Dominican Republic Review, Part 1

So, Frank and I went to the Dominican Republic a couple weeks ago. Here's Part 1 of my review of our trip. First of all, DR is a Latino country in the Caribbean that shares an island w/ Haiti. We didn't have much time, so we left super early Mon. morning & came home super late Thurs. night. We stayed at an all inclusive resort in Puerto Plata, a city on the north end of the island and we flew American, whom we had no problems with - we even got emergency row seating!



Riu Bachata - There are a bunch of buildings throughout the property and we were pleased to have a room in a building that was close to the bar, the pool and the beach! The hotel staff were very friendly and helpful and our room was clean and comfortable. There are liquor dispensers in every room, which was cool, though we didn't take advantage of them.



The pool looked nice, but we didn't use it. The beaches were kept clean and full of lounge chairs w/ restrooms nearby. The beach closest to us was even shady, which pleased this sun fearing girl! The views were amazing!

There are two other Riu properties connected to the Bachata and guests are able to go to all three. On the Bachata property there was a casino where Frank spent too much money on blackjack. :-) Also, there were activities like dart tournament, yoga, dance lessons, etc. every day and shows at night.

There were a couple disappointments. The first day we were there the property was covered with vendors - everyone trying to sell you something - paintings, cigars, jewelry - all up in your face as you're walking to dinner. ugh! So annoying. It must be a once a week thing or something 'cause it was only like that the first day, thankfully.

The worst part of our stay at the Riu Bachata was...the food sucked. Yep, that's right. Sucky food. *sigh* Especially depressing when you're at an all inclusive. There weren't really any options for different places to eat. There was one big dining hall that served breakfast and dinner buffets every day. Then there was a smaller, outdoor dining area w/ a lunch buffet. If you made reservations w/ the maitre' d at breakfast, then you could have a sit down dinner at night. The sit down dinner is held in the lunch dining area and is either "Steak Night" or "Italian Night" depending on the day, as they alternate. We tried both. Both were okay. Better than the buffet, but not amazing at all. The chicken and the fish options were always the way to go, but watch out for bones! For breakfast an omelet and fruit were the only things worthwhile. Very sad.
To end on a good note, the drinks were very tasty! :-)

And now, some pictures.

Frank & I, having just arrived in Puerto Plata and waiting in the van to drive to our hotel.

A view from the van on the way to the hotel.

Lovely view from our hotel.

And of course - Super cool fruit art!