I stayed at this resort last October and the property is a a real paradise. The grounds are lovely, almost like a little island within itself. A very large piece of property. There are trolly trains on the resorts that you can use to go from your hotel suite to the lobby, quite a walking distance in the hot sun if your room is near the beach. Read the large board map outside the lobby to get an idea on how the propety is laid out, it can be confusing at first. They have great huge lobbies for lounging.
There are two resorts, caribe and tropical, if you book the Melia Tropical, you have more choices to select from the variety of restaurants, which are great. My advice is to book dinner reseravations the same day you arrive, cause for some reason there always booked. Also, if the resort is not busy, some of the restaurants may be close. Excellent buffet on the beach, food is great, as I do not prefer buffet food, this is considered one my best that I've tried.
The resort is next to Barcelo complex, the beach is nice, but not on a long streach of beach, towards the Barcelo complex the beach is longer. Vendours on the beach for shopping. Lots to do on the resorts, great swimming pools, ect.
In October there were only a few americans and canadians, I got the impression the resort cater to a large number of spanish tourist , not sure if it was the time of year. There were a small number of tourist from Europe.
The only complaint I had was that my room was not cleaned one day until late the next day, even though I had phoned several times. The disco is ok, it's small, but drinks are all inclusive.
Overall you will LOVE this resort. You can take the bus outside and to the Punta Cana Bavaro Plaza, about 10 minutes, or rent a car.
There is a casino at Melia Caribe, the night shows are a lot of fun.
