Location
Samana - BeachProperty Information
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Resort Details
Hotel Advisories
General Policies & Fine Print
Check-in Policy:
Hotel requires a credit/debit card authorization or cash deposit upon check-in for incidentals; this will place a hold on your funds.
Convention Policy:
Individuals attending a convention cannot book this property for their stay. If found attending a convention, guests may be subject to higher room rates upon arrival.
Hotel Spring Break Policy:
This hotel cannot guarantee a spring-break-free environment.
Transfer Policy:
A price may display when children stay free, if your vacation includes transfer to your hotel.
General Information:
Room taxes and service fees are included in vacation price.
Minimum night stay restrictions may apply.
Reservation changes may not be permitted unless authorized by the hotel.
Customer Ratings & Reviews
TripAdvisor Traveler Rating
7921 reviews
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May 23, 2023Good hotel just not luxurious
I stayed at the resort with 5 other people it was a friend's trip to celebrate the end of the semester. We had a great time at the resort however I would not rate the resort as luxurious. I would rate the resort a 4-star at most. The beach is beautiful and incredibly close to the pool but there is a lack of seating at the pool The food is good nothing out of this world after a while you will start to get tired of it. I hoped for more variation but it got repetitive. the food you would see at lunch you would see again for dinner which is pretty disappointing. However, it is not bad since the resort is advertised as luxurious you have certain expectations going in; expectations were not met. The drinks are good however since they are not mixed well they are too strong and ultimately not drinkable unless you get a non-alcoholic drink to wash it down. However, most people would rather have a strong drink. The people are very nice but there are not enough workers. There was not much to do during the day it is the same aqua fitness every single day. The workers however make up for it and make it enjoyable specifically Sandy and Silvana they made our time very fun and entertaining the resort needs more people like them. The attention to you is not there at all for the money spent not enough people cared to cater to you. No one asks if you need anything no one asks if you need water a drink food and so forth. At dinner, my friends and I noticed this most when we had to go and serve our own drinks and wait for forever for silverware. there was a lack of attention to us and left us very unhappy. Lastly, the rooms are dated and most definitely need renovation we had an okay room however wifi did not WORK AT ALL NOT A SINGLE DAY. We asked for a room change and were not given one we were told to come back numerous amount of times but nothing was done. We were told it would get fixed but again nothing was done to mend the problem. We received no compensation for this and had to stay in the sports bar for hours in order to contact our family back home given there was no connection in our rooms.
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May 14, 2023
Beautiful Beach
Left out of Toronto May 4-12th, 2023 with Air Transat, flight left on time and arrived before schedule. Having been there before 8 years ago before the renovations i was excited to take my husband for the first time and see if it was still as good. Once we arrived at the resort after a very quick bus ride of 45 mins. gorgeous scenery, sit on the left side of the bus we were told our rooms were not ready. We kept going back every 30 mins. and finally at 4:30 were told they were ready. We were in building 7 just outside the main lobby, rooms very dated and many many issues, the fridge was broken, the safe was not working well, air conditioning was perfect, the maid had to be constantly told to restock towels, water, beer in the fridge, that should never happen. Plus we had to remind the cleaning staff that rooms had to be clean well before 4:30 because that was when we wanted to return to our cool room and get freshened up. The week was soo hot, the hottest i have experienced, gorgeous though, rain only one evening late. We loved the new renovations, very beautiful, food plentiful and lots to choose from, the beach as always is one of the nicest beaches i have ever seen, water is turquoise blue and many coral reef to snorkel, we saw a small stingray as well. We loved that. Good for walking every morning. Really my only complaint was because it was so busy, it took a long time for coffee in the morning and to get a drink. But if it wasn't so busy, tons of children, it would have been great, alot of the staff are the nicest people ever. Just not our maid. Returning on the 11th, the plane that came in to get us had a bird strike landing, so our flight got cancelled and we were told that we would be leaving the next day at 5:30pm. and stopping in Montreal to drop off passengers and then flying into Toronto. But Air Transat was kind and gave us all 200 dollar vouchers each to fly with them again. We were brought back to El Portillo and had to check in again but we were given one of the renovated rooms in building 27, it was gorgeous, double sinks, canopy king bed, full length mirror, it was heaven, the bed was so comfortable, we wished we had had that room for the entire week. A shout out to Air Transat crew for making our trip back home so pleasant and spoiling us with sandwiches. Crystal was amazing to talk to from Montreal to Toronto, it made our flight home so much nicer. Air Transat could not help the bird strike and they did everything they could to accomodate 150 people and i will be sure to fly with them again. Thank you for a lovely stay at El Portillo, just work on fixing the older rooms and making sure staff replenishes towels, water and beer, its important and needed in such a hot country.
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May 04, 2023Beautiful sunrise! Great weather!
Just returned from a wonderful vacation. 4/22-29 Approximately 45 min from airport. Check in was great. Beach was wonderful, snorkel right there. Food was average at the buffet nothing special. Italian Ala carte was FANTASTIC. Pool - needs to be cleaned better. Two many ppl as that's the only one down near Beach & Entertainment, also foods! However, there is a "quiet pool" by building 22 & 27. With a small bar. They were wonderful. Sandy with the entertainment team was the best! Very funny wonderful dancer and very interactive with guest. 10 stars there! 🌟 Negative part of vacation. Service was terrible, and don't get me wrong when I say terrible. Servers were great there, just was not enough. Not enough servers in buffet, around pool, lobby, beach! The pool bar was not working you literally had to get out and walk around to the front of it! 100% not enough palapas around pool or at the beach. And if you could get shaded area you were up and at the chairs by 545-6am with coffee and book. And you MUST stay with your stuff and chairs till at least 7am or security will take all your belongings up to front desk. Overall, it was a well kept resort just need to make so minor changes/upgrades. Any questions feel free to ask and remember this was my experience, others may have a difference of opinion. 😉
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May 04, 2023Welcome relief!
We had so many unrelated issues with our trip overall, it was a welcome relief that the Hotel itself offered such exception service. There are two main buffet restaurants with at least two additional small snack areas. We did not do an ala cart. The food was so incredible and such a wide variety of options. The Rose was by far the best wine, and the waiters kept our glasses full :) Our first few days, we hid away in the 'relax' pool because it was just outside our rooms and not busy at all. The main pool was pretty crowded but on the last day they did a bubble and dance party. The kids loved it! Pools close at 6. There was a kids splash pad with slides, our 9 year old's were not too excited to go but we did get at least an hour of downtime before they were bored. There are at least 4 shops on site. Most of the souvenir were well prices but the toiletries were very expensive. Free beer, pop and water in the minifridge. Rooms were well maintained and clean. Only Cons: The place is so big. While it is so easy to get in 20K steps, it's very hard to build a rapport with the staff. With the exception of the front desk, we found it very hard to find anyone that spoke English. Although some staff did use Google translate to help communicate. We had one incident with the place that sold the blow up pool toys. The staff refused to refund a defective toy, even after a replacement proved to be defective as well. Hotel manager stepped in to rectify. Even with the cons, all the staff were very polite and helpful. We would definitely go again.
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May 01, 2023
Great 2 week vacation
This was our 3rd visit to this hotel, but the 1st since the renovations made while closed for covid. The buffet restaurant is much lighter and brighter with a lot of outdoor seating. The enlarged pool and sports bar area are a great improvement. As returning guests - Silver Reward level - they honoured our request of a ground floor room in Building 5. The rooms are clean and pleasant, however are in need of a makeover. It was very easy to check in online and book restaurants in advance. The beach as always, was beautiful, however it is hard to find personal space as it is very crowded. It is obvious that some guests leave their belongings to reserve chairs n the middle of the night as all palapas are gone before 6 am. It does put the hotel in a difficult position trying to impose rules about not reserving chairs. A strong suggestion that security do a sweep and remove items at 6 am as no-one should be reserving spots in the dark. The hotel has tried to address this issue with plenty of chairs and the beach staff will find and move chairs to your chosen spot however trying to find shade is a challenge. We enjoyed the a la carte restaurants - Italian, Brazilian, Mediterranean and Gourmet. The buffet had lots of choice and was quite good. The staff are always pleasant and accommodating and during our 2 week stay would remember our preferences as soon as we were seated. We were disappointed with the evening entertainment - very repetitious. During previous visits they had entertainers who performed for more than 1 hour, For some reason singers did one set and that was it. The entertainment staff were very good, however it was the same every night. This hotel is a solid 4 star.