VH Gran Ventana Beach Resort: I will love to come back

I love everything the service was great the people very friendly and it felt like home my family will come back again Great time and amazing memories from the vip room especially the treat received on our arrived there the nice welcome from Laura..Will never forget

Marien Puerto Plata Hotel: very much enjoyed this resort!!

This is an excellent resort for the price point.....the staff were awesome....beach was lovely....rooms clean....food very good.....we will definitely return for another visit!! Thanks for a lovely 2 weeks over the (busy) Xmas season! Only pet peeve is inconsiderate guests leaving their towels, etc. on pool and beach lounges overnight....leaving little opportunity for others to enjoy the lounges (perhaps never occupied), without removing their belongings. Also, the ability to change our US dolla [... read more]rs into small denominations in order to tip our servers was not readily available....this restricted our ability to tip to the extent that we would have preferred.

Marien Puerto Plata Hotel: Be live collection

Over all it was a good vacation. The food isnt terrible. The only annoying thing is how the bombard you to join things. They also need to learn something about time. Had to wait 20 minutes for the lady to come and book resturants. They also have a terrible system for wifi

Marien Puerto Plata Hotel: Pleasant resort

Nice resort boasting a stunning mountain backdrop and a long stretch of beach to take a leisurely stroll, swimming pool is large and clean, main dinning room spacious and well presented, the snack bar served up delicious burgers and endless supply of hot french fries, also on site are 3 alternative restaurants. Our room was ground floor oceanveiw, room was clean and maintained, mini bar was restocked daily, toilet was slow to refill but not an issue, air-conditioning worked very well, and the da [... read more]ily fresh flowers placed in the bathroom added a special touch. Nightly entertainment did not disappoint and the fire dancers on the beach gave an awesome performance. All resort staff were friendly and helpful. Timeshare sales reps not overbearing or pushy. This is the 3rd BeLive resort we have stayed at in the Dominican Republic and it lived up to our expectations.

Marien Puerto Plata Hotel: Hotel ok/Service terrible

Its an outdated hotel but if you have any issues they would fix it. The food was okay but a lot of people got food poisoning from the Mexican food (Mexican night, Maxican restaurant.) On the advertising they show they have eight restaurants, the hotel only has three a la carte restaurants the rest are outside the resort. So if you're not looking to leave the restort you're stuck with one buffet and three restaurants that you have to make reservations for; I was there for a week and I only got t [... read more]o make reservations for 1 of those as they we fully booked. The front desk staff were really rude at anytime or any day. Overall it's a very clean Place, pools are great, the beach is nice and the kids club it's a great thing if you have kids. The service of the buffet is terrible especially if you have kids. The lines for the food art long and the food doesn't have labels. I give this resort 3star rating.

Marien Puerto Plata Hotel: Would not return

Very dated hotel, had to pay for safe daily, 2 towels only, chairs around pool were broken and had to be reserved before 6 am! We both got an intestinal virus at end of trip with stomach pains, chills, diarrhea and others on resort experienced same.

Marien Puerto Plata Hotel: Gorgeous scenery!!

We had a very good vacation in Puerto Plata, the food was very good and the beach and ocean was awesome, can’t wait to visit the area again. The resort was friendly and inviting, and the pool was very nice.

Iberostar Waves Costa Dorada: It was ok!

We stayed in this hotel for 10 days and it was ok.I cannot say that it was amazing,but for the price we got we are happy with it.The property is clean (not enough garbage bins outside thou),the staff is friendly.The rooms were always cleaned up very well.The food was not bad but it was too repetative and there are not so many food options for vegetarians or people with food allergies.The hotel itself is 20 years old but it didnt look bad,everything worked well in the room.Beach was nice!My kid w [... read more]as in kid's club and Carolina was amazing. Overall,I would recommend it only if you get a good deal on it.If you are planning to buy with a regular price,I suggest you to consider other options.

Iberostar Waves Costa Dorada: Very nice resort

We stayed at the Iberostar for 14 days. My husband & I have traveled all over the DR about 25 times. The Iberostar is a very nice resort & and I would definitely return. The service of the staff is excellent and they do not cut corners looking after their customers. Our waiter, Robert was very attentive and brought us coffee & juice as soon as we sat down. I noticed a lot of the staff have worked for the Iberostar for 10-15 years. I really liked this and it appeared the staff enjoy working [... read more] at this resort. The food was very good and well displayed. The restaurants were good and we tried all 3. They have a live band that plays music at the beach most days at lunch time. The beach was nice with many palapas so you didn't have to rush down to save a chair. We spent mornings at the beach and afternoons at the pool. The pool is large and deep enough to actually swim. This pool is probably my favourite when I compare to other resorts. Overall the resort is very well laid out and I liked the easy access for lunch by the pool as well as the bar. In the lobby they have a very nice bar which is right beside the theater for the show. The bartenders were very friendly and efficient looking after customers. It was nice to have the option to sit in the bar area for a drink or walk and sit in the theater for the show. I did use the gym and they had enough equipment to provide a good workout but the area is cramped. I saw the spa, and although I never used it, the area looked very inviting with massage tables, lounge chairs around a private pool. They also had a bird sanctuary for egrets which was pretty lively and nice to check out. A bit smelly but there's alot of birds there! Our room was very comfortable and in a good location in the 6000 block close to the pool and beach. The only downside of my vacation was, I did get ill the second week I was there for 3 days in bed and it took another 2 days to gain my full strength. This could happen anywhere and who knows where I may have picked up germs. Luckily we brought medication with us for diarrhea which likely helped. Despite this set back, I would recommend this resort.

Viva Tangerine by Wyndham: Fantastic vacation

Our hotel room had some issues with hot water & water pressure in the shower. We also had a funky toilet that didn’t flush very well.. We had a problem with the shower hose & the hotel staff fixed it right away for us. The beach & pool area were amazing! The dining areas were always clean & well taken care of! There was always plenty of delicious foods to choose from, never went hungry! The entertainment was good & the staff were great! Very nice resort:)

Marien Puerto Plata Hotel: Comfortable and Friendly

We enjoyed our stay. The staff were very helpful and friendly. The rooms although not elegant were clean and adequate. We found the grounds and pool very nice and the beach clean with nice sand. The banquet for Christmas Eve was just beautiful... so much effort put into it. What a lovely surprise.

VH Gran Ventana Beach Resort: Excellent food and service

Hotel and grounds were very clean. Food and drinks were excellent. It exceeded our expectations. Since it was a family resort, it was busy with lots of young kids. The beach was always full but there was always shade and chairs to be found. So no complaints.

Paradise Playa Dorada: DR Vacation for Dummies

About Us: Canadian couple, straddling 70’s, smart, active. Enjoy people, culture, history, food, dance, entertainment. Priority: comfort at reasonable cost. Experience: cruising rivers and oceans, guided and self-vacationing and all-inclusive resorts, around the world. … Our winter vacation in the Dominican Republic at the Grand Paradise Playa Dorada Resort is declared a success. Inevitably, vacations are subject to uncontrollable factors like airlines, hotels and weather. That's why “ [... read more]vacation,” your time there, is a different word from “holiday,” your dates away. The Grand Paradise is a mid-sized resort (400+ rooms) located on the very nice sandy Dorada Beach adjacent to similar properties, less than half hour drive from the airport and the bustling small city of Puerto Plata (pop. 120,000). Five minute walk from the resort you’ll find a convenient 2-story strip mall and the vendors there need your shopping pesos. Please spend to help. Our room on the third floor was spacious and clean, and the bed was comfortable. We like to have the room made-up after breakfast while taking our daily walk on the beach, so I requested the maid to adopt this schedule and I tipped her occasionally. Also tipped vendors on the beach. First thing: the beach (playa). It’s very nice. There’s also a large fresh water pool as a backup, with a swim-up bar. Meals in the airy buffet building (right on the beach) were very satisfying, with ample variety for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Now this is not gourmet food, but tasty and well-seasoned, meaning quite salty. At breakfast there’s a grill station for eggs and omelettes. Rise early or saunter in late to avoid the queue. I liked the omelette chef’s style and sprinkled a couple of US$1 bills his way. We really enjoy fresh tropical fruits, salad and vegetables like beans, cauliflower, cabbage, eggplant, yucca at every meal. Two different styles of pasta are available for meals after noon, and a fresh sizzling pasta station for personal requests. At lunch and dinner the grill is used for meats; prepared meat dishes may be enjoyed with some selectivity. These are subject to the proficiency of the chef, and for the first week I was impressed with the taste and tenderness of the beefs, porks, chickens and fishes presented. I was reminded that chefs are individuals. With a change of shift, vacationers were now offered a new, different taste, evident also in the seasoning of the dishes and even the desserts and fruit salad. We savoured last week's salad which included passion fruit; this week's salad tasted bland by comparison because it did not include passion fruit. All this is highly personal of course. All day pizza is available in a separate pizza hut (right on the beach). Gathering and exchanging information, I chat with many guests. Visitants will encounter breakdowns and complain of hardship experiences. Statistically, you should expect an occurrence of a key mechanical failure with air-conditioning, phones, warm water supply, etc. We were lucky this time, but heard from luckless others: this will generate bad reviews of this (any) property. But wait, if this were a 5 star resort, the problem would be instantly repaired and remedied along with a placatory bottle of champagne. Sadly, this being only a 4 star, the problem could (did) take many days to fix, and gifting would not remedy the injury to the vacation. It's a cruel world. The resort offers an abundance of free activities for the busy-body vacationer. By this I mean free as “included,” but not free of effort. Few hardy vacationers seem willing or able to take advantage. Of course there's water sports (right on the beach), bicycling, volleyball, and the like. Mostly they do not like. Still popular with some are the simple pleasures of smoking (DR manufactures cigars,) vaping, and surfing: I mean surfing the net, even here on the beach. Well, probably, it’s urgent family business. Speaking of the net, wi-fi is pricy in the resort, but you can buy cheaper country wide sim-cards at the mall, or elsewhere. Evening show events are simple, fun, and the music and dance shows are relatively entertaining for this island. The performers are very serious, and for ¾ of hour please provide a little respectful applause. The disco opens at 11 pm for the desperate dancer. Musically, DR is known for the popular musical genres and dances called Merengue and Bachata. Tourists hail from Quebec, Ontario, Germany, Nordic countries. People are very approachable and happy to opine of their feelings about the resort of their choice. I like observing. Many large and extended families come to this resort, with kids and babies slung on buggies and shoulders. Families are welcome, in case you're considering. When dining, tables are joined to accommodate the multitude, and fathers remain seated with the kids while the women gather up a glut of plates of food from the buffet. Families are vociferous and rambunctious, naturally, and with voices having to be heard over the loud musica, you imagine what that’s like. Next door is the adult-only resort. Just saying. I confide that nabobs get nasty when not served their nespresso or beer within their tolerable time limit. This time a German visitor made a strident scene and the manager came to his table and asked his room number; I sure hope he was not rewarded for such behaviour. This German characteristic was confirmed by one of the Dominican staff. So why them? It's cultural. Some nationalities are just not as patient and easy-going as others, even on vaca... As mentioned, there's a lot to do, if you’re up to it, and the animation team leads with exercises, games, lessons in windsurfing, dancing and Spanish, and entertainment. There's always one guy on the animation team who is the “complete sandwich”; this guy here is Martin. In this role you must have stamina, skill and subtlety to achieve customer satisfaction. Give me 5! (smack my palm). At a right-on-the-beach resort, all is exposed. I mean bodies... the naked gamut... hair, guts, chests, tattoos. Oh Dios Mio! so much skin is inked, men and women, you never imagined clothed in the office. The tattooed person exposes a staggering billboard of his and her loves, beliefs and history. (I don’t blame the resort for this.) You will not escape this review without an admonition regarding waste and environment. As a tourist, it's our new responsibility to keep our beach footprint to minimum. Do not discard garbage inappropriately; go beyond to pick up other people's garbage. Don't waste food on your plate as you see others doing. Keep your beach towels for another day. Spend locally for souvenirs and services. Collect gifts of needed items from home to give to poor locals: children’s clothes, otc meds, baseball gloves. Escape the resort and find playgounds or streets where you can give stuff away. Excursions are great for exploring, and there’s lot of choice, including exotic downtown Puerto Plata and a ride up the teleferico. This first cable car of the Caribbean will whisk you up to the Pico Isabel de Torres, at 800 meters the second highest point in DR. At the peak is an arm stretched statue of Jesus similar to the one in Rio de Janeiro. Enjoy pleasant hiking trails amidst botanical gardens, a lake replete with fish, caves and a model Dominican home. Purchase an excursion from your official tour agent, or much cheaper from an independent agent on the beach or at the mall; many to choose. We bought 2 interesting excursions from Antonio (anthonyinfotours.com). The second excursion was the Safari and Waterfalls (www.27charcos.com). The safari takes you deep into the interior of Hispaniola on the northern cordillera to pass by country towns and plantations to the 27 Waterfalls of Rio Damajagua (www.27charcos.com), the best adventure tourism site in the Dominican Republic! It’s a fairly strenuous outing, so be prepared to hike, jump and slide in a serious stream. Please accept my comments with a wink and a pinch of salt; the chef at this resort certainly added a pinch. Also, don’t search my review for my comment on the check-in process; not an important issue for me. I stated at the start we had a successful vacation here. If you read this to this end, thank you and let me ask the bartender for a free cocktail for you. Shouldn’t be long. You deserve it. Tibor & Megan Kaldor, Calgary, Alberta, Canada

VH Gran Ventana Beach Resort: Not that great... More like a 2 star

It's really run down Vendors on the beach are constantly coming up to you to try and sell you something. On one day I counted and in a time span of 15 minutes, I was approached 8 times by 8 different people. Good luck getting a drink here, coffee, alcohol and yes, even water seems like such a struggle. The Beach was horrible. You couldn't even swim because there were so many rocks and seaweed! The only thing that was good about this place was the food but then again, you are standing and w [... read more]aiting in line for at least 15 minutes just for a plate of pasta or for an omelette. Also please listen to this... No matter what time you get there and even if your room is ready, they will NOT check you in until 3 pm. That is really annoying because after a flight, you just want to freshen up and drop your stuff off and start off your vacation! We arrived at 12 and they would not give us the room until 3. The worst part was when we finally got to our room, it was clean but has not had anyone in there for awhile. There were cobwebs everywhere. It was really gross and the room was really old. Also, if you have to deal with Luis as your representative, good luck! He will definitely take up hours of your vacation because he is just so terrible at his job!

Sunscape Puerto Plata: Wonderful Resort

The resort is so nice and wonderful....the room is spacious, clean....restaurants and bars offer a good variety of food and beverages The beach and pools are kept in a very good condition. The staff is nice and friendly. The team of Sunwing and tripcentral were so helpful......

VH Gran Ventana Beach Resort: Amazing resort.

Not a huge resort but everything is centrally located. Grounds and rooms are kept impeccably clean but rooms are dated - could use a refresh. Mini fridges restocked daily. Beach is beautiful and there is lots of shade and chairs - no problem getting a spot at any time. No complaints about the food and all staff very friendly and helpful. Only complaint is that when you ask for something to drink in the buffet, most of the time you wouldn’t get it - not enough staff for amount of tables.  [... read more]Mall located within 5 min walking distance with souvenirs and liquor. Would recommend and will be returning.

Casa Marina Sosua Trademark by Wyndham All Inclusive: Casa marina

The hotel was clean and well maintained the food was good and the location is great due to proximity of downtown. There are a lot of activities available in the area such as horseback Reding and lointain hicking

Cofresi Palm Beach and Spa Resort: Amazing!

The resort was absolutely beautiful. Our room was probably one of the nicest rooms I’ve ever stayed in and was cleaned everyday. All the staff were very nice. The food was delicious. Beyond happy with our stay here. Will definitely be visiting again.

Paradise Playa Dorada: Great resort

The hotel was clean, although bed and balcony were small. The food was great. Many activities not available. The vendors on the beach are annoying bugging all the time. I really liked the place for the price overall minus the vendors.

Iberostar Waves Costa Dorada: Decent stay for the money

We spent 2 weeks at this resort in December. The first room we were assigned wasn't great as it was in a building that hasn't been renovated. After a couple of rainy nights bathroom ceiling started leaking. We got moved to a renovated room closer to the beach, but also very close to the restaurant with its constantly running fans and noisy delivery carts in the morning and evening. This wasn't a huge issue in the middle of the night, but forget about sleeping in if you get an ocean view room in [... read more] building 6. The "upgrade" came with a price of attending their sales presentation and contrary to what most people would say about those, it was actually worth attending. (Bare with me for a minute). Those time share/members clubs are generally a scam, but you just have to play it smart. The islander seem to take their time with everything, but if you play it smart you can be done with it within 2 hours. Just keep mentioning that you need to be spending time at the beach right now and even better if you go in with kids. You can always blame lack of time on them ;) obviously don't sign anything, as the offers were outrageous, but be firm yet polite about it. In the end you will get resort credits (in our case we got $70, as we refused to give our credit cards "to enter into a draw" to get more $) on top of whatever credits you already have. We ended up spending them all on gifts at the gift shop without paying a cent. Now the food: generally it was the same main fare each day (especially for breakfast) with some theme nights providing bit more variety. Most dishes were ok, but lacked seasoning, which is understandable in a place catering to so many guests. HOWEVER each night you could find something good tasting. There was no room service, but food was available almost 24hrs a day. We tried only 1 restaurant a la carte thinking it would be like our other trips when they were a waste of time but we were pleasantly surprised with their Mexican restaurant. The food was absolutely amazing, even if service was bit lacking. Beach grill was open only every other day or so and they would usually run out of food after 10 minutes. Pool: it was bit disappointing to see only 1 pool that also had a swim up bar, which was actually next to the kid's area of the pool. :/ Beach: great for the first week with small waves and no seaweed. Second week, it was full of seaweed and bigger waves, which made it unsuitable for swimming. However there was enough room under the palapas or the palm trees for everybody just to enjoy being close to water. Entertainment: having been to grand sirenis in Mexico we were expecting a lot more. Most nights the entertainment was disappointing. However the daytime animation crew was doing a good job with games at the pool and beach area. Trips: we only took 1 trip when we hired a driver to Puerto Plata as recommended by our server, Nelson (lovely man, if you get him. He took a good care of us during meals). However most of that trip was spent being dragged from a store to a store in order to buy things from his friends or being passed onto local "guides" who not only didn't know much, but were expecting money for their lousy services. The only good part was the cable car ride and visiting the fort in the city, which we did on our own. Overall I would give the experience 3 out of 5 stars.