Riu Merengue ClubHotel, Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic
Hotel Information
Recent Price: £124
Hotel Class:
Hotel Description:
Exquisitely set on the beach of Maimon Bay, Riu Merengue provides panoramic views of surrounding green mountains and lush tropical gardens. It is the perfect place to enjoy an unforgettable vacation. loading...
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Riu Merengue ClubHotel Reviews
" We have just returned from a weeks... "
Submitted By: Jackie53
We have just returned from a weeks holiday at the Hotel Merengue, Porta Plata. We had the most amazing time. I was really worried about going, hearing various reports about the Dominican, but they were truly unfounded.
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There are 3 hotels on this complex all Riu hotels and to be honest there is hardly any difference in them, we ate in all three hotels and they were all first class. The rooms are large, drink optics for your pleasure, with beer and coke and fresh water daily. We did a couple of trips, the monster safari truck is the best one to go on, for a brilliant fun day out you get to see the real Dominican, sad to see the children running after the trucks hoping for a gift. so take plenty of pens and paper, they are grateful for anything.
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We went to Ocean World and my husband did the sea lion encounter which was good, but overall the price of the trip, I don’t think it was worth it. As far as illness goes, we were both fine, I just think overall you need to take care and make sure that you only use bottled water and we did take malaria tablets in the end, best to be safe than sorry - they didn’t not make us ill. Any questions you are free to email. Jackie. <br>
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There are 3 hotels on this complex all Riu hotels and to be honest there is hardly any difference in them, we ate in all three hotels and they were all first class. The rooms are large, drink optics for your pleasure, with beer and coke and fresh water daily. We did a couple of trips, the monster safari truck is the best one to go on, for a brilliant fun day out you get to see the real Dominican, sad to see the children running after the trucks hoping for a gift. so take plenty of pens and paper, they are grateful for anything.
<br><br>
We went to Ocean World and my husband did the sea lion encounter which was good, but overall the price of the trip, I don’t think it was worth it. As far as illness goes, we were both fine, I just think overall you need to take care and make sure that you only use bottled water and we did take malaria tablets in the end, best to be safe than sorry - they didn’t not make us ill. Any questions you are free to email. Jackie. <br>
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- Date of Holiday:Oct 2005
- Board Basis:All Inclusive
- Tour Operator:Thomson
" This was the first time myself and my... "
Submitted By: Mrs K Shepherd
This was the first time myself and my husband have been on a long haul holiday, and I have to say that this will not be the last holiday we will be going to this resort, it was the best holiday we have ever had, the staff from the top to the bottom could not have done enough to make our stay there more pleasant, we were treated like royalty.
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The rooms were excellent beautiful and clean, we had maid service every day, the food was lovely and there was always plenty to choose from, and very varied for all peoples taste.
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The Thomas cook rep was on hand every day, so if we wanted him for anything we had no problems in finding him. This was an all inclusive holiday and food was available from 5 in a morning until 12 at night, I say 5 but the actual cooked breakfast was at 7 but for those early risers a cold breakfast was served from 5am. You could also send hubby down early in a morning to fetch you a lovely flask of coffee or tea to your room.
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All in all I would very much recommend this hotel to anyone. There was entertainment on every night, and there was also plenty of entertainment for the children, which went on right through out the day, and for the adults there was lots to keep everyone happy, highly recommended.
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The rooms were excellent beautiful and clean, we had maid service every day, the food was lovely and there was always plenty to choose from, and very varied for all peoples taste.
<br><br>
The Thomas cook rep was on hand every day, so if we wanted him for anything we had no problems in finding him. This was an all inclusive holiday and food was available from 5 in a morning until 12 at night, I say 5 but the actual cooked breakfast was at 7 but for those early risers a cold breakfast was served from 5am. You could also send hubby down early in a morning to fetch you a lovely flask of coffee or tea to your room.
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All in all I would very much recommend this hotel to anyone. There was entertainment on every night, and there was also plenty of entertainment for the children, which went on right through out the day, and for the adults there was lots to keep everyone happy, highly recommended.
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- Date of Holiday:Nov 2004
- Board Basis:All Inclusive
- Tour Operator:Thomas Cook
" Wow!! What a fantastic holiday. After... "
Submitted By: Ms C A Picton
Wow!! What a fantastic holiday. After the initial disappointment of the outbound flight which was with Excel Airways. Our holiday was a fantastic time on the Dominican Republic.
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The hotel had every thing for everyone. Excellent facilities, food, entertainment and staff. Our room was clean and well presented the mini bar was restocked ever other day this was all inclusive along with the optics. The hotel was immaculately clean and was being cleaned whenever needed at any time of the day. Staff where both discreet and very helpful.
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Courteous holiday makers where welcomed by the Dominicans and couldn’t have done more to help. We went on organised trips and where given insight to the way Dominicans live and share life.
<br><br>
The food at the hotel was of a very high standard and had there was plenty of choice.
<br><br>
The gardens where cleared, watered and pruned during our stay: even the beach was raked and leaves where collected after rainfall.
<br><br>
We had drinks brought to us as a surprise on the beach and fruit was served to us there one day.
<br><br>
Activities where available for us every day and these where clearly timed on the notice board. No pressure to join in and enthusiasm given to those who did.
<br><br>
I could go on and on we had a fantastic time and would both go back to the Dominican Republic and use Riu Hotels.
<br><br>
The hotel had every thing for everyone. Excellent facilities, food, entertainment and staff. Our room was clean and well presented the mini bar was restocked ever other day this was all inclusive along with the optics. The hotel was immaculately clean and was being cleaned whenever needed at any time of the day. Staff where both discreet and very helpful.
<br><br>
Courteous holiday makers where welcomed by the Dominicans and couldn’t have done more to help. We went on organised trips and where given insight to the way Dominicans live and share life.
<br><br>
The food at the hotel was of a very high standard and had there was plenty of choice.
<br><br>
The gardens where cleared, watered and pruned during our stay: even the beach was raked and leaves where collected after rainfall.
<br><br>
We had drinks brought to us as a surprise on the beach and fruit was served to us there one day.
<br><br>
Activities where available for us every day and these where clearly timed on the notice board. No pressure to join in and enthusiasm given to those who did.
<br><br>
I could go on and on we had a fantastic time and would both go back to the Dominican Republic and use Riu Hotels.
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- Date of Holiday:Aug 2004
- Board Basis:All Inclusive
- Tour Operator:Thomas Cook
" We stayed at the Riu Merengue in... "
Submitted By: seany
We stayed at the Riu Merengue in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic in January 2004. This is classed as a five star all inclusive, and is located on the North coast of the island. Distance from the airport is only about 30 minutes, so it’s not long before you are settling in after the somewhat gruelling flight from Europe.
Check in was quick; there weren’t too many other arrivals at the same time thankfully. We were handed a nice welcome drink and wandered off to find our room. It took a while, even though we had some kind of map, but it would have been nice to be shown to the room, as it was no longer daylight but of course we found it. As soon as we got into the room we poured ourselves a drink from the drinks dispenser. Cuba Libre (rum with coke) of course, since it’s the national drink. We checked out the room, it seemed like everything was in order, complete with all the usuals you’d expect in a hotel room, plenty of storage space for clothes, 2 huge beds pushed together making an enormous king size bed. The bathroom had shower and bath, and stocked with all the usual toiletries. We studied the drinks dispenser more fully. A litre bottle each of Whiskey, Brandy, Gin and of course the Rum. The sign stated that it was refilled every two days, so a generous allowance of one litre each per day seemed more than adequate. Underneath was a fridge with Beers, a gallon of water, tonics, sodas, and cokes. The room had air-conditioning, as well as a ceiling fan, plenty of power sockets, TV with cable and a direct dial telephone. Soon our bags arrived, and although tips aren’t required at an all-inclusive, and we tipped 1 US Dollar.
Outside of the hotel room, the grounds are pristinely kept and simply beautiful. Each morning you see palms being relieved of loose nuts and leaves, so they don’t fall onto peoples heads. The gardeners all carry large machetes around with them, and will cut the top off a coconut for you if you ask. As well as the numerous palm trees of all sorts, we also saw banana trees growing next to some of the hotel rooms. The staff are always busy, with maids cleaning rooms all day long, the drinks men speeding around on trucks delivering fresh stocks for the mini-bars, luggage porters giving rides to kids on their trolleys and so on! The cleaners certainly spend a lot of time over cleaning each room. Quite often we’d come back to a towel sculpture in the shape of a swan, freshly picked flowers and all our toiletries neatly organized. We thought it was a bit much though when they neatly folded used underwear. We didn’t meet one cleaner that spoke a word of English, which was a challenge when we tried to tell them not to bother with the room today. Everyone you walk past says "Hola!", and of course you say "Hola!" back. The short minute or two walk from the room to the beach could result in 3 or 4 Holas!, each accompanied by a wonderful Dominican smile.
The first time at breakfast is certainly an eye-opener. Whatever nationality you were, you’d be sure to find something to eat. Five or six different types of yoghurt, various cereals, cold meats and cheeses, bread, croissants and pastries of all types, hot breakfast including bacon, eggs anyway you want, sausages, beans, roast banana etc. There was obviously a choice of fruits too, fruit juices, thick shakes, hot drinks of every sort...and so on. You are not limited to having breakfast at the Merengue restaurant either, you can choose to eat at the neighbouring hotels the Mambo or the Bachata, although it’s a very similar affair.
Moving on to the lunch arrangements, again a choice of eating at either of the three hotels restaurants, where a huge selection was on offer. Many different types of meats, always two choices of soup, rice, pasta, vegetables, followed by an array of deserts including possibly the best ice-cream in the whole world. Everything was freshly prepared, and constantly topped up, the chefs cooked in front of you, everything always being plenty hot and of course delicious. If you didn’t fancy a "proper" meal, there was the always the "snack" bar which served burgers, chips, hot dogs, chicken, chops, salad, pasta, rice and so on - hardly a snack bar - as you’d also have a selection of sweets and ice-creams too. Of course drinks of all sorts were available throughout your meals, as indeed they are wherever you may be in the hotel.
At dinner in the La Roca restaurant we are allocated one of the nicest tables in the corner of the spacious dining room with a window letting in a gentle evening breeze, as well as the sound of the wildlife outside. We realised how friendly everyone was. The waiters also made sure we were happy with everything. The food was really nice, they had so many different courses and there’s no way we could try them all. They had also carved out figures like animals from fruit everywhere. Chefs cooked while you helped yourselves to whatever you wanted. Tours of the kitchens were available, so they have nothing to hide! Entertainment while dining was generally a group of local singers with guitar etc playing songs especially for you, and other tables, which was nice.
Exploring the beach now, which I might add was just one minute from our room, was perfect. The sand is very very clean, being raked each morning by a team of men. There are suites that are within spitting distance, generally for honeymooners though. The palm trees, which are dotted around the beach, provide a lovely shade for those who want a break from the sun, and you’ll see lizards running up and down, as well as beautiful butterflies fluttering from tree to tree. Sunbeds are available free of course, and there was always plenty available. The beach is long enough for it to take at least 15 minutes to walk from one end to the other. The sea here is the Atlantic, so expect it to be rougher than the Caribbean Sea, but still lovely and warm whatever time of year you visit. You can walk out a considerable way without getting out of your depth, although some parts contain corals, which are sharp. There are no vendors on the beach, which is good - but if you do want to go and check out your haggling skills, shacks are located at the extreme edges of the beach. These shacks sell all manner of souvenirs including local cigars, jewellery, paintings and so on. Hair braiding is also a big money spinner here, but to us westerners, it is a bargain. They’ll give you all sorts of stories to get you to buy, you know not being able to pay their rent, or had no customers all day.... you get the idea. Haggling is a must, aim for half the original price, or lower.
If drinking is your thing, then of course you’ll be at home here. As well as the room bar and drinks dispensers mentioned earlier, drinks at any of the bars in either the Merengue, Bachata or Mambo are free and unlimited. I won’t mention each one, there are many though. Each bar has a menu, although the bar staff will make anything you can describe. Some of the cocktails are superb, and the measures are not measured. Bars close around midnight, but there is the disco within the hotel grounds if you want more, which opens until 2am. The air-conditioning made it really cold in there, so we needed to keep popping outside to warm up (yes, we went outside to warm up).
Although we didn’t spend huge amounts of time around the pool, it seemed quite popular. Often there is water aerobics, volleyball and so on. Other activities seemed to be centred around the pool area. As with the drinks and restaurants, you can also use the pools at the other 2 hotels, one of which has a swim up bar and jacuzzi. The pool was always clean and maintained constantly. Beside the pool was a hut where you get towels each day, again free of charge.
Evening entertainment was on the whole very good, although after 2 weeks it became a little repetitive. The in house entertainment team produces some good acts, and got the audience involved each night with Merengue dancing and so on. There was plenty of music, mostly Merengue, and also karaoke night. Adult games took place some nights, which were the most fun to watch. There is no casino in the Merengue itself, but next door at the Bachata. It’s worth a flutter on the roulette wheel if you’ve never played, slot machines and black jack are also available.
During the day the entertainment staff kept you busy if you wanted to join in, with various sports and games, dance lessons and even Spanish lessons. You could also use the tennis courts at any of the hotels free of charge, as well as table tennis, paddle boats, sailing, snorkelling equipment and wind-surfing. An hours scuba lesson was available too. Just a few minutes walk is Caribbean Street where amongst the souvenir shops, is a pool hall, free of course! The gym is located here as well as a spa offering all sorts of treatments. We decided not to use the spa here, but instead had massages in the beach massage huts, which were very relaxing.
As with all tropical destinations there are always bugs. We were pleased however not to find any in the rooms. Nor did we find the need to use insect repellent in the evenings, mosquitoes seemed to be rare.
Well that’s a taster of what the Merengue is like. We spent four days outside the hotel on various trips including whale watching, but this being a review of the hotel itself only. Prices for this will obviously vary depending on the time of year you go and the deals available at the time. If you are thinking of a trip to the Dominican Republic, you can’t go wrong on this hotel as being an ideal choice.
Check in was quick; there weren’t too many other arrivals at the same time thankfully. We were handed a nice welcome drink and wandered off to find our room. It took a while, even though we had some kind of map, but it would have been nice to be shown to the room, as it was no longer daylight but of course we found it. As soon as we got into the room we poured ourselves a drink from the drinks dispenser. Cuba Libre (rum with coke) of course, since it’s the national drink. We checked out the room, it seemed like everything was in order, complete with all the usuals you’d expect in a hotel room, plenty of storage space for clothes, 2 huge beds pushed together making an enormous king size bed. The bathroom had shower and bath, and stocked with all the usual toiletries. We studied the drinks dispenser more fully. A litre bottle each of Whiskey, Brandy, Gin and of course the Rum. The sign stated that it was refilled every two days, so a generous allowance of one litre each per day seemed more than adequate. Underneath was a fridge with Beers, a gallon of water, tonics, sodas, and cokes. The room had air-conditioning, as well as a ceiling fan, plenty of power sockets, TV with cable and a direct dial telephone. Soon our bags arrived, and although tips aren’t required at an all-inclusive, and we tipped 1 US Dollar.
Outside of the hotel room, the grounds are pristinely kept and simply beautiful. Each morning you see palms being relieved of loose nuts and leaves, so they don’t fall onto peoples heads. The gardeners all carry large machetes around with them, and will cut the top off a coconut for you if you ask. As well as the numerous palm trees of all sorts, we also saw banana trees growing next to some of the hotel rooms. The staff are always busy, with maids cleaning rooms all day long, the drinks men speeding around on trucks delivering fresh stocks for the mini-bars, luggage porters giving rides to kids on their trolleys and so on! The cleaners certainly spend a lot of time over cleaning each room. Quite often we’d come back to a towel sculpture in the shape of a swan, freshly picked flowers and all our toiletries neatly organized. We thought it was a bit much though when they neatly folded used underwear. We didn’t meet one cleaner that spoke a word of English, which was a challenge when we tried to tell them not to bother with the room today. Everyone you walk past says "Hola!", and of course you say "Hola!" back. The short minute or two walk from the room to the beach could result in 3 or 4 Holas!, each accompanied by a wonderful Dominican smile.
The first time at breakfast is certainly an eye-opener. Whatever nationality you were, you’d be sure to find something to eat. Five or six different types of yoghurt, various cereals, cold meats and cheeses, bread, croissants and pastries of all types, hot breakfast including bacon, eggs anyway you want, sausages, beans, roast banana etc. There was obviously a choice of fruits too, fruit juices, thick shakes, hot drinks of every sort...and so on. You are not limited to having breakfast at the Merengue restaurant either, you can choose to eat at the neighbouring hotels the Mambo or the Bachata, although it’s a very similar affair.
Moving on to the lunch arrangements, again a choice of eating at either of the three hotels restaurants, where a huge selection was on offer. Many different types of meats, always two choices of soup, rice, pasta, vegetables, followed by an array of deserts including possibly the best ice-cream in the whole world. Everything was freshly prepared, and constantly topped up, the chefs cooked in front of you, everything always being plenty hot and of course delicious. If you didn’t fancy a "proper" meal, there was the always the "snack" bar which served burgers, chips, hot dogs, chicken, chops, salad, pasta, rice and so on - hardly a snack bar - as you’d also have a selection of sweets and ice-creams too. Of course drinks of all sorts were available throughout your meals, as indeed they are wherever you may be in the hotel.
At dinner in the La Roca restaurant we are allocated one of the nicest tables in the corner of the spacious dining room with a window letting in a gentle evening breeze, as well as the sound of the wildlife outside. We realised how friendly everyone was. The waiters also made sure we were happy with everything. The food was really nice, they had so many different courses and there’s no way we could try them all. They had also carved out figures like animals from fruit everywhere. Chefs cooked while you helped yourselves to whatever you wanted. Tours of the kitchens were available, so they have nothing to hide! Entertainment while dining was generally a group of local singers with guitar etc playing songs especially for you, and other tables, which was nice.
Exploring the beach now, which I might add was just one minute from our room, was perfect. The sand is very very clean, being raked each morning by a team of men. There are suites that are within spitting distance, generally for honeymooners though. The palm trees, which are dotted around the beach, provide a lovely shade for those who want a break from the sun, and you’ll see lizards running up and down, as well as beautiful butterflies fluttering from tree to tree. Sunbeds are available free of course, and there was always plenty available. The beach is long enough for it to take at least 15 minutes to walk from one end to the other. The sea here is the Atlantic, so expect it to be rougher than the Caribbean Sea, but still lovely and warm whatever time of year you visit. You can walk out a considerable way without getting out of your depth, although some parts contain corals, which are sharp. There are no vendors on the beach, which is good - but if you do want to go and check out your haggling skills, shacks are located at the extreme edges of the beach. These shacks sell all manner of souvenirs including local cigars, jewellery, paintings and so on. Hair braiding is also a big money spinner here, but to us westerners, it is a bargain. They’ll give you all sorts of stories to get you to buy, you know not being able to pay their rent, or had no customers all day.... you get the idea. Haggling is a must, aim for half the original price, or lower.
If drinking is your thing, then of course you’ll be at home here. As well as the room bar and drinks dispensers mentioned earlier, drinks at any of the bars in either the Merengue, Bachata or Mambo are free and unlimited. I won’t mention each one, there are many though. Each bar has a menu, although the bar staff will make anything you can describe. Some of the cocktails are superb, and the measures are not measured. Bars close around midnight, but there is the disco within the hotel grounds if you want more, which opens until 2am. The air-conditioning made it really cold in there, so we needed to keep popping outside to warm up (yes, we went outside to warm up).
Although we didn’t spend huge amounts of time around the pool, it seemed quite popular. Often there is water aerobics, volleyball and so on. Other activities seemed to be centred around the pool area. As with the drinks and restaurants, you can also use the pools at the other 2 hotels, one of which has a swim up bar and jacuzzi. The pool was always clean and maintained constantly. Beside the pool was a hut where you get towels each day, again free of charge.
Evening entertainment was on the whole very good, although after 2 weeks it became a little repetitive. The in house entertainment team produces some good acts, and got the audience involved each night with Merengue dancing and so on. There was plenty of music, mostly Merengue, and also karaoke night. Adult games took place some nights, which were the most fun to watch. There is no casino in the Merengue itself, but next door at the Bachata. It’s worth a flutter on the roulette wheel if you’ve never played, slot machines and black jack are also available.
During the day the entertainment staff kept you busy if you wanted to join in, with various sports and games, dance lessons and even Spanish lessons. You could also use the tennis courts at any of the hotels free of charge, as well as table tennis, paddle boats, sailing, snorkelling equipment and wind-surfing. An hours scuba lesson was available too. Just a few minutes walk is Caribbean Street where amongst the souvenir shops, is a pool hall, free of course! The gym is located here as well as a spa offering all sorts of treatments. We decided not to use the spa here, but instead had massages in the beach massage huts, which were very relaxing.
As with all tropical destinations there are always bugs. We were pleased however not to find any in the rooms. Nor did we find the need to use insect repellent in the evenings, mosquitoes seemed to be rare.
Well that’s a taster of what the Merengue is like. We spent four days outside the hotel on various trips including whale watching, but this being a review of the hotel itself only. Prices for this will obviously vary depending on the time of year you go and the deals available at the time. If you are thinking of a trip to the Dominican Republic, you can’t go wrong on this hotel as being an ideal choice.
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- Date of Holiday:Jan 2004
- Board Basis:All Inclusive
- Tour Operator:N/A
We visited the Meringue 3 years ago and enjoyed the trip so much that we decided to return this year and have been looking forward to the visit since booking with First Choice 12 months ago. Although we had a relaxing holiday on this trip to the Meringue, we feel that all is not well at the resorts at the moment and do not intend to return.
Flight & Transfer
First Choice – Star Class Premium. Definitely worth the price of the upgrade!! The crew couldn’t be more attentive, the in-flight entertainment excellent (including noise-reduction headphones), the food was better than the usual aircraft fare. Our last visit was with Thomas Cook and the flight upgrade with FCA is far superior to that offered on TCA. The transfer was, as always, an experience!! Dominican driving is unrivalled and very entertaining in our opinion!!
Accommodation
After being moved from one room to another on arrival (due to an occasional lack of mobility on my behalf), we were allocated a room close to Caribbean Street. We had e-mailed ahead requesting a room close to reception for the above reason but appreciate this is not always possible at busier time so were not too worried by this – I brought enough prescription painkillers for a trip twice as long. The room (1634) smelled damp & musty but being typical Brits, and as we had already been moved once, we did not feel comfortable asking to be moved again. This turned out to be a mistake. The room was very damp, on occasions to the degree that the room (and particularly the bed and bedding) smelled like ‘pee’. We had taken a linen spray with us and mistakenly assumed that this would deal with the problem. By the end of the 1st week all of our clothes and own towels smelled musty (in fact, when we came to pack, one of our suitcases had started going mouldy and everything became so damp that when our luggage was weighed and checked in at the airport it actually weighed more than when we arrived despite having used up all the weighty toiletries we brought and given the maid the gifts we had brought). Other couples complained to the First Choice Rep about the hotel and had similar problems with damp. We also, on 2 occasions had to remove cockroaches from our room on this visit, a problem that we did not encounter on our first visit to the hotel. To cap it all off – the day before we left the air conditioning unit decided to deposit a couple of litres of water in the hallway. To play devils advocate – The cockroaches could have been driven inside by the rain and the heavy rain no doubt contributed to the dampness of the room. The maid did a sterling job and her level best to conceal the odour with air freshener when she cleaned the room. She also created beautiful displays with the towels every day.
Restaurant
The main restaurant seemed to be having trouble keeping up with the number of guests at breakfast. There always seemed to be a shortage of cleared/set tables to sit at for breakfast and on a number of occasions there were no clean glasses available to get a drink. On a more humorous note, I managed to throw a forkful of rice at hubby one evening when a ‘giant cricket’ landed on my arm during our evening meal and gave me quite a shock (as well as the lady on the next table when it chose her as it’s next victim…). Our waiter, Lizandro, was always very attentive, making sure our wine and water glasses were filled before we sat down and was apologetic when we came to dinner one evening to find someone had already eaten at our table. Some of our ‘European cousins’ seemed to find the concept of queuing alien to them and would barge in front of everyone else who were waiting patiently.
Pool
We also have to agree with a previous review about the Meringue pool. Out of 14 days on resort, the water reached the level of the filters on only 3 days (despite having rain for 5 days of the holiday which you would think would have helped the pool level), which meant that the water had an almost constant greasy film on the surface and LOTS of dead bugs of various sizes.
Staff
The staff are working non-stop to prevent a recurrence of the viruses/problems of last winter and there are hygiene staff at the loos and entrances to the restaurant with hand cleansing gel (which a number of guests were refusing -?) and the resort always appears spotless. The animation team, as ever, are tireless in their efforts. They were constantly on the go, but equally understanding of guests who just wanted to laze around and watch proceedings from a distance. (The ab-crunches on the side of the pool during aerobics are agonising – trust me)!!
Ocean World Adventure Park
We pre-booked an excursion to Ocean World and loved every minute of the day. The Dolphin Swim is well worth the cost - $290 for 2 people (beware – when they do the dorsal tow – hubby thought they had dislocated his shoulder because they kick off with such power. Hubby is a biker and said the acceleration is amazing), the tigers absolutely gorgeous and the sea lion show very entertaining!! The buffet is varied and although the drinks are fairly expensive, the souvenirs seem reasonably priced. Be prepared to want all the photos and the video too!! While wandering near the ‘Dolphin Encounter’ pool in the afternoon, we had what felt like our own private 20-30 minute encounter with 3 dolphins who seemed in a playful mood and one of them was even ‘talking’ to us. (For anyone interested – the far corner of the sheltered area by the Encounter pool – everyone else was watching the trainers and dolphins interacting in the other pools so we were on our own).
General
Please don’t think that the weather itself put a general downer on the holiday. We were more than happy to relax in our room and watch a film in the afternoon if the rain was relentless. When the pool filters were able to work, we were also happy to spend time in the pool – rain or shine, after all when you’re in the pool what harm can rain do… We also got to snorkel off the beach a couple of times once the wind had dropped and the ocean was calm enough. We went away to relax and we managed to get plenty of rest and recharge our batteries, which is much appreciated.