Bahia Principe Escape Bouganville +18

“If you’ve read the reviews and feel hesitant, don’t be.”

If you’ve read the reviews and feel hesitant, don’t be. I’m a 40-year-old professional woman who has traveled extensively around the world. This was my third trip to the DR and my 30th country overall. My partner and I ended up booking this resort quickly after our first-choice hotel filled up … more

If you’ve read the reviews and feel hesitant, don’t be. I’m a 40-year-old professional woman who has traveled extensively around the world. This was my third trip to the DR and my 30th country overall. My partner and I ended up booking this resort quickly after our first-choice hotel filled up within a weekend. With ongoing issues in Mexico and limited travel to Cuba, the DR has become incredibly popular, leaving fewer options available. Our criteria was simple: - A small to medium-sized resort - Adults-only - Reasonably priced (this resort was about $1,000 less than comparable adults-only options in the DR and elsewhere) Because we booked in a rush, and after reading the reviews, we went in with very low expectations... Now that we've returned and feel relaxed, rested and recharged, we also feel surprisingly frustrated. Frustrated? Because many of the negative reviews don’t reflect reality. They come across as out of touch and suggest a lack of basic research before booking. Let’s address some of the common complaints: No elevators: The resort has two buildings, each only three floors high. The staircases are short, easy to navigate, and well-placed, so getting to your room is quick from anywhere on the property. If you have mobility concerns, it's your responsibility to choose a resort specifically designed to accommodate your needs. “Bring bug spray”: I brought bug spray and never ended up using it. I got a single bite on the last night—hardly an issue and to be expected when you are outside. Beds are hard: This really comes down to personal preference. The resort uses firmer mattresses, which we found perfectly comfortable. If you prefer softer beds, again, it's your responsibility to choose a resort that can accommodate your needs. The water isn’t clear: That’s true for this part of the island. However, the water is calm and perfectly swimmable. Not every beach in the world has crystal-clear water—that’s just nature. If you are looking for crystal-clear water, it's your responsibility to choose a location that has this. Jellyfish: Yes, they exist—it’s the ocean. There are clear warnings posted. I was stung once, along with a couple of others on the same day, which tells me it was an active day since I went in the ocean every day. The sting felt similar to a mosquito bite. It didn’t ruin anything. We simply moved to the pool, grabbed a drink, and carried on enjoying the day. Dinner reservations: This one is straightforward if you follow instructions. The resort clearly outlines the process in their pre-arrival emails: - Download the app - Log in 10 days before arrival - Book your dinner reservations When my login didn’t work initially, I emailed the hotel and received a response within 24 hours. After that, I logged in, completed my check-in details (which made arrival smoother), and secured reservations for all six nights. I read the information, did as they said, and got what I wanted. It's that simple. A few additional thoughts: - The rooms are excellent. They are clean, spacious, and comfortable (FYI, we stayed on the 3rd floor). - The food was excellent. It offered great variety and quality. - Service was consistently attentive, especially around the pools, with plenty of bars and drink options. - The staff were genuinely warm and welcoming. They are some of the friendliest people we’ve encountered. - There is entertainment during the day and night, but also areas for peace and quiet. A great combination. - The grounds are lovely. Well maintained and lush. It’s also clear the resort is paying attention to feedback. During our last few days, we were asked multiple times how our stay was, how they could improve, and how we’d rate our experience. Our answer was always the same: the trip was fantastic, we had no concerns, and the value for money is hard to beat. Thank you to everyone at the Bahia Principe Bouganville! If you are headed to this hotel in the future, consider yourself lucky.

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“Excellent experience”

The hotel is very private and full of amenities for al ages

“Almost perfect, but not quite.”

Reviews All chimichanga296 entertainment team1,952 beach1,303 jellyfish111 +6 Sort by Most relevant Newest Highest Lowest d j Local Guide·35 reviews·8 photos Vacation | Couple I have lots to say. First of all, the service was excellent as expected. The food was delicious, and there were plenty o… more

Reviews All chimichanga296 entertainment team1,952 beach1,303 jellyfish111 +6 Sort by Most relevant Newest Highest Lowest d j Local Guide·35 reviews·8 photos Vacation | Couple I have lots to say. First of all, the service was excellent as expected. The food was delicious, and there were plenty of options. Maracello from the entertainment department was a highlight for me. He is absolutely hilarious and I hope … More Bahia Principe Escape Bouganville (Owner) 3 days ago Dear guest, Thank you for your sharing that score and for choosing our hotel. We are glad to hear that you had a memorable stay. We look forward to welcoming you again in the future! Warm regards, Guest Relations Department Erin Madore Local Guide·21 reviews·3 photos 2 months ago Bahia Principe Bougainville is absolutely amazing!! Ten out of ten stars!! My partner and I went for 6 nights and it was an ideal resort to relax, have fun, meet new people, eat delicious food and truly recharge!! The service was great; … More ❤️3 Bahia Principe Escape Bouganville (Owner) 2 months ago Dear guest, Thank you for sharing your wonderful 5 star value with us. We are thrilled to hear you had a great time enjoying our restaurants and entertainment offer. We hope to welcome you back soon. Sincerely, Guest Relations Department Kevin Anderson Local Guide·428 reviews·142 photos 2 months ago Vacation | Couple We had a wonderful time. All the staff were very friendly and helpful. The resort was beautiful and well maintained. There are lots of activities to participate in daily if you want or plenty of quiet places to relax if that is desired. The … More Photo 1 in review by Kevin Anderson Photo 2 in review by Kevin Anderson Photo 3 in review by Kevin Anderson 🙏1 Bahia Principe Escape Bouganville (Owner) 2 months ago Dear guest, Thank you for sharing your wonderful 5 star value with us. We are thrilled to hear you had a great time enjoying our restaurants and entertainment offer. We hope to welcome you back soon. Sincerely, Guest Relations Department Jessica Gurka 5 reviews 2 months ago Vacation | Couple From the moment I entered the gates I was amazed, it’s like its own mini village. A cart meets you at the main lobby and takes you to your hotel. All the staff are very welcoming, friendly and helpful. And they have some great entertainment … More ❤️1 Bahia Principe Escape Bouganville (Owner) 2 months ago Dear guest, Thank you for sharing your wonderful 5 star value with us. I have lots to say. First of all, the service was excellent as expected. The food was delicious, and there were plenty of options. Maracello from the entertainment department was a highlight for me. He is absolutely hilarious and I hope this man gets paid well, because we LOVED him. He was "loco" as the entertainment manager described. Everything was clean and maintained and you can tell while walking through the resort that all the staff work VERY hard. The architecture of the resort is beautiful. There were some things that I didn't like. The wifi was not very good. The power went off at times but it did come back on after a few seconds which is good. I knew the water wasn't going to be like Punta Cana, but it was still clean and the beaches were clean. The water not being clear is not the resorts fault so it's ok. Now, there is one thing that I really did not like AT ALL. There was a man in the lobby on the LA Romana side that lured us to him because he said he could get us a free voucher for the gift shop, not knowing that the whole thing was to get us to go to this room for a "presentation" which was for us to become part of the privilege club, to put down money to then get deals on vacations. We had no idea that we would be spending our last day on the resort sitting in a room for 2 hours wasting time while they try to squeeze us for a commission. Not only that, but we had to make a decision NOW. We did not like this at all. My husband ended up falling into it because it was a good deal, but there is no way we were going to be able to make the deal worth it, as we had to be able to use 15 weeks of vacation in the next 5 years, as we want to build a family. We ended up canceling because in the moment it was a lot of pressure (they did this on purpose) and lost $500. I highly urge the staff to kill this practice, because this luring tactic put a very bad taste in my mouth. This never happened to us when we went to Excellence Punta Cana. They take advantage of you being happy and having a good time and being emotionally vulnerable. One more thing I wanted to say (minor) I gave the room a 4 star because the mirror had marks/tears behind the glass and sometimes the fridge wasn't very cold at all. Channels on the tv were mostly spanish speaking so more english speaking channels would have been more ideal and we lost all signal at one point. The bathroom sinks could also use updating. Overall I was very pleased with our stay, so thanks for an awesome vacation. I hope you take my comments into consideration. As a side note, my husband and I were the only people adhering to the dress codes. You should turn people away for looking too casual in a formal restaurant. It was a disgrace.

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“Fun can be in the details!”

Our stay here was delightful but we would have benefitted in knowing a couple of things ahead of time. First - we will never again book with Sunwing - their support was terrible and resulted in our paying double for airplane seats because Sunwing and Westjet do not communicate with each other. Ca… more

Our stay here was delightful but we would have benefitted in knowing a couple of things ahead of time. First - we will never again book with Sunwing - their support was terrible and resulted in our paying double for airplane seats because Sunwing and Westjet do not communicate with each other. Can you believe it? When Westjet changed the planes - we lost our prepaid ($235) and preselected seats (tall ppl who needed extra legroom). Sunwing recommendation was to get other seats from Westjet forcing us to pay again (another $330+). Neither company gave us effective info until we met Carman from Westjet at Calgary airport. Yay Carman who went Way out of her way to help support us! She listened and understood (thankyou) She helped us get exit seats but we still have yet to be reimbursed or acknowledged for the seat booking issues. Ok - that aside - Bouganville was wonderful but the pre-booking a la cart was a waste of time. We downloaded app only to find everything already booked. We contacted support before the trip and they said nothing they could do. Bahai Principe also would not confirm our booking which is a big deal - king bed upper floor, non smoking. So basically we were unsure about everything before the trip started…airline seats?, king bed?, food? Attempts to seek confirmation were all futile. So…. Once getting to the hotel we got everything we wanted with the room and were relieved as there is a big difference sleeping on a queen vs king bed - esp. in tropical climates. We went to guest services at Bouganville about the meals and they suggested we go earlier to the restaurants if the bookings were too late (930pm too late for us for supper) this worked every time! We ate 6pm every night we were booked. We never got to Le Gourmet as it was solid booked but ate at all the others and they were all excellent meals with great service. Really a must to get a change of pace from the buffets, get dressed up and receive wonderful treatment. La Romana is family side and Bouganville is adults only. The shuttle going between the two areas (totally walkable but nice break for sore feet) was fantastic - always available and responsive. We didn’t make it to the casino or Disco at La Romana but heard they were fun. The entertainment crew were great. These young folks worked their butts off to make people smile and participate. Shout out to Carmelo who was wonderful as an aquacize leader and such an outgoing and personable employee. They worked 12 plus hours some nights as they did some evening entertainment events too. The entertainment guests - synthesizer violin and singers we saw were entertaining and free. We tipped our servers regularly $1US per every couple drinks as well as the pool servers at the bars (shout out to Marcius who was always efficient,friendly and made great drinks). Tip: if you have wake-up calls or need baggage transport for the trip home….call and confirm as our wake-up call was late and baggage transport never arrived forcing us to be a bit late for shuttle to airport. Overall we found it to be a fun, beautiful and safe resort.

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