Dreams Playa Bonita Panama was a great choice for our first visit to Panama. Its location close to Panama City allowed for quick and easy access to the local attractions. The resort staff are friendly and do everything possible to make your stay enjoyable. Rooms are tired and in need of renovation but were kept clean. Beds are very comfortable. Food was excellent. Pools look to be new and kept at a perfect temperature. We would suggest that more shade is needed around the pool and ocean. Music is played quite loud around the pool and would likely book “preferred” next time to access the quieter pool area. We saw sloths on the property and tiny monkeys at the end of the beach in the trees - so great! Note … Just be aware that you will have to travel almost 2 hours from the airport to this resort. The bus does stop for a short break and we were able to get cold drinks for the drive to the resort. We would return but hope that they are able to do some room updates.

I was really concerned with all the negative reviews and even contemplated changing locations. I am glad I decided to give it a try. The resort is over an hour from the airport. The ride was okay and the driver even stopped for us to get some beers and go to the washroom. The check-in was easy. We had preferred club, and stayed at the adult only pool. It was easy getting a spot by the pool. Walked the beach and swam in the ocean. It was amazing seeing the tide going in and out. The food was good. You will not starve. We had room service 3 times and ate at each of the specialty restaurants. The omelet station is only there on certain days, so make sure you get one while you can. The staff are friendly, the resort is dated but well cared for. My husband had trouble sleeping on the bed, but I found it okay. A vacation is what you make it. I am glad I didn't listen to all the negative reviews. One truth that must be stressed is the "Can't see ums". They have mosquito like bugs that are almost invisible and bite. I didn't get my first bite until days three. The bites are really itchy. Bring an after-bite cream or Benadryl for the itching. The resort does fumigate and provide little repellant wipes. I brought bug spray and spayed the sun beds. Overall, 7/10. Happy vacationing.

We spent a week here and we really enjoyed it. The staff were helpful, even climbing a tree to help take close-up photos of the sloths for us! The food was delicious and the drinks were good quality. There are lots of activities for those who like to keep active. Things move a bit slowly in the restaurants but that didn't bother us. The resort organized a fantastic outdoor dinner with live entertainment for Valentine's Day, even having Cupid go around for photos with everyone! A drawback was the lack of shady areas to sit near the pools or beach in the extreme heat but the grounds are meticulously maintained and beautiful. I would highly recommend NOT flying into the Rio Hato airport if staying here as the drive when we arrived took three hours due to traffic that seems to always be flowing into Panama City!

We thoroughly enjoyed this resort & can’t say enough great things about it. The large rooms were very clean & comfortable. The restaurants were great. Wonderful staff served great food and the buffet also had a nice variety. We spent a lot of time in the pool & beach. There is not enough shade & guests tend to save the chairs in the shade even with the signs saying not to do that. We noticed some chairs had not been used for hours so the staff should remove the towels more often. The hotel is 2 1/2 hrs from the airport which means all the attractions were close so very worth the bus drive. The Panamazing staff that recommended & did the tours made them fun & very informative. We’ve already recommended this hotel to friends.

THIS PLACE HAS AN EXCELLENT LOCATION. WITH GREAT SERVICES, WITH GOOD GRUB. HAS FANTASTIC OUTTINGS AND WITH SOCIAL PERSONEL. GREAT PLACE TO STAY. THAT IS VERY SOCIAL AND A TON TO DO. HIGH CLENLINESS. WITH EXCELLENT DAILY CLEANING. FRIDGE IS ALWAYS FULL!

This is a purposefully designed, nice size, but rather an old resort. The staff was very friendly and helpful, however we got an impression that there was not enough personnel (i.e. the room's mini bar was refilled sporadically, constant line-ups to the only bar by the pool area). The other problem was a bad quality audio system playing loud and squeaky music in crowded pool area. Our major disappointment was food; both the quality and the restaurants. Breakfast menu was very limited and offered food of poor quality. Although there are four restaurants there, the best one was opened only sporadically. This resort is advertised for its beach but the water is murky and the low tide renders it practically un-swimmable and unsafe with plenty of sharp rocks exposed. Another serious issue was the package misleading advertising. The description did not mentioned an almost three hours transfer from the remote Rio Hato airport. A good thing is that the resort is located only a few kilometers from Panama City. This allows for visiting the city and the Panama Canal.

Great Location, close to Panama City. Great Pool and Beach Area. Staff were friendly and really accommodating. The Hotel was clean but aged slightly. Food was really good, only thing was not all the restaurants were open every day but that might have been due to the resort being empty. On our departure due to the airport not having any facilities, the staff made us a packed lunch to take on the bus, which was amazing of them.

The grounds were lovely the rooms were spacious. Cleaning staff was not consistent with giving out fresh towels and toiletries. This resort is very far from the airport especially during rush hour. The traffic during rush hr is like Toronto traffic. The restaurants were great but breakfast could have had more variety. Love the fact that you Don't need reservations for restaurants. The beach is rocky so water shoes are recommended. Pools were great. If you don't mind 2 or more hours to and from the airport this is for you. Close to Panama City and Canel

Nice grounds well keeped Rooms clean Food good but plain Drinks good Pools clean and well keeped Beach has strong tides and rocky Entertainment lacking People were amazing Need umbrellas not enough shade Airport drive took us 3 hours not happy

The staff really made our trip enjoyable. They were upmost respectable, kind and cirtious. From Elvis in the Coco Cafe to Elsal at the front desk and everyone in between. They were a hard working bunch. We thank you very much for making our stay at Dreams Playa Bonita a holiday to remember.

Location was close enough to the city and canal for easy day trips, but felt like you were away from it all. Nice to hear the birds and see a sloth or two hanging out just outside of our room. Our room was very clean and hotel staff were very friendly. The food was good, no complaints! No reservations needed but as a result you may have to wait 10-15 minutes for a table if you go during peak times. On the bright side there is a bar a few steps away to get a drink while you wait.

This is a nice small resort for those who don't care for large sprawling properties. The grounds are well kept and common areas are clean. There is plenty of pool space and loungers for guests to enjoy. This beach is not a swimming beach. If you are a beach person, try the Caribbean side instead. Rooms are nice, all with balconies facing the water. The bathroom has 2 sinks, plenty of shelf space and a great rain shower. Food is ok. We liked the Italian restaurant best. Mario and Ismael are wonderful servers at the pool. The cappuccinos at the Coco Cafe were delicious. Not much nightly entertainment if you are looking for that. There is a disco but it isn't busy and doesn't open until 11pm.

This resort has a lot of work to do to make it a Dreams calibre resort. Although the property is lovely and outside very well maintained the inside is not so great. Examples; rooms are kept clean on the surface but there is mold, dirt in the corners and under sinks, behind toilets and the clothe furnishing are rather stained and old. This is also true of the furnishing in the restaurants. I felt I had to place a towel down on the seat at times because of the dirt and stains. I am not a germaphobe but cleanliness is important. The staff are on the most part very friendly and helpful but there is clearly not enough of them to meet the demands of this very busy resort. We are very seasoned travellers and not too hard to please but these are basic things that need to be addressed. The thing lacking most is in the area of food. We are not overly picky but the food here was a huge problem!! Although the staff try hard they have not been taught proper food preparation.Examples; foods cooked in front of you like the omelet and pasta bar and burger grills were not always cooked thoroughly and due to the language barrier when you tried to explain to cook, things needed to cook a littler longer they did not understand and just went ahead and plated your under cooked food. The food at the buffets was always luke warm or cold and they were always running out of the basics and not replenishing these items unless asked to by multiple guests. The ala cart restaurants were better. Overall we had a fair stay here and glad we did not pay more than we did. The folks that paid more were far more unhappy; as this resort is advertised as a Dreams 4 star resort and I would struggle to give it a 3 star.

The grounds of this hotel are beautiful and well kept, there's not enough chairs outside and if you don't get up at 6am you're out of luck because all the chairs are reserved with towels, this is supposed to be monitored but its not. The preferred pool is not monitored either and anyone can just come in and use it which I witnessed being done. The room was beautiful the only complaint would be that out of the 7 days I was there 3 nights there was no turn down service. The entertainment is terrible for the money I spent at this resort there's usually really good shows everynight at a theatre, this resort had 4 shows out of the 7 nights which started at 8:30 and ended at 9 pm and then there was nothing to do until the disco opened at 11:30 . Now lets talk about the food , the buffets are half the size of any other resort that I've been to including other dreams ,very little selection, slow on filling empty containers, food was cold. Tried the a la carte's and it was hit and miss first night I had tuna that was dried out, 2 nd night I had spaghetti that was as if it was reheated, 3rd night ordered steak medium done got it very very rare. I booked this Dreams based on one that I had been to in Mexico and am very disappointed , hate to say this but I will not book at a dreams ever again. Every resort has a few quirks which I expect but this one was extremely disappointing and i'd be scared to spend that kind of money again and get a resort like this . This is the first time I ever felt I had to right a review come on guys this was totally unacceptable I only get to travel once a year and am sorry to say I wasted my money

We really enjoyed our stay at Dreams Playa Bonita Resort. The grounds are beautiful and the rooms are comfortable with ocean views. The resort is well laid out and never felt crowded, we were always able to get seats by the pool. LOVED the option of A La Carte dinners and the food was top notch!

The hotel was in need of an update. The staff were friend and helpful. The gardens were very well kept. Much better than the hotel. The pools were not very clean. The food was very good but a bit tiring after 2 weeks.

Sadly this will be my first negative review. This resort is maybe a 2 star. We arrived to the longest check in line. Once I got to the front of the line they told me I had to go upstairs. When I got upstairs they told me to go down stairs again. Finally we got check in. We got to our room it was clean but no towels. That would become the norm of our stay. We asked for towels they gave us 3 for 4 people in the room. There were no towels by the pool we would go down at 8 am they would tell us towels would arrive by 11am. This happened everyday. One day it was windy we were by the shingles blowing off the roof on to us and going in the pool. Services was slow but it was because there was enough staff. The staff that’s was there worked so hard but just couldn’t keep up. The beach is beautiful! There are lots of shell of the beach for the kids to pick up and look at. Sadly we won’t be going to any dreams resorts in the future.

The resort can be considered the lower end if Dreams Resorts. Althythe food was great, and staff service was great, some elements of the resort brings its overall rating down to 3.5 stars in my opinion. The beach was terrible unfortunately, polluted and infested with flees and mosquitoes. Room was spacious and everything was in working order, but cleanliness was questionable. Reception staff were not friendly, but concierge staff were excellent. I would defugo to another Dreams resort, but definitely not this one again.

Nice place but needs update. They should lower the price if they need more costumers; the hotel was almost empty therefore some services were affected. The two restaurants were nice & the food was well presented & good. Not much to do except eat, swim only in the pool; due to tides the ocean (Pacific) was not accessible for swimming. The staff were pleasant & willing to help.

We went here here because we knew the brand name and had stayed at the Dreams Tulum resort. Tho this does not match Dreams Tulum it is a very comfortable resort and i would rate it 3.5 stars. Staff are awesome, shout out to Juan of the restaurant staff and to all the staff around the pool area. Rooms very comfortable and clean, we had ground floor room. Beach is a nice walking beach when tide is out, not really a swimming beach but we knew that going. I would recommend the hotel to others.

the resort was good probably a 3 and half star pros: grounds were nice and clean, the staff very good, very relaxing you dont get bothered by merchants on the beach, 15 minutes from panama city and the canal cons: under staff some bars only have one waiter and u had to wait for for food because they would run out. the buffet and breakfast were always the same.the beach was not the best

Pleasant atmosphere, good service and a relaxing location. Staff are hard working. Location is private but not too far from excursions. Overall not too commercialized and noticeably no pressure sales.

The resort is very clean. Lots of pretty garden space and very compact ( in a good way). Food is very good and the staff are very helpful and friendly. The beach is not the best, tide goes out a long way, it is clean though. My only problem was getting clean towels for our room, the housekeeping was a little haphazard, the guy at the desk was on it right away once I went there. We would go back and would recommend this resort

The resort is beautiful with impeccably manicured grounds. The staff are very accommodating and helpful although many of them speak no English. Those are the only positive things that I can say about this resort. Although they advertise 5 restaurants, only 1 is open for each of breakfast and lunch and only 2 are open for dinner. Have a great deal of difficulty truly understanding what benefits we received as Preferred Guests and we were charged an obscene amount of money for this privilege. The food was so-so and the nightly entertainment non-existent. This was a very disappointing vacation.

Everything was great the grounds looked beautiful and the dining rooms were good food. We wish the resort staff told us about the Mosquitos upon arrival after 5:30pm it would of been nice.the wine and cocktails were great. We loved Elvis the pool waiter

The grounds are beautifully maintained and the pictures on line do not do it justice. The pools are very nice with plenty of room and no chair issues. The beach is definitely not Punta Cana and the ocean is not safe unless you want to swim with sting rays and jelly fish. It would be nice if this hotel offered nightly entertainment. Having live music in the hotel lobby does not cut it for 6 days. The 1 Panamian show held on Saturday along with a themed buffet was good but not enough for the week. I wish there was more information provided about the nasty bugs. The hotel did provide bug wipes on the first day to repel the bugs but we needed to continuously make requests for more as well as restocking of the fridge, robes and fresh towels. Needless to say for this resort being rated 4.5 to 5 I would not rate it more than a 4

The resort is well planned out with beautiful gardens that are well maintained. The buildings are 5 stories high and have working elevators for those who have difficulty with the stairs. The rooms are large with a sitting area and a king size bed and all rooms have a balcony looking out to the Pacific Ocean. The three pools are cleaned daily and kept at a reasonable temperature (no heart attacks on entry). There is an adult only pool that is sufficiently far from the infinity pool that one cannot hear the joyous revelling's of the younger set. The French restaurant was the only eatery requiring formal wear (long pants for men), and the food was most definitely worth dressing for. There was no booking or limitations on the number of times each restaurant was visited. The seafood restaurant was closed, but seafood was always on the menu at the other two buffet restaurants where a choice of good quality pork, chicken and beef were also available daily. Desert selection was limited, but fresh fruit was always available. Beverages were all International quality, and the selection of wine included in the cost of the package was excellent, including a choice of two white wines, two red, a blush and sparkling wine. All were good quality and enjoyable. The beach was not very usable and swimming in the sea generally not safe. Nightlife was limited at the resort, being mostly a piano player and singer. Some people were disappointed that an advertised 'jazz' night did not materialize. The resort is advertised as 2 hours from the airport, but with road works took us over 3 hours, (hence the lower rating for location.) However, the driver will make a stop for refreshments if requested to do so. The best part though, was the staff. So friendly and helpful. Most staff did not have a great level of English knowledge which meant that I had to try harder at my Spanish, and that I found motivating and fun. Hand signals caused much laughter with the staff. My husband and I enjoyed a most relaxing and rejuvenating 7 night vacation and would certainly recommend this hotel to those looking for a relaxing time.

This resort is about 150 Kilometers from the airport and based on the time of year it could take a while to get there. This is based on Air Transat flying into Rio Hato airport. It took us approximately 3.5 hours to get to the resort as the Panama Carnival was on and the traffic was backed up for about 100 Kilometers going towards Panama city. The resort grounds were really nice. The beach is not that good as the tide goes out 12 to 16 feet leaving a lot of rock. The beach has sand fleas which are very evident when the tide was out.If you are prone to these bites make sure you have some sort of spray. I found out the hard way. The grounds of the resort are really nice. The rooms are okay. We did have an issue with getting towels replaced and the air conditioner was noisy. There was only 2 Ala-cart restaurants open at one time. You did not have to book time but the one night we went we had a 45 minute wait for a table. The evening buffet at night we found to be cold and not a lot of selection. The breakfast and lunch buffets were the best meals of the day. There is a language barrier as not many people speak English. We have stayed a lot of 4.5 to 5 star resorts and this resort did not compare to them. I would have to say that this was most probably a 3.5 star resort at best. I would not go back or recommend it to any of my friends.

Beautiful grounds, and nice view of ships waiting to enter canal and lots of blue sky !! Staff very attentive and ready to help in any way. Lots of excursions to select from plus close to Panama City for easy access but far away to enjoy the relaxation of this resort

The hotel is a great place if you want peacefulness and relaxation. This resort doesn't have a nightlife. Food is good however, you are limited to 3 restaurants open at the same time. The only downfall to this area to which the resort is located are the chitras (sand fleas). They are bad at dusk and dawn. With not being able to see them, you don't realize that they are biting you until you start scratching. The bites are a hit and miss with different people. Another downfall is the 2 hr trip from the airport. Look forward to more or less a full day of travelling on both arrival and departure day. Don't expect to be able to swim at the beach all the time with the high and low tides every 5 1/2 - 6 hrs. Rooms were beautiful and the resort was very clean. Hats off to Roger the bartender, Ricardo and Tifany from Portafino. It definitely "was a pleasure".

Grounds: The grounds are amazing! Pools: The infinite pool is beautiful and the adult pool is very relaxing. The floats are a great perk! Food: The a la cartes restaurant are very good with the exception of the Italian restaurant. Bordeaux restaurant was our favourite. The room service didn't work very well at first as they never answered the phone. It worked very well once we called the front desk and they provided us with an extension number to call for room service. Room Service staff are very nice and they try real hard to make you happy. The fridge was always replenished and there was no issue in obtaining bottles of water. The coffee cafe was really nice. Good capuchinos and lattes! Rooms: Rooms are very nice and the beds were very comfortable. We had problems getting towels on the 1st and last day of our holiday. Service: The staff go out of their way. The bartender is amazing! He is very attentive and brings you drinks constantly. I have never received such great service! The service at a la carte restaurants is also very good! Beach: Beach is very nice for walks but since it's on the pacific side, it can't compare to the beaches in Jamaica, Mexico and Cuba. Entertainment: If you are looking for night life, this resort is not for you. There was a karaoke night which was fun and entertainment during the evening but for a short period. The jungle walk that the resort offers is nice and worth doing. Now for the bad. We were eaten alive by sand flies. It was awful. We all swelled up with sores. We've have been back for two days now and we are still itchy. We met amazing people which made our vacation very enjoyable. I would not recommend this resort because of the bug bites. Our bodies are covered from head to toe. Staff were very nice and offered us extra repellent wipes but nothing seemed to help. We met a couple who vacationed at this resort in April and said that there were no bugs back in April ]. They were quite surprised to see the bites on everyone. I would have rated this resort a 4 star if it wasn't for the bug bites.

The grounds were beautiful. Excellent oceanfront views. Super clean pools. Food very good staff excellent. Top notch drinks. Excellent filet mignon. Great value. Would definitely stay here again. Close to canal. Lovely additions in rooms. Champagne on arrival. Lovely bathroom products and robes

Conveniently located on the Pacific Ocean with great pools. Recently taken over by Secret with lots of work to do to improve the facility. A bit dated and restaurants have work to do on service and menu variety even though many items were very good. People are very friendly and appear very happy to serve but at times service is slow but you are on vacation enjoy.

This resort is changing owners and have many places to improve. Breakfast is the only buffet, small. Four resturants but only two open each night. Staff very disorganized, need training, very few speak any English so do not understand if you want something different. The grounds are beautiful and pool. It is one hour forty five min. from airport not 75 min. People are very friendly they try.

Stayed here July 17-24th, flew Sunwing for an all-inclusive one week trip. FOOD: 2/10! Buffet: If you like bland hospital food then this is the place for you! They charge $17.50 American for the breakfast buffet and the selection is poor. You have very limited choices and get a cheap feeling about the food selection; they put out the bare minimum. We had our buffet included but ate very little due to the choices. Watch out for the bugs around the desserts and food. Saw one staff member spraying bug spray right in front of the food and the manager trying to swipe them away, this was an indoor restaurant! Restaurant: The “gourmet” Lighthouse restaurant which according to their website is a “first class restaurant with fresh ingredients” was terrible. The sea bass I ordered was frozen fish microwaved to rubber texture served alongside instant mash. Service: 2/10 Where to start? Arrival: Our bags just dropped at front of hotel not taken to room, No welcome drinks or water. Check in: Given a sheet about what’s not included with your all-inclusive. We told the check in staff about what was included in our all-inclusive package and they stated “it doesn’t exist”. Had to waste time getting a hold of our travel rep in Canada to show them that yes it is included. Staff: Make minimal effort and only a few staff seemed happy to be working there. Only one staff member went above and beyond during our stay. Amenities: Didn’t use the spa so it might be nice. Wanted to use the kayaks since they were included with our package but saw the signs in the elevator stating prices to use them, very exhausted from dealing with the hotels customer service so just didn’t bother. Room: 3/10 The hotel room itself is dated and needs a makeover; there is nothing special or memorable about it. The mini bar fridge which they provide has no water or snacks, if you want water you have to go downstairs to the lobby. Another disappointment was the room service. The room service button on the phone didn’t work; neither did the instant service button - “anything you want anytime” Had to call the front desk 4 or 5 times before anyone would answer. Food overpriced and not worth ordering, tasted like it had been cooked and left under a heating lamp all day. If you do order they add the tip to bill for room service; it states in the menu that they don’t! We over tipped since the staff didn’t mention it was included. Property: 5/10 The pools were nice; I liked how they had a separate pool for adults only. The staff outside did a great job with maintaining the gardens and general landscaping. Overall: We would never stay here again. We did go into Panama City and stayed at the Grace, it was a beautiful and modern hotel. From the champagne check in to the manager coming up to the room with a complimentary dessert, everything was above and beyond. The food at the Grace was excellent and very reasonably priced for both the restaurant and room service. Why they give the Intercontinental hotel a 4 star rating or good reviews is beyond me. Stay in town! For people interesting in booking with Sunwing be aware that they change direct flights. We stopped in Cuba on both the departure and return flight. Sunwing flies into Rio Hato which is a tiny airstrip used by Sunwing and Air Panama, it is a bare bones airport with no food or duty free.

Hotel is very clean. Food is not the best. The gym is amazing looking over the ocean. The spa was good. Swimming Pool is good but if you like the beach don't go to that resort. No entertainment at night.

Intercontinental Playa Bonita is a beautiful resort located near the entrance to the Panama Canal. The panoramic view from the hotel is almost breathtaking. The beach is sandy but the water is not great for swimming.The pools make up for it. This resort is the most relaxing one that we have ever been to. We've been to a few. The food is fine and the desserts were the greatest we have ever had. If you are looking for a late night party atmosphere, this is not the place. Never had to worry about finding a comfortable place to sit or lay around the pool or beach. We went on the last week of February and thought it would be busy. We never had to wait in lines. Service in some areas are slow but there is no need to be in a hurry anyways. Definitely one of the top three places we've been. Behind Hawaii and Costa Rica.

Just returned from Panama it was a good experience beautiful grounds nice and friendly staff very good food, weather was excellent in February shopping is great . I would definitely return to Panama and bring my family.

It took 3 hours to get to the resort due to traffic. It was stop and go half the way. There was a long line up to check in. The hotel was not aware of our arrivals from Sunwing. The room is nice with everything working. The balcony is nice too with ocean view, etc. The ground is immaculate. There is enough lounge chairs for everyone. The food is good but monotonous (we were there for 2 weeks). The lobby bar is excellent. There is almost no activities in the evening. This is really a business hotel.

We stayed at this resort nov 14 to 21 2014. We found all of the staff eager to help us all of the time. Location was good. Close to Panama City and the Canal.the beach and the infinity pool were good. We were on 4th floor and all rooms faced the ocean. The grounds were beautiful. Well looked after. Very clean.

The resort was great!! The pools and the surroundings were always clean and the staff was amazing!! I recommend this resort!! The food in the morning and at lunch was so good and ok at supper time. The restaurant "À la carte" the Light House was incredible!! The staff was so friendly and very professional!