Beautiful resort

The resort was gorgeous, beautiful grounds clean rooms although in need of updates. Friendly staff. Food was odd. One important fact. The title of the resort should include the fact that it is a family resort geared for young children. The Family Fun Luxury Ezmeralda would be a better fit. We had no idea that this was the case. Had we known, we would have chosen an alternate hotel. We love children, we just didn’t expect to see kids at 9 in the evening at the lobby bar.

Lux Bahia Principe Esmeralda

The accommodations were beautiful. The resort was excellent, staff was attentive and friendly. Everything was so accessible, beach, pools and restaurants. Have traveled many places and I would definitely return. I thought it was a fabulous resort and an amazing value.

Most Horrendous Experience!!!

From check in to check out this resort was horrendous. No personal care at all. Lack of communication skills and not understanding a word we said was beyond acceptable. We felt like a herd of cows the entire trip....next, next. This resort has changed a lot in the 7 years since we were there last and has become a Romper Room for kids. Yes it's a family resort, however, it was inundated with kids EVERYWHERE!!! Even if you stayed in Ambar Adults only you still had kids wondering around and d [... read more]inners with kids crying etc. Waiters at dinner were very impersonable and just took your order and wanted you out for next people. First 2 nights we could barely get food. We were told when we arrived late, that there was no where to get food, yet there is a snack bar (not very good but it's there and we found by accident) and the Sports Bar served food. Next night our dinner reservation was messed up and we were told to come back at 9:30 (it was now 7:30). We said the place is half empty surely you can fit us in. All we got at this resort was NO. We went to Italian restaurant next door, same thing almost empty but we couldn't go in. So we went to Ambar section buffet next to that since we had gone over to that side for original reservation that was messed up, and got told we couldn't eat there either. We went to Sports bar to eat and ordered and tons of food coming out and yet we were still waiting for over an hour. We nicely asked if our food was coming out and was told yes and still waited. We finally asked another waitress and she said oh, and came out with two orders in less than 5 mins so we were just forgotten even though we asked. Food is horrible. Always cold and exact same selection breakfast lunch and dinner. There is NO entertainment for Adults in this place. Even at 10:30 at night it's still kids dance party time. Ridiculous!!! The pools were just herds of chairs.....you can't move, same with the beach. Needless to say, we have been to a Bahia Principe resort 3 times, this one twice and always recommended people to go. I WILL NEVER GO BACK TO THIS RESORT EVER AGAIN. It was extremely disappointing. Just so many issues. The Manager actually lied to us when we asked about a courtesy suite to shower since we had a late flight out and he said it was all arranged, my husband asked if we would have an issue can we get that in writing and he said it's all on your file all taken care of (we asked to keep our room free of charge since they didn't clean it until 5 pm most days which interfered with us/our time but got NO). Next day we go as instructed to get key for courtesy room and we got what are you talking about? Nothing on file and we do not have that. New manager said just a minute went in back and came back out and told us to go line up at guest services which we did not do as they had instructed us to front desk to begin with....he just didn't want to deal. MOST HORRENDOUS TIME/RESORT we've ever experienced.

Large beautiful resort👍🏼

Grounds n people are wonderful!! Was easy to get into dinners!! Drinks were very good!! Food was good!! Didn’t take long to get there from airport!! Easy check in!! They had us in a 3 bed room which I didn’t want they switched me to a king room !! 😊 Can walk for miles on this beautiful beach 🍹🍸🍺🦋

Large Resort

Room was very clean and tidy. However I would recommend they change their mattresses as ours was hard and misshaped. View from our balcony was not the greatest as we were back to back with another building. Pool and beach area were excellent and close to our room. Entertainment staff were quite pleasant and fun. Grounds were beautifully kept and wonderful to look at. Food and service were very good. Pleasant customer service.

Beautiful resort!

The Bahia complex made up of 7 properties has a complete resort experience. It is like a small town connecting the various areas with walk ways and “avenues”. We stayed at the Esmeralda. Although the Ámbar is a newer upscale complex we preferred the Esmeralda. The grounds were impeccable and the majority of the services were good. The 2 buffets had food for almost everyone. Gluten free options were not available but there was plenty of other options to choose from. The 3nd buffet was quiet [... read more]er and eventually closed for the slower season. The rooms were spacious comfortable and clean (no problems with water or air). We prefer firmer bass but I could understand if some would find the beds a little hard! Lol). And yes you may have to ask for some items at times but they were prompt in bringing them. We did have a mini fridge that didn’t work but we were seldom in our room. Satélite reception was not good. Once again...not often in our room. The Esmeralda had 3 pool areas which we really appreciated. The quieter pool was our go to area. Maria and Alex were a pleasure! The main pool area was situated with access to the beach, the large outdoor restaurant overlooking the beach for lunches, the Asian and Italian restaurants for a la carte, the main buffet, and the many relaxing lounges Inside and out. The beach was extensive connecting ther resorts. There was extensive seaweed but crews did their best to clear the beach into “piles” but it didn’t hinder walking or swimming. The water was very choppy during our stay but you could go a little further out for calmer water. We had a few later evening showers and one morning one. In general the layout of the Esmeralda was very convenient. If I had a negative statement to make it would be about the lack of communication in some areas. To get around the complex (other than the Esmeralda) you had to take golf carts (like taxis). You were either ignored or told that you had to go to a certain area or take another “cart”. Very seldom did you know where these other areas were or they didn’t know? The front desk would also give you miss information. I think their main job was check-in and check-out. They weren’t interested in anything else. Even to change smaller $ for tips they told us to go to Punta Cana although they had a sign on the desk shoeing exchange area!). (The first resort in the complex). This area was also confusing. Each of the 7 resorts had a name. The first and main one is called Punta Cana. (Found this out after 3 days!). The Air Canada rep was informative about most aspects of our stay. The only problem again was the carts to a la cartes. We did have the great pleasure to meet “Jean Carlo”. His English was wonderful...but his personality was fantastic!! He did his best to make our stay a great one. Our main objective for our week stay was to have a relaxing stay with comfortable rooms, good food, and great weather. We had all 3. We had a great day trip to Santa Domingo with a special tour guide...”Nacho”! We will go back but only to Esmeralda...and maybe Amber? The room, proximity to beach...and the grounds made our week!

Great resort.

The resort was great. It was very clean and well looked after. The food was varied and excellent. The only problem we had was the lounge bar did not open until 10. They had so called coffee machines for varied coffees but we were looking for irish coffee in the mornings which we were used to in cuba. We would definitely recommend this resort. It was definitely a 4.5.

Nice resort but nothing fabulous

Overall, the resort was nice and clean. Certain aspects could use renovating. Found that public toilets were often not working properly. Want to give a shout out to the entertainment and exercise staff who were enthusiastic and fun.

Not a 5 star resort!

The staff were very pleasant, the rooms spacious, but in need of updating. Some other people we talked to complained about mold in their room and others about insects . Food only okay.....nothing special for a 5 star luxury resort. The pools and grounds were well-kept. The entertainment not that great.

Not up to parr

Needs work public bathrooms always broken. Could not get alacarte reservations all full from the first night we got there and was told it’s busy season. Paid for butler service never saw him! We called and he never came was very disappointing.

Ok resort

The grounds on the hotel are lovely. The butler was no where to be found. The food was ok. Very challenging to make dinner reservations. The staff should have more knowledge of the English language. The resort needs upgrading.

Esmeralda review

We had a few bumps with our room upon arrival. We were first given a room that was occupied and then given a room with only one bed. This situation was rectified and we were put in a room with 2 beds as was booked. When we lost one of our rooms keys it was a hassle to get a new one. Otherwise it was beautiful and lots of fun and activities to explore around the resort.

Loved everything!

Service was excellent, food was amazing, grounds were beautiful, room could use some help though..broken drawers, leaking shower and just showing it’s age. We loved the service, food, kids club, pools.

Beautiful Resort

We just spent 10 days with another couple (related and best friends) we cannot say enough about this amazing resort. It was clean the grounds were well immaculate and gorgeous the food was the best we have ever experienced in the 15+years we’ve been travelling! The staff were friendly and helpful our pool bartender Maria was an absolute sweetheart ♥️ If I had to say anything negative it would be that our rooms were not ready and the hotel was overbooked but we hung in there literally s [... read more]tayed at the desk until we got our room keys from that moment on it was 100% the BEST!!!! Thank you Luxury Bahia Esmeralda 😊👍🏼 We would definitely return to this Resort!

Very Impressed!

We loved everything about our stay at the Esmeralda. The service was top notch and the fact that we could get between our room, the buffets, the beach and the pools in 3 minutes was amazing. I loved the 6 rows of huts at the beach so you could always find a place in the shade - some of the huts even had a place to charge your phone! . The buffets had a wide variety of fruits and vegetables which we really appreciated. Although we spent most of our time at the Esmeralda it was nice using the gym [... read more] at the Amber for yoga. The main lobby area where they have the shops and the large theatres and live bands was pretty impressive. It really is like a small village.The airport in punta Cana is very modern and all our transfers went smoothly. We would definitely come back.

Will be back again!

A few great things to note about the trip were excellent food, beautiful beach, and good service! I don't eat gluten or dairy and am allergic to peanuts, but found that I was able to eat a wide variety of delicious food!

Huge Resort

Bahia Principe Esmerelda is a small part of the Bahia Principe Resort which is 7 resorts in 1. The grounds are beautiful. Rooms are a little dated but clean. Beach is amazing. Buffets are smaller than other resorts I've been to. A la cartes were hard to get a decent time or get into them. Capucino machines should be 24 hrs just a suggestion. All in all we were going for sun and beach and we did get it and it was awesome.

Nice resort but not safe for a Celiac

The beach is beautiful. Lots of shady areas available. Having stayed at the resort before, it is beginning to get a bit tired looking. The biggest negative for our family was the lack of knowledge of the restaraunts with gluten and gluten free products. Although we are very diligent and careful (if you are a Celiac you know what this means) my wife ended up getting very ill and missing a full day of our vacation in bed. There were just so many mistakes made at the various restaurants during our  [... read more]stay that we completely lost confidence that this was a safe place for celiacs. I would recommend this hotel for others as it is very nice - but not for Celiacs.

Great experience!

Beach was beautiful (very busy), there are a million pools, the grounds are kept very clean and the rooms were well serviced. All staff were extremely attentive and friendly for the most part. Buffet staff were the only hit and miss for service. Overall an excellent vacation and would recommend.

Wonderful vacation

We enjoyed the resort. Food was good, The staff where amazing. It was nice having different pools to choose from. If you didn't want to join in with the activities, you could go to the quiet pool Also an adult pool. Room was good. We had no complaints. Bus ran out of beer on the way to the resort LOL. Again give the staff 110%. They treated you so well and made sure you where totally satisfied.