Ocean Blue & Sand

Ocean Blue & Sand – 5-Star Experience You can always find imperfections if you look for them, but if you focus on what’s great, you’ll have an amazing time - like we did. The Vibe – Day & Night The resort feels completely different from day to night. During the...

Ocean Blue & Sand – 5-Star Experience You can always find imperfections if you look for them, but if you focus on what’s great, you’ll have an amazing time - like we did. The Vibe – Day & Night The resort feels completely different from day to night. During the day, it’s lively with poolside entertainment, beachgoers, and bustling bars. In the evening the whole place is beautifully lit up in a tasteful, calming way. It feels safe, relaxed, and serene, making it perfect for an evening walk or winding down after a day in the sun. Staff & Service The staff work incredibly hard and are always polite, friendly, and respectful. Their warmth and effort really made our stay. You get back what you put in. Tipping – We weren’t entirely sure how tips get distributed, but it’s definitely appreciated. Some guests tipped regularly, others didn’t - it’s really down to what you feel comfortable with. The Beach – Absolutely Stunning! The beach here is breathtaking - soft white sand, turquoise waters and very little seaweed. It's beautifully maintained and never felt overcrowded. Top Tip: Go at sunrise or sunset for the most spectacular photos - the light is magical. Loungers & Shade: Getting a lounger with shade at the beach can be tricky. Many chairs sit empty for hours with towels ‘reserving’ them. It would be tempting to use one and move if someone returned - many stayed vacant all day. Be Cautious: Be wary of slick chaps waving parrots and iguanas - they’ll offer to take a photo, then charge a hefty price. Negotiate first if you’re interested or politely decline. We only had one occasion on the beach where someone tried to sell us drugs - this happened when we wandered away from the hotel. Beach Safety: Flags indicate water conditions - black, red, orange, green. It can get rough with strong currents. There’s a lifeguard stationed, and they are rightly strict, especially at night. Food & Drinks We mainly ate at the buffet, so I can’t comment much on the à la carte restaurants. Breakfast was excellent, with the usual spread - eggs, bacon, hash browns, fruit, cheeses, salads, bagels, waffles, pastries, and more. Top tip: Sit by the windows for a more restaurant-like, personal feel. We loved taking our coffees outside to relax and read afterwards. Drinks: Great selection, but no 0% alcohol beers—this would be a much-appreciated addition as my partner doesn’t drink. Privilege Upgrade? Don’t bother. From what we saw and heard, it’s not worth it. The only noticeable perk was access to the beach café for breakfast and dinner—but you can still have lunch there and sit after 10:30 am. You do also get sun loungers and branded drinks. Only downside? I love eating outside, and the buffet didn’t offer this, though some specialty restaurants did. Beach & Pool Life The sunbed situation was amusing - lots of empty loungers with towels ‘reserved’ on them. Since we weren’t keen on baking in the sun for hours, we based ourselves at the beach café area - shaded, peaceful and empty until midday when people started arriving for lunch. By then we had our spot perfectly chosen, with the bar right on hand. The pools are large, inviting. They even had ducks swimming about occasionally, which was surreal but entertaining. Key Info: Quiet pool bar closes at 6 pm, main pool bar at 7 pm but no one rushes you out. Towel hut closes at 5 pm (some reviews say earlier) and is not obvious on the map - situated on beach front). Worth returning towels the day before departure to avoid any last-minute hassle. Walk inside the apartment buildings for a mostly shaded route across the resort - a real bonus in the heat. Rooms & Facilities We stayed in Block 7, third floor - very quiet, despite the view being of a road and trees. Close to the dining area and a short 5-minute walk to the beach. Things to Note: No lifts - so if mobility is an issue, request a ground-floor room. Room service: Drinks were always topped up. You start with a big water bottle, then get smaller ones on room service days (we had ours cleaned 3 times in 2 weeks). Extra bottles available at bars. Safe: No issues. Mosquitoes: They are definitely around. We got a couple of bites despite precautions and we lathered up with mosquito spray before trips and in the evenings. Keeping the balcony door shut no doubt helped. Getting Around Check-in isn’t fast—expect 40 minutes (we waited 15 mins for a golf cart to take us to our room). You could walk yourself, but they insist you wait. Golf carts constantly zip around - handy for a lift but also something to dodge when walking! Wildlife & Atmosphere The birdlife was a lovely surprise - flamingos, white herons, woodpeckers and plenty of little birds chirping and waiting for crumbs. A few friendly kittens hung around the beach bar and buffet area too. Sales Pitches & Shopping Timeshare reps camp near the buffet, offering "free stuff" that leads to a hard sell - politely declining worked fine. Pop-up stalls selling goods appear a couple of times a week. The sales approach is strong, but if you’re not interested, walking away is easy. The Coffee Shop – A Hidden Gem Loved it! A relaxed space with seating outside and amazing coffee. The banana bread and carrot cake were excellent. WiFi Generally good, but not secure - the network is called Feel The Ocean. Trips Out - Experiences Saona Island – We loved it so much we went twice! Pay extra for a smaller group experience - it’s worth it. Coco Bongo – A nightclub-meets-acrobatic-show with lots of audience participation. We got the Gold Ticket (good if you want seating). It’s a 7 pm to 2:30 am night out! Wouldn’t go again, but great for photos. Evening Buggy Ride – Fun, but the cenote turned into a loud disco, and there wasn’t much time to get changed for dinner. A bit of a hard sell on products, and the "open bar" wasn’t really offered until we were leaving. Tour Tips generally: Expect to be picked up hours before the actual tour starts, as they collect guests from multiple hotels. You still arrive on time - they factor this in and often wait up to 20 mins for guests running late. Final Tips If your departure time is after 12MD checkout time we negotiate to stay on and use the facilities until transfer arrived although had to leave the room. Airport Check-in: Online check-in isn’t always an option, via TUI anyway but don’t stress - you need a physical boarding pass and it’s easy to sort. Re TUI rep - use WhatsApp if you need to reach out as presence in the hotel variable. The Cow: You must get a picture on the cow. No explanation needed! Final Verdict A fantastic stay - warm, welcoming, and truly enjoyable. The beach alone is worth the trip! If you embrace the experience and don’t sweat the small stuff, you’ll love it here. Would absolutely recommend!

Our first time in Punta Cana was amazing! It was the best vacation we have been on as a couple. The food was amazing and the resort had great amenities. Our butler Thomas was very kind, genuine, and helpful and made our trip so much better! Thank you Thomas! We...

Our first time in Punta Cana was amazing! It was the best vacation we have been on as a couple. The food was amazing and the resort had great amenities. Our butler Thomas was very kind, genuine, and helpful and made our trip so much better! Thank you Thomas! We can’t wait to come back!

It was a wonderful experience especially if your butler is Thomas. He made our vacation amazing and unforgettable. I would recommend to get the privilege stay. The room is clean and food was great! Plus the beach. The activities everyday were so fun. We’ll definitely come back.

Had a great time here at the Ocean blue and sands in punta Cana! The food is great even at the buffets and they have a beautiful beach. The rooms are nice and have a lot of space. The bars have great service and the employees are very attentive. Chipijamer...

Had a great time here at the Ocean blue and sands in punta Cana! The food is great even at the buffets and they have a beautiful beach. The rooms are nice and have a lot of space. The bars have great service and the employees are very attentive. Chipijamer is very happy and Ariel has great employees. I would definitely come back and recommend to everyone.

I've never really had to write a bad review but I think people should know this resort is not as good as the reviews make out. Firstly staff can be very rude especially if you've not upgraded to privilege, you seem to be treated as second class which is a...

I've never really had to write a bad review but I think people should know this resort is not as good as the reviews make out. Firstly staff can be very rude especially if you've not upgraded to privilege, you seem to be treated as second class which is a shame. Rooms are quite dated and ours smelt damp, cleanliness definitely had room for improvement. Food really wasn't any thing specially unless you could go to the privilege restaurants where the menus seemed much better, best place for us was the coffee shop. Even tho being quite careful with what we ate my wife was unwell for a few days with sickness and diarrhea which spoilt our last few days. Resort was ok, beach wasn't as nice as some of the neighbouring resorts and you had to have privilege to use the bar/ restaurant there. If I could go back and change I'd definitely pick the Caribe princess deluxe (next door) which we were told was a much better experience by a few other couples we spoke to there. Over all this hotel has been a bad experience for us and we will not be coming back!

The beach is beautiful and the pools are refreshing. Privilege helps with dinner reservations and has access to a bar with higher end drinks but that’s really all it was good for. The room was dated but relatively clean and spacious. The resort felt really safe. Three stars for these...

The beach is beautiful and the pools are refreshing. Privilege helps with dinner reservations and has access to a bar with higher end drinks but that’s really all it was good for. The room was dated but relatively clean and spacious. The resort felt really safe. Three stars for these items. Everything else was just slightly off - not terrible but not good. The food was average at best. Sensai was the best food out of the entire experience but the rest was really mediocre. Service was spotty and we often felt like we were a nuisance/in the way. Multiple times we asked a question and the person just walked away or didn’t acknowledge us. And it wasn’t as though we were asking for a lot - we are the type of people that are self sufficient to a fault unless we absolutely can’t figure something out. But as an example, some of the questions we had were: “Hi our key isn’t working we can’t get into our room”. The rep at privilege guest services didn’t respond and just started talking to someone else who walked in after us. We waited until they were done and asked again with no response. Thinking they might not have heard us we asked once more and rudely, the rep said you need to wait a minute I am working on it. Totally happy to wait we just weren’t even sure if they had heard us. Other questions/things with either no response or a slightly rude response were things like “where do we ask for towels” or “can we leave our bags at check out until our flight” or “I’d like the salad as my side, not the fries.” We joked that it was meal roulette because even if you ordered something, that didn’t mean you were going to get it (and we usually didn’t haha). But it honestly started to feel really uncomfortable to even ask for towels, order drinks/food, etc. When we checked out, there was a balance that weren’t expecting. It took some time for them to figure out what it was for so we basically said it doesn’t matter we’ll just settle up. But this was the first time they were responsive and said they were going to find out so we waited. It turns out it was for 2 drinks we ordered at a restaurant on the first night that weren’t included. We pushed back a bit at that point, which we wouldn’t normally do, but because of our overall experience and the fact that we weren’t told up front about the charge. Their response was “yes they should have told you but you need to pay the balance right now” with no acknowledgement or attempt to make it right. At the end of the day, it’s fine and not about the money, the cost was minimal but we just weren’t told at the restaurant that we would be charged, which is typically what should happen at an all inclusive. We already knew we weren’t going to come here again so we chalked it up to another odd thing about our experience. But had we been on the fence at that point, that check out experience would have definitely been the deciding point in our decision not to return.

Great vacation. The resort is beautiful. They cater to your every need and wish. The staff is friendly, have courtesy, greet you and serve you with a smile everytime. The food was really good. Daniel at the beach/privileged side was awesome. He was very attentive and friendly. Our butler Jhury...

Great vacation. The resort is beautiful. They cater to your every need and wish. The staff is friendly, have courtesy, greet you and serve you with a smile everytime. The food was really good. Daniel at the beach/privileged side was awesome. He was very attentive and friendly. Our butler Jhury Guerra was great, he was a text or phone call away for anything we needed. He checked up on us everyday. The entertainment team makes sure you enjoy yourself all day and night. We travel a few times a year and this has become our new favorite resort. Definitely plan to return.

Rude, 1st day check into privilege at 1:30 told come back around 3 room will be ready(I had some room requests (celebrating our 30 th anniversary)was notified that ain’t happening rudely)came back at 4 room still not ready after arguing/wasting around a hour there finally received a 1st floor old...

Rude, 1st day check into privilege at 1:30 told come back around 3 room will be ready(I had some room requests (celebrating our 30 th anniversary)was notified that ain’t happening rudely)came back at 4 room still not ready after arguing/wasting around a hour there finally received a 1st floor old room with view of a fence.Great way to start also they tell u to find your butler you do not get greeted and shown around like every other resort we have been to over14 times in DR.Privilege club is a waste of money no one checks anything ,so save your hard earned money -pool by beach had 1 bartender during busy party hour waited 20 minutes for a drink..Hopefully day 2 gets better. Also no chairs to be had anywhere beach/pool area…

What a beautiful resort and time away from the snow, where do I start… Check in: We rolled in at 3am, hungry as hell and let me tell ya, no one wants to deal with me when I’m hangry - but the gentleman at overtime the after hours bar open...

What a beautiful resort and time away from the snow, where do I start… Check in: We rolled in at 3am, hungry as hell and let me tell ya, no one wants to deal with me when I’m hangry - but the gentleman at overtime the after hours bar open from 6pm-6am to were more than happy to feed me. Check in (and out) was simple and smooth, surely it was dead at 3am but it was seamless - and the front desk staff were very quick and efficient I can’t imagine a different outcome if busy. Next the food: The non reservation restaurants that we visited were amazing Route 66 had delicious American food, and Macherati had MANY delicious Italian dishes. There’s quite literally no limit to how much food you can order at these restaurants so just know I left STUFFED both times. The reservation only restaurant the we visited was el bodegón which was a ranch/steak house. The mahi mahi was amazing and their steaks were perfectly cooked, I quite literally have no complaints over the food at this resort and that is coming from a VERY picky eater…the buffets were good as well, offering different styles of food each night of the week (American, Italian, Mexican..) Also there is an amazing coffee shop called Mike’s I spent every morning stated there 12/10. The room: I had asked at the front desk if I had one of the updated rooms, sadly he said no.. when I showed up to my room I was still blown away with how neat and modern it was, so in that terms I have no complaints. Had a large shower, jack and jill sinks, 2 extremely large beds that I did not have to fight for bed space with my s/o…10/10 The beach: The beach was lovely. A nice large section with lots of loungers some covered by umbrellas some not, and a section of cabana beds for privilege. There was a beach bar (one for privilege and one for non privileged) so you could easily get drinks from the beach which was nice. The beach was for the most part very clean, had a roped off area for swimming, and was monitored by security. I will say I found if I was up gazing around I would sometimes be caught by unintended eye contact with some of the beach sellers but a swift no gracias lead them on their merry way. I really have no complaints here either. I just want to mention the beach is in NO way eroded, and non existent - when choosing a resort, this almost hindered me away from this resort as I saw multiple reviews stating this but that is not the case at all - see pictures for proof. The pools: There was always something happening around the pool from 11-4. The bartenders at the entertainment pool were so so sooooo lovely. Mizel Mercedes and Willy were such delights I am really going to miss them. The only complaint I have about the pool is that it is a little beat up and missing some pool tiles around the walls and the floors so be careful! The pool entertainment though was so fun.. which leads me to my last mention. Entertainment: Saving best for last - the blue entertainment team. A quick side note, one of my favourite parts of visiting the Dominican Republic amongst other places is the people, these people truly LOVE what they do and you see and feel it all the way throughout the resort. The bartenders, the housekeepers, grounds keeping staff, maintenance, lobby staff, security - literally everyone works so hard and is so happy but most of all I have to mention the entertainment team. These people show up for 12+ hours a day - I know this because I saw it for all 7 days of my stay and they work their butts off. I would even go a little further and say it’s not even work for them, it’s just pure enjoyment of seeing people laugh, have fun and enjoy themselves on vacation. Chippy, chicken legs, miss drama and Mr.911 - there are many more but I was too busy enjoying myself having fun remembering their lovely faces, rather than memorizing all their personable names but all the members of the entertainment team are so SO lovely. From the fun and silly games they put on, to the shows, the dancing, it’s all amazing. I’m pretty shy but each member of this team encourages you to come out of your shell, have fun and enjoy the games and entertainment they provide and I did just that. I felt the memories I made with the entertainment team were so special and personable, getting to really know one another, share things about our home lives, similarities, differences, etc. Mr.911 thank you so much for taking a moment to sit and chat with me and my s/o. I enjoyed getting to know one another, highlight our shared interest, learning more about the Dominican Republic - I really felt like I have a new family at Ocean blue and that is all the staff but specifically the entertainment team. Overall my experience was a positive I really can’t think of anything that was negative other than a few missing pool tiles lol. Please see attached some photos of the resort

Do not expect a 5* resort. This place is lacking in TLC. The service here is shocking, the staff have no interest in any of their guests, unless you are young single and ready to mingle…… The food is blah, do not expect anything like what is promised online. Bland,...

Do not expect a 5* resort. This place is lacking in TLC. The service here is shocking, the staff have no interest in any of their guests, unless you are young single and ready to mingle…… The food is blah, do not expect anything like what is promised online. Bland, cold, tasteless food If you are, or have been a spring breaker, this is the place for you! It’s full of teenagers, drinking too much, fighting around the pool and generally doing what ever they want, we booked the privilege package, always have done with H10, do not bother at this resort!! There are no extra privileges, in fact, I think the staff have been penalising us because we are privilege And as for my so called butler!!…. ELO, where are you??? Shocking just shocking

The hotel itself is pretty good. This is what I would consider a budget resort. This is not a knock on the facility, it’s what we expected for our first trip to the Dominican. The rooms were great. The staff was great and the food was pretty good. The buffet...

The hotel itself is pretty good. This is what I would consider a budget resort. This is not a knock on the facility, it’s what we expected for our first trip to the Dominican. The rooms were great. The staff was great and the food was pretty good. The buffet was adequate, full options. The restaurants were above par in our opinion. The only downfall for the week were the over aggressive venders the resort allowed in to harass the patrons. You had at least 10 tables set up with everybody having the same thing and you couldn’t walk past them without them aggressively coming over and trying to get you to buy their stuff. Keep in mind every table had the same thing. When you’re trying to get to your reservations for dinner and you have a 10 minute window these people were pretty annoying. I’m not talking about the people on the beach trying to sell you stuff …. I’m talking about the people that the resort allowed onto their property right outside. The restaurants Secondly, be prepared to be harassed by timeshare people. Now the resort is going to say these people do not work for them however, their offices are set up on the resort. So before oceans blue or the H 10 people come on saying we don’t have anything to do with those people… You obviously allow it. It would be a great place for a family on a budget had it not been for these inconveniences.

Our holiday experience overall was extremely disappointing. Once we arrived at our hotel -Ocean Blue and Sands- we were not welcomed politely, which I was disgusted at as I had travelled over 10 hours for this holiday. We were pointed in the direction of the ‘Privilege Reception’ to check-in. The...

Our holiday experience overall was extremely disappointing. Once we arrived at our hotel -Ocean Blue and Sands- we were not welcomed politely, which I was disgusted at as I had travelled over 10 hours for this holiday. We were pointed in the direction of the ‘Privilege Reception’ to check-in. The lady who checked us in was miserable (Carolina). She didn’t tell us any information about the hotel, only our room number, and the name of our butler- (Maximo). Maximo was outside of the reception doors so we sat with him to make the dinner reservations for the 10 nights. Except Maximo thought it was more important to contact his other guests via texting and phone calls- whilst we are sat across from him. We had no welcome drink, and the conversation lacked any information regarding the hotel. The room (10121)- what a disgrace. I booked a ‘Junior Suite with a Limited Pool View or Garden View’, except I was at the back of the hotel, on the bottom floor, opposite a brick wall. The bathroom had an awful sewage smell, and the shower/bath was covered in dead flies. The sink are was covered in fake tan and stains. The bed actually had a dead fly in there! I went back to reception and raised my concerns, where I spoke to Carolina, who again was very rude and told me to contact Maximo to sort the room out. I asked for a cleaner to visit our room to clean it again, due to the filth in the bathroom, and she said she would send someone (9pm). After calling and messaging Maximo, there was no reply and it ruined our first night as we were forced to stay in a disgusting room. After trying to make the best of our first night, I visited the ‘Privilege Reception’ again and spoke to a very rude man – (Antarco). He spoke over the top of me constantly, and after me asking if the cleaner had visited, he said “It won’t happen within seconds will it?”. As this was 11pm, I went back to the room and tried to get some rest. I tried to contact Maximo again regarding the room the next day. After being told to come find him, at the opposite end of the hotel, he kept moving and expected us to chase him round a massive hotel. We managed to move on the 3rd day of our holiday at 4pm. The term “butler” is something that is very far away from the description I would give him. Don't waste your money paying for a "butler", there was no communication and a very rude reception. The staff in general- I have never experienced a holiday where every member of staff is rude. I understand they work long days, yet I have paid a lot of money to relax and have a good time. I expect a warm environment, and this is the total opposite to what I received. No staff were attentive with table service, I had a waiter sigh whilst I ordered my breakfast and rolled his eyes, not sure why? The staff were unpleasant and made me feel problematic for wanting a drink. Every meal me and my partner endured, his plate was taken away whilst he was eating. In fact, on the second to last night, he had half of a burger, and chips left on his plate, and whilst he was chewing a mouthful the waiter actually removed his plate. After explaining that he wasn’t finished, the waiter laughed in his face and said, “surely you don’t want the rest?”, not sure what this comment meant but I was disgusted. We were incredibly frustrated at how we have been treated on this holiday. Entertainment is basic and the only positive is the food. There are much nicer resorts to book, and I encourage you to do so.

Upon reading so many positive reviews, we were ecstatic to book our honeymoon with Ocean Blue and Sand but expectations were not met in reality. As it was out Honeymoon, we decided to go for the best we could get. We were privelage, in building 6 and here is an...

Upon reading so many positive reviews, we were ecstatic to book our honeymoon with Ocean Blue and Sand but expectations were not met in reality. As it was out Honeymoon, we decided to go for the best we could get. We were privelage, in building 6 and here is an overview of our stay: Check in: Our flight was delayed but we were assured by our travel agent that our room would be available for when we were scheduled to arrive. We were initially directed to reception which appeared to have their delayed guests organized appropriately, only to be redirected to privelage and have a 3 hour wait for A room. They initially told us to wait a half hour, followed by another half hour, had a 'premium staff member'(aka pushy timeshare rep) show us to breakfast, and then another hour wait after we finished eating. They claimed they changed our room to an 'upgraded' our room for the inconvenience, however we already had the honeymoon suite booked, and we were placed in the suite which had not yet been renovated. The room: One positive is the bed was one of the most comfortable beds I have ever slept on. Our air conditioning never went below 25 during our stay, but as we stayed in the sun most of the trip ( due to limited shade opens) it fortunately still felt cool to us. The frosted pane they have for the bathroom, right beside the toilet, was still relatively see through so let's be real, it was a bit of a romance killer. There was a crack in the shower glass, and the shower drain had been 'repaired' or smashed in in so many ways, that it had sharp edges would would dig into our feet if we accidentally stepped on it while we stood under the initially pressured water stream. The tub on the upper level was a nice touch, and the views were wonderful, but it was a bit irritating that the water temperature was set to straight hot and did not allow for any cold water to come through too. With no ability to regulate the temperature ourselves, the water was scolding therefore we were unable to really enjoy it. The outdoor shower area while again, appeared nice in reviews and theory, it was legitamely an area that had some tiles slapped on a wall, a shower head was put in, and that was it. There were manky old pipes showing along the, the walls, the flooring was sunken, and just overall, nope. The balcony was no different than any normal balcony within an apartment. It had a cheap outdoor patio set with 2 chairs and a table. The backs of the chairs were so low, there was no ability to really 'lounge' in the comfort of our own space. As our location was a sea view room, and in building 6, the white party which is hosted each Wednesday was legitametly right beside us. It was so loud, you could clearly make out everything they were saying, doing and the songs they were playing even with all our doors and blinds closed. Good luck to getting any peace or relaxation before midnight on that night! The entertainment: I appreciated that every day, this resort had something to offer. We enjoyed the pool aerobics, bingo, and the random special events they had as well - the oscars, oceans got talent etc. The blue team is fun and engaging, but considering it isn't a spring breakers resort, why did many of the performances lead to a twerk off not only of the blue team, but for guests of the hotel as well? I was pretty excited for the foam party on Saturday, but the reality was a miniscule amount of foam went into the pool,and the entertainment turned into a 'what lady guests can give the best magical mike impression'. Kudos to the ladies for feeling confident and comfortable enough to shake their asses, but this is meant to be a family friendly resort. It properly gave me the ick, and families beware. Food: We are big foodies, and were stoked to hear how great the food was. While the selection at the buffet was extensive, the food itself was hit or miss. A few things were great, but most of it was tough, cold, and erring on the side of inedible. As the restaurants are all within the same section, I am convinced that leftovers from the buffet are used in each Ala carte restaurant, or vice versa. While it appears you're getting more variety due to selection of restaurants- you're really not. The ribs from the steakhouse are available Thursdays in the buffet and were actually better prepared for the buffet. The beef birria tacos at margaritas are in the buffet on Wednesdays, and again, are better prepared in the buffet. For those who struggled with booking/getting into an ala carte, save your time and taste buds and just go to the buffet. Also, the fact that people are drinking all day, and there are periods of time where food is not available due to transitioning from meals, is not okay. The fact that there is also no option for eating anywhere other than the privelage pool side, and food can't be taken out from buffets, while may helps with cleanliness, is also a joke. Perhaps if you could, more staff would be out and about picking up plates etc along with the numerous empty cups that are often left in the sand and on tables for hours. Privelage: What.a.complete.waste.of.money! We had a butler assigned to us, who we never met during the entirety of our 10 day stay. On the first day we arrived we attempted to get an ala carte set up for our evening meal, and our butler booked it for us 4 days later instead of that evening- what a great welcome that was. Upon checking in and touching base, the team asked us if we were celebrating anything special. They all knew we were there on our honeymoon, but yet do you think anything was done for that? Every day we walked by countless rooms with anniversary and birthday banners etc, and us? Nothing. For 3 out of 10 days, I received an 'ocean news' newsletter, but the rest of the time was radio silence. On our second last day I attempted to reach out to ask for a slightly later check in, only to find out our butler was off, who did end up messaging us way later on his day off to confirm the late check out and to arrange pick up for us which I was appreciative for. However, when check out came, nobody came to our room leading us to carry our luggage down the 3 flights of stairs ourselves, and as nobody was at the conceirge desk, we had to arrange our own pick up, which ended up being just the regular get around trolley. Top shelf liquors were only available at the beach privelage bar (which often had a long line up), and the lobby bar) it really didn't matter to be privelage because if anybody went up asking for it, they'd give it to them anyway. Privelage beach side, and pool side was limited seating, limited shade options, and the 'service' near the pool is nearly non existent. While ONE couple near us were doted on, we received one pool side drink in the 7 hours we stayed there, and when we ordered an afternoon snack of nachos and pizza it took an hour and a half to bring it out. While many people say, 'if you take care of them, they'll take care of you', we were very generous with tipping, we were generous in what we paid for our booking overall (which was really way more than what it was worth), and the service itself was basically non existent. Overall: The premium team who claims not to be timeshare reps are pushy, and incredibly rude if declined. The vendors they allow on the property are shady, and price gauge the guests and pressure them to the point of feeling unsafe. There is no service so do not expect to be pampered so save yourself the trouble and stay with basic if you book as maybe you'd then feel like it's worth what you spent for the trip. The resort it self is relatively clean, but has minimal shade no matter where you go. I will say evenings was when it was most beautiful. Upkeep and maintenance of landscape is great, but everything else seems to fall apart (punta cana sign was not there during our stay, the 'love' sign down the walk way was removed for some unknown reason, and the roof over the bowling lanes collapsed within our ten days, so I can just imagine what else falls apart). The beach is beautiful, but you need to get up with sunrise to get a spot in the shade or a privelage bali bed. Loungers are saved which they aren't supposed to be, but this is i did expect so it is what it is. The loungers are not particularly comfortable or in good shape. Many were broken. The entertainment had one volume setting - loud and obnoxious ( honestly the entertainment was decent, but it would've been great if it was turned down ever so slightly). The piano lounge is wonderful and like it's own little oasis. They tried to overcharge us at check out, so be mindful. It was nice to escape the day to day of working life, and take in the sea breeze and sunshine, but we will not be returning to this resort, or likely any other H10 resort in the future. We are genuinely curious how the hotel is even deemed 4.5 or 5 star on multiple sites. The hotel rating itself, as well as guest ratings paint a really pretty picture, but honestly feels like false advertising. It was not worth what we paid for at all. **to the owner/potential responder of this comment, I do not wish to be acknowledged in the form of 'everybody has their own unique experience and we're sorry we did not meet your expectations during your stay' as that just adds insult to injury. Please just do better, and live up to the praise people seem to give you on these reviews.