Going down hill

We have stayed at Ocean El Faro twice now. Feb 2022 and Jan 2023. We like the resort. The design is great. We love the lobby and the rooms. The restaurants are okay. I think the food is good for what you can expect in DR, but the service at restaurants and bars is pretty poor. It took 2 hours for some dinners. H10 hotels has also introduced an online dinner reservation booking system that is AWFUL! They tell you at check in that you can make reservations from 7am-5pm but by 7:01 am they are full [... read more]y booked with no availability. we were having to set alarms at 6:50 am on vacation to be able to make a dinner reso. Furthermore the pool chairs have towels on all of them by 7:30 so if you're not an early bird this probably isn't the resort for you. My biggest disappointment is the beach. It's very rocky with plenty of GARBAGE! They do very little to maintain the beach front so it's usually covered in trash and seaweed.

Over all nice property but a few things could be improved.

-The beach is very rocky and dangerous, the surf is very high and the undertow can be strong, there is a quieter beach area but it is off the property. The main pool was crowded ans noisy but the El Beso pools were nice. The lazy river is small and there are only a few floaties available. If you didn't have a butler you have to stand in line at 7:30 every morning to get your a la carte resto reservations. We ate most of the time at the PezDama and Privelge restos since they were on the beach [... read more] and the staff were so nice. -The buildings and grounds are well maintained and clean. - The staff are super nice but alot of them seemed to be new and were not able to provide information when needed. -The rooms are spacious with lovely balconies with swinging baskets. -The activities are nice, people seemed to be enjoying the dance classes, games etc. -The shows were hit and miss, best were the Magic Show and the Fire Show. -Every night there is live music and dancing at the central plaza, it is fun and family friendly. -Its worth it to have the privelege package, having a butler really facilitates things if you have problems(our safe malfunctioned), saves time with restaurant reservations and generally get info for you since a lot of the staff were either new or didnt speak much English.

Pretty good, very big

Ocean el Faro el beso (adults only area) was very nice and very large, with multiple pool, lounge and bar areas. The day time entertainment was fun, but because there were so many areas, it sometimes felt like we were missing out on other areas of the resort. The Sports bar could use some snacks, the carts could be more frequent. The food was what we expected and the bar staff was a bit slow but very kind. The lazy river was a super fun addition to the resort!

Resort review

This resort is very beautiful and the grounds are kept in an immaculate manner. We were in the adults only section, the pool area was great no kids however the buffet area which is supposed to be adults only section had a lot of kids running around despite signs saying adults only. I think the staff should have intervene and remind parents about this. I would also say that 60 percent of the staff were not friendly and service was slow in the buffet area for breakfast and lunch. There was  [... read more]a particular staff in the adults only pool area that was rude to me and my other 2 friends. He would offer lots of other people in the pool area drinks but ignore us, avoided eye contact with us. We even tipped him quite a bit to see if the service would be better but it wasn't. We ended up getting our own drinks. The nightly shows were too late, starting at 9:30 and were not very good. They cancelled the beach party claiming it was going to rain. There was no rain in the forecast. They could have changed it to another day. The beach is beautiful but lots of seaweed that is not cleaned up.

3 stars hotel service

Food ok , alcohol very good, service very bad , room good , beach bad , entertainment in the beach rarely, pool I don’t stayed, restaurant at beach poor , clean ok , service in room for water and drink very bad

Relaxing Escape

The first resort that we have ever stayed at with a lazy river. That alone is worth returning! So much fun! The rooms are spacious, ours came with a rooftop hot tub! With 2 large pools (4 if you count the family side of the resort) and the specialty restaurants were all great. The buffet was also a place to fill up too, if you wished. And then there was Mike's Cafe. Every night we would stop in for some freshly brewed coffee and dessert. The staff were very friendly, and always w [... read more]elcomed us with a warm buenos días or hola! We would definitely return to El Faro (we stayed at the Adults Only side called El Beso) again! One of our most relaxing vacations.

Great place

Everything about the resort and the staff were amazing the only complaint is on weekends, noon on Friday until noon on Sunday the locals that visit for this time are rude and pushy, they take over the buffet and the plaza area.

Great resort

Very clean modern rooms lobby was stunning food was hit or miss ala carte were good. Swimup room was amazing waitresses come right up to the room. Entertainment every night lazy river was fun but bring your own floaties

Great vacation 👌

Everything was great at this resort, from the grounds, rooms staff. The only thing would be they need more garbage cans around the property, not enough around. Our butler Alexander was amazing, he deserves a BIG raise for all the stuff he puts up with. He made us feel welcomed and appreciated.

Wonderful

I had a great time , good food good drinks. Had more than 1 Saury special . The staff were amazingly friendly (Angel) we had a swim up room and upgraded to privilege. Used the privilege restaurant for breakfast mostly (best coffee). But this upgrade was not worth the $ . The lazy river is the best feature !! I did many laps .

Almost perfect !

Before to say something about this resort we have to keep in mind that on 21 of September, Fiona was there, with damaging winds & waves... Issues...yes...but they struggle to get things going, step by step... Beautiful hotel, amazing Roof top room with Jacuzzi. Close to whatever many of us they dream for a perfect vacation... Housekeepers doing a great job!! Excellent food! U have to know what to ask for drinks, otherwise u get a lot of ice in your glass(international method for bartenders in [... read more] the resort). To my surprise, entertainment was good, excepting Friday to Sunday, when resort was invaded by locals (2 nights Pass), and everything from music to food was for them. Bonding between staff, @ any level, was strong & loud...honestly like we never exist there like tourists...This is not a complain, is strict reality... The worst part was yet to come when we left the hotel for the Airport...We got squeezed in a ridiculous small bus, people & luggage, totally uncomfortable for a 45-minute trip...No excuses, no explications, nada...Just get in the car & leave...That was all of us impression... Other than this, beautiful weather, not a drop of rain during the day. I will definitely come back here!

Most fun lazy River!

Loved this resort! Lazy River so much fun, had no idea I would spend so much time in it. Adult only the way to go plus Privildge- do it! Your own restaurants and bars with better/top shelf alcohol well worth it. Lobby, hotel room perfect, piano bar fun. Bowling!!!! And entertainment - truly best resort.

Very mislead

The lobby was the best aprt. On arrival the hotel lost our luggage, our room leaked, hounded by staff for google reviews and trip advisor reviews that were forced. Potential, but disappointed in this place.

Diasterous

Had one great day before Fiona was due to arrive and resort started to shut down all the facilities Al a carte restaurants, lazy river pool entertainment bowling etc. Storm hit causing considerable cosmetic damage, tin roofs tree leaves debris etc. After the storm resort was more concerned with cosmetics than customers. Cleaning leaves was the priority. We had no maid service for 4 days, pools were green with dirt and only opened at a rate of 1 per day. Lazy river never did reopen for our stay  [... read more]which was the big draw for us. Restaurants other than buffet were closed 3 days and when the Al a cartes came on line to book on the H10 app you would get ready walk down in the rain only to find it still closed. Our roof top was covered in shattered glass and room developed 4 separate leaks 2 of which required buckets for the duration of our stay. We inquired about a room change but were told all roof units were unavailable. El Beso restaurant Pez Dama was damaged so no Adult only dining options were available. Asked for the glass to be cleaned up so we could use the roof top and was told they were off limits until staff cleaned it up and they never did. I'm sure many workers were concerned about their families at home and really weren't concerned about the guests needs. Certainly didn't get the vacation we were hoping for, but understand it was a major storm.

Amazing Resort!!!

Modern, luxurious hotel. Food taste so good, lots of pools and restaurants. Service was also good (all happy and respectful workers) Will be staying here again. Great choice you won’t regret trust me!

Amazing Resort !!

The resort was amazing in so many aspects. My and my husband went alone with no children. We stayed on the adults only side, only because it was a better deal when we booked our trip. We spent most of our time on the family side but did spend a couple days on the adults only side at the pool. We also really enjoyed the beach. We were very nervous about the beach as we had read a lot of negative reviews about the beach. They were actually giving discounts on the excursions because they stat [... read more]ed the beach was poor and they were trying to compensate for it. We loved the beach. There were so many chairs available any time of the day at the beach and the pools. There was some seaweed and the first couple days were more intense then the rest of the week but the water was still amazing. At around 4-5 pm each day the flag would turn red and you were not suppose to go in the water but it was still so lovely to lay out under the cabanas and watch. The lazy river was amazing !! We took our own tubes after reading reviews and this was a great recommendation. The pools, and grounds were kept very clean. The buffet was amazing !! Every day there was lots of options and they also had lots of gluten free options which was wonderful. We booked a couple of a la cartes and they were great. The booking system at first seemed really stressful but once you had the app and knew how things worked it was actually very easy to get things booked. You just had to book on the day of. There was no reserving things in advance. The reservations opened at 7 am, so as long as you logged on at that time you could get into whichever one you were looking for. The nightly entertainment was okay. A few nights were amazing (magician, 90's show), but a few were disappointing. Amazing theatre to host in though. Our only negative review to post about this resort was the nagging for the premium presentation. They were in the lobby like leaches. It felt like every which way we went they were targeting us. We did find this incredibly annoying. It was the only downfall. Otherwise we had an amazing time. Wish we would have brought our kids as well because it was very family friendly. Also the weather was amazing. Only a couple hours of rain the whole week in the day :)

Ocean El Faro Hotel Vacation

I just came back from our vacation, This was an amazing trip to this resort, my wife and I enjoyed our stay at the Ocean resort and will be going back at some time again. The food was good, the room were cleaned and the activities was great! The air Canada rep (Juan) is excellent at taking care of Canadians, he is worth the praise, he answered all our questions and take care of us while on the resort. Good Job Natalie as well, your guide to make sure we had all the documents to and from the is [... read more]land was on target, it made our experience during this time awesome. Good Job Team.

Beautiful resort, crappy beach

Our room and swim up pool were excellent. I’m not sure I would have enjoyed staying here without a swim up room, but would definitely come back with my kids to the family side. The lobby is incredibly beautiful. Buffet food was pretty good - it’s not Mexico, and it’s a step above Cuba. Our a la carte dinner was disappointing (steakhouse). Gift shop is incredibly overpriced - I paid $6 USD for me today (I needed candy bc of a dry cough).

Great resort!

The hotel and the grounds were beautiful. The pools were clean, and the service was fantastic. Housekeeping was immaculate, and the personnel were helpful and responsive. I would definitely stay here again if we visit at another time. The beach was lovely but there was a lot of seaweed and high winds so the flags were either yellow or red and not many individuals swam in the ocean.

Fun girls trip!

I loved this resort! The entire resort and rooms are very beautiful and clean. The staff was very friendly. I really enjoyed the food as well especially the tepanyaki restaurant and the steakhouse. I was unfortunately not able to try the Italian because it was closed most nights I was there but you can definitely find other places to eat and they were all delicious. The pool was a bit warm but very nice and clean. The beach was nice however you can’t really go in the water right now as the sea [... read more]weed is very bad (they do try to clean it every morning though). Overall I would absolutely recommend this resort and come back to it.