Blue Bay Villas Doradas: Great Resort

Great resort location, beautiful beach. Rooms were clean, food was amazing. The staff were all great and friendly. The entertaiment staff were amazing, always smiling. the were awesome at getting people involved. I would return and defenetly recommend this resort. Only Cons is not enough beach towels and beach chairs.

Playabachata Hotel: Beautiful beach

Had an enjoyable stay at Playabachata. Pros: - beautiful, spacious resort with many areas for sitting and walking - beautiful, sandy beach with opportunity to walk the shore - nice pool area - well kept grounds - fairly comfortable rooms - some desk staff and buffet staff very efficient and helpful - wide variety of decent food at buffet - variety of activities/entertainment throughout the day and night - evening shows were usually good - variety of activities for children throughou [... read more]t the day and evening - a number of bars in different locations Cons: - if room is close to main stage area, dj's chatter over the music is loud until about1:00 a.m. - on some days, towels taken from room in the morning (one dirty towel was left) and clean towels were not provided until much later in the afternoon or evening (towels are sent off site to be laundered) - in the case of heavy rain, no umbrellas are provided and the only way to get to the buffet, restaurants or bars is to walk outside - booking the a la carte restaurants was unnecessarily tedious - we arrived Thursday evening and when we attempted to book, we were told we couldn't book until Sunday; guests had to line up early in the morning to book; we could only book one slot at each of the two restaurants; time slots we wanted were not available even though we got there early (many other resorts allow a simple phone call to the restaurant to book and there is no limit) - some entertainment staff's interactions with guests were inappropriate and made some guests feel uncomfortable - some buffet staff were far from helpful... borderline rude - some days clean beach towels were not available for the entire day

Blue Bay Villas Doradas: Decent

Just got back from a week here. The food was better than I was expecting, 4/5. The rooms are very basic, clean but outdated. If you’re picky about rooms/bathrooms, best to avoid. The grounds and beach are very well kept. The entertainment was decent for such a small resort, although there is nothing going on past 10/10:30. The music at the late night disco/ beach bar was pretty terrible. Way way too loud, and bad playlists. Most people avoided it. The rock and roll night was good, Miss Blue Bay  [... read more]was very entertaining. If you’re looking for a quieter resort that shuts down early, this is a good place. The spa pool and volleyball pool were nice, the swim up bar pool needed better maintenance/cleaning. Getting lounge chairs by the pool was an issue unless you got there pretty early. Overall a decent place for the price and the food/staff were great.

Viva Heavens by Wyndham: Viva Heavens - January 2024

Several restaurants (Mexican, Dominican, Italian, French). Food was a little hit or miss (even the same place, and same dish between 2 nights). The hits were fantastic, but some of the food was inconsistent. (Always something to eat of course). The buffet which is always an option was quite good with a lot of variety. It always had a “custom option” which was generally worth waiting for. (Omelettes in the morning, sometimes freshly cooked burgers or turkey). Be aware… Lots of walking (stairs t [... read more]o the rooms and the path to the beach). Very friendly staff! Being a smaller resort it’s easy to get to know them. The beach was super nice. The included options to go for a catamaran, boogie board, wind surf, etc. was very good. Mall was a 5 minute walk away (ATM, liquor and many touristy shops). Room was good. AC was sufficient. The safe in the room malfunctioned a couple of times requiring us to call the desk, but they were prompt in getting things sorted out. It was helpful to know a little bit of Spanish, but not required by any means. Overall a very good stay.

Playabachata Hotel: Beautiful resort

I would love to return in this resort and I wish to stay longer to enjoy more the pool and the beach to walk on the shore with my hubby, the foods are amazing there were so many choices but actually I loved them all. I always start my meal with fruits then the main dishes then finished with fruits and cakes.. drinks and alcohol are amazing I worst drink margarita here and I love it...

Blue Bay Villas Doradas: Satisfactory Resort

The buildings are esthetically pleasing and the grounds beautifully maintained. The staff is hard working, ( they work incredibly long hours), they are friendly, courteous and helpful. The food is pretty good with a wide selection of dishes. The night shows are good and fun. The down side is that management could do a better of job making sure visitor's needs are met in a timely fashion. We changed rooms once and in both cases the room safes boxes were not operating nor were they fixed. Ther [... read more]e are no drawers in the room and room towels were not regularly provided. The beach towels were not always available and beach chairs were in very short supply. The hotel is having a changeover of ownership and perhaps many of these issues can be attributed to this.

Sunscape Puerto Plata: Great resort for the price

We travelled from Jan 10-17/24 and had the Adults Only Sun Club upgrade, it was our first time to DR. We were lucky and the weather was fantastic so we spent a bunch of time on the beach every day - you can walk in either direction for over 30 mins. Some people complained about the seaweed, but that's nature - they did their best to clean it every day. We didn't find it to be an issue when we went in the water. As a Sun Club member you get a separate section on the beach with loungers that ca [... read more]n be placed under the mangroves if you need a break from the sun. We never had a problem getting a lounger. There are people trying to sell hats and trinkets, but they don't pester - a simple "no thanks" and they move on. We never had an issue exchanging our "orange" beach towels for new ones. There is bar service but we found the wait to be long, and the server often mixed up bubba mugs. :) I eat plant-based (vegan as best as I can) and had no problem at the buffet. There's salad available at every meal, toast with jam/peanut butter for breakfast, different cereals, cooked veggies, roasted potatoes, rice and peas/beans at lunch and dinner, and a variety of fruit. It's weird we didn't get 1 banana on the resort (they were at the local strip mall) but there was pineapple, cantaloupe, watermelon, starfruit, passion fruit, mango and papaya. My husband is pescetarian and he had fish at lunch and dinner, always options. We didn't bother with the alacartes because of our dietary restrictions AND we heard the waits could be up to 2 hours. We did try the pizza and it was good - the only thing is there is one poor guy who takes orders, preps and cooks the pizzas with quite a few people queuing up. Ours tasted good, but there's no real service so we usually stuck to the buffet. The Coco Cafe is great - offering custom coffees with almond milk (available every day but one). They also have fresh fruit and treats. I stuck to the fruit so can't comment much on the desserts. Service was fast and the women who work there were really nice. They also had teas available, I only tried the green tea. We went to the pool in the afternoons but didn't participate in the activities so I can't really comment. We also went to the gym most days for about a half hour. It met our needs with some cardio equipment (bike and elliptical), weight machines, free weights and kettlebells. As a Sun Club member, there is access to an Adults Only quiet pool but we didn't use it because the area is mostly in shade and the pool is shallow. It's an option if you want a break from the main pool music, but I actually liked that atmosphere so it wasn't an issue. The bar in the Sun Club offered the same snacks as the Coco Cafe, and claims to have "top shelf" alcohol. Because we aren't big drinkers, I couldn't really tell the difference - haha - but some people complained they didn't have the brands expected. We stuck to red wine (it's ok and drinkable), mohitos made with passion fruit (that's worth trying), and beer. Francesco was a really nice bartender so we often grabbed our drinks in this quiet zone at night. You also have access to board games (scrabble) and cards here. Our room reminded us of Cuba - the weakest part of the vacation. The rooms have problems and are very tired, but I wasn't expecting much. The beds were comfortable and our balcony was 5 star. The balcony sliders didn't lock, the bathroom tap tended to leak and the resort often ran out of hot water for showers right before dinner. Because our safe worked, we didn't worry about the balcony doors - the climb would be pretty treacherous, but I could see this being an issue for some. We adapted our shower time, no big deal because we're on vacation and it's an old resort. Our mini fridge was always stocked with water, beer and pop - never had an issue. The maid cleaned up daily and always gave us fresh towels, we never ran out. They supply soap, 2 in 1 shampoo and body wash so we didn't need to pack those items. Every night there are shows, they are ok - nothing spectacular but many were entertaining. We saw about half of them. Most evenings there was a woman singing in the main lobby, covering pop tunes - she usually drew a decent crowd. There's also pool tables, foosball and a worn out ping pong table. We did one day-trip to the city because we wanted to go up the cable car. It was taken through Transat who supplied our vacation. I would not recommend this - it's mostly a sales pitch at different stores - rum, jewellery, coffee, chocolate, cigars. Very little time is spent exploring the history, fort, or the top of the mountain. I was disappointed that they took us to the top so late in the day that the clouds rolled in and it was "rainy" weather up there so we couldn't see the city view. Not enough time to check out the botanical gardens. No entry to the fort, you could only see from the outside. I felt like I wasted a nice day riding in a bus going from store to store. The lunch was awful, not as good as the buffet food at the resort. We were given the vegetarian option which was a piece of zucchini and eggplant instead of the chicken. We noticed a lot of people didn't eat the chicken because it didn't taste very good. The bread was stale. No one ordered drinks because the price was atrocious. The one good thing about the tour was Andy, the guide. He was very funny so that made it passable. I have already recommended Sunscape to my friends. I want to explore other parts of DR so I will likely try somewhere else, but I would definitely go back here at some point.

Blue Bay Villas Doradas: not the best, not the worst

To start off, not one person we talked to was happy with the first room they were given. Every person had their room changed the next day. One couple had their room changed 3x. It's like they put you up in their worst rooms first to see if you'll complain. Door handle was falling off, safes didn't work, was right next to the stage so it was crazy loud all evening. Second room we got to was decent... safe still didn't work and the clock was broken in pieces on the nightstand, not sure why they ev [... read more]en left it there... the rooms are alright. We didn't spend a lot of time in the room so it wasn't a big issue for us. The food is decent. There's a big issue with not having enough chairs on the beach. If you didn't get there by 7:30am to reserve a chair you probably won't get one. The staff was ok. They wont bend over backwards for you. They'll keep you waiting. Also, if you sign up for the Paradise Island excursion, they don't tell you it's a 3 hour drive each way!! Do not get sucked into the 'timeshare' building!! they will waste hours of your time and be EXTREMELY pushy!!! We met people there who have gone to this Resort multiple times cuz they love it so much, so to each their own. Would we go back.. probably since we now know how to navigate. It's decent for the price plus we met amazing locals who became our friends. 3/10 stars

Sunscape Puerto Plata: Return trip

Our third time at sunscape, very relaxing stay , hotel grounds are very well maintained and clean, staff exceptional special shout out to Leo in buffet, Francisco and Salvatore in sunclub bar , Carlos in family sunclub eating area, and jordane in entertainment staff, Jordan in beach bar, all went above to take care of you

Cofresi Palm Beach and Spa Resort: Beautiful Resort but…..

Grounds were beautiful, cleanliness was top notch, staff was second to none. This resort was built on a hill/mountain and is totally the wrong choice for older people. We were in the units which were first built and were totally run down. Had to be moved from first room because it was totally inferior (AC was freezing; the seal on patio door window was broken, could not see out; no drawers for clothes; 4 hangers; no hot water). Thank you to Garlyn Nunez at reception desk who moved us to a better [... read more] location but same low class unit. I praise him because he was so kind to us and I wasn’t a very happy customer. This resort would be conducive to Europeans who are used to walking up hill a lot. Shuttles were great but hence we all came home sick because of close contact to others. Entertainment was great.

Cofresi Palm Beach and Spa Resort: It was a nice resort

As a first time traveller I enjoyed my stay at cofreshiPalm Beach and resort. That being said it is not a good spot for anyone with knee or back issues as many stairs to get to everything. The food was only at certain times and you couldn't get snacks unless you got them at the variety store. The pools and spa were wonderful. The beach was nice not enough chairs. Basically if I were to go here again it would have to be VIP as that section had no sewage smell and less stairs.

Playabachata Hotel: Not a good resort

My wife and I have cpap machines only one outlet beside the bed had to find an extension cord took me awhile. The rooms were moldy the house keeping was good. My wife has mobility issues and they put us quite a distance from pool and restaurants, we asked for a closer room but that didn't happen. Getting in and out of the pool was a challenging task for everyone.

Cofresi Palm Beach and Spa Resort: Never again

Rooms substandard,no furniture, lack of hot water, sewer smell adjacent to ground floor, exposed electrical box on floor Pools and grounds well maintained and food and bars were very good with good employees Several of my friends got sick

Playabachata Hotel: Great resort!

Great beach, fabulous entertainment, food was as expected, could do with more a la cartes for such a large resort. Rooms are dated but clean, needed some maintenance on my patio door, difficult to open & close. WiFi was terrible.

Playabachata Hotel: Very old Resort needs some freashing up!

We stayed at the resort for 7 days the bathroom was full of mold Our friends we went with their room was infested with ants I came home with a sinus infection do to the mold as well as bites all over my body And I wasn't even on the beach I went on vacation with my walker We were not put very close to the main building at all I struggled with all the walking We were lodged away from the pool and festivities even though we asked to be close as the resort was aware of my walker when we boo [... read more]ked our stay Only the 1 pool had a ramp to enter the pool whitch was far away from our room the other pool had ladders to get in and out but the ladders were very hard to get in and out of as they were straight up and down and the first step was too far from the pool edge The food was very repetitive lots of pasta but not very much of a selection Staff was very friendly and attentive In my opinion the resort needs alot of TLC and is not Handicap accessible this should be addressed as soon as possible

Viva Tangerine by Wyndham: Good 3-Star Resort

PROS: 1. The best part about this resort was the beach! Waves were rough (kids enjoyed). You can walk along the beach for quite a distance, especially on the one side past the rocks. 2. Close to a town to buy souvenirs. 3. Kite surfing. 4. Lunch buffet was the best meal (pasta, rice, beans, soup, bread). Mexican and Italian restaurants were better than the dinner buffet. CONS: 1. Rooster crowing repeatedly every morning before 7:00 am. 2. FOOD. At breakfast, the omelettes are always r [... read more]unny and not cooked through. All of the desserts and pastries were no good. Snack bar is the same everyday. 3. DRINKS. Tried many of them but they aren’t that good. 4. Rooms need maintenance. Our room only had hot water between 4:00-6:00 pm. Bathroom doorknob was broken. Air conditioner was loud. Two water bottles for three people. 5. Poor/little entertainment. 6. Location of the resort is far from excursions near Puerto Plata. Be prepared for more than 1 hour travel times. RECOGNITION & GRATITUDE: -Clarivar Perez (sp?) – sweetest housekeeper for block 23! -Ralfina the bartender - very good to us and the kids. Friendly and makes the best drinks! Café Café server – hard worker! RECOMMEND -Waterfall and Monkeyland excursion (snorkelling was disappointing) OVERALL We knew what we were getting into for the price and from other reviews. It’s a 3 to 3.5 star hotel. You will enjoy if you know what to expect. We still had a good time. Weather was fantastic. We did not have locals on the weekend and they never ran out of food which we were worried about.

Playabachata Hotel: Could be better!

The beach is good , but not everyone has enough sun loungers, many are broken. The food is excellent, but the service is poor - you can wait for hours for a waiter with coffee, the reception staff do not want to solve the problems of guests. There was no electricity and hot water in the room for two days. We vacationed here in January 2024 and were disappointed

Blue Bay Villas Doradas: Middle of the road resort.

Top notch were the employees, especially the lady that looked after our room. The grounds were in great shape and the bread was great at the buffet. The food otherwise was very average except for the A La Carte Asian which was very nice. There was something else wrong with the food as one person thought they had food poisoning in our group (there were 12 of us) and the rest claimed to have gastrointestinal problems except for myself. I am sure these people were correct in their problems as one i [... read more]s a nurse and 2 are doctors. Other downfalls at the resort were the safes for the rooms (most rooms did not have a working safe and were never repaired during our stay) and no deadbolt for your room door and in the case of my son's room, the handle came off inside his room. We paid for the Superior room and were surprised there was no chair in the room and 2 beds pushed together to make one. At the beach....very small and a continuous influx of people selling their trinkets or services. The resort also has too few chairs at the beach. I was witness to two women having a tug of war with a beach chair to try and determine ownership. The good part of this is the people that work at the beach will take away the blue towels from a chair if they are left unattended for too long. If you choose to argue then security is called in. Do I recommend this hotel as the next question asks....maybe. I will say no for now and you can be the judge.

Playabachata Hotel: Decent resort

Me & my partner came to playabachata & we were disappointed in the customer service we received, the front staff is somewhat helpful, the rules for the buffet are ridiculous, you were not allowed to wear a tank top in the buffet..WE ARE IN A TROPICAL PLACE & it was a help yourself style so why that was even a rule was just stupid, Meanwhile other men & women were wearing tank tops and were allowed in, discrimination at its finest for being gay, when I confronted the lady at the buffet she prete [... read more]nded to not speak English prior to speaking English to me just a few minutes before, power was constantly going out, bar staff made me feel extremely uncomfortable staring and whispering and laughing while pointing at me & my partner, staff wasn’t willing to take us seriously when we filed a complaint and Instead of getting management to come speak to us they made us go find them, which we never were able to because any staff that we asked for help didn’t speak English, staff wouldn’t restock stuff in our room unless you left a tip (which we did most days but on the days we didn’t they didn’t give us anything, just a made bed) they didn’t sweep or actually clean anything, just made the bed with the sheets we were sleeping in all week, there were stains on my pillow case, bathtub paint was chipping and coming off on our feet, they tell us that the coffee shop & pizza place are included in our stay, but there are certain things on the menu that only senator people can have in the coffee shop, although the night staff gave us whatever we wanted, the lady who works in the morning is miserable & they need an attitude check and also need to learn to smile and say have a great day, not say “that coffee is only for senator, next” and then proceeds to ignore you when you ask for something else, although I was able to get caramel machiatto’s during the day so the lady doesn’t even know her own menu, because those drinks were for only senator as well LOL. Beach was pretty. Excursion’s were fun!, drinks were way too strong, A/C BARELY works in the room, buffet was okay for the most part, I suggest you bring your own ketchup because they rarely have it available. I’d give this resort a 3 out of 5 stars, 4 stars is extremely generous. Wifi only works in the lobby and that’s rare as well…they played the same music for a week straight no variety at all, it took three calls for them to finally fix the leaking faucet under our bathroom sink, room smelt very musky and moldy, last two days of our trip, my throat hurt & my breathing was off (I believe due to the mold in the room) We will come back to the Dominican but definitely not this resort.

VH Gran Ventana Beach Resort: My favorite

I recently returned from The Gran Ventana Resort in Puerto Plata. Having been to this resort a dozen times, I was not surprised that everything was fantastic. Great food, staff, weather, cleanliness and all round bang for your buck. Walking distance to golf course. During my stay I tripped on the stairs and hit my head. They immediately took me to the emergency centre a mere 100 meters from the resort. Staff stayed with me the entire time. I would and have recommended this resort to both family  [... read more]and friends. Thanks again to manager Dionicio Rosado.