Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda: Excellent Resort!

Rooms were clean, food was good, staff were very friendly. I would definitely go back! The beach wasn't as "pretty" as other beaches in the area, but the pools were clean and refreshing. The staff were awesome!!!

Blue Bay Villas Doradas: Interesting place.

The first impression of the Blue Bay Villas Doradas is WOW! We had been to this resort 25 year prior and well, it was an improvement . The staff is very friendly, the grounds are beautifully manicured, the lobby and restaurants are very clean and inviting BUT...... the rooms leave allot to be desired. The first room we were put into didn't have hot water in it for 2 days - they finally moved us to another room after sending down a maintenance worker to show us how to turn the water on. - very in [... read more]sulting. That room had rust on the bathtub, broken floor tiles and a ceiling fan that had about 1/2" of dirt on it. The vent for the air conditioner was clogged with dirt so you were breathing in old, moldy air. The door to the room was almost an inch shorter than the opening and allowed bugs to come into the room. The Second room we were put into was better but again the ceiling fan was covered with dirt and the air conditioner desperately needed cleaning. if you wanted towels, you had to ask the maid as they would give you one hand towel and two bath towels, if you were lucky. These things were pointed out to the front desk but never corrected during our stay. I spoke to some other guest who had to move 3 time before they got a room that didn't have problems. If you go to an all inclusive, then why do you have to pay for drinks at the Lobby Bar????? This is supposed to be a 4 star hotel and you have to pay for drinks. I have travelled all over the Caribbean staying at all inclusive from 2 - 5 star and NEVER have I had to pay for drinks at any of the bars. The entertainment leaves allot to be desired. They must think we are all deaf as they play the music so loud that you cannot hold a conversation with the person next to you without shouting. Especially during the day. I understand that they want everyone to have a good time but not everyone wants to loose their hearing. The spa area was the best part of this place, very quiet - but only after the main stage area turns down their music and they are located at opposite ends of the resort. The beach was beautiful but unfortunately we were constantly bothered by people trying to sell us their items and they really don't take no for an answer. We were given prices for excursion when we arrived but when we tried to book them, they raised the prices even though the lower price was on the internet. I would never give this place a 4 star rating.

Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda: Great Resort

Room was beautiful, food was great, grounds were always tended to. Front desk were always pleasant and helpful, Beach was nice but was expecting a much longer beach. All together had a great time and would go again

Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda: not what I expected

The blue bay was not what I expected at all. They rate this hotel a 4-4+ but from our stay.....I would rate it a 3. The pictures are a little miss leading. It is all depending on what your going for. This is not a romantic resort. I would recommend this hotel to single younger people who want to hang out at what they call there sports bar. There is no night life, no real shows. The shows are on a screen like a movie. Very dissapointing. There are no lounges, no activities all around a boring res [... read more]ort. The pools were nice. One of the big main pool is under construction. I read that in one of the other reviews before I left and I spoke to my travel agent about this but she said it looks like it's open. It wasn't. They don't really serve u drinks pool side unless u r in a group and tipping big. I have been to the mayan before and I must say that we will never return to this resort again. The food was average. Buffet was bland, restaurants aren't that great either. You need to book your a la carts in advance because there are no drop ins. They are not fussy on how you dress either. Even though they say formal, u can as men....dress in short sleeve shirt with nice sandels. DONT FALL FOR THE SPECIAL TOUR/BREAKFAST! It's a sales pitch. They offer spa day. Well what it is is a day using there sauna and steam room. Who wants to use that when there in mexico. Lol. Garden view rooms are very basic. We stayed in building 6. Very clean and close to the small pool. Rooms are a nice size aswell. No tubs! Not sure if this helps anyone. I hope it does. If you get this place at a really good price maybe concider it otherwise keep looking. There are better ones out there.

Blue Bay Villas Doradas: Blue Bay Villas Doradas

The exterior grounds are well maintained and lovely. The food is good ... something for everyone at every meal. The staff are very friendly and service from the food and cleaning staff is fantastic. The spa and its services are great. The beach vendors are some of the most aggressive I have ever encountered, but they will eventually take no for an answer. The front desk staff are very friendly but issue resolutions are slow / never happen even with repeated visits. The rooms are basic and clean, [... read more] nothing special and need to be renovated not just refreshed with new paint... the rooms are at a 2 star level. We had an additional issue with the on-site tour reps ... the initial rep gave one set of pricing that matched the companies website and the second one increased prices for the same tour by 30% the next day. A visit to the local mall just minutes walking from the resort had flip flops for sale at US$46.50 - apparently if it isn't high season costs are adjusted upwards. The stores, room and on-site tour operator left us a desire to not return to this location.

Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda: so so hotel and beach

the hotel just so so, its beach is not good, too many stones, which injured my feet. On the beach there is not much activity. So the peoples just lie on the chair for sunbath to get the color. their room, service and food just general.

Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda: Clean, Great Service

The resort is extremely clean throughout. Rooms were cleaned daily and mini fridge stocked daily as well. Part of the main pool was being cleaned and repaired during my stay but with the other half of the main pool as well as the quiet pool there was no hardship due to the reno. The ala carte Restauarants were fabulous and no trouble making reservations for the same day or day after. I think my favorite was the Italian but I only ate there on my last day so I didn't get to enjoy it twice. It is  [... read more]a very large spread out resort but the carts go about every 8-10 minutes in between stops so if you don't like walking make sure you are close to one of the stops. The snack bars probably don't have quite as much food as the main buffet but there is still lots of items to pick from. Room blocks 1-4 are closest to the beach and main pool, building 5 is a little bit off on its own but has the best beach access and is closest to the swing bar. Room blocks 6-8 are near the quiet pool and main buffet and ala carte restaurants, as well as the 24 hour sports bar. Over all this resort should satisfy most everyones needs, as it has a little bit of everything, The biggest downfall is probably the beach as it has a few rocks and sandbags.

Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda: A poor choice

Been to The Mayan 10 times now. Love it but this is not the place to stay. Very dated. A lack of ownership from the management although the front line staff are good. Spend a couple of hundred extra for a better experience. Very disappointed in general

Blue Diamond Luxury Boutique Hotel: Great Hotel, Amazing Food...Cold Showers

I think this hotel was great overall, the food was fantastic and the service was great. It really feels like you are the only one in the hotel so if you want to relax this is the place! Only comment didn't like was that if you didn't take a shower in the morning at 8 or 11 at night there was little to no hot water which was frustrating. The beach had a lot of seaweed once you got into the water. Room was great, there were some small things like the shower head was hitting the drywall so the dryw [... read more]all was falling off but not the end of the world, could have been just our room. I think overall though it was great! I like to walk so the fact that the beach was about 10-15 min walk from the room was a nice change for me.

Blue Bay Villas Doradas: Blue Bay - Puerto Plata

First time to Adults only resort and loved it! The vacation was excellent value for money. The room was large and adequate. Quiet for sleeping and relaxing. The beach was very nice and great for long walks and swimming. One day we walked the beach and came back along the main road. This took 2 hours and we felt very safe. The food was excellent. We only booked one restaurant because the food was so delicious at the buffet we continued eating here at our leisure. There are two pools; one with a s [... read more]wim up bar and the other pool for volleyball and quiet relaxation. They had games by the pool for everyone to join in around 4 p.m. everyday. It was a great way to meet people. We created our own excursions since we have traveled to the D.R. extensively. One day we went into Puerto Plata, walked the malecon and several streets and finally into the central square. I was really impressed with how much work they've done in this big city (approx. 140K people). We took the local transit shuttle (gua gua) from the central square to the main road and then on to our complex. Another day we took the gua gua out to Cabarete and relaxed on the beach in front of the restaurants for $6. for beach chair rentals and washroom availability. If you want an inexpensive vacation getaway to the D.R. I would highly recommend the Blue Bay. Plus, you have the beauty of all the rolling hills and local action if you take an excursion off the property.

Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda: better than what we expected...

expectedly good food. special theme every night. friendly staffs. clean environment...only complain is: if the shuttle car between buildings will pick people up on the way (not at designated spots) , that would be great.

Blue Bay Villas Doradas: Nice Resort

The hotel was great, rooms were clean, AC worked perfectly. The buffet was a bit limited, too much of the same thing all the time. Restaurants were great, especially the seafood. I loved my dinner there. I did not like that fact that I lost 2 hrs out of my vacation because this company on the resort was trying to sell me time share stuff. That should be advertised, and if you are interested, then you go check it out. The worst thing for me was the peddlers on the beach. there was no peace and qu [... read more]iet. for the 7 days that I was there, they kept coming at you everyday. I prefer spending my time at the beach rather than by the pool, but it was not very relaxing for me, which is why I chose this resort. It was adult only, so I thought it would be more quiet. I really enjoyed the nightly entertainment. The team was great, they would always great you outside of the entertainment. All in all it was a great experience, but I personally would not go back there.

Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda: Ok Resort, Roaches!!!

The overall experience was good, however our room at least had an infestation of cockroaches. It was really bad! Besides that the food was good, the pools and beaches were nice and the experience was good. The only other notable concern was the lack of friendliness of the staff. Generally when we had any issues with the room that needed to be addressed, the staff would agree to fix it and never contact us back.

Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda: Best all around resort in the area!

I have been to 5 different resorts in the area, and this was my 3rd time at Blue Bay! Love this place. Ana and David are by far the most amazing bartenders, very attentive and care about their jobs!!!

Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda: resort was very nice

the rooms are a little outdated and could use a refresher - dining was ok - the grounds were lovely - very disappointed in the beach area - we're use to blue water and beautiful beaches at the Mayan - consequently we didnt go in the ocean :(

Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda: Awesome Resort

Amazing, clean grounds and gardens. Al a cartes fabulous!! Can go to a different one each night!!! Drinks plentiful and tasty. Swing bar was fun! Bar fridge well stocked. Lots of food choices!!! Great choice for adults.

Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda: Great food

dreadful sewery smell in certain areas of the resort. Our room smelled sewery :( The ocean is not the beautiful azure colour that Playa del Camen has - it is brown. It took staff 1-1/2 hours to pick us up from our room to get to the lobby so we could catch our bus when we left. Very stressful as we couldn't carry our luggage and were dependent on them to help.

Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda: Great resort

The only thing I could say blue Bay could work on is check in and check out. . It was a long wait but other than that awesome place to stay. Great staff and clean! Very close to playa del Carmen and plenty to do!

Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda: Beautiful Resort

Was pleasantly surprised! Being that this was the least expensive package, I was kind of worried but it turned out to be a great hotel. Lobby was OK, not grand or outstanding, but decent. Staff were extremely welcoming and friendly. Grounds were beautiful and clean. One pool and buffet near the 3 buildings by the lobby, restaurants, etc. Very nice. The other larger activity pool was down by the beach with 5 other room buildings. We were in Bldg 5 very close to this main pool and beach. Pool wa [... read more]s amazing! Very large, warm and clean. Great time there. Beach was lovely, nice white sand and lots of shade. Water, however, was kind of murky and a lot of seaweed at entrance. Best part of this area was the SWING BAR!! Met so many nice people here and had a blast. Bar staff were great - name brand liquors. Food was great. Very easy to get reservations to a la cartes and they were all very good. Went to one every night. Rooms were very nice and clean. Bed was extremely comfortable. Grounds surrounding room were lovely, our balcony was very nice - quiet and relaxing as we were on the end of the building. Very large shower with lots of hot water. Parts I didn't like were the corridors leading to the room were old with paint peeling on the walls. Elevator was really old and dirty. The 24 hr sports bar was kind of plain and the entertainment area had NO air flow at all. Very, very hot and stuffy - we had to leave before the show finished. And the show was kind of silly with not so great acting. Dancing was good though. Also, the lobby staff tricked us into a "time share" presentation that took our whole morning. Overall, I would definitely recommend this hotel and would probably go back.

Blue Bay Grand Esmeralda: amazing resort

the hotel was nice the rooms were ok. there were no none smoking rooms so we could not sit out on the bacon because of the smokers. the beach was so so. the people working there were very helpful except for the fact that they wanted to sell different spa packages, was annoying but the food was very good the public areas clean!