We stayed at the Punta Cana Resort and Club from 2/28-3/4.

The property is close to the airport, about 15 minutes. Only paid $15 each way for pvt shuttle to the hotel/back to the airport for me and my husband. Quiet, very relaxing, not much nightlife or activities (this is not the hotel for you if these things are impt in your vac). The room was a good size. We were given a sort of a garden view (bldg next to the gym). They provided 2 bottles of water everyday. The audio portion of the TV was a bit messed up so had to rely on the caption feature of the TV. There were a couple of nights that we did not need AC, but could not enjoy the natural breeze as there were no screen doors to ward off mosquitos/insects (this was not a big problem however as they spray regularly).

The property is pretty vast. We rented a golf cart for one day just to explore the property. Cost was about $35 for 2 per day. Truth is, you don't need the cart unless you are going to the area where the six senses spa is, and even at that, you can always take the shuttle. Most other areas are better enjoyed by foot - beach, the Ranch (not much to see in my opinion), Tortuga Bay (very nice properties), Eco reserve. The beach had white sand and turquoise water, but not very clean, it had a lot of seaweeds. Was a nice walk though with great views.

They have an ecological park with several freshwater lagoons (some you can swim in - very nice, refreshing, swimming with fishes and if lucky, turtles); I didn't care for the hike around the tropical forest, though did it anyway (make sure to use insect repellant prior to the eco tour).

Breakfast at La Cana was good with a variety of American and local fare with local fruits, juice bar for smoothies, plus fantastic view of the beach. You are on your own for lunch and dinner. We brought boxed lunches (tuna/chicken salad with crackers, cookie and fruit cup), so had those for lunch. 2 out of the 5 nights we stayed there, we also ate in with cup o' noodles and spam. Also brought lots of snacks to take to the beach as resort prices are ridiculously expensive. We ate at Franco's Pizzeria (which had more mexican selections than pizza ??), Mama Venezia (Italian) and Bambu (French/Carribean/Mediterranean). Sad to say, all were terrible, both in quality and price. Food was not good at all and were prohibitive. For example, I ordered seafood spaghetti at Mama Venezia ($23) and sauce tasted like it came straight out of a can and seafood consisted of mostly chopped up squid. Bread /bread sticks served was cold and stale (think day or days old bread leftover from breakfast?). Ordered chilean sea bass at Bambu for ($47), for that price, was expecting a good size portion. Instead, it was no more than a 5x2 inch piece. Had to eat some more snacks when I got back to the room. Because of the bad food experience we cancelled our reservation at La Yola, supposedly the best restaurant in the property.

We tried the six senses spa. We tried their steam, signature facial and massage. Nice ambience with soothing music and aroma. My husband and I both enjoyed it, though it is more expensive than back home.

Staff are generally pleasant and try to please, but some are indifferent and do not seem to like their job (eg: people in the activity center, down by the beach where you get towels/rent non-motorized equipment).

All in all, I would still recommend this hotel.
You can use all the facilities (gold club, tortuga bay) even though you are just staying in the Punta Cana hotel.

Among all the resorts and hotels we have visited, the Punta Cana Resort and Hotel is the absolute worst. The general approach at the front desk, concierge, restaurants, and throughout the hotel is one of general disinterest and sometimes rudeness. The simplest of exchanges often become a hassle with hotel staff, few attempts are made to provide any real customer service, and the food is appalling. Some of the apparent rudeness seems to stem from a lack of comprehension, but in many other cases it is a very clear lack of proper customer service ethic. Many staff do not greet visitors warmly and convey a sense that they resent their work and are glad to say "no" as often as possible. When we are told someone will follow up, nothing happens. The fact that an exorbitant service fee is built into the experience is maddening and perhaps explains why there is so little effort to deliver any service. The few exceptions were notable and appreciated but did not outweigh the many frustrating and stressful encounters.

The resort and natural environments are beautiful which makes it a great shame that the experience cannot be a more positive one. However, we would not choose to return to the Punta Cana Resort nor would we recommend the hotel.

Two couples from Atlanta...We scheduled this trip last minute based on maximum beach time in just 4 days of vacation and hoping for above average immenities. It met our expectations and didnt break the bank. We had the 2 bedroom beach casitas for 2 nights and couldnt get any closer to a beautiful beach than these fun nicely equipped cottages on the beach. We dont like all inclusive due to the quality loss in the food and acomidations and this property was a nice choice for us as it has many resturants on property but still allowed us to go off propety to the nice resturants of the area and experice the culture. "Jellyfish "was the resturant we found to be the best. We reccomend this property in just a 3 hour flight from Atlanta and only a 5 minute drive from the airport, we think you would too.

We spent one night at this resort due to weather conditions in Toronto en route from Aruba. Considering the short notice the hotel must have received regarding our arrival, they deserve kudos for their efficient handling of such a large and not necessarily happy group. Check-in was uncomplicated and they had one bar that remained open and the pizza restaurant. This was all inclusive for us.
We were put up in Building 35 or Sumbador. Our room was spacious, clean and immediately cool upon turning on the air conditioning. The bathroom was large, clean and had all the amenities one should expect from a 4*+ property. The only compaint was the lack of hot water in the morning.
The breakfast buffet was included the next morning. It was excellent with fresh juices, fruit, smoothies, made to order omelettes etc.
Check out was efficient as we headed back to airport to continue our journey home.