Casa Marina Sosua Trademark by Wyndham All Inclusive: Local charm

Close to town and local beach. So easy to walk around the local neighbourhoods each day. You may be approached for a variety of purchases - just politely say no. Food is reliable, drinks have some variety. Beautiful area to just sit and appreciate the surroundings.

Bahia Principe Grand San Juan: Beautiful Resort - family friendly!

This resort is very large. The grounds and buildings are beautiful - well kept and clean. I had a suite - I highly recommend - it is two standard rooms into one, so two bathrooms and the second area is a living room, with pull out couch suitable for kids. AND two full bathrooms - jackpot. We had family staying on the opposite side E building they had two rooms standard side by side and one night we had the 5 & 12 yr old sleep over on our pull out couch! SOOOO if you travelling with family try to [... read more] co ordinate closer to the main building or just on the same side we were in building A13 - too far away really - BUT since we had to walk back and forth you won't gain any weight! lol The food and restaurants were great and the bars. Only thing is that there was NOT 24hr room service like tripcentral says so our Rep told us. BUT one morning we saw food being delivered - hmmmm??? It was a beautiful family holiday! OH and a little too much plastic cups from the bars - if I ordered from the waiter in the lobby - which we normally did - glass but if you go up to the lobby bar (not being in the pool) the drinks would be in plastic - not something I would ever expect from a 5 star resort.

Senator Puerto Plata Hotel: relaxing resort

My stay at the Riu was One I couldn't afford. The price was reasonable. hotel was older, mature well-managed food was awesome. Employees where always smiling and there services above and beyond. I would go back again.

Casa Marina Sosua Trademark by Wyndham All Inclusive: Not too bad for the money

Inside the resort is about what I expected. A little run down and old. I'm not hard to please, so as long as it was clean I didn't care. And it was clean. Was there some rust on appliances, yes. Was there old outdated faucets and such, yes. But it was comfortable and clean and that's all I care. The food was decent. There was no trouble to find something to eat, and what I had was tasty. All in all, I would say the resort is rated about right. You want five star, pay five star. I paid three star [... read more] and had a great time. Wives, girlfriends, fiances, and significant others. Be aware, Sosua is full of working girls. I heard a lot of arguing while on the resort regarding this. Don't go there if your man is untrustworthy or your trip WILL be ruined. The girls are gorgeous and very tempting for anybody with a weak will and pocket full of money. That being said, my wife and I would go around town everyday to watch the action because we are not accustomed to it. They didn't bother us in anyway, nor did the hustlers other than to say hello and such. Street vendors are very forward, but that is their culture

Cofresi Palm Beach and Spa Resort: Nice Resort too many VIP sections

We like the resort for the most part. The staff was friendly the pools are nice, the entertainment and food was average to good. The problem we had was all the exclusion there were, if you were not a VIP members. When we book our holiday I had up-graded our room from a standard room to a suite. When booking this holiday I was unaware that the resort was a life style property/ sale centre. There were so many beach access, bars and restaurants that had security guards post at to keep the non-membe [... read more]rs out, this left us feel like second class guest. I don't believe that we will be back to Cofresi Palm Beach & Spa for this reason.

Majestic Elegance Punta Cana: Love this resort

This a great hotel was my third time here and will go back. The grounds and beach are kept very clean and you cannot go to the buffet and no find something you like. This resort is well maintained and they look after their guests. I will be returning to the Majestic again. The a la carte restaurants are very good.

Cofresi Palm Beach and Spa Resort: Good Resort

Food is great at this resort. Wait staff excellent. Bar staff was hit or miss. Beach was OK. Ocean World is great. Dolphin and sea lion shows are a must. We were in the older section. The bed was very hard. The new rooms are lovely with a much softer bed. Lots of stairs. You get a great workout but not good for anyone with mobility issues or small children

Cofresi Palm Beach and Spa Resort: Great resort. Friendly people.

The resort was very clean. Many stairs to climb but well worth it. Careful not to get sucked into the time-share aspect. They promised to provide us with a tour of the property and instead we were herded into a big time share scam called Lifestyles. Wasted 1 hour of my time before I realized it was not a tour.

Hyatt Vivid Punta Cana: Best Time!

I recently stayed at Dreams Palm Beach, I had two different weddings same resort same week. This place was fantastic, the food was better than any other place I have visited. Staff were super friendly. I would recommend to anyone.

Grand Palladium Palace: Nice Stay but very large resort

The grounds and rooms are beautifully kept. We payed for a loft room in the Grand Palladium Palace but received an upgrade to the Royal Suites. We were happy to receive this upgrade because the only restaurants we ended up liking were the ones we could not have gone to without the upgrade. In general the resort is very nice but tooo large for us. We will look for a smaller resort next time. This would be great for a large group

Sunscape Puerto Plata: Barcelo Puerto Plata

I have stayed at this resort twice before so I knew what to expect. Not a lot of frills but the pools were nice and the food was good. The rooms need to be updated and as well it would be nice to see the hotel put in an ATM. Staff in the resort were friendly.

Ocean Sand Golf and Beach Resort: Excellent Resort

The hotel and staff were wonderful, clean rooms, friendly staff, helpful, good english, resort was beautiful. Food was fantastic. However Carrier Sunquest was less than impressive. We had no one on our bus/van to resort, no rep at resort all week and had to call them to ensure that someone was going to pick us up (as our meeting was scheduled for another resort we were unsure that they even knew we were there).

Occidental Caribe: Excellent resort

The Barcelo Punta Cana was more than expected for a 4 star resort. The food was amazing, the accomodations and staff were excellent. The beach was outstanding. We had an excellent 10 days. We are considering returning with the family next year.

Majestic Elegance Punta Cana: Excellent Resort

This is our second time at the resort. Overall this year, we had an excellent time. good food, friendly people and a very clean resort. Lots of night entertainment so see each night. All in all we will go back

Bahia Principe Escape Ambar: Love this resort!

The grounds are beautiful, the food is excellent, the beach is amazing, the rooms are a good size and very clean, staff were very friendly and went out of their way to help. Good value for the money. We will definitely be going back.

Bahia Principe Explore El Portillo: Luv this place!

This all inclusive is the best.. I've been to 45 to 50. My room was immaculate.. The beach was wonderful and the staff are great. Second time and not the last. A wonderful quiet piece of heaven. Can't wait to go back.

Cofresi Palm Beach and Spa Resort: too big

too big and too many steps to get from point a to point b . had to be at lobby for 6am so we called for luggage pick up hahaha.. had to lug all of our suitcases up three flights of stairs to lobby area because they sent one guy with no golf cart to help 4 couples .

Cofresi Palm Beach and Spa Resort: Good Times

The rooms in the 30xxx needs to be updated, especially the bathrooms but they were kept very clean. The area also smelled of sewage sometimes but because we were only in the rooms to sleep we didn't mind that much. Much better to have a junior suite. Also, we would have liked to see a 24 hour snack bar. Because we went down south to be outside, we would like to have spent after 12 midnight outside with a drink and some snacks. After 12 we had to go inside for drinks and party. Everything else wa [... read more]s great, the food, pools, beach and the 2 huge parties in the next. We were catered to. Great food and were driven there and back. We did have a great time. Would go again.

The Eurostars Grand Cayacoa: an amazing experience for my first all-inclusive

grounds were very well maintained and the staff were so welcoming. Everyone wanted to everything to make the vacation so enjoyable. I'd go back tomorrow if I could but hopefully next year will be good.

Bahia Principe Explore Esmeralda: This resort lives up to its accolades.

My husband, teenage son & I went to the Luxury Bahia Principe Esmeralda for the second week of April arriving on the Easter weekend. We’ve been to the Grand Bahia Principe in the Riviera Maya so we were familiar with the quality that this resort chain offers its customers. We were not disappointed. Our stay was nothing less than magical. It helped a great deal that the ocean & sand in Punta Cana along this stretch is some of the nicest beach & swimmable ocean we’ve ever seen. There was a yel [... read more]low flag for the waves all week which I was fine with. My husband & son would have like the waves to have a bit more punch, but I prefer the ocean calmer. Many have complained about seaweed washing ashore. It’s the ocean…that’s what it does. All of the resorts along the stretch of Punta Cana that we walked (we walked for at least 3 miles either direction exploring the beautiful sight) rake up the seaweed first thing in the morning. By the time most people are at the beach, the resort staff is removing the last of the seaweed. We were a bit apprehensive with our weather forecast for the week we were there, because it looked like it called for rain every day. For our first trip to the Dominican Republic, we were pleasantly surprised that the rain came first thing in the morning or overnight & lasted less than 20 minutes. Another thing we were apprehensive about was that we would be arriving to a less than fully staffed resort due to it being holy week. I know the Dominican people are devout Christians. Rest assured, the resort was appropriately staffed, & we never noticed any absence in services. Arrival: The Punta Cana airport is quite nice. It’s constructed to resemble a giant tiki hut. It wasn’t overly busy but we still seemed to get quite bogged down going through customs. Once we were through, everything else was quite expedited. We flew with Air Transat & were directed to our bus without any difficulty. Booking with Air Transat for Luxury Esmeralda, there was no direct transfer mentioned to the hotel. We had that with the Royal Golden option when we visited the GBP Riviera Maya. The bus was a direct transfer to the resort…probably about a 25 minute drive. Check-in: The check-in was seamless. Most of our bus went to the Punta Cana section or Ambar section. There was only one other couple checking in at Esmeralda. We were hoping for a pool view but unfortunately could not be accommodated as the resort was a full occupancy. Santos at the front desk was helpful though & suggested we check with them the following day to see if any rooms became available. The following day, Oscar at the front desk managed to accommodate us closer to what we had requested. We appreciated Oscar’s efforts. Grounds: No one can argue that the Bahia resort chain maintains some of the most beautiful grounds of any resort. The staff are constantly manicuring, raking, watering & otherwise tending to the grounds to maintain them in an almost fairy tale like state. The Esmeralda section feels like its own little resort within the massive complex that encompasses the rest of the resort. The thing we most enjoy about the Bahia resorts is this aspect. The resorts are as big as a small city, but the different section has their own personalities. If you not into exploring, walking, trolleying etc, you can stay in your own section. You are free however to explore the whole resort & utilize all of the pools (except no kids at Ambar pool). Pools: In Esmeralda alone there are three pools. Two have swim up pools bars & one has a pool bar you have to walk up to. The one you walk up to is for adults only & resembles more a giant hot tub with very shallow sections to lie in and sunbathe. There are several pools dotting the different sections of the resort, all available to the Esmeralda guest except no kids in the Ambar pool. The pools are all meticulously maintained. The water feels fresh in the morning, but can get quite warm later in the day. I found going for a swim in the ocean (which was warm itself) made the pool dip afterwards feel even warmer. The Esmeralda pool nearest the beach has a gated area for children to swim in very shallow water. This area seemed to be mostly for very young children or babies with their parents. Next to the gated area is a beach style graded pool entry for kids & adults alike. It was nice to lounge in this area. The pools were never crowded & very much oriented towards a family atmosphere. I much prefer that to the rowdiness in the pool & the pool bar littered with guests drinking all day long but never leaving the pool to use the bathroom. Loungers & Umbrellas: The towel game is alive & well and in full effect at this resort. If you go down in the morning any later than 7:00am, most of the umbrellas & shaded areas were “reserved” with one or two towels draped across 3-4 loungers. During our stay, the staff took the unprecedented step of removing unoccupied towels from loungers & placing personal items on the ground next to the loungers. One couple near us mentioned they’ve been coming to Esmeralda for five years & never saw this happen before. I guess the complaints the resort was getting pushed them to try to curb the “towel gaming”. I’d seen staff the previous day recording the number of unoccupied loungers covered with towels several times during the day. The reactions some people had to the staff doing this was unbelievable. Marching over to the towel hut & tearing a strip off the poor staff member stuck there. I felt so sorry for the abuse the staff had to endure over their efforts to be fair to “all of their paying guests”. Anyone who went to the towel hut & squawked was given a new set of towels (contrary to the resorts policy) after being cautiously re-informed of the resorts policy regarding reserving loungers. After getting their new towels, for the most part all of the guests re-reserved what loungers were still left & then disappeared to return when they felt like it. Enough of my rant on the towel game. This is a guest issue, not the resorts fault. The resorts cannot win this fight. Beach Loungers: Towel game here too, but there are so many chairs to choose from. The ones in front get taken first, but I preferred the ones in behind that are shaded by an abundance of trees. It’s just gorgeous. The Beach: I already spoke to it above. Just beautiful…what’s more to say? The Rooms: No complaints here. Clean & tidy with the necessary amenities. This resort was the first time I noticed that the AC could manage to keep the room cool & reduce the humidity. In fact, on several occasions were turned it down a notch because the room was turning into a meat locker otherwise. Food: The food in general was of a high quality. On occasion it needed to be warmer at the buffets. There was something for everyone. If I had any complaint, it would be the desserts. I’m not a big sweet tooth, but my husband & son are. They said that the desserts had no flavour, no taste whatsoever for the most part. It was suggested on the forums that we go to the buffet on the Tuesday seafood theme night. It was good, but no better than the other theme nights. The A la Cartes were very good, except for the desserts again. The desserts were buffet style. I prefer no buffet options at the A la Cartes, but that’s just me. We ate at Le Pescadore, Bella Italia, Takara, & the Garden Grill. Don Pablo was adults only & Le Gourmet was under renovations. We enjoyed all of the A la Cartes, but Le Pescadore & the Garden Grill was our favourite. If I can give an advice on the A la Cartes…..ask questions about the different dishes or you may be disappointed. At Bella Italia, my husband went with the classic spaghetti with tomato sauce…nice & simple…& he was happy. I chose a prawn & lobster linguini & my dinner arrived with a giant portion of the lobster (body part – no tail & no claws) with its beety eyes still intact staring at me. I was expecting cut up lobster in my pasta, not a battle to remove it from the shell. Had I asked I would have been told what I was getting. Another piece of advice is if possible, the more straight forward dishes will be better. The less complex the better. Entertainment: We did not take advantage of the resorts entertainment nights, but heard they were well done. Just don’t expect broadway. Drinks: Some people complain about the drinks being watered down. My husband & I found them to be just right. No complaints here. Staff extremely attentive to our needs. We were politely declining refills from pool serving staff; they were so efficient….otherwise we would have been loaded. Wifi: Free in the lobby. We opted for the total resort coverage for $49 for the week. It was well worth it for our son. He found the internet signal strength strong. We used it occasionally & found it quite fast. Timeshare Staff: Pushy, but they stayed around their desk in the lobby & were easily avoided. Staff: Awesome. The Dominican people are delightful. Occasionally found a bit of a language barrier speaking English, but if you know French, that appears to be the second spoken language there. A few shout-outs to some of the exceptional staff we experienced while on our holidays. Wait Staff Victor from the Garden Grill. Wait Staff Victor, Hector & Carols from the Los Geranios buffet. Victor was like “The Flash”. He was always on the move tending to the guests needs. Wait Staff Juana from the Jasmine buffet Front Desk staff Santos & Oscar Wait Staff Luis from Le Pescadore Esmeralda Pool Bartender Maximo Esmeralda Pool Wait Staff Robert – such a nice young man. ……And our favourite most memorable staff member was our Esmeralda Pool wait staff member Josefina. She was so endearing, funny & attentive. Ask her for her special cocktail……my husband loved it. We will definitely be returning to Esmeralda.