted like they were from a cheap mixture. *If you are bringing USD for tipping, do yourself a favour and try and get as many ones as you can before entering the resort as it was often impossible to get anyone to break up bills into smaller amounts for us. *As I have experienced at other resorts, it would've been nice to have our keycards on wearable bracelets but not a big deal. Ultimately, enjoyed our stay here and would recommend to people as long as quality of food is not a dealbreaker (for some, it is not important but more so weather, atmosphere, overall experience etc.)

Excellence Punta Cana: Exceptional Cleanliness, Food, and Service

We were on our Honeymoon and could of not of had a better resort. The hotel grounds are beautiful and clean. The pool is the amazing and there is no better way to spend the day, then floating down it like a lazy river with a frozen drink in your hand. The rooms are spotless and updated. The food is amazing in every Restaurant from the coffee bar (Aroma), sports bar, and my favorite the Agave (chicken fajitas are amazing) you will not be disappointed, Definitely the best in the Dominican. The nig [... read more]htly entertainment was the icing on the cake. And of course what makes this hotel a 5 star is the service. All the staff treat you like Royalty, they bend over backwards to make sure all your needs are met.

Excellence El Carmen: ok resort

the room was very nice, however we spent the money to upgrade to the swim up room and we were very disappointed. The pool was only skimmed it was not cleaned once for the week we were there. The build up was noticeable and tile was in rough shape. We had maintenance come to fix the deck outside the door because of the dip in it. Also had to have them fix the front door because it wouldn't lock unless you pulled it tight.

Excellence Punta Cana: Suites are disappointing...not deserving of an upscale resort

The people are warm and hospitable. The weather and beaches are superb. But the suites are old, outdated. No night tables. We paid extra for the Honeymoon suite. Not a single drawer to store your clothing...no clothing hooks, no towel bars, just holes where they used to be, room service but no tables large enough to hold two plates. The shower was old and flooded immediately, drains clogged. We had to wait an hour between showers to let the water drain. The jacuzzi tub shot out rust and dirt...e [... read more]ven after it was repaired several times during our stay.The sofa was covered with a slip cover...something cheap and disgusting. We spent much of our time calling for repairs. Very disappointing.

Excellence Punta Cana: First Class resort

My wife and I stayed at the Excellence Punta Cana for a week at the end of February 2020. From the time we arrived at the front door it was a first class experience. All the staff were incredibly courteous and helpful. The food was great and the service was excellent even by the pool and on the beach. We had lots of choices for dinner in various restaurants with no reservations required. The entertainment was fantastic with a new show every night. The grounds were clean and extremely well kept a [... read more]nd the beach was groomed every day. There were lots of beach umbrellas and lounge chairs to go around which was a pleasant surprise. The beach was beautiful with soft fine sand and lots of palm trees as a backdrop. Our room was clean and well maintained every day. Overall a great experience.

Excellence El Carmen: Excellente Resort !

Beautiful modern hotel; well laid out. Beach is perfect. Amazing staff and entertainment! Great food, awesome Martini bar. Spa is heavenly ! Great place for couples to relax and have a romantic getaway. Loved it ♥️