TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

This is honestly the worst hotel I’ve stayed in it most definitely isn’t a 5 star and is falsely advertised as one the first room we were put in was damp and had loads of black mould growing up the walls so bad it has made us all ill chesty coughs and cold/flu symptoms we didn’t have pre holiday as well as itchy eyes and hayfever like symptoms when don’t have hayfever as well as mould covering our clothes and ruining them made a complaint to staff and was told it was because we turned the aircon off for one night!!! tape used to hold the wardrobe together tiles chipped and missing, gaps in the bathroom ceiling we complained to the TUI rep and finally got moved rooms after ten days living a mould infested room but the rooms are not the only problem here the food is terrible and dangerous things that are meant to be served hot left out on hot plates but allowed to go stone cold and things that are meant to be chilled like seafood just left going warm on the side not chilled fried food fried in dirty fat so it’s covered in little burnt black bits from days ago, communal areas are dirty and dangerous in some cases things like lights hanging out the walls in the pool exposing all the wires or held in with zip ties, tiles cracked and missing on stairs making them dangerous what looked like blood stains going up stairs sticky floors everywhere nowhere near enough staff on bar was taking my son ages to get served but not me then I heard bar staff joking that they served the women they liked the look of first which is honestly the least of the problems in this hotel they are only interested in selling you the ultimate leisure membership which costs thousands but they are the only people who get adequate service and I hope they get better rooms than the poorly finished dirty rooms we were given on both occasions room service often upto 2 hours late from the time you ask to arrive the only good things about this hotel is the steak and Brazilian restaurant but they can be hard to get into I’ve had to walk out all the others and the 2 ladies that serve at the sports bar are really Nice and actually know how to make the cocktails that are offered.

Kids Loved It… Adults Needed a Holiday After the Holiday” We spent Christmas here as a family and I’ll start with this: the beach is absolutely stunning. Genuinely world-class. Soft sand, gorgeous sea, the kind of place you’d happily sit all day deciding which cocktail best matches your soul. The pools (on the days they were actually clean) are brilliant too. And the water park? Enormous fun for kids… although personally I wouldn’t stake my continued existence on the engineering standards of some of those slides. So yes — it has the raw ingredients of a great resort. Unfortunately, what happens behind the scenes lets it all down spectacularly. Staffing & “Customer Service” There simply are not enough staff. You feel it everywhere. Long waits, things not done, nobody around when you actually need help. Some staff were genuinely kind and tried hard. Sadly, a significant number clearly didn’t want to be there. The vibe ranged from “mildly annoyed” to “actively offended that you dared to ask for anything.” At times it drifted into something close to hostile. My personal highlight was a waiter who stood over us insisting we write a review while he watched. Nothing says “relaxing Caribbean holiday” like being harassed into TripAdvising under supervision. We had to repeatedly tell him to go away. Awkward doesn’t even begin to cover it. And then there’s the relentless “VIP Club” sales pestering. If you enjoy being pressured into nonsense while trying to parent, eat, swim, or breathe — you’ll love it. Food & Hygiene (Brace Yourself) Food quality is… erratic. Some meals fine, many not great, a few you’d politely describe as “adventurous life choices.” More worrying than taste though is hygiene. Food areas didn’t inspire confidence, cleanliness standards were poor across the resort, bathrooms and pools were often dirty, and it’s honestly not surprising so many guests report stomach problems. Ours did. Every single member of our group. It turns out the VIP club bothered to have £1 fans to stop the flies landing on the food constantly, call me crazy, but the minimum hygine standards to stop flies getting all over the food shouldn't be an issue of vip only. Similarly if you have any sort of allergy the alarming lack of spoons meant food was mixed all the time, its an easy fix, perhaps only VIP members were allwed to not die of an allergic reaction. Our child also developed a rash while we were there. Draw your own conclusions. Let’s just say if you were hoping to lose a few pounds over Christmas, this resort has a creative solution. There is a wide range of food, some of it is good, if you are lucky enough to get it at the precicse moment it had been made. Restaurants & Organisation We had a restaurant booking that “didn’t exist” when we arrived. Rather than help, apologise, or even pretend to care, staff basically shrugged. They absolutely could have accommodated us — they simply couldn’t be bothered. The Good Stuff (because there is some) The beach is honestly breathtaking When clean, the pools are brilliant Kids absolutely loved the water park and facilities The resort looks impressive and should be amazing. The Bad Stuff (because sadly there’s a lot) Understaffed and poorly managed Hygiene that needs serious, immediate improvement Pushy VIP selling Occasional intimidation from staff Dirty pools and bathrooms far too often Inconsistent, frequently poor food General feeling that management has given up Bottom Line This resort could be incredible. The location is superb, the facilities are there, and it has massive potential. But right now it’s being completely undermined by poor hygiene, not enough motivated staff, weak management and a culture that doesn’t feel guest-focused. Kids will love it. Adults… may leave tired, slightly traumatised, and never testing their trust in buffet food ever again. If you’re reading other mixed or negative reviews and wondering if they’re exaggerating — they’re not. Believe them.

Just came back & after paying $12000 for one week, we are 100% disappointed. There were dirty dishes left in the outside hallway for over 5 days. (see photo below). The shower had mold growing on bottom. (See photo below). We ordered a suite & one of beds was pullout sofa that was not long enough for us. ( See photo below). Then, we got invited to VIP breakfast and were not told it was a timeshare presentation. We were tricked into attending. I even asked if it was a time share before entering & was told no. It was 4 hours of our time that was wasted. And one of the rooms…the gold room had mouse/rat feces all over window sill. My sister-in-law had 3 people in one room and had 1 bed for 3 people with 1 blanket. We asked for change of room with at least 2 beds and it kept on getting extended. We gave up after 3 days of waiting and asked for an extra blanket which took 2 more days to get. Beaches are very rough with big waves and it’s rocky in many areas. Food was disgusting. The only thing edible was pizza, cheeseburgers by the beach and the steak restaurant. One guest saw a rat in room & we did see feces. No coffee in morning before early flight. The VIP guests got treated with respect while all other guests were treated like less than paying customers. For example, my husband went to VIP bar that had zero customers in line on his way to the beach….the bartender said he would not serve him, even with tip….not one customer was at the bar! Then the Christmas show….had roped off area in front for VIP guests that got served Champaign while the rest of the guests had to sit at the back like peasants who paid a lot of money for this trip. The good features: amazing entertainment all day long, they had really good coffee/iced coffee in lobby & pool area did look nice.

Writing this review makes me sad, as I’ve been here a few times! This last visit I had a terrible experience! I asked for help from management and asked for what was seen on cameras and have gotten 0 help! I’ve sent several emails and made endless phone calls, no help! I can’t say how incredibly let down I am, as this was my favourite place to vacation in the DR. I will not be returning.

Had the worst experience, we booked for 21 nights based on gran sirenis rivera maya which was out of this world. However punta cana is awful. Mouldy rooms (we moved twice) parasites in the pool, our baby got a rash from the pool, we were told by the on site doctor its from the pool and not to use the pool. other babies had the rash too after meeting other guests. Staff were rude, dirty rooms, generally run down. Beds were mouldy. Poor service. My son nearly ate a tablet that was on the floor in the room from the previous guests. We flew home 11 days early! Cost me £1500 to get home thats how bad it was. Taking issues up with TUI and seeking medical care for my boy in the UK. I would not recommend anyone to stay here.