• Resort Reviews  
  • Dominican Republic Resort Review Index
  • Send Your Review
    to Debbie
  • Wedding Reviews
  • Debbie's Own Reviews
  • Evaluations en Francais
  • Traveling with Kids
  • Debbie's Caribbean Resort Reviews
  • Debbie's Hotel Reviews for the USA & Canada
  • Caribbean Cruise Reviews
  • Disability Travel
• Resort Areas  
  • North Coast
  • Samana Peninsula
  • East Coast
  • South Coast
• Tours & Things To Do  
  • Tour Reviews & Info
  • Golf Reviews & Info
  • Scuba Reviews & Info
  • Restaurant Reviews
• Vacation Planning  
  • Dominican Republic Travel Forum
  • Spanish Phrases
  • FAQ
  • Packing List
  • What-to-Expect
  • Resort Photos
• Information  
  • Villa Rentals
    and Real Estate
  • Resort/Travel Links
  • Your Local
    Travel Agent
  • And Now a Word
    From Our Sponsors
  • Our Disclaimer
  • Review Guidelines
  • Resort Contact Info
  • Dom Rep Facts
  • Health Info in DR
• Contact us  
  • Send Your Review
    to Debbie
  • Your Comments
  • Advertise with us
  • Site Map
• Home  

Melia Caribe / Tropical - Punta Cana — Location: Beach front - Punta Cana - East Coast - 25 mins. from Punta Cana airport All-inclusive - 1044 Junior Suites located in two-story bungalows Description from resort website: The resort has so many restaurants to choose from that guests can stay for 2 weeks and try a new restaurant everyday! With a world-class golf course right across the street, an exciting casino and the most thrilling activities in Punta Cana, Meliá Caribe Tropical is the perfect choice for your next family vacation. The Flintstones have found the perfect place for their holidays: they are staying with your family in one of our first theme hotels. Your kids can explore the Yabba-Dabba-Doo bazaar, gardens and swimming pools just like those Fred, Wilma, Barney and Betty enjoyed. World-class spas with sauna, steam room, jacuzzi and gym. Beauty salon, massages, facial and special body treatments available at extra charge - 8 lighted tennis courts - 7 free and lagoon form swimming pools - Arcade with video and electronic games ~ Reviews posted on this page — 45 ~ More Melia Caribe / Tropical Reviews ~ Map of Resort ~ Reader's Vacation Photos  ~   1, 2, 3, 4, 5 ~ Readers Wedding Reviews   ~ Dominican Republic Travel Forum   Have you stayed at this resort? Share your vacation experiences with others.   Don't forget to send your review to Debbie by using an easy form

September 2009

Arrival: 8/29 to 9/5
 We flew Spirit from Ft Lauderdale to Santo Domingo. Flights both ways were not full. I would fly Spirit again.
We rented a car in the Airport and drove 4 hours to Punta Cana. Do not reserve with National Car Rental. They would not honor car insurance that was purchased and paid for at time of reservation. We cancelled and walked down to Nelly car rental. Car and price were better.
The drive to Punta Cana was interesting. Mostly 2 lane highways. There are motor scooters everywhere that apparently do not have to obey traffic laws.
We arrived at the resort and everything was smooth sailing. We had a very nice room. Service throughout the week was terrific. The food was not the best I have ever had, but was about what I could expect in a moderately prices restaurant in Ft Lauderdale. Drinks were very sweet....but plentiful. The beach was the best I have seen, including most Caribbean islands, Hawaii and Mexico.
We returned to Santo Domingo and stayed the last night at the Marriott Renaissance. It was terrible. The room was dirty, old, musty and boring. The staff was not polite. They tried to charge me for a pay per view movie and we never even turned on the tv. I see on my credit card that they charged me another $14 after the fact for who knows what. Do not stay at this hotel.
All in all, we recommend the Melia Caribe Tropical. It was our first all-inclusive and will not be our last. We had a wonderful stay.

Rooms:
Very nice room. Marble floors, spacious bathroom and comfortable sitting area.

Restaurants and Bars:
Good, not great.

Beach/Pools/Grounds:
Spectacular. The beach is beautiful. The grounds are very tropical

Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel:
We played golf at a nearby course. The price was cheap...$37! It was a nice 27 hold course.

Top of Page

September 2009

Arrival Aug 22 - Aug 29:
 Arrival was a bit shaky, but not terrible.  We booked Royal Service (about 6 months ago), but our name was not on the welcome board.  We were directed to the regular line; after waiting there, we were sent to the correct check-in, which went very smoothly.

Rooms:
Wow!  We were upgraded from a Junior Suite to a Master Suite (maybe a deluxe suite?).  It really does look the pictures the hotel posts.  We had a huge kitchen/dining room/sitting room (with a sleeper sofa which my son used), plus a private bedroom (king-sized bed, very comfortable).  We had a jacuzzi in the room (I used it once - it was very good.  I didn't realize the bathroom had speakers connected to the TV, which made for a weird experience since I was hearing Star Wars music and little screaming sounds.  Turns out, my son was playing a video game, and the sound was piped in!).  There was a sink here, too.  There was a also a bathroom with 2 sinks and a somewhat small but luxorious shower (hand held sprayer and full-body wall, but they only worked separately).  The water pressure was wonderful, no issues.  The bathroom included a magnifying makeup mirror and a blow-dryer.  There was plenty of counter space.

Restaurants and Bars:
Wonderful.  We did not have a bad meal.  Part of the reason was since we had Royal Service, our breakfast and lunches were generally at the Gabi restaurant, which was exceptionally good quality.  There was a wide, ever-changing selection at lunch (breakfast had some different things, but how much can you really change up a breakfast buffet?  Great smoothies and made-to-order omelets).  We had dinner there two nights, both were great.  The Japanese restuarant, Hokkaido was lots of fun, good food (hibachi style).  The Asian restaurant was excellent (and we eat a LOT of Chinese/Thai food at home).  Capri (seafood/Mediterrean) was also very good, and Ma Maison (French) was good, not great.  The American Grill was also pretty good.

The bars are terrific, the bartenders are friendly and will try to accommodate requests.  I really love the Avenue bar, an open-air bar with art-deco seating.  The Caribe lobby bar is also very inviting.

Beach/Pools/Grounds:
The beach is gorgeous.  We mostly used the Gabi beach, but it's not really different from the regular beach, just quieter, and there's waiter service.  (Really, the Royal service is worth the extra money).  The Gabi pool was awesome!  I expected a small pool for the "private" pool, but I was wrong.  It was huge and lovely.  It was also pretty deep, which surprised me, but it kept nice and cool.  (We were at the Rui 2 years ago, and the pool was actually hot).  There were also these wonderful "sofas" so you could read in the pool; very refreshing!  There were plenty of chairs and sun and shade choices.

Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel:
We go to the DR basically because we DON'T want to "do" anything much.  My husband gambled (and actually won!); I had a massage (very nice).  We did go on a ziplining trip, which was fun, but not great; if you want a great trip, do the Outback Safari trip.

Other Comments:
This was our fifth trip to the DR, 3rd to this hotel, first time Royal Service.  My 15-year old son enjoyed the whole thing (there weren't too many English speaking kids his age); in fact, we all enjoyed it immensely.  We are already looking forward to returning next year!

One other tip - skip the "transfers" from the hotel and take a cab.  It was $30 each way, plus tip, and saves you a lot of time.  Also, bring lots of singles - we tipped the maids $2 day, and we tipped the waiters at every meal.  These people work very hard, and $1 goes a lot further in the DR than it does here.

Top of Page

August 2009

Arrival: 24th June - 08th July 09
Arrival went without a glitch, we were given our room straight away and sent off to get the train to find it while the bell boys kept our cases to deliver to us. Cases delivered about an hour later then straight to the pool!

Rooms:
We were in building 36 on the Caribe side and had a partial sea view. We thought that our room was lovely and were glad we were on the second floor. The air conditioning was VERY good and you could have it on without the key card in the wall which was a big bonus! Maid service a bit hit and miss but can't really complain. We did encounter a problem on the second last day when they started building work on a ground floor room putting in a Jacuzzi. There was constant banging from 0800 to 1700, we were offered a move of room but didn't take it as we were about to leave and some guests in other rooms had a few problems.

Restaurants and Bars:
As other reviews say the food at the buffets is very repetitive and sometimes not very well cooked (raw meat) or lying in grease. With there being so many al-a-carte restaurants we did not have to eat in the buffet at night apart from our first night. The al-a-carte were amazing and a world away from the buffet food. We went to most of them and found the Japanese and Thai to be the best quality in our opinion. In the American grill make sure you ask for the steak etc done more than you would as my well done steak was bloody in the middle. It is a bit of a pain having to phone for them however we found that if you have a MAS rewards card prior to your visit you can book them a few days in advance and this saves stress and disappointment. The bars served good drinks and they would make any type of drink you wanted if you asked nicely and explained. We tried to order in our best Spanish (which is quite basic) and this got a better response than asking in English. (which is very understandable!!!). The only air conditioned bar was the casino which opened at 1900. If like us you are used to the British weather the humidity in the other bars can be quite uncomfortable.

Beach/Pools/Grounds:
Beach and Ocean were OUTSTANDING as they are in the whole area. They were raked most days so no seaweed either. The pools were also cleaned regularly and the cleaners worked all morning. There was still some debris in the pool (we were in the caribe pool) as there is lots of foliage around and also after the resort were sprayed, lots of dead insects. This was not due to lack of care of the pools but due to the environment. The grounds were very well maintained and there was always people caring for them.

Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel:
We personally did not take part in many of the activities as were on a chill out holiday. There was water aerobics every day at 1200 around the pool which lasted about 30 minutes. The entertainment at night always seemed lively and was always full. We also did 1 tour with our holiday company Thomas Cook although I'm sure you could book it separately. It was the tropical storm tour and leaves from just south of the resort. Sets off at 0900 and lasted till about 1500. During the day drink was flowing, good atmosphere. You travel north and see the shipwreck and then travel south to go snorkelling. Before lunch you can go on the huge inflatable slide on the beach (which was so much fun), lunch served on the catamaran and was very nice. There is then a chance to go into a natural pool south of the resort. Very good day out and good value for money. We also have our tea in the hard rock cafe in the shopping plaza one day which was very enjoyable and not too badly priced.

Other Comments:
There were some representatives in the hotel who were trying to get you to see the Vacation Club. Depending on the member of staff some were aggressive and some were ok and a firm "NO" worked. We did not go on this so cannot comment on what it is. We did not on the whole find the staff as friendly as last year when we were in a 5* resort in Punta Cana. Due to this reason and the bad food at the buffets we would not return to this hotel but we would return to Punta Cana as we love the island and the locals are very friendly. In future we would pay the extra to stay in a better resort and think that this resort should be given a slightly lower star rating. I would not say it is the worst resort and a few changes could make this resort good. My advice when going to this paradise is to save up a little more as you get what you pay for. We wish we had saved up a little more and returned to the Palladium or similar resort.

Top of Page

July 2009

Arrival: Dec. 08
Flight and immigration was great. Checking in and out was a breeze.

Rooms:
Were a little musty, saw a few roaches and bugs.

Restaurants and Bars:
Excellent restaurants and bars

Beach/Pools/Grounds:
Great beach and pool, water is cold in December

Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel:
Took my 7 year old child, lots of stuff for kids to do. Lots of 2nd hand smoke for the kids, no place for designated smoking. Adults were smoking at the kids evening shows.

Other Comments:
Pressured by sales people trying to get you to sign up for "time sharing". Too much smoking everywhere, couldn't enjoy the fresh air. Will go back IF they stop pressuring you to buy "time sharing" and put desinated smoking areas.

Top of Page

June 2009

Arrival: April 17 - 25
Arrival was good however we didnt get a room until noon, we arrived at about 8:30 AM. Beware of super friendly hotel staff greeting you! They want to sell you time shares and for you to join a travel club!!! They are agressive and relentless !! They dont take NO for an answer!

Rooms:
The rooms and service was OK however not 4 1/2 star. When we called for towels they did arrive but bieng without bottled water one time was a bother. Would also recomend getting a room not facing the road. high traffic from 6AM till 2AM.

Restaurants and Bars:
As other reviews stated the food was the same alot of the time and making reservations was difficult, but would recomend the Japanese and French restaraunts, very good food and service.We do not drink alcohol and trying to order virgin drinks required some explaining. But this is why we came to a family resort and not a frat house.However it wasnt rowdy by any means i am sure due to the fact that it is a family resort. Some wedding parties got loud but did not seem to get out of hand.

Beach/Pools/Grounds:
Beach and ocean appeared to be the cleanest along that whole strip of resorts the grounds keepers are busy all of the time and we tipped them often but we tipped alot of the staff. The other resorts had sea grass/weed in waist deep water but not ours.Don't know why????do they rake that to??? Pools are nice and have bars, but we prefered the ocean. only because we have pools back home.

Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel:
There weren't alot of activities on the resort that are inclusive.we found it funny that you had to reserve:paddle boats,kayaks and little sail boats,when obviosly people had abandoned thier reservations.They were on the beach alot but you could not use them unless you made a reservation. we got one for 3:00 the next afternoon.We did go on the dolphin island tour and it was great,we never did it before on our other travels and always wished we did. The driver drove like he had a quota to meet. but this seems to be the case in every place weve been.It cost extra 120.00 (american)per person to go but we didnt mind because we wanted to do it this time.But alot of people were upset because they did not know that they had to bring money for the pictures 20.00 if you are alone in the photo or 30.00 if you and your spouse are in the same photos,two people in the same photo with the dolphins must require bigger film HAHA, and they dont negotiate.food and drink also costs extra... Although it wasnt far from the resort we were there for about 3 hours.We did not know to bring money either.We just did and after buying our special film with both of us init we had enough to share a drink.But the dolphins were awsome.

Other Comments:
We read on other reviews that the sales people are agressive. This we understood from other travels and in dealing with the locals (this we accept) however to have so much pressure from resort staff to join thier club was truly counter productive. We could not shake the sales man for 3 days and we felt uncomfortable walking through the lobby or by the pool where they are set up to pull you in. We tried to be polite but nothing worked until i got mad then they only turned thier attention to my wife, which made me even more mad. I had witnessed this exact strategy repeated on other couples with the same results, they to getting very mad. The resort truly failed to make us feal like wanted guests. We felt like targets and have never been to a resort where the staff was allowed to harass the guests. Maybe if we were drunk most of the time we wouldnt have been botherd as much, or maybe if we had not been to couples sweapt away resort in Jamaica before this one we might not have expected so much from a resort. especially one claiming to be 4 1/2 stars. but i guess you get what you pay for. We will not return to this resort or any run by Sol Melia due to thier policy of sell sell sell join join join. My sister found the same problem in Mexico and she is not returning either. We are looking foreward to future European or Australian adventures.

Top of Page

May 2009

Arrival: Nov 2008
Pick up from the airport was uneventful. Checking in was a little bit of an ordeal due to the language barrier, DR is not like other destinations where english is a primary second language.

Rooms:
Our room was musty and the beds were extremely uncomfortable, the in room mini bar was a joke, lukewarm not cold. There was no beer or liquor available in the room and no room service. The over all feeling was neglected.

Restaurants and Bars:
We did enjoy the resturants and the service, the bars were nice. Although out at the pools there was no wait staff so you need to walk sometimes quite a distance to get a beverage.

Beach/Pools/Grounds:
The Beach was wonderful as well as the grounds. Due to the size of the resort unless you room was close to the beach you need to take the trolley EVERYwhere and it did not seem to run on the 15 minute schedule. There was not as many beach non motorized sports as expected. There was NO bar service or wait staff on the beach, it was quite a hike to get a refreshment.

Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel:
Off the resort activities were fine

Other Comments:
I would most likely not return to the Melia even if it was offered free. I do have many trips to other countries, ie Mexico, Aruba, Puerto Rico, as well as 7 cruise vacation to compare to. I would like to try Puna Cana again, for a better experience.

Top of Page

April 2009

Arrival: March 27 to April 10
Took the evening flight from Halifax direct to Punta Cana on WestJet. What a great airline. Booked through Air Transit Vacations with Carson Wagonlit in the Halifax Shopping Centre. Jane is a great person to deal with. Very knowledgable and got us a great price. We arrived at the hotel at 10:00 pm local time. The check in was great quick and to our room in a matter of minutes. We travelled with 6 other persons and all were very satisfied with their rooms. Well save for the small event of my brothers toilet being located inside of the bathtub ............ small problem with the plumbing that was fixed in record time. The staff cannot be complimented enough. Thank you all.

Rooms
We moved three times after seeing our first room. The resort is older and in need of updating. The first two rooms were dirty and musty but the staff gladly moved us to another and were very satisfied at the end.

Restaurants and Bars
Nothing could be said that would describe the most fantastic food I have ever enjoyed in the Caribean. The main buffet was great and the restaurants were out of this world. Both the food and the staff were great. Getting reservations was hassle free except for one made for us by the Time Share guy, Dios. He tried hard but the reservation didn't make it to the restaurant. The on site manager sat us anyway and we had a great meal and a great time.

Beach/Pools/Grounds
THE BEST beach I have ever been on. Not much of a pool person but the bar at the Caribe side was used extensively just before supper each nite. The bar staff in fact all the staff on this resort is second to none.

Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel
We went here for our honeymoon and spent much of our time with each other. We did do the parasailing thing, for someone afraid of heights it was the most peaceful experience of my life.

Other Comments
Thank you Jane, had a great time. Book us something/somewhere for next year your recommendation was great.

Top of Page

April 2009

Arrival: March 20 - March 28
Check in was quick and efficient. The size of the resort was somewhat overwhelming but the staff was very attentive to directing us to where we needed to go. The bell boys were friendly and accomidating. We received a golf cart ride to our room and within a short time we were settled.

Rooms
Although this is an older resort and shows its age, the rooms were clean. We did not notice any musty odors. We did have some frustration regulating the room temperature. no problems with the outlets. The maid kept our refrigerator stocked with water and soda. We were relatively close to the beach which was somewhat noisy at times. our room had a hair dryer, ironing board, iron, a working safe (generous size) and umbrellas in the closet.

Restaurants and Bars
Caribe Tropical certainly many to choose from. We found the Market our favorite. Some variations on a day to day basis, but with so much to choose from it was sometimes hard to notice. we did notice some of the soft cheeses would be melted if we got their late, and once we had a dish that was lukewarm. both beach restaurants were "scaled down" versions. We made reservations at the French, International, Mexican and the American Grill. The main dishes here were unique but overall we saw much of the same foods as we ate at the Market - presentation was on a much grander scale however. We did not care for the dominicans definition of "well done" and found that the meat was served rare and be warned... you have to be careful if eat hamburgers at any of the beach bar/restaurants. Of course the staff would gladly return and have it cooked longer, but the language barrier made this frustrating. The drinks were good-the lobby bars tended to have "better" tasting drinks. Inconsistent with ingredients -some bars served frozen drinks w/ fresh fruit,etc.-others used premix. We were tired of Presidente beer by the time we left. Overall the staff was fairly attentive to us. Some mornings we had to wait a long time to get coffee served. they had auto coffe/capp machines(like vending) but we did not care for the taste. as with any all-inclusive resort - its best to eat early(before 9am) - a later lunch(after 1pm) and an early supper(5pm) to avoid the crowd - otherwise plan to wait a few minutes. although we went prepared for dress codes at various restaurants - and signs were posted - the atmosphere was relaxed and the "enforcement" lax.

Beach/Pools/Grounds
The grounds at the Caribe Tropical Melia are absolutely beautiful. Groundskeepers were seen working every day to maintain it. The peacocks were kind of pesty, but entertaining to watch. The pools were on the cool side but clean and well maintained. The beach is absolutely beautiful. The Melia staff were already at work at dawn raking the seaweed up and loading into trucks. There was not much seaweed but there was a lot of "junk" that came in with the tide(s) during the night. We were always able to find chairs and they were relatively comfortable. The beach of course was very busy but still relaxing and enjoyable.

Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel
We did not go any tours. The Melia had vendors during certain nights of the week and an adjacent shopping mall so we didn't have a need. we were approached twice and solicited for ATV and "watersports"(ie. parasailing, motorboats), but they were not aggressive and bothersome. we did not attend any of the shows as they started at 10pm and were in the Caribe lobby.
the rock climbing wall was not always open.
Take comfortable shoes to walk in. although there are golf carts abound and a trolley running through the resort - the resort is rather large and you do a good amount of walking to get around. we did play tennis on one of the two facilities - the condition of the courts ranged from good to "poor". we were note able to snorkel off the beach which was a little dissapointing. a couple told us they tried to scuba a ways out and were also unable to - both due to the strong current(s).

Other Comments
We LOVE the Melia resorts and the Caribe Tropical did not let us down. The food was fresh and delicious. Everything was clean and maintained. Again, yes this is an older resort and shows some wear/tear but we were NOT dissapointed.

Top of Page

April 2009

Arrival: March 16 - 23
Arrival at the airport was on-time and uneventful. Easy to get bags and a shuttle to the hotel. There were 8 of us, including 4 children. Very clean airport with friendly employees. Arrival at the hotel was also a smooth experience. Luggage was left with the valet and was in our rooms upon arrival from the lobby bar. NO PROBLEMS.

Rooms
Rooms were adequate. Refrigerator was always stocked with water and soft drinks. Room was cleaned each day. Beds were smaller than average, bur fine. The temperature of the room was comfortable. The balcony was a nice touch. We enjoyed sitting and watching the people and the train. We had 2 adults and 2 kids (9 & 12) in our room. We had plenty of room for all.

Restaurants and Bars
Bars were great. Specialty drinks were made upon request. Bartenders did everything possible to make us happy. We met several wonderful employees who we can't wait to see when we return next year. Restaurants were good, not excellent. However, we NEVER went hungry. There was always something to eat at anytime we wanted to eat. Some people were complaining over the reservations for the restaurants. However, if you are flexible, there will be "no problems, just solutions", as someone from the island said to us. To be honest, this was out attitude for the week....NO PROBLEMS, JUST SOLUTIONS.

Beach/Pools/Grounds
Lovely beach. Pools were large enough for all there to have a great time. Our kids played and had plenty of room as to not disturb others. We always got chairs (8) at the edge of the pool no matter what time we arrived.

Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel
We did almost everything on the resort. The guys played basketball and soccer on the beach. The Beach Party and the Fire and Ice Party were SUPER. We also enjoyed going to the mini-disco at night. Nightly shows were very good. All 4 kids who went with us (ages 8-12) enjoyed the arcade at night. This gave the adults a couple of hours for time to ourselves. However, we all felt the hotel was VERY accomidating to kids. We also felt very safe. We did venture over the Tony Roma's and The Hard Rock to watch the NCAA Men's basketball tournament one afternoon. This was a very short walk from the hotel. Had a blast!

Other Comments
Our first time in Punta Cana was a HIT. We had a FABULOUS time, and WILL return. Thanks to Debbie's site for ALL the helpful information before our trip.

Top of Page

April 2009

Arrival: Mar 21 - Mar 28
We flew direct from Toronto on West Jet right into Punta Cana, however due to inclement weather, had to divert our flight to Puerto Rico. We sat on the tarmac for a while, then refueled, and after the weather had cleared over the Dominican, we set off for a quick 32 minute flight back to Punta Cana. Great service from the crew on the plane, however they ran out of Sandwiches by Row 10. (Definitely not the crews fault - but we remembered this for the flight home)

Rooms
We have been to the Melia Caribe once before and this was the 6th or 7th visit for our travelling friends. We stayed in the RS side, and the rooms are comfortable, clean, well maintained, and with all the amenities of home. We stayed on the 2nd floor overlooking the garden, so it was quiet (although last year stayed on the main floor looking out the front and didn't find any noise either)

Restaurants and Bars
We were fortunate to have reservations for 5 ala carte restaurants, although only ended up going to 4 of them, and they were all great. The service was excellent at all of them, despite being a little slower at the Thai Restaurant...however having said that, we didn't mind the slower service - we were on holiday and happy to not be at home shovelling snow! Our main restaurant The Gabi has a newer menu from last year, full of variety and something for everyone.

Beach/Pools/Grounds
Beaches - lovely
Pools - lovely
Grounds - very well maintained, and constantly being looked after

Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel
We did not go on any tours, however did walk each day. The longest walk was a visit to El Corticito...we walked along the beach and into a newer pub that we had read online - the Photo Bar - fantastic atmosphere, and followed this with a visit into the village for some souvenier shopping. A taxi ride home was in order at the end of the day.

Top of Page

April 2009

Arrival: March 21 - 28
We had chosen this resort for our wedding. We had 12 guests including us and we were all booked in the Royal Service suites. When we arrived, we discovered that our travel agent had booked everyone in Royal Service except for my husband and I. The resort did an excellent job at fixing this mistake and gave us a beautiful room in Royal Service. The staff upon our arrival were very friendly and helpful. We were immediately welcomed with snacks and beverages.

Rooms
The rooms were exceptionally clean and spacious with all necessary ammenities. The view from our room was beautiful and very private.

Restaurants and Bars
The food at the restaurants and snack bars was excellent. We were all extremely pleased with the food quality. The service was fantastic in every restaurant and bar we visited. Our food arrived quickly and our drinks were never empty. Also, the staff were extremely friendly and made us feel very welcome.

Beach/Pools/Grounds
The beach was outstanding. It was enormous and the sand was very soft and clean. There were lots of places to relax and several bars and restaurants on the beach. There were also various beach activities such as volleyball. The pools were clean and each one was very different from the next. There were several pools appropriate for younger children. The pools were each equipped with cabanas, which were an excellent way of keeping the kids out of the sun from time to time. The rest of the grounds were very well maintained and beautiful.

Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel
We went on a tour to the marinarium, which was a lot of fun. The boat played fun dance music and the staff on board were very upbeat and entertaining. This tour included snorkeling in the reef and with the sharks and rays. We also went to an area of the ocean where the water reaches your waste and enjoyed a floating bar, snacks, and lots of lively music.

Other Comments
We were extremely pleased with our wedding day. Our wedding coordinator (Laura) did a fantastic job of bringing everything together and making it run so smoothly. We were all very impressed and the gazebo where our ceremony took place was beautiful. After our ceremony there was a private cocktail party for the guests while my husband and I took a horse and carriage to the beach for photographs. Laura offered us many venues for our reception and it was very nice to have so much choice. We ended up selecting a plated dinner in the Mexican restaurant, which was delicious and the service was fantastic.

The resort offers someone to officiate the symbolic ceremony, however, we found our own officiant through our travel agent. I would highly recommend Rick York to any brides who are looking to get married in the Dominican Republic. He is a missionary from the United States working in the Dominican Republic. He speaks English and Spanish fluently. The ceremony that he performed was beautiful and there wasn't a dry eye in the house. I couldn't have been happier! I was a perfect day.

Top of Page

April 2009

Arrival: Mar 23 - 30
Arrived at 2.30 am, there were only a few people to check -in at this hour of the morning. We got the room we requested in building 29 which is about the middle of this very large resort, but close enough to pool and beach.

Rooms
Clean, but could use some TLC. Bath tub had been repaired from damage and the tv was old and needed to be replaced. Beds are old but comfy enough for a hotel in this country. Nice marble floors and countertops. Balcony not very secure, teens staying in the room next to us climbed on the cement railng to our balcony. This encroached on our privacy. Probably not an issue if they had been reised with respect for others.

Restaurants and Bars
Buffet is good but has the same things all the time. Japanese restaurant is a must, very good! Capri restaurant is also very good, surf and turf is excellent. The Amarican restaurant is terrible, don't waste your time there. Reservations are a challenge but take what ever time they give you and arrive early if you want. Ask for a table, if it is available thay will give it to you.

Beach/Pools/Grounds
Excellent and very beautiful. Paradise!

Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel
Few activities at this hotel, it is very laid back and relaxing. Bavaro Beach runner tour was very good but not cheap. Make sure you are ready for the rough ride on their bumpy roads, not good if you are not feeling yor best. The rum will help though. haha!

Other Comments
I'd say this is a 4 star hotel with 5 star qualities in certain areas. Service, rooms and buffet food variety needs improvement. Maid service is excellent as well as some of the restaurant and bar staff, but not all are that friendly at times. Tips don't seem to make much difference for some staff, but a appreciated greatly by others. I would return at the right price though.

Top of Page

March 2009

Arrival: March 13th - 20th
Arrival to the Caribe was uneventful (which is a good thing!). 15 minute drive from the airport, very prompt check-in. No complaints.

Rooms
Our building was #35 and our room was #24. It was a beautiful room. Spacious, quiet and everything worked well including the A/C. Nice fluffy pillows as well!I would highly recommend this building as it is the second closest to the beach and very close to the pools and beach buffet restaurant.

Restaurants and Bars
This is probably the only downside of our trip. We had difficulty getting reservations at the a la Carte restaurants for decent hours. We were always calling too late it seemed even though I would call first thing in the am. 9pm was too late for us to eat. But I did find out that if you approach your Tour Operator, they will book 3 of your fav. a la cartes at once for you. Friends of ours did this and they had bookings that were more appropriate eating times. If we had better luck with the a la cartes, I wouldn't have the following issue...the food at the buffet was the same each night.No variety. We have been travelling to the D.R. for 10+ years and we've always enjoyed the theme nights. We missed that here at the Caribe. Having said all this, my husband and I certainly didn't starve! It's just that when you see 5* you get excited about things like the menu.

Beach/Pools/Grounds
What can I say? Beautiful!This hotel is at the best part of Bavaro Beach by far! Other Comments
Loved the resort. Would return in a heartbeat but my husband and I do like to try new resorts. Eden is building a new addition. Might try that next March!

Top of Page

March 2009

Arrival
We requested building 11 or 12 when we booked. We were offered a room in building 5. They did make the change for us. So that was good

Rooms
Very clean. We had a small ant problem but they came and took care of it while we were at dinner.

Restaurants and Bars
Lots of great restaurants. Too many to use during a 1 week stay. Great service at the bars. We brought along $100 1 dollar bills for tips. This I am sure helped with service. Small price to pay for great service

Beach/Pools/Grounds
Great beach, Great pools and beautiful grounds

Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel
We had 4 rounds of golf. Always had a hard time dealing with the girl at the proshop. She could never find our tee time until we turned the monitor around to show her our name. This became an inside running joke

Other Comments
This was our 3 trip and we will go back again.

Top of Page

February 2009

Arrival: January 2009
Left Hamilton airport an hour late due to snow, no biggie.. Got to Punta Airport and found our bus with no issues. Check in, and from what Ive read, was dismal .. 30 min to check in,, and there was us and another couple. The girl was just looking, and looking at papers, We asked if there was a problem and she said no. It was nice that a girl came by with a couple beers. I had sent an email a few days before we left, requesting a room in a choice of a few buildings.. Im hoping thats why she was so long,, trying to find a room that met our request. .It ended up we were in the area we had wanted to be..

Rooms
Rooms are ok. nothing special. patio doors are difficult to use. Safe is $3 / day, and are modern. ( no key, just use your personal PIN code) Bathroom nice and roomy, with a bidet. They always kept fridge stocked with water/sodas

Restaurants and Bars
Steak bar was pretty good. Italian was crap. After that we just ate in the Market Grill ( buffet) Waiters are VERY good. Food was good. lots of selection.
Tip.. if you bring your own wine, take it with you for dinner.. WHite wine was 'ok'.. The champagne at breakfast is a nice touch ( you have to ask for it ) Breakfast is nicer in beach buffets. Just a nicer ambiance.

Beach/Pools/Grounds
The nicest beach Ive been on. no rocks, kept very clean. You can walk out in the water with no worries of coral. Lots of activites.

Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel
I only used the Cocotal golf course. ( you get 3 free rounds , but Im sure you get more) Very unorganized at the starting area, but the course was ok.

Other Comments
I'd say its a 4 star. They get 4 1/2 or 5 cause of all their restaurants (10). VERY big ( 2 resorts in one), if you dont have kids, stay in the Caribe part. Kind of cool with the 2 or 3 trains running around the resort to get where u want to go. we never waited more than 5 min. Staff are awesome.
My only real complaint is the fact that the beach/poor bars close around 6 pm.
so ,, if you want a drink in your room, after dinner, and you are in the buildings closer to the ocean ( which is the place to be). you have to go all the way to the front of the resort to one of the bars there. Drinks tend to spill when you're on the train.. ;o) We'd go back. but we like to try different resorts every year. and this one is just too big for us. Lots to do tho'

Top of Page

December 2008

Arrival: August 2008
Our check in was not good, took 45 mins and we were the only family at that time. Hotel staff spent forever reading through paper versions of what rooms were cleaned and which were dirty. Also, not offered a drink or greeted with hospitality at all.

Rooms:
Our room was nice, but it took them 2 hours to help us figure out why the air conditioning was not working. Also, the rooms were NOT secured, as at night the balcony sliding doors could easily be opened from outside and people can jump from balcony to balcony.

Restaurants and Bars:
Food was "OK". Bartenders were not friendly to us adults or our children. Most did not understand English, so when we specified how we wanted food or drinks, they did were unable to provide it like we asked.

Beach/Pools/Grounds:
Beach was beautiful. Pool offered scuba introductory classes, since then I've learned that they do not follow the international scuba standards that require the regulators to be cleaned & disinfected between participants!!

Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel:
Tours were very risky-ATV ranch tour had malfunctioning equipment and when we returned, many of the participants felt that the tour was unsafe. Also, the ride to the ATV ranch was usafe...we were herded into a "cattle car" and bounced around in th back on highway to get there and back. Not good for anyone especially kids.

Other Comments:
We also sustained an injury there and the resort did not even care. WE are a family and have never had an experience as bad as at this resort. In addition, one of the staff made advances on one of our children and was fired as a result.

Top of Page

December 2008

Arrival: December 7-14, 2008
Awesome! We had a group of 26 (we got married there) and there was a posting listing all of our guests names welcoming us - first thing we seen when stepping off the bus. We were warmly welcomed and ushered over to the Royal Service check-in. They took our bags and couldn't wait to bring us a drink of whatever we wanted. Check-in was quick and painless. Our butlers grabbed our bags, put them in their golf cart and shuttled us over to our room.

Rooms:
Spectacular! Clean and beautifully decorated. We had a 1-bedroom master suite which was literally jaw dropping. Kitchen, diningroom, livingroom, bedroom and 2 room bathroom and large balcony. We were on the 3rd floor which offered a stunning view. Granite and marble everywhere, 2 plasma screen tv's, stocked fridge, bottle of rum on the table,etc, etc..

Restaurants and Bars:
Amazing! The food was delicious! I didn't have anything I didn't like all week at a buffet or an a la carte restaurant. When there is......god I don't even remember, 14 I think, restaurants to choose from, how can you not be happy. If you can't find something you like....you've got deeper issues.

Beach/Pools/Grounds:
Wonderful! We mostly hung out at the Royal Service pool and Royal Service beach. Lots of lounges, beds to choose from, never a worry. Clean, clean, clean! The beach did have some seaweed........but guess what it's the beach and again if you're going to complain about that you've got deeper issues.

Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel:
We didn't really partake in any resort activities as we chose to lounge by the pool and beach mostly. We did go on the horseback riding tour though, it was $40/pp and well worth it. It was about a 35 minute shuttle ride from the hotel and we got to see the "real" dominican on the way....interesting. This isn't like a horseback riding excursion in the US/Canada. There was very little walking done by these horses......it was the full out trot or gallop on the beach...awesome! Mom, dad and father and mother in laws did the Safari Tour which they all loved too. It was an all day event. They visited a dominican families house, school, etc....it ended in horse back riding too. Husband went golfing next door and liked that as well.

Other Comments: I can't say enough good things about this resort. We will definitely be going back! I can't imagine not having had Royal Service and believe this was the best money we spent. We've set the bar high for ourselves now!

Top of Page

December 2008

Arrival: November 21-28
After we cleared customs, a guy appeared out of nowhere and asked us if we were with Apple Vacations (yes) and took our bags. He took us aside and we showed our reservation print out and he took us to a van and then to the hotel. He dropped us at the wrong lobby (there are two). They immediately called a golf cart and gave us each a drink for the 2 minutes ride to the other lobby. Check in was a breeze.

Rooms:
Room nice and clean. Loved the oversized bath towels and the balcony facing the well manicured gardens; a great litle place to sit, drink and talk.

Restaurants and Bars:
We made reservations for dinner on the first night for a different restaurant each night. We changed time and place of dinner several times but we always accommodated, except on the Japanese one. I loved the French restaurant, specially the appetizer duck. The duck is so tender it melts in you mouth and the seasoning was perfect.

Beach/Pools/Grounds:
I only used the big pool and it is awesome. It has a swim-up bar and a jaccuzzi in the middle of the pool. I loved doing the noon water aerobics to the beat of latin music because everyone doing it is either drunk or has a hangover.

Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel:
Did the glass bottom boat and did some swimming in "cabeza de toro" by Natura Resort (great beach). Did the swimming with Dolphins and brought home a great DVD with pictures that the staff took for $20. Best money I ever spent! You don't actually "swim" with the dolphins, it is more like a choreographed photo shoot but it was fun to be near and touch such amazing and smart creatures.

Other Comments:
I love to travel to a different destination each year but I will go back to Melia Caribe Tropical next year. The staff is so nice and professional, the shows so good, the dancers and performers are very entertaining. The atmosphere so utterly relaxing, fun and decadent. As my better half said: "this is the closest you can get to paradise without dying."

Top of Page

November 2008

We have been going to the Melia Caribe tropical in Punta Cana for a number of years now. We continue to return to the Melia Caribe because the staff really look after us extremely well.

We are greated as return clients and the service and extras are incredible.

The restaurants and the rooms are fantastic and we notice that year after year the Melia resorts are always improving and maintaining the resort to its high standards.

We continue to return to this resort because we do not think we could find better that serves our needs. The golf the pools the beach the food and the staff make this resort our favorite.

We have taken family , friends and reccomend the resort to anyone that asks because we feel that they will be as impressed as we are with the quality of the resort.

An example of the resort doing memorable things for us is on a trip in March 2007 the resort gave us a tree. A special planting ceremony and took pictures. We were leaving the next day and would not be able to pick up our photos so they sent them to us in Canada. We go to see our tree on every visit soon we may have our own coconuts. The staff are always willing to do their best to accomodate any special requests and go out of their way to make everything perfect for us.

We really enjoy the Royal service side because of the private lounge, Gabi restaurant and private pool and beach area. Also with Royal service transportation is provided around the resort so if mobility is an issue then Royal service makes it easier.

Give the resort a try and you will see why we continue to return

Top of Page

August 2008

Rooms – Very good, very clean

Restaurants – excellent restaurants, with a superb service and food

Bars - Very nice bars, with very friendly employees and an excellent service. Music everywhere in the area.

Beach and Pools – The beach is amazing, with a water temperature outstanding.

Grounds – Everything very clean, very well treated

Activities and Entertainment – activities all over the place. On the beach, in the pool’s, near the bars, etc.

Conclusion – In my opinion is a very good resort to spend holidays with the family or alone. The service is very good, the personnel, is very polite and professional.

It is possible to spend the time, either in the beach or anywhere else in the resort because there are many activities to do.

EXCELENT RESORT

Top of Page

July 2008

Check-in: I read a lot of horror stories about check-in taking a long time but they were pretty quick with us. After check-in we went straight to lunch and they said our keys should be ready within the hour and our bags brought to our room.

Rooms: We requested a Jr. Family Suite with a king sized bed. We got to our room and our bags arrived at the same time (2 guys - 2 tips). But we did not have a king sized bed but two small twins. We called to have the room changed and someone showed up pretty quickly with new keys and to move our bags (now this guy is looking for a tip on a screw-up ~ I tipped him anyway). There was no ironing board in the room (it took 4 calls and three days to get it). Our refrigerator was not working (the mechanic showed up at 11:30pm the second night to fix it). One day our room did not get cleaned until 5pm and one day the cleaning lady showed up at 9pm to clean the room because she showed up again at 5pm when we were showering and getting ready for an early dinner. I did tip every day ($2.00) and I even tipped her the night she showed up at 9pm (she dropped off some clean towels) because she looked like she was going to drop from exhaustion.

Restaurants: We were with a large group so we secured a group coordinator to make our reservations so I have no complaints here. The food was very good. The service was a tad slow. Once again I read horror stories about trying to make reservations at the different restaurants. I would suggest just showing up and asking for a table. All of the restaurants we ate at were only half filled with the exception of the Japanese restaurant (make sure you get there, it was probably our best meal.)

Bars: Bartenders were attentive and quick. If you tipped they were even more attentive and quicker.

Beach and Pools: Beaches and pools were very clean and very nice.

Grounds: Huge and spread out but spectacular

Activities and Entertainment: We didn't go to the shows. Spent a lot of evenings in the casino. If you like gambling, go at 12am - the place always emptied out at midnight.

Departure and Check Out: Smooth and quick

Conclusion: The place is beautiful and well maintained. Transportation using the train is not bad. Golf carts are all over the place at dinner time so you can grab one and tip him a couple bucks and they'll get you to your destination quickly. I would recommend this resort with the warning that service can be slow so as long as you bring along your patience you will enjoy your stay.

Top of Page

June 2008

our holiday was superb in every respect, bar staff, restaurant staff,in fact everyone including gardeners, couldnt do enough for us. food excellent, wine awful dont even try it. restaurants easy to book somtimes we didnt even book we just turned up and they found us a table, not possible at japanese restaurant but you must go there and please take part. beach and pools excellent plenty of sunbeds, grounds magnifecent, train service good, but its also nice to walk. we stayed in apt block 29 good position quiet at night, we also think apts in block 36 seemed ideal. we really enjoyed this holiday and would recommend it to anyone

Top of Page

June 2008

Arrival and Flight - Flew from Dulles International to Miami and then on to Punta Cana on American Airlines. Total flight time was a little over 4 hours. Encountered no problems or delays. Was made aware by previous guest that upon arrival at Punta Cana the porters would try to take your bags… and they did. But we just said "No thank you" and continued on. They left us alone without any further hassle. We checked in at ground transportation for the Melia Caribe Tropical where they immediately boarded us on a van and took us directly to the resort, about a 20 minute trip. When we arrived at the resort we were able to immediately check-in without delay. Perhaps we got lu cky, but we purposefully traveled there mid-week to avoid the long lines most people seem to encounter on the weekends. We got our room assignments and were on our way in about 15 minutes.

Rooms - We had to wait about 30 minutes for our rooms to be released to us as we arrived before scheduled check-in time. Once there, we found the rooms to be clean, cool and perfectly suitable for our needs. We had 6 people in our party sharing 2 rooms, which were side-by-side. Our bags arrived a short time after and we were set to begin our vacation.

Restaurants - We found that all of the restaurants had good to excellent food, lots of it and a good selection. Although some previous reviews stated people had trouble getting reservations for the more formal evening restaurants, we found that not to be the case. Only once were we not able to obtain a reservation on a given night, and that was at the Japanese restau rant. However, we were able to book a reservation the next evening without problems. The buffets were good and provided a great breakfast/lunch option with a come as you are atmosphere. Since they were located on the beach I'd expect nothing more, nothing less. The service in all restaurants were VERY GOOD, with friendly people who did all they could to please. Although tips are not expected, they are very much appreciated by the staff. A little $ goes a long way in getting over the top service. If you choose not to tip, you'll still get excellent, friendly service.

Bars - Again, we found the staff to be extremely friendly and eager to please. Drinks were plentiful, refreshing and good. We enjoyed sitting around the various bars listening to live music and enjoying a cool tropical drink in the warm evening breezes. It was wonderful and relaxing.

Beach and Pools - The beach was clean, soft white sand filled with palm trees and plenty of sun beds. If you g ot to the beach before 9AM there was no problem finding a cabana to relax under. The water was great, with very little seaweed. There are some top-less females, but this was not an issue at all. Just get over your insecurity and inhibitions and relax. It won't hurt you. The pools were wonderful, always clean and filled with island music. Very enjoyable, especially with the swim-up bars and plenty of sun beds.

Grounds - The grounds were beautiful and constantly being maintained. Peacocks and other birds roam the grounds and add to the atmosphere. They could use a little clearer signs directing you to your destination on the grounds, but after a couple of days it was not problem finding your way around. The "trains" run every so often, but if you sit towards the front you get a mouth full of diesel exhaust. Sit towards the back and you'll be fine.

Activities and Entertainment - Pretty much everything is free unless it involves a motor. For example, you ca n use the catamarans, paddle boats, ride horses, etc. for no extra fees. If you want to go scuba diving or snorkel on the reefs, you'll pay extra. Same for some of the excursion trips. There is always someone walking around the beach offering to sign you up for these extra fee activities. However, we found them not to be too intrusive or bothersome. We did take advantage of the Para-sailing and snorkeling activities and found them to be great.

Tours - Did not partake.

Departure and Check Out - We arrived at the main desk for our departure time and checked out without any problems. When we boarded to van that was to take us to the airport the driver asked us for our check-out voucher. We never received one, so we had to go back inside to obtain it (the clerk forgot to give it to us). This only took a few extra minutes and wasn't a real bother. Once we arrived at the airport we were again swarmed by porters trying to take our bags. You just have to say "N o thank you" and keep moving. They'll leave you alone. Going through customs wasn't bad. The flight on American Airlines back to Miami and then on to Dulles was uneventful and on-time.

Conclusion - I'm ready to go back next year. This was our first vacation out of the country (normally stayed on the Outer Banks of NC) and we really liked it. Everyone had a great time, got a nice tan (there were NO mesquitos), ate some good food and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.

Top of Page

June 2008

We had an amazing vacation at Melia! May 22-28-08. from the moment we got off the plane. we booked with liberty travel and prieto tours was the bus that shuttled us to melia. The bus was very large and air conditioned. Melia is huge. we stayed in royal service and worth every pennie!!! the bus dropped us off at the caribe side lobby of the resort where royal service is. as soon as we entered the royal service lounge we where greeted and offered a mimosa and a presidente for hubby. Jose showed us to our room and was there anytime we needed something in seconds. our room was beautiful, we had the rs master suite. we never had a problem with the shuttle to and fro. shuttles are always passing by and if one doesnt pass there are phones at all stops and they will be there in minutes. we chose not to make reservations at the restaurants since we didnt want to be on a schedual. we ate at the Gabi most of our stay which was excellent. The gabi has a bar and restaurant, pool. you can order al la carte or do buffet all day with out any reservations. we loved Santigo our server at the Gabi! at the pool Julia would make sure our bubbas where always filled! the beach was perfect!! the water amazing!! you have to wake up early if you want a palapa. there is a bar at the beach but only on the royal service side with servers to bring you drinks. ocedius had our bubbas filled there as well. there is also a bathroom only a few feet away from the rs beach. The spa was great, we had the best massage ever!! we parasailed and did the bavaro splash and loved both! we ate once at the domican restaurant it was very good and one night we walked to the french restaurant and a table was available so we ate there with no reservations.french was very good. the lobby bar is where we spent most of our nights. they play live merengue and salsa music and everyone dances til about 1:30 am. Julio the bartendar there kept us happy!!!! the resort is beautiful and clean. every single employee at melia where eager to please! always smiling!!! we will definately go back and we are actually already planning on it!!

Top of Page

June 2008

Arrival - Our American Airlines flight from Miami was on-time. No problems collecting our luggage; however, we were bombarded by porters who tried to grab our luggage. There are carts available for travelers to use but you can't remove the carts from the baggage claim area. So if you need assistance getting your bags to the bus/car, I recommend hiring a porter.

Check-in - There was only one person working at the check-in desk so we had to wait about 15 minutes. Not a problem since there was a waitress in the lobby area offering bottled water and bar drinks. Although we requested two Jr Deluxe suites in the same bungalow, they only had rooms with a king size bed available and we had three adults in one of the rooms. The clerk was kind enough to search and found two rooms available in a Royal Services bungalow. Our luggage was delivered to the room within minutes. At some point within the first couple of hours at the resort, you will be approached by someone offering a "free" gift when you attend a vacation club sales presentation which lasts a lot longer than the promised 90 minutes.

Rooms - Very clean and nicely decorated. The maid often used hibiscus flowers to decorate the bathroom and there were teeny ants on the flowers. I just used insect repellant spray to zap them and discarded the flowers. Our balcony offered a bit of privacy and overlooked the RS pool.

Restaurants - We had our first meal at the El Turey restaurant which I nicknamed the "fly" restaurant because there were lots of flies and birds. I ate with one hand and fanned away the flies with the other. The food at the fly restaurant was not very tasty. We enjoyed the variety and quality of food at the Marketplace buffet restaurant. We dined at the American and Mexican restaurants on a couple of occasions. Ribs at the American restaurant were very good but we were disappointed in the offerings at the Mexican restaurant. We traveled with our 20-month old twins and didn't have a problem finding things to satisfy their picky appetite. French fries are available for breakfast, lunch, and dinner!

Bars - The lobby and pool bars provided excellent service.

Beach and Pools - The beach was fabulous and the pools were beautiful and spacious. There is a children's pool but it doesn't include a slide. We generally went to the pool in late afternoon and didn't have a problem finding a lounge chair.

Shopping - The gift shop on the property is convenient but expensive. You can save a few dollars by heading to the nearby Palma Real mall. There is also a Hard Rock Cafe and Tony Roma's in the mall along with a pharmacy and a couple of souvenir shops. I was unable to locate a supermarket in the vicinity.

Grounds - Immaculate and well-groomed property. I loved the variety of plants and the animals (peacocks, pink flamingos, guinea hens) wandering around the property. The property is very large. For people who don't like to walk, there are trains which circle the resort every 10 minutes. Sometimes, you can catch a ride on the golf carts used by the staff members.

Excursions: - We took a half-day tour through Hotelbeds Destination which was a complete waste of time and money. The only memorable part of the tour was a visit to the Basilica. The remainder of the tour consisted of pointing out impoverished and affluent areas surrounding the resort.

Activities - Nightly stage shows were spectacular. Thursday is Domincan night and local vendors come on the grounds from about 6pm - 9:30pm selling souvenirs. The casino is small but rather efficient at taking your money. There were a few high rollers placing $500 bets at the blackjack table. Originally, I settled on this resort because it offered activities for children as young as 4m. When I checked out the children's club, I decided against leaving our kids. The children's pool is located behind the children's clubhouse and the gate was closed but never locked. It was really simple for a toddler to push open the gate and have access to the pool area.

Conclusion - Overall, we had a pleasant stay at the Melia. Good value for the price.

Top of Page

May 2008

Our Honeymoon to Melia Caribe was a unbelivable experiance. The resort was very claen and the staff was great. We were in the royal service area and the upgrade was well worth the slight upcharge. We had no problem getting into any restuaraunt on any night. Our stay was 5/1/08-5/08/08. I read some reveiws before we went and was very suprised on how people are so critical of resort properties. I was a General manager for Marrioitt Hotels for 7 years. So I am a very particular on the room cleanliness, it was great. We took the advice of comments and brought about $70.00 1 dollar bills for tipping. Very Good Idea!!!!!!!! I could see the difficulty in making large reservations for over 4 people.

Remember when traveling to the DM it is a 3rd world country. Take the experiance as it comes,don't be typical cocky americans.

Top of Page

May 2008

Arrival/Check in: My boyfriend and I both 25 years old, traveled to the Melia Caribe Tropical in Punta Cana April 24-30. Last year we stayed at the Melia in Cozumel and had a great experience which is how we decided on this resort. We arrived at the Punta Cana airport and the drive to the resort was only 20 minutes. The only inconvenience we encountered was that there was a very large group of 300 or so checking in at the same time as us and it was pouring rain, which was not anyone’s fault. We were transferred over to the “Tropical” lobby and check in went much smoother. The staff was very attentive and willing to help us get to the right place.

Rooms: We were pleasantly surprised with our room the “Junior Deluxe Suite” (the regular room). Our room was very clean, spacious and up to date. After hearing so much about “Royal Service” we were disappointed to hear the upgrade was more expensive than we had planned on. We did find out there were different levels of Royal Service and also room upgrades with out royal service which is all we really wanted. At the time, there were no room upgrades with a Jacuzzi available.

Pool/Beach: We only went to the main pool which was gigantic. There were plenty of seats in the sun and shade. If you want a shady hut by the pool or one of the soft beds under the tiki huts you had to get up and reserve them early. The pool and vicinity was very clean and well kept. The beach was beautiful, always enough seats. The only seats that need to be reserved early are under the tiki huts. The water was amazing, the only place we saw minimal seaweed in the water was at the “Royal Service” private beach which we thought was kind of funny…

Grounds: The grounds were beautiful, very rich with greens and flowers. Very well kept, there was staff out early every morning to start cleaning up the landscape. There were ponds, peacocks and flamingos all over. You definitely feel like you are in tropical paradise. The resort is very large it feels like a small city. There were trolleys running 24/7 to take you around the resort. We never waited more than 5 minutes for a trolley. I love walking so I did not mind walking anywhere except at night when I was wearing high heels. We stayed in building 33 and we were very close to the pool and beach. The lobby and specialty restaurants were further away but we did not mind. If I had to guess, I would say it was ¾ of a mile to walk to the lobby and specialty restaurants from our room.

Restaurants/Buffets: I was very pleased with all of the food that was offered. The breakfast and lunch buffet had many choices. We made reservations every night for the specialty restaurants, there were about 8 different specialty restaurants. We really enjoyed going to a different place every night, you do not get bored. The only place we could not get in was the Japanese restaurant, but we only tried once. Everyone said that is the most popular. Other than that we never had a problem getting reservations. Our favorite was the Mediterranean restaurant called “Capri,” we both had surf and turf the lobster was delicious. Gratuities are included in the package, but we tipped our waiter every night. We did not feel like they expected it which made it even better.

Activities: We did not participate in many of the hotel activities or shows. There was a show every night at 10:00PM, we just never ended up making it there in time. We did catch the karaoke night and it was pretty fun. Sometimes the lounges would have a DJ and we really enjoyed dancing. We tried going to the disco night club but it was dead on Saturday night so we did not go back. We did get a couple massage at the Caribe spa and it was very relaxing. On our last day we decided to go on an ATV excursion. We were very happy we got to see the country side and the Dominican way of living. You are in your own little luxury world at the resort and really don’t get any real idea of what the country is like. We got an hour ride/tour to the facility. Once we arrived we rode the four wheelers through the country side to a coffee/cocoa plantation, which was very interesting. Then we visited a cave, we went down 50 feet and jumped in the fresh spring water. It was a little creepy, the water was 27 ft deep and it was very dark. Then we drove the four wheelers to a secluded beach, the most beautiful beach I have ever seen or even imagined. We got to swim in the waves for about a half an hour. I highly recommend this excursion we had the best time. It was only $110 USD for a couple. The ride was 3 hours and plus the travel time it is about a 5 hour trip well worth the small amount of money.

Staff: We found the staff very friendly and helpful. We do not speak Spanish and we did not have any problems communicating with the staff, of course if you want to have more in depth conversations you might have some difficulty.

Departure: Our check out went very smooth. We called the desk to have our bags picked up they were there within 5 minutes. We checked out, took a few minutes and they called a cab which took another few minutes.

Conclusion: I highly recommend this resort. I look forward to returning and have already recommended the resort to everyone I know. I would also like to say that I agree with a fellow reviewer that stated they were glad that they did not waste their money on the royal service because there was nothing they could have done to make their experience better.

Top of Page

April 2008

We stayed at the Melia Caribe resort from March 25, 2008 through March 31, 2008. While portions of the resort were beautiful there were problems with our room every single night we were there and the service regarding these problems was unbelievably bad as I explain below.

SERVICE/ROOM
The service was very poor and the quality of the room was only fair. Certainly not worthy of four stars. When we arrived on March 25, 2008 we were placed in a room with two double beds despite the fact that the reservation confirmation showed that we were confirmed for a King bed and a sleeper. The room decor was dated and none of the rooms, and we ended up staying in three different rooms, look as good as they do on the website. When we asked to move because we did not get the room we were promised we were informed that nothing else was available and we could not be moved until the next day. We were moved the next day. However, the bathroom in the new room constantly flooded to the point that there was often two to three inches of standing water and the floor would constantly remain wet. As a result, every time we had to use the bathroom we were standing in water. In addition we were not sure of the source of the water so we could have been standing in unsanitary water or sewage from a leak in the toilet. Despite the fact that we complained repeatedly, our complaints were ignored for two days. Finally, the manager on duty examined the problem and showed us a new room which he promised to move us to. He promised to move us while we were out to dinner that evening and told us that we should pick up the new key at the reception area when we were done with dinner. When we returned from dinner and a show we went to pick up the key to our new room around 10:30 pm. When we went to the reception area in the Caribe lobby the receptionist told us that despite the manager's promise our room had not been changed and that she had been instructed NOT to change our room unless we signed a release which she presented to us. We were very upset due to the fact that my eleven year old son was very tired at this late hour and we all wanted to retire to our new non-flooding room. I waited over an hour for someone to help us and my family was moved around midnight. When we finally arrived at our new room it did not have any sofa bed so my son had to sleep in bed with us. The next day, the sofa bed finally appeared but despite numerous calls no sheets were delivered and my son had to sleep with us again. The last day there was no water pressure and no hot water. Despite the fact that our room was never fully functional for even ONE day of our stay the hotel defended this poor service even though we had been lied to about being moved while we are dinner.

FOOD
The food ranged from fair to good. Breakfast was good but the quality of the food in the lunch and dinner buffets varied greatly. We enjoyed the beef but the fish was uniformly dry, overcooked and uninteresting. In addition, there was a tremendous amount of repetition of selections. It was extremely annoying trying to get reservations in the specialty restaurants. However, we spent a great deal of time on the phone and were able to sample most of them. They all looked very nice but the quality was only slightly better then the buffets and none of the restaurants were particularly authentic although the service was very good in these restaurants. 1. Thai-Very good, probably the best we tried. 2. Japanese- I don't understand what all the fuss is about. It is extremely hard to get a reservation and the quality is not as good as any typical Beni Hana style restaurant. In addition, we were not seated for over an hour after our reservation time. As a result, my son, fell asleep waiting and went back to the room with my wife with no dinner. When we asked they refused to give us a reservation for the next night. 3. French-Fair, not particularly authentic. 4. Steakhouse-Only fair. 5. Dominican-Terrible. Very poor selection and food quality.

BEACHES/POOL
Beautiful beach and great pools. There were sufficient chairs at both. The bartenders were excellent

WATERSPORTS
Poor. The staff was very lazy and it was hard to get reservations. For example, the first few days we were told that we could take out the small sailboat since the catamarans were always reserved. When we attempted to take it, however, we were told that it was not available even though it was sitting on the beach with the sail up. The last day we were bringing a catamaran in when there was a small cloudburst. Rather then help us drag the large boat up on the beach the staff huddled under a roof sipping coffee and watching us pull the boat on to the beach.

ACTIVITIES
Very poor. There were few organized activities and what they had was of no interest to my son or us. In comparison to a Beaches or a Club Med type resort the activities were nonexistent.

GROUNDS
Beautiful. Lush vegetation throughout and interesting wildlife. The lobby and bar areas were also very nice

SHOWS
Terrible. They were all in Spanish and not at all in interesting.

GOLF
Surprisingly nice. The course was conveniently located and in very good condition.

Top of Page

April 2008

First of all – thanks to Debbie for starting this incredible site. I’ve been using it for years!!!

This was our 2nd time to this resort (this time was with an RCI timeshare exchange). We love it here & would go back in a heartbeat. I think it's important to note, however that this is a Spanish hotel chain with guests from all over the world. Not all of the staff speaks English and not all of the food will please every palette. That said, we had great service (especially the Vacation Club/RCI staff) and had a wonderful time.

Arrival and Flight: My husband and I (ages 41 & 38) and our 18 month old son travelled to this resort from April 5th to the 13th on direct flights from Newark on Continental. We gate checked my son’s stroller and ended up waiting for it on the tarmac for over 20 minutes – make sure you ask someone to get any gate checked items as soon as you get off the plane. The bags took quite a while to come out however so it didn’t really matter. We used a transfer through the hotel – Club Caribe which was great - $20pp roundtrip and we had the air-conditioned coach to ourselves both ways.

Rooms: This would be the time to mention that this resort is very large. It is actually 2 resorts combined into one, there is the Caribe side and the Tropical side, each with it’s own huge pool and restaurants. There are also 2 lobbies based on where you are staying. There are some rooms up by the lobby buildings (where all the main restaurants are as well as the casino, gift shops, bars, shows, etc). Then there are rooms down by the beach and pools (along with an open air breakfast/lunch restaurant on each side). It’s about a 10 minute walk from the lobby to the beach. They have trams that run pretty regularly but we chose to walk up for dinner most nights (we always needed the walk on the way back!). Anyway, we requested and received a room near the pool/beach and got a great spot in Building 15 on the Tropical side in between the pool and the Turey restaurant. We had a king size bed, a pull out couch and sitting area, coffee maker, microwave, small fridge (stocked daily with water and soda) and a sink. This was great with the baby – easy to wash sippy cups, bottles, give snacks, etc. The bathroom was fine – it showed some wear, but was still nice.

Restaurants: We ate breakfast & lunch every day at either of the beach restaurants. I found a great variety of items each day and it was easy to find foods for our little one. I can’t think of a food they didn’t have. There is also a bar in each of these restaurants so it was easy to get drinks. The one thing that had changed since the last time we were here is that these 2 restaurants both closed at 6pm for the night which left nowhere to get a snack or a drink in this area of the resort in the evening. For the main “dinner” restaurants, you must call and make reservations each day after 1:30pm. We found that there are exceptions to this rule for Royal Service guests and members of the Vacation Club (which we were but didn’t figure it out until the end of the week!) All of the restaurants were great. We enjoyed the Thai and the Mexican the best. The Japanese was the hardest to get into and was excellent.

Bars: There are a ton of bars up in the lobby/restaurants area and a swim-up bar in each pool. The have a good selection although I would not call it top shelf. They did have Stoli vodka but no brand name rums (all local brands I guess). The only beer they have is Presidente which is fine. We didn’t drink a lot – this was a “family” trip and my 18 month old called the shots for most of the week!

Beach and Pools: Pure heaven!!! The landscaping around the pools is ideal – tons of palm trees and lots of privacy. Several shallow areas for the kids (along with a separate kiddy pool). Perfect temperature – very refreshing. The beach is one of my favorites. White sand, aqua blue water and a gazillion palm trees! The shady spots do get taken up quickly in the morning (we found it easier to get a spot at the pool in the am and the beach in the pm). The water does have some seaweed in the shallow part but it clears right out as you wade in farther.

Grounds: Absolutely beautifully landscaped. Peacocks, flamingos and various other birds roam freely among palm trees, flowers and fountains. This is one of the reasons that we didn’t mind the walk up to dinner.

Activities and Entertainment: We purposely did NOTHING during our week here. I would have liked to see some of the shows but they didn’t start until 10pm each night and by then our little on had had enough. They do have a kids show (Flinstones) that they loved at 8:30 – not sure if it was every night but at least a few nights. We saw parasailing, numerous boat trips and other activities on the beach. There are sales people walking around continuously if you want to sign up for anything.

Conclusion: This is a great resort. It was easy to do with our son and he had a blast. It is an older property so I’m not sure how it compares anymore to some of the newer resorts in Punta Cana but to us, it was a wonderful trip. I feel like I wrote a book and I know I’m forgetting certain things I wanted to mention! This board is invaluable and I’d be happy to answer ANY questions anyone has. Please email me at kr1st1nh@aol.com. Thanks for reading.

Top of Page

April 2008

Melia Caribe, Punta Cana, Dominican Republic Leah, Brantford, Ontario Our trip was for one week, leaving March 31, 2008. There were four couples in our group. We contacted the hotel the week before to request rooms in the same villa by phone. The people on the phone were very polite but unable to guarantee us anything. We did inquire about Royal Service but it was considerably more expensive than we were willing to pay.

Arrival and Flight - This was our second flight into Punta Cana and this time was even rougher than the first. I’m not sure if this is a Punta Cana issue or we are just the unlucky ones! This time there were a number of people who screamed on our rough decent. Our flight landed at 2045hrs.

Check-In - Upon check-in we were sent to the VIP desk, where we received champagne. We were checked in as frequent guests despite never staying at this resort before. The only thing we could figure out is that we have stayed at different Melia’s at other destinations. The eight of us were given villa 36 and told it was the best location in the resort. We made it to our rooms by about 2230hrs. After making it to our room we located a restaurant (El Guarapo) that opened at 2300hrs for late night snacking!

Rooms - Our rooms were very nice. Villa 36 is the building closest to the beach on the Caribe side. It is also the closest villa to the Caribe pool.
So, we all agreed, Villa 36 is the best location in the resort! The only issue we had with the rooms is that there was not enough storage space.
Luckily we brought some extra hangers for all of the a la carte meals.
Otherwise we would not have had room for our nice clothes. The fridge does not get stocked with beer like at other resorts. The fridge is stocked with water and pop.

Restaurants - There are a tonne of restaurants at Melia.
We spent most of our daytime meals at Turey (the Caribe restaurant by the beach). Turey was open 6-6, sometimes for meals, sometimes for snacks.
They seemed to have paella every day at lunch which was a huge bonus for the seafood lovers! It is a typical buffet style restaurant.
We ate at a la carte restaurants every night. Even with a group of eight we were able to get reservations every night. If you can’t get through or get what you want early in the morning try calling back at 1330hrs. This is when they release the blocked times from Royal Service.

The order of my favourite restaurants was La Pagoda (Thai), Hokkaido (Japanese), Le Gourmet (French), Capri (Seafood), El Guarapo (Dominican), La Hacienda (Mexican). They were all great, but La Pagoda, Hokkaido and Le Gourmet were our all round favourites. I didn’t eat a lot of beef but everyone else loved the beef everywhere we went. If you go to Le Gourmet I would highly recommend the duck salad. I’d never had duck before, and it was amazing!

Bars –

We spent most of our bar time at the Caribe pool bar and the Caribe lobby bar. Mario at the Caribe pool bar is a tonne of fun and makes it extremely easy to sit there for a long time. While the entire bar staff spoke English relatively well, they did seem to appreciate the attempts at Spanish and were very patient! The drinks were great, especially the Passion Coladas!

The Hotel – The beach was beautiful although we are more pool people than beach people. The caribe pool was beautiful (and apparently the Tropical pool is a mirror image of it). The pool was very clean as there were staff out cleaning it every morning.

The grounds are gorgeous and huge. We did not take the trolleys very often.
Despite being the furthest Villa from the lobby it only took about 12 minutes to walk between the two. Since we ate at the beach restaurant during the day we really only had to go to the lobby area for dinner, although it was a beautiful daytime walk. In the middle of the resort there is an amazing ecological reserve. I was able to get some amazing close-up photos of the beautiful Dominican flowers and plant life. There are flamingos, egrets and peacocks wandering the resort, great for photo taking.

Activities and Entertainment – Apart from the water aerobics, we really didn’t see any activities. Apparently they were mostly on the beach or at the Tropical pool.

Scuba Caribe - Five of us went on the Catalina Snorkeling ($90)/Scuba (+$60per dive) excursion. It was quite a windy day and there ended up being a number of people who were sick on the catamaran. These two dives were my first two as part of getting my scuba license. It was definitely a great place to learn to dive! Jorge was my divemaster and he definitely made sure my dives were interesting, although at the end I did have to do all of my skills (including towing him back to the catamaran!) The snorkeling from the Catalina beach was excellent. The water was very clear and there was a large amount of marine life if you stayed close (or under) the rock wall.
If you can get one of the divemasters to show you around the reef it is well worth it.
FYI – Doing the Catalina Island trip and getting my Open Water Scuba Certification (included Catalina trip, snorkeling, PADI text, dive tables, classroom time, quizzes, pool dives, final exam and 4 ocean dives) cost $509, much cheaper than at home! This is definitely the place to do it!

Departure and Check Out – We requested a 6pm checkout and got it without any issues. The 6pm checkout cost us an additional $75. We only got one room with a late checkout and split the costs. Checking out was quick and easy.

Conclusion – This was an amazing resort and a wonderful vacation. The people were very kind and helpful. We gave most of our gifts to the people we felt didn’t normally receive them (gardeners, pool boys etc.) Be prepared to write these people notes to say that the items were gifts as they will be stopped by hotel security when they do not have a note. If you happen to be around when the gardeners are cleaning up the palm trees don’t miss the opportunity to try the fresh coconut milk or meat that they offer to give you. In the end there was no reason to have wanted Royal Service.

There was nothing that they could have done for us to improve our experience. I’m glad we didn’t waste our money!

Top of Page

April 2008

Flights;

Air Transat; If you have never flown air Transat, it might be worth upgrading to Club class for the seat size and service (#1), as well, you don't have to wait in a 500' line to check in leaving.... 3 course service and unlimited drinks or whatever going/coming... I think its worth it. If you get a West Jet flight, it's almost the same thing seat wise, just not the meal..... plus it costs nothing extra.

Resort:
Real nice and real big! First night we were wondering if we were gonna find our room in 8 days... but once you get your bearings, it's easy! Trains run in a loop (kind of a Jeep (modified) and they run every 10 min or so (24/7 - not as often at 3am obviously). Also found that the golf carts , which are mainly for the (Royal Service) would stop for you sometimes and drive you directly. We tipped $1 and amazingly found one outside our room most nights. These people are real friendly and appreciate a tip.... note: GO TO BRIEFING IN A.M. AND YOU WILL BE BETTER OFF

Our room was near pool and beach (3023)... 2 min walk to pool and to beach it was another 2 min. 15 min walk to main lobby/restaurants, or a 5 min train ride...

Real nice resort (and we have been all over Dominican and Cuba).

Restaurants:
Went to Seafood (2x's), Italian, Steak, Japanese, Mexicain, International... not easy to get into at times.
Seafood: Very good! Lobster tail, beef... ummmm
Americain (steak): again, very good. Meat done to perfection
Italian: Not too crazy on this one.. picked out the shrimp and left the rest
Mexicain: alright, but certainly not a favourite
Japanese: good show and one of the hardest to get into. Some Sushi and the seafood is real good...
International: good variety and overall pleasant
Buffets: 2 that we went to, one by beach and other at Tropical lobby: trust me, you wouldnt go hungry unless you are real real picky! Everything under the sun!

*if you like wine, they try to push bottles... I can see why, as the house wine is some of the worst I have tasted in any resort I have been to.

* all restaurants have a good variety! So if you don't like seafood but your other half does, you will still find something... You make reservations Monday (9am) for Tuesday... BUT!!!! if you can't get in, call at 1:30pm and you will most likely get a reservation (I made it a point of calling at 1:25). What they do is reserve so many seats for Royal Class, and if they are not used, they let others book them at 1:30. Never had a prob getting into any restaurant, and they are worth going to.

Beach:
White sand... real nice, but with some seaweed in the water (what can you expect).... Rules of the resort are that you "shouldnt" leave towels on chairs to reserve and if done, others can remove them! Good rule. Most people respect this, but some still leave towels in am and at 3pm still havn't used the chairs... rude. Our rule was if it's vacant for 3 hours... it's fair to use it! No Complaints... Beach was really windy for a couple days... felt like we were being sand blasted...

Beach at Cayo Coco, Cuba was even nicer than this!!

Pool:
Big pool! Really nice!! Wife loved it, as I am not a water person. But I enjoyed it even so. Bartenders were great! Tip them a few times (1 dollar) here and there and it makes a nice difference. Need to be here by say 7:30 to get a good chair.... then go off to breakfast and come back in an hour or so... nice spot to spend your time (a little hotter than the beach though).

Excurtions:
We have done most of them (at one resort or another) but we did the outback safari thing this time. It had horse riding, sugar cane plantation, school, etc... and oh! Lots of rum.... nice trip and a good way to spend the day....

Staff:
These people were GREAT! If you expect them to speak perfect English, don't go to a foreign country... they try, and we never had a problem... the whole idea is for you to learn some Spainish! Key words... Cervesa... Mucho Rum (lol)... gracias, ola,.... take the time and get to know them... you will be that much richer for your experience!

General:
We met and enjoyed the company of a lot of people there. Made friends from Minnisota and other parts of US as well as people from all over. A lot of kids, but it was just my wife and I, and it didn't bother us (not overly noisy). A good destination all-in-all.... but still going back to Cayo Coco next year.... Oh. and my wife broke the wheel on the Flintstone Car by accident... don't tell them... shhhh

Top of Page

April 2008

Debbie,

We were a group of 25 that arrived March 27 for a one week stay. Check in went pretty smooth and the group all got rooms within a short walk of each other. This resort is huge. There were only four other people checking in at the same time and I can see if there was a plane load the people at the end of the line would have a fair wait. You are all well received at the front desk with the staff taking drink orders to make any wait you might have more comfortable. We found the resort absolutely gorgeous, very clean and well manicured. A tropical paradise with palms, fountains, flamingos, egrets, ducks, and other fowl found throughout. Our room was quite sizeable and well appointed. It had adjoining doors to the next room and I would suggest to any one that if you do not require adjoining rooms request so at check in as the doors are far from sound proof. Small gifts for housekeeping staff produced very pleasant results: flowers throughout the room, swans fashioned from towels etc.

The two large pools both have bars and are right next to the beach so no matter which you prefer there is always a bar that is close by. Bring go-cups if you are a beach person. People do reserve lounge chairs with their towels but there are lots to go around and we never had a problem finding a spot, even with our large group. We found all the buffets had a good selection with the food prepared quite well. Only one dinner buffet but, if you ask ahead of time they are able to accommodate large groups. Our group of 25 never had a problem getting large tables together. The resort was quite full but there was never a long wait to be seated. The ala carte restaurants were quite nice but it took some patience to make reservations. All in all we had a great time and no one of the 25 of us would hesitate in returning.

Top of Page

April 2008

Via Air Transat Vacations. Flight down was about 45 mins late but on time on way back. Left at 7 AM on Monday and came back at 4:30 AM the next Tuesday so was like getting an extra day. Our room was not ready til 3 PM even though we were there before noon so it's a good idea to have some beachwear in your carry-on. The resort supplies you with a room to store your bags and a place to change and take a shower on the day you leave. (We had to vacate the room by noon but our flight was not til 11:30 PM).

Had to be at airport at 3 AM so stayed at the Halifax Quality Inn (Airport) which allows you to park for free for the week you are gone so almost offsets the cost of the room. Shuttle 24 hours/day to airport and on return they take you right to your car.

Rooms: very nice with soaps, shampoo, satellite TV, balcony, soft drinks and bottled water supplied for free in the mini-bar. Stayed in 3118 which is a few minutes walk from the pool and beach and only 8 minutes walk to the Caribe Lobby.

Beach was great. Lots of watersports available for free (sea kayaks, windsurfers, hobie cats, paddle boats) and no problem booking them. Great windsurfing as no giant surf to get through.

Food: Pretty good. A la carte restuarants sometimes hard to book but not really an issue. Some people without reservations would get a table with the maitre'd. Beach restuarant is very convenient place for breakfast and lunch. Water served at restuarants and ice cubes made with purified water so not an issue. Only thing they suggest is not to drink the tap water (brush teeth using bottled water).

Staff: Did not all speak English but were friendly and appreciated $1US tips. Bartenders will give you change for larger bills. If bar is really busy it helps to have a one dollar bill in your hand.

Pools are huge and a good place to find lounge chairs where you can find shade or sun. People do reserve them with their beach towels which is not a big deal since there are many places to sit. Best shade spots at the beach are usually claimed by 7:30 AM.

Golf: 3 nine hole courses. Bougainville quite long with most par 4's well over 400 yds. Greens are fast. You can book T-times yourself over the Internet or via your travel agent if you want to insure early morning times.

All in all a great spot but I would not recommend it for singles as most of the guests were young families and couples. Lots of activities for kids such as a huge park with zip lines, climbing wall, etc, all supervised by staff.

Top of Page

March 2008

We just got back from 2 weeks in Punta Cana - we stayed at Melia Caribe from March 8th to March 22. We had a wonderful time. There was myself and my spouse and our son who is 4. The kids club was great and our son went there a few times in the two weeks; he really enjoyed it and met some good kids. Hello Ana, you were great. The resort is beautiful, the grounds stunning. The resort is very clean and had amazing food. Whether you ate at one of the buffets or one of the many al a carte's you were definitely going to be happy and walk away full.

The resort is huge. If you are unable to walk, or don't like any physical exercise, then this is not the resort for you. There are trains that will take you around but sometimes you have wait. I was never bothered by this, but I know some people are. Lazy people need not go. The beach is gorgeous, and the water is calm so kids can play in it. There are flea markets if you walk up the beach but I found shopping in Mexico better than shopping in the Dominican.

We were in villa 33 and this was close to one of the pools, very close to the beach and not to far from the Carible lobby. We were further from the Tropical lobby. Royal Service is available for a price, but either way you will not be disappointed. I read somewhere that if you didn't get Royal Service they would not be friendly to you. Not our case, we didn't have RS at first and when we did get it, we were treated just as well, only difference was we could go to the private Gabi restaurant, pool and private beach. I think the people will treat you as kindly as you treat them. If you are a demanding rude person, they may not be so friendly to you. We were there for two weeks and got to know the staff well. I miss them already. Hi Gabi team - Caroline, Carlos, Franklin, Cece and the hostess, sorry I don't remember your name. To our wonderful driver, Sergio - we miss you too. Gregory I hope you enjoyed your maple syrup. It is best to bring U.S funds for purchases. There are no face clothes so if you need one, bring one. I brought a lot of one dollar bills for tipping, but never did I feel like it was expected like I read in other people's reviews. I think it is appreciated a great deal but not expected. We are a very wealthy people in Canada in comparison. If you go on an excursion through the countryside you will see that first hand. We did 2 excursions, Monster Truck - to coffee plantations, sugarcane plantations and you see a Haitian Village. Eye opening! We also went to Saona Island, which is absolutely breathtaking. Lots of fun on the catamaran. A must go. Punta Cana is lovely and Melia Caribe is a delightful resort.

I found the ******** travelers very rude for the most part. They just about took you out racing to the food at the buffet. The best thing we did was Royal Service as they did not seem to gravitate to that area. Please, when traveling to other countries, be mindful of not only the natives but also the other travelers. They paid to be there as well. Consideration is a learned skill.

Top of Page

March 2008

After reading numerous reviews of the Sol Melia Caribe Tropical, we were prepared for the 'negatives', but looked forward to the positives of which there were both.

The resort is gorgeous, no doubt about it; gorgeous beach, lush tropical gardens, ponds with fountains, wild peacocks and flamingos wandering around, lobbies and bar areas very well done; and the rooms were beautiful. The resort is very big and yes there is a fair amount of walking; yes there are the trains, but they run very slow, and in fact you can beat them by walking! The upside was that you got your exercise, which isn't a bad thing! The food was 'fine'; not fabulous, but also not terrible and this included the a la carte restaurants; the american grill would equate to a Kelsey's; the italian like an East side Marios. Making reservations was difficult - you do wait for 20 minutes on the phone (after numerous attempts) to get the reservation; we opted for the buffets most nights, so that we weren't restricted to a 'time' Drinks were 'okay' - but most were premixes will little or no fresh content.

The staff promoting 'time share' (yes it IS time share) were very aggressive and very annoying. The resort has to change their method of selling. Overall the staff in general were not very friendly, made no attempt to communicate; basically took your order and went to fill it. Considering the resort caters to an international clientele, you would expect the staff to know the basics of some languages - but this was definitely not the case, unless, of course, you were Spanish! I know the basics of the language and still had a difficult time communicating.

We would not return to this resort, or to the Dominican Republic - the locals harass you when you walk the beach - and we haven't found this anywhere else we have gone; security is a MUST. We didn't feel comfortable or safe leaving the resort to explore the local culture, which is unfortunate. The country (not just the resorts) needs to understand the clientele if they want to compete in the tourist trade.

Compared to the Mayan Riviera, the D.R. has a long way to go; if the Dominican beaches could be transported to the Mayan Riviera than we would buy property there in a minute.

Don't go with high expectations (to the D.R.) and you won't be disappointed!!!!

Top of Page

March 2008

Dear friends from all parts of the globe

Our stay at the Melia Caribe Tropical was an incredible experience fill of great surprises and wonderfull time. My sister and I travel different parts of the world like Madrid , Mallorca, Ibiza ,Lisbon , Miami etc.etc.etc. and at Melia Caribe Tropical ( Punta Cana)we have the best time of our lives.

We thanks the hospitality and wonderfull service from the people who work there, from the front desk to the bartenders there all great persons always with a great smile and a awsome personality.

And talking about the food.......... just delicious and gorgeous presentation.

Don't doubt to experience the ''magic'' and exciting time that wait for you guys at the Melia Caribe Tropical at Punta Cana.

Top of Page

March 2008

Myself and boyfriend who are in our mid thirties stayed at the Meila Tropical February 25th – March 5th. We have been to the DR a few times before.

Overall Impression – Our favorite resort yet and we would recommend it to others. A very well maintained. For an older resort it did not show. It was very well laid out and easy to make your way around. Other reviews indicate that this is a large resort but we did not find it toll big as we normally book in 500 rooms or less resorts. We found to walk from the lobby to the beach was around 10 minutes. The trolley ran every 10 minutes and there was three going most evenings.

Check In – We were the first at the registration desk and our check in was speedy. We had requested a upper level room with king bed near the beach when booking and we were granted our request. We also requested a late check out and we were able to keep our room until 6 PM for $75US.

Room – We were assigned room 718 in the Tropical Section of the Melia Caribe Tropical. We have stayed at two other 4 start resorts in Punta Cana and this room was by far the best. We had a king size bed which was comfortable. In the room there was a table with two chairs and a couch. The tiny tings made the room nicer than other resorts, throw cushions on the bed and couch, mats on each side of the bed as well as a flat screen TV. The bathroom was a bit older but had everything and was kept very clean. Our maid service was great and our room was very clean. Some days the room was not cleaned until the afternoon but that was not an issue for us as we were never there. We always had towels, our fridge restocked with pop and water.

Food – There is a large selection of restaurants where this is a combination of two hotels. My overall impression of the food at this resort was high quality and lots of choice. We ate at 4 of the a la carte restaurants (Thai, Mexican, French and Japanese). We did not have any trouble getting reservations. They had a reservation service where you call and you can make reservation for that day and the next. We found if you were flexible you were able to get reservations. The Japanese was the hardest (also my favorite) but we were able to get a reservation after a couple tries.

We ate breakfast and lunch at the beach grill and never had any problems with finding something we liked. There is a pizza selection and pasta bar for those that are not able to find anything. Again the small things at the buffets made this resort enjoyable – candles on the tables at night, quick and efficient bar service (the house red wine is better than most resorts) and excellent soft serve ice cream.

Bars – Plenty of tables and lots of servers willing to take a drink order. We tended to go to the Lobby Bar and The Square Lounge (very funky)and we often drank the local beer - President with Lime and did not get too adventurous with the tropical drinks

Service – We had great service the entire week. Most staff spoke enough English that you can get by with no Spanish. We had no problem getting drinks at the bars or assistance from guest services and felt that the staff went above and beyond to make sure we had a great stay. We did bring lots of $1s and tipped often but not always and it did seem that our service was impacted by tipping.

Beach – Beautiful and well maintained. Lots of chairs on the beach, if you didn’t mind full sun you could arrive at any time of day. There was plenty of shade under the palm trees and the beach huts but you would have to be at the beach between 9 and 10 to get a shady spot. As with all hotels, people get up early place their towels down and do not return for hours.

Pool – Very large and well maintained. We only went to the pool once as we are beach people. There was lots of shade and activities for children.

Golf – The all inclusive package includes 4 rounds of golf per person per week. You can pick up your vouchers at guest services and they can book or you can call 6000 and book your self. We did not have any trouble getting early morning tee times as there was one or two of us. If you are booking with larger groups I suggest you call the golf course before you arrive and book your tee times. The golf course is well maintained and in great shape

Top of Page

February 2008

At the end of January 2008, 4 of us again went to the Melia Tropical - this our 3rd year and had a wonderful time. We start as 2 couples for a week of golf and R&R, then the "girls" go home and the guys are joined by 2 others for an additional week of golfing. We were lucky to get a Royal Service apartment as well as royal service everywhere in the resort. Our maid did a great job stocking our fridge and adjusting her schedule to our rquests. Our waiters at the buffet lunch did so much to make our meals special and were ready with some "take out" refreshments.

We come for the combination of a great golf course (walking distance) and spacious rooms and great service from the staff. The resort has recently upgraded its buffet dining area (from last year) and seem to provide consistently good service. The all-inclusive price from Toronto is very reasonable. The experience was superior.

Top of Page

February 2008

Arrival - Our Air Transat flight had been delayed and consequently, we arrived at the Punta Cana airport at about midnight. Luggage was very slow in arriving and this slowed down the departure of the buses to the resort. We had booked Royal Service but were not able to utilize their check-in at 1 a.m. as they close at 11 p.m. After waiting another 20 minutes for the shuttle to take us to our rooms, we were literally whisked away to our building. We were asisted to our unit, but unfortunately neither key worked in the door. The bellman left us there to go back to the lobby to redo the keys. After 15 minutes, he returned to say it would be another 5 minutes and left again, never to return. Fortunately a neighbour was coming in and allowed us to use their phone to call the desk. At 2 a.m., a duty manager arrived with two new keys and we thought we were home free. As we were two women travelling together, we asked that the manager pull open the pull out couch as one of us would sleep there. There were no sheets. So off the manager went again and obtained sheets. He brought someone from housekeeping to make up the bed but there were no pillow cases nor was there a blanket. So off they went again. It was 3:30 a.m. before they both left and we could fall into our respective beds. This was the beginning of our 2 week stay from Jan 24 to Feb 7.

Rooms - The morning did not bring the relief we expected as the support straps on the pull out couch were broken. The thin mattress just fell into the hole in the centre of the bed. In the morning the mamager for the Royal Service was called and she ordered a sheet of plywood to be placed over the broken frame and had them place 2 mattresses on top. Although this was satisfactory, the bed squeeked terribly.

Restaurants - Over our two week stay we enjoyed outstanding restaurant meals at the Japanese, American, Thai, French, Capri (seafood)dining ardeas. The two disappointments were the RS Gabi menu and the International Gourmet for dinner. The house wines which were served with dinner left a lot to be desired, but better wines were available for purchase if desired. The Gabi was fine for breakfast although the service was not the best. RS room service for breakfast was wonderful.

Bars - The lobby bar was always busy with excellent service.

Beach and Pools - The RS beach was a short shuttle ride from our unit. The beach was beautiful with plenty of lounge chairs. We were usually able to get our own palapa or share one for some shade and protection from the rain. There was some seaweed on a few days. The RS bar service was nice. The RS pool was nice but a little chilly. Unfortunately finding a lounge chair by the pool was difficult as they were saved for hours with no sight of anyone claiming them until late in the afternoon when they came in from the beach.

Grounds - Very lush and tropical grounds were very well attended. For our tastes, the property was too large. Many activities were too far to walk to and after 2 weeks, too tiresome to have to wait for shuttles. We were plagued with mosquitos on the balcony, in the room and around the grounds. Our two weeks were quite breezy and rainy as a cold front had settled into the area. My friend became quite ill from infected bites on both arms and had to visit the resort doctor who sent her to the hospital. A note of warning..if you need access to your insurance company while away, a 1-800 number will not be accepted if you are going to use your credit card. Be sure to have a direct dial number with an area code.

Activities - Nightly stage shows were quite enjoyable and we saw a different show every night for the two week stay. The small casino helped to pass some time and a few dollars. The RS lounge served daily appetizers, offered evening drinks and espresso. The two computers were well used. Several books and magazines were available for those looking for reading material. Dominoes, card and board games were also there to pass the time.

Conclusion - Overall, we did have an enjoyable stay at the Melia. The staff is wonderful and the grounds are beautiful. The Royal Service was definietly worthwhile. Special thanks to Yuly Sotto, the RS manager who was our lifeline when problems arose.

Top of Page

January 2008

Our family, including our 2 children ages 2 and 4 enjoyed a wonderful week at the Melia CaribeTropical from Jan 10 – 17. We spent our first 4 days on the Tropical side and last 3 days on the Royal Service side after deciding to upgrade. We had a great time on both sides but the Royal Service was definitely worth it. Either way, you’ll have a great time.

Rooms: Check-in was very quick and easy. After giving a nice tip we were upgraded to a family suite right near the beach and pool instead of in a room near the lobby. The room was clean and comfortable but nothing extra special. With two young kids it was difficult to have much of a life when they were napping/sleeping. I also found the room to be very noisy. We only encountered one large bug in our room. One night we decided to check out the Royal Service rooms and couldn’t believe how big and nice they were. It’s like a huge 1 bedroom appt with a dining area, kitchen, separate bedroom, Jacuzzi tub and plasma tvs. It was an awesome room and the price to upgrade was definitely worth it!

Restaurants: We enjoyed a great variety of delicious food throughout the resort. I love good food and my family had no problem finding something to our liking. We never experienced any sickness whatsoever. We spent many breakfasts and lunches at the beach restaurant as the beach provides a beautiful backdrop. It’s also nice to enjoy lunch at the RS pool from the pool grill if you’re on RS. We ate at the marketplace buffet 2 x and it was good. The Mexican and Japanese were excellent and the American Grill was just ok. The Gabi in RS was excellent. We really had some great meals there. We had difficulty getting reservations at an early time in the Japanese but a wonderful employee we met from him stopping to give us a golf cart ride hooked us up with a private reservation. He would also come and get us every night for dinner and made our stay most enjoyable. Getting to know the people, being nice, and generously tipping goes a long way. The staff really went out of their way to make our stay pleasant.

Beach: The beach was absolutely beautiful. White sand beaches, plenty of lounge chairs in the sun and shade, and either relaxation or activities are available. The beach restaurants/bars are fairly close to the beach. The RS bar and service on the beach is nice. There is some seaweed but nothing that should really bother you from how nice it is. There is shopping right down the beach but the vendors are really aggressive and will try to sell you lots of interesting things but it was fun.

Pools: The Caribe and Tropical pools were very nice. They were pretty clean most of the time and the swim up bars were a lot of fun. The pools are a little chilly this time of year. The RS pool was definitely more relaxing and in better shape. There were plenty of lounge chairs at all pools. There’s also a small but nice adults only pool at the spa for a relaxing time.

Grounds: The resort is really large but we enjoyed this aspect. There was so much to experience and explore in an absolutely beautiful lush tropical setting. Don’t let the size intimidate you. It takes a couple of days to get the lay of the land but there are maps everywhere and staff stopping to help you out all the time. We never had any problems with Mosquitoes and the wild birds are very enjoyable. We walked, got golf cart rides frequently, and found the trains ran very often.

Spa: I enjoyed two wonderful massages at the resort; one in the tropical spa and one outside by the pool. I think I actually enjoyed the one outside better as the massage was better, it was nice being outside, and it was a more relaxed atmosphere.

Staff: We enjoyed great service from all the staff especially in RS. The time share people can be annoying at times but nothing that will really bother you. Many days we were never approached and they’d back off pretty easily. Just tell them you’re not interested. We did talk to a couple of people about the vacation club and it was actually pretty interesting.

Kids: We did not use the kids club but went in to check it out. A couple of the ladies were very nice and as the week went by I would have felt comfortable leaving my children with a few of them. We’re just paranoid parents and don’t feel comfortable at this point leaving them and enjoyed spending our week together as a family. One couple in RS seemed to have a private nanny provided which was a nice alternative if you have the $s. The resort has done a nice job with the Flinstones theme. This is definitely more of a family resort and for the most part all kids were well mannered and having a great time.

Other: We didn’t attend any of the nightly shows other than the kids shows since we have 2 young children. The kids had a good time. I’ve stayed at many other resorts and wish the shows here started earlier as they do many other places. The gift shop was a little pricey but not totally over the top. We did purchase sand toys and a couple of other small items for reasonable prices. The shopping mall across the street is very upscale and nice. It was not a problem to get one of the golf cart drivers to bring us over there and pick us up. We did not take any excursions as we were having too much fun at the resort.

Overall, we really enjoyed our stay at the Melia and have no reservations recommending this resort. It was really a great value for an incredibly beautiful and relaxing week. It exceeded my expectations after all the negative reviews I have read. Go with the flow, have fun, and relax in the sun. The Dominicans are wonderful people and the island is beautiful.

Top of Page

January 2008

We arrived December 22nd 2007 and quickly checked in. We had our bathing suits and sandals in our carry on and quickly reached out room and changed. Our luggage arrived shortly afterwards, but we were already at the beach by 2:00 pm.

Rooms - Lovely. Second floor of building 28 on the Caribe side. Two minute walk to the pool and beach. 10 minute walk back to the main entrance(s). Quiet and even though the resort was full never saw many people around. The Tropical side has the kids daycare so we figured many with kids stayed on that side.

Restaurants - Very good, plain (meaning not spicy) food. Christmas Eve dinner was special and awesome. Lots of fish. We booked 5 of the 7 nights in the sit down al a carte restaurants-Japanese (great), Thai (great), Ma Maison (great beef tenderloin), Dominican (really good), Italian (not to my liking) but my friend really liked it. No problems reserving. Everday we called during the day and asked for reservations/cancellations and ALWAYS got a seat. Maybe because we were only 2, it is easier. Some rude and ignorant people thought they could bully their way in. One family dressed in bathing suits and skimpy coverups, the man in a Hawaiian shirt and flowered bathing suit were livid when they were turned away. Their tour was late coming back and they "said" they had no time to change. Then don't try to come to an elegant meal. They caused problems yelling at the staff for 15 minutes outside the Thai restaurant.

Pool restaurants were great and served almost the same as the main buffet. Omelets for breakfast. Lots of choice for lunch, including hotdogs, hamburgers and fries. Wonderful breads, rolls, sweetbreads and croissants. All water is filtered and they give you bottled water most of the time. Makes it easier around the pool and I think most people found it easier to drink water than the drinks.

Bars - Great. Mamajuana a specialty drink with weeds in it. Supposed to be an aprodisiac for men. Not sure what it was supposed to do to women, other than to get them drunk!

Beach and Pools - Perfect. Lots of kids but none obnoxious. Many Europeans from-Britain, Germany, Italy, Australia, Canada and Americans. Only stayed around the Caribe pool and beach. The Tropical side has more kids as the kid club was located there.

Grounds - Beautiful, well maintained, manicured. Peacocks roaming freely as well as flamingos and other small birds. They would come right up to you looking for bread crumbs.

Activities - Nightly shows at 10:00 very professional. They only resort I have been to that I wanted to stay up to see the shows--that and my friend insisting we go to the shows. Dance lessons at the beach, pool aerobics in the pool at noon. Many other activities which my friend did. I like the sitting by the pool and reading the best (along with a good drink). Christmas activities included a special Christmas Eve dinner, Nativity scene with live characters, decorated trees.

Tours - None taken, but heard they were well liked by those who went.

Conclusion - Of the 5 times I have been to all-inclusives, this is the only one I would definitely return to. Quiet, peaceful, relaxing. Loved the size of the resort. Loved being able to take the long walk to the main entrances. It is about 1/2 km to the beach from this main entrance area, but lets you get some exercise to counteract the food and drink. If you are disabled and can't walk a lot, choose another resort. If your kids don't like to walk, choose another resort. There is a train, but it is sometimes full. Staff is wonderful, helpful. I am surprised reading some of the negative comments and wonder if these complainers were actually at the same resort. It is a definite 5 star (4.5 star for food). There is a Money exhange facility in the resort (at both the Caribe and Tropical sides). Also a small shopping center at the main road, a two minutes walk.

Overall, a must go to resort.

Top of Page

December 2007

Arrival - We arrived on 30 November for a weeks stay. We stayed in Royal Service as we were here for our wedding. We were joined by 6 close friends who didn't stay in Royal Service. We were whisked away to the VIP Lounge for check-in and greeted with champagne and orange juice and a lovely smell of candles, which permeated the whole resort, it was very nice. We were then taken by golf cart to our gorgeous room.

Rooms - Our room was more like a gorgeous condo, we were upgraded to a 1 bedroom suite. I've never seen a more lovely room, marble floors, a huge jacuzzi, 3 sinks, separate shower, living room, dining room and kitchen.

Our friends' rooms were very nice as well, one of which was a honeymoon jacuzzi room which they really enjoyed.

Restaurants - We were able to make reservations for the 8 of us through the VIP Lounge, but it was equally as easy if not staying in Royal Service, just by making a phone call a day or two beforehand. We enjoyed Le Gourmet, Italian, Japanese, Mexican and American Grill. After we left, our friends also ate at the Chinese/Thai restaurant. The food at each place was amazing, with very large portions (too large). The desserts were very good, particularly the cakes.

Bars - We spent some time in each lobby bar, the Caribe side being the most active at night, with the shows off of this lobby. We loved the Avenue Bar and also the bar outside the buffet, they had very comfortable round couches that made moving very difficult!

Beach and Pools - The beach was awesome, yes there is a little seaweed but nothing that would bother you. It was pretty windy for 3 days, necessitating sitting by the pool, where we used the floaties we brought with us. There was never a need to save chairs at anytime of day, there were plenty at both the beach and the pool.

Grounds - The grounds were spectacular, very lush but also very manicured. Little ponds, bridges and walkways were so much fun to explore. Yes, it is a large resort, but we enjoyed the walk and it's really not that far from one end to the other. The photo opportunities are limitless at this resort. They do have trolleys to transport you or golf carts if staying in Royal Service.

Activities - There are numerous non-motorized water sports to take advantage of, sailboats, pedal boats and kayaks. We also went parasailing right from the resort.

Conclusion - We picked this resort for our wedding based on pictures of the gazebo. I knew this was it, I had to get married here. We had been communicating with the wedding coordinators for about 6 months and met with Sol the day after we arrived. The planning took about a half hour, she had all of our e-mails and requests and carried them out perfectly. There was no stress, only a fairytale wedding for both of us. We hired the trio and the horse and carriage, both making it all that much more special. We had our wedding dinner in the Mexican restaurant in a separate area which was just perfect. I used the salon to have my hair done, they have pictures you can use or take your own as they speak limited english.

We loved this resort and have nothing bad to say about it, we would love to return someday and relive the wonderful memories this place holds.

Top of Page

December 2007

This facility representing the merged and updated combination of two lovely resorts offers one of the most elegant facilities anywhere, and as a guest in the Royal Service sector you will enjoy superb service. We've been here three times for stays of ten days, but as much as we enjoy the premises and the very obliging staff and the great food, we won't likely return again. This is a "kid friendly" resort, which is fine in concept, but in the experience is a howling nightmare. The probem is that there is a very international mix of guests, and many parents here believe that their registration entitles them to allow their young children to terrorize the entire property and disturb the tranquility many guests seek, from early every day until midnight. Of course, the problem with out of control kids is the fault of the parents, but the resort management is unwilling to do anything whatever to control bad behavior by requesting parents of screeching, unruly spoiled infants that their little darlings are disrupting entire pools and dining areas and to either control or remove them from the immediate areas they are disturbing. Bye-bye Melia Caribe, the most expensive day care facility on the planet! Our next stop will be an adults only resort.

Top of Page

November 2007

My husband, myself and our 16 year old daughter as well as 15 of our friends stayed at the Melia Caribe Resort from Nov. 8/07 to Nov. 22/07. I have absolutely nothing negative to say about this resort. The resort is beautiful, beyond my expectations, the beach is beautiful, the rooms were great with no problems whatsoever and the employees are wonderful people. They were extremely friendly, helpful and always smiling. The resort is very large, but they have small motorized trains and golf carts to get you around. I can't imagine a resort being any more beautiful and very well taken care of grounds.

We took a lot of 1$ bills and 5$ bills for tips. The small tips you give are greatly appreciated and remembered. We left a small tip on our pillow each day for housekeeping and sometimes with a small gift (such as pencils or hair elastics). This was greatly appreciated and we in turn got our bedspread and bathroom decorated with flowers each day. Some small tips that I got from other travelers were: take faceclothes if you want them (hard to come by there), take travel coffee cups for your drinks, they are great to have on the beach and in the pool. They will make your drinks exactly how you want, don't worry about the ice in drinks or food as it is purified. You just can't drink the water straight from the tap. Lay off the coconut drinks as they are made from fresh coconut which is a natural laxative and it will catch up to you. Take disposable water cameras as they are very expensive there and go to the tour guide meeting that they ask you to go to as it is very informative and quite short.

I can't say enough about this resort and the Dominican people. We will definately go back.

Top of Page