Our experience at the Albatros Club Resort in the Dominican Republic was horrendous. We were given a one-bedroom unit. When you walk in, you are in a small kitchen with a very uncomfortable day bed - this is your living area. No TV, dark and dreary. There was no coffee maker, very few utensils and dishes.

The toilet in the bathroom did not work and there was a flood of water on the floor in front of the toilet.

The air conditioning did not work -only the fan was working. The loud exhaust for the air conditioner was on the balcony outside the bedroom. There was no balcony furniture; The bedroom was another nightmare.

The bed was hard, with a thin mattress. The 2 pillows hardly had any stuffing in them. There's more, but you get the idea. The desk clerk was not unfriendly, but also not friendly - probably ashamed to give us this place. When we inquired, they told us we could have a better unit the next day, but what does "better" mean. We did not stay there even one night.

We were able to get a room at an Embassy Suites nearby and made other arrangements for the rest of the week further east on the coast. Also the beach there was rocky, not inviting at all. The place looked run down. Parking is on the street outside the Club.

During my stay in Nov 2005-
Bottom lines:
-Gay hangout & hook-up spot in town
-discovered a gay porno "Machos Locos" in our VCR upon arrival
-"friendly" travel agent located in hotel lobby(Elvin) is a rip-off- do not trust him, he charges wayyyy to much
[learn to take a taxi which charges much less for the same- we did it with minimal Spanish]
-restaurant in hotel charges different prices for the same order (we had a lemonade & beer)each time
-no iron or ironing board available- what hotel doesn't have these?
-roaches...yes roaches in the hall scurrying along (saw them on several occasions)

Only thing that was good about this hotel was its location...it's in the middle of everything. But there are plenty of what seemed like better and nicer hotels in the same area.

Not a good a idea for families, elderly or disabled (stairs only), and the wise.

Hi there,

I just came back from the Dominican Republic and let me tell you i had a blast!!!

My friend and I stayed at the Hotetur Dominican Bay, rated at 3 stars, though i would give it an extra star! We booked with nolitours, and they explained everything to the letter. From the tourist visas to the transfer to the hotel to the activities. Just as described! we were there 7 days, though it did rain one full day but it was refreshing, and it didn't stop anyone from jumping into the pool. i have to say the rooms were rather surprising! from the reviews i read i was expecting worse! they were surprisingly adequate. the food 3 meals a day plus snacks, were tasty and satisfying, its obviously not Le Ritz but it certainly beats airplane food!

Four of us ( two mid forties couples) just returned from a one week stay (April 10th to April 17th/06) at Hotetur Dominican Bay Resort and here is my review:

Reception upon arrival: Under staffed and disorganized. No one at the reception area was fluent in English. Rooms: We were assigned to building #15. The phone did not work, the toilets leaked, and the balcony door did not lock. All of these problems were straightened out within 24 hours and only after repeated trips to the front desk. Also, the 1500 block of rooms has a resident rooster which sounds his alarm every 10 minutes from 3:am to 7:am. We switched our rooms on day three.

Food: This is a 3 star resort with 3 star food.

Beach: Hey, I don't mind a walk, but if you want to sit outside of the hotels enclosed area, be prepared to spend up to $5.00 to rent a chair.

Just came back from the Dominican Bay Resort and were not impressed at all.

Its rated a 3 star but I don't know if I would even give it that. It was nothing like the pictures on the internet. Have done a lot of travelling, 90% of it last minute and this was a disappointed place.

TRAVELLING TO AND FROM:
Landed at Punta Cana Airport ... WOW, a long bus ride, 3-1/2 hours there, 4-1/2 hours back AND NO BATHROOM ON BUS. Was told by travel agent only a 1-/2 hour ride (even that would be too much for this resort, 5 minutes would be too much).

FOOD/BARS
Bland but okay, no one got sick anyway. It always seemed like you were moving from bar to bar as one would close the next one would open, didn't find this real convenient for a vacation.

BEACH:
Very beautiful but quite the hike (were told my our travel agent resort was on the beach), its actually across a bridge across 2 streets, at least 5 minutes. Bothered constantly by vendors and locals selling souvenirs or themselves. The water was beautiful and the sand nice & white but some garbage around and hard to enjoy when you are always being bothered. If you do go here, you have to take the walk about 5-10 minutes down the beach to Cesar's Pizza, BEST 4 CHEESE PIZZA I've ever had. For $10 you get a huge 8 slice with box and its amazing.

ROOMS:
Very poor condition, no fridge, no blow dryer, very little lighting. Some of the shutters do not close all the way which lets in a lot of noise. One of the beds was slanted, the pillows were not comfortable, some were hard, some soft, some falling apart and lumpy. Even the shower curtain was smelly. Toilets had to be flushed about 3 times before they would work properly. But at least we had hot water well if you waited till after 10am and even later on the last day.

ALL INCLUSIVE:
This it was not, had to pay for all water sports, pool table, foosball table even to play bingo with the entertainment staff (another joke) at night you had to pay.

LEAVING:
Our rep told us they have a locked room for luggage and a courtesy room to shower in before you leave (check out was 1pm but bus left at 4:30pm). No locked room (just the so called lobby) and the courtesy room, for 2 people you had 1/2 hour to get showered and ready ? ?

STAFF:
Bar and restaurant staff very friendly, entertainment staff kind of pushy and not very entertaining, staff at desk did not know a lot of English, vendors were better versed. I would think especially the front desk staff should know English, maybe not so much the others. Cleaning staff did a great job with what they had to work with, always clean towels and clean sheets but still the same lumpy pillows.

All in all we made the best of this vacation but 2 of the 4 would probably not go back to the Dominican because of this resort and I know to keep with at least a 4 star when I travel.

"Would rate this Resort (econo)"

Just came back from Dominican Bay Resort Jan 23rd-31st 2006. Had a great time, didn't know what to expect so we were pleasantly surprised. Anyone looking to get away for a sunny vacation on a budget, this is the place to go.

The grounds were very well maintained, very clean, the staff were friendly. Some spoke 7 languages and some only spoke Spanish. For the most part we didn't have any problems communicating. The reception is small for the number of rooms so the wait is long for whatever you need.

The rooms looked exactly like the picture. There's cable TV but no remotes for the television, there are no fridges, no blow dryers. The rooms are basic but I found them to be clean and adequate. We tipped $2.US everyday on the pillow and we had plenty of clean towels, fresh flowers detailing the bathroom and towels made into the shape of Swans on the bed. You can rent the safe for $20 US and $10 you get back at the end when you check out. We bought ourselves 2 beach towels for the same price as the deposit on the towels. It seemed complicated to get Beach Towels there so we just bought our own. We didn't have any bugs in our room.

The food at the Buffet was adequate, basic stuff and variations of the same food everyday but we never got sick. I liked it because it was completely closed in, there were hardly any flies, it was clean and the table clothes and napkins were linen. 2 of the bars served food too. The poolside Bars & Grill served Hamburgers and Hotdogs all afternoon and the one at the beach just at lunch time. I liked the fact that at the bars you could serve yourself for water & soft drinks. There were always a stack of plastic cups to help yourself. That way you're never waiting in line unless you want an alcohol drink.

The Beach is not private, it's about a 300 meter walk to the beach crossing 2 roads. There's a wooden enclosure you walk through to get to it. There was plenty of security everywhere. At the Beach, the Resort has an area enclosed where the vendors are not allowed to come in but they wait outside of there for you to go out. For the most part they hassled us for a day or 2 and then they left us alone (they just need to make a living)

Boca Chica Beach has the clearest, cleanest water I have ever seen, the water was warm and there were no waves because the Coral Reef blocks the tide from coming in and out. It's White sands, beautiful snorkeling, you didn't even need snorkel gear, just look down and see the tropical fish to the naked eye.

The town of Boca Chica is a 5 minute walk, I found it completely safe by day but wouldn't go without a group or local people at night. You can buy all your souvenirs there, tones of gift shops and vendors, get ready to barter though!!!

We just returned from a week at the Dominican Bay Resort in Boca Chica. I have not much good to say and this is not long enough to list the negatives. Listed at 3.5*, really a 2.5*.

Food
Very bland and no variety in buffet. 2 BBQ's but only had hotdogs and hamburgers. Italian restaurant okay, Chinese restaurant horrible. We left the Chinese restaurant before we finished our meal.

Bars
One bar closes, another opens so you are forever moving from bar to bar. No variety in the drinks, I couldn't even get a strawberry daiquiri. Combined, you can find a bar from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 a.m.

Service
Very good. The staff were friendly and tried to be helpful. Maid came at no specific time of day. One day morn, one day late afternoon. Activities at 10 and at 3, not very organized.

Rooms
Not very clean. Very old furniture. The ceiling above the shower just about fell on my husband's head as he was showering, the shower above us was leaking. The maintenance man came within a couple of hours to supposedly fix the problem. By the morning the ceiling was dripping into our tub again. We heard some additional horror stories about some of the other rooms at this resort from other people; cockroaches, no air conditioning, no hot water, etc.

There are two blocks - 18 & 19 - that are new and those people had no complaints.

Beach
Five minute walk to beach. Lovely white sand. Lots of loungers. Blue turquoise waters. You could swim out to the coral reef and do some good snorkelling.

Town of Boca Chica
Dirty. Night life everywhere but you need to be cautious in town.

Currently the Dominican Peso is not worth much. We received 50 pesos to 1 - US dollar, and 30 pesos to 1 - Canadian dollar. However, the price of the gifts in the stores were raised and the shop owners were not willing to barter a lot.

We spent a wonderful week at the Don Juan!

We are an easy going couple who rolls with the punches. High on our list of priorities is good food and for this, the Don Juan rates 4 stars! There was always a wide variety of delicious meats/ vegetables/ salads and sweets. Authentic Dominican dishes were offered at every meal and we discovered some that we loved. Hats off to the chef and kitchen staff! Burgers on the beach were excellent, but may not be to your liking if you were raised on “MacDonald’s” fare. Thick meat patties that you dressed yourself. The afternoon pizzas, served by the pool, were ok and popular.

The house wine was acceptable for the first few days, but seemed to change to something unpalatable near the end of our week. Beer was always good. Hard liquor, probably is watered down as I suspect is at most of these all-inclusives. One rarely sees a guest who is unbearably intoxicated, which ultimately is a good thing.

The waiting staff in the El Corral (buffet) restaurant was mediocre to good - good if you were in their line of vision. They need some coaching on scanning the crowd (ex-waitress here). However, it was no big deal, for the food is buffet style and the bar is totally accessible to patrons. On many nights a fantastic trio serenaded the tables; one of the guitarists was EXTRAORDINARY! And I mean EXTRAORDINARY!

The guests at the Don Juan were from all over the globe. We heard Italian, French, German, English, Russian and more. It made for quite an interesting volleyball game on the beach. Some of the staff spoke several languages and some spoke only Spanish. We found the staff warm and friendly, as all Dominicans are, when treated in kind.

I enjoyed the nightly entertainment on stage, the two nights we took it in. There are no pretenses to Vegas type shows (as you find at other resorts) but there was a lot of enthusiasm, genuine enjoyment and budding talent.

The hot water was tepid for the first two days and the maid service was erratic. Our room was gorgeous - a living room with separate bedroom (very comfy bed).

The beach was fantastic! It is enjoyed by both Dominicans and tourists as it is public. You may find the beach peddlars annoying, but they are licensed and this is their livelihood. "No gracias" three times is effective. However, against our tour rep's cautions, I eventually got into bargaining and got quite good at it. (Come up a bit from your lowest bid so that they can save face.) Only once did we discover that we paid more than what could be had in town...and it wasn't so much that we felt ripped off. Everyone has a story to tell and is interested in yours, including the peddlars.

We did two tours through our travel agent "Go Travel Direct". Not for the faint of heart, the "Gran Safari" takes you over rough, dusty roads into the interior, where you see and experience Dominican life and landscape. I hope you get our guide, Ishmael, who was a storehouse of knowledge and lots of fun! I highly recommend this tour. However, the tour to Santo Domingo was disappointing. We were taken to some extraordinary places, but our guide had little to say in the midst of a city rich in architecture and history. We expected and yearned for more.

We have never wrote into Debbie's before, because everything we had experienced at the resorts we have visited, had already been reviewed extensively by other travellers. Debbie's reviews are so important to our travel plans that only what vacation dates we can arrange comes next. To our surprise there was very little information on the Duan Juan Resort. We have used Debbie's reviews previously, to our advantage ,so now I feel obligated to sharpen my two index fingers and submit my wife's and my review. This is my first review so please take this in account with my awful grammar and rambling on.

First off we are 3.5 star, budget minded travellers. We have been to Cuba Quatra Palmas Varedaredo Santa Lucia Club Caracol Dominica Republic Playo naco Luperon and Duan Juan. Go Travel, because of there great prices, has afforded us the opportunity to travel once a year. If there are ten reviews on a given resort and five are for the resort and five are against, I know we will be part of the 50% that found the resort up to their standards.

The airport at La Romana to say the least is an unexpected surprise. This is a private airport ,so there is no unwanted people trying to get you to hire them to carry your luggage 50 feet to your bus. The bus trip is about an 1.5 hours but goes fairly fast with your Rep giving you all the details about your stay. You have to enter the town of Boca Chica to get to the Duan Juan Resort. This is an eye opener.

ON the bus they had given us our room numbers. At the receptionist desk everything went smoothly. Our room was not acceptable, complained, and we were given a nice room overlooking the pool and the beach with a balcony.

There was always somebody cleaning,whether it was the grounds or the leaves that fall from the trees into the pool. Our maid always kept our room perfect. We gave her money and various items my wife brought down to give away. This is my own personal opinion but I found the bartenders much more appreciative of tips than the bartenders in Varedaro. The beer was Presintinte? not bad. The rum, they don't know when to stop unless you tell them. The other drinks, well , they all start to taste the same after a while. The food starts at 7am and goes until 1or2 am. There is only one a la carte,good. Now if there is a a 3.5 resort with better food than Don Juan I haven't been there and I hope somebody writes in and says where it is at.

They have two pools. One medium and one small. Cleran. We really miss the fact there is no swim up bar. We always find this a great place to meet people and brake the ice. I have not been to Punta Cana but people that where there told me that they liked this beach as much as Punta Cana.

NOW THE BAD STUFF
You are on a public beach. There is hotel security on the beach. The locals are mostly to the far right or left of the resort's beach area. They pass along the resort beach area to get where they are going. I heard people complain but I Don't find it a problem. Although I find It more itimitating to walk this stretch of beach than I would at Varadero. There is a breakwater. which makes this ocean part, like a huge swimming pool. You can walk out forever and never go past your waist. The Vendors,the RAVENDOUS Vendors. This has to be the number one complaint that I heard from vacationers, especially those ones that have only been to Cuba. I hav3e been to Puerta Plata and the vendors there seem to be milder. Having said that it is still the same game. The vendors are only allowed on the beach not the resort
If you don't want to be bothered don't buy from the beach until the last day. The price will be the same on the first as the last,in fact you will probably be wiser to the prices on the last day. If you are like me you will go from no gracias ,to no ,to a simple shake of the head. NEVER say later or maybe or I don't have any money on me right now. If you are as aggresive in your no's as they are in trying to sell, after a day it will diminish. If you decide to take a casual look,you've been warned. If for any reason you feel threated, just the mention that you are going to call security will send them scurring away. If you take it all in stride it is really not that big a problem.
If you take a right turn off the resort you will go into a street of small shops and grocery stores. At first we would only go with another a couple but after we got over the fear we made two or three more trips by ourselves,though I don't think I would try it at night. We actually got our best deals on the rum and vanilla at the grocery store.

Took a bus tour into Santo Domingo. I thought it was well worth the money . It included a lunch at a really nice restaurant. Heard a lot of complaints about the other tours. The entertainment at best is once you have seen it ,that's enough. There is a disco ,but we really didn't go,and I never heard any good comments.

My husband and I just returned from this resort on April 15. I have traveled the Caribbean extensively and must say that Boca Chica Beach is the BEST beach I have run into. The water is very clear, sandy bottom (no need for beach shoes), and very shallow because of the reef. The resort keeps their stretch of the beach very clean. It is a public beach however, and the Dominicans enjoy it as much as the tourists. The resort itself is nice enough for a 3.5 star. We had a room in the older section (Building 6). We had a view of the side gardens. The room was exceptionally clean and very spacious. Everything worked and when had a problem (toilet tank leaked) it was fixed in a matter of hours (this is amazing compared to other places I have traveled--where if things got fixed it took days if ever!!!!!). Rooms in the newer section are nicer and the Captains Club rooms are over the buffet and all have an ocean view---would recommend this option if you want to guarantee a good view!!! Some of the staff spoke excellent english while others tried--we found we could always communicate our needs and be understood.

The grounds are well kept. Beautiful flowers and the staff worked hard to keep the pathways clean. Food was adequate--not much selection---but we never went hungry---steer clear of hamburgers. Service in the restaraunt is none existent. (serve yourself--there is a bar at the back). House wine is swill, but other drinks always available. The security around the hotel was very good--always making sure the guests were okay. There are two pools--one big and one small. There are not many chairs at the pool but if you asked at the beach they would bring some up for you if you prefer the pool. Not many stayed around the pools as the beach is so nice.

It was nice being able to walk into town--I recommend you buy your souvenirs in town or on the beach. Coffee, vanilla and liquor is best bought in any of the two grocery stores we saw. We did not do the town at night but other people did and although there were prostitutes everyone said they were safe. We would have liked that the hotel provide a shuttle to the Casino at the Hamaca, as they don't we did not go there, but did walk through the hotel during the day.

If you looking for a cheap, relaxating, no frills vacation this resort if OK for that. I was part of a group of 20 who was at the Don Juan from Mar 30-April 6th. Weather was great and the beach was beautiful.

Rooms: clean and big;
Food: not a big selection but good tasting, only 1 speciality restaurant but it was excellent;
Beach: beautiful but lots of vendors but if you place you chairs by the water's edge, no one bothers you;
Entertainment/Activities: Next to none;
Staff: Pleasant but slow;

I went with Go Travel, the price was good but the ride to the hotel was too long: 1 hour & half. Wasted a full day travelling. When we got there it was a surprise when the bus dropped us off. It basically was in the middle of the geto. Not impressed either with the dance that was waiting for us. The entertainers were not good at all. They don't know how to keep people interested. They didn't want to speak to us either in French or English. The evening shows were horrible, if you call it a show. I have been to many vacations that this was the worst for the staff.

The food was basic, nothing outstanding. The drinks were good. They were always running out of water bottles & when you had some they were warm. The beach was nice & the water too. The beach party was a laugh. They don't know how to start a fire & keep it going. The staff were dancing outside of the location for the party. The disco was not good. Nobody would go as the entertainers were not trying to get people interested.

We made the most of our vacation. The weather was great, got to know great people.