Best Things Nearby:
The Playa Dorada shopping complex -- the selection and prices were even better than in town. The Dama Jagua Falls excursion -- exciting, a little scary and well worth the price of the tour.
Best Things About the Resort:
The Beach -- the resort has the best stretch of beach in the Playa Dorada tourist complex. Lots of activities for kids. My 13-year old loved it -- tennis, beach and pool volleyball, ping-pong, the ATV tour, etc!
Resort Experience:
The resort is old but clean and well-maintained. Our two-bedroom unit was spacious and clean. We had a view of the beach and the balcony was large with comfortable chairs and a table! We loved to sit on the balcony and listen to the sound of the waves (when seated, you couldn't see the beach!).
The daily maid-service is a bonus! The furniture and appliances are old, the curtains and bedspreads well-used and a liitle threadbare, but then we didn't spend a lot of time indoors. The mini-kitchen had an old stove-top, a mini-fridge and no dishes or utensils. With the mandatory-all-inclusive fees, you didn't need to use the kitchen.
The food in the resort was good -- a lot of variety and new menus all week. The Italian restaurant Michelangelo's was not bad either! The mixed grill at Eden's was very good! What was disappointing was the absence of shrimps and lobster on the menus! The Dominican buffet was a hit in terms of numbers! The restaurant was packed! Unfortunately, we didn't get to sample the buffet because we had reservations at Eden's that night!
The thermostat for the air-conditioning didn't work so we had to keep turning the A/C on and off. If it was on too long, you felt you were in the midst of an Arctic blast!
Tipping the waiters got us excellent service the whole week. One of the waiters even came by specially the morning that we were leaving to give our son a small leather key-chain as a souvenir.
The live entertainment was okay! The Dominican folk dance was good and the interactive 'Ideal Couple' show was hilarious!
The resort had a lot of vacationing locals from the cities of Santiago and Santo Domingo. I am not sure if the other resorts are also so popular with the locals, or if it is oly this particular resort. A disadvantage with this was that most of the activities were in Spanish and those of us who don't speak the language felt left out! Also, the pool was always crowded with little kids, mostly locals!
Coming back to Canada, we met a few people who had stayed at the Ramada Hacienda resort and hated it! A lot of people there had gotten sick and were throwing up all week. On the other hand, I also met one Canadian girl at Paradise, who was there with her friends and was returning to this resort for the ninth time. She said she loves it and will be coming back again! There was another lady who was returning for the second time with her son.
The resort has a casino and a disco that we did not go to!
- Unit Type: 2 Bedroom
- Activities: Very Good
- Amenities: Good
- Unit Satisfaction: Good
- Family Friendliness: Very Good
- Service: Good