AAMama

We are planning our first ever all-inclusive trip for Feb 2016. There will be a group of 8 adults (ages 30s & 40s) & we are planning on going a Thursday-Sunday. None of us have ever visited DR before.

We are looking for a place that has:
1) good pool bars & where they serve drinks on the beach
2) where we don't have to wake up super early to get chairs on the beach
3) food is decent
4) casino on premises

I have already signed up for newsletters from cheapcaribbean.com for ideas. I would love recommendations from people who have been places they loved & would go back to. Thanks much!

EtoileFilante

I have no suggestions, but would love to know the answer to this as I want to go to the DR next year as well. Subscribing to the thread.

SDQBound

Here are my suggestions, organized by preference.

1- Paradisus Palma Real or Paradisus Punta Cana. If you are able to spend a few hundreds more per person and get "The Reserve" rooms and amenities, much better.
2- Melia Caribe Tropical. Again, spending a few hundreds more to get access to "The Level" is even better.
3- Royalton Punta Cana
4- Hard Rock Hotel Punta Cana
5- Any of the Iberostar
6- Dreams Punta Cana or Dreams Palm Beach

JulBs

My husband and I stayed at the Hard Rock Punta Cana in March 2014. They had a snafu with our first night reservation, but promptly fixed it and upgraded us to a very nice suite. The food was great, the pools varied from sans-clothing to live music to quiet! The beach was very nice, very well groomed and we never had trouble getting chairs under a cabana. The casino was nice as well. Overall, we would return in a heartbeat! We heard from others that had stayed at other hotels that this had the best food of all the all-inclusives in Punta Cana.

AAMama

That's very helpful. Thank you so much for your input @JulBs!

lasvegaswannabe

I travel frequently (5-6 times a year) to the Dominican Republic. Mostly to Punta Cana. I agree with the suggestions above but you may want to add Barceló Palace which is adults only or Barceló Palace Deluxe. The property which is large sits on in my opinion the best beach In Punta Cana. The Majestic properties, Colonial and Elegance are nice and if possible upgrade to Club Rooms, which are adult only. Another very nice choice is Iberostar Grand Bavaro which is adults only. Very nice property. The only property that I am aware of that has a "decent" casino is the Hard Rock. Even if you stay at another resort you can ask the concierge to get a pass to the Hard Rock Casino. Many do this. Keep in mind these are not " Las Vegas type casinos" although I have to say the Hard Rock comes the closest. My issue with the Hard Rock is that the property is huge, nice but huge. So be prepared for this and walking although there is a "tram" shuttle to take you from point A to point B ( especially for meals). Have a great trip. I leave on June 12th to Punta Cana...

AAMama

Thanks for the suggestions & information @lasvegaswannabe! We don't need any fancy casino. 2 of the guys that are coming like tables so their request was for me to find a resort with a casino on site.

thulesch

I really enjoyed the adults-only Catalonia Royal Bavaro Resort when visited a few years back. One of the nicest hotel rooms I have stayed in, upgrade to the deluxe, closer to the very beautiful, spacious, lots of loungers and shaded beach. If you stay at this resort you can also visit the much larger family resort next door which has additional amenities, the casino (very small and very tight), entertainment, etc. The restaurants were very classy and food was top notch.

AAMama

Thank you for the recommendation & the resort info @thulesch!

ayodeji13

Hard Rock, stayed there in Nov 2014. All suites property and tons of restaurants on site. (Its a massive, sprawling property)

Book now, thank me later. It literally fills every criteria you listed in your OP.


Cheers

gottaluvNW

Amongst all these options, which would you recommend for families with little kids? We will go with our little one to Punta Cana for a beach holiday in the near future.

Are there any months one should avoid entirely?
We were thinking of heading there either this April (easter holidays coming up) or December.

cheltzel

I cannot speak from personal experience on going with small children as we have been empty nesters for a few years. But we have stayed at the Hard Rock and at several Iberostar properties (in the Riviera Maya, not in the DR). Both seemed to have a lot of activities for children. Hopefully someone who has traveled with smaller children will post with more relevant experience.

Personally I would avoid the summer. It is really hot and humid. But it is the low season and is much cheaper. As you go into late summer/early fall you get into Hurricane Season and I have friends who have spent 2 or 3 consecutive days inside at the resort as the storms pass.

I have been to Punta Cana in the winter through Easter. This is the high season and things get more expensive. But the weather is very pleasant. And in my opinion it is the best time to go. Off the resort, things close down a bit over Easter weekend. There are several TripAdvisor forum threads on Easter in Punta Cana that you may want to check out.

FlyerTalker37

Hi everyone,

I am also looking for a hotel there and I can not easily find what I am looking for.
We will go with my girlfriend and we would like to avoid children but also the binge drinking professionnals. I have been to the Barcelo adult section two years ago and was really disappointed on this point.
I found a couple of hotel that may look like what I want but I am not 100% sure. How about the Royal Suite Turquesa or the Zoetry which is a bit expensive but we are willing to pay the Premium if there is no other choices.

Thanks in advance

Fireflyer05

I stayed at the Breathless Punta Cana 1.5 years ago. It's an adult only hotel, so no kids, and since i avoided the pool as much as i could (i don't travel to the Caribbean for a hotel pool) and had a Xhale Club room, which includes access to a private part of the beach, i also not encountered any binge drinking. However, at the pool of course there is a lot of animations and party going on, but there are enough possibilities to avoid that. The hotel itself is a bit secluded, but for me it was also an advantage. And they have a real all inclusive offer (except the expensive wines in the restaurants). But the food is completely included, you can use the A-la-carte restaurants as much as you want and they restock the minibar even twice a day on request.

Orange County Commuter

On a related note....

My mother and I have gone several years for Christmas and always stayed at the Iberostar Bavaro. We really like it, but I was looking for a smaller property. Looking at the Dreams Palm Beach. Anyone got a good comparison of the two?