Barcelo Punta Goleta
My husband and I stayed at the Barcello Punta Goleta Resort on March 11-20, 2004.
They did not have any pictures on Expedia when we booked the trip, so we did not know exactly what it is going to be like. On the arrival we were pleasantly surpised by how beautiful the grounds were- spacious, lots of flowers, palm trees, even the fountain with flamingo living there and a few ducks, and of course, a swimming poor.
Our room was huge- we could have a disco right there- and in addition we had an excellent balcony overlooking the flamingo.
They serve meals too many times a day- breakfast (buffet) 7am-10 pm, lunch 12- 3pm (buffet and grill), tea 3-4, dinner (buffet and Italian restaurant), snacks (11 pm- 1 am). Also, you can drink any alcohol you want. Food is european type, lots of fruits and veges. I eat all fruits and veges and a lot and did not get sick. I was VERY happy with the selections- my husband missed Americal style omelets and sandwiches.
My husband had some small revolution in his stomach, then he stopped eating meat (maybe it was because of burgers) and everything was all right.
They have entertainent almost 24 hours a day- tennis courts, volleyball, stretching, games in the pool, shows and disco at night, spanish lessons... Just be careful about the location of your room. Ours was too close to the stage and at night their loud microphone was bothering us a lot, because we came there for quiet vacation. However, if you coming there for parties- then you will be out there drinking and having fun. If you want quiet room- choose buildings 7, 8 or 9, looking away from the stage.
The staff is friendly and helpful.
Hotel provides free shuttle to Sasua and Cabarette.
The beach was not the best in the world. It was close to the hotel, but very windy and had uncomfortable waves (this combination makes Cabarette the best place in the world for wind and kite surfing- you will enjoy watching them fly into the air). Also, it was small comparing to other hotels. That's why we started taking this shuttle to Sasua (only 20 minutes). Our beach had one certain advantage over Sasua- we had no harassing vendors (only 3 quetly standing at the beginning of the beach). Believe me they will check on you every 5-10 minutes in Sasua. And their prices in Sasua are crazy- it is better to shop in Cabarette. We found one store with fair fixed prices- it is called Taina shop (next to the Entrada Irish Pub)- very decent and honest place to shop. They have a couple more stores with fixed prices in Cabarette.
I would certainly like to go back there. We both believe that it was a great value (only $800 per person for 10 days with non-stop flight included) and the amenities had definitely surpassed our expectations. We had excellent time. You get the same sun and ocean as in Virgin Islands, but for much cheaper.
