- Truly magnificent accommodations
- Staff you'd like to take home with you
- Wonderful food variety and quality
- Competent, English-speaking physician on call when your child spikes a 104-degree fever
- Almost impossible to get into the three a la carte restaurants unless you're in Royal Service Suites
- Housekeeping done on "island time"
- Gym too small for resort of this size
- Demand exceeds supply for poolside family huts
- Address: Playas de Bavaro, Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
- Phone: 809-688-5000 or 866-43-MELIA
- Rates: $363-$3,500 per person, all inclusive.
- Dining: Six restaurants (three a la carte), three bars/cafes.
- Spa: Full-service indoor spa with salon, gym, yoga.
- Other amenities: Three pools, beach, watersports, horseback rides, parasailing, golf, tennis, casino, business center.
- Rooms: 554 suites (102 Royal Service Suites) with garden or ocean views
Meticulously kept grounds -- think island landscaping replete with flamingos -- surround the 554 luxury suites. The tastefully decorated rooms all have sitting areas and balconies; the bathrooms, with jacuzzis for two and separate showers with multi-level spray, are the kind we all would die to have at home.
Three contiguous pools wrap around the main building, which is where the lobby (complete with waterfall), casino, game room, theater, and restaurants are located. The latter offer Asian, Italian and continental cuisine. The food was top-rate: the main open dining areas (no reservations required) offered a vast array of items. Beverages are all included.
Miles of beaches with clear warm water cry out to be walked; the resort is located on Bavaro Beach, one of the most popular not only in Punta Cana but in the whole Domincan Republic. Some recreational options, such as parasailing, banana boating and snorkeling adventures, cost extra.
The staff, although mostly non-fluent in English, were lovely and oh-so friendly. The clientele included many Europeans, couples and families, all of whom were very pleasant and cordial.
