My husband and I just spent a week in Barcelo and we had a great time.
It,s only about 20 minutes from the airport, which is great.we really liked the
food,and the staff was very friendly and helpful,service was great! the beach was
fantastic and so was the pool! I realy enjoyed the events near the pool everyday.
the events were done by some great young men ,especially one by the name of
Edgar and also Juan aka Rayo Boc . 5 stars for them!
The entertainment at night was alot of fun too!

We have travelled all over the world and have been to many Caribbean resorts as well, so feel that we can offer you a fair review. We just got back from a week at Barcelo and think it is a very good resort in an excellent location. It is close to the airport and the actual city and is small enough that everything within the resort is handy as well.

Pros:
Spotlessly Clean - we can't imagine that people complain about the cleanliness. Staff were constantly cleaning the pool, manicuring the grounds, scrubbing the grout in the tiled walkways and picking up discarded cups/glasses etc. The trees were even tidied up after a major rainstorm. Yes the paint is rubbing off of the pool floor but it is very clean and well maintained and not a hazard at all.
Rooms - basic but have everything essential. Tv, hair dryer, iron/board, fridge and even a soap/shampoo/conditioner dispenser in the shower. Our beds were made up every time we napped and were turned down at night. 110 outlets were very handy. Fridge stocked with beer, pop, juice boxes and salty snacks.
Water - seemed clean although we never drink it. Pressure was definitely low during the dinner hours when everyone was showering, but that is to be expected. Bottled water was available everywhere and was no issue to obtain.
Food - exceptionally good. We only did 3 restaurants, Italian, Oriental and SeaFood. All were very tasty with nice presentation. Buffet was vast and had numerous options. ie: every morning you had egg choices, pancakes, french toast, meats, veg, fruits, cheeses, breads, pastries, cereals and yoghurts. Lunch and Dinner were similar with additional meat choices, pastas, rice dishes and fresh salad items. if you complain about the food, you certainly must be fussy because there was really nothing missing from the buffet at all.
Beach- large, very clean and great for swimming. Small reef to snorkel in, and very close to the resort. Yes there were 81 vendors walking the beach, but with a friendly "no thank you, have a nice day"...they always went away. We chatted with some (by choice) and found them to be very kind and interesting people....and normally I find vendors very irritating.
Grounds - lovely mangrove to walk through, well kept walkways and foliage. Very attractive and romantic. Lots of shaded areas at the beach and near the pool. Small lizards and lovely birds all over.
Pools - clean and large enough, with swim up bar. Enough activities and yet not too many that it was disturbing.
Staff- reasonably friendly and did not seem motivated by tips at all, which is nice.
Alcohol - top shelf liquor available. Drinks were plentiful and tasty.

Cons -
Accessibility - would be a bit tricky for someone in a wheelchair or with a walker because of the stairs to the a la cartes and the tightness between tables in the buffet. But otherwise the walkways are perfectly fine, as is the beach area. We carried our stroller up and down the stairs to our room with no problems.
Chairs - definitely an issue but only due to the rudeness of other guests who place towels over sunloungers that they are not using. Quite frustrating. Shame on them.

NOISE LEVEL - this is my one major beef. We were in building 10 and we might as well have been on the stage because the noise was overwhelming. We likely could have ignored the situation except that we had a 2 year old with us. Most buildings near the pool/ampitheatre area will be noisy and 10 also gets the noise from the resort behind. i would suggest avoiding it.

Overall - this is one of our favorite resorts and definitely our fave in Puerto Plata. It was clean, safe and fun but small and intimate. service was good, food was delicious and the location was superb.

My wife and i ,have stayed here for the last 6 years ,we have met many great friends over the years and they also keep returning ,we even got married here in 2010,everyone is very helpful( the bar men,the waiters and the cleaners )food is great,always something to eat here,the buffet is fine,Italian is great,Brazilian is great,Mexican is also great,never tried the seafood,the rooms are fine,people forget that the Dom rep is a up and coming country and that the stars are not the same as in there own country,the venders on the beach do come up to you,but a polite no thanks and they walk off,and most of the time they leave you alone,you have to remember they are only doing there job.hope to be back again

resort is tired and needs some sprucing up...the food was good as were the restaurants...the beach was great except for the vendors...they are extremely annoying...but they leave you alone once you say no thanks...what seems odd to me is that the vendors seem to be only at the Barcelo...we walked the beach daily and they seem to be only located at the Barcelo...the ground of the resort are wonderful...many small buildings surround a central courtyard and pool area...we didn't seem to have a problem getting beach or pool chairs but I don't think the resort was full...cable car and shopping tour were good though they could get rid of the rum factory which was a bottling plant only...5 minutes and done...waste of time...and 2 jewellry stores...not really necessary...all in all we had a good time and the price was right...I guess if you expect awesome food and pristine rooms you must pay for them...please Barcelo do something about the vendors...some guests I talked with will not go back because of this