Racism Against Dominicans in Cofresi ?

A

AlterEgo

Guest
Well, I might be able to answer that........

They might have made the reservation through a special deal intended to attract Americans, Canadians & Europeans there, in order to entice them to buy into a travel club. This hotel is part of Lifestyles, I believe. Cheap Caribbean has deals from time to time, and if you read the small print, it DOES say the rate is only valid for residents of USA, Canada or Europe.

A few years ago, we booked a stay for an unbelievably low price, hotel only, because we were already at our house in DR, so we just drove there (long drive from southwest coast). Upon arrival, we handed over our American passports, and they went to make copies of them. Lo and behold, Mr.AE did not qualify for that hotel rate, because his passport said he was born in DR, and our reservation was void, and we'd have to pay a MUCH high amount if we wanted to stay. I asked for a manager, and calmly demanded an explanation. Upon hearing Mr. AE had lived in the USA since the mid 1970s, he asked for his driver's license. That was enough for them to honor the reservation.

Imagine if we had flown there.....? Their policy sucks.
 
C

Cdn_Gringo

Guest
Membership has it's privileges. Obviously no member is turned away and accommodations in all classes is on a members first basis during times when the resort is full. Not likely applicable at this time of year I would think.

A member can make reservations for their guests to stay at the resort directly with the resort and there would be no problem if those guests were Dominican or even Haitian.

The often heavily discounted promotional rates that are sometimes offered to resellers such as Cheap Caribbean, Groupon and the likes are intended to be used by traditional tourists to the DR who can then be presented with the option of becoming a member. This could be a case of "someone didn't read the fine print" before hitting the pay now button. Or it could possibly be an Expedia problem where they did not correctly itemize the "some restrictions apply".

I don't think the person who booked the stay is a member cuz members don't book through a travel company. One of the rules that is rigorously enforced is that the person who makes the booking must be present at check-in and be present on the resort for the entire time unless the booking is specifically intended to be used by guests of a member - a process that can't be done without contacting the resort directly.

Guests are responsible for any damages they cause while staying on the property. This is one of the reasons that the paying guest needs to be present at check-in to sign the forms and plop down their credit card just in case. A contract for service does not exist between the resort and a third party that has not purchased their own accommodations. There have been problems in the past with third party bookings. As far as I know, this is not an uncommon requirement in the industry and most hoteliers wish to know in advance if the guest is not the same person who made the reservation.

Yes lots of Dominicans stay there every week. Their reservations are not obfuscated within a reservation generated by a foreign travel company. The resort caters primarily to an upscale, affluent foreign clientele and excess rooms that are not booked by members are offered to the general public by way of travel companies and direct bookings up to a an occupancy ratio that does not negatively impact the "member experience".

This is't racism. At worst it is a communication of detail error between the travel company and the person in Canada. I am sure that this person had no direct contact with Lifestyles prior to the arrival of the guests and that Lifestyles was not aware that the customer who purchased the accommodations would not be present.
 
K

KyleMackey

Guest
If making a reservation at an AI, from outside of the DR that includes Dominican friends/relatives, verbally disclose their names
with reservation agent on the phone and make sure the names matches the cedulas.
 
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