An O.K hotel!

Amazing beach! The room was not the best and all elevators were not working but I was so happy with the beach I didn't care about the room or anything else. Service at the hotel and restaurants are good. Food was good but I wish there were more vegetables offered.

Unexpected Gem!

We booked here by accident, one word difference...oops! So how did it go? Food - I found the buffet itself to be the best with a variety of foods, hard working staff and a warm friendly hostess (ill call her Flo, first 3 letters of her name). Grounds - were very nice and constantly being taken care of, from painting to grass cutting. Rooms - comfy bed, high ceilings, balcony views..so what if I had to tighten a screw by hand or jiggle the toilet handle once in awhile. Maids were friendly and bus [... read more]y, nice job ladies! Bathroom/shower were great. Pools - very nice, no complaints. Beach - awesome, little chopey at times but it made it fun. Lots of palm trees to grab some shade and plenty of chairs to go around. Front desk - my man Martinez always hustling for people in several languages, he was hard working and accommodating, give this man a raise! Bartenders Juan & Sandy were friendly and knew how to handle the crowd. Overall 8/10, much better experience then a lot of reviews I read. Minor complaints, other entitled travelers and mosquitos only in the theater. Oh, Tony the Air Transat rep on the resort was friendly and informative too. In booking incorrectly and initially trying to swap hotels with air Transat was a joke and not helpful, the hotels made stronger attempts to accommodate but we ended up staying here and were pleasantly surprised. I'd go again. PS we did the monkeyland excursion, it was great, thx Kevin our guide. There was a coffee farm too, with a funny informative gent giving the presentation. Offered reasonably priced alcohol, coffee, cream etc with no hounding, impressed. Until next vacation, don't forget your drinking cups ✌️...

Great food! good entertainment!

My wife and I really enjoyed the buffet. It had plenty of options and they changed every day. At times it got busy and it took just a few extra minutes to have our table cleaned, but nothing serious. In the buffet, Editania was very helpful and always greeted us with a great smile! We only went to one restaurant with a reservation, the Japanese tepanyakki table. Food was good, but it was very hot (no AC no ceiling fans). Based on that experience we didn't book other restaurants. Instead we we [... read more]nt back to the buffet during dinner which had large open areas with big fans and some breeze. The beach was absolutely beautiful.

Not impressed

I wasn’t impressed with this resort at all. I will not be back and I would suggest to anyone looking to book this resort to definitely reconsider. Food at the buffet is horrible, hotel is outdated and needs major repairs and cockroaches were found in our room.

Not worth it. Go to Mexico or Cuba instead.

I wrote a lengthy review on TripAdvisor you can check out. I can see why Canadians do not want to go to Punta Cana. Their service is so poor and the maintenance of the hotel is lacking enough that Cuba or a 3 star in mexico is better than Occidental. We tipped everyone and still did not receive mediocre service, let alone good service. We managed to visit 1 a la carte only. Lots of locals on weekends. Rude, cold servers, except for 1 lady. Beach was choppy. Lots of vendors. Not worth it.

Amazing Resourt

The hotel was very clean the staffs was very polite and courteous. One down side we didn’t receive a face cloth for the 5 days we were there, and only one bath towel per person per day. I would visit this hotel again

Awesome, clean and well spread out.

The place is very large but still very close to the beach. The staff are friendly as well as the grounds keepers. We found no problems with the food. Very abundant and hot. Great deserts and fruit as well.

Occidental Caribe

Too much music noise from one of the pools all day long. A liitle dated hotel but very nice. Food pretty good. Staff very friendly. The air conditioning did not cool the room quite enough. Elaborate different display of free alcohol outside dining room every night.

Occidental caribe

Hotel had no elevator had to climb six flights of stairs .didn't clean room everday TV didn't work lock was broken had to ask several times for room to be cleaned and stocked with water towels toliet paper pop

AVERAGE RESORT

The Hotel is so vast and it really, really needs a lot of TLC (tender loving care) My observation for our 12 days stays are as follows; Public areas are plenty but it tends to be crowded, especially during Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. The Al Cazar, which is the main Dining/ Buffet area is always traffic and with all the huge side windows are open, which it allows few beautiful birds to help themselves to pick up foods from the buffet ; fruits, breads, rice, etc. in and out during breakfast a [... read more]nd lunch. I have picture on them. Beach lounges chairs are outdated and plenty of them are broken, that we need moved around the coconut trees in order to get some shade, since they don’t have any open hut 🛖 at all. Public washrooms are also problematic due to lack of water pressures, especially for the urinals in the men’s washrooms. This problem also occurred in our own assigned room that we need to flush the toilet twice or three times. We also experienced to be bitten by mosquitoes every night while we’re sleeping in our bed for the 12 nights that we stayed, in which we found them in the following morning fully feed from our blood 🩸. The food was salty and lack of serving spoons. People are using the same one from one dishes to another; pork, fish, or beef and fish. Our only consolation was that the staff were very friendly and as they said ´´ We are only working here ´´.

Awesome Resort

Great pools, food, people, and the best beach ever! There were a few minor disappointments made to the resort since 2018 and they’re working hard to return it to the new normal. Nothing major for the fun in the sun we had 😎

Don't go Here!

We stayed here as a couple in January , it a Beautiful location, with clean pools & grounds, everything else contributed to a horribly disappointing 2 Star all inclusive vacation experience Buffet- Overall Dirty & completely unorganized, all guests at this large resort are herded into the one buffet, food is inconsistent, labelling of foods are incorrect & some days had no fruit or butter, cereal or yoghurt or fresh vegetables ,bread& pastries was always full, food was of very poor quality A [... read more]s a result of a total lack of leadership, Servers were all overworked & unable to provide service couldn't even get a coffee or cutlery on some days the crowds were overwhelming A la carte restaurants have lovely servers but still, food was really awful Not enough beach chairs, most are broken & dirty we had to find 2 chairs at 6am every morning to secure a beach chair there is no pool or beach beverage service, unless you go to the entertainment pool & sit in the pool at bar. & we had no pool towels for first 3 days despite multiple attempts Luckily we brought our own towels AC in room would not work, tried numerous attempts with resort to bring below 24.5. Degrees, we were pocked out of our room 3 times, no explanation or apologies we had mould in our entire shower stall, our housekeeper tried to remove it with bleach but to no avail

Don't go Here!

We stayed here as a couple in January , it a Beautiful location, with clean pools & grounds, everything else contributed to a horrible vacation Overall Dirty & completely unorganized Buffet Restaurant, all guests at this large resort are herded into the one buffet, food is inconsistent & of poor quality There is a total lack of leadership, Servers were all overworked & unable to provide service couldn't even get a coffee or cutlery on some days the crowds were overwhelming A la carte restau [... read more]rants have lovely servers but still, food was really awful No beach chairs, most are broken & dirty we had to find 2 chairs at 6am every morning to secure a beach chair there is no pool or beach beverage service, we had no pool towels for first 3 days despite multiple attempts Luckily we brought our own towels AC in room would not work, & mould in our entire shower stall, our housecleaner tried to remove it with bleach but to no avail Room had a great view overlooking SEA & pool, our room was cleaned daily. The bed was awful, pillows old & lumpy Entertainment team were decent as were a few of the shows that start at 10 Everyone here smokes cant get away Overall a 2 at best

This resort is lacking in a lot of areas

Long waits for check ins and no beverage offered while waiting. Rooms were bad broken tile trim left on floor.Glass shower never cleaned with soap scum and water spots on it. T.V. didn't work at all. Safe never worked. Called down to get someone to fix it but they never showed up. Toilet didn't flush. Had to find maid to pour stuff down it everything. We went two days without towels and was never any face cloths. Had to use our beach towel. The blow dryer didn't work. Room card kept deactiv [... read more]ated had to go to front desk and wait every time. The buffet food was cold and hard to find a table. The waiters wouldn't ask you for drinks and there was never any spoons on table and if you asked you might get a plastic one. On the good side the grounds are well maintained and the beach is nice.i don't usually make reviews cause I am not fussy but had to make an exception for this resort. Everyone we talked to said the same. Really would not recommend this resort 😕

Not a great experience

The hotel rooms are outdated in need of a renovation. Public areas are nice enough, but the furniture is in need of repair or replacement. Lots of broken chairs.. Pool is lovely, beach is excellent. Customer service at this hotel was horrible. We were were supposed to arrive in the evening, but due to a flight delay we did not arrive until the next morning at 1030am and were not allowed to check in until 3pm (their normal check in time) . Their guest services could barely speak English a [... read more]nd were seemingly there to help only with dinner reservations in their specialty restaurants. We were supposed to have 4 reservations included in our package and were only able to obtain one reservation. The restaurant was only half full, I assume this was the case for the rest of them as well. Food was ok, not great, not bad. Bar service was excellent from the bar to the servers bringing drinks to our table/poolside. Tip these people please - they deserve it. We did find one large cockroach in our room. Only once, but it should be mentioned. The package we booked should have included: Bathrobes - did not ever get Slippers - did not ever get Beer in the fridge (replenished Daily) - never provided A bottle of Rum - never provided Coca Cola in the fridge (replenished daily) - no complaints (after $20 day 2 tip) Water in the fridge (replenished daily) - no complaints (after $20 day 2 tip) Beach Towels in the room (had to pick these up at the pool, not a big deal). Room did not have face cloths or a bath mat. We received a bathmat on day 5. The bed was surprisingly comfortable. We didn't let any of this affect our vacation, but we would never stay in this hotel again.

Disappointing

We were a group of 6 leaving from Halifax NS joining two other couples from Toronto and Manitoba to arrive in Punta Cana on February 26, 2023 at 10:30pm. Our flight was delayed and we did not arrive at the resort until 10:30 am on February 27, 2023. Although we paid for our rooms, no rooms were available upon arrival which was upsetting as we had no sleep with all the delays. We were told to check back at the front desk at 1pm then 2pm then 3pm. Our upgraded room was to included Beach towels i [... read more]n room, welcoming Rum, robe/slippers and beer in fridge. We had none of that although later in the week customer service provided us with the rum. As well, we were to receive 4 meals at restaurants however we could not make reservations until we received a room. Once we finally were given a room and we went to customer service to book reservations they told us there were no reservations available. We challenged this and did get reservations however it added stress to the trip. Again more stress to our vacation. The bathroom towels were not consistent and often we were short. We had a leak in our bathroom which the maid was clearly aware as she placed a towel underneath. I am not faulting the maid crew as it clearly appears to be a supply issue for towels. The clientele for the first number of days were families from infants to grandparents. The day before we left buses upon buses arrived with student groups and the resort became unenjoyable and we could not wait to leave. The resort and our carrier should have warned us of that when booking. We requested a late check out on our last day due to our flight time however they would not give it even though we did not use the first night due to our delayed arrival and they subsequently received payment twice for that night. No late check out even though we only received 6 of the 7 nights we paid for. Very disappointing.

Poor Customer Service

The hotel was mediocre at best. We had booked a superior room with a king sized bed. Our assigned room had two double beds. It did have a fantastic view of the ocean. The room was supposed to be stocked with water, pop, a bottle of rum, beer and snacks. The water was hit and miss dependant upon what they had on the cart. We never had beer or snacks supplied to the room. We eventually got a bottle of rum after speaking to guest services twice and our Air Transat Representative twice. W [... read more]hen we tried to book dinners in the restaurants, we were met with great resistance and told on Day 1 that there was no space available in any of the restaurants. We refused to leave customer service until we had some bookings as our package allowed for four choices. The food in the restaurants was good but they were only half full so I am not sure why it was so difficult to get a reservation. Any time we went to customer service for an inquiry, we were told to come back later as no one was available to assist us. Overall I would say the resort did not live up to the promised package and the building was somewhat run down. We enjoyed the weather, but were generally disappointed with how we were treated while there - the remainder of our group had an even worse experience due to a delayed flight. They gave away their rooms so they were not able to get into a room until 4 pm on the day of their arrival after having been travelling all night long! I blame it on the management of he resort as the workers- with the exception of Guest Services did the best they could with what they had.

Ok resort

The resort wasn't anything special, the sink was clogged, the toilet only sometime flushed. There definitely were not enough loungers on the beach. The food was ok, nothing special. The staff were friendly. The a la carts booked very fast.

Meh...

Before leaving for our trip, I read the reviews and wondered what we got ourselves into. I thought that everyone has a different opinion so I'll come with an open mind. Issues started when we got there. Tried 7 different swipe cards and none worked so we couldn't leave our room until it got serviced. Had to sit in our room until 2:30 pm the first day until maintenance came ( we called 4 times before someone came). Batteries replaced. Both patio doors could not lock and we were an end unit and [... read more] anyone could have gone through the windows in the hallway and jump right onto our balcony). What everyone said about towels is correct. One towel for 2 of us for showering and NO FACECLOTH'S !! I'm sorry but I wash my face every night but they do not have any. Sheets were not changed for the 8 days that we were there. Used coffee maker in room for coffee in morning and were not given sufficient bottled water to make it. Only 2 bottles of pop put in the fridge and they froze alongside with everything in your fridge. Yes, rooms are very dated (orange couch and wing chairs ??) and both the couch and chairs were very uncomfortable to sit in. I have had past issues with back pain and this furniture did not help the cause. Majority of the staff do not speak English and a lot of them are rude (you say Ola to them and they just walk right by you). Seriously, you need to get up at 6 am to grab a chair at either the beach or the pool. By 7:30 am; all chairs had towels on them and you could not get one. Minimum 2 hour wait to reserve at the a la carte restaurants. A lot of people complained about this. We were fortunate and with being premium, we could go to the premium lounge and book. Buffet is not really edible. 4 slice toasters, only one side worked (could only do 2 slices at a time) so you had to wait. This was for both toasters available. Not enough tables available. If you want a real Mojito or Pina Colada, good luck. These come out of a slushie machine like 7-11. No water sports equipment available. We like kayaking and would of loved to do this on the days that the water was calm. Pros :The beach was beautiful as you could walk for miles and it was just sand. Pools were clean too. Every year we go away and just accept any situations that may arise however, with this place, it seemed like it was one thing after another. Very frustrating when you are on vacation and you are having to deal with issues on a daily basis.

Deferred Maintenance

This hotel in its prime would have been beautiful. Unfortunately the upkeep on the buildings have not been done and it shows. As for the food reviews - all of what you have read is true. Food is cold, and constantly empty. This is not the hotel for good food!!! Also they don't seem to have a handle on the volume required for the amount of people staying there. We heard constant complaints from many other guests as well. The hotel was always running out of dishes, cutlery, tables for patrons [... read more], and when you could find one, it was dirty and you had to try to flag down someone to bus the table for you, and hopefully bring beverages or cutlery. (which, believe me took some effort and time!) Food quality was almost average on it's best day. Don't try the burgers at the pool restaurant - horrendous! A-la-carte? - good luck on getting one, unless you are up and in line on Sunday morning by 6 am...Otherwise you are out of luck! The shows are way too late in the evening (Starting at ten) We did stay up and watch two of them (Circ and Las Vegas show) which were entertaining, but should have been much earlier in the evening for guests to enjoy! The beach is beautiful! Loved walking the stretch daily and the water was amazing as well. It's too bad that the management isn't on top of this, as this is a prime location, and stately looking buildings, it's a shame it's being let go. We would go back to the area, on that beach but not to that hotel again.