Hotel Puerto Plata Village (Playa Dorada, Dominican Republic)

You should be assured of a warm welcome at the Puerto Plata Village. Most guests find the staff to be very friendly and courteous - helping make your stay as pleasant as possible.

Many guests appreciate the pool area. Not only is the pool itself very nice, there are regular activities going on every day and you can relax with some nice drinks from the pool bar.

The food is thought to be of a relatively good quality for most guests, considering the price paid, with nice bread and fruit selections. As an all-inclusive resort, and not a 5-star one at that, if you don't expect cordon-bleu cuisine or a huge choice you should be quite satisfied.

Built in the late eighties, a lot of guests feel the hotel is stuck in a time-warp and has not been renovated since. They claim it is poorly maintained and the rooms look old. There are several complaints of dysfunctional or broken fittings, particularly in the bathrooms. All in all many guests feel its downward spiral needs to be addressed as a matter of urgency.

Falling into disrepair is one thing, but not cleaning the rooms adequately is pretty unacceptable for many guests. Some find the rooms dirty and sheets left unchanged or foul odors of mould. There are also several reports of insect invasions including unidentified bugs, spiders and cockroaches.

A lot of guests are disappointed that the beach is so far from the hotel - a good ten minute walk. Although the hotel does lay on a regular shuttle bus, many feel it is a needless hassle and some think the beach is not all that great.