GRAND SIRENIS PUNTA CANA RESORT REVIEW

Planning a trip to Grand Sirenis Punta Cana Resort? Read this review before you book.

In December 2021, I had the chance to travel to the Dominican Republic for the first time. My family and I stayed at the Grand Sirenis Resort, which is a chain of resorts that have many locations all over the Caribbean. This was my first time at an all-inclusive style resort, and I wasn't sure how to feel about this style of vacation before going. I had heard mixed reviews on whether the bargain deals they give you actually are worth it. After this vacation, my thoughts were that although the resort had its issues, which I'll get into, I had a great and relaxing time.

First Impressions

I arrived pretty late on my first night after a mix of many delays - partly Frontier Airlines and partly Cleveland, Ohio winter weather. The first thing I noticed was how far this resort was from Downtown Punta Cana. We were in the car for probably about 45-60 minutes before we got to the resort.

The next thing I noticed was how lovely the entrance and aesthetic of the resort was. This specific resort just went through remodeling, and you could tell. Everything looked clean and very nice.

Another one of my initial thoughts was that the check-in process was very slow. The resort updated all of its looks, but did not use as much technology. Everything was either printed on paper/receipt or coordinated by a concierge instead of the computer.

But overall, the first night was just pure excitement to be in the warm weather and out of the cold. After a long travel day, it would have taken quite a bit for me to be unimpressed.

Food, Beach, Fun

The next days were full of exploring the resort, and what it had to offer. The beaches and pools were extremely well kept. The drinks were delicious and easily accessible due to the eight bars around the resort. The rooms were cleaned well, and there was wonderful live music each night.

One thing that started on this day, and continued through the rest of the time at the resort, was people coming up to us every 15 minutes to try and get us to do an excursion. I would have been okay with this one or two times throughout the day, but it happened at least 30 times and started to affect my time.

The food was so-so, some were great and some were meh. The outside bar close to the beach was probably my favorite for a quick bite. It was much better than the two buffets, and the food felt more fresh. My favorite restaurant was the Tex-Mex restaurant, and I wish I ate there every night for dinner. Reservations were hard to get, and you did not get to pick which restaurant they were for. You had to go to the concierge in order to book them, and this became difficult if yours was gone because you had to use the same one. So, we had to keep going back to check on our reservations multiple times throughout the day, because you could not just walk into the restaurant without one.

Pros and Cons

Pros:

• Beautiful beaches and many pools to swim in.

• Excellent bartenders and waitresses.

• Tex Mex restaurant was amazing.

• Updated hotel rooms.

• Great entertainment and activities each day.

• Everywhere takes USD, so no need to exchange money

• Lots of wildlife all over the resort. I saw peacocks and puppies every single day.

• COVID-19 tests available at the resort, and are included with your stay.

Cons:

• The concierges made it difficult to plan things because they either were gone or insisting on upgrading you.

• The food was inconsistent. Some times it was excellent, while other times I did not want to eat it at all.

• People walking around the beach trying to sell you stuff all day long.

• Restaurant and spa reservations are made on paper, so if you lose your paper it is difficult to redeem it.

• Far from Downtown Punta Cana and airport.

Overall Score: 2.75/5

I think this resort had its positives and negatives, but the resort look itself got it as high of a score as it did. I loved the view and appearance of the resort, but I would not go back.

I had fun during my trip and created a lot of memories with my family. But, along with those memories was added frustration by how the resort was ran. My parents were not able to go to the beach until 2:00 p.m. on the second day after having to run around with the concierges all morning. They met them at 10:00 a.m. and that whole morning was spent trying to get them to buy a time share, make reservations, telling them to come back later for things, etc.

I will say that I would consider other Grand Sirenis locations, because they may not all be ran the same way. So, in the future I may give them another try at a different location to see if my opinion changes.

I think if you choose to stay here, you will have a fun time, but be prepared for the things I mentioned above.