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 Gran Bahía Príncipe Punta Cana Bavaro  Location: Beach front - Punta Cana - East Coast - 30 mins. from Punta Cana airport All-inclusive - 708 Junior Suites with bath & Jacuzzi Description from resort website: 8 Restaurants Including: Italian, Mexican, Japanese, Fish and Seafood, Steak House & Spanish - several bars - Two large, lake-type pools with a children's section. Spacious solariums and gardens with sunshades and loungers. Towel service at the pools and beach. Mini-club for children. Amphitheatre for entertainment and shows. Tennis courts, mini golf, aquatic activity centre and sub aqua centre. Spa. Fitness centre  ~ Debbie's Review of Bahía Príncipe Punta Cana ~ Reviews posted on this page — 31  Don't forget to send Debbie your review ~ More Gran Bahía Príncipe Punta Cana Bavaro Reviews ~ Map of Resort ~ Reader's Vacation Photos ~ 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7,
8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16 ~ Reader's Gran Bahía Príncipe Punta Cana Bavaro Wedding Reviews
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| Gran Bahía Príncipe Punta Cana Bavaro | Amy and Kris |
We just got back from our vacation and wedding at the Gran Bahia Principe in Punta Cana and we have nothing but great things to say about this resort.
We visited from April 24th to May 1st. We are from New Brunswick, Canada, and we traveled through Sunwing out of Moncton, NB.
The Resort: The resort was huge! We had read some other reviews prior to choosing this resort and many people indicated that it is large, but we did not understand the magnitude of its size until we actually got there. The resort is actually comprised of 4 different sections: Bavaro, Punta Cana, Premier, and Ambar. Our travel agency, Sunwing Vacations, sells tickets for the Bavaro section which states the resort has 540 rooms. However, I read somewhere at the resort that there is actually 1826 rooms including all sections. Somehow, we ended up being booked in the Premier section where we had our own pool, lobby, snack bar, and restaurants. I don’t know how we happened to be booked in the Premier section…maybe we were upgraded since we were a wedding party, I don’t know. I wasn’t about to ask questions. It was great! We were able to enjoy all the other facilities as well, except for the Ambar section, which is Adult Only.
The resort itself was spectacular. The buildings were beautiful both inside and out. The grounds were continuously being cleaned and groomed. The shuttle service was excellent as it ran every 5 minutes from 6 am to 3am to take you to the beach and back. You certainly couldn’t walk it everyday! Onsite there was a casino, shopping, theatre, spa, mini golf, live band, snack bars, and entertainment.
Rooms: The rooms were beautiful. We had a king sized bed, plenty of closet and drawer space, a seating area and patio. Being the bride and groom, upon our arrival we had complimentary rum, a fruit basket, and t-shirts. Every day the maids created designs on our bed with towels and flowers. On our wedding day, they draped over the bed a beautiful wedding dress made out of bedsheets and sprinkled it with fresh flowers. We always left a little tip and gift each day.
The only complaint we can possibly think of is the pillows. They were quite thin and firm. No fluff to them at all. Next time, we might just pack our own pillows from home if we can squeeze them in.
Restaurants: With the group of 10 of us, we had a hard time getting reservations to the A La Carte restaurants, which did not really bother us one bit as the food at the Buffet Restaurant was amazing every single night. They always changed up the food menu. It was rarely ever the exact same thing. And the choices!
Other members of our group did eat at the BBQ restaurant and did not enjoy it so much. A couple of them did not feel well the next day. My rule of thumb…stay away from red meat. I ate plenty of fish and chicken. Another couple from our group ate at the Mexican restaurant and recommended it. For our wedding reception dinner, we did get to eat at the Italiano restaurant and out of the 10 members of our group, we gave it a 9 out of 10.
Whether it was the buffet restaurant or the A La Cartes, the waiters were always there to refill your drinks, take away your plates, joke with you….the service was top notch!
Staff: The staff was amazing. I get a kick out of reading other people’s reviews with complaints of poor service. Most of the time it is a language barrier and ignorance on the traveler’s part. Patience is key. I called reception to have an iron and ironing board sent to my room. With a little patience and repetition, I got my request through. I reasonably expected it would probably take about 15 or 20 minutes to get the iron and board delivered to my room. I couldn’t believe it when I heard a knock at the door 5 minutes later. And then reception called me back just to make sure I received everything like I requested. Excellent or what!
Excursions: Different members of our group went on different excursions. I took an excursion with my father called the Marinarium, which was a ½ day snorkeling trip with the sting rays and nurse sharks. I totally recommend this one! The tour guides were upbeat and really get you involved. Don’t fear…the rays and sharks are harmless! Other members of our group went parasailing and ATVing. If you like getting muddy, ATVing is for you.
Kris and I took our own little excursion to the spa and enjoyed a 1 hour Caribbean Relaxation full-body massage. What more can I say but “Ahhhh!”
The wedding day: It was beyond our expectations! And stress free! We started planning this wedding a year ago and I was a little worried as communication via email to the wedding coordinator was lacking at times. Like I mentioned, we arrived on Thursday. On Friday morning, Mariana had placed a note under our door with an appointment to meet her on Saturday. Everything was arranged in our 45 minute meeting. She had a book of different bouquets and flowers, There was a choice of white or chocolate wedding cake. Choice of music (we chose the musical trio for $100 – you must choose these guys…they are well worth it!!!!) Choice of father and/or mother walking me down the aisle. I chose to have a dance with my father and with Kris. I also asked for a Unity Sand Ceremony to be included and for Kris’ brother to read a poem. Everything was fully accommodated. These coordinators do 4 weddings per day. They know what they are doing, so if you have any worries or concerns at all…just let them go….it will all be taken care of when you arrive.
We also paid for the photographer and videographer. Also well worth it. The pictures were amazing. The photographer took 205 pictures in total and we purchased them all.
Summary: Overall, we had the best vacation ever. This was our second time to the Dominican and even though there so are many other resorts to choose from, we will definitely go back to this one. For the rest of the members of our group, it was their first time on a vacation like this and they were in awe of everything. Again, the wedding was spectacular. We would not have done it any other way.
If anyone has any questions or want to see some of our photos, please email us at kmaher@nb.sympatico.ca
| Gran Bahía Príncipe Punta Cana Bavaro | Angela |
My husband (26) and I (26) went to Punta Cana from Apr. 4-11 and stayed at the Gran Bahia Principe Punta Cana. We have travelled to many places and I really love Punta Cana. It was hubby's first time there.
Arrival and Flight
We flew with Air transat, check-in was fine. We had preselected seats in bulk head section. Plane is small, though not as cramped as Skyservice. Flight was excellant, no turbulence. They served Wong Wing frozen food on the plane! LOL it was awful.
Rooms
I had requested from Toronto, a king size bed smoking close to the beach and got exactly that. We were in villa 9. It was lovely, very clean, comfy bed and a great Air conditioner! Our maid was super great and always provided us with clean towels and art displays. We did tip a few bucks each day and had brought various things to leave for her. Regardless of where your room is located, the trolley runs from 6 am until 3 am and is frequent and easy to hop on and off. It took us about a day to really figure out the hotel and its set up. I don't get why people are so confused. One side is Bavaro, one side is Punta Cana, there is adults only and diamond club section. The Bavaro and Punta Cana are exact replicas of each other, and you cannot use the Bavaro buffet if you are staying on the Punta cana side. easy!
Restaurants
We used the main buffet on the Punta Cana side pretty frequently. Hubby loved all the meat and I loved those mini pizzas. Omlettes in morning was delish and little fried sweet fritters were heavenly. Lunch was spent first at the beach bar, which we really did not like. But if you're into weird tasting hot dogs and burgers its your place. We soon found the buffet for lunch was awesome, lots of sandwiches, grilled chicken breast and lots of other yummy treats. We also went to the buffet for lunch at the seafood resto which was also very good. Dinner we had a few nights at the Buffet, and they had various theme's like American, Italian, Dominican etc. It was always great, lots to choose from. Pasta stn every night, always something being grilled, usually meat and/or fish. Desserts rocked! We were in heaven, they made this strawberry charlotte cake, and let me tell you, the hubby and I were ready to leave everything, move to P.C and eat this everyday. Sadly, it was never out again, so we decided to come home afterall.
We did two a la cartes: Japanese and Seafood.
Japanese was a delight, its tepanyaki style and the food is fresh tasting and its tons of fun. Unfortunately we had two rude and suckey people seated with us, but they soon left. CHEER UP PEOPLE, YOU'RE ON VACATION!
The seafood resto was awesome. Lots of mini hor deuvres to stuff yourself on. Big hit for both of us.
Bars
Pool bar was great, loved Francisco. Call him 'mafioso' he gets a kick out of it. Guys at beach bar were hilarious too.
Beach and Pools
Beach was stunning. Lots of white sand, very wide, lots of room, beautiful trees and great water, not very much seaweed. Pool near beach was way over-crowded so we went to the one in the middle across from the club diamond one. We loved this pool it was huge and nearly deserted.
Grounds
The grounds were truly immaculate. So clean and well-kept. Always workers out there doing something to make it look great. Plants and trees around the hotel are just beautiful. Loved the bananna trees.
Activities and Entertainment
At night we went to the Pueblo Principe, which is just outside of the lobby. It's a huge terrace, like a piazza in Italy. With stores all around, and vendors in the main square. You can haggle with the vendors, not with the stores. There's also a disco, a karaoke bar, a casino and a live bad. We're not disco people so we kicked it at the karaoke bar (a laugh!) and the live band was just great. There are waiters who will come around to serve you drinks, they will ask for your room number. don't worry, IT IS INCLUDED! You do not need to pay for anything, just tip if you choose (and you should, cause they are great!)
Tours
We decided to do two tours. The first was Marinarium. You go by bus to another stop, where you get on a catamaran and go out to sea, in the middle of the ocean is a caged off area where you can snorkel with nurse sharks and manta rays which was simply amazing. We had alot of fun on this catamaran, music, coco loco's and then off to a natural pool where the water is spectacular and there's a floating bar! Awesome.
Next one we did was the Tropical Sunset cruise, which departs from the Jellyfish restaurant on the beach, it is advertised as a romantic cruise, it's really not it's more of a party, and had they advertised it as a party I probably would not have gone, but I am so glad we did. We went snorkelling in the ocean, to another natural pool, more booze and then to the Jellyfish restaurant for lobster dinners. Keep in mind, the lobster isn't like lobster from Maine, it's tasty, but not amazing. But it was such a cool restaurant and great staff on the catamaran!
Departure and Check Out
Departure was a bit of a pain. Our flight wasn't until 9:50 p.m, but we had to check out of the airport by noon. And shuttle to airport was at 5 p.m. If you want to get a room, you have to request it the day of departure, early, and pay 20 bucks an hour. No guarantee you will get yours. We weren't able to get a room, but friends we met were and so us and 3 other couples shared it and split the bill. It was good to have a nice clean place to go to shower and relax for a bit before we had to leave paradise. The shuttle was a little complicated, they wanted a check out slip, which few of us had received from the front desk. So we had to get back to front desk and get it. But we were able to get out and on the bus in a few minutes.
Conclusion
I would definitely recommend the hotel. My hubby and I had such a wonderful time, met great people, and loved the staff. It is a big resort, but you know that before you go.
SIDE NOTE - Hubby and I both got a bacterial stomach infection upon returning home, don't know where or how we picked it up, but it was not pleasant, had to take antibiotics and I was out of commission for a full 2 weeks, can't say it was from the food, or what not, but just thought I'd put it in here. And we did take Dukorol and other precautions.
But did I mention how awesome of a time we had while there?!?!? :P If anyone has any q's please feel free to message me on the board.
| Gran Bahía Príncipe Punta Cana Bavaro | Melanie |
My name is Melanie (29) my husband(29) and I traveled with another couple (both 32) to Punta Cana in early April 2008.
Arrival and Flight
We flew from Halifax,NS Canada with Sky Service. Our package was booked trough Signature with a local travel agent. We paid around 1300$/each. Both flights were on time and went really well.
Rooms
Our travel agent had sent a e-mail prior to our arrival with a few request which were all meant with no problems. We had requested 2 rooms side by side, Upper floor, king size beds and also that our bracelet be upgraded to the Diamond club since we had visited a Bahia Principe (Puerto Plata) previously. This gave us access to the Diamond pool which in my opinion was much less crowded. The bracelet also gave us access to 20minutes of free internet per day in the Diamond club lobby. One big bonus was that we could make our a-la-carte reservation in the Diamond club lobby and had access to more restaurants.
Restaurants
We tried quit a few a-la-carte here is the list in order of preference:
#1 French Gourmet- This was our favourite. The food and service was out of this world. If we were to have that same meal here in Canada we would pay well over 200$ for 2 people. If you go try the Filet Mignon with pepper steak. Delicious.
#2 Japanese- I really enjoyed the atmosphere at the Japanese restaurant. I tried the sushi and it was awesome. The deep fried ice cream was also very good!
#3 Steakhouse- Also very good
#4 Italian- Very good.
#5 BBQ grill-I would skip this one it was basically the same food as the buffet.
BUFFET- Was excellent my favourite meal of the day was breakfast I think we each had a lbs. of bacon each morning.
Bars
We found that the best place to get a drink was at the lobby bar at night. They made the drinks fresh and served them in real glass instead of plastic cup. Our favourite bar during the day was the swim up bar at the Diamond pool. Awesome. We had a full day of Tequila and Mamaujana shooters…
Beach and Pools
The beach was gorgeous but as others mentioned there was a little bit more seaweeds than I expected. But all in all it's a gorgeous beach and for sure much much better than Puerto Plata.
We visited 3 pool while we were there and all 3 had a pool-bar and were very clean.
Grounds
The grounds are breathtaking and I think they rival any resorts in punta Cana. Just gorgeous!
Activities and Entertainment
We went to the Michael Jackson and The Circus night and found they were both good. We were mostly tired at night though and went to bed early.
Tours
We did the one day Caribbean Festival tour and went swimming with Sharks/Stingrays and snorkelling in a coral reef. It was pretty amazing but I don't think I would go again. I enjoyed the OUTBACK jeep safari we did the year before better.
Departure and Check Out
Everything went smooth and our plane even arrived back in Halifax early.
Conclusion
I would recommend this resort to anyone. It was above what I expected and in my opinion worth all of the 5 star.
| Gran Bahía Príncipe Punta Cana Bavaro | Patricia |
Hi Debbie
Just wanted to let you know, we have just returned from the Gran Bahia Principe in Punta Cana. We stayed in the Premiere section of the resort. It was absolutely beautiful! Well manicured, gorgeous grounds. The resort is huge, bigger than I imagined. The people were fantastic! For those travelling soon, say hello to Humberto our bar tender, Lilliman, Jhuan and Hosea our waiters. The rooms were very clean, traveled with our two boys (11 & 12 years old) my 2 cousins and 2 friends.
The only draw back was we were so far from the beach. With kids this was important to be near the beach and in a convenient area. They would have met more kids because the main pool closest to the beach was the busiest. For those that like the quiet, Premiere section is good. The food was fantastic. The a la carte restaurants were booked pretty quickly, so book asap if you want good eating times, you may be stuck eating at 9:00pm at night. The nightly entertainment was ok. I prefer the Carribean flavour myself. I find they have lost some of their culture trying to please everyone else. One night was a tribute to Michael Jackson...yeah, ok. Another night was the Lion King...4 of us fell asleep during the show at times. On the Casino side I enjoyed the “House Band” they were very good.
I would go back again definitely, although I would book close to the beach (complex #4 would have been perfect) We were in complex # 44 almost the farthest away. My cousin who travelled a few weeks before was upgraded to the the new adults only section- he loved it and it looked very nice and private- very close to the beach.
This was a definite 5 star- the beach was the nicest I have seen although we did not get to see the sunsets. (We also visited Varadero, Cuba and the sunsets were amazing!) The sun sets behind the resort and is blocked by land. If you want to catch the sunrise, be up before 5 am!
All in all a great vacation, weather was 31 degrees everyday and only rained the first night. Beautiful sunshine and heat every day.
| Gran Bahía Príncipe Punta Cana Bavaro | Mike |
I just returned from the Gran Bahia Principe bavaro we stayed in the Premier section, it is a fabulous resort. I just wanted to say that I met so many wonderful people from the dominican! The staff were the happiest people I have ever met no matter what their job was , I think many people could learn from the dominicans and their
in the 7 days we were there we never had a bad meal there is so much selection you can always find something you like. The resort is so clean every time we turned around someone was cleaning something. The gardens were fabulous every day people were working on them we even saw people washing the walk ways.
our weather was great for 5 out of 7 days the other three we had showers and very windy.... when i say that it rained it rained for 10 minutes and then got sunny but it did that all day, nothing you can do about the weather it was actually refreshing to get cooled off! and it was amazing to see a storm by the ocean the waves are huge!
the beach was very busy lots of people, but we always found a quiet spot, around the pool they had lots of action for those who want it beach volleyball and exercise and bingo but we are old and wanted quiet,
if you want a good spot by the pool or the ocean grab your towels and leave them there early in the morning they fill up fast!
I like that we were never harrassed by people to do extra things, they were walking around us but they left us alone which is what we wanted.
lots of security especially at night so i felt very safe.
When you first get there you book 3 restaraunts for the week you are allowed only three, the rest of the week you go to the buffets, which every night was a different theme so the food is still fabulous and you can eat when you are hungry. we went to the garden grill and had steak both of our meals were perfect. we went to a mexican restaurant again the meal was great, and the mediterean was also good. the only complaint about these restaurants that we had was our reservations were very late 9:00 or 9:15 after a day at the beach and bars we found it to be too late for us, and if our children were there it wouldn't have worked for us.
it was a surprise for us that wine was an extra cost at meals....we found that out at our first meal. We drank beer and pop at the mexican and grill restaurants.
the snack restaurants by the beach were very busy, good food but line ups, it was only myself and my husband so no bid deal for us
the little trolly that drives you all over came in handy too if you forget something we were a good 15min walk from the beach, which made our area quiet, but the walk in the heat in the middle of the day could be alot so you hop in the trolly.
we were in the premier section of the resort we got discounts at the spa . it was also nice that we had our own snack place that was never too busy, and our own bar and pool for people in our area..
the shopping area was very interesting they have shops where the prices are set and there is no bartering and then they have vendors with carts who will barter with you if you want to play that game with them, we found it best to look in the stores first get a true idea of what the value of things were first. we tried to buy a wooden coffee grinder from a vender he asked for $75.00 it was worth $13.00 in the store. i don't want to bash the vendor, the vendors are trying to survive they do not have steady paychecks like us visitors but we felt better knowing what things were really worth and then talking to the guys outside.
we paid $26 for a safe in our room well worth it.
we got 20minutes free each day on a computer which was lots for us best to sign up first thing in the morning it filled up but always got a time.
we took the signature tour operators advice and bought a calling card so we could call home 20 min for $15.00
we loved the resort, we are planning to go back in december with our three teenagers. I would only want to stay in the Premier area we walked through the other area's and they were packed with people the main pool by the ocean was always packed , it is a massive resort , i loved our quieter area, and the amount of things to do will be great for our kids we can't wait to go back!
| Gran Bahía Príncipe Punta Cana Bavaro | Helen |
Have just returned from a week at this resort to attend my grandniece's wedding. The resort was clean, the food good and varied and the staff very friendly. I took three tours and enjoyed each one.
My one complaint is that I was robbed twice in the main part of the hotel, once in the hotel store where I lost approximately $100 and again in the front lobby near the desk where I lost another $20. As I have lived in poor countries for some years, I do not think I am careless with money. I reported the first incident to the desk and encountered a very cavalier attitude towards the whole affair. No one bothered to follow up on my complaint as far as I know - certainly I was never contacted or offered any explanation or apology. I do not know whether they have a few lightfingered staff, or whether security is careless about strangers being allowed into the hotel. I expected the least the hotel management could do is to offer me an apology. As I lost the money the second day I was there, I had to pay out a good deal extra in visa and ATM charges to replace what I had stolen.
| Gran Bahía Príncipe Punta Cana Bavaro | Dave |
Going to split this review into 2 parts, first , general comments about the whole holiday, then specific comments about bars,restaurants, beach, pools etc.
Flew out to Punta Cana mid February for two weeks.
On arrival at the airport we were pleasantly surprised by the speed we got thru' Immigration altho' we had quite a long wait for our suitcases.First moan, the usual problem with "porters" - we found a trolley but were prevented from taking it out of the airport to the carpark by a group of porters with their own trollies.I refused to be blackmailed on principle and was proved right when we only had about 50m to walk to the coach.
Once on the coach we had a relatively painless journey to the GBP Punta Cana with check in being carried out on the bus (there was however a confusion over another party with the same surname which came back to haunt us later).
No issues on arrival, porter was ready and waiting to transport us and our suitcases straight to our room - 12301 - located conveniently near to the pool, with a balcony looking out over the widerness area between GBP & the neighbouring RUI complex.Straight in the shower and then out to explore and have dinner.
The following morning we had a pleasant walk back to the reception area for breakfast and our Reps meeting (the Rep for First Choice was really on the ball and the meeting was much snappier and entertaining than normal!)
I then organised a room safe - $63 for 2 weeks-bit surprised that I had to pay up front (GBP Mayan only wanted paying at the end of the holiday)
- but well worth having for peace of mind.
Whilst at Reception noticed loads of offers to upgrade to another hotel for free for periods of up to 5 days with a $200 a night incentive- we decided to investigate further with a view to maybe looking at another part of the DR but (unfortunately) we decided to sleep on it!
The following day we went back to try to arrange an upgrade with Guest Services but unfortunately the only offers still available were for 1 night only - however as the upgrade to GBP Cayo Levantado included a free whale watching trip we decided to go for it! We actually had to check out and put any luggage that we didn't want to take into a "secure" storage area, which wasn't as anyone could walk in when the porters had it open!I will review this trip under the GBP Cayo Levantado review section.
On our return to Punta Cana we were given a complimentary upgrade to the Ambar section - again the porter was on the ball getting us and our luggage across to our new room - 62201, nicely positioned between the beach and the main bar/buffet areas.
The room was a little musty due to a problem they had obviously had with water leaking from the balcony above which had resulted in some of the ceiling paint peeling off but we decided we could live with it.
I went to use the "complimentary" room safe but couldn't get it to work.Now, my second moan, it apparently needed a small key to activate the touch pad electronics which we should have been given on our second check in but hadn't.I spent about 3 hours and several journeys on the site trams travelling between the Ambar reception and the main reception at Punta Cana trying to get this key, both sets of Reception staff denying responsibility and fobbing me off.They even wanted a second lot of money!Finally got it sorted when a "manager" got involved.
At the end of the first week we got back from the beach to find that our room keys weren't working - the maid had to let us in.Went to reception who looked puzzled but just reactivated the keys for our actual leaving date. The following morning we found a note pushed under our door asking me to contact the Reception manager urgently about our departure arrangements - again a couple of tram rides ensued before I saw the Main Reception manager who explained that the confusion over surnames on the original bus ride from the airport, had led to us only being booked in for a WEEK! but he quickly resolved the issue.
At the end of the two weeks departure was painless - porters were well organised and got us back to the pick up point and the coach journey and check in were smooth prior to a good flight back to the UK; Only issues were a wait on the tarmac for an hour due to a couple arguing over excess luggage charges and a non working toilet on our side of the aircraft which meant a long detour from our seats.
Now to specifics:
FOOD - Buffet at Punta Cana was OK but the buffet at the Ambar was distinctly better particularly the freshly cooked fish and meats area and the sweets were to die for!Loads of choice at both breakfast and lunch as well as the evenings.
A LA CARTE - We visited 5 a la cartes over the 2 weeks.
Best we tried was the fish restaurant,El Pescador, my wife really enjoyed that one.Excellent food and service.
El Charro (Mexican) was also very good with some excellent fajitas, and entertaining staff.
The Italian, Porto Fino, was also very good although we felt that we were rushed thru a bit.
The other Italian, whose name escapes me, was also very good and a bit more relaxed.
The worst of the a la cartes we visited was the Garden Grill, simply because the steak I had was very tough, although the service was excellent and my wife was happy with her "Shrimp kebab".
We missed out on our visit to Don Pablo, the gourmet restaurant at Ambar, due to a touch of too much Sun - but other we spoke with, said that it was very good.
SNACK BARS - Generally OK for breakfast/lunch - very crowded before 1:30pm but much better after 2:00pm.The usual fare of chicken,salads, burgers, hot dogs etc
BARS - We found generally excellent service at all the bars,whether you waved a $$ bill or not; the main bar at the Punta Cana was our favourite.You sometimes had to wait at the pool bars particularly the second week when it was extremely busy.Definitely worth taking insulated mugs as it reduced the number or trips needed to the bar!
POOLS - Clean but extremely crowded - the second week people were "reserving " sunbeds with shades before it was even light - we didn't spend much time by the pools usually only after 4:00pm.The Ambar adults only pool was definitely the most crowded of all.
BEACH - Beautiful golden sand BUT very crowded - all sun loungers with shade gone by 10:00am and very difficult to get beds after 11:00am.Worth walking North of the resort to get a bit of space.
SEA - Clean - some weed made worse by the wind we experienced most of the 2 weeks; lovely to swim in, shelving quite rapidly; snorkelling from the beach non-existent - apparently anything of a decent size is taken by the spear fishermen.
WEATHER - Rained quite heavily the first two days in the morning but otherwise not much rain.Wind was blowing quite strongly some days which kept you cool on the beach but made the danger of sunburn very real.Also had some cloudy days,particularly a couple of afternoons, and our last day which was disappointing.
In conclusion, had a good holiday but wouldn't go back to this hotel/region because of the sheer number of people
| Gran Bahía Príncipe Punta Cana Bavaro | Patricia |
Stayed the week of 7th March in the golden section, building 5. This is our 3rd stay in the DR and it definitely had the nicest lobby areas. It was a great week with lovely weather and lovely staff, as usual. 4 stars I would say.
Accommodation
The room was really nice, spacious and probably recently renovated. There were 2 doubles and a sofa bed so lots of space for 4 of us. The bathroom was really nice, again spacious and new looking. Maid service was great as was the reception on the phone. We had a problem with our safe and the guy was there in 5 minutes and fixed the problem very quickly.
Food
We booked the a la cartes on the phone with the reception and it was much easier than queuing at the golden club reception area. The buffets were good, not anything special, but lots of lovely fruit and salads. I especially like breakfast, all the fruit and breads and real eggs scrambled not powdered. Lunch was good and the snack bars did nice burgers and salads. As usual the house wine was awful but the a la carte wine was very reasonably priced and no taxes of course. The best a la carte was the French one, really very nice. I really liked the fact that when you entered the buffets you waited to be seated which made it seem more formal and less of a scrum for food. They were also very firm about wearing shoes etc which is good.
Resort
The golden club designation together with all the other designations, Diamond, green bracelet white bracelet was slightly confusing. I’m not sure what we got extra to be honest except for 4 a la carte bookings and beach towels in the room. I thought we had exclusive use of a pool but that was not the case. We did have extra internet access which was always available, we got 15 mins per room per day which was plenty for us.
The train taking you from the beach to the restaurant and lobby area was very frequent, so no waiting and fighting to get on which I have seen at other places. My only complaint was that the cars were diesel and very smelly, I would have thought electric cars would be more economical given the speeds and distances involved.
There was a very large pool right by the beach but it was very busy and full of drunks by the afternoon but there was another pool in the middle of the resort which was lovely and clean and nowhere near as busy. By 4 o clock you could find a chair in the shade but before that, no chance unless you left a towel there which I refuse to do. I just wish everyone would stop doing this, it is such a sheep mentality and totally anti-social.
There was not a mosquito in sight and one evening we realized why as they went around the perimeter spraying quite toxically and we had to run inside away from the cloud of pesticide.
Beach
The beach was great, again same towel issues but not as bad, you could always find something 50 yards back. My main problem with the beach was the proximity of the banana boats. These were speed boats pulling inflatable bananas which you could pay to ride on, also rubber tubes. These boats came way to close to shore, less than 50 yards, so you could not swim out far for fear of being hit. All I could think of was Kirsty McCall. The boats also gave off terrible diesel fumes. The hotel runs these boats so it is really upto them to sort this out and not be so greedy.
Sports
We are very active holidaymakers and my son especially wanted to play soccer every evening. There was no organized sport away from the beach area and even then it was a bit pathetic really. We put up signs though and so people turned out to play. There was no archery, badminton or shooting as advertised and the soccer pitch and tennis courts really need renovating, especially the pitch which was awful. The mini-golf was also truly dreadful.
Spa
The spa was gorgeous, really put a lot of thought into it, equal to any in Canada I have visited. We had a massage and my daughter a manicure and it was good value with our golden club discount.
| Gran Bahía Príncipe Punta Cana Bavaro | Gary |
This is a little late but a group of six couples from Erie, Pennsylvania USA stayed at the Gran Bahia for 7 days in late Feb. 2007. The trip went absolutely perfect. The flight down went without a hitch leaving from Pittsburgh and landing at the Punta Cana Airport. After going thru customs and paying the $10 tourist fee we boarded a bus run by Apple and were given a very nice orientation to the country by a local Apple rep.on the 30 min. bus ride to the resort. Upon arriving at the Bahia our luggage was handled and the people at the front desk were very accommodating after showing them an e-mail from our travel agent that had us all staying in the same villa. There are 36 rooms per villa and about 1500 rooms total at the resort. We were permitted 4 a la carte restaurant reservations throughout the week and they all were very good. The beach barbeque was excellent with plenty of food to go around. The 2nd we tried was the Hibachi which was as good as any I have been to. The last day there we ate at the French Restaurant where we had surf & turf and the entire meal was very elegant and the staff was totally friendly. The ocean was very warm and we enjoyed a couple of days body surfing just like young kids and we are all in our fifties. The only thing that would have been nice is some music that we could have danced to and been more familiar with from the US, but other than that it was fun. The workout area was very undersized for a resort of this size, but we were usually able to fit in a workout somehow. The buffets for breakfast, lunch, and dinner were all very good, we ate like royalty. The weather, the accommodations, maids, bartenders, cleanliness of the entire resort was top notch. We would not hesitate to go back again in a heartbeat. Kudos to Apple and the Gran Bahia Principe for a wonderful vacation.
| Gran Bahía Príncipe Punta Cana Bavaro | B M |
GRAN BAHIA PRINCIPE BAVARO February 28/08 to March 6/08
Just got back into Vancouver this morning....
I definatley have to say this trip was nothing short of amazing.
FLIGHT: Well, what can is say. 6 hours and 45 minutes direct flight from Vancouver going down there and 8 hours coming home. This was the only bad part of the trip. Being crammed in the air transat seats with no leg room for this period of time sucks. I swear these seats are not made for
anybody taller than 5'9 and more then 150lbs...nevermind being over 6 feet tall and over 200lbs. But I guess theres not much you can really do about that unless you want to fork out a tonne of money for first class. But once you get down there it makes the long flight all worth it
FOOD: This hotel is definatley a 5 star. The food is incredible. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner in the buffets were always excellent. The A la carte's were also very good aswell.The service inside the restaurants are very fast and friendly. There is always a crew of waitors in tuxedo's there to
take your drink order or take your plate away when you're done eating. We were worried about getting sick from the food. We were fine. People we talked to at the airport that got sick stayed at 3.5 or 4 stars.
ROOMS: The rooms were clean and a good size. The a/c worked very well. The plumbing worked just as good as back in Canada; good water pressure. The maid service
came in everyday and cleaned the room very well each day and always stocked the mini-bar. We left a $2 tip everyday and the maid loved us...i think after 7 days of tipping we put a few of her kids through college since thats close to what she makes in a week(or something like that).
GROUNDS: The grounds were beautiful. It seemed like in the daylight hours there was always a crew of at least 12 gardeners doing pruning, grass cutting, watering, etc.
BEACHES: Perfect 10! white sand that isn't hot on your feet. The water is the most beautiful greens and blues you will ever see. The water is as warm as bath water and is very clean. It is very windy down on the beach, but i prefer that. There is nothing more soothing on a hot day then to feel that nice warm breeze blowing.
EXCURSIONS: We did the dune buggy ride one day for $70US per person. Well worth it! It was so much fun. You get filthy dirty and its a crazy and wild ride through the jungle, the roads, and the beaches, but an absolute blast. Not something i'd reccommend for a high maintenance princess. leave her back at the hotel and just bring the boys out! Make sure to bring some US cash with you cause at the end of the tour at the ranch there is a bar there where you can buy beers for $3. Beers on the excursions are included in the all inclusive.
THINGS TO MENTION:
-When we checked in we thought that a safe rental was included. We ended up having to pay $32 US to rent the in room safe for a whole week. Well worth the cost to have the peice of mind knowing that your passports and other valuables are locked away. You program in your own combination so you can go in and out of the safe as many times as you like.
-The alcoholic drinks were very tasty but a little watered down if you have one of the waitresses bring them to you. If you want them mixed strong my suggestion is to go up to the bar and make friends with the bartender....before you know it you're getting real stiff drinks; you'll actually get drunk and not just full without a buzz.
-The phones in the hotel tell you that you can call back home to Canada or US by pressing #21 on the phone then entering your credit card number. Whatever you do DON'T make a phonecall back home from your room phone by billing it to your credit card! Go by a phone card instead. I made 4 phone calls back home. Each call about 10 minutes long(gotta let them know we made it safe). I got home today and checked my visa statement. Those 4 calls cost me $265 dollars....learn from my mistake and buy a phone card :(
-Buying bottles of rum and cigars to take back home isn't cheap like mexico or cuba. The prices work out to close to the same as in USA or Canada.
OVERALL: Overall this resort was awesome. I would recommend this resort to anyone! After staying at this nice 5 star resort, i couln't imagine going back to anything less. Not even a 4.5 star would do. We saw a bunch of the other resorts on the bus ride; they were nice but nothing in comparison(Bahia Principe seemed much nicer then the majestic). There are definatley no surprises here. Enjoy!
| Gran Bahía Príncipe Punta Cana Bavaro | Rhonda |
Let me preface my review by saying that this was the sixth all-inclusive vacation for my wife and me in the last 10 years.
It was our second trip to the Dominican Republic and our second stay at a Gran Bahia Principe property.
Trip Outline:
We were part of a group of eight that booked for two weeks at the Gran Bahia Principe Bavaro. Six of us had stayed at the GBP San Juan together four years ago, and it was that experience that prompted us to book at GBP Bavaro.
As a group we are firm believers that a vacation is what you make it. Life is too short to be whining and complaining about nitpicky things.
Due to overbooking at GBP Bavaro during our second week, we took advantage of an excursion offered by the resort and spent two days (one night) at the Gran Bahia Principe Cayacoa at Samana. Upon our return we were “upgraded” to the Ambar section at Punta Cana.
Travel to and from the DR:
We travelled by Air Transat out of Vancouver and the flight was pretty much what we expected. We were through customs and on the bus in less than an hour upon arrival at Punta Cana. There was some confusion once we reached the resort, as resort officials spent an hour shuffling us to three different registration desks before we could actually register. Things went quite smoothly on the trip to Samana and back, and on our return trip to Canada.
Resort in General:
As mentioned by previous posters, the resort is quite large – something like 1,800 rooms in a series of (mostly) three-storey buildings. Having said that, we didn’t have too much trouble getting around, although we did use the trolleys on occasion. Our suite was in the middle of the resort, about 5-minute walk to the beach and about a 5-minute walk to the main lobby. The Diamond club pool was right out our front door and we spent most of our afternoons there. A very beautiful resort and well maintained.
Beaches and Pools:
During our “leisure days” we tended to spend the mornings at the beach and the afternoons at the pool. The beach is very nice, with soft sand and plenty of palapas. Even though we were a group of eight, we rarely had trouble finding a suitable spot to park ourselves – close to both sun and shade, near the water and (most importantly) close to a bar.
The only pool we went to on the Bavaro side was the Diamond Cub pool, which was smaller, but a whole lot quieter than the main pool. Once again, there was a good mix of sun and shade and we never seemed to have trouble finding a spot.
Even thought the resort has rules prohibiting the “saving” of loungers with beach towels, it is a very common occurrence. If you find a spot you like, it is wise to get there early and save your spaces.
Buffet Restaurants:
We had breakfast at the main buffet restaurant twice and supper there three times. It is very large and can be quite noisy at times. The food is good and there is a good selection. Service is also very good. One draw-back to the main buffet is the lack of an outdoor seating area.
We ate breakfast at the Italian restaurant several times, primarily because we were able to sit outside. The selection was good, but quite a bit more restricted than the main restaurant.
We had a lot of our lunches at the beach-side grill. Lots of seats and a small but tasty selection (excellent roast chicken).
A la Carte Restaurants:
We e-mailed ahead and received pre-booking of the a la carte restaurants. Upon arrival, we already had reservations at the French, Japanese, Argentinean (beach-side grill), Garden Grill (steakhouse), seafood, Italian and Mediterranean restaurants.
Most followed the same system with an appetizer buffet and a la carte ordering for the main course and dessert. The French and Mediterranean restaurants were a la carte appies and main course. The Japanese had a set menu that was prepared in front of you.
In all cases the food was flavourful and well-presented, although the portions were quite small in the French restaurant (I had steak and lobster; the steak was about 2 oz. and the lobster tail wasn’t much larger).
Our preferences (in order from favourite to least favourite) were the Garden Grill, Mediterranean, Japanese, Italian, seafood, French and Argentinean.
Excursions:
We took a one-day guided tour into Santo Domingo. It was a long day , but well worth it. We got to visit the tomb of Christopher Columbus, the Columbus museum and the oldest cathedral in the Americas, as well as a walking tour through part of the old section of town and a stop at the presidential palace. There was also time set aside for shopping at La Romana – on the trip in to Santo Domingo – and then again in S.D.
The cost was just under $70 per person, which included all applicable entrance fees and lunch.
We took a cab into downtown Bavaro for a beer at Steve’s Corner bar and lunch at Capitan Cooks Seafood Restaurant. The beer at Steve’s was great – good atmosphere on a busy street corner, so there’s lots to see. Lunch at Capitan Cooks was (in my opinion) a waste of time. Prices were high, the quality of food was not very good and the service was average at best. Ten of us went there. Two didn’t want to order after looking at the prices and one other sent her food back because she couldn’t eat it (rubbery calamari). I ordered ceviche and calamari, but I can’t tell you what it was like, because I never did get my order. Maybe I should have hassled one of the servers to get my meal, but after seeing the quality of the calamari that what one of the other members of the group got, I decided to keep quite and save $25.
The hotel also offers free shuttle service to Plaza Palma Real, a high-end mall in Bavaro. There is a cigar and rum shop at the mall that we found a good place to pick up smokes and rum. Good quality and selection and competitive prices. Here is also a Hard Rock Café there if you have a hankering for a $20 burger and fries.
GBP Bavaro Experience:
Overall, we had a very enjoyable stay on the Bavaro side of the complex. There were a few minor problems, but nothing that impacted our stay. The staff was courteous and professional.
Ambar Experience:
The only real “downer” on our trip was our upgrade to the Ambar section. The Ambar resort itself is beautiful, with a large, bright lobby and excellent food at the buffet and a la carte restaurants.
There is also a cigar lounge near the main lobby that is supposed to be open daily from 11 a.m to 11 p.m. It looks to have a good selection of cigars, but the two times I went to check it out – once just after noon and once at about 5 p.m. – it was closed.
We had a few problems with our room when we checked in – an in-room safe that didn’t work and a leaky toilet -- but both were fixed within the first day.
Restaurant and bar service at the Ambar was very disappointing. More than a few times the term “atrocious” came up to describe the quality of service at the various restaurants and bars we visited.
At first we thought it was because we had upgraded to the Ambar section and thus had different coloured bracelets than those that had booked in. After talking to a few other people, we quickly learned the colour of the bracelet didn’t matter, service was still poor.
It’s pretty poor business for a group of eight to sit through three meals at the buffet restaurants and not have a single server ask us if we’d like a drink or a glass of wine with dinner, or have no one bother to ask us if we wanted a cup of coffee with our breakfast.
In the resort’s defence, they are still in their infancy and it appears they are still quite short of staff in general and short of well-trained staff in particular. However, having said that, our group paid over $28,000 for these two weeks in paradise. I don’t think it’s too much to ask for a cup of coffee with breakfast.
GBP Cayacoa Experience:
We really enjoyed the overnight excursion. The four-hour bus trip really gives you a glimpse into Dominican life, as you travel through a number of small and not-so-small communities.
The GBP Cayacoa is a small resort built into the rocks overlooking Samana Bay. There is a six-storey elevator that takes you from the resort down to a semi-private beach. There is one main buffet and several a l carte restaurants. We had all of our meals at the buffet and were very satisfied with the taste and selection.
Closing thoughts:
This was our second trip to the Dominican Republic and probably our last. We enjoyed ourselves, but there are too many other places for us to see.
We would certainly recommend the GBP Bavaro to anyone. In all honesty, we could not recommend the Ambar at this time.
| Gran Bahía Príncipe Punta Cana Bavaro | Diane |
We were at the Gran Bahia from Feb.9th.to 16th ,stayed in the Premier side ,and what a terrific place. There is not a thing I could complain about except having to leave to go back to Winnipeg, Manitoba! The beach, food, rooms, fancy drinks,and friendly people were all we could of asked for and more. I would definately recommed this hotel for your vacation but save me a room for next year as we will be back!
| Gran Bahía Príncipe Punta Cana Bavaro | Julie ~ Ohio |
Your Arrival -
Beautiful resort. We checked in at the Golden Club area. There was (bartender) an open bar with snacks. We made sure to get the room safe and also to find out what all is included with the Golden Club Rooms.
Rooms -
We had villa 22 (22112) a corner room with a beautiful view. Bananas growing right out our door, palm trees, flowers, etc. Two double beds in the room, nice sized bathroom with seperate area for the toilet. Plenty of closet space with shelves and a desk with 4 drawers that our girls used. Fresh fruit on the table in room and t-shirts for each of us from the resort. Another table with chairs on the lanai. Our maid stocked our fridge with our requested beverages, we had fresh pool towels every evening and turn down service. She decorated our room with balloons several times, towel art with fresh flowers, slippers, special toiletry items for our girls, candy, etc. Very attentive. They also have rules (in their passport book) about not hanging clothes/towels on the lanai, being quiet at
night, etc. which was really nice. Everyone there had mannerly bahavior - no drunks or loud guests. You get what you pay for.
Restaurants -
The food was wonderful. Not too spicy or sweet. So much on the buffets and beautifully displayed, ice sculptures, carved (artistic)melons, all kinds of entrees, fruits, desserts, etc. The ala carte restaurants were all fantastic. From the atmosphere, service, menu, plate display, and entertainment. We also ordered room service after the nightly shows (45-60 minute wait) and the food was good and fun as well.
Bars -
Lobby bars,pool bars, and beach bar all had great service and very accomodating to both adults and kids. We always tipped to start off. Even after the lobby bar closed our group was able to get waters from them. They always were in a good mood. Made us feel very welcome.
Beach and Pools -
We tried all the pools and no complaints at all. The music was never too loud, pools were clean, never had trouble securing lounge chairs (not always where we wanted but there wasn't a bad location). The pool had more activity with volleyball, games, dance lessons, aerobics, etc. Grounds and beach were kept clean. Ocean water is crystal clear and sand is soft, never got hot to walk on. Nice beach - no rocks or shells in the water, or little fish.
Grounds -
Everything was clean and manicured. Beautiful resort with lush landscape. The workers kept up on everything, hedges were perfectly trimmed, untouched areas by the bridge were a nice touch. The birds liked to hang out there so when you pass by in the tram (or walk) you could hear them chirping. Peepers (frogs) at night.
Activities -
The nightly shows were professionally done with dancers and actors. Best we have ever seen without paying a big ticket price. They really worked hard and it shows. Sunday night show is more of an audience participation. Before the shows (1 hour or so) they get the crowd involved and pull people from the audience to learn the Bahia theme song/dance and do an elimination game. Very nice open air theatre.
There is also the Pueblo Principe Town that is open at 0900 for shopping and stays open until 4 a.m. with live music, a disco, karaoke bar, casino, etc.
Tours -
We spent all our time at the resort and didn't do any tours/excursions.
Conclusion -
We thought this was a beautiful resort and everything was top notch. The service was excellent from arrival to depature. The Golden Club Rooms had some nice perks that we really appreciated (private pools, private restaurants for breakfast/lunch, 4 ala carte dinners, pool towels, 25 hour room service,etc.) It will be hard to top the Bahia so if we go to a different destination, we will look for the Bahia properties.
| Gran Bahía Príncipe Punta Cana Bavaro | Sandra ~ Mississauga, ON |
Your Arrival
December 22-29 2007
We arrived to the resort at 1:30 am as our plane was delayed 3 hours, so our check in was done in the bus as we traveled from airport to the hotel, we were handed envelopes with room keys, towel cards and appointment cards for briefing with our tour operator that was supposed to happen that morning @9am. We traveled with two kids aged 18 months and 4 years old so we were pretty beat up from our travel and completely missed that meeting (big mistake). We didn't know where to go or who to talk to, our first mission was to get some food or at least milk for our toddler and when we finally found OUR lobby the receptionist didn't know where we could get some milk, and quite rudely informed us that only food we could get was at the beach. So on we went for hunt for milk to two lobby stores, and surely had to visit both of them to find it. We went to beach snack bar and had something to eat and from then on things got better.
Rooms
We had what they call Junior Suite with king size bed, and a sofa which they converted to a bed for my son. With the exception of small ant infestation we had in our closet and drawers (they got into everything, clothes, diapers, cups) the room was relatively clean, I was not overly impressed with it as it looked rather dingy for 5 star class, pillows were small and thin, towels old and gray, our shower stall leaked when we would shower so we had to use our towels to pickup water from the floor, and it seemed that every day there was something forgotten to be replaced, like water glass or coffee spoons, facial tissue etc. And we did tip the maid generously.
Oh I have to add that even though it was allowed to smoke in the rooms they didn't smell at all, but if someone smoked in the hallway or in the room next to us the second hand smoke entered our room too.
Restaurants
We loved buffet restaurant, food was great, and there was little something for everyones taste. I personally loved local dishes, and was surprised how many people were afraid to explore and stayed with "safe" fries and pizza. With all inclusive we were allowed to book reservations for 3 a la carte restaurants, we chose Italian, Japanese and French. Italian was OK, Japanese was pure disappointment and we didn't even bother to go to French one as we felt that food was much better tasting at a buffet restaurant. We usually spend our lunch time at the beach snack bar (fast food type of buffet)and that food was OK.
Bars
Neither I or my husband are big drinkers so I really don't know how to rate this one, when we needed refreshment it was there and that was it. We chose drinks from menu they had and it seemed OK to us.
Beach/Pool
Beach was great, a bit crowded a
t times but beautiful and well kept, lots of shaded areas as well cleared parts for those who prefer to baste int he sun. Weather was gorgeous during the day and it mostly rained at night. Water was clear but wavy, kids liked it at first but later preferred to hang around pool. We mainly stayed at the main pool at the beach area, it is just most convenient area to be at if you're with kids. Pool water was warm and clear.
Grounds
Well kept, green and lush, although I couldn't understand why they watered extensively every day even after a night of rain, to me it just seemed a big waste of water. Tram service was great although they should think about investing in some solar powered ones, I find that fumes from the trucks were bothersome.
Activities
I think they need some improvement in this area. At the beach/pool area every day was basically same, same music (which they could bring up to date a bit), aerobic lesson, Latin dance lesson which looked more like square dance to me as it was not done in pairs, some sort of water sport activity ie. water polo or swimming race which could get boring pretty fast. They had dance and game activities for kids scheduled for after dinner, but every night was same two people dressed in clown suits dancing to same music.
Conclusion
Since this is our first time being at all inclusive resort and having nothing to compare to it, I have to say that our experience at Bahia Principe turned out great. We had quality family time, kids loved every minute of our vacation an me and my husband enjoyed worry free atmosphere. My 18 month old did get sick with stomach virus on our last day, and we all got sick when we got home, aside from that we had fantastic time and would most certainly visit again.
| Bahia Principe Punta Cana/Bavaro | Beth |
My husband and I just returned from a 10 day stay at Bahia Principe Punta Cana. We had gotten so much helpful info from Debbie's website that we thought we would return the favor and share our experience. Most of what we read on your website was very true, so thanks for the information! The number of "december" reviews were limited, so I wanted to be thorough. This review gets a bit wordy, but hopefully you'll find some helpful info here...
We are both 36 and neither of us had been to the Caribbean nor had we done an all-inclusive vacation before. I'll admit that I tend to be pretty picky and often like to take the road less traveled, so I was a bit wary of the "super huge and impersonal" impression I had of this place. We don't yet have kids (and weren't sure we wanted to encounter them), yet we're not late night party hounds, either - was worried this resort would be one or the other.
Not to fear! This resort surpassed all of our expectations - even mine, being picky! It was an absolutely fanatstic place in nearly every way. Any complaints we had are so minute and insignificant, they aren't even worth mentioning (altho, to be informative, I'll mention them a bit later). We will most certainly be back!
Weather: First full day we waited out Tropical Storm Olga - it poured all day, there was a bit of thunder and lightening, and it was quite windy but nothing to worry about - didn't even compare to a midwestern thunderstorm. Apparently the rain was extremely rare for this time of year. After the rain, the weather was gorgeous for the rest of our stay...mid 80s and very sunny. Each day the wind died down a little more, the clouds thinned out, and the temp rose. It is quite humid, although with the ocean breezes it was never uncomfortable. I say, expect a little rain each day, but it seems to shower hard for about 10 - 20 minutes and then its over for the day. The hotel provides a nice, large golf umbrella in each room - no need to bring any other rain gear (it's too hot).
Check in: we checked in at about 4:00 p.m. Rooms were ready and very few people were checking in at that time - smooth sailing. Getting a safe was no problem - it was already in the room and we just had to program it when we got into the room. There ws a charge of $40 for the week - WELL worth it for the peace of mind. It's about 6" tall, 18" deep and 18" wide - large enough for your documents, money, jewelry, etc. Also, we concur that there is absolutely no difference between the two sides of the resort (Bavaro vs. Punta Cana). Most of what you do all day (pool and beach) is shared anyway. You can confidently stay at either side an be completely happy.
Upgrades: I begrudingly gave into my husband and we didn't take any upgrades (gold club, club diamond, etc.) As far as I can tell, we didn't miss out on anything. Rooms are the same. In-room arrival gifts seem to be the same. Maid service is the same. We did not have robes in our room, but we were never in our room long enough to wear a robe and it was too humid for robes anyway. Upgrade provides you with an extra a la carte meal ticket, but we asked for an extra one (since we were staying 10 days) and they gave it to us. gold club is closer to the beach/main pool, but we were happy to be away from the chaos/noise that sometimes surrounded the pool and beach. Our room was exactly half way between the lobby and the beach (villa 10) and was absolutely perfect - we will probably request this same area again. It was very quiet at night, we had a tram stop in front of our building, and never too far from any one spot in the resort. The only benefit (if you can call it that) that we could really note in the upgrades was free internet access, and quite frankly, I found that not having constant internet access was a blessing. If we would have had unlimited access, I can tell you where my husband would have been much of the time. On vacation, I'd rather not have access to computers. I'd say the upgrades are a waste of money. In retrospect, we're glad we didn't pay for it. (Internet access can be purchased for $10 for 45 minutes. This 45 minutes is good for 5 days - you don't have to use it all at once.)
Language: my husband is fluent in spanish - very helpful to know some spanish. Most people know a few words, but few people can truly speak fluent english (why should they?) - some of the professional staff (front desk, guest services, etc) are more fluent, but the average waiter, bartender, maid, bell boy, etc doesn't speak much if any at all. Bring a phrase book and make a few attempts. They'll appreciate it and remember you kindly for trying. Some staff are Haitian and therefore fluent in French.
Guests: From all over the world. very fun - nice to meet different people. everyone was friendly and patient. No one was in a bad mood. we met some lovely people. All ages. From 3-week old infants to 90+ years old. Definitely a family-oriented place. If you're a college student looking for a great place to party and be featured in a "Girls Gone Wild" video, this is not your resort. Fly directly to Cancun, Mexico. If you're a guest looking to relax, have some peace and quiet at night, and be able to enjoy the disco, casino, or bars when you're in the mood, then this place is perfect for you.
Beach: Wow! gorgeous water, beautiful sand, meticulously maintained, constantly cleaned and raked. We usually got to the beach around 9:30 a.m. and we were some of the first people to arrive. We NEVER had a problem finding chairs and there are PLENTY of palapas and palm trees that provide much-needed shade. The beach was perfect - we were able to move in and out of shade/sun as we wanted. We didn't find the "chair reservation game" to be a problem what so ever. If we left our chairs and belongings unattended to walk on the beach, swim in the ocean, go to lunch, whatever, they were never disturbed. People were very respectful. I thought perhaps the resort wasn't very full, but in talking with the staff, they said it was full. There are designated swimming areas at the beach and it would be foolish to swim outside of these areas as there is constant boat traffic - dive boats, catamarans, kayaks, parasailing boats, etc. The down side: no place to snorkel from shore. The only way to snorkel is to take an excursion or have the Scuba Caribe staff take you out to the reef on a boat.
Pools: All gorgeous. We only used the main pool near the beach and only visited in later afternoon (after we left the beach) to swim, cool down, and sit at the swim-up bar for drinks. (the other pools looked great but we just never made it there.) The pool chairs were also mostly open at 9:30 in the a.m. but filled quickly. The pool was a very popular place (we can't understand why, when you have a fantastic beach at your disposal, you'd choose to sit at the pool all day, but many people did it) but the crowds never bothered us. It got a bit crazy if they did pool-side aerobics or had music blaring (quite common) but you're so relaxed, nothing bothers you. We just sat at the bar and downed a few cuba libres - the rum tempers everything! The two Juans - bartenders at this bar - were the absolute best bartenders of the trip! Be sure to bring a few $1 bills with you on your swim to the bar to tip these guys - they don't care if the money is wet! :) We found that few people tip while they are at the pool and what a shame! These guys are fun, really friendly, work hard, and serve you very quickly - we didn't even have to ask. We'd turn around and a fresh drink would be in front of us.
Alcohol: I tend to be pretty picky about my alcohol - my system doesn't tolerate the cheap stuff well. I thought for sure the "all inclusive grade" alcohol would be the cheap stuff, but it wasn't. They used the best dominican rum, stolys vodka, etc. All the all-inclusive drinks were really good - great quality! no need to pay additional for "top shelf." I will admit, however, the house wine was pretty bad. If you consider yourself a wine drinker and plan to have a couple glasses with dinner, you may want to splurge and buy a bottle with your dinner. (for-purchase wine is only sold by the bottle - not by the glass). We never did, and by the last few nights I could no longer stomach the wine.
Food: amazingly good. Remember that people from all over the world vacation here. Americans - North Americans for that matter - are not the majority. The hotel has to please about 20-30 cultures at once. They do it amazingly well. We tried the following a la carte restaurants and were happy with all: french, italian, japanese, BBQ, seafood. Buffets ALWAYS had something that was great - buffets offered about 50-60 options each meal, so you shouldn't have a problem finding something. We had been warned to avoid the fresh vegetables on the salad bar b/c they may not be washed with purified water, but I had salad 3 times and never had any stomach problems at all. Ate fresh fruit at every meal - just avoided unpeeled fruit (e.g. apples). And if you try only one thing while you're there, you MUST try the "3 milk icecream" at the main buffet. wow. amazing stuff.
Insects: In 10 days we each got about 4 mosquito bites total and never used bug spray. Bugs are there but never a problem - we didn't notice them at all. The only thing we did notice were the dozens of species of beautiful butterflies everywhere! gorgeous!
Size of resort/grounds: many of the previous reviews seemed to complain about this, but we didn't find it to be a problem...and I was worried about this. Neither of us have mobility issues so we often chose to walk the length of the resort instead of take the tram. It is an absolutely gorgeous 5-10 min walk and the grounds are perfect - lush and green with fruit trees everywhere (and yes, much of the fruit they serve is from the trees). We took the tram if it was raining or if I had heels on for dinner. Trams seem to come evey 60 - 90 seconds or so - VERY convenient. What a great service!
Rooms: Very nice! One of the best rooms we've ever had. Spacious, VERY clean, comfortable, nice beds, jacuzzi tub, shower, always had warm water, great water pressure, daily restocked fridge. They provide you with water, beer, and soda every day - if you need extra, just ask and leave a little extra tip. (we usually left our maid about $3 per day). Airconditioning was just fine (and again, I'm really picky about this). Remeber - the climate is humid, so even with the airconditioning things stay a little damp. just a fact of life there I think. The only complaints about the rooms: 1. The pillows are horrible - really hard and thin. I had a stiff neck/shoulders and didn't sleep well. When we go again, I plan on buying a cheap pillow at Target and just leaving it behind when I leave. 2. Towels: On the first day, the towels they give you are gorgeous: thick, white, fluffy. Each day after, they give you old, gray, thinner, stiff towels. I recommend hiding your nice bath and hand towels and holding onto them for a few days. They will replace all towels whether they are hung up or left on the floor. 3. Washcloths are unheard of. If you like to use them, bring a few of your own (but don't bring white ones or the maid may accidently take them). They only give you 1 bath towel per person - if you need more, bring one of your own. We did try to avoid using the tap water to brush our teeth. never had stomach problems.
Beach towels: they give you 1 towel card per person upon arrival that you can exchange for a beach towl near the pool. nice, big towels. You can change them in for fresh towels as often as you'd like. We never had a problem being able to get a fresh towel when we wanted. No need to bring your own beach towels - I brought one and never used it.
Smoking: we're not smokers, but you might as well be in the DR. Many people smoke and sometimes it was bothersome. Not allowed in hotel restaurants, and most guests seemed to stick to this rule. Due to language barriers, sometimes smoking occured in restaurants, but it was often soon noted by staff and extinguished. Elsewhere, smoking reigns. on the beach, at bars, at the pool, on the tram, walking thru the resort, in the rooms. You get used to it, just be prepared. We noticed that the guests in the room next to us smoked and, if we had our airconditioner on, it drew their second-hand smoke straight into our room. This was pretty bad the few times it happened. If you are a smoker (esp one from the U.S. where smoking is pretty much illegal now) you'll love this country.
Money: the best advice we got - bring lots of American one dollar bills! we kept it in our safe and had no problems. We also brought some travelers cheques, but when using these, you get your change back in Dominican pesos, so I recommend sticking to smaller denominations (like $50) rather than $100+. All the prices in the shops are given in pesos, but they all take american money...or pesos. There is a bank at the hotel for getting cash, cashing travellers cheques, etc, but again, it only gives out pesos. Bring plenty of American cash with you so you don't have to worry about it. And yes, sunscreen is about $20 per bottle there so don't leave home without it!
Packing: I am a pack-aholic. I WAY overpacked. Next time we go (for 10+ days), I'll bring a few dresses/skirts for dinners and 2-3 shorts/tank tops and the rest will be swim suits. Other than for dinner, we never wore anything but our swim suits and a cover-up of sorts. You don't need much! Guys, bring a few pairs of pants and a few nicer button down or polo shirts for dinners. Shorts at dinner looked tacky. and for gods sake, button your shirt (yes, we saw a few open shirts with hairy chests and big bellies hanging out at meals - yuck.) I highly recommend bringing a sunhat/visor of some sort. The sun is intense.
Excursions: We went on the 3 1/2 hour bus trip to Santo Domingo. A great way to see the country, a large city, and a lot of Christopher Columbus-related history. It makes for a long day, but we enjoyed it. The bus picked us up at the hotel at 6 a.m. We were supposed to get back about 7 or 8 p.m. but due to a traffic jam, we took an adventurous 1 hour detour through a sugar cane field and didn't get back until 10 p.m. It was quite the exposure to the culture/countryside. stressful at times but very interesting. I would recommend the trip - especially if you're at the resort for 10-14 days. The only other "off site" thing we did was the 2 hour snorkel trip to the reef provided by the Scuba Caribe staff (this is the staff who work in the dive shop on the beach at the resort). It cost $31 per person. Equipment included. Definitely worth it. Probably our best experience. Bring a roll or a banana to feed in bits to the fish - they go crazy for it.
Spa: I hadn't hear this mentioned much in other reviews, so I tried it and had a deep tissue massage - wow! A gorgeous spa facility! It offers every service under the sun, from facials to wraps to waxing to massages to nails. You can even pay a $30 fee to just use all the facilities (pools, jets, saunas, steam rooms, etc). Prices for massages are simliar to the states ($78 for a 1 hour massage) and well-worth it. It was a great way to start my vacation and melt my stress away. The spa also contains a gym. The gym use is included in the all-inclusive package. we didn't use it.
Nightlife: we went to the casino once, nice but small. Some of the best airconditioning in the resort. a good place to go on a hot night. we never went to the disco (not our bag). We played pool and hung out around pueblo principe (the "town" of shops). Went to the Michael Jackson show. Fun - good choreography. recommended but don't be too sad if you miss it, either. We also watched "Mr. Principe" show which was great - it was like a "beauty" contest for 4 randomly-selected male guests of the resort. There was stength, talent, etc components and the audience voted at the end. Very funny. We often just retired early. The resort was so quiet after 10:30, it felt good to just go to bed after a day in the sun.
Service: most definitely 5 star all the way. some of the best service we've ever had. Dominicans are kind and generous people.
Other resorts: we met a few people from other resorts. We heard the Occidental at Punta Cana is a "no go." Apparently the staff calls you in your room daily and hounds you to buy a timeshare. who needs that on vacation? plus food is really bad and resort is older/not as nice. we heard this from 2 independent parties. We heard the Breezes is also a "no go." We got to drive through the Palladium Punta Cana - seems nice, but overall we were far more impressed with Bahia Principe. A couple people on our excursion bus talked very positively about their resorts, but when we got dropped off first at Bahia Principe and they saw our resort, they said "wow! this place is gorgeous". Long story short...I think Bahia Principe is one of the best resorts in Punta Cana. You will not go wrong here. We consider ourselves so lucky to have chosen the best resort on our first attempt.
We had a fantastic time and have literally no complaints. We will most certain be back - maybe next time with a couple kids in tow!
| Bahia Principe Punta Cana/Bavaro | Judy ~ Ottawa |
Arrival -
Dec. 1 to 8, 2007 - We flew on West Jet, departing approx. 40 minutes late, as we had to be de-iced in Ottawa. Amazingly enough, we landed 5 minutes early of our scheduled time!
We were on our way within no time. There were only 8 people on our bus, so it took approx. 40-45 minutes to get to the resort.
Upon arrival, we were greeted by the most beautiful of people in the world. Big smiles, perfect English, and welcoming us back to their wonderful resort. Having been to the resort on previous occasions, we were upgraded to VIP Gold and stayed in Building 62 (Ambar section). We had to wait a short while for our rooms, which we expected, due to our early arrival time of 1:30 pm.
Rooms -
We were a group of 6 ladies and we all had rooms in the same building #62. Two of our group had a connecting door between our rooms, which was great.
There was ample closet space, enough drawer space, and a large bathroom, with cubicles for the toilet area and the shower area. The bathroom was all in marble and there was a huge jacuzzi tub.
My sister and I shared a King-size 4-poster bed with a nice, firm mattress. We both slept really well on the mattress.
Our other aunts and cousin had two canopy beds in their rooms. Some found the mattress a bit hard.
We had a bit of problems with the television in one of the rooms. Maintenance was always there very, very quickly. Our room had some stains on the ceiling - I believe damage from Tropical Storm Noel. Other than that, the room was spacious, with a seating area, table with 2 chairs, and patio/balcony furniture.
Restaurants -
The buffets had a wonderful assortment of foods. We enjoyed breakfast in the Main buffet, because of the Omlette/Egg stations, where they were freshly made up. The fresh juices were wonderful as well. We never had to wait for coffee, or for fill-ups. Service was extremely attentive.
We went to the Japanese Restaurant and thoroughly enjoyed it. We found the rice to be a bit dry, but all-in-all, we thought the food was very tasty.
Our next a la cart was the Italian Restaurant. Service was excellent, and we found the food to be very good. We were all happy with our meals.
We also were at The Grill Steakhouse and once again, food was great, as well as service. Our steaks were done exactly as we ordered, and they were very, very tasty.
Our final a la carte, and we all felt the best, was The Gourmet (Cafe de Paris). Once again, service was excellent and the food was the very best. Some of us had steaks again, and they were cooked to perfection.
We had most of our lunches at one of the buffets by the beach, as that is where we spent all of our time.
Bars -
The bartenders at the beach bar were great, although the best drinks were definitely at the Lobby Bar. Service was excellent as well, as long as you were sitting at one of the tables where they served you.
We found the attention of the bartenders to be not as good - particularly one woman, who only saw you if you had money in your hand. She did pretty much nothing, while the other bartender, I think his name was Rudolfo, did all of the work.
Anyway, the servers were great and we never had to wait long for a drink.
Beach and Pools -
We pretty much spent all our time at the beach, except for 2 days where it was too windy. The beach still had some debris, probably from Tropical Storm Noel. We were careful walking on it to the water. It could probably use a good raking a few times. Other than that, we never had problems with getting a palapa or chairs. The water was as beautiful as ever.
We stayed at the pool 2 days, when the wind was too bad to stay at the beach. The pool didn't have a lot of people in it. We had problems finding chairs on the 2 days that it was very windy at the beach because everyone was going to the pool. One of the supervisors had one of the groundsmen to fetch us chairs from the beach, so that worked out quite nice. We really appreciated that.Ground -
The grounds were as beautiful as ever. I wish we could grow the trees and bushes that they have here in our climate. Everything was immaculate, yet you hardly ever saw any gardeners. They must do the work before we have our eyes opened.
Activities -
We did not take part in any of the activities, except for bingo on a lazy afternoon. We played one game and realized it wasn't for us.
Tours -
No tours - this was a relax and do nothing vacation. Some of us read books, and others just people-watched.
Conclusion -
We have nothing but wonderful things to say about Albania, Marcos, and the rest of the crew. We were treated like queens and they made sure that everything was to our satisfaction. The food was great, the drinks were great, the beach was great - what more can you ask for.
I don't understand some of the negative reviews this resort has been getting. Every one of the employees at the front desk and restaurants spoke English. We had no problems in communicating at all.
I would have no hesitation in recommending this resort and we are looking forward to our next return visit!!
| Bahia Principe Punta Cana/Bavaro | Valerie |
We got to Gran Bahia Principe Bavaro around 2.45 on 22nd Nov 07, check in was easy but room wasn't ready, rooms aren't supposed to be ready until 3pm anyway. This wasn't a problem we just went and found family that were already there. After about 30min to 1 hr we went back to reception to see if room was ready and it was. When we got to our room had a nice surprise, we had been upgraded to Diamond Club. We think this was because the previous day family and friends that had arrived and it wasn't a very smooth check in for them, we don't think it was the fault of the Hotel but the travel agent not sending through the correct information to the hotel. Anyway to cut a long story short they were upgraded to Diamond Club and because they were, so were we.
The room was in very nice and spacious. It was in Villa 31, right beside the Diamond Club pool which was very handy for our 6 year old who spent a majority of the holiday in the pool. I think if I went back to this hotel I would upgrade to the Diamond Club, it would be worth the extra for the extras you get. The main pool by the beach was very busy so the Diamond Club pool was great for our daughter, not too crowded and she finally learnt to swim.
We didn't go on any excursions as we were only there for a week and the main reason was for a family wedding.
We went to the buffet often. The food was very nice, always plenty of variety. My daughter always found something that she liked. No complaints at all with the food.
We went to 3 of the restraunts which were very nice but because we couldn't get late bookings, my daughter fell asleep at the table at almost everyone, but we still enjoyed them. Her dad just had a hard time carrying her home each evening.
The wedding that we went to was lovely, very well organised and the whole day went very well. The bride and groom enjoyed the day.
This is a very nice hotel ideal (we felt) for couples and families with young children. If we had brought our two older children (17 and 16) we don't feel they would have enjoyed it as much as they have done in previous holidays as there didn't seem as much for their age group to do but I would still recommend hotel, this a lovely place to have a holiday.
Here is some extra information, not sure if you need but thought it might give a fuller picture
We travelled with MyTravel from Manchester Airport, England
We booked for 1 week 22/11/07 - 29/11/07
in our party there was myself (40), my boyfriend (43) and our daughter (6)
| Bahia Principe Punta Cana/Bavaro | Laura ~ Oakville,Ontario |
Arrival -
We arrived at the Bahia Principe On November the 18th. Our room number and keys were handed to us on the bus. This avoided the line at the hotel. The bus boys were a bit slow and when they stopped to drop someone else off we had to wait for them to bring up there bags and come back down.
Rooms -
Rooms were average. We stayed in Building 9. It was pretty close to the beach.
Restaurants -
The buffet was average. You can only go to 3 a la carte restaurants. The bbq and the garden grill are pretty much buffets and the food wasn't that great. The gourmet restaurant was pretty good but the portions are very small and the service was poor.
Bars -
There are lots of bars. The bartenders don't speak much english.
Beach and Pools -
The beach and pools are very nice. You can always find a chair.
Conclusion -
I have been to Punta Cana many times. I have stayed at Excellence, Paridissus Palma Real, and Sunscape the beach and this was by far the worst place of all these. The square in the hotel is very nice. It has many shops a casino and the disco. The new part there building is almost finished( the ambar) It is nice hotel and for the price it's not bad. You do have to pay $32.00 U.S for you safe in your room for the week so be prepared. Hope this helps.
| Bahia Principe Punta Cana/Bavaro | Ben & Tracy |
We went down to the Dominican Republic leaving Nov 24th at 6:10 am from Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The only problem we had with the flight was that we were flying in a group of 17 people and had requested to be seated together which didn't happen (thanks to our travel agent at Flight Centre for telling us it would be no problem). We flew skyservice and it was a typical flight, jammed in like worms in a can. Ask for the emergency exit seats, there is 5 inches extra leg room! We arrived at the airport, and its beautiful. I've never been anywhere before so I didn't know what to expect.
I won't go into detail, but your pretty much in and out of the airport in about 20-30 mins, it went quick. I will mention there are numerous bagage boys at the airport trying to grab your stuff and take it to the bus for some $$. I just shook my head and held onto my own bags. You only have to travel about 100 meters to your bus. The bus ride to the resort took us about 35-40 mins. The dominicans drive like maniacs, its crazy fun to watch. Once at the resort the bell boys unload and organize your luggage, we had a group of 17 people and one of my friends didn't get his luggage, it somehow stayed on the bus. Trying to find anyone who could understand our plight was a mission. We told the Sunquest rep, who said not to worry, the bus will go to the next hotel on the list, and then bring the extra luggage back. We decided not to worry, he had his passport and cash, and we had extra clothes to spare so no big deal. We went to check in and found that none of the rooms were ready so we headed to the buffet for some lunch. I'm just going to say the food was amazing. I'll try anything once, and alot of it I had to try twice!
Checking In -
After eating and having a few beers at the lobby bar we were told our rooms were ready. We all stayed in Club Diamond, which is a seperate check in area, and my wife and I were upgraded due to the fact we were getting married that week. The upgrade wasn't anything amazing, we had a basket of fruit, a mickey of rum and some flower petals tossed around our room. I was expecting an ocean view or something. After looking at all the rooms we had in our group of 17 it was all pretty standard. I'm not sure what the golden club rooms are like, everyone in our group was diamond. I will note that my parents were checked into a room with 2 3/4 size beds and didn't get it fixed for 2 days, but eventually it was fixed.
Meals-
For supper the first night we went to the buffet, it was awesome. I could eat there every night. Our sunquest rep pre booked our al la cartes for us, which we could try and change at the resort once we arrived. We tried to change them but everything was booked, I guess you get what you get. We had Mexican (I thought this was the best by far, but I love spicey food). We also had Meditteranean (spelling?) which was ok, I'm not a fan of this type of food, it was better then I thought it would be. The Garden Grill was excellent, but my fiance/wife wasn't feeling well so I went back to the room with her midway thru my meal (I wolfed down everything on my plate and half her's first though!). The last night we had the Italian restaraunt. A few of us were sick, personally I thru up during the night (not from drinking!).
I ordered seafood tailigate (like I said, I experiment), it was good, but I'm pretty sure thats what did it. It was really rough because we were flying home the next day so myself, my sister, brother-in-law and cousin were all feeling pretty rough for the 4 hour flight home. A few of us did get the runs the odd time, it was nothing a couple of immodium couldn't fix.
You don't drink the tap water, and I found the maids didn't leave enough bottled water in your room. Leaving notes for mucho auga with a buck or two seemed to do the trick.
Wedding -
We didn't meet up with Janette (the wedding co-ordinator) until monday night at 9pm (she had us booked in for monday at 9am, but I had arranged deep sea fishing so other arrangements were made...priorities!). The wedding package is 1500US, we tried to pay via my fathers credit card but they told him it expired...he pointed out the date was July 2010....they tried again and said expired, he asked them to call the credit company, they said they couldn't, so we tried another card, which wouldn't work, then they realize its their machine, so we had to come back Tuesday to pay. The meeting was pretty quick, we picked flowers, decided on the gazeebo (it was too windy for a beach wedding, which we really wanted). Arrangements were made for Tracy to get her hair done, along with the 2 bridesmaids standing up with her. We were told we'd get breakfast in bed the day after the wedding (didn't happen, more on this later). We also picked out a song for the band to play as Tracy walked down the aisle (the band played something else, oh well!).
Our flowers cost us an additional $50 which had to be paid in cash. Our meal was at Le Gourmet, it was amazing. I've never had Il Caprricio before (which is very thin strips of raw beef) it was like eating lunch meat, so good once you get past the thought of what your eating it was delicious! I should mention that if you want a specific set up for your tables you should be very very descriptitive of what you want. Tracy and I just said a head table and 2 tables for 8 and it was just 1 round table with 2 larger round tables off to the sides.
The night before the wedding my fiance stayed with my mom in our room, and I went and stayed with my dad so we wouldn't see each other before hand.
Tracy had an appointment for hair and makeup at 9am at the spa, along with her bridesmaids. We were getting married at noon and I guess it took a little over 2 hours for the hair so they were somewhat rushed. Personally I just relaxed with my father and had a couple of drinks to calm the nerves!
The wedding came and went so fast I hardly knew it happened. My dad was still up standing with me when Tracy started to walk down the aisle so he had to run to meet up with her to walk her down. I'd say the ceremony was about 10 mins in total, then we did pictures, which was about another half an hour and it was all done by quarter to one. We then went to the italian restaurant for lunch. As soon as the waiters/waitress saw it was a wedding party we had every person in the place giving us water/beer/whatever we needed. The service at this resort is amazing. Tip! And tip generously!
They work hard! The only complaint I have about the whole package was the morning after breakfast in bed. It didn't come, so we waited, then we called after about 45 mins of waiting, only to find out no one knew what we were talking about. Then a club diamond rep called back and I told her to forget the breakfast, we're going to the buffet. She said she'll make ammends tomorrow. Ok. We wasted about 2 hours of our morning waiting, then headed off to the buffet. The next morning 8am....no breakfast.....8:30...no breakfast....9am no breakfast....finally we shower and are heading out to the buffet and it shows up. A bottle of champage, some orange juice, a plate of melon and cantelope, and some stale donughts and breads. WOW. You'd think after messing up one morning they'd make an attempt at something spectacular the next. Guess not. We just passed on it and went to the buffet. Our wedding pictures were beautiful, we ended up paying $150US extra for 45 shots and the CD. Ernesto does great work!
Excursions -
We did alot, we went on a Monster Truck Safari which takes you into the countryside of the Dominican, and it was shocking to see how these people really live. I've never seen poverty, so it broke my heart to see how happy these children were with how little they had. We stopped at a school and I gave away my hat. My Fiance works at Dare Foods so we had all kinds of candy to give away, it was touching to see how happy it made them to get little treats. Everyone we passed on the trip was always smiling and waving, they really love the tourists down there. If you do this trip bring candy to throw, as alot of the people you pass on the way don't recieve as much as the people do at the stops on the trip. I think this trip was 190US for Tracy and myself. It was a great trip but a very long day starting at 8am and ending at 5:30-6pm.
We also went on a deep sea fishing expedition. It was rough and we were sea sick, but we caught fish. I paid $650 US for a 7 person charter for 4 hours of fishing. It was good, I'd do it again, even though I threw up for 3 hours straight.
The day after the wedding Tracy and I reserved a party boat to do an evening cruise for our wedding group. Even though it was only a few hours of fun I'd say this was the most enjoyable part of the trip. We went out to a little reef and snorkled for about 20mins, then went to another shallow water area and had a few drinks, then were back. It was short and sweet and everyone was loaded off the rum's and 7up!
Finally on the last day there Tracy and I booked the Carribean Festival tour. We went out on a large party boat of about 100 people. They take you to a reef where you snorkel for about an hour, then to another bay where there are sting rays and sharks that you swim with. Then on the way back in there is music/dancing and all the drinks you can handle. I think this trip would be alot of fun with a group of people, but we wanted to do something alone and the snorkling on this trip was definatly worth it.
Overall we had a blast. Would we go back? Maybe in 5 years or so. I found the resort too big almost, its beautiful, our service was excellent, but we had VIP bracelets from getting married. Other people in our group didn't have quite the same service. My brother in law found a bottle of 7up in his room filled with cleaning fluid which he poured into a drink and drank. He was sick afterwards and the resort did nothing when my sister notified them.
I had a bottle of pepsi in my room that was half crushed and in my mini bar fridge, I didn't put it there, but I know it wasn't full of pop. You really have to watch for things like that. Also, there are a few key people who speak english very well, then there are alot who don't have any idea what your saying. Like 90% of the resort. Waiters/bar staff/front desk staff are amazing. Getting an extra bottle of water from your maid is near impossible. Learn at least a few key spanish words before going down. You won't regret it! If your at the Club Diamond Pool bar say hi to Heidi, Raul and Carlos! And order a Mamajama! You won't regret it! I know this review was long, but I wanted to hit on everything. If anyone has any questions you can email me at beflemin@flemingc.on.ca and I'd be glad to answer!
| Bahia Principe Punta Cana/Bavaro | Eddy and Celine ~ Northern Ontario |
We stayed at this resort Nov 15 to Nov 22/07 . This is definitely a 5 star resort Grounds are beautiful, staff was great, food was excellent with a wide variety of choices to suit everyone. Rooms were large and beds very comfortable. Of coarse the Beach is the best.
We have been to other locations but as far as I am concerned Punta Cana is the only place to be.
We highly recommend this resort.
| Bahia Principe Punta Cana/Bavaro | Steve & Pauline ~ Ontario |
This was our 9th trip to the Caribbean, Luperon Beach DR PP, Tryp Cayo Coco Cuba, Coral Hamaca DR Boca Chica, Rui Merengui, Bachata and Mambo DR PP, Sirenis DR PC, Princess Bavaro DR PC (also very good), and now the best one at the Bahia Principe Bavaro DR PC. Folks the food is GREAT! One night at the buffet we had rib-eye roast of beef and lobster! The a-la carts are good but the buffet is outstanding.
The trip starts off with your check-in on the bus. You're the first ones off the bus and you already have you room keys, towel cards etc. One surprise was the additional cost of the room safe $27 for the week.
The plane ride was awful, we had to disembark in PP and go through Customs, then wait to re-embark our plane. What in previous years was approx a 4 hour ride was over 6 hours (we left Toronto at 10:00 and arrived in PC at 4:20) watch out for these stop over flights!
We got a free upgrade to an ocean front room with robes, slippers and room service beach towel exchange (villa 65) If you can find something wrong with this place, you should stay home!
FYI - I used my lighter to soften the edges of our wrist bands prior to putting them on & we had no cuts from sharp edges, a neat trick for you seasoned travelers!
| Bahia Principe Punta Cana/Bavaro | Gary and Carol ~ Oshawa Ontario |
About Us.... My wife is 47 and I turned 50 while on our vacation for 2 weeks to the Royal Golden Gran Bahia Principe Punta Cana. We have travelled to the Dominican Republic several times and this is our second time to the Punta Cana region. Date Travelled.....August 26 - Sept 9 2007...Air Transat Holidays Resort....The resort is huge as stated in other reviews. There are trams that travels from the main lobby / restaurant area to the beach. They run every 3-4 minutes at peak times and at the most 5 minutes apart but there are always a minimum of 2 passing each other at the halfway mark. There are several tram stops along the way should you wish to board at any time. It takes about 15 minutes to walk it on the pathways and is about the only excercise you will get so if you want to help your waist line from the drinking and food keep it in mind. Staff...The staff are very friendly and english is spoken with little problem. If one person doesn't understand another one will. Guests.....Most of the guests were from the Spain area and therefore spanish was spoken almost all the time.There were several instances of total rudeness from other guests and complaints to staff were negative in the result area. It is there policy not to interfere in the disputes between guests so we were told.With the language barrier of spanish guests and english guests the spanish obviousley wins. Food....The food was excellent in all areas that we went to and we were there for 2 weeks and never really got tired of the variety. For a la carte we recommend the Japanese and the BBQ at the beach as they were both excellent. Weather...If you are planning on going this time of the year it is hot probably 90's + so be aware with the breeze from the carribean that is is hotter than you think. We had next to no rain and if it does rain it is always only for 5-10 minutes and back to sunshine. It is the start of the hurricane season but we did not have any trouble. The Royal Golden Club.....The club is worth the money as far as being closest to the beach and pool area and also having your own customer relations office for you to book your a la carte dinners or lodge a complaint. The internet access is good peace of mind however it did go down for 3-4 days when we were there and when we complained a little louder we were told that we could use the internet on the other side of the resort that was for the sunquest side. There rooms are located in the area closest to the beach and main guest pool. Pools....The main pool is loud with music and guests so be prepared. If you are a Royal Golden member you have your own pool that you share with Sunquest Diamond members located about half-way between the resort. Beach....The beach is excellent and it is not hard to find a quiet spot where you can keep your chair and a straw hut for shade. If you want this you have to be prepared