- Thread starter z_zapper
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Riu or Blue Bay?
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I was in the same dilemma you were. I chose Blue bay for a number of reasons.
1- No kids, that alone is enough.
2- Reviews on other forums say Blue bay is trying to attain a higher rating and after the complete renovation, the reviews say everything was excellent and the food was terrific compared to other places.
I too am single going there 3-23 thru 3-29
Plus Puerto Plata and the surrounding area Sousa and Cabarete are close enough to travel to. Additionally Blue Bay does a bar crawl in the evenings for people looking to get out and move about, and PP is much more friendlier to tourists then the other areas like Punta Cana, so it is much safer.
I know there are 3 casinos and a number of tourist friendly clubs and bars in PP and the surrounding towns.
Joe
1- No kids, that alone is enough.
2- Reviews on other forums say Blue bay is trying to attain a higher rating and after the complete renovation, the reviews say everything was excellent and the food was terrific compared to other places.
I too am single going there 3-23 thru 3-29
Plus Puerto Plata and the surrounding area Sousa and Cabarete are close enough to travel to. Additionally Blue Bay does a bar crawl in the evenings for people looking to get out and move about, and PP is much more friendlier to tourists then the other areas like Punta Cana, so it is much safer.
I know there are 3 casinos and a number of tourist friendly clubs and bars in PP and the surrounding towns.
Joe
Thx Joe. To me it's a trade-off between having no kids around at the Blue Bay (big plus), vs having a complex of three properties to use the facilities at with the Riu hotels.
Either way, we'll definitely be spending a lot of time in Puerto Plata itself.
BTW, did you book the Blue Bay through a package, or on its own?
Z.
Either way, we'll definitely be spending a lot of time in Puerto Plata itself.
BTW, did you book the Blue Bay through a package, or on its own?
Z.
We have been to Riu (Bachatta) and will likely never go back. Not that it was terrible or anything, it just didn't live up to previous 4 annd 5 stars in the area that we had been to.
We are going to Blue Bay in April and have high hopes based on reviews that it will surpass Riu.
Don't get me wrong though, in that you can have a great vacation at Riu as we did . It just was not for us.
If you do go to Riu , please take a cab through Maimo and help out the kids. It will make your vacation ,as it did ours.
We are going to Blue Bay in April and have high hopes based on reviews that it will surpass Riu.
Don't get me wrong though, in that you can have a great vacation at Riu as we did . It just was not for us.
If you do go to Riu , please take a cab through Maimo and help out the kids. It will make your vacation ,as it did ours.
I've never been to Blue Bay.
We have been twice at Riu Bachata (October & December 2006)
Mostly we used the resort as a bed and breakfast, since every day we went out for lunch, dinner, drinks, casinos, etc.
I have to tell you, that, in my opinion, this resort offers you the best for your money. It's not a 4 or 5 star hotel. There's no such a thing on the north coast. Not as long as you pay $50-$60 per person, per day, all included.
The resort is very clean, so are the rooms, the gardens, the pool and the beach.
All of the employees (in our 2 trips) were excellent.
Do not expect gourmet food (nobody can when you pay those prices) however, I must tell you the buffet is excellent (pricewise).
I'm explaining our experience, as a middle aged couple. Maybe, if you are single, this is not the best place to stay. But I can assure you, that you are not going to get any better for your money, as far as accommodations, clean rooms, service, etc. etc.
If you are casino people, you have Ocean World only 2 miles away from you, right at Cofresi beach, where you will enjoy quite a few good restaurants as well.
I have been several times to Playa Dorada, and in my opinion, Riu beats all of them by a mile.
We have been twice at Riu Bachata (October & December 2006)
Mostly we used the resort as a bed and breakfast, since every day we went out for lunch, dinner, drinks, casinos, etc.
I have to tell you, that, in my opinion, this resort offers you the best for your money. It's not a 4 or 5 star hotel. There's no such a thing on the north coast. Not as long as you pay $50-$60 per person, per day, all included.
The resort is very clean, so are the rooms, the gardens, the pool and the beach.
All of the employees (in our 2 trips) were excellent.
Do not expect gourmet food (nobody can when you pay those prices) however, I must tell you the buffet is excellent (pricewise).
I'm explaining our experience, as a middle aged couple. Maybe, if you are single, this is not the best place to stay. But I can assure you, that you are not going to get any better for your money, as far as accommodations, clean rooms, service, etc. etc.
If you are casino people, you have Ocean World only 2 miles away from you, right at Cofresi beach, where you will enjoy quite a few good restaurants as well.
I have been several times to Playa Dorada, and in my opinion, Riu beats all of them by a mile.
I forgot to tell you that as a married couple, we never visited the disco at Riu, and only a couple of days we watched (briefly) the show, which was OK.
They also have a casino at Bachata.
They also have a casino at Bachata.
Interesting contrast of opinions here. We actually decided to go with the BB, largely because we heard that it's much easier to get to Puerto Plata itself from there (we plan on going into the city to check out the nightlife most nights), as the Riu is "in the middle of nowhere". The BB also ended up being less expensive, so all-in-all I think it works out best. The one negative I've heard about the BB is that the entertainment is poor there. Oh well, we'll have to make our own entertainment, I suppose ;-).
I dont think you can compare BBG to a RIU property! I have stayed at several RIUs in Punta Cana and most recently, stayed at BBG...it is a great resort for the price, although stay away from the food.
I did like the fact that it was Adults Only but the entertainment is a bit weak if you care about that!
As far as the rooms go, I had a very basic room with no balcony and it was huge. Another plus is that all the rooms are centrally located.
If you want to just have a great vacation and dont want to shell out a lot of $$$, BBG is a great choice..they also have the greatest gym I have yet to see at an AI (small, but good).
Lots of nightlife in walking distance too in Playa Dorada...went out every night and didnt spend any $$ on taxis.
Have fun wherever you choose to go.
I did like the fact that it was Adults Only but the entertainment is a bit weak if you care about that!
As far as the rooms go, I had a very basic room with no balcony and it was huge. Another plus is that all the rooms are centrally located.
If you want to just have a great vacation and dont want to shell out a lot of $$$, BBG is a great choice..they also have the greatest gym I have yet to see at an AI (small, but good).
Lots of nightlife in walking distance too in Playa Dorada...went out every night and didnt spend any $$ on taxis.
Have fun wherever you choose to go.
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