Excellence Punta Cana

Everyone was very friendly and attentive! THe Buffet food coud use improvement, granted it was much better on the NCL Cruise lines!

This resort is fantastic, it is clean, the personnel are friendly, Maria in particular was absolutely wonderful, she was outstanding in service and friendliness and in professionalism her nickname is Nicki Minaj. But she goes by Maria or NIKKI at times. She has made me feel very welcome and I look forward to seeing her again on next visits.

Major drawback was the food service at restaurants. Service was excruciatingly slow 1/2 the time we went to the restaurant. It took up to 2.5 hours to get food one time with the waiter coming by a total of 1 time to fill our water (no other drinks, I had to go to the lobby bar to get them for my group because the waiter was nowhere to be found). This led to two nights where we just ate room service, which was great!

Juan Carlos was the best at the beachfront. The biggest smile, and the kindest heart and always looking out for us.

We booked this resort with club-level access expecting a luxury all-inclusive experience. Visually, the property is beautiful. From a hospitality and operational perspective, this was one of the most frustrating resort experiences we’ve had. The issue wasn’t one isolated bad interaction. It was a consistent pattern: minimal effort, poor hospitality culture, and staff acting inconvenienced by guests. And before management responds with: “We wish you had let us know so we could improve your stay…” We did. Multiple times. We repeatedly called about the room issues. Staff kept sending someone to “repair” things, but after the second complaint there should have been an offer to move rooms. That never happened. ⸻ Resort Grounds & Atmosphere — 4/5 The property itself is genuinely beautiful: * spacious grounds, * lots of seating, * beautiful breeze, * relaxing layout, * gorgeous beach views. That’s what makes the rest of the experience so disappointing. The resort looks luxury online and in person. The ocean was rough and mostly unswimmable during our stay, but still visually stunning. ⸻ Room Experience — 2.5/5 The room immediately had issues: * mildew/humidity smell, * weak AC, * tub that only produced hot water. The AC system was one of the worst parts of the stay. The resort uses a key-card occupancy setup. If one person leaves the room with the key card, the system assumes everyone left — even if another person is still inside. When that happens: * the lights shut off, * the AC shuts off, * and you’re left sitting in a dark, warming room until you physically move around enough for the system to reactivate. This became especially frustrating when: * trying to nap, * relaxing quietly, * or using the tub. The second issue is that when both guests leave the room, the AC completely shuts down. In a tropical climate, this means the room never maintains a comfortable baseline temperature. Every time we returned, the AC was struggling to cool the room back down from the accumulated heat and humidity. Combined with the mildew smell and weak cooling performance overall, the room rarely felt consistently comfortable. And again: we repeatedly reported these issues. Someone would come “fix” it. Nothing changed. At no point did anyone proactively offer a room move. That says a lot about how this resort handles guest recovery. ⸻ Food — 2/5 The food situation honestly felt absurd at times. Not “small portions by American standards.” Objectively tiny portions. Examples: * Shrimp cocktail = four tiny shrimp * Side of asparagus = literally two asparagus spears The entire resort gave off the feeling that food was being rationed. Any time we ordered appetizers, desserts, or additional items, staff acted inconvenienced. Multiple employees repeatedly said: “Well, you paid for it.” Which came across passive-aggressive and uncomfortable at an all-inclusive resort. Food quality was also disappointing: * Oregano was nearly inedible one evening * No gluten-free pasta available * Las Olas felt cafeteria-quality at best * Buffet lacked flavor almost entirely * Even the fruit tasted underripe The steakhouse was the only consistently decent meal we had. Magna (club level) was okay, but even that was only around a 3/5. ⸻ Drinks — 2/5 The drinks were another major letdown. Most cocktails tasted: * overloaded with sweeteners, * artificial, * made with cheap liquor, * and nothing resembled the actual drink ordered. They couldn’t even properly make an Old Fashioned at the steakhouse. Ironically, the bartenders at the club-level bar openly joked that the other bars around the resort were “amateur.” At a luxury all-inclusive, decent cocktails should not require a paid upgrade. ⸻ Hospitality & Service — 1.5/5 This was the weakest part of the entire resort. The only standout employees were: * the omelette station staff, * our housekeeper, * a newer bartender, * and a sports bar waiter who accommodated my shellfish allergy. Those employees were excellent. Unfortunately, almost everyone else ranged from disengaged to openly rude. The overall vibe from staff was: * don’t ask questions, * don’t request extras, * figure it out yourself. Nobody proactively explained amenities. Nobody went out of their way to help. Everything felt reluctant and transactional. Examples: * We later discovered some guests were receiving poolside food service that was never once offered to us * We were told coconuts were unavailable, then immediately saw other guests receiving them * Concierge argued with us over airport transfer timing instead of simply accommodating our preference * Staff regularly avoided eye contact or engagement The coffee shop was honestly the clearest example of the resort’s hospitality problem. We visited multiple times daily. We tipped consistently. The staff never once became warm or welcoming. The atmosphere felt heavy, irritated, and uncomfortable every single visit. We also overheard staff speaking negatively about guests in Spanish, and several employees openly discussed how underpaid they felt, which created an uncomfortable atmosphere overall. ⸻ Language & Pricing Concerns We also noticed noticeably better treatment when speaking Spanish. Example: * My husband purchased a cigar for $45 USD * The next day I purchased the exact same cigar for $30 USD while speaking Spanish That should never happen at a resort shop. ⸻ Pool, Beach & Security Concerns What looked like concierge kiosks near the beach were often just excursion sales stations. People also walked the beach pressuring guests into taking photos with parrots and lizards. Combined with the resort’s “leave belongings at your own risk” signs and lack of lockers/storage near the pool or beach, it made relaxing difficult. ⸻ Entertainment The entertainment felt very cheesy cruise-ship style. The resort also markets itself as having multiple entertainment/nightlife spaces, but most activities happen in one shared common area: * bingo, * trivia, * karaoke, * dancing, * shows. Operationally, the resort feels much smaller and less premium than advertised. ⸻ Final Thoughts This resort has the appearance of luxury without the hospitality culture to support it. The issue wasn’t one bad meal or one rude employee. It was the constant feeling that guests were inconveniencing the staff simply by existing. We left feeling tolerated instead of welcomed.