Holiday Reviews > Caribbean > Dominican Republic > Puerto Plata > Puerto Plata Hotels > Occidental Allegro Jack Tar Village > Read Reviews
Occidental Allegro Jack Tar Village ReviewsPage 1 2
| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Jan 2006 |
| Tour
Operator: |
First Choice |
| Submitted
By: |
Miss C Froggett |
| Overall
Rating: |
9/10 |
| Comments: |
Just got back from the fantastic Jack Tar complex and I'm straight back on the internet looking to book again...
We booked with first choice as they advertised the "extra" legroom on flights. It was a very comfortable flight and the hours flew by-only complaint was on the way back they hadn't changed the films so we had to watch the same ones over again (but they were decent films so we didn’t really mind!)
As we were going in January I didn’t really expect the best weather, however it was glorious sunshine for the majority of the holiday and a perfect temperature.
The bungalows are very tidy and well maintained. They are quite dark inside but they were lovely. We had fresh towels every day laid out like swans with flowers on which was a lovely touch! The bed was always made when we got back from our days out.
The beach was glorious rolling white sand with sweeping palm trees and the sea was a great temperature and provided a welcome rest from the heat.
The restaurants were very nice-I got bitten a lot every time we went to the Caribbean restaurant on an evening which also doubled up as the day time Pizzaria. The pizza's were the nicest I’ve ever had!! The beach front seafood restaurant was very nice too. By far the nicest of the 3 speciality restaurants was the Italian which is inside the casino. It was very tastefully decorated and very, very nice food!! Not a pizza in sight!
All inclusive drinks got me a bit too excited!!-but we did find out that the 151 rum which about 80% proof was very good for rubbing on mosquito bites!!
The swim-up bar was very nice, quite surreal sitting in the pool having a cocktail!!
The staff are all very, very friendly and they genuinely want to help you without any ulterior motives.
We went snorkelling on a trip arranged through the hotel which was brilliant and we went quad biking on a trip through a sales rep on the beach. Quad biking is a definite "must"-make sure you take sunglasses to keep the dust out of your eyes and prepare to get a bit dirty!!
a fabulous holiday and I’m saving to go back soon....
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Dec 2005 |
| Tour
Operator: |
First Choice |
| Submitted
By: |
Mr J Smith |
| Overall
Rating: |
8/10 |
| Comments: |
Having read the previous reviews, I wonder if I stayed in the same hotel!! Every one is entitled to their own opinions of course and this is mine on the Jack tar Village.
Arrived to blazing sunshine and a speedy check in then whisked away to our rooms by golf cart.
The main let down of the whole holiday has to be the rooms they were dark drab and musty smelling and the bathrooms needed a major refurb this aside we tend to spend very little time in the room and was not a major issue.
The food at the jack tar was really rather good Breakfast was buffet style with fresh omelettes cooked to order and a milkshake station offering freshly prepared fruity milkshakes & smoothies. Lunch was either buffet style in the main restaurant or snacks in the Caribbean restaurant by the pool which was pizza’s again freshly made to order (Fantastic) or burgers and ribs style down the seafood restaurant on the beach again cooked to order.
The choice at dinner was the 3 a la carte restaurants Seafood, Caribbean or Italian all needing pre booking and all very good if a little slow on service.
The main restaurant was buffet style and had themed nights every night we were there including Italian, Mexican, Dominican, International & Sea Food to name but a few.
The staff were friendly and accommodating always smiling and generally very happy.
The beach was fantastic with plenty of sun loungers we got pestered very little as too far up the beach to bother with and those that did were friendly polite and not pushy at all.
During my stay I did not venture of the complex once and found everything I needed on site.
The evening entertainment was not the best but they tried hard and put on a different show every night.
The hotel I think is not 4* standards but this aside its clean and comfortable and worth it for a budget break.
Get the rooms refurbished and this would make all the difference. Would not hesitate to go back to the Jack Tar in the near future.
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Nov 2005 |
| Tour
Operator: |
First Choice |
| Submitted
By: |
Mrs P Cooke |
| Overall
Rating: |
7/10 |
| Comments: |
The hotel is of a reasonable standard and well laid out. It was relatively quiet when we visited and therefore we had no problems with sun beds, towels etc.
The main pool has lots of activities going on and you are encouraged to join in! The other pool is much quieter and more relaxing.
Our room was clean and tidy with all the usual facilities. However due to the voltage difference electrical items such as hair dryers and straighteners do not work as effectively as normal.
The staff are extremely friendly and really go out of their way to make your holiday as enjoyable as possible.
There are people on site who try to sell you timeshares and they can be a little pushy but that certainly did not spoil our holiday.
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Oct 2005 |
| Tour
Operator: |
First Choice |
| Submitted
By: |
J Klyen |
| Overall
Rating: |
4/10 |
| Comments: |
Stayed at the Jack Tar resort for our honeymoon in October 05. The hotel is very dated & you can see it is one of the older resorts on the island. Air conditioning in the room was very noisy & couldn't be left on over night, bathroom door didn't close & as this was a honeymoon it was an upgrade room! As part of the package you could have breakfast bought to your room, this was requested on 3 separate occasions without success.
This resort was a problem with thefts & break-ins, while there we knew of at least 3 rooms that were broken into & others that had items removed from there rooms.
Large pool very noisy & if you didn't want to get involved in the games was unusable. Adult pool area was very small & had limited sun loungers in regards to the size of the resort, on top of that you were advised not to use the sun loungers on the beach as it was infested by sand flies. On 3 days we could get beach towels as they had run out!
On the plus side the resort rep was fantastic & made the stay bearable, the staff were always friendly & the trips off resort are fantastic.
The 2 must do trips are the jungle safari & swimming with the dolphins, great value & fun. Don't bother with the highlights tour, it's just a trip to get you to spend money.
After this visit I will not be going back to this resort but I will not let this experience put me off the Dominican Republic, it is a lovely country & the people are fantastic.
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Oct 2005 |
| Tour
Operator: |
First Choice |
| Submitted
By: |
Mr R Dykes |
| Overall
Rating: |
1/10 |
| Comments: |
Firstly, full marks to the entertainment staff who tried their best and did make us laugh as we certainly needed to.
Accommodation - one working socket, electrical wiring hanging out of sockets, leaking bidet, dribble of a shower and worst of all, bed mites which caused many bites which blistered and kept us awake scratching (but chambermaid did her best and was always polite and helpful).
Food - The only hot meal in the buffet we had were the freshly made omelettes and the soup. Meals were either luke warm or cold. Stomach cramps & diarrhea lasted over a week and even though reported to the Tour Rep, no action was taken nor were we contacted to see if our situation had improved. The Italian speciality restaurant was fantastic because of the hot food and no fleas on the seats.
Lack of towels meant that 5 times during the two weeks we had to wait for our room towels sometimes up to half past six at night. They also ran out of beach towels so we could not lie on the beach or by the pools. The brochure advertised pedal bikes but we were not able to obtain any as “they were in for repair”.
The brochure advertised the resort as 4 star, but with a discussion with the Occidental Group staff said that it was barely a 3 star. Will never return to this resort as they have provided us with our worst holiday ever. The country itself is lovely and our most memorable times were spent outside of the resort.
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Sep 2005 |
| Tour
Operator: |
First Choice |
| Submitted
By: |
Mr M Hardy-Smith |
| Overall
Rating: |
1/10 |
| Comments: |
Yes I agree with the cabin crew they were some there while we were there.
People were put on drips. They were so ill. They scraped the pool clean while we were swimming in it. The adult pool had tiles missing one man had his foot cut. The waiters while cleaning the tables were putting buts of the ciggies into the cups and glasses. The food was cold. The rooms were like prison cells. I think I have got that wrong prison cells are better.
The shows well they danced like elephants the mc well he was just a joke. If he said show time once he said it twenty. Yes we to seen the rat. All passengers from jack tar on the plane said they would not return. Even the staff said it should be knocked down when it rains the floors are very very slippery.
As for mattresses. They are full of bed bugs they smell they should be burnt. So if you want a holiday from hell please book the jack tar village.
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Sep 2005 |
| Tour
Operator: |
First Choice |
| Submitted
By: |
xk8pop |
| Overall
Rating: |
1/10 |
| Comments: |
We have just got back from jack tar my advice to anybody that is thinking of going is don’t the rooms are dark as shutters on all but one window.
They it is 4 star but they take into account the grounds not just the food and rooms .you have been warned. The beds are full of bed bugs. The sheets were changed once they turn the sheets over to make you think they have been changed if you go back to your room to early in the day you will have no towels. Lock everything away in the safe. As my husband had money taken from his trouser pockets that were hanging the wardrobe.
Other people had chains stolen, ear rings, mobile phones. In the main buffet there is a rat running along the rafters we called him Boris so if there is one how many more are they. I reported this and my answer was we will send a maid. The roast turkey looked very nice but was still frozen next to the bone.
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Sep 2005 |
| Tour
Operator: |
First Choice |
| Submitted
By: |
Miss N Parr |
| Overall
Rating: |
8/10 |
| Comments: |
The hotel was amazing! After booking the holiday I read some of the reviews and was a little worried, but what we found when we got there was great.
The resort and hotel was lovely, well kept and always clean. The beach was clean and spacious and we weren’t bothered as reviews had made us expect.
The food wasn’t that great but there was plenty of choice.
The pools were lovely but as others have said-the prices in the on site shop were shocking-we paid nearly £10 for a tub of peanuts!
What really made the holiday though was the staff, they just couldn’t do enough for you, they are the happiest, most energetic and most friendly nation in the world. The entertainment staff in particular were just amazing-how they can work that hard in that heat is beyond me!
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Sep 2005 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Med Hotels |
| Submitted
By: |
R Burchnall - Hurst |
| Overall
Rating: |
7/10 |
| Comments: |
Before booking with this hotel my boyfriend and I considered a few other nearby hotels and, after looking at reviews, decided to try the Jack Tar and decide for ourselves and this is what we found...
The bad points were; the mini fridge was never stocked for us and hardly seemed to work, though in fairness when we complained someone changed it for us immediately (however the replacement was not much better), we had read about the empty fridges in other reviews and so were expecting it and did not let it get us down. The evening entertainment was repetitive and very, very poor as was much of the buffet food. Some staff were very pushy in trying to get us to visit other hotels (don’t do it- it’s a time share thing) one even emotionally blackmailing us with "please, do it for me, my boss said I’ll get $5 if you go which isn't a lot of money for you but a lot for me" - we gave him the $5 in the end to get him off our backs!! The rooms are NOT what you may expect from a 4 star hotel but the air conditioning is very effective and the maids keep the rooms spotless. Booking into the speciality restaurants can be awkward as you have to find the hotel services lady between particular hours but it is nowhere as difficult as most reviews imply. At night the bars are understaffed and the drinks are not very strong so getting drunk is not an easy task. I had a huge problem with getting the hair dryer in my room replaced when it broke and was fobbed off with 'in half an hour' or 'tomorrow' for 3 days then was told the house keeping lady had seen that I had my own- it didn’t work as the voltage is just 110 there and I was furious that she had been paying so much attention to my personal belongings, once I pointed this out I was finally given a replacement hair dryer (which they had been claiming at one stage they didn’t have any spares of though the hotel was by no means full). Though this is by no means the hotels fault mosquito bites is a major problem for British guests, I was one of many who ended up having to visit the hotel doctor for an injection after getting nearly a hundred bites in 3 nights! Don’t rely on bug spray it just doesn’t work, the rooms are so well air conditioned that you can sleep in long sleeved and long legged pjs and a pair of socks, then use the spray when going out at night- it seems the best way to avoid getting bitten and I can’t recommend doing this strongly enough- or invest in a plug in repellent devise (keep in mind it’s 110 volts there). Beware of the onsite shop, it’s VERY pricey infact it seemed as if, whilst being all inclusive, they try and get as much money out of you as possible for example if you lose your wristband it’s a $30 fine, if you lose a beach towel or your beach towel card also $30 although they have no qualms about casually shrugging when they (very often) run out of beach towels!
Now for the pros- the majority of the staff are lovely, truly lovely- security, maids, waiters, everyone will give you a huge smile and warm 'hola' when you walk past them. 2 decent pools (adult pool especially) and a beach (with bar and food hut). Food in the speciality restaurants beach food hut and the pizzeria is good. Had previously never been to a casino before but visited the hotels one 5 of our 11 nights- it’s excellent- perfectly air conditioned too (bet in pesos not dollars as smallest peso chips are 5 pesos (about 10 pence) and smallest dollar chips are $1 (about 60 pence)) drinks in the casino are the strongest and best quality on whole resort and if you pick a favourite waitress and tip her they’ll get even stronger (only place I managed to get drunk) it also offers a better exchange rate at the cashier desk (don’t have to gamble the money once changed up) than the hotel bank - an extra 3 pesos to the pound. During the day there are fun activities such as volleyball, which admittedly are poorly organised, but it gets you talking to other guests. Some fab excursions - do ocean world and the VIP yacht- avoid the bounty/Bacardi island trip as you’ll spend 8 hours on a coach!! Also ignore what you hear about the water and ice- the hotel use purified water for everything- including ice.
Recommendations-
Take any mosquito precautions you can get your hands on!
Try the pina colada with or without rum- it’s fab!
Book excursions as leaving the resort is not wise- except to visit the (very pricey) shopping plaza- and you WILL get bored without the excursions!
Take both dollars and pesos but make you get your dollars in the uk as in Dominican republic you’ll be charged the exchange rate from sterling to peso then peso to dollar and you’ll lose money!
Take snack foods and all toiletries needed as shop is over priced!
Cigarettes are cheapest on the plane!
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Aug 2005 |
| Tour
Operator: |
First Choice |
| Submitted
By: |
Mr S Lake |
| Overall
Rating: |
2/10 |
| Comments: |
hi all,
we are steve and sharon, we stayed here at jack tar village about 5 years ago, we met loads of different people from all around the world , who we hit it of well with,
but we and all of the people we got to know there were ILL for the whole of the time ,
up to the point that my wife was almost hospitalised.
she had to give the local doctor a pee sample and the other sample to sent off for tests.
it appeared that we both had contracted an omebus parasite wich is cought by eating the food out there.
we were both given one tablet , which did cure this problem but by then we only had 2 days holiday left.
we told all of our freinds there to go get one of those tablets , so to enjoy the rest of there holiday.
as to the first choice hoiliday rep, well - she was the biggest waste of time of all.
she was so unsympathetic , and kept on fobbing us all of with week excuses.
we paid a lot of money for that holiday , just to be ill for the whole of it.
when we arrived back in the uk we found first choice to be even more un interested, and got no replys to any of our phone calls or letters.
so the simple thing to do is not go to the jack tar village, and never use first chice , they should be your last choice
steve and sharon from plymouth.uk.
hi to all who know us.
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Aug 2005 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Lastminute |
| Submitted
By: |
Mrs S Franco |
| Overall
Rating: |
3/10 |
| Comments: |
Firstly, I would like to say that overall, the majority of the staff were very friendly and helpful. Unfortunately, the accommodation was not so pleasing. We are a family of 4. When booking this holiday, it was stated that the rooms only accommodated 2, so we had to pay extra for 2 rooms.
Since returning from our holiday, I have found out that other tour operators can offer a room to accommodate 4 people. The rooms were dull, dingy and depressing and in need of a complete redecorate and re-fit. On arrival, half the electrics in one room did not work, the air conditioning units worked, but sounded and looked like they were on their last legs. I was unable to plug mossi repellent in one room, cos the socket was put in the wrong way.
My children’s television had to be plugged into the bathroom due to plug not working in the bedroom and their remote control did not work. The beds had bed bugs and the 4 of us were attacked every night whilst in bed, waking up to huge lumps and bumps covering our legs.
The bathrooms had broken and cracked tiles and were continuously infested with tiny white ants. One night the toilet overflowed. No staff came to help after several phone calls and a visit to reception, so my husband and I cleared up the mess ourselves. Eventually the toilet was mended, but we were unable to use it for 24 hours due to the cement drying.
Away from our rooms, the main pool was filthy, and I only saw it cleaned once in the 2 weeks that we were there. The set up of the main pool was dangerous as there was a ledge going right round the pool, so for young children it seemed like they were in their depth, until they stepped a few inches out into the deep end, and found themselves in danger. The "Lifeguards" were in fact First Aiders not trained to deal with swimming situations. Indeed, on one occasion, I was in the pool myself when a small child got into trouble out of her depth. If I hadn't pulled her out, then she would not be here today.
If it rained in the complex, the many tiled surfaces became dangerous skating rinks, and with so few "Wet Floor Signs", I'm surprised there were not more casualties than there were. This resort was being sold as a 4 Star holiday. I believe it to be closer to a 2 Star.
On a brighter note, the beach was to die for, the food was excellent, and the serving staff lovely. My kids and I will never forget the yummy pancakes and milkshakes we had for breakfast every morning. I would love to return to the Dominican Republic one day, but not the Jack Tar Village. Some Tour Operators need to re-star this accommodation.
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Aug 2005 |
| Tour
Operator: |
The Holiday Place |
| Submitted
By: |
Miss B Summers |
| Overall
Rating: |
1/10 |
| Comments: |
This was the holiday from hell!! Both myself and my 13 year old son had accidents at this resort and ended up in hospital.
We spent 12 days of the holiday in a dirty dinghy room. Alive with mosquitoes in the bed covers and ants everywhere! The food was disgusting and made us all VERY ill, including a 6 year old!
The pool was always dirty and not at all what it looked like or was described as in pictures on the net or in brochures.
We were told we could get 24hour drinks which was not true as the the lounge and bars shut at 2am.
The only place that was air conditioned was our room and the dinner room was too hot to eat their nasty food in!!
We lived on chips, bread and biscuits, then to top in all the last week they decided to start building right out side our balcony at 6am. I strongly advise people not to go to the Jack Tarr not unless you want, food poisoning, getting eating alive by mosquitoes, bored to death and spending 3 hours a day on the loo. give this place a miss it is in no way as described both on the net and in brochures!!!
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Jul 2005 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Not Specified |
| Submitted
By: |
Not Specified |
| Overall
Rating: |
2/10 |
| Comments: |
I am cabin crew, and we have to stay in the Jack Tar when we come down to the Dominican Republic. I would not recommend this hotel to anyone; their cleanliness is extremely poor as at least two of the crew that I know have caught scabies from the beds. It is very over priced in the shops on site and in the complex.
At breakfast the music playing is the same everyday and the entertainment is nothing to write home about, I feel extremely sorry for anyone who is misled into believing this is 4* as I have stayed in a variety of hotels worldwide and this is not a patch! The plus side is that the staff are friendly, but there are not enough of them in the bars. Everything seems to be poorly organised and when you r on the beach you get constantly badgered by people wanting to braid your hair and other things that you really don’t want! The food is not bad though, as long as you stick to the food cooked in front of you then you don’t need to worry too much!
If it rains when you r there, be careful everywhere because the paths can become extremely slippery especially by the main dinning area! And if you want anything from the staff at reception, like a remote control they try to fob you off, just stand your ground and demand it, they will soon enough get you what you want. Customer care is not a strong point, and if you have problems with your room then demand someone comes with you otherwise nothing gets done!
I will commend the water sports that are included in the price they are well worth doing as they can provide some entertainment away from the constant music that comes from the pool area!
To be honest I was being paid to be there but I would never ever visit of my own accord, there is nothing really brilliant about this resort. So really don’t bother visiting, spend your money on something elsewhere!
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Jun 2005 |
| Tour
Operator: |
First Choice |
| Submitted
By: |
Miss L Smith |
| Overall
Rating: |
1/10 |
| Comments: |
I don't normally write reviews but feel it is my duty to warn people:
(1) not to book the Jack Tar & (2) if you decide to chance your luck here, don't chance it with First Choice!
I went to the Jack Tar with a friend and received treatment by the hotel and our first choice representative that can only be described as criminal!
We spent the first night in a flooded room and were kindly given a room change the following day only to later find out that they had moved the previous guests out of that room due to a broken air con machine which resulted in a freezing, damp and flooded room.
The staff didn't offer us a room change even though we complained constantly throughout the 4 days spent there and our first choice representative didn't seem to care enough to help us. My friend became ill and we informed them that we needed to be moved as obviously the room was resulting in her getting a chest infection.
We hated the Jack Tar so much that we were prepared to leave 5 days into a 2 week holiday only to find that my friend was too ill to fly home and became hospitalised as the room conditions resulted in Pneumonia. Even then the first choice representative refused to help us and left us in the hospital unable to communicate with the nurses and doctors as we didn't speak Spanish.
First Choice severely let us down, failed to sort out our room problem, left us in hospital unwilling to translate things such as prescriptions for us and even had the cheek to slag us off in the presence of other guests!
I would NOT recommend booking the Jack Tar as you are risking your health in doing so!
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| Board Basis: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
May 2005 |
| Tour
Operator: |
First Choice |
| Submitted
By: |
Mrs F Bell |
| Overall
Rating: |
9/10 |
| Comments: |
We booked this holiday as our honeymoon, at first we chose this hotel as it was advertised as an adults only property, however after booking we then received a letter advising it was no longer only available to adults. As we were going out of school holidays we decided to stick with it.
On arrival we were welcomed with fruit punch at reception while waiting to check in to our rooms, there was a delay of about 1 hour before our room was ready but it was well worth the wait.
We had a superior room (however not the same standard as a superior room in England) it was basic but very comfortable and spacious also with a stocked up mini bar for those times when you cant be bothered to leave the room!! :0)
Hotel is excellently situated right on the beach and has everything you need to keep you entertained. For those of you who still enjoy time away from children there is a pool which is specifically for adults, this pool also has a swim up bar and a warm Jacuzzi.
The hotel staff were all extremely friendly especially Diego (the egg man) in the restaurant. Also they are always cleaning it is a very clean hotel and complex.
Anyone choosing the Jack Tar Village will not be disappointed I am looking forward to returning very soon!!
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