Bahia Principe Escape Ambar: Good but not a 5 star

Grounds are well maintained, food decent in a la carte rest. but not five star, buffet much better except for lobster night. The lobster was frozen before, then cooked as far as I'm concerned and it tasted like mush instead of meat. People are very nice and they really want to help you in any way they can. I gave our housekeeper $10 U.S. a day for 2 rooms (my adult children were with us) and they were spotless, everything was perfect in the room, she even put fresh pedals daily all over the room [... read more] and bathroom. Linens were sometimes missing, but it's the hotel's fault not the maid's. Pool is like bacterial soup, very hot. Not pleasant at all to swim in. The beach is clean, the older butler on the beach in Ambar section very professional, the younger ones don't really take their job seriously. No problem getting a chair in private Ambar section at any time of the day. Your better off swimming in the ocean instead of the pool. Change your towels before 5 p.m. or you might not get any until the next day. All my family became sick after eating in Don Pablo restaurant on July 09,2014. Take Dukoral oral vaccine 3 weeks before leaving. Take cab from and to airport instead of bus and beat the crowd, it only cost $40 U.S. (up to 4 people) and it's much quicker. Best rooms are 67308,67208,67301,67201. Nice and quiet near the beach. 64308,64301,64208,67201 is good for the people who like the pool crowd. I was in 67308 in Oct. 2013, 64211 in May 2014 ( It's also a pretty good room) and 64202 and 64206 in July 2014. (also pretty good rooms)

Casa Marina Sosua Trademark by Wyndham All Inclusive: Casual resort.

We had one week vacation last February 2014. The staffs were friendly and hard worker. We enjoyed the beach with its reef; the waves were spectacular; probably not safe for kids; if you know how to swim it could be fun. The rooms are not extraordinary but it's clean; The patio door needed to be fixed in our room and the room of our friends; For the safe we had to pay extra; The bathroom was okay but sometime no water; The corridors are noisy. The food was good and quite a good choice. The locati [... read more]on was interesting, you have Sosua at the door of the hotel (base ball field; lively motorcycles (take care the sidewalks are very narrow); taxi ready to take you around; there are good restaurants to discover).

Casa Marina Sosua Trademark by Wyndham All Inclusive: amzing resort

Very clean hotel. Very good food. Friendly people clean room every day. Great entertainment every night. Had more then one restaurant to choise from. Try different food and the service was fantastic. Hade a good time

Bahia Principe Explore Punta Cana: Nice resort

We visited this vist with our 2 kids. The overall ambiance of this resort is beautiful. Food was good. Staff were nice. Pools were great.Love the different food themes every night and the nightly entertainment were awesome! Overall, we had a great vacation and will definitly return. Things that could have been better, the guest services staff who were booking for the la carte restaurant, could not recommend any of the restaurant. They thought there was nothing special.That made me a bit skeptica [... read more]l. The cleaner for our rooms comes to clean at 5:00pm. Exactly when we are getting ready for dinner. This happened more than a few times.

The Eurostars Grand Cayacoa: Beautiful, friendly resort!

The entire resort is beautiful and clean. The food was delicious and varied. The staff were friendly, helpful and fun. When we returned to our room each day there was a sweet surprise of flowers or chocolate. The resort made a very special occasion for Valentines with special food and decorations. The water and beach are gorgeous and there was no problem getting a shady spot. I would have liked to eaten at the beach grill more often but the selection was limited. Super nice stay.

Bahia Principe Explore La Romana: Relaxing place

Very nice relaxing resort with really beautifull U shaped beach with pier and near an island. Beach has palm trees so there is no need to fight for a bit of shade. Rooms are very good, so is food. Near the hotel, just few mitutes drive by the inexpensive taxi, there are well maintened, must see caves. There is no snorkelling because of murky water, possibly due to a nearby river, but you can book the snorkelling trips to famous loctions.

Punta Cana Princess: Wonderful resort& wonderful staff

The rooms are excellent and very clean. The grounds are immaculate and all public areas are super clean. Love the swim up bar at the pool. If you are looking for a smaller adults only resort and a quiet and restful holiday, then this is the resort. Excellent variety of food with something for everyone. The staff is amazing, with some long tenured staff that we see each time we go. They do have nightly entertainment, but the resort is definitely not meant to attract partygoers.

Riu Bambu: Wonderful Vacation!!!

The very first trip South we did my husband and I was at this resort 9 years ago. It was a dream come true and it's still as marvelous as it was then. When we went in Feb of 2013 again, we knew that we were going to be in good hands. We like the Riu chain. All of our expectations were delivered. The grounds are amazing, the room was very comfortable, the food was always great, at the buffet and at the restaurants. We didn't stay for the night life because we were always to tired by the time 9 o' [... read more]clock rolled around, so I can't comment on that. The beach is awsome. The sand is like white flour and the water is always clean and beautiful. I can't say enough how much we enjoyed our stay. I would go back in a heart beat.

TRS Turquesa: Excellent vacation

The accomodations were exactly as advertised. Beautiful room and the jacuzzi tub next to the bed was a nice touch. They had 3 bottles of premium gin, rhum and vodka for guest use in each room. The main pool and beach area were top notch and each building had it's own pool and bar. Dining was really good in the Turquesa restaurants (steak diane, lobster, rack of lamb etc). Restaurants in the rest of the complex were hit and miss (Really fun Tepenyaki, soso Italian and Sports Bar). My girlfriend h [... read more]as already indicated that we will be returning.

Bahia Principe Grand San Juan: Best caribbean hotel chain ever

absolutely no fault to be found. This is our 4th Bahia stay in 5 years. best value, cleanest, great food and entertainment. Evening cocktails are served in glass not plastic. How wonderful.! We have recommended this chain to everyone.

Sunscape Puerto Plata: Great holiday at the Barcelo!”

We spent 2 weeks at the Barceló and it was great! The food was very good - lots of different fruits even mangos (my favorite) and the service was excellent - couldn't ask for more - the waiters are very attentive and we enjoyed having a coffee pot left at our table at breakfast. Our room was clean and spacious with a king-size bed which is what we asked for. The a la carte restaurants were very good, especially the Brazilian and the Japanese. It was somewhat complicated to reserve though - sho [... read more]uld be allowed to reserve for the week like most hotels do - don't want to have to line-up for quite a long time on my holidays. The staff at the reservations were not very efficient - answered a ringing telephone every few minutes while the line grew and grew. (whose phoning anyway? - can't reserve a-la carte restaurant by phone) We've been at the Playa Dorada beach before and we love it. Very good snorkeling off the beach and the beach is very long for walking. The time-share venders are not so annoying in front of this hotel - unlike the Blue Bay on the right and the Grand Paradise on the left - they are most annoying there. The entertainment at night was good - we like to dance so there was a band that played early until 9pm ever night - we would have preferred them to play until 10pm and skip the games at 9pm - very boring unless you're part of them and very few people are - I always wonder how many people like those games - the place sure empties when they start. But all in all this was a great vacation and we will definitely return to the Barceló! Stayed March 2014, travelled as a couple

Occidental Caribe: Good value for money!

The food and service staff were awesome. The hotel was in pretty good repair. The tour provider site promised some 'extras' with the Prestige booking that we didn't get (robe and slippers in room) but overall it was very very good.

Grand Bavaro Princess: Very large

The resort was very big and spread out. We were fortunate to get a room close to the dinning area and where the night activities were. The food was good. What I didn't like was the beach was rather a long way from where our room was. You had to take the trolley if you wanted to get to the beach, as I found the walk too far. So we stayed near the closest pool most days. I got very sick on the third day and had to see the doctor. The only problem was we were told to make a collect call to Canada t [... read more]o the health insurance company was a flat fee of $2.00, well not so. We were presented with a bill of $75.00 payable upon leaving the resort. We were really upset. We had been given the wrong information. There is no set fee, you must pay according to the length of your call. That was most upsetting. The wi-fi worked when it felt like it.

Wyndham Alltra Samana: Ok Resort

It was clean, food was ok. Pools were just ok. Beach part was small, you can't really walk down the beach far, you walk on a path beside the beach. Rooms were ok. Its a 3* so we didn't expect much. Food was ok, not a big selection and all of us needed Imodium..every day for me! Careful of excusions, we went on a whale watching one with guarantee to see whales. They took us out in horrible weather and almost capsized the boat..everyone just wanted to go home after the first few hours. Left at 9 a [... read more]m and didn't get back until 5pm...was only to go till 2 and they do not serve any lunch just pop when you get to the small beach they take you to for a break from trying to find whales. Never saw a whale...they were too smart to be out in such weather lol All in all it was an ok resort for price we paid but I would not return.

Grand Palladium Palace: nice but too big

a lot of variety,but too big especially when u have young kids.u need to take the train regularly to get to your points of interest. the kids club is amazing u never know where u will end-up staying .our reservation was for the palace but we ended in another part ,they didn't even bother to tell us it wasn't the palace. nice staff,but very anonymous and regularly pushing for tips.

Cayo Levantado Resort: Amazing Resort

Beautiful grounds and gardens. Lovely and spacious rooms and bathrooms. Very nice beaches with lots of shade if necessary. Nice swimming pools. Lots of chairs around pools and beach. Very good service. Delicious food and lots of choices. Spotlessly clean.

Paradise Playa Dorada: fourth visit

We were at the Grand Paradise three years in a row about ten years ago. Due to my husband's health, we were unable to travel for a few years, and when he was cleared for travel, we wanted someplace familiar, where he would feel comfortable. This time we upgraded to an oceanview which was well worth the extra, although a little noisy on beach party nights. The room was clean and had obviously been updated, although the hotel as a whole is showing its age, through no fault of the people who are co [... read more]nstantly painting, gardening etc. We were forced to take the third floor in order to get two beds, which was a major problem as there are no elevators and he is disabled after suffering a stroke. A big negative for seniors. The safe did not work, which was quickly repaired, nor did the fridge, which was not, but I got used to bringing up ice from the bar when we left the beach, so we made do. In the Caribbean, if you let these things bother you, you can very easily spoil your whole vacation. Hot water was inconsistent throughout the two weeks, sometimes you had to let it run for 15 minutes or more before you got even lukewarm, which seems like a tremendous waste. The food was just as it was ten years ago, lots of choice, with local fish and seafood and other local delicacies offered at special stations throughout the week. Fresh local fruit offered at every meal, which is my weakness. We found no problems with weekend locals, but found consistent good food regardless of the time of the week, and we were there for two weeks. Waiters and other staff, I found, were especially kind in assisting my husband to find his seat and often carrying his plate for him. Never a problem at the bar, the barstaff seemed to be making an effort to keep an eye out for who should be next, and staying fair. Of course, with the bulk of the guests being Canadian, we did not find much rude butting in. The entertainment was considerably different from what we remembered. There appeared to be groups of professional entertainers travelling from hotel to hotel with some first rate shows, but these were few and far between, and often there was no evening entertainment to speak of, a piano player maybe. The hotel based entertainment team did not do many shows, although the ones they did do were well choreographed and very entertaining, despite suffering from shoddy costumes which desperately needed a seamstress to repair unraveling trim and a little budget to replace "holey" pantyhose. These costumes did not do justice to the great skits and choreography, and because the audience is set up on the same level as the performers, they were very noticeable. The animation team planned daily activities which, weather permitting, they followed through with. Especially enjoyed darts, which my husband can play with his unaffected side, lawn bowling and shuffleboard. He was encouraged and really enjoyed these activities. The pool seemed to have more youth-centred activities. There is a room above the pool with a pool table but in poor repair. There is also a plaza not far from the hotel for shopping...unfortunately we found more than half the stores were closed, obviously feeling the effects of the economy. Still the best stretch of beach on Playa Dorada. We do not use the pool, as we do not travel so far to see what is readily available in Canada, but from walking by, it seemed to be kept clean and in good repair. Lounges were generally available both at the pool and at the beach, with the usual problem of people who reserve spots in both places with towels. If anyone, anywhere, finds a solution to this problem, he or she deserves a gold medal. All in all, an enjoyable two weeks (mid janurary 2014) Sincerely, Diane and Roger Davey.

Majestic Colonial Punta Cana Beach Resort: Above and beyond

Our latest trip to Majestic Colonial in February was a total delight. When we checked in, we were told that as 3-time visitors we had been upgraded to a poolside room at no extra cost. We had arrived late and hungry, after the main restaurants had closed, but no problem—the porter who had brought us and our baggage in the electric cart to the room (there was even a banner on our door that said "Welcome Back"!) was kind enough to drive us to the 24-hour snack bar—then waited for us and drove  [... read more]us back to the room! Food, service and amenities were excellent as usual, and we'd have no hesitation in coming back again. And the service at Tripcentral was also above and beyond. We booked at the last minute, and were told that included in the tour package was a $50 coupon to use at the resort for anything we wanted, but it was too late to mail it to us. Again, no problem; when we got home there was a $50 cheque from Tripcentral waiting for us.

IFA Bavaro Village: not the best!

the beach area was lovely, the shopping mall on the beach was fun,the rooms were nice but ours had mold in it and we all got sick, three out of four of us got upper respiratory infections that lasted 6 weeks and four out of four of us had intestinal issues. The food started out ok but got worse as the week wore on. the drinks were pr-made and not fresh and the bar staff could have cared less if they waited on you or not. We have been to many resorts over the years and this is the first resort we [... read more] had major problems

TRS Turquesa: Beauitful resort!

Hotel grounds were beautiful.We were put in the wrong room the first night and were moved the second day so we had to pack everything again!Staff were very friendly!Meals were good,drinks were good as well!Only problems we had was the balcony door would not lock and our shower door needed to be adjusted because there was an inch gap in the closing and the floor would get soaking wet!All round a beautiful hotel,just a couple of room maintenance problems.