Bahia Principe Luxury Esmeralda - All Inclusive

Customer Ratings & Reviews

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

9617 reviews

• 

  Amazing vacation

  The stand out of our stay was the exceptional service from Aderly at the lobby bar. He went above and beyond to satisfy his guests., always with a smile and willing to please. Erick of the entertainment team was a delight, always making sure we enjoyed ourselves. The hotel was excellent, with spacious comfortable rooms not lacking any amenities and amazing quality meals, the food at the a la carte restaurants was great as was the Caney buffet restaurant.

  Mar 01, 2026
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  Relaxing? What a joke !!

  I don’t go on vacation to have music BLASTED and over-zealous animation people screaming into microphones! This is, bar none, the worst resort I have ever been to. Sure, it’s pretty. The food is the same as any other resort in Punta Cana. But if you want to relax and unwind, go somewhere else. It doesn’t matter what time of day it is, there is always LOUD music playing and management doesn’t give a rat’s ass about complaints let alone try to find a solution. The staff appear angry all the time. They get offended when you ask for something. I stopped tipping the bar staff because they were so awful. We have been here 3 days and literally counted 2 people who smiled and seemed like they actually liked their jobs. One this is certain: I will never set foot in a Bahia principe property ever again. This has been a total waste of $6,000.

  Feb 28, 2026
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  Luxury? Yes. Relaxing? Not a chance.

  We booked a last minute trip to the Bahia principe Esmeralda because we needed to get away to unwind, relax and spend time on the beach, in the ocean, and reading on our balcony. There are multiple resorts on this Bahia property, with Esmeralda being on the beach, something that was important for us. We were in villa 90. Unfortunately, there was non-stop loud, intrusive music all day and all evening. The animation team seemed to take great pleasure in shouting in a microphone plugged into a sound system that was set at the loudest setting. So, forget about that relaxing balcony time. Even with the balcony door closed, the sound was offensive. There was the promise if a VIP experience which granted special privileges like an adults only beach, premium alcohol, etc. what that ended up being was a high-pressure time share “presentation” and totally not worth the time (or worth the perks). The staff seem to be uniformly angry/ambivalent/just don't care about basic customer service. Any requests were met with glares, eye-rolling and outright contempt. In the space of 2 days, one person smiled at us and seemed genuinely interested in serving us. It is said that a company’s treatment of their employees is a reflection of the employee’s attitude towards its customers. These people are NOT happy. The food is no different than any of the other resorts I’ve been to in the DR. Yes, the resort is bigger but bigger in this case, is definitely not better. I can guarantee that I will not be retuning here, or any other Bahia property. Feedback submitted to this hotel has been ignored. The only positive thing I can say about this resort? It’s pretty. That’s why my review has 2 stars. But go somewhere else if you want friendly service by staff who are genuinely happy to do provide good service. And if you want a relaxing, quiet holiday? Definitely avoid this place like the plague. Or bring noise cancelling earbuds. Not worth the money it cost to be here.

  Feb 28, 2026
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  170 US$ for absolutely nothing

  We were staying at the Bahia Principe Luxury Esmeralda Punta Cana DR, where we were ripped off by the PADI dive center on the beach. We indicated we wanted a snorkeling trip, and… very specifically, we didn't want to see captive dolphins or sharks. We explained this in both English and Spanish. The next day, once we were on the boat, it turned out they had put us in a different group without informing us. You can guess what happened next. First stop: dolphins. We said we didn't want to leave the boat for that. The captain then decided to take us to the coast and have us take a taxi back to the hotel. He told us we would get our money back. Back at the hotel, I inquired about the refund. They told us to come back the next day at 10:00 a.m. and they would explain the return process. I returned the next day. Then the manager told us she wouldn't give us our money back, $170. They lied about us accepting it and about wanting to get off the boat ourselves. They lied that they have nothing to do with each other, but they sell diving and dolphin trips from the same center, same counter, even to people. They even shared confidential information on a PADI form with the hotel to fabricate a story. We asked the hotel to mediate. They agreed to our position, but the manager of that dive center kept refusing. He suggests an hour of private snorkeling, but we lost trust in that company, and we are not going to enjoy going out to sea with them.

  Feb 27, 2026
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  Magnificent

  Thank you to staff members at Luxury Esmeralda! Came here with my wife and we have no regrets!! You made our vacation amazing and we felt like royalty. Staff were extremely friendly, rooms were kept well and just a beautiful atmosphere all together. It's hard to pick favorite parts as it was all fantastic! Special thanks to Brayan at the Sports Bar! Excellent customer service and knew our order before we even sat down each morning! Carlos and Yamilla for excellent evening service! Alexis the master of pool service and Mango the fire boy for amazing entertainment! We look forward to returning in the future and hope to see you all again!

  Feb 25, 2026