I stayed at the Riu Mambo from Dec 14-21..here is my review...Pm any questions 
Alrighty so this was my first trip to a Riu resort and also my first trip to D.R. Might I add that I really hope I can go again soon!
Our group consisted of 3 20something couples and then four of us non-couples. A good mix of friends and their partners. We were heading down to have one last hurrah together as we have now graduated and will all be going our separate ways.
We were leaving from Vancouver and some of us had a bit of a drive to reach the city. My roomie and I left about 2 in the afternoon and of course the main road was closed due to ice and snow and thus we had to back-track and take a different highway...such is life.
The plane:
We arrived at the airport a bit late and thus my roomie and I couldn't get seats together. No big deal, although a nice lady did offer to switch with us so in the end we did get to sit together which was nice to chat and get excited. Being the type of person who drinks a lot of water I could have done with a few more drink services but overall the plane was o.k. It left on time, arrived on time (after a stop in Calgary booo) we arrived in P.P to be welcomed by the hot humid (and lovely to us from the interior where it was cold and snowy) air as soon as we got off the plane. All luggage arrived quickly and we easily found the bus.
The trip to the resort was longer than we expected but a lot of that is due to the fact that they are doing major work on the roads. Our bus did haul a** though as we were passing like crazy, and almost seemed to hit the guys on the bikes, however we never did.
Arrived at the resort and checked out our rooms. Seemed nice and then headed down to catch dinner as we were all starving. Was a bit of slim pickings but we enjoyed it and all got started right away on the cervesas
The rest of the night was a bit of a blur really but I remember watching part of the show and then heading to the disco to dance the night away (oh the shame )
The Room:
We were given 0502 which was pretty far down the stretch. Next time I would get something a little closer. I managed to catch the mini bar guy on the first day we were there and slipped him a fiver and asked that we get extra water, tonic and diet pepsi. Well we always had 3 jugs of water and as much of the other stuff as we could handle.
We left 2 US for our maid every day and I really think that it made the difference as our room was always spic and span, new towel art every day, everything really well done. The service across the rooms of our group did very as one room in our party did seem to get the shaft a bit (despite leaving money) but they are two males so didn't really care that much.
Otherwise we found the rooms tidy, beds comfortable (I think...I was generally very tipsy by this point) and overalll we were quite satisfied.
Food:
We found the food pretty good. It was a bit Americanized for our group but I guess thats to be expected. I generally had croissants and coffee for breckie as I found a lot of the other stuff a bit greasy (omlettes very good!) And being an early riser I generallly had a couple of coffees on the beach before my group would roll in. That was lovely, sitting out there enjoying the waves roll in.
We generally had lunch at the Mambo at what we named "The Liquor store" that being the place by the pool which turns into the a la carte at night. We called it this as it was so close to the rooms and the pool etc.
I would have liked a bit more choice as far as salads etc but lunch was good. We also had lunch at the Bachata and enjoyed it as well.
Dinner: we ate in the la carte 3 times I believe as we enjoyed the food there over the buffet. We got to know the service staff there quite well and the assistant guy named Alonzo was our favourite by far. He was very funny and really tried to interact and joke with our group. The Head waiter Salvadore was very patient considering our reservation for 4 turned into 9! I had the fish twice and a steak once and enjoyed all three meals.
Drinks:
Well of course, being a recently graduated university group, we were there for the drinks. The males in the group generally stuck to the cervesas and ventured into the fruity stuff and the cupa libras once in a while. I personally balanced my g&t's with the fruity slushes with extra rum, with mostly beer in the day. We enjoyed the beer. The wine however we generally stayed away from as we found it too sweet for our liking. My roommate and I went through about 3/4 of one of the dark rums in the room and 1/2 gin as well athough a couple of the guys in our party polished off their rums easily and moved on to re-fills.
We did use our travel mugs in the swim pool but didn't generally use them as we drank the small cups fast enough (ie before they got warm)
Trips:
The first trip we did was the 2-3 hour snorkeling trip which is available at the water sports beach. We paid $25 US and were taken for about half an hour out in the ocean arriving at a spot where we were given masks and fins and that and off we went. The equiptment could have been better quality (a couple in our group had issues) but I personally had never snorkelled before and enjoyed swimming around looking at the fish and that. Swam through some little jellyfish which I found a little weird as this stung but it didn't really hurt.
Went to a little private beach for some pictures and that which was bit touristy and were a little late starting back due to motor problems. I love being on the water so I enjoyed the wavey ride back but there were a couple who were a bit sea sick (More likely because of too much rum the night before) Drank so rum on the trip back.
We decided it was pretty good value as it got us off the resort, we saw some beautiful countryside and some lovely waters.
Second Trip: The Horseback Riding:
This was very cool for me as a friend from was staying at a resort just down the road and thus we figured we had to meet up and becuase we both have horses we decided to book the riding. Well she booked through her hotel as it turned out to be much cheaper and we had a wonderful afternoon!! Being horse people we are very picky about the horses, but I am happy to report that these were in excellent condition! The horses were all well trained and pleasant, and when I lady running saw that she had people in her group that could ride she split us into two groups and and took our group ahead for some faster riding. Very good time. We (the lady leading the centre) got talking and she mentioned how she wanted to retire soon and even suggested that I should stay in D.R and take over her job! I was flattered of course but some how I decided that the 5.5 years of education I just finished should be utilized a little bit..I did tell her you never know though as I was def falling in love with the D.R!! Anyways, good value for the money, excellent transportation to the ranch, lovely horses....great!!! We climbed up the mountainside on the horses and when we reached the top the views of the ocean and city...!!
Third Trip: Monster Truck;
This trip was o.k for me...I liked some of it, but didn't like other aspects. We were picked up from the hotel at 8:00am I believe and were taken by a bus to the place where the trucks are stored. We then waited around for about an hour and half while more people were brought in..This part was not good as the one bathroom that was there was clogged...not good but such is life...When we finally got on the truck they try to tell you Monster truck hats which they say some of the money goes back to the schools etc. We drove through some parts of the city and by some sugar care which was neat however, if you wear contact lenses DO NOT DO THIS TRIP WITHOUT SUNGLASSES!!! I had to borrow my friends and she went without as my eyes were hurting so bad from the dust.
We were taken out in the country which was nice and saw a little cheese factory which honestly didn't look like it was actually used (the stuff was extra dusty and didn't look like it had moved etc) saw coffee leaves, and spices etc. I was a bit dissapointed with the stop at the school house as the kids pretty much ignored us and didn't really want the stuff we had brought. I can imagine that with 5 monster trucks of people rolling in all the time the kids would get a bit annoyed with it all. We then visited a house where a family lived and then headed on to lunch. Lunch was at a freshwater beach. More drinks, food was o.k...no fish however the lamb was really good. After a rest at this beach we headed back to the truck and crossed some rivers which was fun. Our pleasant guide Jesus then told us we were approaching the poorest parts on our trip so we had the hotel soaps and stuff ready for the kids along with pencils and pens and stuff ready that we had brought. Wish we had more to give as there were so many children. We did have one incident where a child was asking for money from someone and threw a rock which hit her when she didn't give money. These things happen though.
Finished off at a store where you could buy rum etc and then the truck drove us back to the hhotel...These things go pretty fast let me tell you!
Shows:
We saw the magic show, the african dance show, the traditional dance show, and another dance show. We missed the audience participation one which we were sad about (it was a couples show thing) as we have some of us in our group that love that sort of thing, however we did manage to make it to the lurvers beach party that was held after. Happy boy and I think it was chocolate did a hilarious dance to Time of my life from Dirty Dancing complete with lifts was great. Anyway, danced the night away with the animation team.
Overall we were happy with the shows although somehow managed to get a week which was pretty much all dance shows. We really wanted to see the Michael Jackson show but it wasn't on at any of the hotels while we were there. We really enjoyed the magician and caught the second half of his show at the Merengue and even watched him again at the Mambo to see the whole show.
Other stuff:
Shanty town by the sports beach:
I visited this place a couple of times as I went for a massage there nearly every day. For the 15US I paid for 45min it was well worth it. She was so happy to see me coming back she gave me extra time which was great. I very much recommend. Right hand row near the end. I didn't buy much on this side as I found the ppl to pushy, and once they found out I liked to bargain more than others they seemed to be more pushy.
Shanty town by the Mambo:
I bought my cigars and rum from "Almost free Jonathan" he was great. We really pushed him as we were buying the most expensive cigars he had and some other stuff and even managed to pay with Canadian and get US back. We got talking and he even offered to get me some "special stuff for good price" which upon return at a later date turns out was drugs which I figured...I'm not in to that stuff at all so I graciously declined.
His shop is the one right at the start on the corner.
I also recommend walking to the end of the rows as these guys are very desperate to make sales as a lot of the time customers don't make it down that far.
Water Sports beach:
I myself didnt take out any of the kayaks etc but people in my party did and paddled over to the other side of the bay to look around. My roommate and I rented a seado (spelling?) which was awesome! We took turns driving and had a blast. They should give you goggles or something as the water sprays up in your face and the salt gets to your eyes a bit. It was a bit windy out so lots of waves to jump the sea do off and me being a speed demon had lots of fun really gunning it. The shanty guys had asked me when we were leaving if I would go fast and when I said yes very fast they laughted. However upon return they did say "You go fast yes!" which made me laugh.
but overall, I loved my trip and hope to return some day!!
Alrighty so this was my first trip to a Riu resort and also my first trip to D.R. Might I add that I really hope I can go again soon!
Our group consisted of 3 20something couples and then four of us non-couples. A good mix of friends and their partners. We were heading down to have one last hurrah together as we have now graduated and will all be going our separate ways.
We were leaving from Vancouver and some of us had a bit of a drive to reach the city. My roomie and I left about 2 in the afternoon and of course the main road was closed due to ice and snow and thus we had to back-track and take a different highway...such is life.
The plane:
We arrived at the airport a bit late and thus my roomie and I couldn't get seats together. No big deal, although a nice lady did offer to switch with us so in the end we did get to sit together which was nice to chat and get excited. Being the type of person who drinks a lot of water I could have done with a few more drink services but overall the plane was o.k. It left on time, arrived on time (after a stop in Calgary booo) we arrived in P.P to be welcomed by the hot humid (and lovely to us from the interior where it was cold and snowy) air as soon as we got off the plane. All luggage arrived quickly and we easily found the bus.
The trip to the resort was longer than we expected but a lot of that is due to the fact that they are doing major work on the roads. Our bus did haul a** though as we were passing like crazy, and almost seemed to hit the guys on the bikes, however we never did.
Arrived at the resort and checked out our rooms. Seemed nice and then headed down to catch dinner as we were all starving. Was a bit of slim pickings but we enjoyed it and all got started right away on the cervesas
The rest of the night was a bit of a blur really but I remember watching part of the show and then heading to the disco to dance the night away (oh the shame )
The Room:
We were given 0502 which was pretty far down the stretch. Next time I would get something a little closer. I managed to catch the mini bar guy on the first day we were there and slipped him a fiver and asked that we get extra water, tonic and diet pepsi. Well we always had 3 jugs of water and as much of the other stuff as we could handle.
We left 2 US for our maid every day and I really think that it made the difference as our room was always spic and span, new towel art every day, everything really well done. The service across the rooms of our group did very as one room in our party did seem to get the shaft a bit (despite leaving money) but they are two males so didn't really care that much.
Otherwise we found the rooms tidy, beds comfortable (I think...I was generally very tipsy by this point) and overalll we were quite satisfied.
Food:
We found the food pretty good. It was a bit Americanized for our group but I guess thats to be expected. I generally had croissants and coffee for breckie as I found a lot of the other stuff a bit greasy (omlettes very good!) And being an early riser I generallly had a couple of coffees on the beach before my group would roll in. That was lovely, sitting out there enjoying the waves roll in.
We generally had lunch at the Mambo at what we named "The Liquor store" that being the place by the pool which turns into the a la carte at night. We called it this as it was so close to the rooms and the pool etc.
I would have liked a bit more choice as far as salads etc but lunch was good. We also had lunch at the Bachata and enjoyed it as well.
Dinner: we ate in the la carte 3 times I believe as we enjoyed the food there over the buffet. We got to know the service staff there quite well and the assistant guy named Alonzo was our favourite by far. He was very funny and really tried to interact and joke with our group. The Head waiter Salvadore was very patient considering our reservation for 4 turned into 9! I had the fish twice and a steak once and enjoyed all three meals.
Drinks:
Well of course, being a recently graduated university group, we were there for the drinks. The males in the group generally stuck to the cervesas and ventured into the fruity stuff and the cupa libras once in a while. I personally balanced my g&t's with the fruity slushes with extra rum, with mostly beer in the day. We enjoyed the beer. The wine however we generally stayed away from as we found it too sweet for our liking. My roommate and I went through about 3/4 of one of the dark rums in the room and 1/2 gin as well athough a couple of the guys in our party polished off their rums easily and moved on to re-fills.
We did use our travel mugs in the swim pool but didn't generally use them as we drank the small cups fast enough (ie before they got warm)
Trips:
The first trip we did was the 2-3 hour snorkeling trip which is available at the water sports beach. We paid $25 US and were taken for about half an hour out in the ocean arriving at a spot where we were given masks and fins and that and off we went. The equiptment could have been better quality (a couple in our group had issues) but I personally had never snorkelled before and enjoyed swimming around looking at the fish and that. Swam through some little jellyfish which I found a little weird as this stung but it didn't really hurt.
Went to a little private beach for some pictures and that which was bit touristy and were a little late starting back due to motor problems. I love being on the water so I enjoyed the wavey ride back but there were a couple who were a bit sea sick (More likely because of too much rum the night before) Drank so rum on the trip back.
We decided it was pretty good value as it got us off the resort, we saw some beautiful countryside and some lovely waters.
Second Trip: The Horseback Riding:
This was very cool for me as a friend from was staying at a resort just down the road and thus we figured we had to meet up and becuase we both have horses we decided to book the riding. Well she booked through her hotel as it turned out to be much cheaper and we had a wonderful afternoon!! Being horse people we are very picky about the horses, but I am happy to report that these were in excellent condition! The horses were all well trained and pleasant, and when I lady running saw that she had people in her group that could ride she split us into two groups and and took our group ahead for some faster riding. Very good time. We (the lady leading the centre) got talking and she mentioned how she wanted to retire soon and even suggested that I should stay in D.R and take over her job! I was flattered of course but some how I decided that the 5.5 years of education I just finished should be utilized a little bit..I did tell her you never know though as I was def falling in love with the D.R!! Anyways, good value for the money, excellent transportation to the ranch, lovely horses....great!!! We climbed up the mountainside on the horses and when we reached the top the views of the ocean and city...!!
Third Trip: Monster Truck;
This trip was o.k for me...I liked some of it, but didn't like other aspects. We were picked up from the hotel at 8:00am I believe and were taken by a bus to the place where the trucks are stored. We then waited around for about an hour and half while more people were brought in..This part was not good as the one bathroom that was there was clogged...not good but such is life...When we finally got on the truck they try to tell you Monster truck hats which they say some of the money goes back to the schools etc. We drove through some parts of the city and by some sugar care which was neat however, if you wear contact lenses DO NOT DO THIS TRIP WITHOUT SUNGLASSES!!! I had to borrow my friends and she went without as my eyes were hurting so bad from the dust.
We were taken out in the country which was nice and saw a little cheese factory which honestly didn't look like it was actually used (the stuff was extra dusty and didn't look like it had moved etc) saw coffee leaves, and spices etc. I was a bit dissapointed with the stop at the school house as the kids pretty much ignored us and didn't really want the stuff we had brought. I can imagine that with 5 monster trucks of people rolling in all the time the kids would get a bit annoyed with it all. We then visited a house where a family lived and then headed on to lunch. Lunch was at a freshwater beach. More drinks, food was o.k...no fish however the lamb was really good. After a rest at this beach we headed back to the truck and crossed some rivers which was fun. Our pleasant guide Jesus then told us we were approaching the poorest parts on our trip so we had the hotel soaps and stuff ready for the kids along with pencils and pens and stuff ready that we had brought. Wish we had more to give as there were so many children. We did have one incident where a child was asking for money from someone and threw a rock which hit her when she didn't give money. These things happen though.
Finished off at a store where you could buy rum etc and then the truck drove us back to the hhotel...These things go pretty fast let me tell you!
Shows:
We saw the magic show, the african dance show, the traditional dance show, and another dance show. We missed the audience participation one which we were sad about (it was a couples show thing) as we have some of us in our group that love that sort of thing, however we did manage to make it to the lurvers beach party that was held after. Happy boy and I think it was chocolate did a hilarious dance to Time of my life from Dirty Dancing complete with lifts was great. Anyway, danced the night away with the animation team.
Overall we were happy with the shows although somehow managed to get a week which was pretty much all dance shows. We really wanted to see the Michael Jackson show but it wasn't on at any of the hotels while we were there. We really enjoyed the magician and caught the second half of his show at the Merengue and even watched him again at the Mambo to see the whole show.
Other stuff:
Shanty town by the sports beach:
I visited this place a couple of times as I went for a massage there nearly every day. For the 15US I paid for 45min it was well worth it. She was so happy to see me coming back she gave me extra time which was great. I very much recommend. Right hand row near the end. I didn't buy much on this side as I found the ppl to pushy, and once they found out I liked to bargain more than others they seemed to be more pushy.
Shanty town by the Mambo:
I bought my cigars and rum from "Almost free Jonathan" he was great. We really pushed him as we were buying the most expensive cigars he had and some other stuff and even managed to pay with Canadian and get US back. We got talking and he even offered to get me some "special stuff for good price" which upon return at a later date turns out was drugs which I figured...I'm not in to that stuff at all so I graciously declined.
His shop is the one right at the start on the corner.
I also recommend walking to the end of the rows as these guys are very desperate to make sales as a lot of the time customers don't make it down that far.
Water Sports beach:
I myself didnt take out any of the kayaks etc but people in my party did and paddled over to the other side of the bay to look around. My roommate and I rented a seado (spelling?) which was awesome! We took turns driving and had a blast. They should give you goggles or something as the water sprays up in your face and the salt gets to your eyes a bit. It was a bit windy out so lots of waves to jump the sea do off and me being a speed demon had lots of fun really gunning it. The shanty guys had asked me when we were leaving if I would go fast and when I said yes very fast they laughted. However upon return they did say "You go fast yes!" which made me laugh.
but overall, I loved my trip and hope to return some day!!