TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

This was our first time at an All-Inclusive resort and our first time in the Dominican Republic. We went with the Preferred Club as were able to get a decent deal. For context, we're a couple in our late 40s/mid-50s. We usually go to Aruba, having gone there regularly over the past decade, and tend to want quiet, relaxing vacations. We drink, but we've never been crazy about it. We're more foodies than anything else, and we never strayed off the resort because the goal of this trip was strictly relaxing. Our favorite thing to do on vacation is have good meals and read books, so we're pretty laid back. The good: The grounds are immaculate, and there is clearly staff dedicated to the upkeep. Almost everyone who worked there was friendly and welcoming. We had a butler, Anthony, who I think was likely somewhat new was eager to engage and always checking in if we needed anything. The buffet was better than it had to be, and we tried all the restaurants except the Asian one. Overall, I'd say the food was good. The interesting: While we liked all the restaurants we went to, there was an odd inconsistency from time to time in either the preparation of food or the service. We are unsure if it was different cooks, just a busier time of week, or something else. For example, we arrived on a Sunday, and a Monday night dinner at Bordeaux was outstanding in terms of service and food. We decided to go back on Friday as our last night, and it was... underwhelming and frankly disappointing. We ordered the same entrees, but the sides seemed different, and they weren't quite as good as they were on Monday. Unfortunately, our server didn't realize we hadn't gotten our meals for approximately 25 minutes after our appetizers were taken away—and didn't notice until I pointed it out to them. Meanwhile, the table across the way, seated after us, got their meals before us, as did the six-seat table next to us, who ordered their entrees after us. Another example would be Coco Cafe, the coffee bar. A mocha freeze one day was slushy and icy, but the next day, it was watered down and seemed to have no freezing. Those are just two examples of what we experienced in restaurant service. It was either over-the-top excellent or somewhat disengaged, which was very odd. What needs to be improved: There are signs everywhere, and in the daily bulletin, saying that no palapas or chairs can be reserved. That...is not the case. We are normally early risers and headed to the beach to hunker down at 7:00 am and start reading. Almost every palapa and chair / bali bed by the quiet pool/chairs around the pool -- had towels on them. In theory, people should be turning towels in, but I realized people were saving them overnight, then getting up at some ungodly hour and going out and reserving them. We managed to find a spot under a tree with chairs at 7:00 am. More than 1/2 the "reserved" chairs in front of us had no one show up until about 11:00 am - 12:00 pm to sit there. No Bali bed that was first come/first serve, and NO chairs by the pool near the preferred lounge were open any morning when we would normally walk outside at 7:00 am (mind you, pools/towel station opens at 8:00 am). I get it. I do -- people want to get good seats. However, the resort needs to enforce its rules or have staff monitor it in the morning to tell people it's not allowed. I also get that they don't want to have staff confront guests...but really, paying the extra as a "preferred" club member -- and then realizing if I don't engage in the same "game" of getting up and "reserving" a pair of chairs at what -- 5:00 am? 6:00 am? -- and we're out at 7:00 am? I expect that on a cruise ship, so maybe I shouldn't have been surprised, but still. That's poor planning and management. If that's the case, don't even bother saying there "are" rules. We paid extra for a bali bed reservation by the quiet pool our last full day because I was so annoyed at the chair hogging. And of course, the resort got their extra money, but I must confess it left a very bad impression. Could I have removed towels and just plopped myself down? Yup. Would it have been worth it to engage with someone that entitled? Nope. I honestly don't think I would have been so annoyed if there signs weren't blazing everywhere -- or in the daily newsletter -- that the resort would have staff remove towels placed anywhere before 7:00 am. About the third day in, it struck me that an AI is a cruise on land. You could go on excursions like a cruise. You could eat 24 hours a day, like on a cruise, and if you had a drinks package, you could drink as much as you want. As on a cruise, some want to make new friends and have a great time, and more power to them! We were coming to have a relaxing vacation after a very stressful 2023, and we managed to have it despite the glitches and just rolled with it. It may seem like we didn't enjoy ourselves—but we truly did. Again, the staff was wonderful, and the resort was nicely kept. We never went next door to Dreams, the family version of Secrets. We did not catch most of the entertainment shows, as we usually had dinner reservations around 8:30 pm. The shows run nightly from 9:00 p.m. to 9:45 p.m., and it was clear the entertainment crew also worked hard from what we saw. There are at least two pretty active FB groups dedicated to this resort that I would encourage people to check out. You'll hear from folks who adore the resort and go multiple times and others who compare it to other AIs they've been to. Believe me, everyone has an opinion....including on the reserving pool chairs debacle. ;) There is a very mixed crowd at the resort—honeymooners, groups of friends, and couples of all ages, though the crowd skews towards the late 20s/30s. As far as we can tell, it is also not a racially diverse resort in terms of guests, so if that matters to you, you may want to go elsewhere. Again, we wanted a relaxing vacation, and we did have one. I read a dozen books during the week, which was fantastic. Would we visit again? I honestly don't know. We've been on a few cruises and actually like the idea of an AI better than being stuck on a boat. Would we return to this one? Again, unsure. Perhaps in low season, if not as crowded, or we might try another smaller AI. Or maybe I just become the jerk that gets up at 5:00 am and reserves a primo beach seat and then doesn't show up until 11:00 am. ;)

This was our third trip back for 10 days . We were met by our UVC rep Ruben and our butler Ismael . Check in went smoothly and we were escorted to our room in building 3 . I had asked to be moved to building 1 which is our preference. We were assured we could be moved the next day. Moving was easily done as our butler Ismael had arranged everything for us. Once again we were escorted to our new location which was amazing. Our room was located close to the preferred areas that we like to be in. Olio restaurant is our favourite restaurant at this resort. The staff is very attentive and happily great us with welcome home family. I have food allergies and the managers always made sure I was taken care of and safe. We ate every breakfast and lunch here and sometimes dinner. When available. This year our butler Ismael was outstanding with keeping in touch with us regularly. He arranged our dinner locations and had the staff reserve a quiet corner for us. My husband wears hearing aids and this made our meals wonderful as we could talk to each other with our all the background noise. Some nights we even had rose petals and special dessert for our Anniversary. There was really nothing he would or could not do for us. We just had to ask . The Best part was when we had 3 days left he continued to be our butler ever though it was his time off. He kept in touch. The past years our butlers did not continue to keep in touch. He even followed up with us after we arrived back home to Canada . To see if we had a safe trip home. Ismael is outstanding in our opinion and I can’t wait to request him upon next year’s visit back. We initially said we would take a break and go elsewhere next year, but the Olio staff and managers here and Ismael attentiveness have us wanting to return. So see you all next year. Thank you also to the amazing bar staff at the preferred quiet pool and beach.

Sandra, Cruz, Ruben and lucas at the riviera buffet were wonderful and waited on all of us every morning. We actually had one of our best evenings at the Riviera buffet, Where we were waited upon with champagne, wine, and multiple drink spirit.A very wonderful experience period the beach is also very beautiful and the surrounding area looks like a castle. I know I hope to see everyone here again next year. It was a wonderful family gathering go loud.

The best thing about this very pleasant hotel is the staff who are genuinely friendly and welcoming (unlike in some parts of the Caribbean). The hotel itself is great - nice pools and restaurants set in pretty gardens with decent sized rooms (and in our case a HUGE whirlpool bath). There are not nearly enough loungers - you have to be down by 07.15 if you want a spot on the beach or under an umbrella by the pool (why do only a quarter of the pool loungers have umbrellas?...) Food is what you would expect from an all-inclusive: great breakfasts, good lunch, indifferent dinners (pretty much the same as lunch, but I always want something a little different and better for dinner). Drinks are fine - cocktails by the pool seem pretty weak (despite the amount of liquid that goes into them) but that's fine if you want to stay sober! Beer is cold and fairly light. House wine was perfectly drinkable (didn't venture onto the wine list which starts at about $40 a bottle). I worried about tips a bit - took plenty of US$. I needn't have worried: the staff always appreciate something, of course, but there is absolutely no expectation that you will leave a tip every time you have a meal or a drink. No need to book the a la carte restaurants - and you can't in fact - but you might have to wait a bit to get a table especially around 7 in the evening. The only restaurant you have to book at is the Japanese one: frankly this was a horrendous experience where we shared a table round a large hot plate and had a very ordinary stir fry (no choice) prepared in an extremely noisy way (I guess some people enjoy it though - it's pretty popular). The hotel makes a real effort with evening music entertainment - as many as 16 people on stage, great costumes and lights. We didn't upgrade to the "Preferred" club - we were asked if we wanted to (but not hassled about it). It's quite expensive and didn't seem worth it for a couple of different restaurants/bars/pools - the "plebs" club was fine for us! All in all, a pretty good option - nothing exceptional (apart from the staff) but a very pleasant way of spending a week. Would I go back? Sure, but just not to the Japanese restaurant :-)

Had a wonderful vacation at this awesome resort. Everyone was very friendly and accommodating. Would like to mention Octavio, Charleston and especially our server Keila Silvestre. The excursion to Saeona Island was very enjoyable. We had a blast!!! This was our second vacation to this resort.