kcdude

Dreams La Romana all inclusive has been converted into Hilton La Romana on Nov 20th 2018 and I checked in the day it got converted. They celebrated that I was their first Diamond guest. I would think I was their first Hilton Honor's guest of any status.
A great property with wonderful staff.
There are good reviews on trip advisor.

Adam1222

Sorry for the delay, but following up as promised. I did a fuller review and posted a ton of pics here: Hotel Review: Hilton Playa del Carmen ? You Went Where???
It seems Hilton is already rebranding some of the restaurant names based on the website but who knows.

Beachchaser

Thanks for the detailed write up and wonderful photos, I am planning a 7 night stay in December, also it was nice you could pick a great des6ination for your mileag run!

isle-hawg

Great review, very informative. I will be flying into CUN and staying there in May. What is the expectations on tipping the staff at this hotel? Is there a need to get Peso's or is US $ accepted in the local area outside the hotel and in it if tipping is expected?

Adam1222

You can pay via credit cards most places. I would not presume you can use USD, although many places may accept them at an unfavorable rate.
Tips are not included. I always tip people in these circumstances. For tips, you can definitely use USD though.

Cat88L3

Staff prefers tips in USD vs pesos. Out of the resort, it is best to use pesos. You will get ripped off using USD. Try to use a credit card that doesn't have a foreign transaction fee. As Adam1222 said, staff doesn't receive tips that are supposedly included in rate. This pretty much goes for all AI's in the Caribbean and Mexico. Staff will completely appreciate your tips :-)

isle-hawg

Thanks folks on the feedback! I do have several cards with no FTF and prefer to put as much spending as possible on cards vs cash to get the points/miles. My takeaway is to bring cash for tips and use cc outside the hotel. I do not see a need then for Peso's unless I am missing something. I plan to use USA Transfers for rides to/from airport and prepay via card.

isle-hawg

Adam, did a thorough review. I'll try and pile on from my experience there. We were there for 5 night reward stay over Cinco de Mayo. I echo his positive comments IRT the staff. Across the board, I thought they were the best, most friendliest that I have ever encountered. That is saying a lot, because I am not a rookie at travel and like most here, am accustomed to coming across some amazing hotel staff in our travels.

The hotel was sold out every night that we stayed there, however it did not ever seem crowded. The most crowded it seemed was in the main pool area during the afternoons when they had either a band or doing a foam/bubble party or having some type of water aerobic event.

I believe whatever integration issue this hotel had with HH's IT during Adam's check-in was resolved. When I gave my name, the person greeting me looked at her list and mentioned that I was HH Diamond. The check-in process is different i.e. slower then many of us HH folks are used to e.g. there is no online check-in - nor digital key. Rather then having folks stand in line they add you to the check-in queue, ask you to take a seat and offer to bring you complimentary beverages including cocktails until it is your turn. Once it is your turn you are escorted to one of the 6 desks that are manned, have a seat and complete the process. Checking out in the morning was much quicker and did not require any waiting.

We dinned mostly at the Rincon Mexicanos and Spice. The latter being their buffet restaurant. We thought they had a good selection and changed up their offerings every day that we were there. I concur with Adam's comment's that the food was good but not amazing. To be clear though no complaints from me or Mrs. isle-hawg on that or anything else at this hotel. I also took advantage of room service, which is also complimentary and 24 hours. I had the chicken cordon blue that I thought was pretty tasty. The mini bar is initially stocked with a variety of stuff. If you call room service they will restock it with cold beverages in the amount of your choosing. Daily I left a note with how I wanted it restocked and received what I asked for.

Like Adam, I believe that I was upgraded to a room with a more desirable view and balcony. We were in room 264 which overlooks the main courtyard garden/pool area. Also could see the ocean from the balcony. This room is relatively near the lobby, which we found convenient. We enjoyed the room and would welcome it again. Due to the daily activities in the main garden/pool area some may not like it and prefer quieter room facing away from the main courtyard area. We did not find the outside noise which was less then most atrium ES' properties an issue at all for us.

Housekeeping left animals made of folded up towels every day on your bed, they are amazing. The hotel also does turn-down service every day,

IRT HH status benefits at this hotel. This is what greeted us when we walked into our room.




The lettering is all done in sprinkled multi-colored rice with some flowers for accents. The rice was removed during the turn-down service, the flowers placed on the night stands along with bottled water and chocolate kisses. This Hilton does not have an executive lounge but frankly, they do not need one as everything is complimentary outside of what Adam wrote about. Their 24 hour self serve restaurant is what I believe the equivalent to an EL, but better IMO.

On the 6th they sent out invites to HH members both via under the door and on the IPAD to a HH event in the main courtyard. They put on a brief show, had servers walking around with cocktails and offered some hors d'oeuvres. Those that showed up were put in for a free raffle. Fist prize was a snorkel/scuba diving trip to a nearby reef. There were two other prizes also. Perhaps, not so amazing for an all-inclusive, but I thought the gesture was nice and appreciated. About 20 showed up for the event. Likely not all the HH folks staying at the hotel. Outside that event, none of the other guests I met with were HH members at least as far as I know. Those I met and spoke with were all on repeat stays from when this hotel was called the Royal.

I concur with the advice given to me up-thread IRT tipping the hotel staff, they are fantastic, well deserving and appreciated the tips.

Up-thread I asked about peso's vs US $. I can verify US dollars fine and appreciated inside the hotel, and actually got a better exchange rate using them out in the tourist section just outside it rather then Peso's e.g. 375 peso's = ~ $20. The $20 item I purchased would have cost me 400 in pesos.

Beachchaser

I just returned from a 7 night stay using 2 weekend night certs and 320k points, all of the renovations have been completed except a few minor touch ups. As a diamond (aspire cardholder) I was upgraded to a room overlooking the central garden and no paid upgrades were available as the hotel was at capacity. The food overall was very good for an all inclusive and you can also dine at the sister resort Panama Jack's, we went to the italian restaurant bella which was great. The pools are well maintained but seem to be showing some wear and tear and the beach is a fine place to spend an afternoon but is somewhat compressed due to beach erosion occurring in playa del carmen. For transfers we took USA transfers from Cancun airport which was $110 and about a 70 minute drive due to traffic. MISC: The drinks are somewhat watered down so if you like it stronger just ask and they are happy to accommodate, at the pool/beach no bottled water just cups from a large bottle, all beaches are public in Mexico so we had lots of locals at the beach along with marriachi bands, vendors selling churros, jewelry, mangos etc which we didn't mind as it was a more cultured experience. Overall this hotel falls along the lines of zilara cancun with 5th ave being better than Downtown cancun and below hyatt ziva which has a better beach, pools and a more luxurious turquoise tower.

chrisny2

Do you recall how those resort coupons work? Is it, for example, $20 off the Lobster/Jazz dinner? (And is there a full price list somewhere?) Or does it mean you can attend the Lobster/Jazz dinner for a $20 copay?

JC91

Does it work on the hilton playa del carmen all inclusive resort too? Booking 1 instead of 2 since 1 person is fewer rate than 2 people. and have 2 people to stay?

Adam1222

What is "it"? But yes all-inclusives​ charge per person not per room. You cannot sneak in a second guest and only pay for 1.

Finkface

A quick search on Hilton’s website gives the answer, which is no, the second guest does not stay free at an all-inclusive which, by definition, includes meals.

https://hiltonhonors3.hilton.com/en/...and-terms.html

3) A second guest stays free in the Member's room on qualifying stays at hotels when there are additional charges for double occupancy. This benefit excludes stays at any hotel when the rate includes additional components (e.g., meals, activities, parking), or specialized rates (e.g. package rates, bed & breakfast rates) that are quoted as a per person or per room charge.