I was at the Dreams Palm Beach this past November with my family. We had a pretty good time. Lots of families. Probably not the place to go if you are looking for romantic seclusion. Their is variety in food. But, the quality of food is average. The rooms are well appointed. The bar tenders poor the drinks strong if you request. The wifi is very, very poor. Definitely not the place you want to go if you need to do any work. There is a business center in the preferred club, which I highly recommend as it grants you access to the lounge, business center,
as well as the beach side restaurant which is the best place for lunch. Stay away from the casino, it's a rip off. They tilt the rules and hence odds of even the most basic games, including blackjack, in their favor.

The staff truly make it or break it on a self contained resort such as Dreams Palm Beach. Seeking to simply relax and enjoy sun, libations, good food and pleasant surroundings/staff; we were not disappointed. Desiring these stated objectives requires upgrading to the "preferred" level to get you into a smaller population, not a "different" population as someone else seemed to suggest (hmmm...?). This provides a smaller restaurant crowd for breakfast and lunch and a smaller bar for cocktails. The smaller pool limits the crowd and there aren't noisy activities going on around you. If you like the activities, swim up bars, contests, loud music and beach grills then there is no need to do the preferred version and you can save the money. This time we just needed the total break from all things frenzied so this was a great choice.

We did go to the World Café and service there was inconsistent based on placement and assignment of wait staff. Avoid George in the morning if you can. The food there was nice for choices when you felt like it, go early in the morning 7 or 7:30 for better service, better seating and selection and quieter atmosphere. If you can't find something to eat there to your liking, stay home because you are impossible to satisfy! Very, very nice selection with made to preference items from omelets to pizza's. Sandwiches, salads, fresh fruits galore, you get the idea.

Here's what makes a great staff. The preferred manager, Kary helped me with a medical issue without a moments hesitation and a genuine smile on her face. She even moved us to a room that made it easier for me to enjoy my vacation. She checked on me a couple of times to insure all was well and I felt she went above and beyond. Kary demonstrates top notch professionalism that goes that extra step that makes her someone noteworthy, kudo's to her. Special mention to the other lovely ladies in the club there, Kenia and Jolia for their sweetness and Eunice the best little bartender in the Caribbean!

The beach and foliage are absolutely stunning on this resort, the care that is taken is obvious. The sand is white and soft, laying on the chairs and sand is luxurious. The salesmen for the hotel itself are OBNOXIOUS! They are constantly trying to sell you something. Every time you came near the cool lobby bar or the shops or other restaurants they were tracking you down, that really was the one and only annoying thing about the entire experience.

When I want to stay in the Four Season's, I do. When I want to stay at an all inclusive, I would definitely recommend this one. If you don't like something, politely speak up and they will accommodate you gladly. Enjoy!

Better late than never right?! We stayed at Dreams Palm Beach from May 3-10 2012 as a group of 18. I stayed in the Preferred Club suite and the rest of our group was in the regular rooms.

Check in was very flawless. We were given mimosas as soon as we arrived and everyone was to their rooms quickly. Myself being booked at the preferred club was escorted to the check in area for that. Very accommodating and friendly.

My room was fantastic. (Bldg 6 if memory serves me correctly) Right next to the poolside bar and closest to the beach. I had 2 bathrooms (one with a full jacuzzi tub, and shower) a dinette area, living room area and separate bedroom with 2 patios. It was very clean, everything worked and I had zero complaints about my room.

The other travellers I was with did have a few issues with their rooms but nothing major. One room had a toilet overflow in their room which was problematic. They were moved the next day. Another had a bed break when they sat on the end. They were moved the next day as well. One other room was switched as well but not due to the room itself but one guest had a bad back so they needed the lower floor to avoid the stair as there are no elevators.

The entertainment staff is the best Ive ever seen. Gasolina was such a character and interacts and makes everyone feel at home. Whether it was getting people up and playing games around the pool or on the beach or at the nightly shows these guys really do make the stay extra special.

Food was really good and very consistent the entire stay. Our entire group agreed that the best experience we had was at the Himitsu restaurant. Very interactive, and great food. I personally have allergies to seafood and they were good enough to cook everything before they added the shrimp so I could partake in dinner with our whole group. The World Cafe buffet we ate at every morning for breakfast and many times for lunch as well when we werent on the beach eating at the barefoot grill or on an excursion. The barefoot grill was pretty basic. Hotdog, hamburger, fries or pizza. I dont think there was anything else but it was decent. The Bordeaux was probably our least favorite. There was not a huge selection of food and service was slower. Seaside grill was pretty good food too from what I remember though I may have had a few too many drinks that night and my memory doesnt serve very well LOL. The Coco cafe serves mostly coffee, and some desserts. I didnt go much but others we were with did enjoy and go daily.

The bar service was fantastic. LOTS of alcohol. In fact I had to ask for "little" alcohol most of the time as if not sometimes it was hard to drink. No shortage for sure. Bar service on the beach and around the pool where they come ask you if you want anything and bring it right to you. Try to have some $1's on you for tips. Your drinks come much faster when they are tipped. We spent a lot of time around the swim up bar. :)

The beach was beautiful. It was very well maintained and not much seaweed at all... as it comes up they clean it up. Vendors are only allowed to come up the beach a little bit so they dont really bug you that much. Theyll wave you down to where they are allowed to be and offer you "credit" if you dont have money on you. Harmless though persistent.

Wifi in the preferred club is included. It was very choppy though. You are given a code that gives you I believe 3 hours or so access. When youve used that you need to go back to the preferred club concierge to get another code. Theres also another pool that only preferred club can use but I didn't use it. It was much smaller than the main pool and seemed to be a bit quieter.

We did some great excursions that we booked through our sunwing rep. The dune buggy excursion was hands down amazing and the group favorite. We dune buggied to the most beautiful beach where we were able to swim. We had hit every possible puddle found on the way there so it was a relief to get a little clean. We then went on to a cave. We were able to jump off platforms into the most crystal clear crater hole. It was great fun. We also did swimming with the sharks and stingrays - It was a great catamaran trip. The sharks pretty much stay to the bottom of the enclosure and dont really come near you. The stingrays you do interact with but the guides hold them for the most part. We also did a backcountry jeep safari full day and it was fantastic as well... we had a very friendly, knowledgable driver and guide and we saw so much (school, church, boogie boarding, etc).

Overall the experience was fantastic and Id recommend it to anyone. Hoping our next trip lives up to this last one.

RECEPTION AND ACCOMODATION

We visited Dreams Palm Beach as a couple at the end of February and during the first two weeks in March. Our reception was friendly, efficient and professional. No wrist bands were required. We felt the first room offered had insufficient space for womens long dresses and there was no bath so we upgraded from De Luxe Tropical View to Preferred Club Jacuzzi with Tropical View. The advertised cost was $80.00 but we had no difficulty at all reducing this to $70.00. Was it worth it? No! not for the room itself. There was no more space but there were other benefits. These included the a la carte restaurant Seaside Grill right on the beach for breakfast and lunch, snacks and premium drinks in the Preferred Club lounge, a private beach area with more comfortable wooden loungers, a personalised service at the lounge concierge desk and unlimited internet access.

ENVIRONMENT

The gardens are clean, green and delightful. The walk from reception to the beach passes the large pool and does not take long as the campus is wide rather than long. It is not difficult to see why the Dreams is named Palm beach as the resort has plenty of them as well as colourful tropical shrubs. The beach has soft white sand and yes there is seaweed but it is cleaned twice daily and as for complaints about this well come on nature tends to be messy sometimes. The beach is crowded with guests even in the preferred club area. It is possible to walk for ages especially if one turns left. There are beach vendors but I cannot understand complaints about them. They enjoy a little banter even if you do not buy and they need to earn a living. I was quite pleased with myself on stopping to look at a painting and being urged to buy. I joked maybe next year at which I had to accept a better reply from him when he offered to keep it for me for a small deposit. The pool loungers are placed very close together even in the preferred club area but it is easy to find shade.

FOOD AND DRINK AND SERVICE

The quality of the raw ingredients is high. Vegetables, fish, lobster and prawns, chicken pork and beef are superb as are the fruit and salads. The overall dishes are sometimes disappointing as sauces can taste as if they come out of a catering pack and plates are often cold so food does not stay warm long especially in the World Cafe.
There are five specialist restaurants which can be visited as often as you like. Our first visit was to the Himitsu Asian restaurant. We sat at an ordinary table as the Teppanyaki table was full. Our meal was disappointing as though warm well cooked the Thai chicken with lemongrass had a sauce in which I could taste no spices, no chilli, no ginger and no lemongrass. The same applied to the chicken curry on our second visit. Both meals would be sent back in in the UK with a request for something authentic. The French Bordeaux was probably the best with a superbly cooked tenderloin steak but again spoiled by a poor sauce. The Italian and Seside grill are probably only worth visiting once just for the experience.
Tea (Twinings choices in a box ) and coffee are fine. The beer (bottles and draft) and white and red wine are drinkable. There is a white Sauvignon Blanc which is probably the best and a red Cabernet Sauvignon which we preferred. "Champagne" is also available If you dont like spomething ask for an alternative, The service we found without exception was excellent. The staff are clearly well trained.,

ENTERTAINMENT

There is a wide range of activities during the day and one hour long shows at night. We did not visit the show as we preferred sitting listening to the music at the poolside with a drink. There are many varieties of whisky available Scotch, Canadian and American. In the Preferred Club Lounge I enjoyed Remy Martin and Courvoisier brandies.

SUMMARY

Finally we had an enjoyable holiday. The food was acceptable if let down by the sauces but we could always find something we liked. In any case I find that food fatigue sets in after a while wherever you are and the choice here is very very wide. What did we think about the upgrade? This has to be a personal choice. The room is no bigger and the food is no better. However it was very pleasant eating a waiter served breakfast and lunch on the beach although the food itself is more limited and can be cold. Indeed the bread was poor. I enjoy crispy french style bread at breakfast but was served cinnamon bread and doughnuts and warm white bread sliced bread called toast The title "preferred club " is I think unfortunate as it somhow implies preferred guests. I saw no evidence of this just a few advantages. Would I go again? Probably not unless I could get a really good deal on the upgrade.