Barcelo Bavaro Palace: One of the best

There is no better resort in the DR for golf Food and service excellent Golf course is in resort, no travel required Excellent Casino Bavaro Beach needs no introduction Beautiful grounds and buildings Plenty of activities High quality rooms, very good maintenance Bars and restaurants 4* plus Massive buffet, always stocked Excellent pools and sports facilities, spa, gym Kids have their own play pool away from the adult pools And most of all the people are fantastic We go there eve [... read more]ry year and will soon change to twice a year

Royal Hideaway Playacar: Beautiful resort

Beautiful resort our second time in 2 years, gorgeous grounds very peaceful we really enjoyed the beach it's breath taking beautiful , food was good too except for the Mexican restaurant which should stand out more than the others simply because it's mexico..

Barcelo Gran Faro Los Cabos: Barcelo Gran Faro visit

I had an excellent stay at Barcelo for 1 week. The staff all around were extremely friendly and welcoming! Luis in the VIP lounge was very helpful and accommodating when I needed to change rooms, which turned out to be a nice upgrade. The Italian and Mexican ala cart restaurants were outstanding.

Occidental Arenas Blancas: Do not stay here

The resort is completely run down. Our door barely opened, the inside handle fell off the first time we tried to get out. Toilets wouldn’t flush, patio door barely opened and mold on ceiling. Air conditioner didn’t work. Maids would t change sheets or towels and forgot to fill water every 2nd day. When u called the front desk, had to call 3 times before got anything. The food was horrible ( worse then used to in cuba) and they ran out of all booze daily except rum. Do not recommend!

Allegro Cozumel: Very lovely and lively resort

We were there for one week through Air Canada Vacations. The resort itself is beautiful. The grounds are very well taken care of. There is a huge kid's fun area with a series of pools. Beach is smallish but accommodates the guests well. The main pool is not huge but functioned very well for the number of guests. We six had a great time. Food quite good. Loved the Italian and Japanese style restaurants. Mexican was just ok in our books. However, the main buffet and lunch buffet had many Mexican d [... read more]ishes on offer and were very good, especially the pork and bacon. The woman who made the eggs to order every morning was amazing and moved the line along very efficiently. Drinks were fantastic and there was certainly no skimping on alcohol. Cozumel itself is not boring. We rented a jeep for the day from HTL that they brought to us and picked up 24hrs later. Cost was 55US plus 25US gas. Drove around the island on the one road and stopped at various gorgeous beaches and look outs. The activities are fun and hosted by a fun team. Some of our group participated in many of the activities and had a great time. The reception team gad a few difficulties on our arrival finding new rooms for us away from the kid's area. Thry came through in the end. When our younger couple decided to get married on the beach, all stops pulled to make it happen, courtesy of Aeleen. Super service from all involved in this very emotional and joyous event. It was not legal but symbolic. We zoomed into San Miguel to buy dresses and shirts. Thanks to Lola at her shop of the same name on the main road facing the water, we found a wedding dress and 2 dresses for the ladies. If you find yourself on Cozumel please visit Lola. Beautiful dresses made on the premises. She can make something the same day and deliver it to your resort! She's worth the visit for lovely summer dresses, tops and pants all made by Lola. All in all a great trip. I would recommend the Allegro highly, especially if you have young children.

Occidental Caribe: Nice resort

We liked the outside of the resort pools were great and the beach was fantastic but the rooms are overdue for serious update…the restaurant buffet was a big disappointment food was not that great and the service staff was horrible we waited for drinks to arrive and table to get cleaned for ever ..

Barcelo Solymar: Good 2 weeks/ 3.5 Star Hotel- Jan.2-16, 2024

It was our first time staying at the Solymar, I would stay again if the price was right. There are a few things I wanted to mention, hopefully this will help with you trip. Front desk staff- were just ok, they really need to communicate a little better. When we checked in, only 1 other person was at the desk, so they weren't busy. The front desk staff never gave us a safe key, never told us about were to get beach towels, or were to book the specialty dinners. Safe key did not work, it took a [... read more]n entire day to resolve. You will have to ask a lot of questions after you arrive, it takes a couple days to figure things out. Superior room- Our room was on the first floor, room 1116. It was fine and looked a little worn, that didn't bother us. The beds were very comfortable, sheets changes everother day, 2 bath towels, no hand or face clothes. AC worked, TV worked (no remote), 1 large bottle of water is place in your fridge each day. You can fill up water bottles in the buffet restaurant. Housekeep- Did a great job, they work very long days, and that's 6 days a week. Our room was clean and in good order everyday. The house keeper for your room is who you get your beach towels from, they also change them out for you. IF you don't see your housekeeper, go to the front desk and request they get put in your room. I think they have a limited supply and have to registered to your room. If you loose a beach towel, it's just over $30 USD to replace. TIP your house keeper everyday! Bars- Great staff, and work 6 days a week as well. The staff were very friendly. PLEASE tip your bartenders, they will take care of you! Limited pop at the bars, only Sprite and Orange Fanta. They have draft beef, rum, tequila and sometimes vodka. Our drink of choice is vodka, we bought 2 bottles at Duty free on the way down, that really saved us. Buffet Restaurants- 3 buffets at day breakfast from 7-10, lunch from 12:30-3 and dinner from 7-10. The food was pretty basic, a lot of it wasn't to my liking, but I always found something to eat. Omelets in the morning!! TIP your omelet person! The service staff were great, and after a couple days they recognized us and brought our drinks or coffee to the table. Of course we tipped every meal, it was so disgusting to see how many people didn't tip. Beach- Was amazing! I love this beach so much. I would suggest IF you want a palapa you will need to put your towels on the chairs by 10am, otherwise you will be out of luck that day. Specialty restaurants- There was Italian in the lobby of the hotel, it was not good. Seafood down by the beach, we had lobster, excellent. A couple Spanish restaurants, by the beach towards Areas Blanca, Excellent, and a Mexican in the lobby of the Areas Blanca, not bad. Booking Specialty restaurants- This is done in the lobby office to the left of the elevators basically from 9-11 daily. Be there early, the line forms very fast. Try to book as many as you can, the buffet gets tried after a while. TIP the lady, we did $5 CAD, it really helped. The resort has a "STARS" dinner once twice a week, It does cost $15 USD by Credit car only, it was totally worth it. The service was like fine dinning and the 4 course dinner was amazing! Most people tried to dress up for dinner, bring some nice shirts and a nice pair of pants. Tank tops, day/beachwear is not allowed in the restaurants. Lobby and cleaning staff- The lobby is beautiful and very well maintained. The cleaning staff were working constantly, and kept it is tip top shape. What to bring- A refillable bottle of drinks, creams, suntan lotion, Benadryl or allergy medication. I got some bits from sand fleas on my legs, Benadryl and creams really helped. REMEBER , the electrical is 220v there, bring an adaptor to pug stuff in. Excursions and tour buses- ALL are paid for on credit car now, cash will not be accepted. The double decker tour bus that stops in front of the hotel, cost $5 USD, you pay when you enter the bus. The tour is about 2 hours long and you can hop off or get on all day with that $5 pass. Varadero downtown- we went a couple times, the 2 hotels you have access to are literally starts across the street. It was fine, but general expensive. Everything is in USD, beer cost $5 US each. ALSO if you every need to go the bathroom, good luck. It costs $1 USD or 200 pesos. If you don't pay you can't go in, there sometimes locked. The cleaning lady stands out front with the toilet paper, you get 2 squares...LOL Sometimes no toilet see, we felt we were being extorted and we were eating in the place, it was a turn off. Money and CC- Bring Canadian for some tipping, not $1/$2 try can't do anything with it. The Cubans want USD, bring singles, $5's, 10's. 20,s. You will need CC if you want to do any excursions, notify your bank before you go! You can exchange money on the bus to the hotel to get you started, don't buy too much. The lobby bar in the hotel will convert your money to pesos. Generally speaking $10 USD gets you 2400 pesos. We changed about $100 USD over the course of our 2 weeks. Tipping is generally about 200-300 pesos for each meal at the buffet, 400-500 pesos for housekeeping, Bartenders 200 pesos per 2 drinks. General composition of guest- When we were there it was 40% Russian, 30% Quebecois, and 30% Spanish/English and everyone else. The number of Russians really suppressed me, I guess they can go too many places anymore, so there is CUBA. Well that's it, if you get good price, try it out. This a 3-3.5 star, the price has to make sense for me to go back.

Barcelo Maya Colonial: Fantastic resort

The resort was very clean. The food was amazing, specially the French restaurant at the palace worth to pay an extra $20.00. The service on the resort was very good as well. This a great resort for families to enjoy a holiday. The rooms are a little dated but very clean. The only problem we had was the key card was not working periodically. This was our first time in Mexico and the resort was fantastic. We would come back again.

Barcelo Bavaro Beach: Awesome place

We had perfect weather, which makes the vacation. The food was very good , cannot complain! Entertainment was awesome! Grounds were clean ! Was nice to see some ducks n ducklings, fish in the pond , turtles. They have mesh so the birds can’t get in to the buffet area, which was nice to see. Some birds were smart enough to get in tho! ? weird set up for the bathroom, (shower n toilet) very tight. Beach had lots of weeds n grass, of course workers were clearing a number of times a day, that was th [... read more]e only downer , but we had a great vacation

Barcelo Maya Colonial: Fabulous resort

We really enjoyed our stay - good food, lovely accommodations, gorgeous beach, friendly and helpful staff. (Suggestions: Have more rooms with 2 beds available & turn down the painfully loud volume of the band in the theatre.) My second stay at Barcelo Maya and we're looking forward to our next visit.

Barcelo Maya Tropical: WE HAD THE BEST TIME!!!!!!!!!!!

The chain of Barcelo hotels in a row is just about the biggest resort I have seen. The beach was beautiful to walk on. The food was wonderfully prepared, the Grill Bars by the Beach with the breeze from the ocean were perfect! The cenotes right across the street was a big surprise, beautiful!

Barcelo Bavaro Palace: Will go back.

Resort has thousands of employees tending to cleaning and maintenance. Last trip there I fell in love with the chocolate donuts and wrote about it. I think too many people are eating them and now they seem to run out. We go there for golf and the beach. Both are excellent. The beach is a 2.6 km if you walk it back and forth. Beautiful. The golf course has extremely challenging holes with the last three on each nine dealing with trade winds, water and length. We upgraded to premium whic [... read more]h gets access to a different spot for breakfast and lunches where to service is excellent and the menu is upgraded. I actually had Filet Mignon for lunch one day. The spa is neat too with very spa type toys... Hot and cold plunge pools. Saunas, steam baths etc. less populated. It's one of the best and probably the biggest resort on the island...lots of loungers on the beach and the gym is adequate We've been to Dominican Republic a dozen times at least and even after twice we'd still go back.There are good and much more thorough tours on line. But go here you'll be getting good value for your money.

Barcelo Maya Colonial: Everybody loved it!

The Barcelo Maya Colonial was excellent. The room was comfortable, the restaurants were very good, and the amenities were first class, especially the pools. The drive fro and to the airports took about an hour and 30 minutes travelling at a very high speed. If you’ve got the stamina and energy, you can the three other Barcelo resorts in the area.

Barcelo Maya Tropical: Good First Impression

Grounds were outstanding, pools great, beach and palm trees was the place to be. Food awesome. We did switch rooms once due to bad sewer smell on tropical beach front side we realized this was the way that side of the hotel smelled on the ocean view. New room was good.

Barcelo Maya Tropical: Great Resort

We picked this resort mainly because of the kids activities. Unfortunately my daughter was only 3 while we were there and the kids club is 4+. The resort is huge and something we found out while there is that is actually a chain of resorts side by side and you are able to use 3 out of the 5. They have their own tourist bus system allowing you to hop in and off within hotels. Some A la carte restaurants are located in the other hotels. There is a market, a casino, a shopping mall as well. You can [... read more] walk or take the bus. Very convenient. The dolphin show between the hotels as well as the spa. They do advertise the surfing experience but you have to pay to access that part of the resort. It also have a big ship with 4 slides which my daughter loved. It is $20 US per person per day or $60 US per person for the week. Food was delicious. Every day. The only thing I would say is that I wanted to experience more of their food. For breakfast I wanted Huevos rancheros every morning but they wouldn't provide the tortillas which was really dissapointing. I would suggest they offer them at all times. Is part of their cousin signature. The staff is beyond friendly. Anything you need they are there to help you (except for the tortillas in the morning lol. I asked every morning and only one morning I got three). The hotel is very very clean. Overall one of the best resorts we have stayed at

Barcelo Puerto Vallarta: Awesome vacation

We were very pleased with everything at the Barcelo Puerto Vallarta. The only downside was the isolated location but it is only a downside if you want to travel off the resort regularly throughout your vacation

Occidental Papagayo: very good

We had a nice stay at this resort . Rooms were clean, but be advised make sure to lock all doors as the racoons will get in and destroy the room looking for food. Pools were great swim up bar was the best. Food well its pretty good but a bit on the the ricey side. Steaks at the italian were awsome. The snack bar was my favorite. The beach is fun, rent a ski jet from Roberto or go on the tour for 2 hours was a blast. Tours are cheaper and better if you get of of Roberto or Norice down at the be [... read more]ach, yellow shits great guys and Morice is the best tour guide you will get. Lets not forget about Gladys she does a great massage . All in all a great place for a holiday.

Barcelo Maya Colonial: Best Resort Ever

The entire experience at Barceló Maya Colonial was excellent. I highly recommend this property. We travelled with my family including a 4 and 2 year old. Rooms were cleans and very well maintained. Food was great. Staff very good. Grounds perfectly clean. The water features for the little kids were great. No hassles on the beach from vendors. The entire complex was so well set up you never have to leave. There’s shopping, the arcade and bowling alley (arcade and bowling are extra cost but in th [... read more]e facility it’s in your wristbands cover the food and drinks). There is a Mexican Market right on grounds also. There is also an Escape room you can book (you have to pay). The spa is great and the hydro therapy area is so relaxing and was included in our wristbands also. You literally never have to leave this property ! It is just over a hour from airport but we booked private shuttle so the drive seemed much better than a bus that stops at every resort. We used Happy Shuttle. It was 279 USD for 8 of us. Return. Including a car seat and beverages

Barcelo Maya Palace: Bring comfy shoes and a wad of cash

The resort was beautiful and clean. The staff were always around cleaning up empty cups and trash. The beach was less than pleasant. There were either large toe crushing boulders, or sharp gravel pits at most entry points into the ocean. The buffets were mostly good, but there definitely could be more variety. I found that there was a lack of energy and there could be more activities and engagement for the visitors.

Allegro Playacar: tres belle plage

Great Resort ! in general , very long and fantastic beach , warm clear water and exciting waves , no algae on beach sand. Food repetitive but passable. rooms are very small , no elbow room. Reception desk is competant , wifi in room is appreciated. Overall ,if you want sun and beach this is the place. Tout etait tres bien sauf la chambre ,le climatisateur ne fait pas l'evaporation de l'humidite, l'air est froid mais humide ,les draps et le matelas tres inconfortable ,pour cette raison j [... read more]e ne retournerais pas a cet hotel .Je tiens a remercier Maria Cupul notre femme de chambre , aussi le responsable du buffet pour sa bonne gestion ,et notre serveur Bernardo Bernal ,lui et ses collegues ,souriant rapide a repondre serviable .Je salut mes rencontres Pierre et Lise ,Leo et monsieur Chips , et Sonia et Gaetan .