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| Fun Royale Beach Resort |
Fun Royale Beach Resort: Fun Royale Beach Resort Reviews |
| Total User's Score 3.8
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By Occasion... |
By Traveller Type... |
| Based on 13 reviews |
| Excellent |
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5 |
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3 |
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3 |
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| Absolutly amazing for a 3 star! |
| Fun Royale Beach Resort |
User Rating:
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Sarah >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Mar, 2010 | Leisure | Family
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My daughter and I travelled with Sunwing ( food is good ) to the Puerto Plata. We went to Fun Royale / Fun Tropicale from March 2nd - 9th.
RECEPTION:
We found the reception upon arrive / departure to be friendly, always there to help you know matter the issue and there was never a problem with any language spoken.
ROOM:
Our room cam with a double bed plus a futon, satelite tv, 2 dressers (lots of drawers), 4 piece bath, mini kitchen, and yes it is air conditioned (works great)
BARS:
Yes there is a 24hour bar so enjoy... The main bar (pool side) closes at 12am, but there is always something to drink. Service was excellent, the bar tenders got to know you after one day and had your drink waiting for you by the second day they even asked for your name so when they gave you your drink they could say Hey??? here is your drink!
POOLS:
There are 3 pools (childrens, adult, activity). They are all cleaned daily and the activity pool offers a volleyball net and a basketball net, which includes the swim up bar Popeyes
FOOD:
Although resorts may be repetitive in presenting there food this resort was very creative with the ways they presented it to you... ie.. beefsteak at lunch - chopsuey at dinner. Breakfast - pancakes, omelettes are great. Coffee may be strong but they offer instant as well, yes they have cold milk too! Lunch and Dinner and similar but different in creative ways... hats off to the chefs there! There is also a Pizzeria on site, which is very very good (just like home)
BEACH:
Yes its the Atlantic... some days are sunny warm and calm and others are windy and wavy but it is kept clean and raked daily
ANIMATION TEAM:
These people (Luis, Spaghetti, Ramon, Jeffrey, Railyn, Melaine, Anna, Salami and the boss Hector) go that extra 100% to make you feel welcomed, comfortable, entertained (always) and they did take the time know matter how busy they were to make you feel very special
SERVICE:
The service overall including bar tenders, maid service, and entertainment crew went over and above there job titles to make you feel at home!
LITTLE EXTRAS:
- there are always excurssions being offered hourly through the entertainment people
- windsurfing, banana boats, snorkeling (free for a certain amount of time)
- every night there is a trip to Coco Bongo (local club at Plaza) free taxi there with 6 people. (drinks are not included)
- Roadway is another club (close to Coco Bongo) which is more our style (Coco Bongo we found to be very loud and more for the younger generation 19-22) again drinks are not included.
Overall I would highly recommend this for any familys that are looking to have a good clean fun time, and yes we will return.
If you have any questions just send me a message and I'll be glad to answer |
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| Awesome!!! |
| Fun Royale Beach Resort |
| User Rating:
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Shiela >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Mar, 2010 | Leisure | With friend
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My second trip to the island and first to this resort. 14 wonderful days! Met some wonderful people who were on holiday as well, had our daily happy hour with Hector. He was willing to keep my Bubba jug full. The staff was some of the nicest people I have ever met. Smiling, dancing. They always appeared happy doing their job.
Found it a shame that, they are fighting to get their rating back up. West Jet has them listed at a 3star resort, and Sun wing at a 2.5, but with the service and food, and the cleanliness of the rooms...this rating should be upped to at least a 4 star.
Will I return to the Island...Yes...Will it be this Resort. Absolutely!!!
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| Your Arrival |
We arrived around 5pm. Checked in and had our bags taken to the room. They were kind and showed us the way to the dining room. Made sure we had a lock and key for the safe. Lucy (the spitfire) was there with a big hug and welcome. She was ready willing and able to answer any question that one may have. Go Lucy!
The reception area was a very nice place to sit and relax; one could always feel a nice breeze
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| Rooms |
| Our room was very spacious, lots of drawers and closet space. Our cleaning girl was very sweet; she left us flowers every day. The balcony was quite big and gave us privacy. The bed was comfortable and so were the pillows! Lots of hot water, but who needs that much when all you want to do is cool off. There were hairdryers in the bathrooms. A small fridge with a counter and cupboards. |
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| Restaurants and Bars |
| We had two great bartenders Rocco during the day and Hector in the evenings. Sorry to say I didn't get the young lads name at the swim up pool bar, but he sure could mix a great drink and do a slam dunk from his station to the net! We pretty much had the same waitress in the mornings and same waiter in the evenings. Both were awesome at their jobs. Wish I could remember their names, but they each greeted us with a hug and kiss. The food was good and varied. We did not feel like it was the same every day. The extra pieces of chocolate cake were very much appreciated. Best pancakes ever! Going the extra mile for wine for us, who could ask for better service. Pizza as a snack by the pool was a daily event, would let you build it yourself if you asked. |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
The beach was nice, and was raked daily. The only draw back was all the coral right in front, but it was no problem to walk down the beach a bit. There you could wade right in, and swim with no problems. Spent most of our time at the main pool. Kept clean by the guys, who used the net a couple of times a day. The grounds were raked and swept daily. Very neat! Beach towels were big...NO...holes in them!
Note: We did decide to sit at the quiet pool one day, about 10 days into our trip. We were there only a short time before getting our first bites on the legs. Mind you it had rained the night before, but we got up and returned to our spot at the main pool and all was good again.
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| Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel |
The hotel offered nightly trips to the clubs, we however did not partake. We did go off on our own to the casino one night, which the hotel made sure we had a free cab there.
We booked a cab along with some other people and went into Puerto Plata for a day trip and toured the Rum Factory among others sites.
We also took in a day to Paradise Island, Wow! is all I can say on that. A trip up into the mountains to visit a school, see the water falls. Another great day! Last trip was out on the Catamaran. A day at Sousa Bay, snorkeling and a 2 1/2 sail back. Wonderful!
The animation team was a great group. High energy! Have to say I lost weight due to the water activities. Fun!
Drawback - Same activities everyday...would like to see new for next year
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| Other Comments |
| One of the things that impressed me the most was the many loyal customers they had. Pretty much everyone that I met and spoke too, have been coming to this resort for 5yrs up to 12 years, some even said they came more then 3 times a year. These were people from Canada, England, Germany, and Sweden. |
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| Still Had a Good Time |
| Fun Royale Beach Resort |
User Rating:
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Robert >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Feb, 2010 | Leisure | Family
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- 24 hr AI is now back by quiet pool where it should be.
- Chicken BBQ is back at the beach club. Chicken is GOOD.
- Swim up bar in the main pool is not open. A lot of guests noticed this.
- Bugs (no-see-ums, NOT, repeat, NOT bed bugs) were terrible. They had three weeks of rain prior to our arrival and they thrived. Hotel fogged five days in a row. I've never seen this at the hotel, but it sure culled the herd.
- Still got 5 star service. I managed to get 'one' glass of wine myself at dinner and once I managed to get my own coffee without being intercepted. Beer and drinks just magically showed up at the table just as I was finishing. Talk about just in time delivery .....
- New manager, only been on-site for about a month. Seems energetic and with some good ideas. Hands on type; I saw him mixing paint with the painters and hanging 'curtains' in the beach bar.
- C & D blocks are shut down for renovations. We saw the model suite and the colour scheme looks bright and cheery. Similar changes are planned for the RCI villas. We saw a model of that too.
- Occupancy was very low, about 20%. Not just Fun Royale, but most of Playa Dorada. The beach was very empty. Blue Bay, Grand Paradise and Grand Ventana seemed to be the exceptions.
A lot of positives mixed with the negatives. We met a lot of people that were hating the place and a lot that were loving it.
People we were traveling with this year had some issues, but it was mostly with RCI. They planned on doing their own cooking the first week and the AI the second week. They were expecting a full kitchen (stove, fridge, utensils etc) and not the bar fridge, toaster oven, microwave and hot plate that they got. As a result, they had to cough up for the AI after day two. Naturally they weren't happy. And their first dinner was the Oriental theme night, and it was not very good (this is an understatement) and there was no carvery or grill station. The next day's lunch at the buffet was terrible according to them. Their seafood salad was mostly shells and he couldn't eat it. But at dinner, we took them to the Italian and he went into raves about how good it was.
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| Your Arrival |
| Quick and painless. |
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| Rooms |
- Dated, spotlessly clean, everything worked. A/C quit during our stay but I didn't report it until check out. Had some plumbing issues. I think some of the old brittle plastic piping in the buried water supply, especially the parts near the surface and exposed to the sun. They had a few burst over the two weeks we were there and they had to dig up and repair.
- Got our room again. Still clean and everything worked, sort of. I think the toilet valve may have got a piece of plastic stuck in it as it wouldn't stop flushing. This happened immediately after one of the plumbing repairs. The a/c crapped out the last few days. You turned it on and initially you got cold air, but after an hour or so there was no air flow. I didn't report this until we were checking out.
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| Restaurants and Bars |
- Most of staff are still there but on reduced hours.
- Food cut backs (lower selection, not many grill stations or carvery, NO ice cream). Actually, on the first week we didn't see a carvery or grill station, but the second week we did. Food can't be that bad. I gained 7 lbs ......
- Buffet food varied from very good to positively brutal. It was hard to believe it was coming from the same kitchen.
- Specialty. Excellent, but only open 2 nights per week each. Since the food was so much better there, we ended up eating at Italian 4x and Brazilian 3x.
- Beach club. Excellent. BBQ chicken is to die for ....
- Pizza. Very good
- Buffet. Inconsistent (varied from good to very bad). Ice cream station shutdown, low selection choice and carving stations / grill stations were rare.
- Presidente beer and Classic liquors. |
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| Beach/Pools/Grounds |
| Clean and well maintained. Walkways starting to show their age. |
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| Other Comments |
| Short version. See my full review, photos and video via my website at www.bobfromcanada.com |
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| Photos: http://www.bobfromcanada.com |
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| Videos: http://www.bobfromcanada.com |
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| All in all we enjoy this resort |
| Fun Royale Beach Resort |
| User Rating:
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Jim >
12 contribution(s) Canada |
| Dec, 2009
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Arrival: Feb 17 - 24
Everything was on time, room was ready when we arrived. Our group was all close together. Two of our party were travelling with their 5 year olds. and were in a room closest to the restaurant/bar. When they realized it was a bit loud at night and woke up the kids the staff moved them the next morning.
Rooms
It was nice to see there is some renovations going on, one of the buildings # 21 was being renovated and I noticed a lot of new air conditioners either recently installed or in the installation process. Some of the staff I spoke with told me the new manager that arrived at the start of 2009 is very good and is looking to do a general upgrade, some of which we could already see in progress.
Restaurants and Bars
They have moved some things around since our last visit, the pizza place is open longer and now serves hamburgers etc and some of the stations in the main dining room are different, everything worked well and efficient, lots of food and of good quality. The pastries are excellent
Beach/Pools/Grounds
They have a tractor with a covered wagon that shuttles you down to the beach. The food in the beach cabana is excellent. The pools are kept clean and because we had some small childeren spent a lot of time at the kids pool.
Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel
They always try hard with the entertainment, we have been to this resort before and noticed some of the entertainment was a bit more risque than in previous years.
Other Comments
All in all we enjoy this resort better than others we have been to in the Playa Dorada complex, a nice relaxing holiday. Friendly staff. Don't try and compare it with some of the 4.5 or 5 star resorts, but for a budget friendly holiday you won't be disappointed. |
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| Were very satisfied with the 3 star resort |
| Fun Royale Beach Resort |
| User Rating:
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Spencer >
1 contribution(s) Canada |
| Mar, 2009
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Arrival: Feb 11 to Feb 25
The all inclusive was booked through Signature Vacations, with a direct charter Flight with Skyservice. The flight was on time and at the POP airport everything went very smoothly without any long lineups or delays. The bus was waiting to take us directly to the resort.
Rooms
We had a "run of the room" and was assigned a standard hotel room on arrival. The room was in Complex D, an older and aging building, but was very clean and adequate for what we wanted.
Restaurants and Bars
The food was good with lots of variety and lots of desserts, ice cream was delicious. Excellent friendly service and we had absolutely no complaints about the food and bars.
Beach/Pools/Grounds
The weather was perfect, sunny and warm everyday except one day of rain, for suntanning and swimming. At the beach by late afternoon, the wind was up with yellow and red flag warming due to the big waves.
Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel
By reading Debbies website, we knew what to expect at this location, and were very satisfied with the 3 star resort, as our expecations were not set for a new 5 star resort.
Other Comments
I found the Dominican people very friendly and nice but could be very aggressive when trying to sell things at the flea martkets. I found it necessary to know the spanish language when off the resort, I was unable to communicate with anybody. The next time I go I will learn more of the language before I go. |
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| It is highly unlikely that there will be a third visit |
| Fun Royale Beach Resort |
| User Rating:
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Jim >
12 contribution(s) Canada |
| Jan, 2009
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Arrival: Dec 30 2008-6 Jan 2009
We arrived from Ottawa with Skyservice. The flight was good and the crew very attentive. A wad of chewing gum stuck to the seat belt damaged my wife's clothes. We reported this to the flight attendants who said they would ensure the gum was removed. On our return flight we sat in the same seats the gum was still there.
On arrival at the resort we proceeded to check-in. The resort was informed at the time of booking that my wife has some mobility difficulties and that we required a ground floor room. I had requested a room in D-block as we stayed in that section during a previous visit and found it to be much quieter as it is a bit further from the main action. When we arrived we were assigned a room in A-block. In fairness to the resort they assumed that because of the mobility problem we would prefer a room closer to the restaurant etc and had placed us in A-block. We asked to be moved to D. A room was not ready at the time but we were told to check back in a couple of hours. Things began to go downhill from there. About three hours later we were able to get into our room.
Rooms:
The room was much as expected having been to the resort a year ago.
Restaurants and Bars:
Bearing in mind that this is not 5 star Michelin standard, the buffet fare is basic but good. The pork and beef tended to be a bit tough and the chicken over cooked My wife and I enjoy the Brazilian best of all. This year we tried the Italian and I'm sure that if one enjoyed Italian cuisine there would be no disappointment. On our last visit both the Brazilian and Italian restaurants were closed one day each week. According to the in-room documentation this was the case once again, however, the Brazilian was closed at least twice during our one week stay.
Beach/Pools/Grounds:
Well kept and constantly maintained. |
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Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel:
We booked two tours through Alegria Tours; the standard Puerto Plata City Tour plus the cable car up the mountain and a day-trip to Playa Grande. Both were a great disappointment. Basically the transportation with very little commentary about what we were seeing or doing. The tours from the reps at Fun Royal didn't fit into our schedule and were a bit more expensive. Based on our previous experience I would recommend booking with the reps at the resort, you get much better value for your money.
Something new this year was the Reps night. A version of the Puerto Plata city tour but by night; this tour includes sun set drinks at the fortress, a tour of downtown and winds up with a delicious meal at a Dominican restaurant. The profits from this tour are donated to MAIS (Movimiento Para el Autodesarrollo Internacional de la Solidaridad de Puerto Plata). MAIS strives to motivate children to stay in school and to prevent them from entering Puerto Plata's lucrative sex tourism industry by offering academic support and social services to at-risk and exploited youth. Participants in the program are trained to be tailors, seamstresses, bakers, upholsterers, candle makers, and cosmeticians.
On site evening shows were repetitive and amateurish. The New Year's Eve show was a repeat of the show in 2008!
Other Comments:
This was our second visit to the Fun Royale Resort. Our first visit was during the same period last year.
The Manana Syndrome is alive and well at Fun Royale! There were some maintenance issues such as the handle for the cold water tap in the shower which would not stay on. It was corroded to the point at which it would spin uselessly on the spindle of the tap. The flush mechanism for the toilet required some imaginative cranking to get a flush. The TV had no remote, one should have been available on request at the front desk, but they didn't have any for a LG -TV! The phone didn't work.
The absence of a working phone caused the most difficulty when trying to get a wake-up call. Two mornings a security guard came and knocked on the door. We are still waiting for the wake-up callfor the morning of our departure!
When we booked we chose the Royal Room add-on which should have given us a fruit basket on arrival, fridge in room with bottle of rum, soft drinks & beers (refilled daily), coffee and tea in room. We had no fruit basket, the fridge was empty and no facilities for making tea or coffee. It took several trips to the font desk to get the fridge stocked initially and finally around 8:00 in the evening the fridge was stocked. The next day the fridge was not restocked and we had no water. Again several trips to the front desk and a complaint to the Signature Vacations rep before we had any action.
The next day the same problem. We spoke to the resort Customer Service Representative about the problems she claimed to know nothing about the Royal package. At one point the Signature Rep left a written request for action at the front desk. When I checked back several hours later they proudly showed me the request and said they would deal with it. Not much help if you don't have water to brush your teeth! Finally on day four of our seven day stay we had the fridge sorted and in the evening of the same day we received our welcome basket. At this point we decided that we should no longer spend our holiday flogging what seems to be a dead horseand gave up on our welcome bottle of rum and coffee maker. We paid for it we should have received it!
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| I suspect that this resort has serious management problems which are filtering down to the staff on the ground. Although the bell boys, bar and restaurant were pleasant and tried to be helpful it was impossible not to see the lack of enthusiasm compared to the same period a year ago. As much as we enjoyed our first visit to Fun Royal after our experience this year it is highly unlikely that there will be a third visit. |
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| Old Reviews - Fun Royale Beach Resort |
| Fun Tropicale/Fun Royale - Playa Dorada |
Kellie
Canada
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| December 2008 |
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Arrival: Dec 23-Dec30, 2008
From Landing, to being directed, loaded and taking to our resort from their shuttle, was well organized. 30 mins we were at our resort. We were 45 mins late in landing so arrived at 11:00 am oppose to 10:00ish. Our rooms were not ready until 3:30. Therefore very warm in Canadian clothes for a good chunk of the day. It was also a bit unnearving having our suitcases off to the side of the lobby stored in a small room.The receptionist were not all that friendly.
Rooms:
Our family consisted of a grp of 15. My immediate family were our kids ages 17-21, and my husband and I. We were hoping to get joined rooms however that did not transpire. They were however only 2 rooms away. Our room had a king size bed, and our own balcony, and our kids two queen size beds, balcony as well. On each side of our bed were panel like windows. The Panels did not shut completely therefore being quite close to the stage area, it was quite loud at night at least until 1130 and after that you could either hear fighting cats, the workers out the back by one of the secuirity gates or late partiers. The Air Condioner leaked. It only worked for the first three nights. And when it was on, you froze, there was no happy medium. On the fourth day, we lost power around 6:30 in the eve and came back on 8:30 the next day. 14hrs On our side Fun Royal were were black. Very little emergency lights and not even a candle in our room. It was very warm in our rooms that night, as well there was no water. Could not flush toilets noro shower (normally they didn't flush well at all on a good day-poor water pressure). It was a long night. We were told by the Signature Rep that it was caused by a storm the night before and now only one generator was working, yet an employee mentioned that management recently changed and the electrical bill was not paid...who to believe? The AC never worked again after that. Our entire family had Red Return Customer bracelets and had paid for fridge refills which consisted of two beers, two pops, two waters...rarely did it get filled on its own. I had to go and remind the front desk several times a day and one time they said it was too late it would get filled tomorrow, I challenged that saying we paid daily for this so they filled it. The gentleman told me it doesn't get filled because when they come in the morning our do not disturb sign is on while we are showering, so it doesn't get done...not the best plan in my opinion I fond most of the staff to be stand of ish and not too helpful. Except for our maid, she was a delight though she spoke no english. She did a wonderful job at cleaning our room. The entire resort was kept fairly clean but was in nead of a face lift. It is obviously a basic resort. The lobby washroom had only 3 stalls and one was locked the entire visit leaving only two. Toilets as mentioned didn't flush most of the time and the sinks had broken structures.
Restaurants and Bars:
We went to the main restaurant for all our meals. It was basic but okay. It was my first all inclusive so I really have nothing to compare to. We tried to get in the Italian for a reservation of 15 but they said no too many. There is a time in the morning and late afternoon where even the side pool pizza bar is closed so no food can be eaten then at all. The pizza bar was fairly good-kids enjoyed it. The Brazilian Restuarant next to the kids pool area was always empty as was the pool and tennis area, I never seen a person around there? The tennis court is to be desired as is the pool table and ping pong tables. I never did go to the disco above the Restaurant however my son did and had a good time.
Beach/Pools/Grounds:
The Beach was a 5-10 mins walk from the resort. We were placed at the end part of the beach front. Our resort looked like the only one that didn't have umbrellas. There were not nearly enough cloth loung chairs and were provided with the plastic ones. The vendors were relentless, which really can interrupt your R&R. But they did seem to be all over the beach area. The Restaurant on the beach served BBQ Chicken, fries and a few other odds and ends. The chicken was delicious. The Beach area was so so. There were two main pools. They appeared to be clean. I went in niether. The adult pool looked quite chilly when people went in. The activities around the family pool were loud and busy, none stop. The workers on the mic got on your nerves after awhile, but I must say they had tons of energy. The grounds seemed to be well maintained.
Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel:
My immed family only did the Outback Jungle Safari which we purchased from a vendor off the beach which the Signature Rep tells you not too-we had no problem except they did say we would get the bus to ourselves which did not occur. And we almost slammed into the gate leaving the resort so the brakes were slammed and we all sllid forward, the poor kids at the front got squished. Also they stopped three times, twice going there to stock up on pepsi, rum and ice cubes and once coming back for gas. I would think they would do that without the guest on board. The smell of exhaust was strong. The day was okay. The tour in the outback was a bit long and somewhat boring, but I loved seeing the country side and its beauty. We trecked into the jungles about a 45 min walk in through the waters and mud. You had the option of going up 7 falls and then coming back down. 3 guys in our family did it and said it was amazing!!! You don't get this option when you purchase from the resort. They say it is too risky and don't encourage it. The lunch restaurant we ate at was extremely run down. Like a third world country style. There were no seats on the toilets or even doors for that matter. I did not eat there but the rest of the family did and didn't seem to mind the food! 2/3 of my family did the Ocean World day and really enjoyed it. Again the activities on the resort were loud but the entertainers really put their heart and soul into it. The night shows were good but they didn't start until 8:30 which is late for the kids. The male workers are extremely flirtatious, especially towards my 17 yr old.
Other Comments:
I exptected a basic run of the mill resort since I did research prior to going. It was purchased for us therefore we did not select the place. All in all the place was clean and I was surprised, other than the gekos, there were no bugs, they spray weekly. By the end of the 7 days I must say I was ready to come home. I would give it a 6/10. Would I go back, no thanks!
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| Fun Tropicale/Fun Royale - Playa Dorada |
Anne Marie
Glasgow, Scotland
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| Sep/Oct 2008 |
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Arrival: Sep/Oct 2008
This was the one part i hated, the flight with first choice was so uncomfy! And our tv kept on breaking. On arrival at the hotel i have to admitt i wanted to get a plane straight back home, and was dreading the next two weeks at this hotel. It looked nothing like the pictures and was so empty! But i think i was felling this way because i was jetlagged and wanted to get fresh.
Rooms:
A porter took us to our room which was nice and we gave him a tip! All of us looked at each other and i knew we were thinking the same "this place needs re-decorated" but we unpacked putting clothes in the drawer and closet! Under the sink was a complimentry bottle of some alcohol which we never touched, not knowing what it was. In the mornings i kept waking up early due to hearing the workers come in on the buses and in their cars, but it wasnt a negative.
Restaurants and Bars:
We always ate in the main restaraunt because my cousin didnt have long trousers and there was a dress code for the italian restaraunt. But we liked the food there although we did get upset tummys. The staff there were lovely especially Jaun. And they even had food during the nyte which was good for when i had a hangover and couldnt eat till late at night! But some people i spoke to said the other reastaurants where lovely.
Beach/Pools/Grounds:
There was loads of activites during the day. But one activity i didnt agree with was bingo ????? Why would you go to the carribean to play bingo???? And listen to all the music from back home !! They played alot of their music but not enough. the animation team were nice especially happy boy he looked so young for his age i was shocked. But sometimes when u wanted to laze by the pool and relax etc they kinda tryed to force you to do stuff when lets face it your on holiday. the pool bar was amazing.
Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel:
We only went on two trips but they were amazin 1 was the monster truck safari which i highly recomend and 2 was the cable chairs which take u up to mnt isabela and you see an amazing view of puerto plata + theres a bar up there! I also ment a guy and he took me to the boulovard for drinks which was good apart from the taxi there . They have many people in them and pick up anyone (scary) but fun. Had an amazzing time outside the resort.
Other Comments:
I highly recomend this hotel its fun, the michael jackson show is amazing, the people are amazing, the country is amazing and im booked up to go back in sep 09 with my mate so i can actuslly hit the clubs this time.
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| Fun Tropicale/Fun Royale - Playa Dorada |
Yasmin
New York
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| July 2008 |
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Arrival: July 2008
It was smooth I was greeted very nicely and I went into my room by like 2:30
Rooms:
The room was clean and well kept everyday by the maids, I did have a problem with the toilet it kept overflowing but maintenence came right away
Restaurants and Bars:
The restaurants had alot of different foods to choose from and during breakfast time also a lot of variety
Beach/Pools/Grounds:
Im not really a beach goer, I hang around the pool mostly. The pool I loved it the staff really put work into entertaining people with the activities in the pool area
Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel:
No
Other Comments:
I really enjoyed coming to this resort being a Dominican myself when I travel back home I like going to different resorts. But I believe when I go back home I'm definetly going to Fun Royale again
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| Fun Tropicale/Fun Royale - Playa Dorada |
Freedom Ryder & Wossa
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| July 2008 |
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We booked our tickets via Yourtraveltickets.com, travelled out of Pearson International Airport, Toronto, via Skyservice with Signature Vacations. The flight with Skyservice was very good. We have flown many times with Skyservice, and find the staff some of the most hardworking, and courteous out of all the airlines we have flown.
Arrival At The Airport
Once we had collected our luggage from the carousel and put your bags through Customs, (which was non existent) we were met by Signature Vacation staff, which guided us to our resort bus. The bags where loaded into a small trailer at the rear of the bus, and I would strongly suggest you watch them load your bags onto the truck before getting on the bus.
Checking In
A pretty easy, and quick process. A quick form to fill out and your room key were issued, along with a wrist band so that you could be allowed service of food and drinks etc. It is important to mention that there was a replacement fee for loosing this wrist band, in the region of $25.00. Normally we like the wrist bands on loose so we can remove them when we are off resort, however we chose to have them on tighter this time !!
Rooms
As we had booked last minute, we had ‘run of the house’, which basically meant we would be allocated any room that was available at the time of our arrival.
Our room consisted off 2 x queen size beds, a small kitchen area with fridge, sink and small stove. A small seating area with a two seater couch, coffee table and chest of drawers for storing clothes. The bathroom was basic, tub with a shower and the usual amenities. No hairdryer. The room had a safe in the closet, however you have to rent the lock for $20 per week, non-returnable.
We had a small balcony with two chairs and a table, enough room to move about, and to dry and store our diving equipment.
The rooms are air conditioned, however it is not controllable other then too turn on and off. Our room was freezing cold but the room would become very damp, and the tiled floor would be saturated with moisture within 10 minutes of the AC being turned off.
The maid service was very basic, which was a common complaint with many of the guests. The bed was made each day and that was about it. This was a little bit of a problem as everyone was getting bitten to hell all over the resort, including in the rooms. Several people we spoke too felt the place had a problem with Sand Fleas. No matter where we where, we was continually being bitten, the bites coming up like big welts that contained fluid, really very itchy and unpleasant.
Resort
The overall appearance of this resort seemed a little tired, in need of a lick of paint and some maintenance, although we have seen far worse. The lobby is bright, open, and airy although reasonably small. There were a couple of small stores selling gifts, jewelry and groceries, as well as a small bank that was very convenient for changing dollars into pesos. The exchange rate was also better at the resort then in town.
The resort has 3 pools, activity with a swim up bar, an adult only pool and also a kid’s pool. The activity pool is loud, music blaring and animation staff trying to get people involved in games etc. The majority of the time we stayed at the adult pool, where it is a little more secluded and quieter.
The resort has 3 main restaurants (buffet, Italian and also Brazilian) as well as a pizza bar that serves home made hot pizza throughout the day beside the activity pool. The Italian and Brazilian are bookings only, and as long as you booked early each morning at breakfast, then you could attend as many nights as you wanted provided you booked before the tables where filled.
We attended both the Italian and the Brazilian and thought they where not the best and preferred the buffet. From feedback from other guests, and the fact that each time we attended the a la cartes they where always half filled, we got the impression this was the thoughts of the majority of the guests.
The food at the buffet was your normal salad, rice, chicken, fish, potatoes dishes etc, with a spaghetti bar and grill.
There is also a beach side restaurant that is opened until 5pm. You can pick up a ride every 15 minutes from the front lobby, and a tractor with a carriage transfers you to the beach bar. They serve hot chicken, fries and salad and also there is a bar that serves alcohol and soft drinks.
There are two main bars that serve alcohol, one by the activity pool that stayed open to approx 11.30, and a 24 hour bar at the adult pool. They served the usual cocktails and the beer was pretty good for an AI.
The resort does allow venders on site and also time share sellers. They are pretty insistent, and you need to be firm and say No if you are not interested.
The Beach
The beach is average for the Caribbean, nothing spectacular. This is not a beach front resort so you can either walk to the beach which is just 5 or 6 minute walk, or take the tractor ride from the lobby every 15 minutes.
There are lots of venders at the beach that can be pretty insistent, so you need to be strong and assertive otherwise again, they will not leave you alone.
Excursions
We completed three excursions / tours during our week.
The ‘Half Day City Tour’, the ‘Out Back Tour’ and also the ‘Signature Evening’.
The ‘Half Day City Tour’ was a trip into Puerto Plata city, where they stopped at different locations in town and allowed you time to take in some sights and to shop. We stopped at the Brugel rum factory to see the operation, at a small jewelry maker, the amber museum, the cities cathedral and finally the old fortress. It was an okay tour, but you did get the feeling that the rep was on a kick back for bringing the bus loads of tourists to each location. Each stop off finished up in the gift shop, trying to sell you over priced souvenirs.
The ‘Out Back Tour’ is a full day, and can be a little tiring as you cover many miles, much of it rough terrain, in the back of a very bumpy safari type truck. You visit a couple of plantations which was a little boring, a Dominicans family house which was a little staged. They take you boogie boarding at Cabarete Beach, a swim in a fresh water river, croc farm for something to eat. The overall experience was not great and other then the fact the beer and rum was all included, it was probably not worth the $80 per person.
The ‘Signature Evening’ was by far the best excursion we done. This is organized by the reps and is something they do as a sideline. They collect you from the resort and then take you to the ‘real’ Puerto Plata city. Away from the tourist traps of expensive malls and tacky souvenirs, they take you where the locals live and socialize. A really interesting fun tour that was so much better and interesting then the Half Day City Tour we had done earlier. They then drop you off to watch the sunset from the old fort and the fantastic Malecon, and provide you with cold beers and Rum. Once the sun has set, we were driven to a local beach front restaurant which was awesome. You separate onto 5 or so tables of 8 people and you are given a meal of your choice, chicken, pork or Lobster (at an additional cost) and also drinks vouchers for the bar. After dinner, they do a quiz where you can win gifts and also a raffle where the proceeds go towards the welfare of the children living in poverty in the city. This really was a fantastic worthwhile evening, lots of fun and a good way of making friends, and the one excursion we enjoyed the most. It’s really worth the $45 per person.
Diving
The on-site dive operators are Sea Pro. We have many dives between us, and we have dived all over the world. Judging from our previous experiences with many diver operators, I would rate Seapro as possibly one of the unsafe, and worst dive operators that we have dived with to date.
We booked 4 single tank dives each, and paid $270 for the 8 dives. We asked many questions regarding the type of boat we would be diving from, and asked if the boat had all usual safety equipment you would expect a dive operator to carry. It was confirmed that the boat was a big boat with a sun deck, and we were showed a picture of the boat which looked awesome. Satisfied that Seapro where the ones to book with, we paid our cash and met them as arranged the following day in the lobby.
We were a little bit surprised to see when we arrived at the shore, a small rib type hard boat which was a million miles away from the picture we had been shown the day before. No real problem as we had dived from similar boats before, so we left to go diving.
Within 5 minutes of leaving we had allegedly reached our dive site, the coast was within spitting distance so it seemed they just wanted to drop us into the water to get our dives completed. The Dive Masters pre-dive briefing, was just that, brief to the point of non existent, and into the water we dropped. We were basically greeted with a dead and polluted sea bed that contained nothing much more then a few fish, a couple of bottles and a tire.
The second dive was no different from the first, only in the exception that when we had surfaced from the dive, our boat had gone! We were left bobbing in the ocean trying to spot our boat, with our ‘Dive Master’ blowing on a whistle trying to attract some attention.
After several minutes of not knowing what was going on, a smaller boat arrived and picked us up. The guy said that our boat had to leave as they had lost some snorkelers from another party and was needed for the search.
Day two of diving: This time we were on another small hard boat, but with 14 divers, 2 x Dive Masters and the skipper, 17 in total. The boat was so packed that you could barely sit down, and with dive kit on the boat it was horrendous. This time we departed to Airport Wall, and there was a decent size swell that was rocking the boat and making some people on the boat a little uneasy.
Once we arrived at the dive site, they hurried people so quickly into the water, you could see the less experienced divers hadn’t time to probably set up correctly, or had done any checks. I could see one guy in the water struggling, face mask off and no regulator in his mouth, swallowing sea water and shouting that he needed back on the boat and was clearly panicked.
We completed the two final uneventful dives on this day, and the icing on the cake was surfacing from the last dive by ourselves, to find all the staff back on the boat drinking beer!
All the boats we dove from had no radios, oxygen or any kind of communication or safety equipment. Ultimately, we felt that Seapro was there to take your money, unfortunately to ensure you received quality diving and safety was way down their list of priorities.
In Summary
The resort was ‘okay’ for our purposes. We booked a last minute deal and just wanted to escape for a little bit of diving and some R&R. We had a good time whilst we stayed here, and had fun on some of the excursions and exploring Puerto Plata. However, we were ready to move on at the end of our stay. Would we return?....... probably not.
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| Fun Tropicale/Fun Royale - Playa Dorada |
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just returned from fun royale last week, went with 8 girls and 2 guys. We had a great time we're all repeaters to the hotel, This hotel accomodates everyone families, couples groups of friends etc.
Everyone has there owwn opinion of this hotel, all i can say is i travel at least 3 times a years to usa or carribean and then europe about twice a year i have never been a person that returns to the same place especially the same hotel but this place is amazing a real holiday, normally when you have a holiday when you come home you feel like you need another holiday, but this is the most relaxing resort i have ever been to despite it being full of entertainment and fun. It is actually so cozy you feel like you are home.
Food:
A few people had complaints, im not sure why there is a huge variety, i think maybe the british are just fussy? there is a selection of salads, pastas, potatoes, chips, burgers, hot dogs, currys, steak, chicken etc. also there being two other restaurants there gives you selection.
Rooms:
Very clean , quite basic. Our air con didnt work too well and our friends joining room thereswas leaking the other 3 rooms were fine. We also had a slight problems with ants on the table in our room, but we told the staff and they sorted the problem immediately.
Staff:
Amazing, they made our holiday, the reception, maids, the waiters in the restaurant, the bar staff etc. they seem to just want to do the most they can to make you holiday amazing. And finally the animation team the stars of the whole place, continously entertaining, always looking after you, during the day and also the night because we have been a couple of times most of them would come out with us at night once they had finished work, came to karaoke etc.
Overall this place is definately worth visiting if you are considering going here.
if you need to know anything about the complex or even about going into town feel free to ask;
princess1-9-8-6@hotmail.co.uk |
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| Fun Tropicale/Fun Royale - Playa Dorada |
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Just returned home from the Fun Tropicale in Dominican Republic.
If you have read the reviews, you will have read all you need to know about this particular resort.
I thought I would add a couple of things that I found. Firstly, the staff are definately 5*! They, and I mean all from the front desk (who are the busiest people you first see) to the animation staff (incredible energy) to the room service ppl (very clean for what they have to work with) to the grounds ppl (immaculate).
The beach - we seemed to hit a small tropical weather front. The waters were quite rough during the first few days there. (the staff with the red cross on their shirts would not allow anyone to enter to their knees) guess they likely knew more than what we did. The beach for this resort is not the greatest but as previously said, few feet in either direction and there is no problems. The beach restaurant - very good chicken :) as also mentioned before.
Rooms - clean. (my most important issue). we had a balcony with adjoining room for our daughters (no balcony). Beds were comfy, double sized (not the smaller ones we have had before), typical carribbean rooms. If i could make a suggestion it would be to upgrade the bathrooms. We had a continuous drip in ours from the air conditioning. again, not a problem, but if they were to do anything, i would suggest that first.
Food - buffet like any typical buffet. always something to eat if you are hungry. Nice to see a "dominican" section to eat from for those who want to try something different. Again, staff always there either cleaning your table and seeing if they can be of service.
A al Cartes - brazilian was my fav. I enjoy meats so luved the foods presented on skewers, staff were excellent and a relaxed atmosphere etc. Italian equally as good for food, bit more on the dressy side. Either one, very good. Issues? would be that i would like to book in advance, not have to book in the am for that particular pm. (not a big complaint is it?)
The staff! amazing! all of them. I really thought i had it "bad" working my 8 hours a day! Didn't matter what time of day, always a friendly smile and olah! I would say this was the biggest asset of this resort.
Anyway, i want to get this sent as i too rely heavily on the many reviews i have read here.
Thanks very very much to Bob, for answering my many questions. I can see why you do enjoy coming back here year after year.
Would i return? yes, may not be rite away (still have some more places to see yet).
Hope this helps with your decisions. If you have any questions, you may ask at dlbobick at hotmail.com
cheers! |
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| Fun Tropicale/Fun Royale - Playa Dorada |
BobfromCanada
Canada
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| February 2008 |
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BobFromCanada is one of the moderators of Debbie's Dominican Travel Forums
TRIP DATE: Jan 8, 2008 to Jan 22, 2008
TRIP SYNOPSIS: Sunwing Vacations, Sunwing Airlines, Fun Royale/Tropicale
VERDICT: Solid 3.5 star, basic, clean, food good, very happy, will return.
This year we flew on Sunwing Airlines. Despite their less than stellar
reputation, the flight times were not changed after booking, the flights were
on schedule, the in-flight food and service was good and the seating was
adequate. To be fair, both flights were quite pleasant. I can't quite say the
same about what happened at the airports at each end, but none of it was
anything serious. On the trip down, after a three hour drive from home, we
arrived at the Toronto airport early, about an hour before the checkin booths
opened. There were quite a few people milling around by the time they opened,
and they tried to form a queue based on the lay out of the roped guide posts,
so there was some confusion when Sunwing tried to re-organize the lineup to
match "today's booth configuration". It all got sorted out eventually.
It should be noted that they were very stringent on the luggage weight, and
weighed both the carry on and checked luggage. I had tried to get an excess
baggage allowance prior to leaving, but gave up based on the terms and
conditions they sent to me. We just brought less clothes and supplies. Our
friends got nicked $80 because of the school supplies they brought. This
was despite the 300 lb bozo with the golf clubs that travelled at no
extra charge. Thanks to my fish scale, we were bang on the limit.
Check in on the way home was an absolute zoo. They had a computer system
failure and after a long delay they ended up doing it all manually. The
boarding passes said 'First Choice Airlines' and were marked 'Infant No
Seating'. They just used what they could find around.
It should also be noted that Sunwing still isn't precollecting the departure
tax, so this has to be paid at the airport. No big issue as long as you are
aware of it.
The transport to the hotel was inadequate. There weren't enough seats on the
bus, without using the jump seats, and there wasn't quite enough room in the
luggage trailer for all the luggage. As usual, I watched UNTIL MY LUGGAGE WAS
LOADED and then I boarded the bus. About half way to the hotel they informed
us that "some" of the luggage had been taken off and put on another bus. After
some confusion when we arrived at the hotel, all the luggage showed up. The
transport from the hotel was fine, and in fact we were the first bus to arrive
at the airport. Too bad about the computer foul up. Without it we could have
just walked up to the checkin, checked our luggage and got our boarding passes
without any wait at all.
OK, now we're in double digits territory. This was trip number ten to this
property, and it just wouldn't seem like January if we didn't go. Creatures of
habit or what? This year we were accompanied by Snowbird (from Debbie's
forums), plus some friends we met here several years ago. So there were eight
of us to party on. And a good time was had by all.
After all these trips, it gets harder and harder to find something "NEW" to
write about, but it's still possible. Is everything perfect in Paradise? Nope,
not a chance and it never will be. There's always going to be a few warts.
Will we return? Sure, without question. And just like last year, I may even
try to find a deal for later this winter.
Actually, we had no "real" issues. There were no nasty surprises, but there
were some changes. Some good and some not so good. For example, they've
eliminated the fruit smoothie station in the morning (a negative). They seemed
to serve bacon more often than in previous years (a positive). They have
changed the french fries and are now serving the beefeater type (a positive in
my opinion, but this opinion wasn't universally shared). I liked them. A lot.
At the least, the larger fries were well cooked, hot and crispy and stayed hot
longer. The thin fries get cold very quickly.
The new refurbished washrooms near the lobby and pool have finally been
finished and they are quite nice. These changes were long overdue. They also
redid the activities and tour representative area between them and the
theatre. I heard that it took five months to finish this work. My only comment
here is that they did a great job but they picked a floor tile that is quite
slippery, especially when wet. Near a pool, wet floor, do you think? .....
Any issues we had were very minor things and certainly not enough to ruin a
vacation. Most of these were "other guest" related. Sometimes you have to
wonder why the hotel even bothers. It has to be quite frustrating for them.
There was a constant issue with clogged toilets due to idiots flushing things
that were never intended to be flushed. A pizza slice leaps immediately to
mind. Maintenance was kept quite busy keeping the public toilets running well.
They had expended some serious cash and workmanship on the new facilities and
these were extremely well done. Then some other mental giant wads up a bunch
of wet toilet paper and tosses it up to the ceiling where it stuck. Not very
pretty. Again, one has to wonder why ..... Oh, and the last weekend we were
there was a holiday weekend and there were a lot of locals staying at the
resort. Up until now I've never had an issue with any locals staying at the
hotel. In fact, I welcome them. This time, most, with the exception of this
one group, were model citizens. They reminded me of spring breakers in Cancun.
All you had to do was mention them in a conversation and everyone rolled their
eyes and knew exactly who you were talking about. If it hadn't been for this
one group, all would have been well. Fortunately they were only at the resort
for one day. Enough said.
They (the hotel) market themselves as a 3.5 to 4 star property, and that
rating is just about right. The food is good, the place is exceptionally
clean, and the rooms are functional, although dated. Everything in our room
was in good repair. Eureka, I didn't have to fix a thing this year.
In my opinion, it's still a great place for a vacation, even after being
'spoiled' by a 5 star resort in December. The 'new' beach bar is still not
100% finished. It's still missing a few light fixtures, but they aren't really
necessary unless they turn the place into a specialty restaurant at night
(steak and seafood maybe, hint hint). I've been working on that concept since
the new place was built. But it's still very nice and we spent a lot of time
there.
The other facilities may be a little dated, but they're SUPER CLEAN. We had no
complaints about the food; pretty good, simple and not gourmet. The rotisserie
chicken at the beach club is still excellent. At dinner there's lots of
choices and I never left the table hungry. The staff is extremely friendly and
obliging. Oh yes, they certainly remembered us from previous visits. After all
these years, they're like family now. Management cares and responds to valid
'positive' criticism and works very hard to accommodate their guests. The
entire "team" has seemed stable from year to year, but this time around there
were a lot of missing faces and quite a few new faces. Some staff have been
around for years, and now there's some new ones.
In addition to the main buffet, which was quite good, we also enjoyed the two
specialty dining rooms (Brazilian and Italian/Mediterranean). We found the
food and service were excellent in both restaurants. The only problem is that
they are small and fill up rapidly. If you haven't made a reservation by 7:15
am, it's probably best to forget it. Oh, and the wine served this year is
still pretty good for a house wine. You can choose from red or white.
Personally I prefer the red, but I had to try the white just to compare. It's
the scientific method in action.
Oh yeah, there's a new manager at the Brazilian restaurant this year. He used
to be one of the best waiters at the Italian restaurant, so I guess he's made
a big move up in the organization. And, he's doing a great job.
The main buffet restaurant and the Brazilian are open to the outside air, but
the Italian one is closed off and air-conditioned. Warning: In the main buffet
at breakfast and lunch, the black birds are pretty bold and will filch the
food right off your plate if you leave it unattended. They don't seem to be
around in the evening.
At breakfast, bacon was served about three or four times per week and sausage
was served the other days. The smoothie station is gone. The best part about
breakfast was the omelet and fried egg station. One of the other guests
referred to them as killer omelets and I have to agree. They were great.
The beach club serves lunch and snacks daily. As usual, the rotisserie BBQ
chicken was excellent. They also served fish, burgers, hot dogs, great fries,
salads and fresh fruit every day. Lunch is also available at the main buffet,
but we never ate there.
In the dining room, wine is available by the glass (red and white) and you
simply help yourself to what you want. The wine wasn't vintage, but it was
quite drinkable.
On the plus side, the hotel still has 24 hour all-inclusive. It's not full
buffet, but you can get drink and food (burgers, hot dogs, chops, salad) at
odd hours if that is your want. So this feature is obviously a success! Me, I
didn't need it. As usual, I gained a few lbs.
In summary, the food was good, plain but not fancy. They did a pretty good job
of avoiding repetition (exception - see note below). During our stay, we had
various kinds of fish, roast suckling pork, pork chops, roast beef, lamb,
veal, turkey, chicken, ham and various types of stews. The carvery seemed to
be used more often than as in previous years. Interestingly enough, the
carvery served up roast turkey four days in a row. Excellent turkey, but four
days in a row! There must have had a surplus of turkeys approaching their best
before date. However, there were lots of other choices. My wife especially
enjoyed the fish entrees and the cooked-to-order pasta dishes.
As I previously mentioned, this was our tenth trip to the resort. Most of
these trips have been two weeks. Obviously, the place still suits our needs
and we were more than happy with what we got this time. Honestly, we know a
high percentage of the staff by name and they are just like family. We missed
a few of them this time because we were in a large group eating together and
the larger tables were not in the areas being served by some of our
favourites. They also know our wants and are eager to please. For example, you
are supposed to get your own coffee, juice and wine. Let's just say that it
was a rare event when I had to.
You have to remember that it's a three and a half star to four star resort, so
don't expect anything fancy. The Royale section consists of hotel rooms
arranged in 4 blocks (labelled A through D) while the Tropicale section
consists of multi-unit villas. In case you're wondering, about 15 years ago,
it used to be two separate hotels. These were rolled together under the
all-inclusive plan at that time. They have a wristband system and it's easy to
recognize repeat and vacation club guests. We saw a lot of repeaters, so that
speaks well for the hotel. It tends to be a love it or hate it kind of place.
We obviously fall into the love it category. We were in good company.
There are no marble floors or walls, and the buildings are "standard"
Caribbean construction that consists of stuccoed concrete block, terra cotta
tile floors, and very plain ceramic tile in the bathroom. As I've said many
times before, it wouldn't have been my colour choice, but ......
We were in B wing and we had the same room as last year, by our request. It
was super clean and there was lots of hot water (with the exception of one
day when it was at best tepid). We were at the far end of the wing and it was
a 'little' distance to the hot water tank, so it took a short while.
The room was comfortable and everything worked. Towels and bedding were
changed daily (yes daily) and the floors were swept and mopped. No complaints
here. We even got wash cloths; a rarity in the DR. My advice would be to take
your own just in case. We did, and made sure they were a different colour so
they wouldn't get mixed in with the hotel's. The bathroom was equipped with a
hair dryer and had a wicker basket with shampoos, conditioners and a sewing
kit.
Most rooms, say 60 per cent, have balconies or terraces while the rest don't.
If it's an issue for you, yes you 'can' get a balcony, but you have to be
persistent. On a previous trip to another hotel, we noted that all the rooms
had balconies; they were rarely used. In our case, my wife has a sun allergy,
so she spends a fair bit of time in the room. We like the balcony and we like
being out in the fresh air, so it's important to us. On the plus side, if you
don't get a balcony, the interior space in the room is bigger.
As I mentioned, we got the same room as in previous years. This year the trees
and greenery have been trimmed back considerably. Even though we faced the
pool and activity areas, it still seemed very private. Our room had two queen
size beds, a bedside table between them, a phone, a large balcony, a bureau
with large drawers, cable TV and a large closet. The bed mattress was nearly
brand new, firm and very comfortable. Bottled water was provided. You DON'T
drink the tap water; for that matter, you probably shouldn't even use the tap
water to brush your teeth. This might be being over cautious, but why take the
chance. The tap water is essentially untreated, so there are no guarantees as
to what might be living in it.
We rarely turned on the air-conditioning, since the AC really wasn't
necessary. The room remained very comfortable over the entire two week period.
Frankly, the weather-person didn't really cooperate this year and we found the
weather quite a bit cooler than normal. We actually used the blanket a few
times.
When closed up for a while, the room seemed a little musty, especially in the
dead air space by the closed door, but this cleared within minutes when the
patio door was opened. Remember, this is the tropics, so the humidity is a
little high. I didn't spot any mildew, and I looked.
Hydro is expensive in the DR. Like most of the hotels, you have to insert a
card into a slot in the wall to enable the room power. There is also an
interlock on the patio door that inhibits operation of the air conditioning if
the door was open. Considering the price of power in the DR, this is a
reasonable solution.
Fun Royale / Fun Tropicale is a very nice and well maintained resort. There is
always someone sweeping, pruning or raking. There are three swimming pools.
These are the activity pool (somewhat NOISY since this is where the activity
takes place), the quiet 'adult only' pool and one near the kids club,
nominally reserved for children, but generally used by anyone who just wants
some peace and quiet. They appeared clean and well maintained and the water
was a pleasant blue colour. The staff appear to be pretty good at picking up
after guests that are too lazy to pick up after themselves and just leave
their garbage.
The beach is OK, but not spectacular. Since there had been a lot of rain, this
year it was pretty mucky. Except for one or two days, there was a lot of
seaweed. When it did finally wash ashore, it was quickly raked and carted
away. There's a "bit of coral" in the sea in front of the beach club, so some
caution is required. This year the warning sign seems to have disappeared.
However, a short walk in either direction leads to hazard free swimming. You
don't have to swim in the hotel's area since the entire beach is public.
However, if you go too far, it's a long walk back to the bar!
From the hotel gate, it's an easy and scenic 6 minute walk alongside the golf
course to the beach (I timed it) and if you don't want to walk, there is a
frequent tractor powered shuttle service. Something like a Caribbean hay ride.
We generally take it a few times "just because".
If you want to participate, there are activities at the pool with a great
activity (animacion) staff. The speakers have been aimed away from the
residential areas, which helps reduce the noise level in the hotel rooms.
There didn't seem to be much organized beach activities. So beach volleyball
was a pick-up, do it yourself operation. Other activities with the
all-inclusive package include mini golf (7 holes ???), shuffleboard, ping
pong, Spanish lessons, darts, pool basketball, water polo, water aerobics.
There was usually a bingo (extra cost), and there is a coin operated pool
table. In the evenings, they organized tours to casinos, discos or into town
(all at a nominal cost which seemed quite reasonable).
There is entertainment each night (outdoor stage, weather dependent) which
varies between dance shows and some audience participation. The shows mostly
consist of dancing and lip sync to recorded music, which some people would
consider cheesy, but the dancers are pretty good and put a lot of effort into
it. The shows were pretty much the same as previous years, so we found
something else to do. From what we saw, most of the audience seemed to enjoy
the performances. Vegas it's not, but it's enjoyable. The shows are all over
by 11pm and that bar stays open until midnight. After that, all activity moves
to the quiet pool bar which is well away from any guest accommodations, so the
noise isn't an issue.
Again this year, I talked to several guests who thought that having a small
local group play near the 24 hour bar in the evenings would be a great idea.
Things like a piano bar alternating with a small dance band or local music
would do. Personally, I too would like to see some more local entertainment. I
suggested this a few years ago, but nothing came of it.
I would also like to see more use made out of the beach club in the evenings.
A steak and seafood restaurant, even if it was extra cost would be nice. It
seems such a waste to have that nice facility being there and not being used.
It would be so nice at night.
The main dining room (buffet) is very attractive. It gives you a choice of
three eating areas. The first area is well inside, but open to the air on
three sides, the second area is also covered in with a translucent ceiling,
and the third is outside with tables under umbrellas. These overlook the golf
course and one of the ponds. Most of the tables are candlelit at night, but
the number of candles seems to be diminishing due to attrition and guest
filching. Several nights we took our own candle.
Oh yes, in case you get 'hungry' during the afternoon, there is a pizza place
near the main pool that serves quite good pizza. The pizza is different from
what you get at home, but good. Note that you don't get to order what you
want; they make pretty much what they want and you take whatever slice(s) look
appetizing to you.
MISC (in no particular order):
It's still a very friendly hotel. There are a lot of 'holas' from the staff.
We had no real language problems with the front desk, waiters or bartenders.
The grounds keepers and maids didn't speak much English, but we had no real
problems communicating with them either. In a pinch, sign language works well!
The currency exchange on site is run by a real bank, not the hotel. The
exchange rates were about as good as you could get in town. The posted rates
while we were there were 33 pesos to the $US, 30 pesos to the $CDN - so
when it comes to the $US vs $CDN debate, you do the math! The double exchange
is still worth it.
The mini golf and shuffleboard equipment has seen much better days. They have
restored the traditional triangular scoring area on the shuffleboard courts,
but the numbering in the score boxes is wrong.
We never got around to trying the miniature golf, but the course and equipment
was in poor shape. The grips on the golf clubs have been wrapped in electrical
tape. They were not pleasant to touch!
I still can't believe the number of people that treat the buffet like a
cafeteria. Year after year we see people who get their food, then run
around looking for a table. Then they complain that the food isn't hot. Geez,
get a table, then go get the food!
The cooling trays for the stuff that was supposed to be cold sometimes worked
too well and the food was frozen to the serving dish. The heating trays were
not quite as efficient, but kitchen staff were constantly replacing with full
dishes from the kitchen. The food serving stations were all equipped with
sneeze-shield, just like a buffet restaurant here. The guys on the grill all
wore masks and wore rubber gloves. This seemed to me to be over cautious.
There's not a bug in the world that's going to survive that grill temperature.
WHAT WE LIKED: We have no real complaints. It's a nice place and good value
for the money, unless you are really fussy. The food is pretty good. It's
nothing gourmet, but there's lots of choices and a good variety. All the bars
are still serving Presidente beer. The house wine is OK. The rotisserie BBQ
chicken at the beach bar is VERY good.
WHAT WE DIDN'T LIKE: You know, it's the little things that get you. In
previous years, we could only get one key for the room. This can turn into a
major annoyance, especially if you're each doing something different, or one
person retires early. This year we managed to get a second key for the room.
Much more convenient.
Another annoyance was the fact that they changed the phone system recently but
didn't follow through. The card on the table identifies the number for
guest services, but after 2 years it is still wrong.
We never got the invitation to the repeater's party. We did get a second
note about them spraying the room for insects. I think they sent the wrong
note.
There was not as much bacon at breakfast as I would like, but the sausage was
good. The Dominicans usually do a pretty good job on pork products. Their beef
is sometimes a little chewy, but with good flavour. This year we actually got
some good beef (occasionally).
There also are some little things that still need attention. There are loose
taps in the public washrooms at the new beach club. There are urinals in the
men's washroom near the main buffet that haven't flushed properly in the 7
years we've been going there. There's no water pressure for the flush. It
would appear that the cleaners are flushing it using a bucket of water
because it was always clean. The bottom step from the shower area at the beach
club to the beach could be improved.
The washrooms at the main buffet restaurant should be next in line for
refurbishing. The same applies for the ones at the quiet pool.
They have a weekly beach party with a bonfire on the beach. This has the
potential to be a LOT OF FUN, but ..... Personally, and this isn't my
opinion, I wish they would do away with the silly party games, set up a dance
and sitting area, light the fire, open the bar, play some music and let the
people party. Every time the dancing and partying just got started, they would
stop the music and play some game. That took care of that.
Would we go back? In a word, YES! We are already planning our next trip.
Notes:
The mini golf and shuffleboard equipment is way overdue for replacement.
The minigolf course is in poor repair and the fountain wasn't operational.
The fountain at the pizza parlour is also deceased.
Let people amuse themselves at the beach party. Let the animacion staff be
around as dance partners or to just get things going. Dump the silly party
games.
Make use of the beach club as a specialty restaurant at night.
Make some sort of quiet dance area around the 24 hour bar at night.
For a virtual tour and slide show, see http://www.bobfromcanada.com and select
the show. There is also a link to this year's photo set on worldisround.
Select Fun Royale/Tropicale - January 2008
QUESTIONS: email bob(at)bobfromcanada.com (anti-spam change the (at) to @)
This isn't part of the hotel review, but we've been going to the DR for many
years now and don't normally take any tours. I have to add that I was the high
bidder for 'A Day With Martin Espinal' Martin Espinal (Isaira Tours) in the Beyond The Beach
Childrens Foundation (BTBCF) on-line auction. So, this year we toured.
BTBCF supports many charities in the DR (see www.beyondthebeach.ca), mainly
schools and orphanages and I invite you to visit their website and see what
they are doing. I might add that the organization is totally run by volunteers
and ALL proceeds collected go straight to the charities. I'm proud to be a
supporter.
We had a great day with Martin. We managed to tour the rum factory, toured
through a good portion of Puerto Plata, visited the fort, drove up to
Cofresi and Maimon, dropped in at Ocean World Casino and the Marina, went
to Costambar for lunch and took the cable car up the mountain.
I've been recommending Martin for years now, based on other peoples
reports. Now that I've met him, I can now recommend him based on personal
experience. I'd also like to thank him for his generous donation to the
foundation. I'd also like to thank him for a great day.
I've also added a slide show about our day with Martin. See my website at
www.bobfromcanada.com |
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Dominican Republic Hotels with CARIBBEAN TRAVEL NETWORK
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