TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

The hotel is beautiful and the beach is really relaxed and beautiful. Is more relax and familiar hotel than the rest Whyndham. The people and the staff is excellent. Especially mention to Joandra, Edwin, Danilo, Adonis, Jessy, Antonia. Jose Luis from Excursions also, thanks for chatting with us.

This is obviously my own personal observations and thoughts: Viva V is a beautiful resort on a wonderful stretch of beach where you can walk either direction for hours and a lovely 25 minute (bus) drive from Samana (AZS) Airport (a still quaint and small airport). The layout of the resort is easy to navigate and the low rise buildings have rooms that are clean with comfortable bed and clean, decent bedsheets. The rooms that have the pools, these pools are very rarely used and they are really cold. Bungalow area (across the drive from main building) are nestled nicely in gardens with a small sitting are with bar of their own. Amenities for shower in the rooms are minimal, so bring your own and the bathrobes are ready to be used more as rags than as robes (but clean and on the small side). The towels are good but housekeeping tend to limit the numbers and which towels they will provide (very inconsistent)...and that's where it ends! Our biggest concern was the food / buffet. Although the al la carte restaurants were decent it could be hard to get a reservation at an early time so the buffet was a good alternative for many meals. The service at the specialized restaurants was good and efficient however, beware the beef (throughout the resort actually), ensure it is cooked.! The Buffet; the floor was deadly slippery, didn't look like they cleaned it, food was not kept at correct temperatures and left out longer than what IMO, would be considered safe, also repetitive and a bit dull. Granted, I think they try. There never seemed to be enough dinnerware / glassware and what was being used was often cracked, chipped or dirty / old looking. There was a constant battle for locating tables that were set (unless you line up when buffet first opens for the meal), and then the tables were often not set in their entirety. I actually saw staff reusing some sets from other tables that didn't look (?) like they had been used ?????. There does not seem to be enough staff, training, supervision etc. or hygienic practices in general (even with the availability of hand sanitizer). Drinks were good as was the coffee. I even found the wine rather pleasant! The beer is Presidente on tap (very mild). As for the water; this resort does NOT use plastic bottle so make sure you bring your own. They use a system called Vevo throughout the resort that allows you access to filtered and good water. I did not find this an issue... except when the system lost power and there was no water to be had. They do have cartons of water should you require. We did lose power off and on throughout the week, electrics, water, WIFI etc. but the generators would pick up the slack fairly quickly. The pool would be considered small by many but IMO it was not an issue. It was kept clean and there were no real issues in finding loungers unless you wished a pad for the lounger, then that was an issue. The loungers are not comfortable so the pad was extremely beneficial (more of these would help the situation). The outside towels were always available. In general; I would not classify this as a 4 star resort. ?? This resort has great potential but with not enough resources and IMO poor hygiene practices I would not be returning. That said, I would recommend this location but be prepared! If you have a sensitive stomach / gut, I would not recommend. While we were there myself and many others fell prone to gastroenteritis. This is NOT pleasant albeit the onsite Doctor and Nurse were great and were being worked off their feet with these illnesses.????? The whole resort seemed to be a bit disorganized and at times felt chaotic (again could be lack of staff) The staff in general were very pleasant and helpful (special mentions to Joandra and Edvin at guest services, Yerica at the Spa, Maria in housekeeping and Maria in the Buffet). This is a very TIP based resort, more so than many others I have been to even though we do tip. Here, without the tips, one didn't receive consistent quality of service. Also, if you wish to exchange USD, they will for pesos, and they won't even give smaller USD in exchange for a larger denomination of USD?????(hotel policy)!! Also, there is a high percentage of French Canadians who visit this resort compared to English speaking. This was a a first for me. So, be prepared to try and speak more than just Spanish. ?? An issue I do have are the smokers. Most were very courteous however, please stop butting out in the grass, beach ground etc. The remnants are not biodegradable and it is filthy making the resort look nasty! ??

My wife and I and another couple visited here late Jan/early Feb 2026 after having also done so the year before. Love visiting here, thought I would share my thoughts in the resort for others who are looking for a Dominican Republic destination. -love the Samana location, I prefer it to the more built out alternatives such as Punta Cana. -also prefer the adult only component. We love kids but this suits us really well. -great beach/sand/palm tree shade options, lovely pool, there's well fitted exercise gym we used most days, and grounds are well maintained -one huge improvement over the previous year is the drinking water set up. A year ago drinking water was provide by way of bottled water (plastic bottles). Very safe but ecologically this was a wreck. This year they've installed drinking water stations throughout the which dramatically reduced the amount of plastic water bottles that are needed and are discarded. Great that you made the switch, thanks. -Food is good to very good, there is always something in the expansive buffet to choose from. The one weakness for the four of us is the dessert table. Expansive but the style of the overwhelming number of desserts (cake like) is something we are not used to in our home base here in Toronto, very different from our offerings at home and something all four of us bypassed. The best options included the croissants, the ice cream and the almond sliver cookies. I would encourage the resort to add one or two options that are more appealing to clientele from Canada , eg brownies or chocolate chip cookies. The majority of offerings could remain unchanged, a couple of familiar options would be most welcome and would be easy to add. Still on food, the Fuzion restaurant is superb, highly recommend!! A number of staff were standouts but a special mention to Andrea at the buffet reception area and Sebastian who overseas the food service in the main buffet and at Fuzion. You two were great. -I would say that maintenance of the rooms is down a bit form the previous year. Our phone in our room did not work, neither did the phone for our friends. Our bathroom window could open but the crank that closes the window was missing so it would not close. The resort should take care to improve on this maintenance component. -One other recommendation, the evening shows in theatre, very good, but the sound level is painfully loud, so much so that we had to leave the shows early. Please bring this sound level down. -Lastly, but very important, is the fun and fellowship from the animation staff. A big thanks to Julia, Selena, Bryan, Rafael who supervises the program (thanks again Rafael), and the biggest thx to the superstar at the resort Kristen, who was so much fun and and the absolute best Bachata instructor. Muchos gracias!!! Hope to see the crew again next year, we recommend Viva V to all our friends and family. -

I've travelled extensively for work, but this is the first time I've gone South and to an All Inclusive Resort. So...my first review. Long, in depth, but here we go..... The Good/Great..... **Adult only....6 Stars for that alone! Say no more. What a beautiful resort. Very clean, tidy. Open, airy and well laid out. Glorious views from most everywhere. **An incredibly beautiful, clean, safe beach. You can walk (barefoot if you like) for miles in either direction and swim anywhere. Public beaches and a couple of little restaurants along the way. No shark nets, as I was told, "that's not a problem". Plenty of Cabanas and loungers all along the more than ample resort beach front. Well spaced out. Maintenance was regularly clearing up the seaweed early in the mornings. Dig and bury....so no stink from that....Excellent. An onsite Gym (with instructor), showers and an Onsite Medical Office. $$$ not included for the medical. The pool was incredible as well. Very clean, cool, nicely situated, with a great view of the ocean while you float around. Foot and body wash stations for the beach comers. There are lots of loungers and Cabana's. Ample towels available throughout the day. Maint. vacuumed and cleaned up the pool and area early in the a.m. Daily aquafit and yoga are a nice touch to get you moving. Small groups and experienced instructors. Much fun. The entertainment staff were all great. The evening shows were fun and entertaining with some of the onsite staff partaking in the theatre. Very inclusive, lively and they kept things rolling in the afternoons with a variety of events and prizes to be won. They perked things up with games and activities on the rainy days as well. Not that there were any rainy days....we're in the Dominican...its all sunshine here. The evening musical entertainment near the foyer was superb, if but a little too loud. Very hearable all over the resort and in your room, even with the doors closed. Very talented musicians. A nice touch. The staff were generally really good. The Housekeeping, Luggage Attendants and Bartenders were great. Very cheerful and attentive. Shout out to Jordy and Andrilous? and all the servers at the Beach Bar. They were so friendly and accommodating. Ask, and you shall receive with a smile. Try the Mamajuana....it is the Best. It truly helps with any upset tummies along the way. Bring some home with you. You wont regret it. The resident Kitties, (6 or so) are a nice touch as well. Keeps the rodent populations in check and they are fun to have around. Not annoying, just cute, entertaining and hungry. Manzano Bananas.....eat them every day, if you can get them.....so yummy. Great Croissants at the buffet. Makes yummy little sandwiches with the sliced deli meats and cheeses. The water stations are a blessing. Nice clean drinkable good water... Everywhere. We did not have any dietary sickness issues, except for our own self inflicted over indulgence. The pizzas were great....when you could get some. The excursions are a great way to get to see the Dominican beauty.... Beautiful country, friendly people, great local food. Some of the best meals that I had while on the Island. The BAD...... The reception staff was less than pleasant nor had any sense of urgency for all things. It was quite difficult to communicate if you are English speaking only. Sometimes, multiple staff standing around behind the counter, but were not the right persons to talk to about anything. Everyone specializes in one thing only apparently. You might have to wait for them to come onto shift to get any help. Long lines for check-ins and only one or two staff assisting in that process. It was very slow. If your exchanging money at the front desk, get on that right away. They do not always have exchange currency on hand every/all day. There is a bank machine on site, with excessive charges. I would recommend booking any excursions through you trip advisor if possible, as opposed to the Hotel. There seems to be a better selection through Air Transat, etc. So sorry..... the pool opens and closes at 8. This is an Adult only resort and not a Party place. I would have hoped that the pool would have been open earlier (for a good morning swim before the sunbathers all show up.) and for a nice evening swim if you wish. No partying. No go..... **Also, they could use a few handle bars for entering and exiting the pool. I spoke to a couple of older/medical assisted folks who commented that it felt unsafe for them entering and exiting he pool without a grip bar. Beach/pool towels are only available during pool hours. Take extra towels the day before, if you plan on going down to the beach in the evening or early morning. The ever present WiFi was not!......it was very spotty at best. Room, beach or pool. It didn't matter. There was no consistency at all. The lounge chairs, beach and pool are quite uncomfortable. The metal bar across the back makes comfort elusive. You'll need a couple of pool towels to pack it up across your lower back for any length of stay. That said, there are plenty of lounge chairs available and they are movable on the beach area. That way, you could move your chair/s directly in front of (or not), of someone else who has already picked out a perfect spot so they could watch the ocean. Situational Awareness people......please use it. Have some consideration for others. The Food.... Well, its a toss up on whether to include this in the BAD or the UGLY section. I'll leave it here, because there is clearly a great deal of effort goes into their food service offerings. It looks fabulous.......Presentation was spot on. All the food that should have been Hot, was cold, or warm....at best. All the food that should have been Cold, was not. Room temp. When the Pizza came out fresh, it was Hot.....briefly and while it lasted. Replenishment levels for everything were abysmal. All day Pizza was very hit and miss. 1/2 hour waits until "4 more pizza's were brought out, to a line up of people waiting. gone instantly. You could wander around for 5 minutes or more, waiting for multiple empty pans to be replenished. They weren't, frequently, until you asked for refills. Then you'd wait at least another 5 minutes or more. The specialty nights were O.K. at best. Bland flavours. Bread was not fresh. The fresh make breakfast station was most disappointing. ONE attendant behind the counter for the entire resort. Same with the Pizza counters...very slow serving. A long line of guests waiting. Bacon pan was always empty...and not hot or enough when it did come out. Having a fresh omelet made was a challenge. You can't see what there is to add to your eggs, because its all hidden behind a counter. Cheese, Cheese is all that's offered. No English speaking.... The one and only Toaster didn't work.....ever. I think the bread just got stale going through the toaster so many times. Huge line ups for that experience... no toast. This was reported to staff daily...no change. Flies on the buffet. There were some small battery operated fans here and there, but they were no match for the Dominican Flies. The pizza makers and all staff in general don't wear any PPE. No hair nets or * food handling gloves*....ever! The only food that was covered regularly, was the sliced fresh fruit....which was delicious. A lot of repeat dishes at the buffet. One new Meat, Chicken or Fish offering per evening. Standard desserts....mini cakes and ice cream and fruit The Al a Carte experience was not great either. Three venues. Our one meal that we got booked dragged out for 1 1/2 for three small plates. Very late booking times. 8:30 - 9:45 p.m. Too late for this gal. Restricted time periods and days to book. I guess you need to be a professional at this to get any good times or restaurants. Rooms... The room was very spacious, nice and clean. Beautiful view from our 3rd floor balcony. Nice safe in the closet. Slippers and House Coats provided. Had to ask for a second luggage rack. (The plot thickens here into the UGLY section. Stay tuned later.) I had the squeakiest bed, I've ever had the displeasure of trying to sleep in. It kept my partner and I awake every time I moved on it. We reported this to the front desk. They sent up two Spanish speaking Maint. men, so we couldn't communicate without giving them a demostration.....to their great amusement. All they did was spin the bed around, so it was slightly less squeaky for the remainder of our stay. Stellar performance. It took a while to figure out how long to leave the hot water running to finally get hot water in the shower or sink...on the third floor. It wastes a lot of water before it warms up. The air conditioning in the room was stuck at 15 degrees. You could reset, put it on auto, do what ever you liked. It liked to be at 15! Freezing all the time. If you left the door open, then it was hot and humid. It also sounded like a jet engine while it ran constantly. No auto shut off. Bring a sweater and some long johns to sleep in. Also had the two jolly Maint. guys come back up to have a look at that. Nope... they couldn't figure that out either. No English...no communication. They left happy. Us, not so much. For two days, we didn't have any towels in the room....None The Housekeepers said that they were out. They'd bring some later, but no.... We called the front desk twice before dinner asking for towels, so we could shower before dinner...no show. We had to use our house coats to dry off on. 2 bath towels did show up around 10 p.m. Nothing else. **Side note.....We tip really well while travelling, so that was not the issue. The UGLY.... Here we go...... If you love to smoke cigarettes and Vape, love the smell of smoke everywhere or just don't care, this is the place for you. You cannot escape it here. Around the pool, in the common areas, by the Bar, the beach and most annoyingly, on the balcony's. "No smoking in the rooms" is their claim to fame here. Perhaps that is where people should be required to smoke, inside....so they aren't inconveniencing others, everywhere. You can't even enjoy a nice early morning coffee or a afternoon or evening drink/ snack on your balcony, because someone is always on their balcony smoking. It's so disappointing to spend that amount of my money on what should have been such a beautiful relaxing resort and have it ruined by such a gross, unhealthy, inconsiderate activity. Even in the One and Only, clearly marked with signage "No Smoking" area of the entire resort....right outside of the Buffet underneath the covered area.... sat a couple, chain smoking for about 40 minutes while waiting for the Buffet to open. This was also brought to the attention of the Front Desk attendant (which was about 12 feet away)........and nothing was done. Nobody made a move. There are also cigarette butts all over the beach. Not part of the priority beach clean up. There was a broken glass just off one the pathways. We reported that promptly and then, the next afternoon, we watched a young man come to clean it up. He picked up a few of the large pieces and then left all the rest of the smaller pieces there. Job well done! The broken glass stayed there for the remainder of our trip. Stay on the paths....wear shoes. Up sellers on the beach and throughout the resort. Stop it. If we want to upgrade, we can come and ask about it to your delightfully helpful front Desk Staff. The Buffet... Continuation from the Bad to UGLY section... Chipped dinnerware, plates, bowls.. a lot Cracked/chipped glasses and cups Table settings were sporadic at best. No napkins, or no spoons. Some set up nice, some not. Filthy cutlery !!!! Many instances of this. I took one disgustingly dirty spoon ...from a fresh table setting...to show the Manager and he freaked out at me for setting it on his desk. Well, they expected me to eat off it, so why not set it on his desk? Always check it and wipe it yourself. The linen hanging around the Cabanas could be repaired or updated. Not very fresh looking and damaged. CONCLUSION......finally! On a more positive note, we booked our trip through Air Transat. Air Transat was awesome. Everything went as planned, without a hitch. The local excursions were well worth the additional $$. A Huge Thank You to our Air Transat Rep. 'Katherine', who apparently works 24/7 for your convenience. She has a great dry sense of humor, is patient and is very knowledgeable in all things Dominican. Fluent in French/Spanish/English. She was also one of few who spoke very good English, which is difficult to find here in the Dominican. Katherine deserves a raise. I would love to give Viva V Samana Dominican a really great rating, as I think you would be hard pressed to find a better beach, a lovelier pool & small Resort feel and a more accommodating general staff. I would also consider coming again with the food quality as is,.......now that I know some of the tricks of the vacationing game. BUT SADLY NO........ The Resort's 'Open Smoking Policy' is a deal breaker for us. It completely compromised our enjoyment of such a beautiful Resort. You can do better...........

We have spent 10 days at this resort. Overall experience is not so great. Food was not good, I had 2 times food poisoning there, what spoiled our entire vacations. Problem is with food that get served for several days after prepearing it. For few days, we had decent food, but the next day, really there is nothing to select. Room was clean, front desk people very supportive and kind. Servers in restaurant do not understand English and not enough of them during lunch or dinner time, so you have to wait to table with your plate in your hands. Beach is nice, but too much of high waves, red flag was on beach for 8 out of 10 days. Selections of drinks at bars are very limited, but expresso was really great. Would I go there again? Not really. Management of their kitchen(s) needs to be replaced, not qualified to run it.