So, when I was planning my wedding, I knew that I wanted to do a destination wedding and combine the time with our honeymoon. When this hotel came up with our travel agent, we thought it would be a good fit for us and our guests based on the location and cost. We read through literally hundreds of reviews and realized that sometimes, you get what you give. Once I saw the reviews that focused on the positives of the resort, I knew that this might not be a five star hotel, but the food would be good, the people were friendly and the beach would be amazing.

Working with the Wedding Co-Ordinators, Rosa Rodriguez and Minerva was a great experience. She assisted with our stay and our 40 guests and was even able to remember most of their names which was an added touch. She was able to put together all the information we provided and turn it into a plan. Once we arrived, the staff was extremely friendly and we were well taken care of with an immediate upgrade to the Priveleged Suite. Our room was literally steps to the beach and woke up to the view of the beach every morning and a beautiful sunset every evening.

Some of the pros and cons were that the resort is so big that if you are located near the beach it is a good walk to the main dining hall. However, this is a benefit because you don't have to feel guilty about all the delicious food that you eat (or over eat) for each meal. Also, the rooms could do with a little updating but nothing that was a trip spoiler, truth be told, we were hardly in our rooms anyway.

Once we picked the actual location for the ceremony I felt even more at ease because it was perfect, private and shaded. The cocktail hour was fun and the reception hall was decorated perfectly. The food was delicious and the open bar was absolutely fantastic. Rosa added so many different touches that made the experience delightful. Small deserts were on the guest book table, the lighting in the hall, we also added a lesson of Meringue to the reception which was so much fun. The package also included a romantic dinner which was one of my favorite moments. We had a romantic four course dinner on the beach at night. The weather was perfect and Wander Porquin was our server. The dinner was the day after the wedding which was perfect to unwind with my new husband and go over the highlights of the day before.

Although all the staff was amazing, friendly and hospitable, Rosa, Minerva and Wander were the most memorable and we will never forget them or the experience and memory that they gave us.

After reading through the reviews, and actually staying here, I'm not sure if I just tolerate things better than others, or the people reviewing this property are idiots.

The first compalint you read about this resort is the food. Being an American, and coming to this resort, the food in no way is as good as we get in the States. Where else in the world is food as good as it in the States anyway? If you are a picky eater, do not go to this resort. The food is average at best. I am not a picky person, and realized my surroundings. I did not complain about the food, but I did not praise it. The food is abundant though and you will not be hungry. Good food items: pizza by the pool, the seafood in either buffet, Japanese restaurant (most like home) breakfast in the buffet area i.e. crepes, donuts, omelettes. And even thought the steak in the Steahouse are poor quality, I appreciated the grilled flavor.

Other major comaplint is the seaweed on the beach. and yes, ther is a lot. There are patches of the water that are clear though and great for hanging out and snorkeling. They do have resort workers everywhere cleaning it up, most of the time. beach is big, plenty of chairs to sit in. BEWARE: topless sunbathing is piopular here. Didn't bother me too much, but most of us are not use to that.

Resort is beautiful, well maintained. Some areas of the resort do need an upgrade, but I never once saw anywhere that made me unhappy. Bar tenders all over the resort are great. Our room was good, A/C worked all the time, almost too well, sun glasses would fog up everytime we came out of the room. Shower is a bit small, but not worth a complaint. PILLOWS WERE NOT LUMPY! But we were in the Privileged section. Never orderd room service. Never had a problem anywhere on the resort with service at all. Onyl time service was a bit slow was the buffet area in the main lobby. They would not awlays bring you a drink or napkin when you sat down with food. So we would get up, walk the 20 ft back to the buffet and get what we needed, or we would ask a worker, and they brought it over quickly.

The resort is big. Unless you are disabled or elderly, you should not have a problem walking around it though. It is not big enough to be a burden.

Would I come back to this resort? Probably not. Would I come back with a group of people who wanted a good expericence for the money they are spending? Yes.

Do not come here if you want peace and quite all week. Stay on the adults only side called the Royal Catalonia Bavaro. This is an upbeat resort with something going on all the time.

Giving this a 3 out of 5 is a bit low, but I can't give it a 4 out of 5.

Most positive aspects:
-Beautiful beach space, with the palm trees reaching the sea
-Well treated and wide gardens
-"Jacuzzi" like romantic circular tube in all bathrooms (not jacuzzi though!)
-Hammock in balcony
-Very nice show-cooking Japanese tematic restaurant
-The breakfast is nice, specially the natural juices
-The pizza by the pool
-The night shows, specially mister catalonia (very fun) and michael jackson tribute

Most negative aspects:
-Very poor professional employes (except most of the ones from the main restaurant and from the japanese bar) for a self proclaimed 5 stars hotel, in particular in the reception.
We booked for 14 nights (couple) and we got an old small room (comparing to the other of our single friend) with an extra bed on it tooking about 1/4 of the room space!!! The reception guy didnt care at all...we were only changed in the next day, and not even a simple excuse was given.
-When you arrive by night a strange "check-in" is made quickly in the middle of the airpoty parking lot, not very pleasant at all.
-In general poor mantained rooms, needing a renovation. Our first room had an old air-conditioning device with was absolutelly noisiy, impossible to sleep with it turned on.
-We were there for 2 weaks and the bed was not changed at all. The bathroom towels were not also always replaced when they were taken for wash. The pillows are TERRIBLE!!! We asked for extra 2, and they were the same - lumpy and old (i could say they were the best pillows in any hotel/hostel I have been to).
-The beach towels are not washed!!! Maybe they are machine dried (beacause they are hot when you get them), but completely salty everyday!!!
-In the main restaurant, although there is a lot of diversity, the food quality, specially the meat, is not very good in general.
-The beach restaurant is not very good

It was my first time going to Dominican Republic with my friend so we were both really excited to get away from the city for a week. We booked through travelocity for a decent price - affordable for students in desperate need for a vacation. The check-in was smooth and the staff were friendly, however, I was disappointed that no one even tried to help us carry our luggage. I had to carry all of my stuff all the way to the far side of the resort (near the beach).

Our room was really nice and cozy. The TV was really old, but it had pretty good channels. My friend and I watched a lot of movies as well. We had a little patio outside with a hammock which was nice, but one time we saw a cockroach and we never went there again. I also liked how our cleaning lady Maria cleaned our room everyday. I liked how she did something new with the towel design everyday.

For the first few days, we stayed at the beach and the pool mostly. The Animacion entertainment team invited us to play games with them and dance at the beach. My team won so we got a little certificate and got to stand on stage on the awards night. We met a couple of people that were mostly from Europe. However, I found that after 3 days, there really isn't that much to do. We got really bored and sick of the beach/pool after a few days. It was a good thing that we both decided to do excursions. My friend and I went to the Safari and the one with Sharks & Stingrays. The excursions were really worth it. They made my trip from good to super awesome! Don't book right away though, try to shop and around for good deals.

I found that most people from the resort are very hospitable. They were all nice and friendly. However, I don't like how some people were all up in your face trying to sell you something. I know they desperately need to make sales but as a person who doesn't like to say no, we were actually trying to avoid a certain area because we know that the person selling is waiting for us.

The food was okay. The breakfast bar near the beach isn't really good - the food was really bland. The bigger buffet place was better and there were more selections. I didn't like how there were so many birds inside just wanting to eat your food. But the staff was really friendly and helpful. I love how hospitable DR people are. The a la cartes were much better though - we actually dressed up for it although they weren't that fancy. I really liked Japanese restaurant in terms of experience. It was fun to watch the guy cook your dinner in front of you. If I were to pick, I liked the Mariachi restaurant the best in terms of food.

The drinks! To be honest, I am not much of a drinker. I like drinking shots but not mixed drinks. But I found the drinks that the bar offered was pretty good! I especially LOVE mama juana. It was my first time trying it and it automatically became my favorite. That was the only time that I was thankful that we had unlimited drinks.

Overall, I would definitely recommend this resort but I don't think I would want to come back again soon just because I would like to try other resorts or other Caribbean countries. It was definitely an awesome experience.