Alsol Del Mar

The room was nowhere near ready when we arrived, even though we’d booked four months in advance. It didn’t seem like they were expecting us. They asked for our passports and made us feel very unwelcome, then sent us to the grill while we waited. That took two hours. Once we finally got into our Ocean Front Loft, it looked nothing like the photos. It was dirty, with old, stained furniture that was broken and peeling in places. The refrigerator still had drinks left by the previous guests. Our room was far from the main resort, and even the walkway lights didn’t work. We raised our concerns with the Front Desk, who said they’d arrange another room. It took nine more visits, photos sent to the manager, a leaking roof that woke us from a sound sleep, and two and a half days before we were finally moved. That was after our Travel Agent and the company she works through made a threatening call. I wish we could include photos so people could see how awful the original room was. The whole way they treated us felt terrible. It was a deeply unpleasant experience, and I’d look elsewhere if you want to enjoy the Dominican Republic.

The pool is lovely and the drinks are nice, but don’t count on quick service. We had to explain our orders three, four, even five times, then send food back because it wasn’t what we’d asked for. Breakfast was the same each day and the food options were very limited if you booked a room with breakfast included. This isn’t really a hotel, it’s a condominium advertising its rooms as hotel rooms. Also, avoid August and September, when algae can make the beach unusable.

It was a reasonable price and a good place to relax, though there wasn’t much going on. We took tours during the day and came back to hang out by the pool in the evening. There aren’t any shops nearby for snacks or other small things, and a taxi out of the hotel cost us $30 a trip.

The room itself was decent, with a jacuzzi and ocean view, but the resort was by far the worst I’ve stayed at after trips to Cabo, Cancun, Costa Rica, Jamaica, Cayman Islands, and elsewhere. On arrival they asked for a $200 deposit that hadn’t been mentioned in the reservation. When we said we knew nothing about it, they quickly dropped the request. The beach was covered in seaweed, so there was no way to lie out and enjoy it. The resort was secluded, with only about 10 tourists across the whole place, and they didn’t provide towels at the pool. The complimentary breakfast was a joke: one meal choice, no menu, and a long wait even though we were the only ones in the restaurant. The toilet had very weak pressure and backed up every day. Taxi service was horrible. They tried to rip us off at every chance and seemed to have special arrangements with the hotel to charge even more. My boyfriend and I were quoted $80 for a round trip to a restaurant about 15 minutes away. The worst part was that my phone was stolen by a hotel staff member, and people there tried to cover it up. We got three different excuses from different people, then security returned the phone after I used my iPhone app to locate it. It was one of the most unpleasant trips I’ve had. The price may look tempting, but you’re better off paying more for a stay you can enjoy.