All Inclusive ??

[Tony]

I am planning a trip to DR in late August. I am looking at the all inclusive hotels. Is this the way to go?? We will arrive in Puerto Plata and want to travel the north coast. Should we rent a car or is public transportation good ? What is the best hotel on the North Coast ? Are reservations needed or will I be better off barganing when I get there.

Thanks Everyone.......Tony

 

[Phyllis]

Is this your first time to the DR? If so an all inclusive is the way I went, BUT I ended up being off the resort for most of the time. The Dominican culture and experience is NOT behind a resort complex. However, I would recommend The Paradise, Playa Naco and the Flamenco all in the Playa Dorada Complex. If you want to discuss more off resort areas, email me I'd be happy to assist.

No matter what you choose to do, you will love the North area of the DR - I've been 8 times in the last 3 years!

 

[Henry]

If you want to stay in an All-Inclusive, you may book with your travel agency, they have the better rates than if you come here to haggle! Nevertheless get yourself a car and get around the island - lots to see!

Good luck!

Henry

 

[Susanne]

The first question is difficult to answer. It really does depend on what you want to do while you are in the DR.

The advantage of the AI's is that they provide good value for money, you will have everything you need right on the spot and most resorts in the DR are of a high standard although the service is probably less than you would expect in the States.

The danger of all inclusives is that you very often come home with a holiday experience you could have had almost anywhere warm and sunny. You tend to stay around the resort since you have already paid for everything there. Also, some people feel intimidated by the presence of armed guards and daren't venture outside. Please don't let this scare you. The DR is - generally - a safe place to travel. But if you decide to stay mainly at the resort chances are that you will not see very much of the country.

If you only go to relax, meet other tourists and take the occasional tour then all inclusive is fine. But if you prefer to stray and see a bit more I would advice travelling independently and mainly staying at smaller hotels and resorts. You could also consider renting an apartment or a villa.

Puerto Plata is a good choice and offers plenty of opportunities to see the very varied nature of the DR. If I were you I would definitely go to the peninsula of Samana - see more information on www.samana.net - and to the mountains where river rafting, horseback riding, trekking etc. are among the possibilities.

Personally, I wouldn't rent a car. Some people feel safe enough driving in the DR but the statistics are sinister - it has one of the highest rates of lethal accidents when compared to the size of the population. There ARE rules to traffic but they are not likely to be like back home. However, other people have rented cars and have had no problem with it. Just make certain that the car is in perfect mechanical condition and that you are sufficiently covered by insurance should you be involved in an accident.

As for public transport: It is very good. There are comfortable and fast long distance buses from Puerto Plata to the main cities in the DR. For shorter distances you can jump on the not so comfortable and not so fast gua-guas - mini buses on regular routes. They are very cheap. Taxis are easily available but not inexpensive.

Best hotel on the North coast? Again it depends on what you are after. If it is service and personality it is probably not one of the AI's. If it is lively nightlife, loads of fascilities and plenty of arrangements then one of the all inclusives will be just the thing you are after. I have stayed for some days at the Riu Mambo in Bahia Maimon which is about 15 minutes West of Puerto Plata. The bay is lovely, the hotel is very nice. I have been to Playa Dorada where most of the all inclusives are clustered. I hated it. Others love it.

On your question of bargaining my own experience is that this was easier from home. I managed to get some really good deals by writing the hotels directly. Especially if you go outside season. Just make certain that you get a written confirmation of rates and special requests, such as a balcony, a sea view etc. You can also bargain once you are there, again especially out of the main season. Room occupation is rumoured to be low this year, so you should be able to cut a deal.

I hope this helps. Enjoy your trip.

Regards,
Susanne

 

[hillbilly]

Tony? Both Phyllis and Suzanne are good at this..

they have the real traveller's experteese(?) [I'll do a spell check]
I live here so I look at things a bit differently.
1)All incls are fine...Perhaps the IberoStar is the "best" on the North Shore. At least according to my son. And we go as a family to the Playa Dorada complex for at least 10 days every August.
An important question is "Do you golf?" PD has a real nice course and there are others around.
2) If you are adventerous, then try a couple of nights at Sofy's B&B. She has a neat, safe house a little off the beaten path, serves a deliucious breakfast and knows POP as well as anybody.
3) Rent or public transport? Driving here is insane, there is just no other word for it. Depending on you level of adventure, you can take buses-very good service generally speaking; local buses-they are an education in and of themselves, or taxis.
You can also hire a car and driver for short hauls.
There is also an interesting web page you might want to look at, called www.debbiesdominicantravel.com. It is worth a peek.
Good luck and have fun.

HB

 

[Tony]

Re: Thanks Hillbilly

Thanks Hillbilly.. I have written to Phyllis. I appreciate your help.

 

[Bob Morris]

Re: All inclusive??

Bargaining might be possible in view of the low occupancy rates shown on this board. When I visited in February one of my fellow travellers was fluent in Spanish and enquired of the management (at Gran Ventana in Playa Dorada) and was quoted a rate considerably HIGHER than any of us were paying.

 

[Sherman]

We just returned from 12 days in Sosua visiting Cabarate by taxi and gua-gua.

As those below have said, type an size of hotel depend on what you're looking for.

We stayed the entire time at Sosua by the Sea hotel.For us it was perfect. It has a small hotel feel but offers ammenities of the larger resorts. It's walking distance to plenty of resturarants and nightlife if you want it.

I reserved a room by email,but did not confirm price or send credit card info (it was a very last minute trip). Upon arrival I asked what kind of deal we could get, expecting to stay 7-10 days We ended up paying $60 a night for a very nice room including breakfast for two and all taxes. I thought it was a "studio room", but from the description on their web site it sounds more like an"apartment" room. This was a substantial savings over their "rack" rate posted on their web site.

I'm a firm believer in not confirming price until arrival even at home. It's amazing what you can get just for asking.

Another note, This hotel also offers all inclusive if you want it. We were about the only one's there who chose not to and it was the right decision for us. You could probably try AI for a couple of days then decide which way to go. Just a thought.

One last thing if you choose this property (or any in Sousa for that matter) an English-German dictionary would come in handy. We only met two other couples from the US during our stay.

Good luck!

 

[Sherman]

Correction...

I'm new here and now that I see how things post I should have said "as those above have said"!

 

[Susanne]

A bargain

On the subject of bargaining:

When me and my family decided to go to the DR 1.5 years ago we didn't know whether to go to Punta Cana or Puerto Plata. So I spent some time checking things out, getting quotes. We were going in December which is not rock bottom but not peak season either.

I think the best deal - moneywise, at least - I got was one of the big all inclusives in Punta Cana (I have forgotten which one, but it had five stars). Through the email I got an offer of 50 USD per person per night - all inclusive. The children were free as long as they stayed with us. The big tour operators had this hotel as well and for a price well above that.

We decided against the all inclusives as we prefer to travel independently. But this is an example of what you can do. Other places we paid 35 USD per room per night, but then no food or anything else was included and the room was very basic.

Regards,
Susanne

 

[Roger & Susan]

My hubby and I stayed at the Iberostar in Costa Dorado area... last November, around Thanksgiving week...... 8 days, 7 nights, including roundtrip airfare from Ohio... $1600 US!

we had a blast! We went out into town, on a jeep "safari" into the mountains to climb waterfalls, toured museums, went to church at the Catedral de San Fillippe on Sunday, and yes, it was extremely nice to come back to a place that had a disco, shows, bars, all the great food you can imagine, clean beaches, I could go on and on, we loved it...

he went scuba diving, I painted on the beach, we shopped in Sosua, toured Brugal (the Rum factory).............

and being massaged down ON the beach by a woman named Sonya, one hour, $20 US! WELL worth the cash after a tough day painting on the beach!!

If you are adventurous, nothing will stop you from going out and having fun! I found a mountain village school that I want to help, on a day that I thought I was only going to climb waterfalls! I had my shoes shined on the Square in Pueta Plata, watching the older gentlemen selling lottery tickets out of their little suitcases

and we didn't spend a fortune.... I LOVED the Iberostar! I will be back there this year, and we hope to buy a home in the area as well!

It's a great intro to the area if you are going for the first time.............. just my two cents worth!

Have a blast on your trip!
Peace be with you, Susan