Catalonia Punta Cana -All Inclusive

First off let me start off by saying that Americans and Canadians are spoiled by what they see on TV and perceive to be 5 stars. 5 star in the US/Canada is not the same as 5 star in Mexico or Dominican. Our "5 stars" would be the lap of luxury to those people. So with that being said, remember you are going to a third world country to be provided what they feel are 5 star accomodations. I see people saying that had a wonderful time, but giving the resort 2 stars because there were ants.. or mosquitos.. or their kid fell down. Seriously?

my husband and I spent 3 nights here for our 20th wedding anniversary. Check-in was smooth and we got "upgraded" to "privileged". Now, we thought that was great but the only real perk was that we were close to the beach and pool. However we were about a 10 minute walk to the front desk. Not too much of a bad thing because you can take the scenic route which is very beautiful. The other option was walking under the shaded walkway, non scenic, which ran parallel to the scenic route but on the other side of the villas. The room was, uh, not so good. The bed was made but the tub was dirty and the shower was very cheap looking with a cloth curtain that kept flowing into the shower while you showered. The shower and tub were in a separate room from the tub. The stocked fridge had an open, already used, soda in it. The convenience of the buffet restaurant by the beach and pool was great but the food was not. The pool bar was great. On a whole the experience was a good one. We ate at the buffets (the one by the front desk was better) and took everything in stride. The grounds were beautiful but we'd definitely pay a little more money to stay in a more upscale all-inclusive next time.

The ride from the airport to the hotel was great. Very short (20 minutes maybe) and coco tours were wonderful. however upon arriving we were taken to a room that looked like someone else was still staying in it with the bed sheets on floor/towels laying all over/and dirty dishes everywhere. the bell boy told us to wait there and he left. we waited at least half hour before we used the phone to call front desk and they finally sent someone else down and switched rooms for us. the new room was really nice and the pool and beach were wonderful. a lot of sea weed but staff cleaned it up each morning best they could. the food was best we have eaten yet. the grounds are beautiful and well taken care of. so much wildlife. stores and shops right in resort so no need to leave for anything you need. Those are all our positives. negatives included very rude staff (with exception of few and far between), terrible drinks at the bar (no alcohol in them unless specify you want it and bartenders are very rude at the pool bar). we even bought a bottle of rum at the store to add in our drinks after we got them and we think it was still watered down. the resort and beach had so many kids that it became a bit distracting and took away for the romantic aspect of the trip completely. also, beware there were a lot of topless women of all ages and children. we went to the excellence the previous year for our honeymoon and def got spoiled there so I think we just expected way more for what we payed..

Hotel and grounds were beautiful, food was much less than great, beach was nice but not pristine for a Caribbean location! Foot note: I believe is a ridiculous fact, Men are require to wear long pants at dinner! Its a tropical location not a 5 star resort...

We had a marvelous time body surfing in the waves of the clean swept beautiful beaches, cooling off in the large beautiful pools, having an enjoyable scuba lesson in the pool and going out with a group snorkeling. All buffets were tasty, the theme restaurants were fun and delicious. The inland tour gave us a real feel for The Dominican Republic. It was very entertaining and totally enjoyable. The medical facilities which we had need of provided a solution to our needs. Staff were very accommodating and friendly.

My experience was somewhat distressful compared to the relaxing time I was hoping for remembering my last vacation. From the moment we arrived the staff at the hotel was rude and unhelpful with exception of the bar tenders. This attitude persisted through the entire stay. Hotel staff totally lacks customer service training and the language barrier was not the excuse, I speak perfect Spanish. The room size was good and clean, bed clothes and towels were stained, smelled bad and did not appear to be washed properly, beach towels were always damp despite the fact that they were changed daily. There was no internet access for 4 days. The food was abundant but taste was mediocre, even at the specialty restaurants: Sushi, Italian, Crepes, did't try the Mexican but was adviced by another guest to avoid it. Deserts and drinks were too sweet. Fresh fruits, salad and fish were good. The Texan Grill was an exception, great meat, great salads, ask for the Churrasco. All spirits and wines offered in the bars and buffets were disgusting, wines were vinegar and watered down, all spirits were unknown local brands and all tasted the same BAD! You could not tell the difference from a wisky, a rum, a vodka, a tequila a gin, tried them all in the hope of finding something half reasonable. The exception was the wine offered at the Suhi and Italian restaurants but too expensive to buy by the bottle and the choices were very limited, most were not worth it. The local beer was good. The comon facilities were nice and clean, beautiful architecture, nicely kept grounds, the disco was ok as well as the casino, the golf course was nice and the tennis courts were well kept. The beach was magnificent, one of the best I've ever been at! And I have been in many around the world. Long beach with beautiful soft, white sand that never gets hot, lots of palm trees, the ocean is calm, with a beautiful variety of colors from clear,turquoise to saphire blues. There were plenty of beach chairs but not enough umbrella shades, so get up early if you wish to get one, otherwise use the shade of the palm trees. Summarizing, I feel I overpaid for the hotel, but I would recommend it at a lower price. Hotel service and food is very lacking but you can work around it, the beach is so beautiful it helps you forget it all.

we explored the country as a part of our honeymoon. The concierge was not very helpful. This trip had a alot of negative points.

Overall, we had a nice time, but did have some issues. The resort was nice and we liked the beach and pool area. The food was average. When they say "all-inclusive", they really only mean things they don't want to charge you for--you will get asked to pay extra for certain wines and beers. We ran into a few problems during our stay. Our room was generally clean and cool (air conditioning worked well), but we did find ants on the counter in the bathroom, including on one of our toothbrushes, which was disgusting. Also, we brought one pillow of our own, which the housekeepers took from our room one day and we never saw it again. The minibar was supposed to be stocked everyday, including beer, and we received none on some days. We did call and ask for beer to be stocked, and they never showed up even though they said they were coming with some. When we returned home, we found holes in some of our clothing, and it looked like rats had chewed on them--that then became the most disappointing and disgusting aspect of the hotel for us. Would not return to this resort, but we still mostly enjoyed our stay this time.

The beach and the sand were great. The hotel offered many activities for families. Good size rooms.

We really had a great time. This was our first vacation out of the country (we're young!) and when we arrived, we couldn't stop smiling because of how beautiful the place we were was. The beach literally looks like a Corona commercial. The pictures do the resort justice...the beach, pool, and room pictures are exactly what those places looked like in real life. We read a lot of good reviews and some bad ones that made us skeptical..but unless you are super nit-picky, you will have a great time here. The food in the theme restaurants isn't out of this world, but it is definitely good and more than edible. We really enjoyed the breakfast buffet and the "American" and "Italian" themed restaurants. The staff were generally very friendly and helpful..sometimes the Dominicans seemed a bit unorganized, but they just worried less than we did and nothing fell through. Our water was cold in our room the first night; we called the concierge and by the time we returned from dinner, it was hot. The grounds are beautiful..we did a photo shoot on the beach for free (we bought some of the pictures of course) but that was one of the services we liked that was convenient. Also there are a lot of people there to help you find great excursions..we swam with dolphins, rode dune buggies on the beach, swam in a natural cave, and rode horses on the beachfront. Again, unless you are well-traveled and super nit-picky, you will really have a nice time here. It's all in what you make of it and if you don't let little things bother you (which seriously, there was hardly a thing that bothered us), then you will truly enjoy your time here. SUPER for the money and SUPER in general! Go and have a great time!! Say hi to Catalonia for us...we miss it already;(