Excellence Punta Cana

My wife and I over the years have visited a few resorts in Punta Cana. The Excellence Punta Cana takes first place. The Excellence Punta Cana exceeded our expectations. From the moment we arrived it was first class treatment. I joined the Excellence club at no cost, and it was a good choice. We had a dedicated check in person Cristina. She took the time to explain all the resort had to offer. I felt like a very special VIP. She helped us make reservations to the French restaurant Chez Isabelle. Unknown to us she informed them my wife, and I were celebrating our anniversary. It was a wonderful dinner and we felt extra special. The resort is clean, the people are very friendly, the restaurants we visited had good service and wonderful food. The bars all featured premium label alcohol. We took advantage of the SPA, and it was worth the money. My wife and I plan to go back again.

What an amazing resort to stay at!!! This was my first stay at an all inclusive resort and I think if I were to go to another one in the future, it will pale in comparison. This place just spoils you from the second you get there until you have to leave. The pools, the beach, the restaurants, the spa, the bars, the staff...everything is top notch. You are treated like royalty every second you are there. Rooms are spacious and well kept. It was weird having the bathtub in the living area, but when on vacation with your spouse, well that just makes things more fun. The nighttime entertainment was really fun and our group planned our activities around show times, they are that fun! So much to do throughout the day if you get tired of hanging out at the pool or the beach. Though I don't know how you can because those are so wonderful and relaxing. This is an adults only resort, so it was nice to be surrounded by kids. Was nice to be able to relax and not have to dodge little ones. Really, this is a great resort that deserves all the great reviews it recieves. You need to go!!!!

Great honeymoon destination; the food is incredibly high quality and really enables you to get the most for your money. The servers at the restaurants, at the pool and everywhere else are wonderful. They love to talk to guests and love to serve their guests. The beaches and pools are very well kept, great atmosphere!

Let me preface this by saying this was our first stay at an all-inclusive resort. In my research, I learned not to expect too much from the food at these places - it can be good but it won't be amazing. My husband and I aren't picky eaters by any means but I will agree, the food was mostly mid. But I'll get to the restaurants in a minute. We stayed at Excellence Punta Cana in a Junior Suite with Private Pool. The resort itself is gorgeous with a lovely beach. The ocean there is fairly rough which meant a red flag (no swimming) most days. The resort's pool runs the length of the resort. The majority of the restaurants and the theatre are closest to the hotel lobby. As we had a private pool, we were waaaay down on the other end of the resort. It wasn't a long walk by any means but it was definitely more quiet. The room itself was large and very clean. It was a little run-down but I think that's to be expected as it isn't a new resort. There were plenty of towels and we were given a bottle of champagne and a small bowl of fruit when we arrived. The minibar was full of bottled water as well as Cokes and orange juice and some snacks. Also included were full bottles of Dominican rum, Johnnie Walker Red and Stoli vodka so you could make your own drinks if you wanted. One thing about the room - it was extremely humid, even with the AC on. Like to the point that the sheets felt a little damp. You can request a dehumidifier; I'm sorry we didn't because the sheets were uncomfortable. The private pool was amazing. I can't swim a lick but I do love floating in the water like a manatee. There were short shrubs around the patio area to give you some privacy, a small table and 2 chairs and a chaise lounge for 2. So, now the restaurants. There are 8 restaurants for dinner, although each one is closed one night per week. For breakfast and lunch, there is the Kitchen Table, which serves a buffet and, for breakfast and dinner, there is the Lobster House. The buffet is big but the food is just okay. My favorite breakfast was at the Lobster House - waffles with bananas and walnuts. For dinners, we ate at the Lobster House, Chez Isabelle and The Grill. At the Lobster House, we had Vietnamese Roll, Clam Chowder and Crispy Shrimp. The Vietnamese Roll was really good but the rest of the food was just okay. Our favorite meal was at Chez Isabelle. I had onion soup and chicken Cordon Bleu and my husband had marinated mussels and the rack of lamb. The desserts were rosemary creme brulee tart and chocolate crepe cake. Everything was amazing. It was definitely the best meal we had there. The most popular restaurant was The Grill, a steakhouse. The steaks were quite large but I didn't think mine was that great, although the mac and cheese they served on the side was tasty. We didn't stay in the Excellence Club so we weren't able to try Magda. There is a dress code but it is pretty relaxed. Chez Isabelle did require men to wear long pants and a collared shirt; please don't be that guy that insists on wearing a baseball cap everywhere you go. We saw two of them there, needless to say. The drinks were very tasty but not strong at all. I'm not a big drinker so usually a margarita gives me a buzz. However, we were tossing back cocktails and there was no buzz going on. We even watched them make the drinks - they were pouring them just fine. We finally got the bright idea to add the rum from our room to the drinks and that made a difference. The service was amazing. There was plenty of staff in all of the restaurants and throughout the resort itself. Everyone was so helpful. They were really working hard. We noticed some of the guests hugging the staff and taking pictures and I thought that was a little weird. It reminded me too much of guys thinking the stripper REALLY likes them. If you want to show your appreciation, tip the staff. Yeah, I know it's all inclusive and the small print says it includes all tips and gratuities but don't be cheap. The folks at the resort really work hard to make sure your stay is memorable, a few dollars won't kill you.

Great atmosphere rooms was great other than I would love the A/C temperature to be set on 65 instead of 68