nice resort but do not book an ocean view as no rooms have a full ocean view only the presidential suites located at the front of the property, If you book an ocean view you are paying for ocean view but your room will be overlooking the pool, you will have a very limited view of the ocean off in the distance if you hang your head out over the balcony. it is definitley not worth spending extra money booking an ocean view when you will not truly receive it.

Our room was on the 1st floor facing an employee alley way. Workers constantly walking by, there was no way we could sit outside. The room was poorly lit, and smelled musty. Besides bedside spot lighting for reading, there was one lamp with a 15 watt bulb. The fan had a weak light also, but the overall effect at night was dim. We had two double beds, and when they offered a different room on the 2nd floor the next day, it was a room with a king size bed that also smelled musty.
I was disappointed that there was no mention of their sister hotel being family friendly. Three of the better restaurants are located at the family resort. Happy hour you have children in the bar and for dinner in the restaurants. If you expect adult only,don't come here.

My husband and I as well as another couple (best friends) just returned from a week at this lovely resort. We have been to several other all-inclusive resorts and so far Secrets has never disappointed. This resort was no exception! We LOVED it!!! Many have said much so I will give some highlights!!

Check In - We arrived at about 4 PM and told our rooms were ready. Check-In was quick and efficient, but one of the few areas I did not feel "the love". Cheryl was almost rude and blunt. Handed us a welcome kit with zero explanations, the "required" welcome but little else. This was not a great first impression, but this was definitely the exception.

Rooms - Our rooms were not quite ready when we got to them, but we waited a minute or two. No problem. Beds & pillows were very comfortable. Our rooms were always cleaned, towels replaced, fridge stocked and beds turned down. Towel art and flower petals most evenings.

Beaches - I personally think DR beaches are some of the most gorgeous in the world. Is there some seaweed as others have commented?? It is the ocean people! The beaches are swept daily and raked by hotel landscape staff constantly. There is only so much they can do. Reserving of chairs is an issue. Even when I went to the beach at 6:30 AM to photograph the exquisite sunrise, MANY chairs were already reserved with towels etc.. I would STRONGLY suggest Royal Beach take a lesson from Maroma Beach Secrets. They really do enforce the rule that if your belongings are left on chairs at the pool or beach for a certain length of time they will be removed. Here they have the rule but it is not enforced. Also at Maroma Beach there are beach and pool concierges that will find you as many chairs as you need together. A nice touch...Royal Beach should try it. So here you either play the game or settle for a less than prime spot. No big deal really as the whole beach area is beautiful and spacious, but just a suggestion.

Pools - Pools were clean well maintained. There are plenty of quiet areas if you prefer to be away from the action. The area around the swim up bar is fun and lively, but never any pressure to participate. The configuration of the pool area is odd. There could be more chairs around the pool as mentioned, but we spent our time in the water or at the swim up bar. The guys at the swim-up bar are wonderful and the drinks are tasty. Top shelf is available upon request. Hats off to Jose and Izameel. (Not spelled correctly)

Entertainment Staff - I will say it again and I will say it now...the Entertainment staff is nothing short of Phenomenal !!! These young men and women work very LONG days and are continually full of energy. They provide constant fun, never pressure anyone to participate, and can deliver the instructions in 4 or 5 different languages. They seem to TRULY enjoy everything they do. They are having so much it is impossible not to have fun with them or watching them.

Food - We are definitely NOT picky eaters. We thought the food was great. Did we love EVERYTHING we tasted?? No. Are some of their foods different and not to our liking? Of course. Breakfast at the buffet was always good. Lots of choices, omelet and smoothie stations, and Mimosas or Bloody Mary's ...what's not to like. As in all the restaurants, the service was EXCELLENTE !! We ate at many of the ala carte restaurants. Never waited for a table. Seaside Grille - great. Capers (Italian) - Good French - Fabulous. Spice (Japanese) great. ( we did not do Hibachi just ordered off the menu) The grill on the beach for lunch was very tasty. Try the burgers (thick and Juicy) and the chicken. We tried the NOW grille for lunch one day and could really see the difference. Secrets side was much better for beach grill.

Excursions - We did the party boat snorkeling trip that was sold by the guys on the beach. Snorkeling was VERY disappointing. The vests they provided were cheap blow up things and they provided NO Flippers. I snorkeled many times and this was the worst equipment ever. The party part was fun though. Lots of cheap rum, music and fun. We also did the Xtreme Buggy 1/2 day trip. It was a BLAST. Beware you will be covered with mud!!!

Overall I can not say enough (and I have said a lot) about the service and staff of this gorgeous resort. We will be back!!

My husband and I stayed at Secrets Royal Beach on 2/2/13-2/9/13. This was our second time in Punta Cana. We had an awesome time. The staff was super friendly and the food was delicious. We loved the hot tub on our balcony, the property was always super clean and always smelled nice. We loved the spa! Isidro was very nice and showed us how to use the showers, sauna, steam room and pools at the spa. All though the prices may seem a bit pricey they are definitely worth it! Adriana and Lourdes were our therapists and they also were very nice and did an awesome job! We'll definitely do the spa thing again. We enjoyed a romantic dinner on the beach for our 11 year anniversary. Sandoval was our waiter and he had to be one of the nicest people we met! He was funny, friendly, and attentive! The romantic dinner was well worth the price and we will definitely do it again. Sea Side Grill has very yummy steaks and appetizers! Starlyn was very nice. Oceana has delicious fish and seafood dishes, my favorite was the creme brûlée! Juan Carlos the manager was awesome and our waiter Juan Carlos was very friendly and hardworking. The buffet also had lots of yummy food. Abigail was super sweet! She greeted us every morning at the buffet for breakfast. There was a very sweet lady that worked at the pasta station for lunch, we never got her name, but she was very nice. The entertainment team always kept us laughing. Akon, Cinthia and Francisco were our favorites! Juan Carlos the manager over at the bar in the lobby was also very friendly. The evening entertainment was awesome, the JEERK show was our favorite.

The only issue we had, was with Cesar from AMStar. We purchased a Sunny Day Snorkel excursion after being told that we didn't need to know how to swim. We questioned him on how deep the water would be since we both do not know how to swim. Cesar told us the water would be about 4 to 5 feet deep. When we arrived to the snorkeling area, the water was over 10ft deep and we could not participate. We spent $180 on this excursion. When we spoke to Cesar about how unhappy we were with the excursion, he gave us the run around. He said he would speak with the people from Sunny Day and get back to us regarding a credit or partial reimbursement. When we tried to get a hold of him, he was always "unavailable". At check out, he completely ignored us. I will never do business with Cesar from AMStar again, and I'm hesitant to purchase anything from AMStar as well.

Overall, we had an excellent time and will definitely be staying at Secrets Royal Beach or any AMResort in the future!!
<3 The Pinhos