The beauty of the lush green trees, flowers and water cannot be matched, however we should have been warned about the insects. I was bit by "no see ums" simply from walking on the beach and then in the evening while watching shows. This ruined my vacation because I literally had no relief and still do not and it's been a week. People should be warned from their travel agent or website about this potential problem.

The other disappointment was the draining of the large pool and swim up bar. During our stay we had a couple days of the pool and the next thing we know, the water was gone and several locals were chipping away the tiles by hand.

On a positive note the staff was extremely friendly and more than eager to assist and make you feel welcomed. The food was acceptable and the vendors were not over bearing. I would not return simply because of the insects.

Hi,

I spent two lovely weeks with my girlfriend here, and arrived home 19/05/08 (wish I was still there).

First of all, I really don't understand how all these bad reviews can be written. These people were either very unlucky with their holiday, or are the type of people that live to complain.

Right, here's my little summary of the holiday:

Flight:
Uneventful, smooth. Pretty boring, took us from A to B - Nothing to do with the holiday really.

Arrival:
When we arrived, our room wasn't quite ready. So we were given our all-inclusive band, and told to go and have a drink for a few minutes whilst we waited. Not ideal, but not the end of the world!

Room:
The room was basic and very clean - all you need from a room. There is a TV if you are planning on staying in, and I believe you could get a remote control from reception if need be. There was plenty of wardrobe space, a table, drawers etc... The bathroom was fine, hot water when ever we needed it, and the shower got you clean. We also had a balcony overlooking one of the pools (The larger one in the middle of the complex, it's quieter than the other). I do recommend requesting building 5 or 6, as these are nicer and better located.

Pool:
The pools looked lovely and were cleaned every morning before they opened. We used the larger pool near to our room. The pool opened at 9am and closes at 6pm, although most of the time people stayed in 'til around 7, it just means you're swimming at your own risk, as there's no lifeguard.

Food/Drink:
I found the food very nice, but I'm not a very fussy eater. At breakfast, there was lots to chose from, including fresh fruit, cereals or cooked breakfasts. There is a chef that makes omlettes infront of you or fried eggs, all you have to do is put what you want in it in a bowl, and hand it over. They were lovely. Lunch pretty much involved getting a hot-dog or burger from the bar, but I rarely ate at lunch time. Dinner was also great. You could either eat at the buffet, or book one of the 3 a la carte restaurants (Mexican, Grill & Italian). My favourite was the Grill. There is also a Pizzeria next to the smaller pool, which I didn't find out about until the last day - which I was a bit gutted about. Overall, lots of choice. The drinks were like anywhere that's all inclusive really, strong and plentiful. I once ordered a Jack Daniels & Coke, and it cost $8.

Entertainment:
Not my cup of tea really, but it was fine for some background noise whilst you drink and chat. They did try hard and rehearsed during the day.

Excursions:
I went on two. Ocean world and the VIP yacht to Cayo Paraiso "Paradise Island". Paradise Island was fantastic. You can either get the normal speed boat trip straight to the island, spend some time there, then come back. Or you can do the whole yacht thing, which costs a bit extra, but I think it's worth it. First we were taken by coach to the coast somewhere, where there was a speed boat waiting to take us to the yacht. Once we got to the yacht, we were greeted with a fruit coctail with rum (lovely). We then sailed to another place, taking about 1 hour and a half, whilst being served drinks. Then we all jumped off for a swim in the lovely warm, clear water and floated around getting your drinks bought to you on a floating bar (great invention). Once back on board, you could have champagne and oysters. We then arrived at another beach, where you get your lunch (all included by the way). After lunch, you are taken to Paradise Island on a speed boat. The sea there is amazing, like a pool. If you can swim, then you can snorkel over the coral reef where there are tonnes of fish (take an underwater camera). You then get taken back to the coach where you are driven home. Ocean world was cool too, swam with dolphins which was nice!

Overall:
Great holiday, great value for money. Would recommend to the pope, let alone a friend!

I went to Puerto Plata this past February with a group of friends and stayed at this resort. I was very satisfied with the attentiveness particularly in taking care of logistical details. There was a shuttle bus that picked us up from the airport and dropped passengers off at different resorts. The next morning we met our representative that gave us all the information regarding excursions, currency exchange and other tourist need-to-know.

The resort itself is okay. Definitely not a 5-class spa resort for honeymoon couples. But I had a great time hanging out with friends. I liked our room because overlooked the pool and the beach. The 2 pools were really nice and what I imagined a nice vacation to be. The beach area of this resort is not that great. When we walked to the other end where there was a market place, the water looked so much more clear and the sand felt nicer.

I enjoyed the buffet though they seemed to serve the same thing everyday. I liked that the dining hall was large enough and we could always find a big table (cos there were 8 of us). And I can't say that the a-la-cart meals were extraordinary either, it was the same quality food as the buffet but with someone serving you.

The evening entertainment wasn't that good, actually kinda lame. We mostly did our own thing or went to Mengu which was a club near by. But excursions were worth it, we had a lot of fun riding ATVs, parasailing and touring the country side.

The only major complain I had was that the main bar always smelled like somebody just threw up. It smelled disgusting.

A group of 15 of us just got back from vacationing at this hotel. upon arrival it seemed nice. Howver, in our room we had no hot water. Our friends in the same building had no hot water either. After 4days of complaining, requesting a new room, being told lies, and most importantly no hot water (not even warm water) we recieved a room switch because i had a friend flirt with the manager. If you want to speak to a manager-good luck!! he is either at lunch or not there, it seems there is no one in charge. The staff wasn't very helpful either. the people at the front desk have no authority to help you when a problem arises and because there is no manager you are absolutely screwed.
the food at the hotel was pretty bad. the buffet had receycled food from the day before and did not look very fresh, not that i require fresh food but it looked like it was reused food from a few days back. the steakhouse is alright and the italian is ok make sure you don't order the fusili because the taste is terrible.
If you are going to book a tour make sure you know exactly what you're getting because the tour operated we booked with lied about what we were going to do on an excursion. we were promised a party yatch and champagne and all we got was a 4 hr bus ride and 2 hr of snorkling.
the beach for the resort was alright but the water was dark and murky. if you walked down the beach two resorts over the water was clear and clean..it makes one wonder!
if you're going to party the hotel has a beach bar but it closes at two. within the hotel the bars stop serving alcohol at 1230, not one am.
even though its cheap i wouldn't recommend this hotel, spend an extra few bucks and stay at the barcelo.