Caribbean Holiday Reviews

The private beach is about a 5 minute walk down the hill. The water is a jade color and the sand is grey/black. It is very unique. If you are a water lover you will definitely appreciate this. If you want white sand and see through blue water then simply take a boat taxi from the beach and go towards the left around the bend. It is a full service beach so ask the water taxi guy and go towards the left when leaving the beach at jade

Varadero is still developing. If you try the open top bus ride you will see downtown varadero and will be shocked at the poor state of the housing. It is still a developing country and there is poverty out there. There is a flea market and shopping centres in Varadero but once you've seen one market they are the same the world over. The beaches are lovely and kept clean and tidy the sea is a gorgeuos turquise clolour just like in the brochure. If the weahter is bad ( ie a cuban cold front is a bit like a summers day in UK ) then there is not a lot to do to entertain kiddies. Overall we mainly stayed at the hotel. We did do one local trip in a Jeep Safari which was fun but they tried to cram to much into one day - we did snorkling, swimming in a cave lagoon, speed boat ride up a river with dancing afterwards, lunch at a ranch with horse & bull riding !!

Gran Ventana Hotel is located in Playa Dorada. The sister hotel, Victoria Golf resort and leisure Club is located a short buggy ride away. This is great for returnees to the Gran Ventana as we have the use of the facilities at the Victoria, good if you want a change of scenery or a game of golf. Also we can visit (once a week) the A la carte restaurant which serves excellent food and wine. The resort has its own shopping plaza which has great little stores to buy momentoes of your holiday and a great choice of banks to change your currency from pounds into peso's (always good to haggle your rate of exchange as well) At night, the Plaza closes at 10pm then the local bars in the plaza vacinity open. The area has improved over the years since i visited. It is more welcoming for the visiting holidaymakers and not so much for the locals. We felt very safe as the local police and security officers pace the plaza to make sure there is no trouble. Live bands play in one of the bars. Excellent music and very enjoyable evening was had by all. Definitely recommend a visit to the plaza at night. If you want to catch a taxi ride into the city of Puerto Plata barter for a good price and the local drivers are great in taking you for a tour to the Rum Factory, the Fort and to the museums in Puerto Plata. Worth the money to see how the locals live from day to day and to see the Dominican way of life.

We didn't venture far in all honsety.

- With regards to the service on-board in the Premier Cabin. We didn't recieve a drink until 1.20hrs afer take-off. The Bar and Food Service was done entirely by hand, which took up far too much time and to be honest looked a mess! With a full cabin of nearly 70 peope the crew should have taken a trolley out, i'm not sure if this is First Choice's order of service, but Cabin Crew sliding out from behind the curtain with 7 trays stacked up, serving our dinner from her bossum is not what I would have expected from your 'Premier Cabin'.

same vibe as everywhere else, fabulous, watch the prices of drinks though they can be quite expensive, a little haggle with the souvenir shop owners and craft markets works to get you a good deal

Bavaro is a really beautiful resort, fantastic beach! There isn't a great amount in the 'town' itself, but the hotels are all huge and provide everything you would need.

Beech Pool beech pool Nothing else to do if you dont pay for excursions. Nice beech nice weather nice pool.

All in one compond so did not go out of it as no need. Can use the other Iberostar's in the compound. The trips that are on sale are well run and gets you out to see the country. very friendly and relaxed place to stay.

We wouldn't hesitate to return. The Dominican Republic was really really good, lovely beach and it was really cheap too. Weather was glorious, and the hotel was brilliant!

Christchurch was a brilliant resort. The beach is lovely, the sand is pure white and the sea is a lovely turquoise. There are some really good bars there, lovely cocktails! Some of the local seafood dishes must be tried also!

Stayed in an all inclusive resort and so did not eat out. We did recieve promotional leaflets for a local nightclub and various days out so the option was available. Although the beaches were very nice, they were far too busy. We walked along the beach everyday and it was like walking down the m4!

this was a lovely friendly hotel everything about it was good. I have no complaints atall. The entertainment staff were excellent waiter bar staff etc. all nice and friendly and served you with a smile. An excellent holiday apart from the bad weather we had.

Really loved Playa Dorada. The beach is really nice, sea is clear blue and really warm! Lots fo great cocktails from the beach bars, fresh pineapple and other tropic fruits, yum yum. Best holiday ever, definately!!!!!

We didnt see much of the resort as this was all inclusive it looked very nice from the coach

being all inclusive all activities were included so we didnt leave the hotel

St James beach is amazing, really white sand and the sea is a light blue, looks brilliant in our snaps! It is a really relaxed sort of place, definately for couples! Look forward to hopefully returning next year