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Sunquest Compensation/ Cabarete Bay Hotel
guy_davis, a poster on this board, appleman, is staying at Sosua Bay Hotel. When I talked with him on Tuesday, the shuttle was still running, though often crowded. He had no trouble eating at the Cabarete hotel by showing his bracelet.
According to appleman, some employee he asked at Sosua Bay about eating in Cabarete told him he couldn't. But Cabarete told him no problem as long as he had the bracelet. My advice: don't bother asking anybody at the hotel if you can eat; just walk into the buffet restaurant and eat. Your bracelet is all you need; both hotels use same bracelet.
According to appleman, some employee he asked at Sosua Bay about eating in Cabarete told him he couldn't. But Cabarete told him no problem as long as he had the bracelet. My advice: don't bother asking anybody at the hotel if you can eat; just walk into the buffet restaurant and eat. Your bracelet is all you need; both hotels use same bracelet.
We'll be coming from Calgary (Canada), but I think the Air Transat plane has a stop over in Saskatoon before heading south. Where are you leaving from?
I'd tend to agree that if the smaller pool is still open then construction on the big one isn't that big a deal. You're right that the ocean is the main draw anyway.
Our travel agent at the AMA has been in contact with Air Transat and said they're sending someone down this weekend to inspect the resort. He'll be back on Monday and will let us know whether the place is up to standard.
My travel agent offered to reloate us, but she won't say whether it's an offer or an order from Air Transat. Seems like it will depend on what their inspector says on Monday. Considering people are staying there right now, I can't see how Air Transat could force us to relocate.
Still it would be nice to hear some first hand reports of the current state of construction. It sounds like there's a bunch of canucks down there now, so hopefully they'll report when they get back.
I'd tend to agree that if the smaller pool is still open then construction on the big one isn't that big a deal. You're right that the ocean is the main draw anyway.
Our travel agent at the AMA has been in contact with Air Transat and said they're sending someone down this weekend to inspect the resort. He'll be back on Monday and will let us know whether the place is up to standard.
My travel agent offered to reloate us, but she won't say whether it's an offer or an order from Air Transat. Seems like it will depend on what their inspector says on Monday. Considering people are staying there right now, I can't see how Air Transat could force us to relocate.
Still it would be nice to hear some first hand reports of the current state of construction. It sounds like there's a bunch of canucks down there now, so hopefully they'll report when they get back.
guyu_davis, kite beach is an easy walk from the hotel, and, in fact, there are kite boarders in front of the Cabarete Bay hotel.
If you want to kite board, you are in the right place. Rather than worry about the pool, concentrate on getting a good breeze for kite boarding.
If you want to kite board, you are in the right place. Rather than worry about the pool, concentrate on getting a good breeze for kite boarding.
Ken, you're right that my primary reason for going to Cabarete is the kite surfing. My partner isn't as keen to try kiting as I am though, so I need to be sure that I won't be leaving her behind at a construction site while I'm off kiting. I'd never hear the end of it, if you know what I mean. That's my primary motivation for determining the condition of the resort with respect to construction.
Thanks for the info about the Starz Resorts shuttle between Cabarete and Sosua.
Thanks for the info about the Starz Resorts shuttle between Cabarete and Sosua.
guy_davis said:My partner isn't as keen to try kiting as I am though, so I need to be sure that I won't be leaving her behind at a construction site while I'm off kiting. I'd never hear the end of it, if you know what I mean.
I know very well what you mean. I don't know your partner, but I'll be surprised if she doesn't like Cabarete. The advantage of where you are going is that you can walk out one door of the hotel and be in a very nice, little town or out the other and be on a very nice beach--a long beach. The options offered you are well out of town and though they have a beach it isn't the same as the Cabarete beach.
Let me know how it goes.
canadafan, have you seen this thread? http://www.dr1.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=27889&highlight=Cabarete+Hotel
Re: Guy
No kidding about the blizzard. We live west of S'Toon and completely snowed in and of course the snow blower refuses to start in this cold.
We should have booked soon to go then the begining of March. The only time we could go last year was the begining of March and it was cold then and had to wait for Regina to warm up for the plane to take off. Oh well, it will be fun in the sun anyway even if there is some construction going on at the Cabarete/Estrella or Azzuro Beach Club (what ever it is called.)
tomson said:We are leaving from stooner 6:00am Tues and then pick up people in Regina. Man what is with this -51 we had this week. Got a pretty good blizard going on this pm.
Tomson
No kidding about the blizzard. We live west of S'Toon and completely snowed in and of course the snow blower refuses to start in this cold.
We should have booked soon to go then the begining of March. The only time we could go last year was the begining of March and it was cold then and had to wait for Regina to warm up for the plane to take off. Oh well, it will be fun in the sun anyway even if there is some construction going on at the Cabarete/Estrella or Azzuro Beach Club (what ever it is called.)
Canadafan
I just got back from Cabarete yesterday and had spent some time at the Cabarete Bay (Azullo Club). The restaurants and bars are all open and activities around the open pool were in full swing. The beach is accessable and the buildings looked fine (although the old Estrella del Mar is closed off. I didn't stay at the hotel but was able to eat and drink there and I did not think the ongoing construction would have been a problem. You should have no problem.
I just got back from Cabarete yesterday and had spent some time at the Cabarete Bay (Azullo Club). The restaurants and bars are all open and activities around the open pool were in full swing. The beach is accessable and the buildings looked fine (although the old Estrella del Mar is closed off. I didn't stay at the hotel but was able to eat and drink there and I did not think the ongoing construction would have been a problem. You should have no problem.
To: appleman
Thanks for the report. I'm still confused by the Estrella del Mar versus Cabarete Bay Hotel naming issue. Your post indicates they're separate resorts (or at least parts) and that the Estrella del Mar is closed.
I currently have a reservation at the Estrella del Mar for early March, but previous forum posters have indicated they're both names for the same resort. For this reason I wasn't too worried about our reservation as you (and others) have reported that the Cabarete Bay Hotel is in decent shape.
If they're actually separate properties however, did you meet anyone there who had arrived with a reservation for the Estrella del Mar?
Thanks for the info!
Thanks for the report. I'm still confused by the Estrella del Mar versus Cabarete Bay Hotel naming issue. Your post indicates they're separate resorts (or at least parts) and that the Estrella del Mar is closed.
I currently have a reservation at the Estrella del Mar for early March, but previous forum posters have indicated they're both names for the same resort. For this reason I wasn't too worried about our reservation as you (and others) have reported that the Cabarete Bay Hotel is in decent shape.
If they're actually separate properties however, did you meet anyone there who had arrived with a reservation for the Estrella del Mar?
Thanks for the info!
Re: To: appleman
This is what I saw. The building complex on the east side of the new construction is closed. I believe that is the old Estrella del Mar. The buildings to the west are open. I am not sure if these had a different name or not. These are rooms, restaurant, bar, etc. The reception area is fully functional as is the smaller pool and jaccuzis which are between the east and west buildings. The new pool construction is behind the dining area is is walled off with a tin fence. The staff wear shirts with the name "Azullo Club" on them and that is what they said the resort is now called.
I did not ask anyone if they had actually reserved the Estrella del mar. Some of the signs out front and by the road still say Estrella del Mar, so they are obviously not completely done with the physical changeover. If you have any other specific questions let me know and I will try to answer them.
Bob H.
guy_davis said:Thanks for the report. I'm still confused by the Estrella del Mar versus Cabarete Bay Hotel naming issue. Your post indicates they're separate resorts (or at least parts) and that the Estrella del Mar is closed.
If they're actually separate properties however, did you meet anyone there who had arrived with a reservation for the Estrella del Mar?
Thanks for the info!
This is what I saw. The building complex on the east side of the new construction is closed. I believe that is the old Estrella del Mar. The buildings to the west are open. I am not sure if these had a different name or not. These are rooms, restaurant, bar, etc. The reception area is fully functional as is the smaller pool and jaccuzis which are between the east and west buildings. The new pool construction is behind the dining area is is walled off with a tin fence. The staff wear shirts with the name "Azullo Club" on them and that is what they said the resort is now called.
I did not ask anyone if they had actually reserved the Estrella del mar. Some of the signs out front and by the road still say Estrella del Mar, so they are obviously not completely done with the physical changeover. If you have any other specific questions let me know and I will try to answer them.
Bob H.
Just returned from Cabarete Bay Hotel
Hi Everyone,
We just returned from The DR today. The weather was absolutely beautiful as was the scenery. We enjoyed the Cabarete Bay Hotel. The food was great and the staff was extremely friendly There was much more construction than Sunquest actually told us before we left from Toronto a week ago. The pool is under major construction but they're working really hard to get it completed. One end is actually finished and they were filling it today. The rest is still a big mess and will probably be at least a few more weeks til it's completed. There is a building that is behind the smaller pool that is also under construction and you can see it from the deck chairs around the pool. The sound of jack hammering was a little annoying so we spent most of the time at the beach. There is also another building (salmon coloured near the large pool that is under construction. While we were there they ripped up the counters at check in and replaced them with beautiful new ones. They also built new railings that lead up to the circular bar near the buffet. They accomplished a lot of small jobs during the week that they were there. It will be a beautiful resort when it's completed. I am not sure how long this is going to day.
We went to the Sosua Bay Hotel but didn't stay long. It is situated on a hill and doesn't have a beach. There is a public beach that you can walk along but you have to pay for a beach chair rental. We decided that it really wasn't a kid friendly place so we grabbed a shuttle back to Cabarete. We love a beach and the one in Cabarete is fantastic. We've never had so much fun as we had on those boogie boards. As far as the buffet at Sosua goes, feel free to eat all you want. You are allowed to lunch at Sosua complimentary but I'm not sure about the dinner. The snorkling is fantastic. Supposedly the fish eat right out of your hand.
Our biggest beef is that before we left , Sunquest offered us 3 options 1. cancel with full refund 2. upgrade to another hotel with a surcharge 3. take the hotel as it is complete with ongoing construction and you will be given a week free at the resort complete with food, beverages, tips and taxes. So the majority of us took this offer only to find out that the hotel changed it's mind and offered us a 50% discount on a future stay at the Cabarete Bay Hotel. This doesn't include airfare. The cost of this stay is more that I paid for the entire holiday so 50% is not a deal. Needless to say I will be contacting my agent during the next couple of days to discuss this turn of events. The on-site Sunquest Rep was very apologetic and was going to speak to Sunquest's head honchos when they arrive this week. So we probably will not be returning to the Cabarete Bay Hotel for a free week's stay. The 50% offer deal is not what we agreed to. I am hoping that Sunquest will step up to the plate and offer us some sort of compensation. Perhaps it will be in the form of a "good will voucher" that can be used for future travel with Sunquest.
Hi Everyone,
We just returned from The DR today. The weather was absolutely beautiful as was the scenery. We enjoyed the Cabarete Bay Hotel. The food was great and the staff was extremely friendly There was much more construction than Sunquest actually told us before we left from Toronto a week ago. The pool is under major construction but they're working really hard to get it completed. One end is actually finished and they were filling it today. The rest is still a big mess and will probably be at least a few more weeks til it's completed. There is a building that is behind the smaller pool that is also under construction and you can see it from the deck chairs around the pool. The sound of jack hammering was a little annoying so we spent most of the time at the beach. There is also another building (salmon coloured near the large pool that is under construction. While we were there they ripped up the counters at check in and replaced them with beautiful new ones. They also built new railings that lead up to the circular bar near the buffet. They accomplished a lot of small jobs during the week that they were there. It will be a beautiful resort when it's completed. I am not sure how long this is going to day.
We went to the Sosua Bay Hotel but didn't stay long. It is situated on a hill and doesn't have a beach. There is a public beach that you can walk along but you have to pay for a beach chair rental. We decided that it really wasn't a kid friendly place so we grabbed a shuttle back to Cabarete. We love a beach and the one in Cabarete is fantastic. We've never had so much fun as we had on those boogie boards. As far as the buffet at Sosua goes, feel free to eat all you want. You are allowed to lunch at Sosua complimentary but I'm not sure about the dinner. The snorkling is fantastic. Supposedly the fish eat right out of your hand.
Our biggest beef is that before we left , Sunquest offered us 3 options 1. cancel with full refund 2. upgrade to another hotel with a surcharge 3. take the hotel as it is complete with ongoing construction and you will be given a week free at the resort complete with food, beverages, tips and taxes. So the majority of us took this offer only to find out that the hotel changed it's mind and offered us a 50% discount on a future stay at the Cabarete Bay Hotel. This doesn't include airfare. The cost of this stay is more that I paid for the entire holiday so 50% is not a deal. Needless to say I will be contacting my agent during the next couple of days to discuss this turn of events. The on-site Sunquest Rep was very apologetic and was going to speak to Sunquest's head honchos when they arrive this week. So we probably will not be returning to the Cabarete Bay Hotel for a free week's stay. The 50% offer deal is not what we agreed to. I am hoping that Sunquest will step up to the plate and offer us some sort of compensation. Perhaps it will be in the form of a "good will voucher" that can be used for future travel with Sunquest.
Problems with Sunquest
Hi Palmtree
Glad you all got back safely. Hubby and I landed in a huge back up on the 401 going home due to an accident.
Best part was seeing our grandaughter when we got home and finding she learned how to sit up by herself while we were gone and drink from her "sippy cup" She was 7 months old the day we came home. Our little bit of Sunshine.
I have phoned the customer service person "Bianca" with Sell-Off Vacations/Dream Vacations and was told she wasn't in. ??????????? I left a message. Told her some of what happened and asked that she call me to discuss this before I call Sunquest. I feel she should know how to handle things professionally, instead of just letting me go ahead and throw a fit.
I just might have to do it anyway.
One thing is sure. If Sunquest does not fix this up to our satisfaction we will not be using them ever again and I will warn people about their shoddy business practise. Remember a couple of other "posters" who had. had similar trouble with Sunquest properties, their reps and compensation and nothing ever happened. Live and Learn I guess. But it should not be allowed to happen and I feel strongly that we should try as hard as we can to pursue this.
Some of us, now that we are home safe and sound will let it all fade away. Say Lavee (our however it's spelled) The problem is that some other poor suckers will get the same treatment we did and maybe worse and that is just not ok.
Take care. Hope it all works out. Thank God the weather was great though.
MJ
Hi Palmtree
Glad you all got back safely. Hubby and I landed in a huge back up on the 401 going home due to an accident.
Best part was seeing our grandaughter when we got home and finding she learned how to sit up by herself while we were gone and drink from her "sippy cup" She was 7 months old the day we came home. Our little bit of Sunshine.
I have phoned the customer service person "Bianca" with Sell-Off Vacations/Dream Vacations and was told she wasn't in. ??????????? I left a message. Told her some of what happened and asked that she call me to discuss this before I call Sunquest. I feel she should know how to handle things professionally, instead of just letting me go ahead and throw a fit.
I just might have to do it anyway.
One thing is sure. If Sunquest does not fix this up to our satisfaction we will not be using them ever again and I will warn people about their shoddy business practise. Remember a couple of other "posters" who had. had similar trouble with Sunquest properties, their reps and compensation and nothing ever happened. Live and Learn I guess. But it should not be allowed to happen and I feel strongly that we should try as hard as we can to pursue this.
Some of us, now that we are home safe and sound will let it all fade away. Say Lavee (our however it's spelled) The problem is that some other poor suckers will get the same treatment we did and maybe worse and that is just not ok.
Take care. Hope it all works out. Thank God the weather was great though.
MJ
Cabarete Bay Hotel Questions
MJ,
I have been waiting for your return from DR to report on the Cabarete Bay Hotel. You have been so vocal before your visit, but now that you are back....quiet!
Please share with us everything you think would be of interest to those about to go. How were the rooms? The Food? The Drinks? The Help? The accomodations despite the construction? The Overall Value? How were the other guests, were they okay with the resort? You know, all of the things you wanted to know but no one was able to help satisfactorly.
Thanks,
DRbound (in a week)
MJ,
I have been waiting for your return from DR to report on the Cabarete Bay Hotel. You have been so vocal before your visit, but now that you are back....quiet!
Please share with us everything you think would be of interest to those about to go. How were the rooms? The Food? The Drinks? The Help? The accomodations despite the construction? The Overall Value? How were the other guests, were they okay with the resort? You know, all of the things you wanted to know but no one was able to help satisfactorly.
Thanks,
DRbound (in a week)
Cabarete Bay
Palmtree...
I have been diligently attempting to get hold of "Theo" at Dream Vacations, making numerous calls to get in touch with him at 416-259-1118 without any success..following is the last email message I received..
Feb.4/04
"I have left this for him, (Theo) he will call you. We don't have regular hours, he may be off, he may be in later or early. If it is about the complaint below you should expect to wait at least six weeks for a response from the tour operator, this is the busiest time of year and customer service issues are delayed. This doesn't mean they are ignored but with increased passengers come increased complaints that need to be processed."
Mario
Sounds like the run around to me...sigh..
Will check in later...at least the weather is much warmer then when we left..
Palmtree...
I have been diligently attempting to get hold of "Theo" at Dream Vacations, making numerous calls to get in touch with him at 416-259-1118 without any success..following is the last email message I received..
Feb.4/04
"I have left this for him, (Theo) he will call you. We don't have regular hours, he may be off, he may be in later or early. If it is about the complaint below you should expect to wait at least six weeks for a response from the tour operator, this is the busiest time of year and customer service issues are delayed. This doesn't mean they are ignored but with increased passengers come increased complaints that need to be processed."
Mario
Sounds like the run around to me...sigh..
Will check in later...at least the weather is much warmer then when we left..
Hi to all,
Just got back myself yesterday after a great week in Cabarate Bay. I will go into further details later about the resort, but wanted to let you know that I also was given the 50% lame discount offer. I hope that we can all stand together on this situation and make Sunquest stand up to the offer. I will let you know what I find out from travel agent and also from Sunqest.
At least the weather was good the week we were there.
Just got back myself yesterday after a great week in Cabarate Bay. I will go into further details later about the resort, but wanted to let you know that I also was given the 50% lame discount offer. I hope that we can all stand together on this situation and make Sunquest stand up to the offer. I will let you know what I find out from travel agent and also from Sunqest.
At least the weather was good the week we were there.
Cabarete Bay Hotel/compensation etc.
Dear DRBound
I had every intention of a full "report" re the resort, but have been "under the weather" no pun intended since just before we left.
I will endevour to give you as "clear"a picture as possible. You will also read what I want to share with my fellow travelers who were there at the same time and had "compensation" problems.
I will get the compensation part out of the way first as it is the shortest.
I called my tour rep yesterday and was told she was out. Called back today and told she was at lunch. Left messages both times, last one was quite strong, but I have not heard from her yet.
Decided to go ahead and call Sunquest Customer Servcie and could not get Jason, (whom I spoke to first about all the problems) as he was on the phone. However I lucked out (I hope) in getting Chenelle, who spoke to MY tour operator Bianca at Sell Off Vacations on Jan. 23 re questions I had about the compensation offer.
Chenelle asked me what the problem was as she did not know what exactlly had happened to US personally, but did know that there was a problem about the compensation with the Hotel.
I explained what happened and how we got a week of runarounds, not to mention of more things not being finished then we were told.
She asked if we were one of the ones that took the 50% the hotel finally offered. I told her No we did not, in fact they didn't even offer it to us, which my husband at the time of check out did not really notice untill I mentioned it. We were not going to take it anyway.
Chenelle said that we did the right thing as the people who took the 50% may have the biggest problem as in accepting it they made a separate aggreement with the hotel, contrary to the one Sunquest had offered. I hope she is wrong, as I know a lot of you did except the 50%. I would try to argue with Sunquest that you felt pressured to and were told by the hotel that you would probably get the other 50% from Sunquest.
Chenelle says that they are FULLY AWARE of what the hotel did and are in TOTAL DISAGREEMENT with them and are at present trying to work this out with them as to them honouring the original deal of 100% our if it has to be a 50/50 split with Sunquest.
Chenelle said that IT WILL BE WORKED out,even if Sunquest has swallow the compensation as they DID gaurantee the free week and it is on everyone's file who took "what" option.
She asked that I e-mail Sunquest Customer Service detailing what happened for their records, as right now they have no way of knowing who took the 50% or what.
www.customerservice@sunquest.ca
I suggest you all do it A.S.A.P
To DRBound, this took longer then I thought, so I will post it and do a seperate review for you.
MJ
Dear DRBound
I had every intention of a full "report" re the resort, but have been "under the weather" no pun intended since just before we left.
I will endevour to give you as "clear"a picture as possible. You will also read what I want to share with my fellow travelers who were there at the same time and had "compensation" problems.
I will get the compensation part out of the way first as it is the shortest.
I called my tour rep yesterday and was told she was out. Called back today and told she was at lunch. Left messages both times, last one was quite strong, but I have not heard from her yet.
Decided to go ahead and call Sunquest Customer Servcie and could not get Jason, (whom I spoke to first about all the problems) as he was on the phone. However I lucked out (I hope) in getting Chenelle, who spoke to MY tour operator Bianca at Sell Off Vacations on Jan. 23 re questions I had about the compensation offer.
Chenelle asked me what the problem was as she did not know what exactlly had happened to US personally, but did know that there was a problem about the compensation with the Hotel.
I explained what happened and how we got a week of runarounds, not to mention of more things not being finished then we were told.
She asked if we were one of the ones that took the 50% the hotel finally offered. I told her No we did not, in fact they didn't even offer it to us, which my husband at the time of check out did not really notice untill I mentioned it. We were not going to take it anyway.
Chenelle said that we did the right thing as the people who took the 50% may have the biggest problem as in accepting it they made a separate aggreement with the hotel, contrary to the one Sunquest had offered. I hope she is wrong, as I know a lot of you did except the 50%. I would try to argue with Sunquest that you felt pressured to and were told by the hotel that you would probably get the other 50% from Sunquest.
Chenelle says that they are FULLY AWARE of what the hotel did and are in TOTAL DISAGREEMENT with them and are at present trying to work this out with them as to them honouring the original deal of 100% our if it has to be a 50/50 split with Sunquest.
Chenelle said that IT WILL BE WORKED out,even if Sunquest has swallow the compensation as they DID gaurantee the free week and it is on everyone's file who took "what" option.
She asked that I e-mail Sunquest Customer Service detailing what happened for their records, as right now they have no way of knowing who took the 50% or what.
www.customerservice@sunquest.ca
I suggest you all do it A.S.A.P
To DRBound, this took longer then I thought, so I will post it and do a seperate review for you.
MJ