DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 2007

So, back in 2007, we decided to take a trip back to Dominican Republic! It was what I would call a very 'local' trip.  I'm actually from the island, lived there for about 11 years. It's hard for me to go back as just a tourist but we managed to squeeze in a resort towards the end.  Anyway, we stayed all over the island and saw lots of interesting things while visiting family and such.  Living out of a suitcase is not fun! I figured I'd review all of the places we stayed in as some people like to do a little exploring when visiting a foreign country and it may be of some use. I'll break it up into 2 parts for easier reading.  Overall, we stayed for about 10 days and rented an SUV when we arrived at the airport in Santo Domingo.  Now, unless you're a risk taker or have driven there before, I would not recommend it! To me, its pretty scary or maybe I'm just a 'scaredy cat.'  The traffic in Santo Domingo is insane, but once you get out to some of the other cities its a difference of night and day sometimes.  I will begin with Santo Domingo, then Bonao and finally Santiago.  These are 3 very different cities when it comes to the hustle and bustle of everyday life.

Hilton Santo Domingo
Lenght of stay: 1 night
Rating:  ***
We really enjoyed our stay here! It's a fairly new hotel in the Malecon zone of the capital.  Even though, the Malecon is not what it used to be, you can still enjoy a really nice view of the Caribbean from your room.   Like I mentioned, the hotel is new so all of the rooms look very clean and no smell of mold or dampness.  We had dinner at the restaurant, which was
excellent!  We also visited the casino located on the first level.  It's a decent size, several tables, sort of dark however.

Hotel Jaragua
Lenght of stay: 1 night
Rating: **
This hotel is one of the oldest in the country, located in a different section of the Malecon area.  It has been upgraded a few times and they have added new buildings.  Overall, I wasn't very happy with my stay here.  I felt like the carpets needed to be ripped up! It was very musty and damp on the entire floor.  The condition of our room was mediocre.  The restaurant was just ok, as there were barely people eating there, maybe that should have been a sign.  The pool grounds were well taken care of.   We visited the casino which is a very good size, next to the hotel lobby.  If you go in there, hold on to your men ladies! There are a lot of "women" attempting to pick up men in this casino.  It's quite amusing actually. 

Coral Costa Caribe Resort & Casino
Lenght of stay: 2 nights
Rating: **
Our stay at this resort, was supposed to be the 'touristy' part of the trip.  We were supposed to enjoy the sandy beaches of the country for a couple of days before we headed back home.  I knowingly booked this one for the end, to wrap it up on a relaxing note.  It was far from it.   When we first arrived the lobby had about 300 people in it.  It was a Saturday and they allow the locals to stay at the resort at discounted prices.  This was not a good first impression.  Right away, it was obvious to see that they could not handle that amount of people at the same time. 

Our check-in took about 1.5 hours!!   I had originally booked 2 rooms, on the same floor and supposedly next to each other.  That turned out to be a joke because they only had one room under my reservation.  There was  a slight panic because of the amount of people that was checking in, that one of us would be left out!  Well, after arguing for about 30 minutes, they magically found a room.  At first glance, it seemed ok.  Except, the AC did not turn on, the drawers were broken and we found a lovely visitor from the roach family in one of the cabinets. Ummm, no!!!  So, we went back to the main lobby and asked to be moved thinking that this would be virtually impossible.   Surprisingly enough, they had another room that magically appeared.  This one was 'bearable' at best.

Overall, the food was mediocre.  The beach was a very good size, but it did not feel that way with so many people.   Things got interesting at night with everybody looking for something to do.  They had a very large casino and a club which was great.   We certainly, did not have a great experience here but perhaps it would be nice if you stayed during the weekdays? 

          

This wraps up Santo Domingo, up next Santiago and Bonao...