Gran Bahia Principe Cayacoa

My experience at the Gran Bahia Principe Cayacoa in Samana, DR was amazing. I expected to have a great time and my expectations were surpassed on every level. The staff is amazing. They were interactive with the guests and entertaining. We participated in group activities by the pool and evening entertainment at the disco. I miss the staff!! The beach area was a special treat. It was very relaxing. We did kayaking and took the peddler out for a spin. We also had the hotel shuttle to take us around town which was convenient and fun. The food and drinks were great too and the room was beautiful. A positive experience - I will be back!

Our stay at GBP Cayacoa was almost unbearable. We were moved to a different room twice during our 5 nights for various issues. First because they had given us a king size bed instead of two doubles (for 2 adults and 2 kids). Then because of plumbing issues, then due to air conditioning not working. Read reviews on TripAdvisor before you think about booking here. Our shower never drained, the (dirty) tub didn't hold water, the toilet was constantly stopped up. The air conditioning barely worked in any of the three rooms. You need a cool place to come back to when it's 100 degrees outside and 99% humidity! One room had mold/mildew all over the walls and ceiling. Yuck! The food was mediocre at best and a lot if the staff didn't speak English. Some were very friendly, most were not. Got the feeling they didn't think too highly of Americans. The water was far from crystal clear, in fact it closely resembled the water at the Jersey shore. We spent some time across the water at Cayo Leventando for a family wedding. The rooms and resort were beautiful. Spend the extra money and stay there. The water was a lot clearer and the amenities were better.

The hotel itself is beautiful; however, everything else was extremely disappointing. Upon arrival, we quickly learned that hardly anyone speaks English - they do not speak traditional Spanish either, so communication was very difficult. Additionally, what I had read on other websites indicated that the city of Samana was extremely safe to go into, but everyone we know that ventured into the city begged to differ. Also very frustrating is that all of the beaches in the DR are considered "public" beaches, so they are filled with locals. There appears to be some security, but we were constantly being watched and things would come up missing if we left our things on the beach to go into the water. We tried snorkeling, but the water is filled with trash and quite murky. Another frustrating aspect was the food - at first it seemed good, but the menu never changes in the buffet. Also, the restaurant menus never change, so if you book one restaurant twice, you get the exact same menu and the food is quite terrible. We were also extremely frustrated that no one informed us that reservations needed to be made for the restaurants in advace because they book up so fast. And do you want to know why they book up so fast? The resort only has one restaurant open a night. That takes me to entertainment... not much can be said. The entertainment staff works very hard, but they are extremely unorganized and quite frankly, not much fun. Being an all-inclusive, you would think that you could get any of the drinks on the menus at any of the bars, but the bartenders were always "claiming" they were out of certain drinks. Overall, this trip totally turned me off from visiting the DR again. I might reconsider in about 10 years when they decide to clean up their tourist areas and learn to communicate with their tourists. If I did go back to the DR, I definitely would not stay at any of the Gran Bahia Principe properties because they seem to be geared towards an older crowd, with very little to do throughout the day and evening besides drink... and I think that gets old for everyone. If we hadn't been meeting friends at this resort, our trip would have been a complete disaster. However, we were lucky to be with friends and make the most of a bad situation.

My teenage daughter and I wanted to take a short 'get-away', and visit the Dominican Republic. This hotel is gorgeous, and we loved our room with a million dollar ocean view (and Jacuzzi in a marble bathroom with fresh tropical flowers). Luxurious! The food was plentiful, varied, and very fresh , from local sources -- lots of fresh sliced tropical fruit at every meal. We are mostly vegetarian, and there were plenty of choices. Everything was very classy, and so 'low-hype' it was even hard to book day tours, because there were no flyers, posters, or sales pitches. (We went zip-lining on a new 1 mile+ canopy system, ending with a lovely waterfall visit- tons of fun!). About 2/3 of guests are Europeans, I'd guess. Take a walk on 'The Bridge To Nowhere' -- it starts on the hotel grounds, but you almost have to ask a staff member how to find the entrance. There are some nice scuba dives here from the PADI Shop on the beach. I would definitely recommend the Gran Bahia Principe family of hotels!