I book this resort through Sunwing Vacation as it is an inclusive resort for Canadian travellers only through Sunwing Vacation. Let me start with that this was my first time travelling with Sunwing Airlines and will be my last time ever travelling with them. This airline has so many delays and poor service at the airport, I am amazed they have people flying with them. I hope when Westjet takes over they will improve this service. When you arrive at this Hotel anytime before 3 pm (local Time) be prepared to not have your room ready. The Check-in process took over an hour and then was asked to come back after 3 pm to get your room key. Guest service is friendly but we approach them 4 times on 3 different days for our A/C not cooling down the room and Maintenace always came up with a lame excuse. As for the restaurants, the food was average. I definitely would not consider this restore to being 5 or even 4 stars. I would rank this hotel more like a 3.5 Star at best. The breakfast hot station was not very good. I was never able to get eggs done the way I prefer. When I ask they point me to eggs already sitting there I decide to just walk away. The Bar staff was friendly but if you didn't tip it would take so much longer to get a drink. This hotel is very large and the entertainment was really awful. One of the worst I have been to in several hotels I stayed at Punta Cana One of the best things this hotel has is the Beach and the Wi-Fi. One of the best Wi-Fi coverage I ever had.…
Check in was easy the gentleman at the front Desk was so amazing and helpful. My husband to be Manny and I stayed for four days.. they upgraded our room for us for free. The Dominican show in the evening was amazing! Shout out to The DJ he is super nice. Variety of three pools was amazing..if you wanted to be in the middle of the busyness of everyone for fun or some romantic time alone with the one you love. We only ate at the Buffet but the food variety was good. Drinks were strong m, just the way I like them..definitely like the strawberry slush with a little tequila jeje. Our room was really nice. Overall a great stay and we will come back. The only complaint that I would have was that the younger crowd can be a little out of control and nothing seems to be done about it. I am all for fun but the Disrespect I seen towards the employees because of excessive drinking was ridiculous. Sometimes there should be a point where people are cut off.…
Spent 5 nights at the Riu Republica. The hotel is lively with a real mix of age groups. The entertainment was ok but with a real mix of ages and nationalities, it’s always going to be a tough one to please everyone. One night there was a White Party which was great, music and atmosphere was excellent. Michael jackson tribute another night was awful. Another night, they had some Spanish singers on. I thought they were boring but the Spanish speaking guests seemed to like it. Food was ok. Was good that you didn’t need to book anywhere and could just turn up but occasionally had to wait for a table. Most restaurants are buffets. Drinks were ok, they don’t use premium spirits so I found the cocktails the better option. Every Barman makes the drinks differently and some were a lot better than others but they were quick and really efficient. Service at bars and restaurants was really good. Atmosphere around the hotel is nice and everyone so friendly from staff to other guests. I’ve given the hotel 3 stars because it’s advertised as a 5 star hotel and if you’re looking for a luxury hotel, this is not the place for you. When I booked, it said a courtyard view, my balcony overlooked a flat roof over one of the buffets. When I arrived on the Monday, there was a chair, plastic bottles of water, t shirts and other various items of clothing thrown on the roof. Something you’d expect from a party hotel I suppose. One of my room numbers was missing from the door. The tv has barely any signal, which I found really annoying as I like to chill and watch a movie in between the day and going out in the evening. I used the app to contact maintenance to see if they could do anything, They came out quite fast and said the signal is really bad. Tell me something I didn’t know. A fair few people said they had little to no picture. Anyway, after a great night at the white party, I came back to my room after being surrounded by hundreds of people and quite hot and decided to take a shower. No water at all. Put a request on the app to sort, contacted reception but no one answered and had to wait till the morning for any running water. I was so frustrated that I wrote to the front desk with all the above annoyances. The next morning I was offered a room move, which I declined as I was only there for another two nights and didn’t want to pack, unpack and then pack again. The chair was removed from the balcony, the number was fitted to my door but the tv signal did not improve. Hopefully they will go digital which will improve that. Rooms are very basic but I found the bed comfortable. If you’re going, download the app as very useful for what’s on and contact. I didn’t eat at the sports bar as everyone said not too but I did go in there. Even with a 100 people in there, it had no atmosphere. There’s no sound from any of the games they show and the signal is just as bad there. So poor picture quality. Not even any background music. I’m big a football (soccer) fan. So had to go into Bavaro to watch the games at a place called corner sports bar. Uber are allowed to drop you off at the hotel but not allowed to pick you up at the main lobby, so you have to walk to the gates to get picked up. About a 7 minute sweaty hot walk. Uber is about 70% cheaper then the normal and hotel taxis but it is hit and miss what type of car you get. Beach was busy but beautiful and no seaweed. I did have a good time but I personally wouldn’t go back. This really is the place to go if you want a party and have a load of fun.…
We arrived to a bit of a queue at reception, took about 45 mins to book in. Was given a spacious room, excellent bathroom though some of the fittings could do with replacing. Beds were comfortable and all in all, can't really complain. Bedroom was cleaned every day, though this may have been something to do with me tipping the maids every day! Quite noisy in the evenings when trying to sleep, people shouting and playing music a lot in the early hours. Complex was amazing, lots of pools to choose from. Food was excellent, staff were friendly and always willing to help. Only negative was the entertainment, seemed to be the same most nights, a few duo's who sang the same songs, mainly in Spanish so couldn't sing a long and the main entertainment which was good but seemed the same also. Beer was usually warm with no choice but Presidente lager which was quite weak! They had a variance of cocktails but didn't really have any of them. I found there wasn't too much to do on the complex except eat, drink, or stay and sunbathe, I know this is some people's ideal holiday, but if it rained, which it did on a couple of occasions, there was nothing to do. All in all, a great place but I wont be visiting again anytime soon!…
We booked for 7 nights in this lovely only adult hotel. I'll provide a detailed description of each segment. Hotel room: The air-con could be perfectly set for a good nights' rest. We had a spacious bedroom and bathroom with twin sinks and a lush shower. Fresh large white towels are replaced daily without asking. The maids ensured that they left heart warming decorations with flowers each day. The mini bar is included in the price. You get a bottle of whisky, gin, local rum, and vodka. The fridge is filled with bottles of water, soft drinks, and beer, and filled up if any is missing from the previous day. There is also a filter coffee machine with ground coffee called Santo Domingo. Delicious. We only spent time in the room when showering, getting ready for dinner and sleeping. I would recommend an ear plug for those who don't like noises, such as the fridge turning on, air-con, other guests. Hotel pools: We were most interested in the pools with built in bars (you don't need to get out of the water to order drinks). There are 2 of them. One by the beach, which is more party-like, and one by the other end, with more relaxing latino music. There are several other pools, which were never over crowded and clean with built in sun beds and drink holder trays. Sports: You can always find opportunity to play sports. There are 2 beach volleyball courts, a beach football pitch, well equipped air-conditioned gym, table tennis, and group activities both outdoors and in the pools. I personally played a lot of volleyball and made several friends. Beach: The sea was amusing with its crystal clear water, nice relaxing waves and white sandy beach. We never failed to find a couple of sun beds, which could be freely positioned to our liking even in the busiest hours. There is also a transition beach area between pools and the shore where one of the volleyball courts, table tennis, and football pitch were located. This section and the beach were divided by beautiful palm trees and a nice picturesque path that lead us to the beach. Entertainment: There are two stages. The main stage offered shows such as Chicago, rock and rolls dance show, etc. The other stage held karokee nights, live music, etc. We enjoyed these shows a lot. There are also different activities hosted by the staff, including bingo, board games, etc. The hotel organised parties ca. 4 times a week both inside, and different locations, such as jungle party, beach party, neon party, white party, pink party. They ensure that these parties remain unforgettable. Restaurants: There are 9 restaurants with all the selection of food one can imagine. There are 2 main restaurant with all buffet, an Asian, Indian, Italian, Spanish themed restaurant, 2 steak houses (a la cart) amongst others. The food quality and abundancy are flawless. There is opportunity to let loose and eat pizzas, burgers, etc. However, should you wish to keep healthy, there is a wide selection of vegetables, salads, and juicy meats, let alone fantastic variety of seafood. My favourite was the salmon for breakfast. Bars: As best as I remember, there are 9 bars with day and night time opening hours. A wide selection of tasty cocktails, long drinks, coffees are made available by the bartenders. Of course, unlimited consumption is included. The bartenders are quick and efficient. There is one air conditioned bar called sports bar, where there is opportunity to play pool and foosball for extra charge. There are also ready made and packed sandwiches for those who go out on excursions or leave the hotel. Staff: All staff were helpful and friendly. There was no strictness, telling off. Despite the pools closed at 6PM, people were still using them way later than that, and nobody chased them out. You are technically free to do as you like (of course if it's within sensible limits). Even though the staff speaks intermediate English, I would recommend that you prepare and learn the basics in Spanish, which may help. Excursions: The hotel itself did not promote/organise excursions, both different travel agencies did. We used our travel agency for two excursions, well worth it. I would definitely recommend visiting Saona Island. Weather: We visited in May, which is the transition month from dry to wet season. Despite a couple of cloudy days and very few rain showers, the sun was blazing with ca. 30 degrees Celsius during the day (feels like 36-37) and 25 degrees at night. It was quite humid. Before we attended, I read comments that other guests were loud and drunk, which was disturbing for some, but in my opinion that is not the case at all. Every guest we met and talked to was friendly, relaxed and respectful. Make sure that you download the RIU app, which keeps you up to date with all activities. You can also report and issues you may face. I'm sure there are other things worth mentioning, but I trust that this summary helps the readers get an overall picture what this hotel is like. I give it 5 stars and would encourage that you try it. The only negative is that we only booked for 7 nights, hence why we should go back for another fortnight.…
The resort is large and very clean. Most of the staff very friendly. Sulin at the guest info went above and beyond being helpful in helping us book our oceanside golf day! The food was spectacular, buffets had lots of choices even for the pickiest eaters. Highly recommend and will return for another visit !!!
The room was nice and clean. The staff were all friendly and were able to speak multiple languages. The food was OK but nothing special to me. The COVID testing process for returning to the US was very poor. Everyone was told to show up at 9am. There was 1 person processing people in and 1 person performing the tests. This could have been so much more organized so people weren't standing in line for over 2-1/2 hours. If you are looking for a casino this would not be the best place. 28 slot machines, Roulette table, 2 black jack tables and 1 poker table.
I spend 3 nights and I had a really good time, there were some issues with our room keys, but eventually the manager was able to give us another room almost immediately, the entire staff was friendly, at the beach my wife and I met this wonderful server(Chanel) that was bringing drinks consistently to everyone but the way he treated us I felt that we were special like being in a high class resort . Muchas gracias Chanel por todas las atenciones hacia nosotros. Atte: Jose/Mexicano.
Vacation was full of highs and lows. Pros: - Big pool party with all of the other Riu resorts is a movie (definitely Vegas pool party vibes) and beach is beautiful -club at the resort is decent after a couple of shots - Jerk-chicken by the beach and breakfast is good -Main pool/bar is a vibe -Bar service was very efficient Cons: - Poor service-we had to beg for towels everyday, received wash clothes after begging for four nights - Always an hour plus wait for beach towels -Buffet food was decent but very repetitive, (however cut open any meat before eating it as we had a burger that was still raw), -Typical resort style drinks that aren’t strong, but they will eventually get you there -covid testing is a complete joke, took us 2 hrs to get through Overall I would recommend this resort to those who are looking for a great time but not necessarily looking for comfort. Good for girls/guys trips, quick getaways or those on a budget!…
On the second day of our stay, the cleaning lady stole our money from the open safe, which made us lose confidence in the hotel staff. In this hotel, quantity is what counts, not quality. The room was dilapidated and not cleaned thoroughly, the shower was rusty and there was black hair everywhere. The air conditioning didn't work, the fridge was very loud making it difficult to sleep.
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