And so, we packed up the children and two other families and headed to San Juan for March Break. This "dream vacation" was soon to be known as a "this could not have really happened to you" event by the events that were to follow.

We arrived on a Sunday to the wrong room, sand fleas and red ants. However, staff were accommodating and moved us to the right room (with sand fleas and red ants) the next morning. Having said this, it was hot and sunny and we were glad to be out of cold Canada for the week.

Day 2 of our holiday was met with a severe power outage - the entire resort went black in the middle of dinner (approximately 9pm). The staff lit candles and kept right on serving which told me that they experienced this before. But fortified with tequila and happy to be on vacation, we stumbled to our rooms and found our way to bed via candle-light.

24 hours later, without running water since the night before, the power came back on for a brief hour. We rushed to the shower....and then it went off again! Brrrrr......

For the rest of the week, we had power, and we lost power....at times, there were no working toilets, showers, air conditioners. Not good. But this, at it seems, was not the worst thing.

On Tuesday, an additional 600 high-school students from Ontario arrived, to join the existing 300 students already present - and may I mention there were a total of eight chaperones. Needless to say my 12-year old daughter saw and heard a life-time that week. They didn't mind exposing all of us to their love-lives (pool and all), drinking, excessive swearing and general malaise to everyone above the age of 20 and under the age of 15.

We could not go to the evening shows, lounge by the pool or sit in the lobby...they were "everywhere"...sort of like the red ants.

Don't get me wrong, as true Cape Bretoners we made our own fun, but at the price we paid for this heavenly week, we certainly didn't have any help making this fun. We made our way to the seniors section of the beach every morning (as the teenagers labeled it), and went to bed before 9pm to avoid the "Wild-on Dominican" phenomena. Just like home?

One thing I will say - the staff of this resort were beautiful people who were gracious and helpful. I felt very bad for what they endured between the power outages and the teenagers.

We just got back from Bahia Principe San Juan. March 23-30. There were 4 of us travelling together.We stayed in the diamond section, both rooms had balconies1283-1284. Nice views from these rooms,you can see the beach real good but they are the fartherest from the main lobby. I'll write this review in sections. Definitely was not a 4 star resort and my husband and I would not go back again. We were at Breezes last year and by far that was a much nicer place in our opinion. This time it had rained mostly every day we were there so that did not help.

Internet: was suppost to be free for diamond guests but it was non existant till thursday,a day before we had to leave. And even then it was hard to use because the keyboard was in spanish.

Bugs: 2 of us had got quite alot of bits on our ankles and legs. Must have been from sand fleas. Didn't see one misquito at all. They were itchy but nothing serious. There are also crabs in the sand and running thru out the hedges on the walk ways. We also seen something that looked like a rat twice,they go real fast. Someone had told us that they keep a few dogs on the resort to take care of things like that. Don't leave any type of food wrappers etc. on your deck , it will attract red ants which are very hard to kill.

Food: diamond section was the best for buffet food. It was not made in mass quanity like the main buffet. It was always hot and good. Although the items were not labelled properly and this was not good for those who had food allergies. We found the service went down hill a couple days before we left,no plates,dirty tables,hard to get waiter for drinks. It was like they knew we were leaving soon so they didn't care about service. We tried 3 a la cartes. Mexican-real good, Italian-so so, Medditeran-the best, the veal was superb!
Drinks were good. They do have Baileys, malibu rum etc. but they are expensive. Over heard one guest saying he had paid $15 us for a drink with baileys.

Rooms: the rooms were a good size, clean when we arrived. Again, as the week went by the service when down hill. Dispite good tips. The floors were not washed, toilets not wiped,tubs not cleaned. Mini bar was stocked daily with 2beer,2 pop, 1 large water.. We forgot to tip one day and he took one beer back out.
Mini bar guys don't always lock the door behind them when they leave. Beware of this. Make sure you get a lock for your safe. Cost $25 us.

Beach: Was great the staff cleaned it up every morning. Water was nice to swim in. A few waves but not over powering. Antinio was great at our beach bar. Ask for the Antinio Special, yummy.

Food:
When we arrived to the resort (about 4 pm) we asked for a place to eat and were directed to a snack restaurant near the beach. The restaurant was a self-service bar offering badly charred hamburgers, canned fruit salad and soda drinks. Nothing else. No fruit, no fruit juice, no sandwiches, etc. Disposable plastic utensils and plastic cups. Get in line and serve yourself.

We were told that a food buffet will be open at 7 and had to wait until 7pm to get some food.

The food at the buffet was not mush better. The selection of salads consisted of shredded cabbage, lettuce, tomatoes, a variety of dressings and a potato salad. The main course offered was a choice of meatballs, spaghetti, hot dogs, grilled, unappetizing looking fish of unknown origin, and a meatloaf. Drinks selection was not much better – soda, coffee, powdered ice tea, hot tea, beer, wine. No fruit juice. After trying a couple of bites we decided to remain hungry in order to avoid food poisoning as the plates and glasses at the bar were greasy and food trays did no look clean. A typical $8.95 Chinese food buffet in any US Chinese restaurant is of much better quality than what was served at this “4-star resort”.

Accommodations:
Dark, small, poorly furnished, dirty rooms. Air conditioner taped with a duck-tape, dirty mildewed bathroom, with rusted faucets and broken tiles. Door has only spring loaded latch, making it really easy to be opened with a credit card. A mini-bar containing only two bottles of beer, bottle of coke, an a bottle of water. A decorative window had a plywood instead of glass, an electric outlet was pulled out of wall with wires exposed, making it a fire hazard. You would think you’re at a cheap $20.00 motel in the middle of nowhere, not at a 4-star resort.

Entertainment
Almost nonexistent. The only entertainment I observed is a 1980’s style music at a disco.

My girlfriend and I just returned from Bahia Principe Rio San Juan . We booked our trip months ago with a local travel agency. We made the arrangements with Sunquest. We had both been to Puerto Plata before but not together. I went to Super Clubs Breezes and she went to Iberostar. We left on Thursday morning and arrived in Puerto Plata at arround 1:30 pm. We had no trouble getting into the country and except for forgetting about the money demanding porters outside the airport we were on our way in no time! It takes an hour by bus to get to Bahia Principe and as usual the bus ride was an adventure in itself! We went with friends of ours, the husband Rob had never been to the Dominican before and found the bus ride a little scary!

We arrived and immediately the greeters at the resort directed us onto a trolleytype cart and they drive you and your bags directly to your reception area. Since the resort is set up in a sort of class system you get either a green, gold or diamond designation. We were in the Diamond section which allowed us access to all areas of the resort and a few added benefits!
Except for the private pool and private dining buffet there was little difference from the rest of the guests for us! Check in was pretty quick and soon we were at our rooms. Here is a breakdown of the resort itself:

ROOMS- The rooms were clean, with a huge bed. Nice bathroom and a little terrace. There were 8 rooms to a building, 4 on top and 4 below. Our friends had an ant problem but our room was fine. Your room is basically just a place to change, sleep, and you know...! So do you really need a palace!

FOOD- The a la carte restaurants were good. Mexican and Italian were the best. Order the Ribs at the Mexican and the Lasagna at the Italian. You won't be sorry! The best thing in the seafood restaurant was the Chicken! Makes sense right!?! The buffet had a lot of options. I ate so much bacon that by our last day I gave birth to a large piglet! Lots of fresh fruit and pastries! Really nice!

BEACH- The beach is huge. 3 KM long, lots of chairs and no shortage of places to swim, walk, tan, build sand sculptures, burn, sleep, passout...you get the idea. They offer a lot of water activities such as paddle boats and jet skis. The Jet ski costs $35 american for 15 minutes or $120 for an hour. You have to book them a long time in advance. You'll need lots of money.

GROUNDS- The grounds were clean and easy to navigate. Lots of trees and flowers.

ACTIVITIES- There was a show every night but they were not as good as the ones at the Iberostar or Breezes. By 11 PM the main resort was pretty much shut down and to continue drinking or socializing you were almost expected to go out on the main road leading into the resort where there were various shops, bars, a disco, karaoke bar, an internet cafe, and a Casino. We were never bored but did not find that many activities for us to do when we wanted to.

COMPLAINTS- We arrived just at the end of Spring break!!! Over 600 teenagers and early 20 somethings all drunk, rude and fighting with one another. I was a teenager not so long ago and tolerated a lot, but every night until they left security had to come to their rooms, and were constantly warning them about their behaviour. One night at around 3 am we were awoken to pounding on our door. I opened it to find a a staggering teenager looking for his girlfriend. The look on his face was a combination of fear and worry as he couldn't decide if he had the wrong room or if I wwas inside romancing his Missing in Action girlfriend! Clearly she was not worried about him!

We were (3 couples 50-55) at the resort from Feb.12 to19th should have been there till the27th but have been ofered to mouve to another resort (with compensation) due to overbooking. It was our choice to accept of refuse the offer. We accepted and were mouved to the Gran Vantana in Puerto plata. I will give a review of this resort also.

A group of 6 adults ranging from ages 26-50 stayed at the Bahia Principe San Juan from March 13-20. We flew out of Fredericton on Canjet and arrived at the hotel around 12am. Check in at the hotel was a little unorganized, but only took about 20 minutes after which a porter takes you and your luggage to your rooms on a motarized cart.

We stayed in the Golden Club section of the resort and were glad we did. These rooms are in a great location, close to everything especially the beach. We spent most of our days at the golden club pool which has its own bar and is very close to the beach as well.

The food was fine, always something at the buffet and the Golden Club offers room service if you happen to miss dinner (sandwiches etc) which is nice if you take an extra long nap after a long day in the sun.

There are lots of water sports - just make a reservation. The animation teams are always working to keep things lively around the resort as well - if you want to participate you can, if you don't there is no pressure. Also, the staff are really fantastic. Everyone does their best to make your stay the best possible and I wouldn't have one bad thing to say about any of them. I would recommend bringing baby/childrens clothing/toys to give away if you want to bring something. We brought quite a bit from second hand stores and they were VERY VERY appreciative. We were told that the maids cleaning the rooms make about $3 a day so you can imagine that little things really go a long way. Also work gloves for the men were a big hit too.

We did have some problems with power, so a flashlight is a good idea as it is really dark in the rooms when the power is out (hard to find contact solution etc). I am not sure if this is a common problem however since there was a fire which caused problems with the generator while we were there.. so I assume once that is fixed the power might not go out as much.

We read alot of reviews about sand fleas and the only time we saw any was actually down the beach at the shops. Never saw one on the resort itself.

We did the jeep safari which I highly recommend. If you are going to visit another country, go out and see what it is all about. The resort won't show you what Dominican culture is all about. We booked at camp tours at the end of the beach and saved about $25 US per person over what the resort was charging.

One thing I did learn on this trip is that it is NOT a good idea to book anywhere near March break if the resort allows children under 18. Our resort was over run with 600+ teenagers on a school trip and they had no respect for anyone or anything which really put a damper on things like the nightlife, since we couldn't enjoy the disco or karaoke bar without being swarmed.

My husband and I went to Puerto Plata February the 20th to March 6th we flew Westjet it was one of the nicest flights we have been on . The flight attendants were fantastic and very friendly. We arrived at our resort at bout 1 in the morning.The bus ride was long and the roads were terrible there was even a donkey on the road it almost ended up in donkey heaven. Check in was smooth and fairly quick.

The resort was lovely the beach was great the pools were nice. We had no problem getting a spot on the beach we had the same location the two weeks we were there. We met a lot of people some we are still in touch with through email.

The buffet was great if you could not find something you liked than you have a problem. Lots of variety and great taste. The a la carts where good. Our favourite was the Mediterranean and the see food. We were not to keen on the Italian restaurant .

The staff were really friendly and if you had a problem with your room it was fixed right away. The rooms were nice but could use a little bit of work . We did not do any tours although two weeks not leaving the resort was to much next time we will take a couple of tours.

Just got back from a week stay Mar3-10. We are a couple, both 35 years old, from east of Toronto. We read all the reviews posted over the last few months before we booked our vacation, and we were a little nervous since the couple weeks after we booked there were quite a few negative reviews, but we also read so many good reviews we went without too many expectations and were pleasantly surprised. We were hoping for a nice quiet vacation, with good weather, good food and drinks and good beach/pool. We pretty much got what we wanted (for the price we paid). Your trip is what you make it though, so go with an open mind and relaxed attitude and you will have a wonderful time! I will mention though that the only other place we have travelled was Cuba and that was almost 10 years ago on our honeymoon, so we really don't have anything to compare this place too. We paid about the same if not more for the other resort (also a 4 star), and from what I remember I liked the other resort better for entertainment and size (Delta Las Brisas in Guardalavaca/Holguin) but the beach/landscape is better at the Bahia. I will try and break everything down like previous posters:

Location: absolutely beautiful landscape, mountains, lush greenery everywhere, long drive from airport but nice to see the countryside, ocean, villages on the way to the hotel so the drive went by quickly, beautiful views in all directions off the beach! I could sit and look at the scenery for hours.

Grounds: beautifully maintained and manicured, constantly workers cleaning and landscaping, gardens and paths everywhere - nothing bad to say about the grounds! Beach was cleaned every morning too.

Hotel/restaurants/rooms/pools - the buildings were all very nice and well maintained, gorgeous restaurants and bars for sitting, very nice lobby, rooms were ok, nicely maintained and decorated, only negative would be hard bed, lumpy pillows (which we got new ones after a couple days just had to ask and she brought them right away), so so bathroom but you aren't there to soak in the tub so it is fine for a shower and to get ready -always hot water and everything worked fine in the room. We were in the Golden section which I believe is the best location, Diamond section is very very far from everything (but has its own pool and bar like we did), regular section some of the rooms are far away too, but the Golden is a good location closer to the main hotel area. Being in the Golden you get a few extras, for example beach towel exchange in your room which is nice so you don't have to worry about exchanging them on time like the regular rooms if you want fresh ones for the next day. Pools - not as nice as I was expecting but adequate. They kept them pretty clean for the most part. Main pool got kind of busy and noisy, but it was end of reading week for some schools so lots of partying going on there, other pools were much quieter. We only went there a couple times though, spent most of our time on the beach.

Service - exceptional, no complaints here. Maid (Amarylis - we were in E10 room 2256) was wonderful, we tipped her $1 a day and she did a great job - they make next to nothing so if you can tip them it would really help. Same with mini bar guy, $1 a day got us exactly what we asked for, extra water or beer - just leave him a note with the money separate from the maids tip and they will figure it out! Service in all the restaurants and bars was fine, everyone is willing to please and try very hard. We never had a problem in any restaurant, buffet or a la carte and all bartenders we used were good. Maybe once we didn't get the drinks we asked for in the buffet, but I guess it depends on the time - some times are busier than others and it does get pretty hectic in there for the servers - but they do their best!!! Just be patient with them, it is a huge resort and if they are fully booked it will very busy in the buffet during peak hours! For drinks we pretty much only used Antonio during the day at the Golden section beach bar and he was great - make sure you ask for an Antonio Special!!!! Yummy!!!!!

Food/drinks - we tryed 3 out of 4 of the a la carte restaurants and the food was fabulous (the only one we didn't use was seafood). Use them, it is a nice change from the buffet. Buffet was really good, always something to please everyone I would think. Lots of selection, some repetition, but they had different themes every night to change things up a little. Desserts were sooo good. Fruit good too, smoothies (milkshakes with fruit) were awesome to have with breakfast and lunch. Omelette station was good in the morning as well, or you can get eggs made any way you want them. Some of the beef dishes were a little tough, but everything else was great!! Beach snack bar was good too, we had lunch there a couple times for a change. Drinks - like a previous poster said if you want more alcohol in your drink just ASK! They don't care, just make it clear what you want!!! Lots of drinks to choose from, beer was always cold and not bad tasting. Wine - not very good, we are big wine drinkers but we had heard it wasn't very good so weren't too surprised with the quality. Coffee was really really good. Good idea which we got from another poster is to take along a travel mug, good for both hot and cold drinks on the beach! We used ours a lot. So overall we would say food and drink was really good. Plently of bars and locations to eat, you will never be hungry or without a drink.

Beach - very nice, big long beach with plently of chairs and huts for shade. Water was nice and warm, first 3 days it was very calm and clear, excellent for snorkelling and swimming. Next 3 days was windier, but always a green flag, but water got cloudier with the sand being turned up a little with the waves. The bags of sand (or what we though was sand??) as makeshift breaks helped to keep the main swimming areas not so wavy. We stayed down by the golden section though and found it to be the nicest spot to swim (down by the gym) - not so much seaweed and calmer waters - beach wasn't as busy down there either. We thought the breaks were big bags of sand, but just read a review stating they are sewage tanks, that freaks me out a little since now I recall a day or two where there were workers replacing hose's in the water which we thought were to water pumps to pump water out, but after remembering some pretty yucky looking copper coloured water that day washing up to the beach I am starting to think the sewage tank thing is correct. Not sure if that should be considered a bad thing, but makes you wonder why they have to pump the sewage out there?

Sand fleas - we didn't experience them until the 4th day after a storm during the night, then again another day after it rained for about 10 minutes. It seems to be if it rains, there will be sand fleas and if you are susceptible to bites you will get biten (I get eaten alive by mosquitos and blackflys during the seasons here so I was fully expecting to get biten there). I took bug spray and that helped for our evening walks on the beach. I never saw them spray the beach, and we were not told to stay off at certain times. We just moved to the pool if the fleas were out, and that happened 2 or 3 when they annoyed me enough to move (in the morning).

We also heard the generator constantly, you get used to it though, but for some it could be annoying I guess.

Water sports - they don't have enough water sports equipment for the size of resort - make sure you book whatever you want the first morning you are there for your whole week or you might not get to use them at all. We used the catamarans, paddle boats and snorkelling stuff and it is a lot of fun!

Shows/animation team/nightlife - we really didn't participate much in the ongoing activities, but they all seemed to be a lot of fun and the animation team works very very hard all day long to please everyone. Things planned for the whole day pretty much but seemed to be the same thing every day. Shows were kind of a joke, kids show was the same thing every night from what we heard (we only sat through the nighttime show twice). The street party seemed to be a lot of fun too, we only went once and had fun. We didn't even try the disco or anything but it sounded like it was probably a good time. It is nice to have the nighttime partying away from the main rooms (it is it's own little street off the hotel entrance with bars/shops/disco/casino etc). Another show or something starts around 11pm over there too. Kind of sucks that all the beach bars shut down around 5-6pm, you have to go to the other main bars for a drink after that time and could be quite a walk depending where your room is located.

Tours - definately use Campo tours down at the end of the beach, better prices for same trips and seem to be a little more fun with those guys. We did the snorkelling/glass bottom boat and loved it! Heard the safari adventure was really good too.

We just returned home from a great week at this resort. This was our second trip to the D.R. and first to this resort but we will be coming again on our next trip.

We landed in Samana instead of Puerto Plata and it takes only a few minutes longer by bus. If you are flying out of this airport take some munchies because it only opened in November and nothing is ready yet. It is a nice place and really easy to get through.

The resort had very nice big rooms and our housekeeper get it clean every day. We asked for extras like pillows and bottled water without any problem. This end of the resort had it's own pool and restaurant/bar which was fantastic. We were 50 feet from the pool and the beach.

Remember to take a lot of sunscreen as it's very hot right now!!!!!

The hotel staff was very helpful and with a smile and some basic Spanish we communicated really easy with them, most speak English but it was nice to try and speak their language. Remember that they are working to make your holiday a great time for you, so be nice to them and remember that you are away from work for some relaxation.

We had no trouble with fleas or bugs but we brought spray just in case - never used it once.

I would recommend this resort to anyone.

My husband and I travelled from Calgary for a week at Bahia Principe San Juan arriving Feb.22/07. I had read many reviews prior to going, and took all the info with a grain of salt. This was our first trip to a southern destination, and we were more than pleased by the experience.

The trip from beginning to end was a delight. We found all was well organized and efficient from our arrival at the airport 3 hours ahead of our 8 am flight. Our trip was very smooth and we arrived ahead of schedule. We went through immigration without a hitch, collected our luggage and were on our way to the bus. There was a group of 24 travelling to the same hotel for a wedding, so we had a bit larger bus, and in no time were on our way.

Hotel registration was done on the bus, and all seemed in order. We arrived just as it was getting dark, but as we had been given a map of the resort on the bus, we had no trouble finding our room. The porter collected our luggage at the bus, so all we had to do was walk to our room. We were in the Club Golden section, and our room was perfect, and the location was great. Some of the rooms are a bit far from the buffet and lobby area, but are closer to the beach, so it depends on what you want. We were very happy with our location, but did talk with some people who requested a change and it was accommodated as soon as another room became available.

The resort was at capacity for most of the time we were there, but you never felt like you were in a big crowd of people. There is so many different areas - something for everyone's tastes and needs. We spent most of our time at the Club Golden pool, as it was a bit quieter and right beside the beach with its own bar.(and a washroom right there too!) Never had a problem finding 2 beach chairs together, and most days got the same spot we had the day before.

We found all the staff to be excellent - so friendly and accommodating. They couldn't do enough for you. We went on two excursions - the Jeep Safari and the Catamaran. Both were excellent and I would highly recommend them. The tour staff were very good at what they do, and it was impossible not to have a good time. Talked to others who did the 4-wheeler trip and they said it was great as well. At no time during our stay did we find language to be a problem, most spoke and understood English very well.

The food at the buffet was excellent - always a good selection and different items each day. We did not have anything that wasn't tasty and hot, and considering there were about 2000 people on resort, we never felt we had to wait long to get our food. We qualified for 4 a la carte reservations, but only did 3 as we were happy with the buffet. The times for the meals worked well with our schedules also.

The weather was great for our stay - only rained for part of one day and night, but wasn't cold. Take the umbrella from the room and you can still be out and about.

We took bug spray and I only used it once (on the Jeep Safari) and probably wouldn't have needed to. Saw fewer insects here than I do at home in the summertime.

I really don't know what all the complaining is about in some of the other reviews. If you want Canadian style 4 or 5 star, then stay in Canada. This really is a tropical paradise, and it is a vacation, so relax, kick back and enjoy is the best advice I can pass on.

We had a fabulous time, so much so that we contemplated staying an extra week. In the end we came home as scheduled, but now wish we were back there after only a day at home!

Arrived at Bahia Principe on Jan. 31st and departed Feb. 14th, 2007. We cannot say enough good things about this place. The rooms were good, the food was terrific, the beaches were beautiful. We had no problem with sand fleas or mosquito's, however, we did meet one guest who did manage to get covered with bites, but that was it. We did not have any children with us, but noticed the hotel offered some great programs for the kids, such as on stage shows, games, beach volleyball etc.

The resort is secluded and far from any other town, so if you are in just to relax the Bahia Principe has it all. You can venture out if you so choose, we ventured to Rio San Juan, by way of the trail ride excursion, which we would recommend to anyone. We covered a lot of terrain, saw some great scenery, 2 beautiful beaches, lunch at a quaint restaurant, and then a boat ride through the mangroves to the caves. We took the local bus into Cabarete and Sosua and thoroughly enjoyed exploring both these towns...highly recommended.

On our travels we saw quite a few little children and wished we have brought more gifts, candy etc. to give out and would bring more of this type of stuff next time.

We suggest you take all of your own toiletries, suntan lotion etc as they are very, very expensive to purchase there.

All of the local people we met were wonderful, the staff at the hotel very friendly and accommodating.

This was our first trip to bahia principe, Febuary 2007 we opted for the Golden club. Our flight was smooth with west jet. It took approx two hours to get to the resort. We were greeted at club g,olden with some cool drinks nicely decorated. We had asked for a balcony suite, it was not available so we were given a botton suite, 2167 at the end of the resort.

Golden Club:
I am not sure what you really get, you have acces to your own pool, bar and beach area, but members with green bracelets were there as well, I don't like paying extra for something that everyone can use. Golden club internet is only 10 min per day with dial-up, it hardly ever worked, so we paid the 10 US and got an hour use at the internet cafe. Golden club room service, we ordered room service breakfast at 7am, at 10Am it still was not there. A coffee pot also comes with the room, we had to wait three days to get a pot that fit the machine, Slippers are included as well, they arrived two days later. A/c did not work very well for the first two days they had to send a guy up to repair. We walked into the room after they had prepaired it was was greeted with pools of black water in the entrance and bathroom floor that was left behind, we called and they sent a maid up to clean it up.

Drinks:
Mostly premixed drinks,very watery, you had to ask for special drink "blender" but it was never the same.

Rooms:
We were on the bottom floor so mildew was a problem, mold stains on the sheers and corrosion on the bathroom fittings.Cracked tiles in bathroom. The door had a large gap on the bottom so we put a towel down to stop and bugs from wandering in, except for the cricket that wandered in, we let it stay for the week tho. The TV we had did not work very well, the cable was held on with medical tape. We had two days of rain so a tv that worked well would have been nice. Maids cleaned well every day except for the last two days, they did not bother to clean the bathtub. Toliet paper is heavily scented, so if you have any sensititivity to this ask them to bring unscented.

Beach Area:
Beach is nice, seaweed in the morning, but they come around and clean the area up and rack everything.

Grounds:
Very well kept.

The Buffet:
Alot of different selections, remember though that potato salad is not the same as it is at home. They served different dishes with seafood such as octopus and squid and other fish that they could not identify. We did not eat much meat at the buffet, most of it was tough and not very well cut. Waiters were very attentive and you never had to wait long to get coffee or water. There is a dress code no bathing suits or sleevless shirts for men, it depends on who is at the door.

Pools:
Very well kept, although I did notice that the diamond pool was not open, it had caution tape around it.

Entertainment:
The animation team tries really hard to get people invloved during the day, We did stay for one show in the evening that starts at 8:30 (children's Show) its cute, mostly made up from kids from the audience, once you see one show, its pretty much the same each night. We never did make it to the strip as we were zonked in the evening.

Ala Carte Meals:
We went to the Mediteriaen place the first night, it was really good. The Italian was not so good, pretty bland. We tried the mexican one as well, I am not a fan of mexican food, so I can't really comment on what is good mexican. The Seafood restarant, My other half was planning on trying the mixed seafood, but decided agaisnt it after he found out it was octopus and squid, not a fan of the stuff. I do not eat seafood so I ordered the roast beef, he ordered it as well. Now, my other half will eat just about any kind of meat and likes rare beef. He would not eat this as it was RAW.

Excursions:
The resort is two hours away from most excursions, so it makes for a long day, we only opted for oceanworld, it was neat, but over priced.

Just got back from the Bahia Principe San Juan.

My wife and I had a good holiday, all was what we expected. There were some minor inefficiencies, but nothing to cast a negative effect on the trip. The staffers were great, always smiling and accomodating, which is much more then I can say about the corporate management. Corporate boosts about giving quality inexpensive holidays, however that goes out the door when you're forced to us their facilities for converting currency.

We had travellers cheques in American dollars. The resort would not give us American dollars, rather they would only exchange with DR Pesos. On the day I exchanged currencies, the Forex median exchange rate was 33 pesos to the US$. The resort payed only 28 pesos per US$ and to further add insult to injury, the shops within the resort which quoted all items for sale in US$ wanted 35 pesos per US$. Get out your pocket calculator, that's a discount of over 21%.

We spent 14 days at Bahia Principe San Juan and for the price we paid could not have got a better deal at any other resort. We stayed in the Diamond section which we found very peaceful and tranquil.

Grounds: Beautiful and very well kept.

Beach: Not as nice as Punta Cana but expansive and clean. Never a problem getting a beach chair or palapa. If you walk to the left of the diamond section you can go for miles and hardly see a person. The water is turquoise with sandy botton (great for skinny dipping !!)

Rooms: Basic, clean and spacious. Has a small fridge which is stocked daily with beer,water and pop.

Food: No complaints at all. We had all our meals in the Diamond club restaurant (except when we went to the specialtly restaurants) and the food was always hot and fresh and never a line up. We did try the main restaurant for lunch one day and that was a zoo !! so we can understand why people complain.

Wine is served at lunch and dinner. The white is ok but the red is terrible. We tried all the specialty restaurants 2 times over. The seafood restaurant was our favourite, had lobster there on both occaisions (Tip: lobster is not shown on the menu but is included when you order the "mixed seafood grill") The Italian was ok, the Mexican was good and the mediterranean very good.

Bars: Beer was nice and cold and plentiful. All the other drinks are made with the local alcohol brand "Normandy" which is really terrible. It has to be the lowest grade I have ever tasted. I did an experiment one day and had the bartender pour a small amount of each type into individual cups (whiskey, brandy tequilla, rum, vodka gin) and then asked my wife to hand me one for which I had to guess what it was. None tasted anything remotely as to what it was supposed to be and all really had the same strange taste. I concluded that it is all the same product with a bit of colouring and artificial flavour. Tip: Stock up on your favourite duty free and you wont have a problem.

Our group of 3 couples just returned from the Dominican Republic where we stayed at the Golden Bahia Principe. After reading the reviews before we went we were really timid about what our week was going to be all about. Well I can tell you the reviews totally steered us in the wrong frame of mind. We had an absolutely awesome time. The Hotel was one of the best we stayed in and this was our 5th time south (twice to cuba and 3 times to the Dominican). We really had a hard time finding faults with the facility. Keeping in mind that we were in a third world country….we were nothing but pleased.

Food:
Excellent. Always a wide selection at breakfast dinner and supper. Even had a kid’s corner with hotdogs, hamburgers and fries. We always managed to find lots to eat……almost too much!!!!!!! Lots of desserts even at breakfast!!! The buffets were well kept and clean. Always a waiter asking if you wanted a drink. Never had to wait long in line. Food was for the most part always hot. By the beach there was also a buffet and a snack bar.

Rooms:
Excellent. Very clean….maids cleaned in the morning. Mini Bar restocked everyday. Maid came back at night rolled down the covers on the bed, put candy on the pillow, changed our pool towels to clean ones for the next day and even put new towels in the bathroom!!! Very pleased. Our room was on the second floor, had a view of the ocen, nice balcony, cathedral ceilings, a ceiling fan and air conditioning.

Beach:
Very nice. We knew going to San Juan that there wasn’t going to be white sand, so we weren’t disappointed to see the dark sand. The beach was kept very clean. The water was clear….and warm. The only complaint about the beach was that there were sand fleas after it rained. We always sprayed with deep woods off as we always do no matter where we go, so it wasn’t a problem for us.

Pool:
Excellent. There was a main pool with a swim up pool bar. The animation team always had different activities going on for people to participate in. There was a walk in section at that pool. The other pool was quieter and really nice as well.

Entertainment:
Excellent. There was a kids show from 8:30pm to 9:30pm. The animation people were VERY good with the kids. The main show started at 9:30pm. They had a variety of shows. Every night they started with a skit that involved the audience. Very entertaining!!

Bars:
Excellent. There was no shortage of bars for you to get a drink. The bar tenders were excellent. Never had to wait for a drink.

Lush Golden Resort for the Quiet Romantic Holiday

BEWARE THIS IS ESTATE AGENT SPEAK

The resort is huge, which is good as there is no where else to go unless you go on a trip. The grounds are immaculately kept and very picturesque, full marks to the gardiners. The rooms are OK, big double bed, air con and fan, housekeeper did a good job and the mini bar is stocked daily. Safe is an extra US$50 , but worth it for peace of mind. Anything goes wrong then the maintenance guys are there really quick. Ironing board and iron you phone for and is delivered on a motor bike.

The hotel staff are really friendly and seem to want to do anything for you, bar staff tout a bit for tips though. The pools are clean and big with lots of empty sun beds, (Germans have been sussed by pool staff.)Entertainment gets a bit boring after first night.

The beach is another matter though, there are large sand bags in the water, sand bags on the beach to stop errosion, and lots and lots of seaweed. Sand fleas are pretty common and they bite. The sand is grey not yellow and there are quite a few stoney patches. Water is not clear no matter how far you go out, you are on the north coast and pick up some big rollers which is great for body boarding. The watersports available are plentifull and you have to book early to get what you want.

The a'la carte resturants are all pretty good, good food, service and presentation. The main resturant is lousy, every thing is cold, unbelievable tastes and queues of huge proportions. Old boots have more taste and are tenderer than some of the meat I tried to consume. A tip, go to the Italian for dinner. Dont forget the immodium!!

We were a party of 10 as my son was getting married, cold clinical give us your money and thats it, one side of the pagoda is the beach bar and the other is the toilets. Do not expect to exchange rings as it is not in the script, advice, get married at home before you go, it looks romantic, but looks quite often decieve. The cost mentioned in the brochure is not a true reflection, expect to double that with copies of certificates and translations etc. Promises of upgrades etc did not materialise remember it says 'if available'

We just returned from a week at this resort at it was a great time, with sunny weather, good food and excellent service.

The other guests were all friendly and made for a better vacation experience.

We just returned from our second trip to Bahia Principe San Juan, the first was in 2005, and once again we had a great time. The staff at the resort are great, so friendly and ready to help. They are much friendlier than the staff at the resort we stayed at in Punta Cana last year. The entertainment staff do a very good job, from their activites throughout the day to the shows at night. With a different show every night they ranged from so-so to pretty good, but everyone's tastes are different.

The rooms were really clean and the staff did a good job with them. One thing we didn't care for were the beds or pillows - they were hard as rocks! We changed rooms after 2 days to get closer to the main building, but the beds in both rooms were the same. They are just an old mattress on a wood frame with really old pillows. If you have problems sleeping you should probably consider this.

The food was good, we never went hungry and the quality was okay. We ate at 3 of the a la cartes, the Italian, Mediterranean and seafood. The food and service at all of them was quite good.

We didn't do any side trips this time but on our last trip we took 2 with Laguna Jeep Safaris - one was the beach crawl that went to different beaches and the other a trip that took us into the countryside, visiting villages and other sights well worth seeing. The guides on both were great, they had great senses of humour and kept everyone laughing all day. Of course, they played music a lot of the time and had cold drinks for everyone. Both trips were a blast and we highly recommend them.

One of the things my wife really likes here is that the property is wide, so everything is close to the main buildings and the beach. In Punta Cana the properties are narrower, so there's quite a hike from the main lobby area to the beach.

We just returned from a two week vacation at Bahia Principe – San Juan. (Jan 16 - 30, 2007)

Trip - We flew directly from Ottawa and we glad to see the 60 degree temperature difference. We booked our vacation through ITravel, using Sunquest / Skyservice and we pleased with the service. ITravel returned calls prior to the trip quickly and addresses a few questions we had. We received exactly what we had requested - a second floor room, with a king bed and an ocean view.

Hotel - The hotel itself is very large, but is situated quite well. The rooms were a bit older, but were very clean. There was always hot water (except right before dinner when everyone I showering at the same time – but that is to be expected anywhere). The water pressure was ok. The grounds were clean, well planted, etc. Overall a good 4 star.

Pools - There are a total of four pools (including the Club Diamond one), with the main pool (and pool bar) in the centre of the complex, an activities Pool and a beach side pool.

Restaurants - The a la carte restaurants are spread out throughout the complex. We ate at all four and the food was good/great, depending on the day / venue. There is main buffet in the centre of the complex, but we personally did not enjoy it, due toe the large number of guests at the hotel (and this being their main buffet) it was always very, very busy and the service was not as good as other places. There is also a snack shack serving hamburgers, hot dogs and pizza, along with salads, etc. A good place to go when you are coming directly from the beach.

Food – I would rate the food overall as good. With staying for two weeks, the food became very similar, with less variety than I would have like. My husband thought it was fine, but I am a bit pickier and wanted more seafood (not fish). Remember pizza is not the same as here.

Beach – The beach at the Club Diamond end, and the middle of the resort was great, lots of lounge chairs (we were never not able to get two, even in the early afternoon). The beach at the other end (the Golden Diamond section) was not as good, the sand was eroding (you could see the sand bags), too much shade, not very much room between the walk ways and the water.

Water – The water was excellent, all sand, very few weeds, very warm, with a nature rock breakwater.

Bugs – There were very few, none in the room. The few sand fleas, but that is to be expected on the beach in the evening/night.

Venders – There is an entire street with bars, pool tables, nail salons, restaurants, and shops. There are no local vendors on the resort or the beach (thankfully). But at one end of the resort there is a “village” where you can purchase goods - cheapy, cheapy from the local vendors.

Trips – We personally took two trips.

- The Laguna Jeep Tour – Highly recommend this trip. It gives you an opportunity to see the real countryside, the locals, a church, a school house. a waterfall, the Blue Lake, and some of the most beautiful beaches. They videotape the excursion for you and you can purchase it for $35 USD. We thought it was worth it. Suggestions to bring: school supplies (if you take the tour on a week day), lots of wrapped candy for the kids, a few dollars for donations, a towel (not just for the beach, but to sit on – the roads are rough). A remember a sense of humour – it was a great trip.

- The Freestyle Catamaran – This left out of Playa Dorra, over an hour drive from the resort, but was well worth it. No one was sick on our trip, the lunch provided was great, and a great time was had by all. The Captain and crew was a great bunch of people and made it fun for all. While we personally do not scuba dive, it was still great, relaxing and worth two days tanning on the beach.

Recommendations - Through Sunquest you can purchase a room in their Club Diamond section and we would highly recommend it. As a guest in the Club Diamond section, you receive four a la carte meals per week, your own buffet style restaurant, a separate pool and section of the beach, as well as a separate clubhouse for registration, guidance and free internet (limited time). This section is quieter, having your own separate restaurant and pool was very nice, and you can still participate in all of the “main” activities and services. Having the option worked well for us.

My wife and my 3 kids aged 2,10,13, travelled to the Bahia Principe San Jaun resort in the Dominican Republic from January 12-19 2007. The resort is nice, they keep it as clean as they can considering that there are 900 plus rooms at this resort.

Maid service was adequate. The rooms smelled nice after they were cleaned. A little disappointed when the kids left candy and US money for the maid and no towel creations were left for them. The fridge was stocked every day with one bottle of coke, a bottle of sprite, and a big bottle of water.

Be aware that if you are travelling with young girls and they want their hair braided. They use the same comb on every person. Just as we were boarding the plane to come home my wife noticed a bug crawling across my daughters forehead. She had a head full of lice. It has been a week and we are still working on the lice at home.

If you want to barter with the vendors at the end of the beach it is best to go near the end of the day. They seem to need the money more for their nightlife and are willing to make better deals later in the day. Do not pay more than $1 US for a big bottle of vanilla. They will try to get $8 dollars US. In the shop inside the main lobby it is only a buck.

Food was decent. Just remember that they don't use very much seasoning so you pretty much have to use your salt and pepper shakers which are provided. My 13 year old really loved the bottles of hot sauce that they use. It added a nice flavour to the grilled chicken breasts. A little disappointed that there wasn't as much fresh fruit available like previous resorts my wife and I visited in the Dominican. Particularly pineapple.

There are many excursions to choose from. My 13 year old and I went on the 4 wheeler trip. Book it through your tour operator. We were gone for 3 hours driving through villages and the countryside. It was a real eye opener for my son who could not believe how these people live. He realized how much he takes for granted back home. Always lots of kids looking for candy or anything so be sure to bring some. A simple piece of candy will put such a smile on their faces. A moment that you will never forget. We stopped at a ladies house(if you can call it that) and she showed us all the things that she grows and how she lives off the land. She was so nice and offered use fresh coffee and coconut. I gave her $5 US and she gave me a huge hug and wanted a picture of us. Then we travelled through the city of San Juan. $5 US for a bottle of rum at the local shops.

My wife and I visited Bahia Principe from Jan.12 to 19. We arrived at the airport about 11pm. Loading the buses was fast and we started the 1-hour trip. At that time of night there was not much to see and we were tired. The good thing about the bus trip was we did our hotel check forms as we traveled. We were then given our key to the room, maps, information and our wristbands. We were also given tags for our baggage for the porters. On arrival we just walked to our room and waited for our things (this did take some time, but we were in our room). We did not get a safe key but were told we could get that the next day.

The room was large and clean. It was cool and smelled fresh. It had two ¾ beds pushed together with each made as a single bed. We were surprised at the size of the resort and there is a lot of walking, depending where your room is. That said, the grounds are well laid out and very well maintained.

There is one buffet in the center. It is large and we could always find a table. There was a good selection of food. It had a hot food, salad and fruit sections. There was also an area where hot food was prepared for you while you waited (roast. fish etc.). There were four a al carte restaurants.

The main pool is large and has a swim-up bar. The beach is very long and clean. The waves at this beach are always coming in, making it poor for snorkeling. There are many water toys to use and we liked the paddleboats. There are sand flies, so you have to shake things off before entering your room.

We took one of the day trips that involved 1.5 hours of horseback riding. Be sure to take some bug spray with you. These horses are not cared for very well. They were not clean and had poor saddles. My wife had one that was limping. She told them and they did not replace the horse with an extra that they had. For the money they were getting this could have been a lot better, but the condition of the horses was a major concern. The ride did give a good view of the countryside. We did see how the people live, which is not well. Be sure to take school supplies for these people for their children. It also included a boat ride on the ocean and two swim areas. At one of these I got to do some good snorkeling and saw many fish. The water was very clear and warm.

Week of December 31/06 - January 07/07 - Section C6 room 1621

We travelled to the Bahai Principe San Juan for the 1st time for a one week all inclusive vacation. Myself (45), my friend (29) and my daughter (18) were a little hesitant with 3 women travelling on our own but can honestly say we had no problems and felt very safe at this resort. There is something for everyone at this resort, and even though there was a lot of rain the week we were there we made the best of it and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.

Our room was very clean and surprisingly spacious with 3 single beds. Our maid was very friendly and everyday we would come back to the room to find a towel creation decorated with fresh flowers that she had done for us. We did not experience any problems with bug or ant infestations in the room that we had read on other reviews. We had a couple of ants in the bathroom but we suspect they probably just came in with the fresh flowers, but it was not a problem. We had plenty of hot water for 3 people to have showers. On our 2nd last night, the air conditioner started to make a horrendous noise and sounded like an airplane. We shut it off for the night and called for maintenance first thing the next morning. A maintenance worker was at our room within 30 minutes of my call and 20 minutes later the problem was fixed and it was back to normal.

We had read some of the previous reviews that said the food was bland and not very good so we were a bit apprehensive. We did not find this to be the case at all. We ate at the Italian restaurant twice and the Mexican restaurant once. Both of these were very good and we enjoyed the meals very much. We found the buffet to also be very good whether for breakfast, lunch or dinner there was always a variety of foods to choose from and we certainly did not find the food to be bland. There was always an assortment of fresh fruits & breads/dinner rolls to choose from and for lunch and dinner there was always several pasta, rice dishes and a wide assortment of vegetables to select from. A popular selection for breakfast was the omelette station where they would cook your selection of ingredients right in front of you on a large grill or you could simply request some fried eggs. The Casita Blanca restaurant on the beach also became a favourite spot to hit up mid afternoon for a snack of french fries or chicken (really good!). We did not try eating the burgers as we were warned that they were usually not cooked all the way through and others we talked to confirmed this to be true.

We found all the staff of the resort that we encountered to be very friendly and helpful (unfortunately our Spanish was limited but even if they did not speak English very well, they tried their best to understand and help us). There are always lots of daily activities going on around the pool area (games, beach volleyball, spanish and dance lessons) and you can participate as much or as little as you like. The "Animation Team" staff are amazing and they work so hard at making sure everyone that wants to is included and is having a good time. I must say a special thank you to Jose, Rocio, Griselle, Harve, Freddy and Miguel for making our week so much fun!

We have just returned from a week holiday at this resort. We previously had stayed at the Bahia Principe resort in Cancun-Akumal and decided that as that was a good experience we would stay with the tried and true. The trip was myself my husband and our two daughters-14 and 17. We booked 2 rooms.

We traveled from Winnipeg to Puerto Plata and I booked a package from Transat through Expedia. The flights were good-except Transat has very little leg room-you can massage the head of the person in front of you when they put their seat back-and you cannot put down your tray if they do not go into the upright seat position.

It is an hour drive from the airport to the resort-quite the drive-if you have ever been to Mexico it is very similar-the roads have many potholes, but the drivers manage to avoid them somehow!! It seems confused and crazy-but it seems to work-Take a deep breath around the curves when you are three cars across a two lane road!!

Arrived at resort, and it looked similar to Mexico one, which was reassuring. We had the Golden Club deal and we were sent to a separate building to book in. I had requested rooms with a double bed each and as close as possible -as the girls had their own room and I wanted to have them near us.

This is a 900 room resort and rooms are very spread out. They do tell you that you can make requests, but they may not be able to accommodate them. We were in the 2128 and 2129 rooms. At the check in the girls were given a room in another building for the first night-but they moved next to us the next day. The double beds are actually giant king beds- so it was no problem for the girls.

Rooms- the rooms are adequate. They are clean for the most part, but they were not up to the standard of the resort we stayed at in Mexico. The air conditioning is minimal-ours started making chirping noises the last 2 days and we turned it off at night-but there is also a fan above the bed and we were fine. If you tip the maid 100 pesos a day, you will get much better service and she actually gave us a gift of a clay pot with Bahia Principe written on it our last day- our daughters did the same in their room. The shower had to run about 5 minutes before it got hot-start it before you get in.

Our daughters were thrilled with the free room service-it is a limited menu and used it often. Sometimes they got stuff they did not order- but you have to go with the flow there!! Diet coke is called Coke Light there-I am diabetic, so it took me a few days-ask for diet coke-they do not understand. In the Golden Club the blue towels are delivered to the room every night-make sure you leave the ones you used where the housekeeping can find them-or no new towels. We never used these towels for anything but to make our chairs-you better have a chair by 7:30 if you want to sit around the pools. The ones at the beach were available until around 10. Do not lose the towel-$20 fee charged.

Meals- we were given 4 a la carte meals-book these as soon as possible- Mexican was the best. Hard to figure out what you are ordering though-be sure to ask the waiters- things are not always what you expect.

Buffet always had a good selection- something for everyone and you will soon find your favourites. Food was also below the Mexico standard- but we never got sick on anything we ate and I ate lots of seafood.

Pools and Beach were great, but there are sand fleas-do not stay on the beach between 4pm and 7am. We only sat on the beach 1 full day, the others we were at the pool.

Entertainment-if you want to watch the nightly show- get there by 8:30-you will have to watch the kids show first, but they are cute and good for a laugh. Carlos was a super waiter on the pool side and he kept us filled with drinks all night. Lots of daily activities-we tried some, but mostly sunbathed. Excursions- as we had two teenage daughters, they wanted to shop. We decided to pay a cab 8o Us to take us to Puerto Plata and spend the day with us. This would have been a good idea if our driver spoke better English.

We ended up in downtown and were mobbed by locals trying to sell their wares. The girls were so put off by the persistence of these people that they refused to buy anything and just wanted to get back into the cab. We really did not see anything we were dying to have. The Amber and jewerly did not impress me and my husband only bought a maple box from a street boy who had made the box himself as my husband does carpentry and saw the same stain colour under the boys fingernails.We also did the cable car up the mountain-do not pay the 20 for the guide-you do not need one. We would not do this again unless we had a cab driver who spoke better English-he tried to understand us and to chase the venders away when they got nuts. He was very nice and drove us to meet his family on the way home. If you want to shop without the hassle of street vendors-do the shops at the resort or go to Cabaret for the day-surfer town with retail shops and more tourists-especially with kids. Rum is $7 at a grocery store-but beware you cannot take as carry on and must pack in your luggage.

We did one Turissmo tour-the horseback riding-our daughters choice. It was 70 per person. We rode horses into the hills and through local towns for about 2 hours. then we were driven to see cocoa and coffee plants. After this we went for lunch at a local restaurant and then shopping at a store in San Juan. Then we did a boat ride into the mangroves and then into the ocean. We stopped at a little beach for 1 hour. Then they drove us to another beach with huge waves. We were gone from 10 to 6 and it was a great day. Our tour guide was wonderful and at the end we purchased the DVD of our day for 30 and the CD of 350 pictures for 10. Would recommend this to anyone-wear pants and runners for horseback ride. Horses very tame and easy to ride. Got to experience a little bit of everything and even the younger couples had a great day.

Hello, we just got back from dominican republic and were staying at the bahia principe. It was our first trip in a all inclusive and we loved it. The room was clean and confortable although we put the two single bed together! Beach was clean and also the pools. Fun aerobics on the sand and followed by aquafitness in the pool later on. Night time entertainement was fun. Food was very good.

Downfall: my husband got mosquito bites all over in the first and second day so we quickly went and bought insect repellent and after that it was fine. So if sensitive to mosquito bites be very preventive.

Also, I don't want to scare nobody but I got attact by a jelly fish and I totally freaked out! I went to the doctor and what a sweety, she calmed my down and gave me some cortizone cream. That will not stop me from going back swimming in the ocean but i'll know what to expect if it ever happen again!

Well we just returned from this resort on Saturday the 25th of November and I thought I would write a few words to pass along to the travellers heading to this resort.

We would like to consider ourselves avid travellers to the south as we head to the Caribbean at least two or three times each year and this is our first trip report. For information purposes we are in our mid-thirties and we travelled with a crew of six of us in three different rooms.

We flew in via Skyservice on Saturday and arrived at Puerto-Plata around noon on Saturday Nov. 18th, although Skyservice likes to herd people on its plane like cattle and pack you in their like sardines it was only a 4 hour flight from Toronto so you can try and handle it but I wouldn’t want to be on there any longer than that.

First off on our arrival to the resort we were booked into the Diamond section of the resort, which is located way at one end of the resort. On our first day we got pushed into a room with two single beds on the ground floor but we were told we would have to wait until the next day to put in a request for another room, thank god because our first room was loaded with insects but we managed to change rooms the following day and luckily though got put on a second floor.

As I tend to be an internet junkie I spent a lot of time researching this resort and reading all trip reports on several web sites and I must say that most of them are true, and folks you have to watch yourself and keep your guard up to a certain extent.

The beaches here are lovely and with the darker sand and not so colourful water as the rest of the Caribbean tends to have, you will find the abundance of trees along the beach rather beautiful. I can not stress enough how you must watch the sand fleas on the beach as people were getting chewed alive and you will see this for yourself as you get there and this kept us more wanting the stay at the pool but a night at the Mexican restaurant had us with red bug bites all over our body as it is near the beach and very open.

I tend to be a lover of the buffets and you do have quite a selection here but we did find a lot of the food to be bland and tasted a lot alike, we would compare the food here a lot to Cuba and a bottle of hot sauce for taste sure went a long way and yes you will notice that a lot of the foods are not very hot as I read in previous reports. On our last day we did see a cockroach crawling over the bread in the La-Brisas buffest which is the main buffet but as you will read further it wasn’t our first to see.

My sister who was the only one unfortunate enough out of the six of us to have been located on the ground floor had seen several cockroaches and also had seen trails of other little bugs going up the wall carrying little eggs in her room so I would advise against a ground floor room. Also our otherfriends who went with us said that in the buffet at the Diamond section of the resort there was a huge bunch of cockroaches in the buffet washroom. The reports you read about people getting sick at this resort are true, as I mentioned earlier we are huge travellers and do carry all the Imodium and a drug called Ciprofloxacin which are an anti-biotic for stomach bacteria and this was the first time we have ever had to use them as my fiancé got violently ill on the last day we were there after eating at the seafood restaurant, which made for a horrible plane ride home.

The theatrical shows at night can be fun and as you will find out after 3 or 4 nights become rather much the same and tend to repeat themselves, but have some minor changes that you can pick up on with a watchful eye. If you are an avid drinker you might want to ask for a little more liquor in your glass as you tend to get bloated on the mix and after drinking a ton of drinks without feeling them you are left asking why you aren’t feeling them. also, we found that the choices of drinks are very slim and not a lot of selection of shooters.

We did go on the Laguna safari trip and would recommend to anyone that doesn’t have a bad back as it can be quite bumpy and is a full day, you do however get to see a lot of the area and get to experience the culture and see a lot of awesome scenery and bring loads to candy to toss to the kids. This was our fourth trip to the Dominican and having been three times to Punta-Cana and this being our first time to Puerto-Plata I have to pity the people who pay full price for this resort. We got it at a last minute price and paid $ 508.00 plus tax out of Toronto and bang for our buck it was an ok trip but I wouldn’t want to pay any more than that for this resort. So I would say to anyone that is going to this resort that is paying high dollar to shop elsewhere. We have been to several 5 star and several 4 star resorts as well and this one is certainly NOT a four star resort on any island or in Mexico and in our book gets a 2.5 rating.

We stayed in section D5 Room # 1931

Just returned from Bahia Principe on saturday Nov 18. The resort was good the food was great. The only problem we had was that my wife, myself and a few other people had alot of bites at least 50- 70 between me and the wife. We did not even feel them we thought they were misquito bites. When we got back we went to free clinic to get something for the bites to get the swelling and itchiness down the doctor told us they were flea bites. He said it could have been from the beds or chairs or towels or a few other places at the hotel we never went on any tours. Needless to say we've been to alot of resorts in mexico jamaica and dominican republic but this is the first time we ever had something like this happen. We also had the ant problem in the bathroom under the sink. They filled the hole up but the ants were still there had to go and kill them myself.

Visited bahia principe may 06 and September 06 the last time was my 7th time to this hotel. it is a great hotel that offers a wide range of activities and you would be mad if you didn't have something to do.

the staff from every part of the hotel work there hardest and always have a smile. i think people forget about all the staff and mainly thank the animation team for making there stay the best.

first of all i'd like to thank all of the staff from the gardernes, maids, to managers. all the staff made my stay truley amazing yet again.

the food was awesome. some days there wasnt alot for vege's to eat but i never went hungry.

the shows were amazing, the animation team works very hard at there job and no one can put them down. the only bad thing i would say about the animation team is there so close like family, if one of the workers doesnt like you then most if not all of them wont like you. which for younger people is pretty hard.

pools are great, the beach is beautiful not white sand but golden.

water sports was fab, they work hard for little money and they always have a smile be sure to ask for la roca or coa *cow* they will help you to no end.

all in all after 7 times to this hotel im still not bored of it.i would go bk on the next available flight if i could.

no matter what age you are, what sex, nothing will stand in the way of you having a good time at this resort.

it has it all. and more.

We visited the BP in Rio San Juan in May 2006. I know, a little late for a review, but better late than never.

What a beautiful time we had. Soo much to do and soo much time to do it.

1. The rooms were clean, comfortable, and extremely spacious. The A/C worked perfectly, the balcony was large and supported a great view of the beach. Check in was a breeze, rooms wernt ready but they kept our luggage safe until they were and we spent the day on the beach. (we arrived at 10am) The day we left we decided to keep the room until our bus left at 5:30. We spent the day at the beach and then showered in comfort in our rooms. The resort does provide rooms for late leavers to clean up as well but we just wanted to have the extra comfort of our own room. (we ended up with 8 full days at the beach as we arrived in the morning and left at supper time.)

2. The main buffet was enormous! The food was fantastic! I never tasted chicken like that before. Only one way to go now is organic. The choices were endless. and kudos to Juan!!!.......... the best omlett maker ever!!! Raoul and Eddy were our breakfast waiters each morning and they always made us smile.. The morning fruit smoothies hit the spot as well.

3. The only downside of the food aspect of the resort was we didnt enjoy 2 of the a la carte restaurants. (mexican was the best). The italian was not very good. and the mediterranean left something to be desired, The chicken shack on the beachwas awsome! Open late and always prepared for hungry people.(chicken and fries, lots of fruit, drinks and smiling staff.) ONE THING I THINK SHOULD BE RECOMMENDED TO THEM IS TO HAVE A BETTER WINE SELECTION (with available wine, ......the list showed some variety but they didnt have anything on the list) ON THE MENUS INTHE A LA CARTE RESTAURANTS. We really missed having nice wine with our dinners. (the Dominican wine is not very good). But we didnt miss it enough to make it a bad experience.

4. The beach is beautiful. Always manicured, always clean, and always welcomed. Although you should really get your spot early in the morning. Mark it with your towels and people wont bother your spot. We had the same spot each and every day. Close to everything. We just marked it during our morning 7am run. morning aerobics at 10:30

5. Speaking of working out...the gym was unavailable. We had the GOLD membership but the gym was always closed. Thats ok, a run on the beach and through the resort was fine for us.

6. The Staff were top notch! They took care of our every need. Whenever we wanted anything, from a few extra drinks in the room to recommendations for tours they were there. (I recommend the Sunset boat cruise and snorkeling..Tad our guide was wonderful.)The resort was spotless. the staff were friendly, and our time there will always be remembered as wonderful.

7. The pools were great! Large, clean and refreshing.

8. The bars were a bit cramped but still a tonne of fun. Partying until 3 am only happened twice with us as we preferred to have full days at the resort without hangovers.

Unbelievable how many people we ran into from Canada and especially Nova Scotia. No Americans, but alot of Brits (they can party) We met some wonderful friends and made great memories.all in all a wonderful time and we cant say enough positive things about the Bahia Principe Rio San Juan.

Overall the resort was 4star in regards to food ,service , entertainment for adults & children . Lacking was proper air conditioning in rooms & comfortable beds (2beds&2cotts ) most likely due to age. Also pay in hard american dollars or you pay 25 % more using canadian dollars or visa cards etc on hotel property ,tours etc. As for the ala carte restaurants , save your time ,the buffet outperforms them on there own theme nights. Tips , on leaving eat as much as you can because the airport restaurants are like sharks in the water.(2 burgers &small pizza $40.00 canadian / 1usd = 1.50 cdn )