Bahia Principe Fantasia Punta Cana - All Inclusive

Customer Ratings & Reviews

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

2912 reviews

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  Bahia Principe Fantasia - Great Vacation

  Very family friendly, great service, food selection good. I would recommend. Five minute walk to the beach and other restaurants as well as for purchase excursions. Alternatively, instead of walking, you can ride down to the same area and back if you want to relax.

  Jun 13, 2025
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  3.5 out of 5, good holiday but hotel needs to improve in areas

  Getting there -flight was great -passport control was a nightmare, super long queues.  -transfer short, but had to wait a while to set off from the airport  - check in - despite booking a year ago and having 2 rooms on the booking the rooms were not together, they acted like did us a favour getting rooms on the same floor, why were the rooms not next door to one another? I tried to contact the hotel beforehand re this but getting a response was tricky. Rooms -room shabby, sofa bed dirty and not made up, so basically arrived to a room for 2 not 3. Had to call concierge to make up the sofa bed. Sometimes had holes in our bedding. -took us a while to figure out the air con. -fan over our toilet leaked 3 times. -room service was great, came quickly. -mini fridge was great, always filled up. -rooms were a good size and we slept well. -one night our lock broke and they couldn't fix it. Took an hour and a half of us waiting in a boiling hot corridor. One of the night managers during this issue was extremely rude.  -maintenance issues are apparent across the complex but generally the hotel was clean. Pool  -woman changing soiled baby over the sink on the first day, disgusting, not the hotels fault. I reported this and staff arranged for the toilets to be cleaned.  -pool and most outdoor public toilets were tired, poorly maintained and didn't lock/shut. -pool itself was lovely and warm. -entertainment around the pool was ok. Loved Aqua spin. But the music just got louder and louder. We preferred the quiet side in the end! -lots of loungers but could do with more umbrellas, some umbrellas were broken.  -ran out of beer and ice creams a few times. Beach -we enjoyed the beach and the fantasia beach buffet was nice, food often cold. -plenty of beds and shade. Waterpark -kids loved it here. -fab snacks and they have Popsicles, loved the hotdogs and they had crisps and a selection of fruit. Staff -staff often disinterested and lacked attentiveness. Some staff were good though especially at the waterpark and some of the ladies around the pool. Bus drivers were always friendly, beep beep.  -poor guidance on where things are and what we can use, a paper handout is needed! -we tipped little and very often.  -some staff didn't understand what we were asking for, led to a few incorrect drinks etc and our children sometimes struggled to get what they asked for if we let them go to the pool bar for an ice cream etc. Same at kids club if they asked for water (agua). Food and drinks  -terrible first night in the buffet, seated another family before us. Food cold. unfortunately the food was often cold at the buffets, service was mixed.  -service and food in tequila al a carte was awful. -would recommend the teppanyaki, the oriental, the garden circus and the Italian. Book on app 10 days before you travel, they do get full.  -enjoyed the drinks, especially the mudslide and banana mamas. -lunch bbq at the garden circus was ok, people pushing in etc made it hard work. -Food truck was ok but we only went there once, we preferred the waterpark for those type of snacks.  -use the buses to get around and make sure you know whereabouts your al a carte is! Travelling around the complex takes time.  Trips -both booked through tui. -late coco bongos pick up but once we got there had a great night. Included an open bar and a snack. We should have paid for the waiter service. -monkeyland really good for a shorter trip. We were late getting back and the guide made a detour to get us back sooner as we had a meal booked.  -reasonably priced souvenirs in the monkeyland shop with no mither. -tui rep room is at the front of the hotel next to the shops. Nighttime  -it is hot! You do not need a cardigan! Take plenty of repellent.  -entertainment not the best, repeated the same programme in the second week. -Kids enjoyed the 730pm mini disco, games etc. But we sometimes missed this if at an al a carte. Check the app for what's on.  Kids club -Kids enjoyed this, open 9 till 6.  -use the app entertainment programme to see what's on. -they do take them swimming to the beach etc so tell them any requirements etc you have.  We were disappointed by the hotel and there were a few ups and downs! However, there were positives and there is plenty of room for some quick improvements. We met lots of lovely people and the children loved it. The weather was amazing and most parts of the hotel are nice. Plenty of space around the pool and at the beach. Research before you go, I wish I had read up a bit more! Don't forget lots of suncream, mosquito repellent, mosquito bands and mosquito bite relief cream. Tui cabin crew, don't forget to tell people to stay off the flight maps, or the screens will all need to be reset!!!

  Jun 10, 2025
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  Another great stay

  This was our second trip to the Fantasia. We went for a week right before COVID hit and really enjoyed our time there, so we decided to try it again. I would say that it has gone downhill a little bit and could use some refreshing, but it's still a really nice resort. My kids are now 13, 11, and 9, so if I had to do it again, I would just choose a regular resort -- the castle is not really exciting for them anymore. That said, we really enjoyed our stay. If you're considering it and you're reading horror stories on here, realize that most people are extremely ridiculous. A five star hotel in the Dominican != a five star hotel in another country like Canada or the US. Yes, there were mosquitoes at night, but no they did not eat us alive. No, there were no insects or mosquitoes in our rooms -- I imagine that everyone complaining about mosquitoes in their rooms is not very careful about quickly closing the door when they enter their room. Yes, we did see one or two cockroaches in our 11 days there -- newsflash: it's a tropical climate and there are going to be bugs. Also, I would note that restaurants all around the world have to deal with cockroaches. Get over yourself. The Larimar buffet and the Garden Circus buffet were both nice options for breakfast and lunch (and supper, in the case of Larimar), with plenty of variety for everyone. There are always several stations where you can have food freshly made (e.g., an omelette for breakfast, pasta for lunch, steak/chicken for supper) so if you don't like any of the many buffet dishes, you can have something made just for you. The à la carte restaurants varied in their quality, but they were all reasonably good and some were excellent. We went in late May and were fortunate that the sargassum was not too bad for most of our trip. It did get really bad in the last two days or so, to the point that the beach was unusable. This didn't really bother us -- we just went to the pool and enjoyed drinks being brought to us regularly by our server, Delcia (who was fantastic and brought us all sorts of delicious drinks). While the sargassum is certainly not the resort's fault, their response to it was perhaps a bit lacking. Other resorts at least move the sargassum aside into piles -- the Fantasia just seemed to leave it. On our second last night, we were sitting at the Tex Mex restaurant which is an open-air restaurant that overlooks the beach and the ocean. They did finally have a backhoe picking up loads of sargassum and moving them. Unfortunately, every time they did so, we got an overpowering waft of rotting sargassum that took several minutes to dissipate each time. Not very appetizing while you're trying to eat a meal. It would be ideal if they would do the moving after the restaurants close -- we are paying good money to be there, after all. Overall, though, we had another excellent stay at the Fantasia and really enjoyed our time there. If you're considering taking your kids there, you'll have an excellent time.

  Jun 06, 2025
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  Decent time at Bahia principe

  Let me start off by saying this is a family resort. My husband and I traveled with our 8 year old and 1 year old. Our family members had a 2 year old. If you do not have kids or with a family that has children, I do not recommend this resort for you. Check in: The process was pretty quick even though we did not use the pre check in feature which makes it even faster. The gentleman who checked us in was very professional and quick. The room: We booked a castle view, it wasn’t worth the extra money in my opinion. A garden view would have been just fine. Facing the castle you can hear all of the nightly entertainment so if you have kids that go to bed early and mind the music you should not book this room. I liked the fact that they provided a crib without us asking. That was a nice surprise. The beds aren’t comfortable in our opinion but we prefer a softer mattress. The room was clean and plenty of towels are provided. We had an issue with our door. They had to replace the door handle because the battery wasn’t working. This was such an inconvenience because we were trying to get back to our room after a long day at the pool and our kids were tired and hungry. The concierge was at the end of the hall and immediately called for help. The door was fixed right away. Both the concierge and the maintenance staff were very helpful. The pool: Water was always warm. Pool chairs were always available in the main pool area. If you are staying in the children’s water park you need to grab chairs very early because it gets busy quick. The food: It was ok. There was a large selection but it didn’t really change each night. The 3 nights we were there the choices were the same. The food wasn’t really hot unless you waited for something that was made on the spot. Otherwise, the food was always warm/cold. The coffee was never hot. Always warm/cold. We never made reservations to restaurants so I cannot speak to that. The water park area has food available during the day. One gentleman makes pizza and he would make us pies the way we requested. He was very kind. The beach: We couldn’t even enjoy. Covered in seaweed. A truck was on the beach removing pounds of seaweed and piling onto the sand. The smell was really bad. Apparently this is the season for it. My husband was looking forward to it but was disappointed. Mosquitos are everywhere! Bring plenty of bug spray. They would go into our room whenever we opened the door. Sitting outside at night, was not comfortable even with repellent. The staff was nice, professional, and attentive we didn’t have issues with anyone. Our son loved the nightly entertainment. They begin the shows at 9pm sharp and the chairs fill up very quickly around 8:30pm. You would have to arrive early if you want to sit. Someone stole my 8 year old sons croc sandals by the pool. That was very upsetting! Overall it was a decent time. I would not return to this property. I would try another next time. I can see the staff working really hard and trying their best.

  Jun 04, 2025
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  Disappointing Experience That Did Not Match Expectations

  We’ve just returned from a two-week stay at Bahia Principe Fantasia Punta Cana, booked through TUI, and unfortunately, the overall experience didn’t match expectations—especially for a resort advertised as 4+ stars by TUI and 5 stars on-site. The Negatives: The service at the hotel was the biggest letdown. Around 90% of the staff we encountered were rude or disinterested, and at one point, we even witnessed waitresses popping spots on their faces while we were eating—completely unacceptable hygiene in a dining area. At the buffet, there was no self-service for drinks, and we were frequently left without anything to drink during meals. Staff often ignored requests, got orders wrong, or brought fewer drinks than requested. It felt more like a game than genuine service. While we were happy to tip, very few staff gave service worthy of one. The mini bar was inconsistently restocked (about 40% of the time), and asking for a refill felt like a huge ask. Rooms were spacious, but the pull-out bed mattress was badly stained, and bed linen was changed just once or twice during our stay. We woke one morning with the bathroom And entry flooded, the toilet pipe had burst, thankfully clean water. The staff made us feel like we were at fault when it was simple wear and tear. Maintenance work (gardening and painting) began early and without notice. Painters even worked on our balcony, dripping paint onto our belongings. With proper communication, we could have moved things like clothes and shoes. We had been warned about possible noise from the neighbour hotel construction but strangely this wasn’t an issue. The TUI/Expedia BBQ featured raw sausages and raised food safety concerns. The buffet also lacked fly control, which was worrying. On-site shops were extremely over priced $65 for a pool lilo and $40 for a child’s bucket and spade felt exploitative. We saw no TUI rep at our hotel. When we visited nearby hotels where she was based, security refused to let us in, on being adults only but we had a child, not sure how they expect tou to see them?. No guidance or support was provided throughout. Staff were also pushy about upselling extras. We only learned we were entitled to one hour of free watersports per day a week into our stay, thanks to a private guide, not the hotel. The Positives: To be fair, there were some good points. The à la carte restaurants offered a much higher standard of food and service—those meals were a real highlight (highly recommend the Brazilian, steak house and Greek although portions small here. Italian food average but service given brilliant). The weather was perfect throughout, and since we travelled just before the school holidays, we had no trouble getting sunbeds during the first week (though it did get much busier in the second). The Truck snack bar was handy, with a simple self-service checkout system that made grabbing food quick and easy. Entertainment at the Bahia Principe Grand was excellent and the atmosphere there felt much more welcoming overall. However be prepared to be eaten alive by mosquitoes. Conclusion: While the resort has potential and there were certainly some positives, the issues we experienced, particularly around service, hygiene, communication, and value for money—mean we would not return or recommend this hotel.

  Jun 03, 2025