I read so many great reviews from here that I thought I was in for one hell of a treat. too say the least, I was very disappointed. I travelled with my boyfreind, May 31st - June 7th

First of all I'll start with the hour long ride. The driver drove very fast, at times over 100km an hour. The roads are bumpy and full of holes, we races around motorcyles (mostly had three people on them at a time) and work trucks that had about 20-30 men piled in the back. We we left a week later, the ride was almost two hours because it was a bigger bus and the driver drove normally. So if you get easlily car sick, pick a resort closer to the airport. I don't normally get car sick but I did on the way out.

The resort is ok looking, the grass is not green but more like a brown/yellow color. You can actually see where the water sprinklers come up as its very green in those small area. The front of the resort had real birds, peacocks, geese and flamigos. The lobby was nice, and very clean. The bathrooms in the Lobby were very hot and smelly, but each toilet had its own private room. Lots of palm trees with men climbing them and cutting down palm branches and coconuts. One even got one for me and cut it open for me to try the juice.

The rooms were horrible. They smelled like mold and the curtains had mold on them. I never felt clean at all when I was sleeping. The central air was ok. We could sleep just fine, but I just always felt dirty. We really didn't spend much time in our room anyhow, so this we really didn't care about.

The pool is the best part of the resort. Athough it had lots of wear and tear, it was cool, and clean. The tropical side is a little quietier then the other and we went there one morning when we wanted to be on our own for a bit. Both sides have a swim up bar, although we didn't drink overly too much in the day time. This is where we spent most of our time.

The beach is ok, brown sand and lots of coral so watch when you walk cause it will cut your feet. The water was dirty so we didn't swim there much. Not a picture perfect beach that one pictures when you go to the Carribean. If your looking for blue water and white sand.. move on. My boyfreind and I walked along the beach a bit and the locals would run down and bug you to shop in their stores.

The food was the worst part of the trip. We ate at 2 restaurants. The Mexican and the Japanese. The mexican I think gave me food poisoning and i woke up at about 3am very very ill... Vomiting. No one else in out group got sick and I was the only one who had a different meal. And it really wasn't very good. The Japanese was really good and we went there twice. It's entertaining and they cook everything in front of you so you know its good. They only give you 2 a la cartes. We hooked up with a fun couple from Quebec on the bus and when we booked, we booked for 4 and thats how one get more a la cartes (Hi Pierre and Genevieve). The buffet was so bad that when I would walk in there the smell would almost make me sick. Mostly what I ate for the whole trip was Watermelom, catalope and french fries. I was scared to eat any meat after I got sick, except for the Japanese restuarant. We heard that the BBQ at the beach was good, but I was too scared to try it. Maybe us Canadians and Americans are too picky (our Jersey friends hated the food as well), because our UK friends thought the food was fine.

We did two activities and also booked a massage. We booked though Roberto, a local who worked next to the towel hut. You can barter with him. We booked an ATV ride, two machines for $60 each. He wanted $80 each. and Parasailing. We got a crowd together and got a small discount. This one is not so easy to barter. We gave Roberto an Ottawa Sentors hat and shirt and he gave us some CD's and coffee... The ATV ride was really fun, we went through a village and the children would chase you in their bare feet looking for candy. I didn't bring any, but if i ever do that again I will. Dress to get dirty cause when I got back I was covered in mud. The parasailing, I got too scared and wouldn't go, so my boyfriend went alone. He loved it, they dipped him in the ocean a few times and keep him up there the longest out of our group. Finally we spend a day at the spa and booked 50 minutes massages. Well worth it, the best massage I ever had.

The best part of the trip was the people we meet. We hung out with a bunch of guys from New Jersey, 2 couples from the UK, our friends from Quebec and there would always be extra people around each night. We were the happening crowd. We went to the disco a couple of night, where you have to buy your drinks, but most nights were spent at the Lobby bar. Fun fun fun !!! Oh - and if your a sports fan,. out front where all the little shops are, there is a sports bar with a couple of small TV's. We dragged all of our friends over there to watch the Stanley Cup final. Thats right Jersey boys - we saw the game too..... :)

All in all I will NOT go back, in fact I don't think I would go back to Punta Cana in general.

And hi too all our friends - Jenna, Paul, Nikki, Rob, Jersey and all the boys, Peirre and Genevieve.... and all the other fine folks we hung out with.

L & P

Just got back from a really fun vacation in Punta Cana. Here is a lengthy review - hope it helps! :)

What to expect when you get there:
My fiance and I are seasoned travellers and have stayed at multiple all-inclusive resorts in the Caribbean. All have had their ups and downs - the first thing that really appeared to be a "down" point was the trip from the Punta Cana airport to the hotel. I read the reviews and thought the driving was an exaggeration - it isn't! The Sirenis Tropical/Cocotal is approximately a 1 hour drive from the airport on roads that have not seen a touch of maintenance since their inception - which must have been many, many...many years ago. It is like trying to drive across swiss cheese for over an hour on a mad swerving bus with other vehicular obstacles in the way to boot. One lady was actually ill on the bus from motion sickness. My fiance enjoyed how scenic the ride was and wasn't bothered by motion sickness, so for him it wasn't bad. For me, however...
- The moral of this story?? If you can afford an extra $50 US - take a cab from the airport. It's worth it I'm sure - some individuals at the resort told us they use it every time and it makes a tremendous difference.

Arriving at the hotel after such an epic journey was a massive relief. We were greeted with a welcome cocktail and check-in was no problem at all. Bags were taken and delivered to the rooms automatically and I noticed immediately that there was no hovering or pressure for tips that I have gotten at every other resort. We gave one anyway and meandered over to our room.

The Rooms:
We booked on the Tropical Suites side of the resort. It is essentially the same as the Cocotal side, however with the suites you get a separate living room and television, which is nice if one of you wants to crash earlier than the other - the room is separate and has a door to the bedroom which can be closed for quiet. The rooms are nothing particularly fancy but very clean and quite spacious. There is a mini bar which is stocked daily with pop and water. Television stations have plenty of english selections and movie networks which were appreciated on the couple of days we had of torrential downpours and didn't feel like leaving the room for a few hours.
We stayed in the Q block which was closer to the beach than to the main resort. It made for quite the trek to the main lobby and bar areas, but it was also close to the pool.
Our room was kept clean the whole time - we brought little dollar store goodies for the maid which we left on the first day and tipped every other day, but the days we did not didn't seem to matter much when it came to the quality of the maid service.
I must point out something - take this as you will: One night we came home late to find the floor of our bedroom was completely and utterly covered with bug WINGS. It was disgusting and bizarre as we did not leave the door open but we left the light on - I always leave one on when I leave the room for extended periods to make it appear as though it is occupied. We immediately called the front desk in a panic and the man at reception seemed annoyed and told us that happens when we leave the light on. They did, however, immediately send over someone to clean and vacuum the room and spray around the outside doors. It took about 15 minutes but there was zero evidence of anything amiss when they were finished. Still, we were really put off and wanted a room change, however we were too exhausted to switch rooms and the bug situation seemed completely localized to the floor area, so we sucked it up and stayed the night there. The next morning the maid was in first thing and mopped and changed all the linens. There was absolutely not so much as a single mosquito in the room for the remainder of the trip following that experience. Again, take that situation as you will. We are relatively laid back and attributed the situation to being in a tropical country where there is an ample supply of bug-life, not due to a lack of vigilence in the cleaning service. Again though, it was quite bizarre because the doors and windows appear to seal very well when closed. I suppose the thing to do is just keep the lights off!

Other things to note - always plenty of hot water. Room service is free with the Nolitours package - we ordered it once for a lark and found the selection and quality were no different from what you would find at the buffet. Still, if you're lazy, it's a nice option! ;)

The Food:
We came during off-season, and as a result only one of the buffets was open for breakfast. The main beach buffet is open for lunch but not dinner. The buffet fare was standard for a 4 star resort - some of the items were delicious and some were...not. Always had fresh grilled fish which I ate at every meal...very yummy! There should be something for everyone though - just be prepared to not eat any fresh vegetables for the week. The veggies they do have are steamed to the point that they are like mushy baby food, and nearly everything is deep-fried - including the bacon! Not a resort I would recommend to someone with high cholesterol ;). We went to four of the a la cartes - the Mexican, Steakhouse, Japanese, and the Italian. We had absolutely no problems with reservations - again, this could be due to the fact that it was off-season. The Japanese was REALLY good and the best of the lot. We really found the Italian quite disgusting -however, if you get the pizza it's a little bit more palateable. Steakhouse was ok, but then I ate a burger as I am not a steak fan. My group seemed to enjoy their steaks, however. Note: Everyone I spoke to had a food poisoning situation when eating at the Mexican restaurant. I didn't, though, but my meal turned out to be fried when it arrived at the table whereas other dishes were not. Some got ill from the buffet - but many people seem to ignore the fact that this is an extremely hot climate which means that food can spoil easily! Stay away from anything made with eggs (mayos), dairy (milk, alfredo sauce, etc) or any meat that is improperly cooked (for me, this includes cold cuts). This has been my rule of thumb for years and I have NEVER gotten ill.

The best buffet for lunch is the beach buffet - there is a BBQ pit which seemed to serve exactly the same fare as either of the buffets but was very popular nonetheless.

Snacks at night were actually delicious - served in the lobby buffet and a very wide selection (pizza, taters, toast, cold cuts, fruits and more).

Alcohol:
The negative: Alcohol is now only served until midnight, despite what the brochure told us. We didn't want to drink our faces off, contrary to how it may seem with my complaining about it, however we would like to be able to have a glass of wine past midnight on occasion and the only way to do this is if you go to the casino and gamble - then they will provide drinks. As well, the disco charges for alcohol and will not even let you bring in a drink - they have to be disposed of prior to entry, which was really obnoxious. Also in terms of alcohol, it IS watered down, and I challenge anyone to dispute that. Premium alcohol is available when asked for, though I feel sometimes it was not always provided. Anyway, alcohol situation was not necessarily a major complaint, as the drinks were plentiful and tasty, but still an annoyance nonetheless.

Entertainment:
We went to one show. It was somewhat entertaining for the first 15 minutes, but there were always the same handful of British guys that hogged the stage and acted obnoxious and even rude to the performance staff. Still, if you're there in a big group and prepared to participate, it might be entertaining for you. We went the first night and then avoided the rest of the time.
In terms of daytime entertainment - we never participate and thus can't comment... people seemed to be really enjoying themselves though!

The Beach:
Very nice but not perfect. I was expecting white sand but it was more on the yellow side. Still, it was soft and clean and swept daily, with many available chairs and palapas to choose from. I didn't see any of the annoying "chair-reservers" at this resort - again, could be due to the season, but refreshing nonetheless. The water was warm and clean, and if you brought goggles or snorkling gear (otherwise provided by the resort for free but only for one hour intervals), you would be treated to the sights of schools of tropical fish of all sizes and colors swimming around the rock formations. Speaking of rock formations - they were plentiful. Parents, monitor your children! Better yet, get them water-shoes. We bashed our feet and legs on several occasions. Coral is a problem in the swimming zones. But I spent many an hour floating on my back and soaking up the sun without issue. Could be worse!

Miscellaneous:
Sirenis is at the far end of the Bavaro strip and the only other closest resort is a 40 minute walk down the beach. The resort is Dreams. Go there! It's LOVELY. We walked down one day and took off our wristbands so they couldn't identify that we weren't from that resort, and then wandered around it for the day just soaking in how lovely the grounds and pools were. Dreams, unlike our resort, was pack with people (seemingly all Americans), and seemed to have a very lively atmosphere. The walk to Dreams is the best part though. It's a beautiful walk away from any civilization and makes you really feel the whole tropical experience. Halfway down the beach is a little tourist gift shack - BUY FROM THERE - the items are exactly the same as the gift shops on either immediate side of the resort but you can get them for half the price. We bought a bottle of rum, a necklace, two ornaments for $11. The rum alone at the resort shops is $12-15 and extremely difficult to negotiate.

Speaking of shopping, never have I encountered such aggressive salespeople as I have here - almost (ALMOST) as bad as the vendors in Morocco - which is saying something! They refuse to give prices on individual items to try to get you to buy more and then inflate the price considerably and outrageously - then act horrified if you tell them it's too expensive. (one guy actually tried to sell me a necklace made of shell for $150.00!). They don't force themselves on you in the resort like they do off of it, but one off the hotel vendor "gentleman" told me that I was "the same as all Canadians - lookie lookie, take their time, but no buy." Then turned his back on me in a huff and refused to show me anything else. Huh. Anyway, you're supposed to negotiate and sometimes you can be successful, but it was such a stressful experience! If there is something you need, go to the place I mentioned before. Grab a bottle of Mamajuana while you are at it - delicious and "supposedly" an aphrodisiac ;).

BRING BUG SPRAY...not an issue during the day, but my legs got eaten alive in the evening. There is now malaria in the DR, so it's a good idea to be extra cautious.

That's basically it! VERY long I know. Aside from the horrific service that I have come to love and respect from Air Transat (not), the trip was just great (the airport personel in PC were atrociously rude, and attempt to get money from you when you check in - DON'T GIVE THEM ANY... if you are "over" the baggage limit - which we knew we were not but told we were, tell them you will pay with credit card at the gate and get a receipt. 9/10 you won't have to pay anything and you won't get ripped off). Also, don't count on deals at the duty free stores there - better off purchasing at the resort or from the airline.

All in all, a good resort. Not fantastic, but good. A solid four star. We'll go back to the DR again, but probably try a 5 star next time. It's very true when they say that you get what you pay for!

That's it - lengthy but detailed and I hope it helps!!

Thanks to an amazing couple - K and A - you guys helped make our trip fab!

We visited Sirenis Tropical in April of 2008 to get away from the cold of Antigonish, Nova Scotia and we went for a one week stay. We were overly pleased with the service, cleanliness. The food was excellent and beaches were incredible. If you visit Sirenis be sure to take the 2 hour ATV tour through Raymond and Paul who are located on the beach, who set up an excellent tour and are incredibly friendly to deal with. The tour takes you through many different locations including my personal favorite, a guided tour of a cave.

We would not hesitate to return to this resort if we were to plan another trip. 5 Stars!

Me and my Friend stayed in this hotel from 1st May - 15th May and had an AMAZING time!
We are two 18 year old girls from Birmingham/England and had the best time ever!!!

We didn't no what to expect at all but it was much better that what we imagined.

When we landed we had an hour journey to the hotel which was a bumpy ride but i was too busy looking out of the window at the locals to let it bother me. When we arrived at the hotel we checked in very quickly with no hassle (apart from getting chatted up by the receptionists) but trust me we got used to that.

Our room was really nice and was cleaned every day.
We went to a couple of the restaurants but mainly eat in the buffet which offers a veriety of food each day. I had one day where i had a bit of an upset stomach but i think everybody gets that, i didnt let it bother me.

The pool was really nice but very hot were as on the beach you get a really nice breeze. the beach is LOVELY we took part in the danicing and sports in the daytime on the beach.

We went on the Outback Safari, The shopping trip and the trip to Saona Island they were really good. The outback safari was really good we had so much fun and Saona island was like going to PARADISE!!!

We watched the shows every night they were really good and then we went to the Disco. We LOVED the weekends when the Locals came to stay at the hotel....they filled the disco and are GREAT dancers as i found out. Ok they loved me and my friend as we were two young English girls travelling alone but they didnt bother us, we talked to all of them and danced with them and made a few friends who i speak to every day on MSN and will be meeting in October when we return to the Dominican. They liven the place up, they mean no harm.

The entertainment staff were really friendly,a nd very popular with some of the young women travelling alone lol we made friends with all of them and they came to the Disco most night's with us.
The bar men were really nice to us and had a drink ready as soon as they saw us walking towards the bar.

We met some lovely people......Dean and Julie, Dave and Dot and Cliff and dianne who we are going to stay with this weekend!!!
We never felt like it was just the two of us on holiday because we were always wih different people.

In October we are going to stay in the Occidental Grand Flamenco....for the simple reason that they have the club called Mangu on site. but i think we are going to spend the whole two weeks comparing the holiday to the Sireins hotel because it was such a nice hotel.

Anyway i would recommend this hotel to anybody of all ages, it has something for everyone. I will deifintaely be returning int he future.