Bahia Principe Grand Aquamarine - All Inclusive - Adults Only

Customer Ratings & Reviews

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

3061 reviews

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  Never again

  Never Again We stayed at Bahia Principe Grand Aquamarine for three weeks after booking through Air Transat. While there were positive aspects to our stay, the overall experience did not meet expectations for the price paid. Arrival & Room Experience After a long travel day, first impressions matter — and unfortunately, our room was our first disappointment. The room felt very outdated and did not reflect the modern 5 star adults-only resort experience that is advertised. The décor and finishes felt tired and in need of renovation and need of lots of tlc, more comparable to an older four-star property than a premium Caribbean adults-only resort. More concerning were visible mold stains on the marble surfaces in the bathroom and caulking. When we asked about changing rooms, we were shown another room — and that room also had mold staining- so exactly the same room. Seeing the same issue in multiple rooms suggested this was not an isolated incident but a broader maintenance concern. The room was functional, but it did not meet the quality standard we expected for a three-week stay at this price point. The Positives To be fair, there are strong points: • The beach itself is beautiful — soft sand, and very scenic. • The breakfast and lunch buffet at Aquamarine offered good variety. • The à la carte restaurants in the adults-only section were excellent and often the highlight of our evenings. • The resort grounds are generally well maintained. • Most staff members were polite and hardworking. There is clear potential here. Unfortunately, several structural and operational issues overshadowed these positives. Confusing Layout & Beach Access Issues The physical layout of the resort creates ongoing confusion and unnecessary inconvenience. Aquamarine is located farther from the beach than Bahia Principe Luxury Amber. However, the designated Aquamarine beach area is actually positioned directly in front of the Amber hotel. In practical terms, Amber sits physically between Aquamarine and the beachfront. The most direct and logical walking route from Aquamarine to our beach area naturally passes through the Amber pool zone. On one occasion, however, an Amber employee stopped us and instructed us not to walk through that area. Instead, we were told to take a detour in the opposite direction — approximately 100 meters away from the beach — and then take a shuttle bus back toward the beach. This meant: • Walking away from the beach • Waiting for a shuttle • Then being transported back toward the same beachfront area All to avoid crossing through a section that physically sits between our hotel and our assigned beach area. The issue is not simply the walking distance — it is the inefficiency and lack of logical access. Beach access should not require detours and transportation to reach an area that is geographically right in front of you. At the same time, Amber guests appear to have broader access to shared areas and frequently occupy beach chairs across sections- several days - I did not have a beach chair because amber guest come and sit in the aquamarine beach area. The boundaries between properties are not clearly marked, and policies are not transparently communicated. Guests are left navigating invisible lines with inconsistent enforcement. Beach Chair & Shade Shortages If you do not arrive early in the morning (around 6-7:30 am, you risk not finding a shaded chair at the beach. Chairs fill quickly, often with guests from amber hotel use then aquamarine beach area. For a resort of this size and price category, adequate shaded and seating should not feel like a daily competition. It adds stress to what should be a relaxing adults-only experience. Again Cuba service at double the price. Overcrowding in Shared Areas The shared beach buffet was consistently overcrowded and so was the beach. I couldn’t believe how many people are in the water, I felt like we were at a public beach not a 5 star adults only beach resort. As well there is only one beach buffet that’s available for the aquamarine guests that we share with other hotel guests. We have never attempted it because there are long lines, difficulty finding seating, and lack of service made the experience feel chaotic rather than relaxed. At times, the shared spaces felt overwhelmed by guests from multiple Bahia properties, which significantly reduced the adults-only atmosphere Aquamarine promotes. ⸻ Towel Shortages There were repeated issues with towel availability later in the day. If you did not arrive early, clean towels were often unavailable. We had to reuse the same towels for three days. This should not be a recurring issue at a resort in this price range. ⸻ Distance & Daily Logistics The beach is approximately a 10-minute walk from many Aquamarine rooms. While manageable, making this walk multiple times per day becomes inconvenient — especially when combined with access confusion and chair shortages. ⸻ Final Thoughts There are positive elements to this property, particularly the beach and several dining experiences. However, the outdated rooms, visible maintenance concerns, confusing access policies, overcrowding, and inconsistent enforcement of resort boundaries significantly impacted our stay. For the amount paid for a three-week vacation, we expected clearer communication, better upkeep, and a more cohesive adults-only experience. Unfortunately, this experience did not meet that standard. For us, this is never again. If we do decide we are willing to compromise on our vacation on all the above. I would rather go to Cuba at least I am paying 1/2 the price and it’s almost identical to our experience at the Bahia principe. If I want a nice adults only hotel… this is definitely not it. We have stayed at other hotels and much much better than this one at the same price point.

  Mar 01, 2026
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  OUTDATED RESORT WITH A GREAT BEACH

  I wouldn’t recommend this resort and definitely will not return. Had more negative feelings than positive during our stay. The rooms are extremely outdated, feel like everything is still from 70th or even older. Had to change the room after the first night because of the loud noise from air conditioning/fan system in the room. But I will point that our request was addressed quickly and with no problems. No restaurants offered during breakfast and lunch. Breakfast and lunch buffet didn’t offer too many choices and food was pretty much the same every day. Booking a dinner is stressful and not fun even with a help from a front desk in the lobby. We were very disappointed when discovered that no coffee shop on the grounds for Aquamarine guest and Ambar didn’t allow us to get even a cup of coffee. For the price this resort charges and having adults only privilege, at least having a place to sit and have a cup of coffee would be good. We spent most of our time on the beach and I don’t remember when was the last time we stayed in resort which didn’t offer a food cooked on the beach. One time the Ambar had a Dominican Independence Day celebration but it was limited only to their guests. I thought we paid premium as well but received nothing extra. Very poor communication when we arrived and literally no information received when we checked in about resort. The greatest experience from our stay is the beach. Clean, very well maintained and we were lucky to have great 6 days full of sun and crystal clear water.

  Mar 01, 2026
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  Overall good with ideas for improvement

  First time going on an all inclusive. Overall we had a good time. The food was good but the buffet NEEDS to be labeled properly every time. One lady asked me if something was fish because she was allergic and I wasn’t sure because there were no labels or wrong labels. Dessert had a soup label. Very inconvenient when you would like to try new things but don’t know what it is. Also three out of the five times we ate at the buffet the table linens were stained with black marks ( so was our bedding). The food we did try was very good at the buffet and lots of variety ( which is why labels are important). The wait staff were very entertaining and attentive. For the room experience we had to wait two hours and fifteen minutes past the 3:00 check in time for our room. We came in with a group of eight. One couple got their room promptly at 3:00, one fifteen minutes later, us two hours and fifteen minutes later and the other two and a half hours late. We arrived at 1:30 pm so a wait was expected but then to see people come in at 4:30 & 5:00 and get their rooms right away was very frustrating. Then the room we got ( 81105) had mold in the shower, had to be strategic about when to shower or you might get scalded by the hot water that wouldn’t cool off ( this happened three mornings in a row),the tub plug didn’t hold water, the patio door didn’t lock so my husband put a piece of furniture behind the door so it couldn’t be opened from outside since we were on the ground level and my husband had to kill a very large bug of unknown species ( totally not anyone’s fault). Good things about the room were a very good hair dryer, iron and ironing board, the bed was comfortable, plus an umbrella which we were very grateful for the one night we needed it to go to our à la carte. The pool was nice. The entrainment was good, the staff was great, the water was clear and the patio was kept very clean. The only complaint was that we had to keep our towels for days ( 4) because they ran out of fresh towels very early in the day and didn’t get clean ones very often. Also more umbrellas for shade would be greatly helpful. I get heat stroke easily so shade is essential. The patio food was good. $55 usd for sunscreen at the pool vendor should be illegal though, especially when you can go to the shops in the village on the resort and get some for $20 (which is still high). The staff that would shuttle you from place to place on the resort were awesome. They were funny and helpful. Even the “ members only” drivers gave us a ride a few times. It was very nice of the sports bar to open especially for people to watch the Canada vs USA men’s Olympic hockey game. Very accommodating. The beach was gorgeous but very hard to find shade for those of us who shade is essential unless you get up very early and reserve a chair. Next time we would wear some kind of bug repellent because we all came home very itchy with sooo many bug bites. Just a few suggestions for improvement Overall we had a great time in the sun with our friends.

  Feb 27, 2026
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  Beautiful Property, Large Resort – Know What to Expect

  We stayed at Bahia Principe Grand Aquamarine (Adults Only) in Punta Cana for six nights. Overall, we had a good experience, but there are a few things future guests should know before booking. First, the property is enormous. It’s essentially several resorts within one large complex. Aquamarine is adults-only, but other sections of the property allow children. If you’re expecting a completely adults-only environment everywhere (including the beach and shared areas), that’s not the case. You will see families in certain parts of the property and on sections of the beach. Our room was very nice and clean. We stayed in Building 80, which is one of the closer buildings to the beach. The downside was that it faces the main pool and entertainment area, so we could clearly hear nighttime entertainment in our room. Thankfully, it usually ended around 11 PM, so it wasn’t a major issue — but something to consider if you’re sensitive to noise. The grounds are beautifully maintained, and transportation around the property is easy thanks to frequent golf carts that take you to the beach, restaurants, and other areas of the resort. Restaurant Tip: Download the Bahia Principe app and book your dinner reservations about 7–10 days before arrival. Restaurants fill up quickly, and having reservations made in advance made our stay much smoother. As with most all-inclusive resorts, manage expectations when it comes to food. The Aquamarine buffet was decent and consistently better than the beach buffet we tried, which was crowded and underwhelming. Specialty restaurants were enjoyable, but this is not five-star gourmet dining — that’s typical for large all-inclusives. One frustration was access restrictions within the complex. Certain sections, such as Ambar, are off-limits to Aquamarine guests, including their pools and some dining venues. Since everything is connected, it can feel awkward to walk into an area and be told you’re not permitted to use it. That part detracted from the “all-inclusive” feeling. Beach tip: If you want shaded palapas, be prepared to go early. By 8 AM most shaded spots were taken. We learned quickly that early mornings are key if shade is important to you. Drinks: If you care about specific liquor brands, ask for them by name. Once we started requesting a specific tequila (e.g., Jose Cuervo), our drinks were much better. We tipped consistently and did receive attentive service. Bringing insulated tumblers is also a good idea, as the standard cups are small, especially at the beach. Most of the staff were friendly and helpful, though like any large resort, service quality varied depending on who you interacted with. We never left the property during our stay because it’s so large and offers plenty to do. However, if you’re looking to experience Dominican culture beyond the resort, you would need to plan excursions off property. Overall, we enjoyed our stay at Aquamarine. It’s a beautiful, expansive resort with solid amenities and good value for an all-inclusive, as long as you understand how the shared-resort layout works and set expectations accordingly.

  Feb 22, 2026
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  Winter vacation @ Aquamarine

  We had an amazing trip to Bahia Aquamarine! Would highly recommend! If I had any suggestions it would be to make sure each meal is labelled in the buffet. This happened the first two days and then nothing after that. It was always a guessing game and in turn waste. We look forward to going back

  Feb 20, 2026