Holiday Reviews > Caribbean > Dominican Republic > Puerto Plata > Puerto Plata Hotels > Occidental Allegro Playa Dorada Hotel > Read Reviews
Occidental Allegro Playa Dorada Hotel ReviewsPage 1 2
| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Mar 2008 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Exit.ca |
| Submitted
By: |
Mr TJ Raj |
| Overall
Rating: |
7/10 |
| Comments: |
Great Place to Get Sun
Great Place to Get Away
Beach disappointed me. a few blocks of walking to other hotels beach was much beautiful than allegro's.
Food was okay as you have to take in consideration how nutral the food has to be in order to cater world wide tourists.
If your European guest then you will get more special treatment than any north american guests.
Friendly staff all around the resort, they treat you the way you treat them, so be friendly and say ola.
Over all this is my first trip to the south and I give it a 7/10 my friends who have been to cuba rated this trip as a 5/10.
If you love the white sand and the turquise beaches please this is not for you. but you do get what you pay for so enjoy.
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Nov 2007 |
| Tour
Operator: |
First Choice |
| Submitted
By: |
Mr C KAY |
| Overall
Rating: |
8/10 |
| Comments: |
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed staying here. I read the mixed reviews with a little concern but found it to be as described in the brochure. The staff were friendly from the second we stepped off the coach to leaving. We were booked in and shown to our room promptly.
The room was all that you could need. It was large and clean with a balcony. Bathroom was clean and the shower was very powerful with hot water 24/7.
There was a deal of renovation going on in some of the accomodation blocks but this did not affect us.
There are 5 restaurants. The main buffet restaurant, grill, mexican, italian and pizzaria. The food was of a good standard although not too varied. the food in the buffet restaurant could become monotonous if not broken up with other restaurants.
The bars were good. the local beer, Presidente was much nicer than expected from an all inclusive. Wine selection was limited, red or white!! I quite enjoyed the red but the wine was like vinegar!! Wide selection of cocktails although these did vary dependent on who made them!! Waiting time at the bar was excesive at peak times and it is advisable to double up on drinks when watching the shows or entertainment.
Both pools were clean and well presented at all times.
The beach was not as I pictured. the beach and sea were quite dirty with branches and litter. We did attend shortly after the flooding so I dare say this accounted for the majority of the mess.
The most annoying part of the holiday were the reps trying to sell time shares or something similar. They try to attract you with a free t shirt and a bottle of wine and won't take no as an answer. If you see "Eddie Murphy" as he introduces himself walk on past!!!
All in all it was a nice relaxing holiday. For the money I would certainly go again.
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Jul 2007 |
| Tour
Operator: |
MyTravel |
| Submitted
By: |
Mr D Nelhams |
| Overall
Rating: |
8/10 |
| Comments: |
Firstly we were very happy with the holiday, we travelled from Gatwick with MyTravel who had a 4 hour delay (these things happen), but they were not helpful in conveying information of why we were delayed.
The flight was tightly packed and some people did not have the entertainment screens in the headrest of the seats working. The cabin crew seem more interested in the hard sell of their wares other than the comfort of their passengers. Never the less we arrived somewhat crippled.
The MyTravel Cabin crew did not have the necessary blue entrance visa documents on board(which would have been handy filling them in for your family while sitting about for 8 and half hours, but we had to fill them in before passport control and hand them to the visa control with your $10 per person entrance Tax.
Hold tight to your cases as the local "porters" grab them and move them 1m onto your bus and demand payment.
The drive from the airport and the knowledge of all the bad reviews that you have read make you feel "did we make the right holiday decision". You turn into the guarded entrance of the complex and the barrier drops behind you.
We arrived at our hotel the reception staff were very helpful, we were checked in, collected our safe deposit keys and the bellboy took us to our room.
We had a room overlooking the ocean; it was very clean and was maintained clean throughout our stay. The maids are very honest and hard working and if you give them a few dollars now and then you can be assured that your room will be fresh and well stocked. The rooms air conditioning was a bit noisy but effective.
I cannot believe the previous reviews regarding smelly rooms either we were lucky with our allocation or time of year anyway you really do not want to stay too long in your room with such beauty outside. The weather when we were there was around 95F every day with low or no humidity just a refreshing cool sea breeze.
The food was good well prepared and plentiful in choice. The Italian and Mexican Restaurant were very good eating your dinner overlooking the Ocean was very nice.
The bar staff were very busy and would eventually get around to you, the beer was ok the cocktails more like slush puppies. But if you were thirsty then you would find something you liked.
As you would expect plastic cups and beakers around the pool, but it would have been nice to have a drink in a glass now and then but we acknowledged that glass and bare feet do not mix.
The pools and gardens were very well maintained with staff busy all day with their allotted tasks. They have a large infinity pool, bar and grill within the complex and the larger pool with pool bar by the beach entrance. Every morning the army of staff would be up at sunrise scrubbing, washing, and sweeping the whole area in readiness for you to enjoy the day.
We booked some tours with "Lewis" he is always around the beach entrance. The waterfall, Jungle tour, and Ocean World swimming with Dolphins is a must. We travelled to Paradise Island they said it was 2 and half hours each way but in Dominican hours this is more like 4 and half hours each way. Worth a visit.
As for the staff who are employed to sell time share, a polite no seems to work and actually calling him Mr Timeshare seemed to shame him that he had been rumbled by you. Can't understand how people are so daft enough to go along with them let alone sign up for the promise of a free T shirt (they need to get out more).
Beach was very clean with locals racking the sand and picking up the seaweed and rubbish discarded by holiday makers. Sea was warm-don't swim out too far as undercurrents and possibly very hungry large fish!!
The free Canoes, snorkels and stuff are always available also the bikes in the hotel are fun to ride around on as they are about 20 years old with min maintenance( done by holidaymakers) fixed wheel -no brakes etc.
The entertainment was ok if you have young kids a sort of Butlins participation program but all seemed to enjoy. Not a lot for the clubbers amongst you but we have Ibiza for that!!
Try and speak to the locals in their own language even if just a small amount they respond much better. Change your US dollars into Peso as you need them as they will not change them back when you leave with such excuses as they do not have any dollars today etc.
I can only speak as I see, many Americans in the hotel seemed hell bent on preaching about the service, lack of certain foods and their expectations of staff etc. But in our eyes we had a lovely relaxing holiday with everything we expected of such a lovely place.
If you wish to roam around the hotel finding fault then you should learn to relax, possibly the Dollar exchange rate makes the American visitors holiday costs more so they expect more. I
would not fly with MyTravel again as 8 and half hours of someone trying to sell you scratch cards, soft toys and cigarettes is not a relaxing flight.
Have a great holiday and relax!! Remember your $20 exit Tax per person and Mosquito sticks.
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Dec 2006 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Thomas Cook |
| Submitted
By: |
Miss J Latham |
| Overall
Rating: |
10/10 |
| Comments: |
The best holiday I have ever been on!
The rooms weren't the best but it was livable. There were leaks in the roof and one day we had ants all in our clothes but the problem was sorted very quickly.
The fun club staff are amazing; you can't get any nicer people. Tony, Joe and Ruben are the best in the world and are the sweetest guys.
They try their very best to keep you happy and to get you to join in activities. Join in with them, it's a laugh and worth it for those guys. All the fun club guys are extremely nice and will listen to anything you have to say. You can't beat them. I would travel all the way back (8 hrs) just to see them!
Without them the hotel wouldn't be what it is and my holiday would have been dull and boring. Say hi to them for me when you go.
The food's ok but can get a little bit boring after a while. They say it's a French buffet one night but the foods exactly the same as the English buffet the night before. It doesn't vary that much but it is edible.
I recommend going for Christmas. It is the best Christmas I have ever had as I have never been away for Christmas before. Santa comes by Jet Ski and has presents for all the children. They have massive celebrations but these celebrations are on Christmas Eve which is their Christmas day. They have fashion shows etc.
The vendors on the beach aren't too much of a problem. You just calmly say no thanks and they go away. You get the monkey man walking round shouting ' I’ve got the monkey, monkey see monkey do'. You'll have this going round in your head for days after.
There is also a kids club which I didn't use so I don't know much about it. The kids in there looked as if they were having a jolly good time anyway. There is a children’s disco every night 8-8.30 run by the fun club team.
You will have these songs in your head for weeks later too. The birdie song, agadoo and follow the leader are the ones in my head at the minute.
The activities keep you occupied all day. There is kayak racing, soccer, table tennis, archery, pineapple rolling, egg throwing, beer drinking contests, mini Olympics which are hilarious, water aerobics with the sexy Joe, water polo and much more. These are all run by the fun club team.
The staff are extremely friendly and any you walk past will say hola to you and shake your hand. They are always singing and dancing and chatting to you.
You need to go to ocean world! It's about 20mins from the hotel and you book it through the reps. We swam with dolphins and it was amazing. You can swim with dolphins, sharks, touch sea lions and much more. It was fantastic.
I would love to go back especially to see the fun club teams and for of course, the weather which was fab all the time we were there.
I definitely recommend this hotel and you cannot beat it. I can't really fault it and I'm only 14.
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Dec 2006 |
| Tour
Operator: |
MyTravel |
| Submitted
By: |
Miss J Marsh |
| Overall
Rating: |
8/10 |
| Comments: |
I had a fab holiday. The staff were lovely, food was great, everyone is so helpful and friendly.
Readers - do not worry about all the negative reviews, I read them and was petrified of going but I had a fantastic time.
The weather was great, pools were ace. The only problem on the beach is of being pestered to buy sarongs and maracas etc by the locals, but you get use to it.
Overall, I had a brill 2 weeks and I will hopefully be going back with the people I met over there.
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Jul 2006 |
| Tour
Operator: |
local travel agent |
| Submitted
By: |
Not Specified |
| Overall
Rating: |
1/10 |
| Comments: |
Lousy Hotel, bad service, below average beach. The check in was impersonal, incomplete. The clerk took our hotel voucher said nothing, worked us in the computer tagged us with the wrist bands and sent us on our way; without any information or the necessary vouchers for the three restaurants or horse riding clinic. We did finally get our vouchers but not without the arrogant assumption and later assertion that we misplaced them. Which under our circumstances would have been impossible.
The room was damp, and the fungal spores in the air aggravated my family’s asthma.
The bathroom was not cleaned properly hair and dirt in the bathtub. The pillows on the bed smelled horrible, sour strong pungent smell. The sliding doors extra pin lock was dysfunctional.
The food was good. Above average. Pools were clean. Beach was a strong disappointment. Absolutely not up to par with tropical standards. The sand is brown. The water murky. A lot of seaweed on the beach and in the water. The entertainment was below average. The animators were self serving. They plugged their own badly burnt CD’s with music. The wine is reasonable. The beer was good. The cocktails were horrible. Made with artificial overly sweetened juices.
The security guards acted like life guards and were rude in their communication with the guests. Treated them with contempt and disregard.
The front office clerks continued to treat us rude at further encounters. Even stating that our problems weren’t theirs when I asked them for information. Smirking at our questions. When the wrist band of our younger son broke had us come back at 3 different times during the day to fix it and sending us away each time without any excuse. The last days my son just walked around without a wrist band leaving us wondering when he would be stopped from eating or drinking anything due to lack of wristband.
I would not go back to this hotel if it was for free, and I am not exaggerating.
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Jul 2006 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Thomas Cook |
| Submitted
By: |
Miss L Scott |
| Overall
Rating: |
3/10 |
| Comments: |
The overall holiday was great, but a week in this hotel was more than enough! If our holiday was for 2 weeks we would have tried to change hotels!
The hotel location and grounds were great. The food was also to a high standard, a good variety and choice of several restaurants. Mexican particularly nice! Both my partner and I got a rather nasty stomach bug (requiring antibiotics on return to the UK!) that we believe to be contracted from the water used to wash the cups or fruit. Once at the airport it seemed that this bug was not isolated to Occidental, guests at other hotels were also affected.
On arrival, the foyer is very impressive as are the hotel grounds! However, once you are in your room it's another story! Dangerous electrics. Toilets that don't flush/ flood, broken furniture and basically in need of decorating! The worst thing is the damp smell and feel. Due to this the pillows and sheets smelt disgusting and sleeping in them was not a pleasant option! Apart from this, the rooms were kept very clean and we had fresh towels every day.
All this aside, we had a relaxing holiday and it was a cheap last minute deal! In future I would certainly pay a lot more to get a decent hotel, without the wet dog aroma!
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Jul 2006 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Booked Independently |
| Submitted
By: |
pepper |
| Overall
Rating: |
2/10 |
| Comments: |
We are back from our vacation in the Dominican Republic! I am soooo glad to be back. All in all I would have to say that we did have a great time as a family, and in that sense the vacation was a success.
There were some aspects that were not that great. First let me explain our hotel complex. Our hotel was situated on a strip of beach with many other huge hotels. All these hotels were situated on a piece of property only accessible for hotel guests, employees and taxis. It was like this large village with even a plaza somewhere in the middle where you could shop. Roads, pavement, landscaping all were very exclusive and looked perfectly maintained.
There were only two heavily guarded entrances. If and when you did go on excursions and left the 'village', it seemed like you entered another world. Disorganized, chaotic, underdeveloped, poor infrastructure and for all appearances with some law but no order.
As for the price of the excursions, totally out of balance with the dynamics of the local economy. You would be asked to pay $4 for a coke at a local stop somewhere. Or the excursion would have a stop at a local eatery (so that you can see how the ‘natives’ live) where you would be overwhelmed by 20 children asking you to buy them a bag of chips with the provision that you do not open the bag of chips (so that they can sell it again).
Then if that didn't work they would start begging, all twenty of them and pointing at your bag and asking if there is nothing in there for them. Or asking you for your watch or you name it. Although it would seem that the economy needs tourism as a source of income, I am not so sure that a majority of the people are getting any better from tourism. It just makes the gap between "the haves" and "have-nots" bigger.
It is one thing to go on a expedition or excursion to a third world country with the objective to learn or write about it, but it is another thing to be constantly confronted with so much poverty and a seemingly hopeless and depressing situation when your intention is to have a fun family vacation. But maybe there are those that can easily shut their eyes and ignore what's around them and just set out to have fun and 'watch the natives' with total disregard or empathy. I couldn't.
I feel very lucky to live on a tropical island (Curacao, Dutch West Indies) that is fairly well developed and has people with a fair amount of pride, of course it is a lot easier to be proud when you are not poor.
Now, as for the Hotel. Supposedly four stars. Five restaurants, two large pools, Jacuzzi, beach, kids club with several professional animators, three bars where you can drink until you drop. As for the all inclusive part, the food was good not great but definitely good. You had several themes during the weak, Mexican night, lobster night, Dominican night, and so on. But through it all, just in case the theme didn't suit you, you could eat pizza and all kinds of pasta with all kinds of sauces every night.
My kids and I enjoyed the food, there was fresh fruit and salad (my favourite) and pizza and pasta (kids favourite) for our enjoyment. My husband on the other hand prefers a good piece of grilled meat with french fries, and that wasn't an option. NO FRENCH FRIES. I thought my husband was going to take the first plane back. There was a beach restaurant at the end of the beach that served french fries and pizza but then my children would have to miss out on the great dessert platter and ice cream, and they weren't willing to do that.
So my husband was out voted. But he really didn't mind because he saw how much the kids loved it. There is one main restaurant, one pizza place, on beach restaurant and you make reservations for the other three specialty restaurants. My advice: don't bother, they are below average. As for the drinking part, my husband and I don't really drink (alcohol), not out of principle, just preference. So we just had coke and 7up most of the time.
My husband tried the red wine once, and he said it was good. And I tried the beer (Presidente) and it was really good quality beer. I also tried a margarita cocktail once, but they make all their cocktails with these heavily sweetened juices, so my margarita tasted way too sweet and artificial. Don't expect to get fresh lime juice in your cocktail! I was immediately cured of having cocktails during my vacation. It was kind of a disappointment because although I'm not a great drinker I did envision myself having a mojito on the beach made with fresh mint. Just an romantic illusion.
As for the staff of the hotel; horrible with a few exceptions. They were callous, arrogant, detached, especially the front office, they were down right rude! The information desk personnel were helpful. The cleaning ladies were friendly and helpful.
The room was average, damp. And the pillows smelled awful. As for the trips for which you can make reservations, check if a taxi won’t do the same excursion, they usually do for a whole lot less! The only one I would recommend at the activities desk is the one for the amphibious vehicle. Really wild!!! Much better than the 'funny bike' excursion. It is a family resort, which gets fairly busy with local Dominicans during the weekends.
We made the best of it and had a great time just being together. But I don't think I will ever go back to the Dominican Republic or to Occidental hotel chains. But would I do all inclusive again, yes I think so. But I will have to check and see if they have french fries, lol.
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Mar 2006 |
| Tour
Operator: |
First Choice |
| Submitted
By: |
Mrs C Patrick |
| Overall
Rating: |
6/10 |
| Comments: |
Hotel accommodation was fine, regularly cleaned. Food was good, fresh salad and veggies. Drinks were ok except the wine (like drinking watery perfume).
They run out of things regularly, cups, glasses and drinks etc. The complex seems isolated and feels like Butlins in the middle of nowhere. Not advisable to rent a car as they drive like maniacs and a lot don't have a license or insurance we were told.
If you are thinking of doing any diving don't use the on sight Seapro Divers as they are not professional (no time for buddy checks and no briefing). Follow me was all he said and they want your money up front and try to get you to book a package.
They have a monopoly in the area so think they can behave how they like to you. Merlin Divers at Sosua is my choice. Great guy very professional. Will pick you up as well!! Wouldn’t go to complex again not my sort of holiday.
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Feb 2006 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Transat |
| Submitted
By: |
Mrs J Eadie |
| Overall
Rating: |
10/10 |
| Comments: |
We were at the Allegro Playa Dorada last February and thought it was awesome! You have to understand, if you have never travelled to the Dominican Republic, that their resorts are not the same as most other tropical locales; their infrastructure is less developed and therefore the quality of accomodation is lower than most other countries. Nevertheless, the level of service and personal attention from the people of the Dominican is unsurpassed in my opinion.
The rooms are simple but comfortable, and any problems will be fixed eventually. The food at the restaurants and buffet is pretty good and there is enough variety that you won't get too tired of the fare.
The pools are great and the location of the hotel along the beach is excellent. There is great snorkeling down the beach from the resort, and you can take fantastic day trips to Cabarete and Sosua beaches where you can pay a guy to sit with you and watch your things while you swim. He will also bring food and beers right to your chairs! It's a great deal, and an excellent way to talk to the locals and make friends.
The city tour into Puerto Plata is worth it if you want to see the way people live in that city. There isn't much to buy, besides the regular tourist crap, but definitely stock up on rum and coffee. There is so much to do outside the resort, take advantage of it to get a real sense of the area. There are better beaches just 20 minutes away and you can take taxi tours (make sure you bargain).
We absolutely love this resort and the people at it. We had so much fun the last time that we're leaving again in a few days for a two week holiday!
If you're expecting 4 star at North American standards, please adjust your expectations. This resort is well-run, fun to go to and despite the occasional shortage of drinking glasses or poolside chairs, it is the best place we've been to and we'll keep going back.
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Jan 2006 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Transat Holidays |
| Submitted
By: |
Miss H VanDerWyngaard |
| Overall
Rating: |
9/10 |
| Comments: |
If you're looking for a relaxing place to sit on the beach and enjoy the sun, this is the place to go.
We visited this resort the week of January 21st, 2006 and it was an amazing experience. All the staff were so helpful and we found that other people staying at the resort were very friendly. A special thanks goes out to the fun club including, Oscar, Teddy, Coca-Cola, Mr. Professional and the girl (we forget your name). The entertainment was always getting everyone involved, and what first seems to be a stupid game ends up being lots of fun with a lot of participation.
The rooms themselves were a little damp, but what more can be expected. We didn't go on holidays to spend much time in the room anyways.
The food was amazing. I was warned from acquaintances before traveling that I would probably feel ill due to the change in food, but I did not experience any of that. It was all presented well and there was a great variety. If one day you couldn't find something you liked (which never happened), there was always spaghetti and salads. Nonetheless, the food was great!
If asked again whether we would travel to this resort, our answer would definitely be yes! Great Job Everyone!
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Oct 2005 |
| Tour
Operator: |
First Choice |
| Submitted
By: |
Mrs C Johnson |
| Overall
Rating: |
5/10 |
| Comments: |
Our room was damp, we all got what looked like flea bites, tiles were missing in the bathroom, the bath was rusty, the furniture falling to pieces, the TV did not work and the electrics were exposed on lamp wires and sockets. We had a sea view but were also next to the entertainment stage so it was very noisy until just after 11pm. The staff were in general friendly and helpful and our room was well cleaned daily. The pools were quite well maintained, the kids club they may as well not bothered with, the entertainment lots of effort but at times appalling. The food was really quite good, choice, presentation, variety and availability could not be faulted. No major tummy upsets either.
The best bit of the holiday were the trips out. The waterfalls, the mountains, Sousua beach for clearer water. Book your tours in the Plaza and haggle or a group could take a taxi for the day. There is a lot of competition for your trade.
The worst bit of our holiday was our encounter with the Occidental Allegro Vacation Club, touted mercilessly in all of their hotels. We went along to one of their sales talks, were shown some very nice accommodation and given some very impressive figures. We were off guard, lulled into a false sense of security by the English sales girls and it being such a big international company. We stupidly signed a contract and paid a hefty deposit with our credit card. After closely examining the contract and additional literature given to us after signing we realised that we had not bought what we thought and it all started to look a bit dodgy. We went back to their sales office where they were not quite so nice when we told them we wanted to cancel.
The credit card company said we had 10 days to tell the "Club" that we wanted to cancel and we had to prove we had done this in writing. The "Club" would not accept a letter without us employing a local solicitor to force them. With all of the stress, expense of international phone calls, solicitors bills and time wasted in offices our holiday was ruined.
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Sep 2005 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Med Hotels |
| Submitted
By: |
Miss J Boyle |
| Overall
Rating: |
1/10 |
| Comments: |
DO NOT GO HERE. My partner & I were transferred to here after the bombs in Egypt and this was the worse holiday I have ever been on! So much so we tried to get a flight home after the first week.
We have been to many Caribbean islands and when I saw this resort I felt like I was in Spain! The reception area to be fair is very impressive, however on being shown to our room we was walking down a damp smelly corridor with mould on the ceiling tiles and walls on first sight of our room, we thought it was basic but seemed to be clean enough. Then we found out our air conditioning did not work!
We had not hot water for nearly a week due to problems in the hotel outside out hotel block was flooded every morning due to these water problems! In the first week my partner got food poisoning and was really ill our toilet in the room then blocked the workmen came to fix it and cleaned the dirty toilet water off the floor with our TOWLES and left them in our bath!
The second week I had food poisoning when I went to reception in to complain about my holiday there had been 11 cases of food poisoning in a week with 2 cases having to go to hospital. I found the staff very unhelpful and not at all friendly apart from the entertainment team well if you can call it entertainment. I don’t recommend any tours they are a waste of money and rubbish Paradise Island is a joke.
The resort its self was ok outside our faulty towers however the locals in the club up the road are very rude and my partner was offered women all night for 20$ not really what you want on holiday.
The Beach was ok but the beach sellers were annoying and pushy. Make your own mind up but I would never go to this resort even if I were given it for free.
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Sep 2005 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Thomson |
| Submitted
By: |
Miss N Kennard |
| Overall
Rating: |
10/10 |
| Comments: |
I have just got back from the Dominican, after staying at the Occidental Allegro and having the best and most relaxing holiday to date.
The hotel staff are very friendly and nothing was too much hassle for them. The bar staff to the cleaners always said hello and remembered your name. The hotel itself was very clean. The rooms are basic but then again how much time do you spend in your hotel room when the weather is 85 degrees plus and there is 2 pools and a beautiful beach to go to?? If you just want to sit around the pool and relax, go the second pool as the first has volleyball, aerobics etc all day...
Food was lovely, good choice at the buffet and the a la cartes were good. Had lobster on the last night at the buffet which was delicious.
The excursions were a little pricey ($85-145 each) but very good all the same. I would recommend the white water rafting, it was excellent! Be careful of the people selling the excisions on the beach, best to book them through your rep.
If you are taking cash, it is best to change it to pesos at the Plaza bank as the US $ exchange rate is rubbish in the hotels and you will end up paying a lot more for things in US than in pesos.
Overall, an excellent holiday and one I would recommend to anyone.
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Aug 2005 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Thomas Cook |
| Submitted
By: |
Mr P Kearney |
| Overall
Rating: |
10/10 |
| Comments: |
We set off on our dream holiday and weren't disappointed. A smooth flight and we arrived just in time for some local dancing late evening.
But nothing could prepare us for the friendliness of the staff. Everyone was so helpful and courteous that you could not help but warm to everyone on the resort.
Activities and fun were in the ascendancy and winning did not go unrewarded. I found myself proud of staying in the hotel and genuinely joining every activity against other hotels with a sense of pride in where I was staying.
The staff worked over their shifts to make sure our stay and that of our (acquired on holiday) friends was the best it could be. We made so many new friends and this was facilitated simply by the friendly collective atmosphere at the hotel.
Food was lovely but make sure you like banana, though there is exceptional choice for the evening meal. Top Entertainment every night, Top Activities, Top Staff, and Top Hotels.
I would give it 11/10 if I could.
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